Beaded flowers

What happens when you take some size 6 beads and some 0.3mm beading wire?

In my case, this is what happens.

About 30 simple beaded flowers for a bead-bombing display at The Bead Shop Nottingham.

beaded ornament

I only have one photo to show you of the beaded ornament I made.  I took about 10 but they all came out really badly.

This is the Georgian Bauble from Spellbound Festive Beading by Julie Ashford.  I've had the book a while, but always thought it was a bit hard, now was the time to try.  The bauble is 40mm so it's pretty small. I used size 11/0 and size 8/0 seed beads along with bugle beads and crystals.  

I'm really chuffed with how it turned out and it looks great on our over-crowded Christmas tree!

Speaking of which, I'd like to wish all of you who celebrate it a very merry Christmas and a happy new year to all!

I'll be back on Boxing Day with more crafty stuff.

peyote triangle

A few weeks ago I went to another jewellery class at The Bead Shop Nottingham.  The class was Peyote Triangles, another kind of beadweaving.

About 3 minutes into the class I realised I already knew how to do this technique, I'd done peyote triangles with Delica beads for my beaded box.  No matter, I love the classes there, we had fun and I did learn how to bead a bail.

We did both sides differently.  The class samples were done in stripes, using just two colours, but I went for three for a more graduated effect.  I have to say, it looks much better in person, beads are so hard to photograph successfully. 

I did the same on the back, using the same bronze coloured beads with a shiny blue and a matt blue.  I'm really chuffed with it!

And it's very diddy!  I just need to string it now to sit as a pendant.  Hopefully I'll have time to make some of the ideas I formed in the class, smaller triangles, linked together...

Diddy little tiny petite box

Before I start, I just wanted to say hello to my new readers.  Wendy, I am unable to reply to you as you are a no-reply blogger and when I clicked on your name to take me to your blog, it came up with an empty Google + page.  For those of you that don't know, if you join Google+, you become a no-reply blogger and no-one can find your blog!  If you've left me a message and I haven't replied, it's because I can't find you.

Anyway, good morning ladies.  I have a quadruple whammy for you today!  I have completed another item from my Wipocalypse list, I have completed a project for my Craft Book Challenge, I have an item to link to Fiona's New To Me in 2013 linky AND I have something to enter for Craftbuds Craft Book Month!

Today's project came from Little Beaded Boxes by Julia S. Pretl.  Little yes, easy? NO!  I had numerous problems with this little beaded box, unfortunately I didn't think to take photos until near the end.  You start with the base, no problem.  Then there's the sides, also no problem.  Then you get to the hem.  Now, the instructions are not very clear at all.  I completed the sides and then attempted to make the hem.  After I'd ripped it out for the third time as it clearly wasn't right, I realised that you didn't complete the sides, you left 2 rows undone, then made the hem, then came back to the sides.

It was also at this point I realised I didn't have enough white beads.  The pattern calls for Miyuki Delicas in size 11 which I'd been using.  They fit together perfectly.  I got on Ebay and ordered a load more.  Except I didn't.  I ordered Miyuki beads, not Delicas.  I blame Ebay as I'd searched for Delicas so what was it doing putting non-Delicas in the results?  After beading 3 rows of hem, I realised it wasn't right.  I dispatched Mr CA to the Bead Shop to buy more Delicas.

See the difference?  The ones on the left are Miyuki sead beads and they're round.  The ones on the right are Miyuki Delicas and they're tubular.

Fourth time lucky and I completed the box.  The author says the hem is the most important part of the box, yet her instructions for that part are rubbish.  The rest of the instructions are good though and the little boxes are lovely.

Wondering what this hem I keep harping on about is?  See below, see the rope like rows of beads at the top?  That's the hem  It's to stop the sides flopping so much and to give something for the lid to sit on. 

