The Bead Spot

I think that before I move on to anything else, after I finish the bracelet I'm currently working on, I'm going take apart the children's bracelets I made that are too small for 5 year olds. I like the colors of them, so I plan to just remake them in the same colors. I wish I could just add beads to them, but there's no way to do that without throwing off the spacing, unless I break the strings between each "flower," but that would weaken them too much.

I could've been working on my bracelet over the past couple of nights as I wind down at the end of what's been some very hectic days, but I chose not to. Instead, I played on the computer and vegged in front of the TV. Now, I'm ready to finish, but I'm getting nervous about whether I'll have enough beads to complete it. The store at which I bought the beads has since gone out of business, so I don't know how easy finding more would be. My Beadwork on Etsy My husband says this bracelet is his favorite out of what I've made so far. I like it, too, but I've wondered about making another that has charms on it. I don't know what kind yet. I'll work that out as I go.  (To see my completed projects at my Etsy store, click here .)

Several weeks ago, I tried to photograph the black bracelet I made. I put my camera on its macro setting and used natural light just as recommended on Fire Mountain Gems. For some reason, my camera kept saying I was too close to focus. So I backed up and tried again; again, my camera wasn't happy. After repositioning several times, I was finally far back enough that the camera didn't give me the "whoa, I can't focus warning," so I snapped a photo. This was the result: No amount of zooming in or cropping made the detail on this any better. I figured at the time that the biggest problem with how it turned out was that I have no idea how to shoot beads. I've had some success with a few other things I've made, including this bracelet in progress: There is a difference between the two bead styles. In the first photo, the beads have a shiny coat. In the second, the beads have a matte finish. At the time, I wondered if the shine had something to do with

Store Decor Earlier today, I was browsing my Etsy shop and comparing it with those of some other sellers. I noticed that mine looks far more sparse than I had realized. It needs some dressing up, though I'm not sure what all to include. I had started a banner for it a few days ago, but I made it the wrong size initially, and when I went back to resize it, I couldn't get the software to do what I wanted it to do. Another Site for Sellers I recently stumbled across another site through which I could sell my beadwork, too, but unlike Etsy, it doesn't have any listing fees and it doesn't take a percentage of what sells. That means less overhead and the ability to lower my prices some I've signed up to be a seller, and I'm now working on building my shop. I don't want to just abandon Etsy. It gets a lot of traffic, and until recently, I had never heard of the other site -- StorEnvy . But I have decided to try a little experiment. Right now, I have thre

Blue Herringbone Bracelet Here's the bracelet I'm working on now. It's going a lot faster than the green one did, thankfully. Hopefully, I don't get the arms of this one tangled, too. I have an idea for a variation on the braiding, which I plan to try next. I'm not sure what colors to use though. People interested in seeing my other work on Etsy can find it here . Thanks for your interest!

These photos show the bracelets I've been working on. I've also started a blue one that has the thicker braiding shown in the green bracelet, but I'm only about a third of the way done with it. I think both of these look good, but I've also learned a few things, too, that hopefully will make the blue bracelet better on the first try. I've had to do a lot of reworking on these two, especially with the green one. Black Braided Herringbone Bracelet Green Braided Herringbone Bracelet Also, while I was at the festival , I had an idea for new colors to try in this same style. I'm not sure how well it will turn out, but hopefully, it will look good. Both bracelets are available at my Etsy shop, located here .

I spent what spare time I could last week trying to finish up the bracelets I was working on. I didn't get finished, but as it turned out, it didn't matter. The arts and crafts festival was very poorly attended. I sold nothing, but then, that's to be expected when there are more vendors than attendees. But anyway, onward and upward. Now I know not to mess with that festival again. And the weekend wasn't a total waste. I had a nice time anyway. I just wish the festival had been better attended. (Although, if more people had come through but I had still sold nothing, I'd be rethinking this little hobby of mine.) The Upside of the Arts & Crafts Festival The good news is that by seeing the work of other people, I had a few more ideas of the kinds of things I can do with my own beadwork. One woman used little mini baskets as pendants for her necklaces. They were so cute! I'm not going to steal her idea, but perhaps I can find my own way to incorporate bask

