Top 5 Beading Pet Peeves

Everyone has at least a few pet peeves. Even the usually-relaxing world of beading is not immune to the effects of irritation. A pet peeve is a thing that annoys you every time, which you inevitably love to complain about. It’s as human as our fascination with tiny bits of colored glass. Although each of us has our own unique list of favorite annoyances, many of them are common; most likely because it doesn’t matter how calm or reasonable you are – some things are just really annoying. These are my personal beading pet peeves, which I’m sure I share with many other beaders, too!

1. Broken Beads

There are so many reasons that a broken bead is beyond infuriating. First of all, it usually happens while weaving in thread, which means that the break is miles away from where you’ve added the most recent stitches, and it would take ages to undo all of your work to remove the offending bead and replace it. With some techniques it’s okay to lose a bead here and there, but for most it’s super obvious that there’s a gap in the pattern. A broken bead can ruin hours and hours of work.

There's no "good" way to fix a broken bead like this.

The worst thing about broken beads is that they’re usually 100% our fault. We know that the bead holes are getting full because we can feel it as we try to pull the needle through to weave in a tail thread. And yet, we ignore that little voice telling us to put on a size 13 needle just to be safe, and instead try to force the needle until we hear the telltale crunch of exploding glass.

2. Kinky Peyote Thread

If you’ve worked with peyote stitch much, you may have noticed that it plays havoc with beading threads. Fireline is particularly susceptible to the twisting, kinky mess that results after so many rows of peyote. The thread closest to the beadwork gets twisted tighter and tighter with each new row, causing it to coil in on itself and making every stitch take longer than usual. The tighter your tension, the kinkier the thread gets.

At this point it's like trying to bead with straw.

I generally work with a wingspan of thread for every technique and project, but many years ago I started using no more than one arm’s length for nearly anything involving peyote stitch. Shorter lengths of thread don’t get as kinky to begin with, and it means less time until a fresh, untwisted thread is needed.

3. Surprise Bead Coatings

Has this ever happened to you? You’re browsing a bead shop online and spot a new bead color that you simply must have. You read the description carefully and everything seems great. You order the beads and wait for them to arrive, imagining all of the designs that you’ll make with them. The box arrives and you rip it open, only to discover that the color you liked so much is just a coating that is already starting to flake around the bead holes.

Do you really want to hurt me, coated beads?

Material quality is extremely important to me, and I always try to use the best beads in my designs. I intentionally avoid beads that aren’t going to stand up to the normal wear-and-tear of jewelry, and I rely a lot on product descriptions to know what I’m buying. It’s super annoying when essential details like color coatings are left out, especially because the colors are usually so awesome.

4. Spills

I drop things. Sometimes my hands just go on vacation from my brain and the next thing I know, there are beads (or coffee, or spaghetti sauce) everywhere. Sometimes it’s a container of recently decanted beads that I drop. Sometimes I drop something else into my workspace after setting up a project and there’s a bead explosion. Fortunately this usually only happens to beads in the vicinity of my bead tray, so most of the spill is contained within my workspace anyway. I can clean up some of the mess as I stitch, and scoop up the rest when a project is complete.

This is what happens when you drop your camera on a pile of beads.

The worst kinds of spills are those that turn a few lovely beads into a gigantic bead soup. Most beaders have experienced this at least once, and a lot of bead sellers have, too. We even have a name for the resulting mixture: broom beads. I had quite a few major bead spills before I started beadweaving full time, which is why I never, ever, ever, ever, store beads loose. Especially seed beads. They all stay in their little packets and tubes where they can’t cause any trouble.

This is what broom beads would look like - if I didn't keep my seed beads locked up tight.

5. Having to Start a New Thread With Only a Centimeter To Go

There’s no short quip that quite describes this pet peeve, yet it happens all the time. You’re weaving away, getting close the end of a piece of beadwork, and realize that your thread is going to be too short to finish. You’re going to have to cut a new thread, put on a stop bead, and weave it into place - all for just a centimeter or two of beadwork. And you can’t just cut a short piece of thread, oh no. You have to use a full length because if you try to gauge how much you need to finish, you’ll only come up short again and have to add ANOTHER thread.

The Preciousssss...

Working exclusively with Fireline for so many years has made me very stingy with thread. Every time I have to toss a tail that’s not short enough to truly be garbage, but not long enough to be of any possible use, I cringe. Trying to make the most of expensive threads is a constant source of beading anxiety. But I love my Fireline, and in the end it’s worth it.

What are your biggest beading pet peeves?

Mortira

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Copyright 2016 Inspirational Beading

February Bead Stash Favorites

I haven’t yet been able to shake my very serious case of beader’s block, so I’ve been searching for ways to spark some new inspirations. I started by looking through my bead stash and taking out some tried and true favorites, to see if they could draw out some creativity.