The beading is done using a beading needle and Fireline, a clear plastic thread that is very durable.  The actual beading is very relaxing, I enjoyed most of this box, just not the whole hem-debacle which took me about 4 days!  Overall it took 2 weeks to make this, but that's evenings only, after work for an hour or so, and half that time was probably unpicking!

To be honest, I amazed myself with my patience.  I'd like to think the next box will be easier as I now understand the hem.  Next box?  Yep, I know I'm crazy but I want to make another.  I just have to buy some Delicas and find a bead weaving use for all the Miyuki seed beads I bought!

The finials and the feet are made with ordinary beads and I chose these crackle-effect ones from  my stash.  They have a ring of seed beads around them and I did get to use the Miyuki ones as it called for round seed beads!

This box is very diddy.  I'm not sure what I'll use it for, maybe nothing.  Maybe it will just sit on the mantelpiece and remind me I do have some patience.  Oh, I haven't explained the "little".  It's 2" across and 2" high.  Yep, tiny.

If you want to see more of the projects I've completed from Craft Books, hop over to my Craft Book Challenge page where I've listed my 174 (yep, I know!) craft books.  Next to each one, if I've completed a project from it I have listed it and most of those are clickable to see the blog post.  

Now to find something non-beading to do!

Looming

Good morning ladies.  I have a rather unexpected finish from my Wipocalypse list to show you today!  I went to another bead class at The Bead Shop Nottingham on Saturday.  We had block booked our classes for the rest of the year and I didn't know which one this was.  It turned out to be ... #44 - Bead Loom from my WIP list.

It was on my list as I'd been given a loom about 10 years ago which I've never used.  I never will. We used the new breed of looms in the class and there's no way I'm trying my old school one.  

photo source The Bead Shop Nottingham

I have had to steal the above photo from the website as I didn't take one. I was going to buy the loom (it's only £5.50 if anyone is interested) but mum had already bought one, but didn't finish her bracelet in the class, so bought the one she was using too and I've got to go over and collect one of the two looms from her.  

Want to see what I made?

Steph, the tutor, had provided us with 4 designs to use and I chose this chevron one.  I finished quite quickly and designed a few more whilst I was waiting for the rest of the class to finish.  I'm looking forward to getting on that.

Using a bead loom may look tricky and it is a bit fiddly to start with, but once you've completed a few rows, it's easy.  The only hard part is getting the beads in the right order to follow the pattern!

I really enjoyed this class and think I might just have to nip over to mum's tonight to collect my loom!  I'll take some in progress shots when I get going to show you how it's done.

  

Joining in with New to Me in 2013 at Fiona's blog. 

moooo

Good morning ladies.  I am so glad it's finally the weekend, it's been one hell of a week and a budding migraine at work yesterday didn't help much.  I killed it off with my tablets but they make me feel really strange and quite ill, so it still wasn't a pleasant, fun day.  Oh, hang on, I was at work, so it wouldn't have been anyway...

Look what I got in the post!  It came from Homecrafts who sent me the stag's head for free if I would agree to decorate it.  Apologies for the above photo, we have some serious lighting issues in our house!

The first step was to paint the head white so the brown wouldn't show through.  I took him out to sit on the bench and the bunnies were rather bemused.

A couple of sheets of decopatch paper and some decopatch glue later and he became a she!  I suppose he could be a rather camp stag, but to me he looks like a girl.  I have just realised that girls don't have antlers.  Oh dear.  Or rather oh deer.

It was really tricky getting a need line where the antlers and head meet.  I didn't get them level but then I remembered I was planning on sewing her/him/it a sunhat anyway!

It was a nightmare of construction, but take 3 worked OK!  I added a beaded daisy I made ages ago, it was the perfect match.

The head and antlers are decopatched, this is where you tear up strips of the special thin paper and glue them on randomly, but the ears are all one piece.  I cut the piece to size with the intention of decopatching over it, but using the shape to make a nice edge.  When it was in place, I liked how it looked so I left it.