I still have yet to finish the green bracelet I was working on. It's getting close, but because some beads are still loose after I cut the strings on it Monday, I can't move it. So the only place I can work on it is at home. The place where I have the largest block of time for working on it, though, is at work on my lunch break. Yesterday at lunch, I just started another that will be in exactly the same style as the green one. Hopefully, I will finish it a lot faster than the last one so that I can move on to some other projects before the festival, which is coming up fast. I probably shouldn't have started another time-consuming project this soon. Hopefully, I'll have the green one finished by Friday, then I'll post a photo here.

I usually wait to cut the strings on any project until the end. Last night, though, I started thinking I might be better able to see how to unravel the tangled herringbone bracelet if the strings weren't in the way. So I cut them. In one spot, though, I cut a little more than the extra string. One leg of the bracelet came undone. Since I'd have to go back and restitch that area anyway, I went ahead and cut another leg of the bracelet off. Now, finally, I have all three sections of the bracelet untangled and lined back up. I'm working my way through reconnecting them, which hasn't taken as long as I thought it would. If I had known that fixing the tangle would've been this easy if I cut the strings, I would've done it a long time ago. Now this bracelet is back on track. Woo hoo!

I spent the bulk of my lunch "beading time" trying to undo the tangled mess my herringbone bracelet has become. After an explanation of what I'm trying to do, I let my husband have a shot. He can't figure it out either, which bums me out a bit because I was hoping a fresh set of eyes could figure out what order the strands should be in. I'm running out of time before the next festival arrives, and I want to get more beadwork made to take with me. I don't have the time to keep trying to figure out how this went together. And really, I don't understand why it doesn't just fall back into place. The black bracelet I made in the same style wouldn't do this. I think I need to just set it aside for a few days, and just not plan on having it ready to sell anytime before the holidays. *sigh*

I held off with a post yesterday thinking that I might be able to finish the green herringbone bracelet I want to list on Etsy . Then, I could post a photo of it. Well, those tangles within the bracelet have me much more stumped than I would've thought. I cannot for the life of me figure out how I had it. The streams of beads just aren't lining back up. Hopefully, I get it soon, because once I do, all I have left is attaching the clasp.

I am within sight of the finish line on the herringbone bracelet I'm making, however, I ran into a couple of snags. Literally. The first happened Saturday. My daughter was napping, so I hauled out my bracelet and worked on it for about an hour. Then, with evening approaching, I decided to wake her so that we could go for a walk before it got dark. (She LOVES going for walks.) I set the tray table I was working from off to the side, woke her up, got her in the stroller and left. When we got back home, I set her down inside the house then turned to make sure the front door, which has settled a little, was closed completely. When I turned back around toward her, she already had the bracelet in her hand. The string was both over her shoulder and up under her armpit. I don't know how she got it so tangled so quickly. With that straightened out, I folded it up and packed it away to take to work with me. When I took it out during my lunch break, I could tell the braiding withi

Bead stoppers are tightly wound metal springs with loops on each end. Beaders thread the end of their stringing material through the stoppers to keep beads from sliding off of the string. As a cheaper alternative, some beaders (myself included) just tie a bead that stands out from the ones they're using in their project to the end of the thread. This is called a stop bead.

I'm still having trouble getting a decent photo of my beadwork when the beads are shiny. I looked everywhere on my camera for the option to take it from automatic to manual settings, but I don't see anything that will let me do that. I don't know that I can really get a better photo without the aid of the camera's automatic settings, but I thought that with more options available, I might be able to find a combination that works. Hopefully, one day I'll get the hang of it -- without having to buy a new camera.