Of course I went directly to my collection of trade beads, and took out my lovely African Christmas beads. No matter what, just looking at these beads always lifts my mood. The chaotic combination of colors and the organic shapes are so essentially beady, and I’m always reminded just how much I love working with this medium. The stripes don’t hurt, either.

My next pick is one of my current favorite finishes in Japanese seed beads. I’ve really been missing working with TOHOs lately. Although Czech seed beads offer a great value so I don’t have to worry about quantity, I really love the hefty shape of Japanese seed beads, and the exotic color combinations. I might have to think of a great project just for these black-lined blue beads and see if that can steer me back to my beading groove.

Finally, my favorite thing in my stash right now is Fireline. I usually wait to purchase new beads until I’m running out of Fireline, then fill out my order with whatever beads catch my fancy. My budget hasn't been big enough for that in a while, but I was lucky enough to snag a roll each of Smoke and Crystal with a gift card recently, so I know I won’t run out of thread any time soon. I just have to find the right beads in my stash to get things rolling again.

What kinds of beads are you most inspired by right now?

Mortira

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Copyright 2016 Inspirational Beading

Beading Thread Brand Comparison

There are many different types of beading threads available, and each of us has our favorites. Just like seed bead brands, every brand of beading thread has its own unique qualities that can affect not just the beadwork itself, but also how we work with it. I wanted to experiment with a variety of threads to see just how different they are. The comparison would not be a competition to see which brand is best, but an overview of all their qualities. To keep it simple, we are comparing two types of braided line, and two types of nylon/upholstery thread.

Unlike the seed bead comparison that we did awhile back, I included prices in these comparisons. The price gaps between thread brands is quite a bit larger than those within bead brands, so I think it’s worth noting. To make this comparison, I looked at the single item (non-discounted) price of the largest and smallest spools available – from Fire Mountain Gems and Beads for all but WildFire – and calculated the price per yard from each spool.

This experiment isn’t exactly scientific. I did not cut a particular length of thread or set aside a particular amount of beads to work with. The overall look of the beadwork and the features of the threads themselves are the main focus. I took a bit of each thread and worked a small strip of beadwork with it. This time around I went with flat herringbone weave. I wanted a flat stitch that would showcase different qualities easily, and whose overall look wouldn’t be affected much by the beads themselves. For each swatch I used the same color – transparent emerald.

Nymo

Price: $0.03-$0.02 per yard
Colors: Black, white, brown, blue, red, yellow, green (varying shades)

Probably the most common thread used by beaders, Nymo is a nylon thread that got its start in furniture upholstery. It usually comes on smaller spools or bobbins, and is available in a variety of sizes. I worked with Size D Nymo in three colors: black, white, and shoe red.

It’s very easy to see in the photos just how much thread color affects the look of the transparent beads. Although the color of the shoe red does get masked a bit, the shade of the seed beads is definitely different compared to the beadwork done with white Nymo.

I waxed both the white and red threads, but left the black untreated (all 3 were stretched). The lack of wax didn’t change the beadwork much, but it did make the thread a little trickier to work with. Nymo is very limp and slippery, so a coating of beeswax helps to prevent the thread from slipping off the needle while working, and makes it easier to grip tail threads when starting a new piece. In theory, a bit of wax can also help prevent fraying of the beadwork over time.

This type of thread is very prone to fraying, particularly at the ends, making it a little difficult to thread a needle. Nymo is also very soft, and doesn’t change shape much. You can see that there are almost no kink marks in the working thread from where it was folded over the needle. This quality also makes for incredibly flexible beadwork – it folds over easily without breaking or becoming misshapen.

Fireline

Price: $0.23 per yard
Colors: Smoke (gray), Crystal (translucent white), green, chartreuse, red, orange, pink

Fireline is another popular beading thread that began as something different - it is also a very popular fishing line. Fireline is made from a fused nylon-Dyneema blend. It comes in very small diameters, giving it the look of thread, but is incredibly strong. I worked with 6lb test (Size D) Fireline in two colors: smoke and crystal.

Because neither of the common Fireline colors is very stark, there isn’t a lot of difference in the beadwork colors. The color of either thread is most noticeable between the beads, so it’s important to consider the type of stitch as well as bead color when choosing which type of Fireline to use.

Fireline is the thinnest of all the threads that I worked with in this experiment, so it is great for beadwork requiring lots of thread passes. It has a very plastic-y texture and kinks readily. This also means that it holds the shape of the beadwork it is used in, making it very sturdy, but also a bit inflexible. Fireline is more suitable for weaving, but doesn’t work quite as well in fringes.

Although Fireline doesn’t fray – I haven’t seen a strand actually unravel in seven years of beading – it can be tricky to cut without good tools. Dull cutting tools or a lack of tension when cutting can mangle the ends of the thread, and even cause burrs to form that are impossible to thread through a needle.