I finished her off with a broderie anglais collar, perfect for the dreaded v-word look that she seems to be sporting.  I can't stand the v-word.  It's not really a style that's to my taste, but that wouldn't be a problem if the v-word wasn't so overused!  It seems anything can be v-word these days, even if you bought it yesterday.

It was at this point that I decided she looks like a cow.  I know, cows don't have antlers, but then neither do girl-deer.  She's special.  In all senses of the word.  Look how she's giving you the eye...

Thanks Homecrafts, I really enjoyed this slightly-daft project, you can't beat slightly-daft, can you?  You can see what the other bloggers did with their deer heads on the Homecrafts blog.

procastinate no more

I like lists.   I have a book full of lists.  To-do lists, to buy lists, craft lists, you name it, I've got a list for it.  I love to cross things off my lists.  What I don't like is when I've crossed something off my list and then I need to go back to it.  These things tend to sit unmended/unaltered for a very long time.  This Easter weekend I decided to put a stop to it!

A fairly recent addition to the "things that need mending or finishing" list is the beaded scarf I made back in March.  Day 1 of wearing it saw a line of beads falling out.  It sat on the table for a while until I decided enough was enough.  I fixed the broken line and put blobs of invisible jewellery glue on each and every intersection.  It took me about 30 minutes in total.  Done!

Number 2 wasn't something I'd made, but it did need sewing.  It was a skirt where the hem had come down.  I think it happened about this time last year.

It was occupying its own little space on my sewing room sofa, so I tackled it.  I didn't even need to sew the whole hem, I tacked the inside hems to each other with a few little hand stitches.  Took me all of about 3 minutes, and most of that was me trying to thread the needle.  Done!

The next item on the list is also the one that's been sitting on the arm of my sewing room sofa (you're right if you're getting the impression there's nowhere to actually sit on this sofa!) for the longest.  This framed cross stitch was finished in August 2010.  It was a kit by Heritage Crafts of a couple dancing the Tango, originally painted by John Clayton.  I'm currently working on the second one I have and there is a third waiting in the wings.  It just needed framing.  I bought the frames about a year ago.

Using double thread I laced the bag to keep it taught.  I then couldn't get it in the frame as it was too thick.  Luckily Mr CA is quite good at things like that.  It's now hanging in the hall.  That was a 20 minute job.  Done!

Then there was the hat, this hasn't actually been on the list for long.  I thought it was two short and needed a few extra rows.  In the end 1 was enough though I couldn't help myself and added a flower!  The extra row took 10 minutes.  Done!

Finally, the house number mosaic just needed a coat of varnish so it can be hung outside.  Technically this still isn't finished as it hasn't been hung.  That might take a while as I need Mr CA to do it and he's a bigger procrastinator than me!  I didn't take a picture of this as it's just a piece of wood with varnish on it!

Unstalling a stalled project

#11 on the Massive WIP list stalled last year.  I'd bought a necklace kit from Spellbound Beads (LOVE their stuff) at the NEC a year or so ago.  I got the bits out and started by making the elements using bead cones and headpins with seed beads.  I messed a couple of them up, cut them too short.  Not to worry, I've got loads of headpins.  Ah.  Seed beads don't fit on my headpins.  I did a bit of online shopping and ordered some more, they were also too thick.  Finally, I bought a pack of headpins from Spellbound Beads at the NEC last year, 2012, not the show I went to last week.  

The headpins were put with the kit and it all sat on a shelf until two weekends ago.  What is it that suddenly makes me want to work on a particular thing?  Why leave it all that time untouched, then really want to make it?  Who knows.  So, I got all the bits out again and laid them out on my bead mat.

I thought I'd begin with the headpins.  I have a clear memory of completing half the beading before undoing it.  Why I did that, I have no memory.  It certainly wasn't lack of headpins, all the cone elements were made and ready!  Now I'm really confused - if I didn't need the headpins, why did the project stall?  Did I misread the instructions and think I needed more?  Why did I do half the beading and then undo it?  I will never know.