For years, I’ve kept a sketchbook, and when I have a fully formed (and drawable) idea for a beadwork project, I’ll scratch it out on paper. As I strive to turn my hobby into a little more of a money-maker, though, I’ve wondered about the other ideas I have, the ones that aren’t yet patterns, just general thoughts I have about things I can make in the future, such as “Kids Halloween bracelets,” or “Halloween wall hangings.” I’ve decided to write down such generalizations on the top of a single notebook page, then periodically, I can flip through the book and think a little more about the specifics. Then in the space below, I can write things like, “witches flying” or “rows of pumpkins,” etc. My hope is that this will help me to always know what my next project will be.

Happy Halloween, everyone! When I was a kid, I loved being scared, so Halloween was always a fun time of year for me. I'd love to do some Halloween-themed beading, though I'm a little late for that this year. Next year, hopefully, I'll plan early enough to put at least a couple of items on my Etsy shop. Speaking of, my plan to list my first item at my Etsy store tomorrow is still on. I'll have just one piece. I'd hoped to have more, but there's just no way I can get more done. Maybe by December 1, I'll be able to list a few more.

A film on a metal surface such as bronze or copper that's created by oxidation. Patina gives the metal an aged look, which many people like. It can either be produced the hard way -- over time -- or created with some household chemicals.

Round like a barrel, this type of clasp is made up of two pieces that screw together to form a secure closure. Each piece attaches to the jewelry with a loop. Because both hands are needed to operate the clasp, it's best not to use it on bracelets.

Sometimes, misjudging what a toddler can reach is just too easy. A little over a week ago, I put this bead case on the kitchen table. I thought it was back far enough that my daughter wouldn't be able to reach it. I was wrong. She picked it up, tilted it sideways and made quite a bit of sorting work for me. I think I might just sort them as I need them, but even that seems like a lot of extra work to complete projects.

Usually made of metal, lobster clasps have a long body and a half-circle hook, a segment of which can move to open and close the hook. That segment is operated by a spring-powered lever located on the outside of the hook. Users push the lever up or down to open the clasp, then let go, which causes the moveable segment of the hook to snap shut, much like a lobster snaps its pinchers.

During the lunch I had with my friend yesterday, I got some good feedback both on pricing and on the design of a couple of the bracelets I made. I feel a little more confident now that I'm on the right track. I also got a tip on another possible venue to sell some of my stuff. I plan to do a little browsing around the place today to see what it looks like and maybe get an idea of how much it would cost to sell there and if I have to rent space for a certain length of time. It sounds very promising!

I bought some deerskin several years ago with big plans to learn couching. I have several books that contain patterns, but I have yet to give it a try. About five years ago, I went to the Red Earth Festival in Oklahoma City. The event has tons of arts and crafts booths with the biggest variety of arts I've ever seen. One of the crafts vendors had some deerskin purses with couched beaded flowers and other images on the outside. I would've loved to buy one, but they were priced beyond what I was able to spend. Ever since, I've thought about learning to do the same. I bought some deerskin off of eBay (and probably paid way too much for it), but I have yet to learn to make a purse or to couch. Perhaps after the festival in December has passed, I'll make the time to practice and learn.

Rather than profile a bead book, I thought I'd review another favorite craft book of mine. It's called, "A Basketmaker's Odyssey: Over, Under, Around & Through" by Lyn Syler. I've owned this book for quite a few years. I love the variety of baskets it features. Syler shows the basics of weaving for novices and offers complex patterns that combine techniques for more skilled basket makers. Another bonus: The projects the book contains also use a variety of materials, including flat reeds and round reeds. Some projects even combine the two. One of my favorites baskets is made out of dried pine cone needles. Side note: As of this post, it looks like this book may be out of print. The link to Amazon.com above shows only two copies available, both from external sellers and both rather pricey (the used copy is $68; the new is $723.) For any readers who are interested in the book, I recommend checking with your local library to see whether you can g

Multistrand clasps are made of two long pieces, each containing two or more loops for securing the threading material. One piece goes on each end of a bracelet, necklace or other jewelry item. Some multistrand clasps are closed by sliding one end into the other or with magnets. Others, like the one shown in the photo, have hooks.