C-Lon

Price: $0.02 per yard
Colors: Black, white, brown, blue, green, red (varying shades)

Another nylon thread that is great for beadweaving, C-Lon is similar to Nymo in many ways. It comes in several sizes, including heavier weights for stringing, and is wound on a tube like cotton cord. I worked with size AA C-Lon in chartreuse, and size D in light blue.

Even though the two shades of C-Lon that I had to work with were very similar in shade and tone, you can still see a bit of an effect within the beadwork for each color. I left the size D thread unwaxed, and once again there was not much a difference apart from workability. The ends frayed a bit more with the unwaxed thread, which may have been helped along by how much bigger it is for passing through a tiny needle eye.

The C-Lon required a lot less stretching than the Nymo, which always feels a bit springy no matter how much it is stretched. Though the overall texture of the threads is almost identical, there is a noticeable difference in the sizes between these two nylon brands. Although the size D C-Lon seems enormous compared to all of the other threads, when weaving it did not seem bulky or cumbersome; it would likely be suitable for all but the most thread-heavy stitches, as well as all types of fringe.

WildFire

Price: $0.15 per yard
Colors: White, black, green

WildFire is a bonded synthetic thread similar in many ways to Fireline, and was definitely the most surprising thread in this experiment for me. As a die-hard Fireline fan, I have always been reluctant to try WildFire, particularly because it is only sold in small quantities at most stores. I used 12lb test WildFire in black.

The most noticeable thing about WildFire is the intensity of its jet black color. Unlike Fireline, this color does not rub off while you’re working, leaving a gray residue on hands and even beads. The effect that it has on the transparent beads is definitely visible.

WildFire doesn’t need to be stretched or waxed, but because it has a very smooth, thread-like texture it would benefit from waxing much more than Fireline. This line is a little less stiff, and doesn’t kink quite as much as Fireline, but it still has the same sturdiness that creates less flexible beadwork. WildFire is also very easy to cut, and doesn’t fray.

The biggest downside to this thread brand, apart from the lack of spool size options, is the excessive packaging. The larger 250 yard Fireline spools can be re-filled and even recycled at sporting goods stores, but WildFire comes with a spool cover that keeps the thread from unwinding. This extra plastic, along with the hang-tab at the top of the spool, is really unnecessary and is a big reason why I don’t plan to switch.

In conclusion: My personal thread preference hasn’t changed, although it was nice to work so closely with each thread all at once to really get a feel for what they can do and how they do it. Like any material, getting familiar with a particular thread really improves the results that you get with it.

Do you have a favorite thread brand? What makes it ideal for your designs?

Mortira

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Copyright 2015 Inspirational Beading

Work in Progress: Collar Adventure

My bead tray looks a little chaotic this week as I tackle my new collar project. I’ve included a lot of accents in this design, including African Christmas beads, wood spacers, and two kinds of drops. In addition to my usual votive of culled beads, I’m also collecting up any 11/o Czech seed beads that aren’t wonky, but just a bit too small. They’re not quite right for the beadwork I’m doing now, but they’ll be just fine in other projects. Picking them out and setting them aside saves me from having to encounter them again and again as I work. Between these and the many bead types I have laid out, there were already a lot of saucers to begin with, and then I ended up having to pick out a lot of stitches, adding another dump bin of deleted beads to be reworked.

I was on such a roll that I completely forgot to incorporate the second part of my pattern, and didn’t notice until I was almost two thread lengths past where it should have been added. This would have been a tragedy, except that I’ve been taking precautions against just this sort of situation. I’ve gotten into the habit of leaving my tail threads unfinished - just weaving them in a little ways and then leaving them in place until the end of the project. This way, if I catch a mistake, I don’t have to cut any threads - just undo a bit of work and carry on as usual.

Have you had any beading mishaps lately?

Copyright 2014 Inspirational Beading
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Collections: Fabulous Fireline

The best part of any giveaway is being able to share something with another bead lover. It’s like giving someone a present, even though it’s not their birthday. Today I have not one, but three winners to announce!

First we have the talented beader behind Pine Ridge Treasures, who won a copy of Creative Beaded Jewelry from Sixth & Spring. Her favorite stringing material, or beading thread, is Fireline. I can certainly relate. I’ve tried a few different types of threads, and Fireline is the only one that works for me. It’s interesting how each beader has their own preference - beading threads are as different as the beaders that use them.

This month we also had a fantastic guest giveaway with Clare of Mylana on Etsy. She offered up a gorgeous pair of handmade earrings and a bead charm bracelet for two lucky winners. Random.org helped me to select Ann and Cindy to receive these goodies! They each selected their favorite items from Mylana to enter. Here’s what they picked:

Lemon Lime Faceted Acrylic Earrings



Red Hot Upcycled Bead Necklace

Congratulations to all three winners, and thank you so much to everyone who entered!

Copyright 2011 Inspirational Beading and Mylana
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