I completed most of the necklace that weekend, all that needed doing was the stringing on of the final 10 silver beads, a calotte and the clasp attaching.  It sat on the table for a week, then moved to the sideboard.  Why?  No idea.  

And then, and then, I finished it!  Just picked it up and did it.  I closed that calotte (a kind of crimp that you use on the end of beading thread or wire to hold it tight) and snapped the thread.  Marvellous.  I had to strip it down 4 leaves from the end to tie on a new thread before re-stringing it and adding the calotte.  Phew.

I'm not sure if you can make it out, but the calotte is the round silver thing next to the clasp, on both ends.  The main part of this necklace was made up of basic seed bead stringing, then forming some loops for leaves, it wasn't difficult at all.  I really like the effect, it looks dainty and delicate, hopefully it's not too delicate as I am Mrs Clumsy.  

#11 completed!  

Les fleurs des perles

Oui, oui, cette poste et en français aujourd'hui... or maybe not, I spend all week speaking French and need a break at weekends!  It does concern something French though - French Beaded flowers. 

I recently signed up to write reviews of craft books.  I mean, I have hundreds of the things, so I might as well pass on some opinions to those of you who might occassionally buy craft books (or be a hoarder-in-training like me). 

I was contacted by Vive Books who have a small but expanding range of craft e-books, downloadable from the site through this link.  The books are available for immediate download after payment.  I will tell you right now at the beginning that I was given a free download in exchange for a review, however all opinions are mine, I was not told what to say.

 

I reviewed Bead Flowers and Wedding Bouquets by Katie Dean.  The file is pretty big but the download didn't take long.  The book is interactive, which means that you can click on the various links in the pages to go to that page.  For example, I was in the "gerbera" section.  I was told to use a certain technique - if I clicked on the name of that technique, I was taken to the page of the book dealing explaining it.  Very useful in an electronic book like this. Each technique also has a video to watch to take you through the steps.  I didn't make use of this feature as I have no sound on my computer!

 

I'm going to get the negatives out of the way first.  Firstly, French beaded flowers are made from seed beads, little tiny seed beads.  I took the Gerbera instructions to the bead shop to buy the relevant supplies.  I was told I needed 1876 of colour 1.  Hmmm, I've never seen seed beads sold by quantity, it's always done by weight so this was not helpful.  I guessed.  I was then told to string half those beads onto the wire - I have a full time job so didn't have time to count out 938 seed beads!  Instead I counted out 100, measured them in my thimble and poured out that amount 10 times.  Incidentally, I did a rough calculation and 1g is roughly 125 size 11 beads...

 

The picture above shows my measuring cup and the stringing process.  1000 beads is quite a lot!

 

Counting issues over, I got to work.  Making the flower wasn't hard, it was a little fiddly at times, but stringing the petals was easy enough.  The hardest part was stringing all those beads onto the wire, that took a couple of hours in total.  I perfected a kind of poke-the-wire-at-the-beads-and-hope-they-jump-on approach which works until you're down to a couple of hundred.  I have, however, invested in a bead spinner which should arrive before I try the next flower on my list.

This is the gerbera, and as you can see it's made from two layers of outer petals, 2 layers of inner petals and a black centre.  Colour choice plays a big part in this craft, I didn't have much choice as I was buying from a shop, next time I'll buy online and have a much wider choice.  The outer petals should be a lighter version of the inner petals (not the centre, that's black), but I think my shades of purple were a little too similar.

Not the best photo as I seem to have moved the petals when I put it down, but I wanted to show you the stem which is bound in florist tape.  I think I'd strengthen the stem more next time.  And there will be a next time.  I want to try more of the projects in the book, and possibly make them into a bouquet to display in a vase.

The bouquets shown in the book are simply stunning, the instructions are excellent, very easy to follow and have step by step diagrams which help no end.