Back in March, I wrote about the best freebie a beading retailer had sent to me as a thank you for my order. It was a little scoop that came from Fire Mountain Gems . I had lost mine a few years ago, looked for a replacement but couldn't find one. Eventually, I did find mine again, thankfully, but just in case I ever lost it again, I wanted to buy a backup or two. Well, in exploring on the Shipwreck Beads website, I found some. After that, I decided to check Fire Mountain again, and it has some, too. (Maybe I misspelled the word "scoop" when I looked on the Fire Mountain website all those years ago, because surely, if it was giving them out as freebies, it must've had them in stock to sell, too.) Anyway, this is now at the top of my list of things to buy when I do my next bead order.

Design boards are typically gray boards with grooves in them and measurement markings. By using the board, crafters can see about how many beads they need for their project and determine whether their color, style and finding choices will work for what they want to create. Design boards come in a variety of shapes and sizes, with some for mapping out bracelets, some for multi-strand necklaces and others that can be used for both bracelets and necklaces. (Photo of one style can be found here .)

I was making the rounds on the websites of bead retailers yesterday and found something rather interesting at Shipwreck Beads: Czech twin seed beads. They're oval, and rather than having just one hole, they have two. I can think of a few designs for them; I love to see what more seasoned beaders could do with them. Shipwreck says they have a limited quantity, and darn it, if that doesn't make me want to buy, buy, buy. But I don't have the extra dough right now. Hopefully, they'll have some in stock once I do.

Yesterday, my baby girl was fussing while I was trying to get some cleaning done because she wanted to be picked up. I tried to distract her, so I looked around and grabbed the nearest thing I could find -- one of the kids bracelets I completed last week. I stretched it out and snapped it around her wrist. While it had a little wiggle room on her wrist, it fit a lot more snuggly than I would've preferred. She's only 1 year old. How well will they fit on older children, who are, by the way, my target customer? I've decided that, to ensure I have bracelets big enough for children up to about age 7, I'm going to need to make more in a larger size. I have just a little more than a week to do it. Grrrr.

This type of clasp* is a two-piece device consisting of a ring and a bar longer than the diameter of the ring. To secure the clasp, person wearing the jewelry puts the entire bar through the ring. Because the bar is longer than the ring is wide, the bar doesn’t slip back through. Most bar-and-toggle clasps are made of metal, but many websites also sell some made of gemstones, bone and other materials. Beaders can also make them with beads. *Many beaders and websites call this type of clasp a bar-and-ring clasp.

Elastic cord comes in a range of thicknesses, which are measured in millimeters, for projects that need to stretch, such as kids bracelets. It's available in several colors, including clear (shown in photo), with some cord having more than one color and/or a metallic shine. Surgeon's knots typically work best to secure elastic cord.

Today, I made a few attempts at getting a decent shot of the herringbone bracelet I made to use on Etsy, but I'm having a little trouble. I set up this shot outside, and as soon as I got it, I turned to go back into the house just in time to see my little girl try to walk to me and fall out the door. She was OK; the step from inside the house to outside is about 4 or 5 inches high. I think it startled her more that I screamed when I saw her falling than she was really hurt. After I sat with her a bit, she calmed down (and so did I). So I picked her up and set her down on the patio, then got in position to take the shot. For some reason, my little girl started crying to go back in the house. So I had to hold her while I tried to shoot this. I'm not sure if holding her factored into how little detail shows, but I'm sure it didn't help. Hopefully, I'll have time to do some more practicing.

Split rings look just like key rings, only much smaller. Like jump rings, split rings can be used to connect parts of a jewelry piece together, but because of their tight spiral design, they're much more secure, making them a good choice to hang charms from. Also because of their spiral design, split rings can be tough to separate. That's where split ring pliers come in. One end of the nose of the pliers has a notch for separating the bands of the split ring. I've had some success opening split rings just by sliding my thumbnail between bands of the ring, but that doesn't always work.

Just FYI to readers: I realized that my beaders' dictionary seemed more like an encyclopedia, so I've changed the title. All of the information the dictionary contained is still available; just click on the "Beaders' Encyclopedia" button in the toolbar.

Jewelry crafters use jump rings to connect different parts of jewelry together, to attach clasps and to make chains and chain mail. The rings are available in a variety of finishes -- gold filled, gold plated, sterling silver, copper, brass, steel, etc. -- and sizes (indicated by millimeters and wire gauge ). Most jump rings are round, but they are available in oval shapes, too.

My little girl let me get a little further along on the loom bracelet I'm working on. She'd play in the living room long enough for me to do a row or two, then she'd want to sit in my lap for about 15 minutes or so. Over the course of about an hour and a half, I finished only about 10 rows, but I'll take what I can get. I'd like to get this off of the loom this week so that I can complete it and move on to something else by this weekend. Fingers crossed.

Last week, my husband and I took some vacation time from work to work on our house. We did the work during the day, and late at night after my daughter had gone to sleep, I worked on my beading. I managed to finally finish the herringbone bracelet I was working on and to start a loom bracelet. This week, we're back at work, and for the first time in a few weeks, I spent my lunch hour working on beadwork. I didn't want to haul my loom to work, so I started a kid's bracelet instead. I had hoped to finish it, but I didn't quite. I still have a little less than half to go. Hopefully, by the time the festival arrives, I'll have quite a few things on hand to sell.

Last night, I was able to make progress on the loom bracelet after two false starts the night before. Hopefully, I'll be able to finish it and start on something new before this weekend is up. I'm running out of time before the next festival.

I finished the black herringbone bracelet I was working on, but it turned out a little longer than I had hoped. I can wear it fine but someone thinner than I might have trouble keeping it on her wrist. I plan to make another that's shorter, but first, I want to create a different bracelet I have an idea for. I started it in square stitch , but because I wasn't smart enough to use a stop bead,  I dropped my work and lost half of the rather lengthy first row. So I started again on a loom, but that didn't work out too well either because I kept skipping beads. The first time, I was able to fix it, but the second time, I tried to backtrack, I just made it worse. Hopefully, tonight's projects will go better.

Coating thread with beeswax before adding beads makes the string less likely to tangle (although it does not make it impossible, as I well know). Beeswax comes in mini bricks and in a clear wax dispenser such as the one shown here. Coating the string is simple. When using a beeswax brick, just hold the string against the wax with one hand as you pull the string with the other so that the whole length of string rubs up against the wax. If you have a dispenser, just pull the string through one of the notches.

Typically, beads that do not fall into the "seed bead" category are sized by their diameter, such as 3 millimeter, 4 millimeter, 5 millimeter and so on. With seed beads, size is roughly based on the number of beads in a line it would take to make an inch. Therefore, it would take about 11 size 11/0 seed beads to make an inch and 15 beads at size 15/0 to make an inch. The higher the number, the smaller the bead. This is really just a rule of thumb, though, because size varies by style. For instance, a Delica size 11 is smaller than a size 11 Japanese seed bead. The size differences aren't huge, but they are noticeable, and should be taken into consideration when mapping out a design.

This week, my husband and I are off work, hoping to cut our home improvement to-do list down as much as possible. We plan to continue taking our little girl to the day care so that we can get work done, but in the evenings when we get her back home, I'd like to get some beading done. Hopefully, we'll be able to make some headway.

Made of two-ply waxed nylon, silamide thread is often used for weaving seed beads. It's available in a wide variety of colors, which can vary by dye lot; therefore, beaders who run out of silamide in the middle of a project and need to buy more should seek thread made in the same lot to ensure the best color match. I personally had never used silamide. A bead shop owner once told me that it's harder to use than Nymo, and I just took her word for it. Other beaders, though, might highly recommend it.

AB, short for aurora borealis, is a type of bead finish that creates a rainbow shimmer, much like the natural phenomenon it's named after. It can be applied to opaque , translucent and transparent beads, and may coat an entire bead or just a small part of it, for instance, in just one facet of faceted beads.