I'd give this book 10 out of 10, I think the only think I'd baulk at is the price.  This particular book is priced at £17 which seems a lot to me for an e-book.  You do have the facility on the website to download a sample though, so you can see what you're getting before you pay.  To download a sample of this book, go here.

Other book topics covered are Cardmaking, Beadwork, Quilting and Applique, Cross Stitch and Embroidery, Sewing, Cooking and, rather incongruously, African Drumming.  You can browse the categories here.

Thanks for all the help on my last post.  This issue is now fixed.  I had tried sewing again, but it just wasn't working.  An over night break followed by a rethreading seemed to do the trick.

 

Beading a Fringe

Remember the red scarf which I couldn't photograph properly?  Well here it is again, still not the correct colour!  So why am I showing you again?  Because I've added a beaded fringe to it.

I was going to use a pattern from The Beaded Edge 2 - a truly beautiful book with gorgeous crocheted and beaded edgings that I got for my birthday.  Alas, it may have to stay a gorgeous book as I could not make head nor tale of the instructions.  Instead I used a pattern from Simple Glass Beading by Dorothy Wood.

As this is part of my craft book challenge, I can also link up over at Heart of Charnwood who's doing a monthly Craft Book Challenge too.  If you want to join in too, and be in the running for the prize, simply complete a project from a craft book and link up, see the post here for all the details.

You can just see a strip of the fabric at the top, and that is probably the truest colour.  I used a selection of different shades of red seed beads, sizes 10 and 11, some white pearls, clear AB crystals and some lovely opaque drops I bought a while ago by mistake and had no idea how to use. The whole fringe was beading using nymo thread and a beading needle.

It took me HOURS.  Really, I didn't think it would take that long, but it did.  One issue I had with the pattern was that no photos were shown of the side of the fringe, so when I got to the bottom bead vertically (the fourth bead at that time), I really couldn't see where to go.  I did figure it out but not until I'd added 2 extra rows and done half the fringe.  It's staying as it is!

Well ladies, I finished the scarf last week and work something red the very next day so I could wear it to work.  Around lunchtime I noticed a long thread hanging off one of the fringes, an entire row had dropped out!  I had a quick scout round the office and there are tiny red beads everywhere!  It's now sitting waiting for me to fix it.  I'll rethread the row that dropped out, then I'm going to put dobs of beading glue on each join, I don't want the whole thing falling off!!

snowflake beading

Good morning ladies!  Did you know, it's nearly Christmas?  I've only just found out, can't believe no-one told me.  I haven't finished making my christmas cards, let alone sending them, in the couple of days since I found out, I have manage to do half my shopping online so the going is good!

You would have thought I'd have been alerted to the upcoming festivities when I went to a snowflake beading class at The Bead Shop Nottingham, but apparently not.

Me and my wonderful mum were the only attendees, and we soon learnt how to whip up these little babies.   The one in the photo above is made from Szwarovski zillions so it reflects the light beautifully, something my amateuristic photography completely failed to capture.  Imagination is key here ladies!

When I got home, I whipped up a couple more.  Now, I was going to buy the zillions, but at 10p each and with each snowflake needing 36, that would have been pretty expensive, although beautiful.  I compromised and bought some Czech firepolished glass faceted beads, also very pretty though not quite Szwarovski league!

The next day I had an order on Folksy (bearing in mind I get about 4 a year), so I put one of these snowflakes in the parcel as a little free gift.

The next day I had another order, so I added a snowflake to that parcel too.  2 were claimed by my mother in law which left me with just the original one left.  I want to add them to Christmas parcels so last night I sat down and started making a third.  Guess what?  This morning I had another order!  (I'd also like to point out that 2 days ago I had ANOTHER order, but from the same lovely lady who'd ordered the baby hat, she was so pleased with it!).

So that's 4 Folksy orders, on top of 1 from a friend, 1 from the father-in-law and 2 from the wonderful mum in just a few days...  I think it's down to the snowflakes.

The only problem is, now I know, it won't work. 

p.s. it did work... just had another order!