A few years ago, I was skimming through an entertainment magazine one of my co-workers had left in the breakroom when he/she no longer wanted it -- a common practice at our work -- and I was stopped by a movie still that depicted something I recognize well. It showed a beading mat, a few beader's tools and some beads. Until this moment, it had never occurred to me that movie characters have quilting, knitting, sculpting, crocheting and other crafty hobbies all of the time, but I don't think I've ever seen a fellow beader. The movie (I believe) was "Paranormal Activity," and because the character and I have a common hobby, I thought about seeing the film. I haven't, though, and probably never will. Had it been any other genre, I would've watched it, even though beading quite likely takes up only five seconds of screen time. As I've gotten older, I watch fewer scary movies. For some reason, they scare me more now than they did when I was a kid. There

Translucent or opal beads have some transparency to them, but because of a milky hue, are not as see-through as transparent beads are.

Transparent beads are made of see-through colored glass.

Opaque beads cannot be seen through. They may have a matte or a smooth finish.

Happy Labor Day, bead fans! The next festival I'd like to get a booth for is just a little more than a month away. I think I might need to scale back my wish list this time, too, but we'll see how things go after this week. Now that most of my distractions -- the consignment sale and the freelance project -- are out of the way, I'll be able to spend my at-work lunches working on my beadwork again. I hope that helps me make some major headway.

For the first time in a couple of weeks, I had a chance to work on my black bracelet yesterday during my break at lunch. Woo hoo! I had thought that would be enough time to finish it, but it wasn't. I don't have much more to go, though. With a little luck, I'll be able to wrap it up Saturday when my daughter naps -- if she naps. She's not always a fan of napping. I still have a couple of projects (not bead related) that can slow me down, so, unlike the last couple of weeks, I'm just going to put my Etsy shop debut out of my mind and not plan to do my first listing this coming Monday. If I can do it, great. Otherwise, I'm just not going to sweat it. One of the projects is getting stuff ready to sell on consignment, but I'm scheduled to drop all of that off at 1 p.m. today, so after today, that's done. The other is a freelance project that I have the finishing touches to go on, but I can't do anymore on it until someone else finished up her part.

In bicone beads, the diameter of the ends of the beads are much smaller than their center, which creates a cone shape at each end. Lengths vary; they can be short or long tubes.

Wire is measured in gauge, with higher numbers indicating thinner wire. The reason for this has to do with how wire is made: Those who make it draw it through a cast called a drawing plate to make it thinner. The more times the wire is drawn through the plate, the thinner the wire gets. Gauge number is the number of times the wire gets passed through the drawing plate.

I still haven't had time to bead -- beginning today or tomorrow, though, my schedule should get back to normal -- so I haven't listed anything on Etsy yet; however, I did buy something. I bought a replacement high chair cover for my daughter's high chair. The one she had has been washed a few too many times because it's falling apart in the back. I can't wait to get the new one! I love handcrafted items!

I've been a member of Spark People  -- a site that offers free diet plans and support for dieters -- for a few years now and have used its diet tips and food-tracking tool off and on. The other day, I popped in, feeling yet another spurt of resolve to get my weight under control, and decided not only to record my weight but also to check in with my teams -- groups to which I belong in which the members have a common interest or characteristic -- for the first time since I joined them. One of my teams is a writing team, another for other members older than 40, and two teams are made of up fellow beading enthusiasts. One of the beading teams seems to be defunct, with few posts in about a year. The other seems like it's sporadically active, but it's nice to see what other people think and are working on. My goal is to partake more in the Spark People community. Perhaps doing so will help me with my goals, both on the scale and with my beads.

My mom makes earrings -- tons of them -- when she sits down to bead. She also makes barretts, bun holders, headdresses and more. For years, I never bothered to make earrings. I don't know why not. Perhaps it's because I don't ever wear them myself because I have yet to find a type of post that doesn't cause my ear to get infected. But about a year ago, I decided to give earrings a try. This photo show my second pair I attempted. This is how far I got before I realized something wasn't going right with it. Now, though, when I look at it, I don't know what my mistake was, but I think it's my choice in stringing material. This is Fireline, which doesn't have any give to it. I think it looks OK, so I might try to finish it anyway for the arts & crafts festival.

Because life can be hectic -- for me, lately it's been illnesses, being short staffed at work, a freelance project coming due and a consignment sale I need to prepare for -- I have had no time for beading coming up on two weeks now. As a result, the black seed bead bracelet I was working on hasn't been touched and is still unfinished. I think things will get back to normal now, or at least relatively normal, so hopefully this week I can get it done and get it listed. I'm anxious to give selling via Etsy a try. Once I get this bracelet finished, I need to get started on my wish list for the next festival. If at all possible, I'd like to have a basket ready to go, too.

"Beaded Cords, Chains, Straps & Fringe " A Beadwork Magazine Project Book Another book from my beading bookshelf, "Beaded Cords" features two beading techniques I haven't seen in any of my other books: embroidering and spool-knitting. With spool knitting, the yarn does more than just provide structure to the project, it's also front and center in the design. When embroidering chains, beaders can either hide the stringing material or create breaks in the beadwork to let it it show through. Other techniques in the book -- spiral chains, daisy chains, loom straps, etc. -- but some projects, such as the Caduceus chain, put a new spin on them.

It's been a while since I've worked on the nameplate for my daughter's bedroom door. We don't have her room ready for her yet, so I've got some time to finish it, but I'm pretty far from doing so. It doesn't even look like a nameplate yet. I haven't gotten any farther than what you see above.

Typically made of metal, crimp beads come in a variety of sizes, shapes and colors to best match your beadwork. With the pair of pliers or crimping tool, beaders mash the sides of the crimp bead together to block beads from sliding and/or to secure the stringing material (typically tigertail or similar material).

Bugle beads are beads shaped like a long, narrow tube. Bugles are available in different lengths, measured in milimeters. Beaders can select bugles with smooth, faceted or twisted barrels.

A facet on a stone or a bead is a flat panel. Some beads, such as Charlottes, may be perfectly round with just one facet. Others may have several facets and no edges. Others may have no facets at all. Because of how the panels reflect light from different angles, faceted beads and stones often have a shimmering quality.

Tigertail is a coated cable made up of strands of braided steel. Its coating making it a good choice for sharp-edged beads. More flexible than wire but not as bendy as string, tigertail works best in projects that do not require the stringing material to make sharp turns or several passes through the same bead.

Tools and supplies for jewelry makers (and other crafters). Examples include (but are far from limited to) clasps, jump rings, earring hooks, crimp beads and bails.

Flush cutters are cutting tool with blades off to the side of its mouth, allowing beaders to cut their stringing material much closer to their work than a pair of scissors does.

This is another one of the first things I made, a choker that combines Czech seed beads, tiger tail and silver-plated beads. Back then, my kid sister provided most of the beading advice I had, right down to telling me what tiger tail is and all about crimp beads. Looking back, I still like the idea of the choker, but I think it would be better not to use such a sharp color contrast. Perhaps if rather than silver the bigger beads were dark blue or red, and placed in a less structured pattern.

Now, I'm aiming for next Monday to do my first listing. I spent Saturday battling a headache that I thought was sinus related, but then I spent Sunday battling body aches and a bad tummy. I guess the two were related. Neither my baby girl nor my hubby are feeling all that great today. I'm setting my sights on next Monday.

I'm close enough to finishing the black bracelet I've been working on that I think I can list it on Etsy on Monday. I'm crossing my fingers crossed that I can finally get the site going. (My store site will be here .) I know that I won't be making tons of money at Etsy -- especially given how little time I have for working on beadwork right now -- but even a little bit of extra income will be nice. I've spent some time reading blogs of top Etsy sellers; hopefully, they'll give me a few tips for getting started on the right foot.

Fusions Beads finally has its new site up, and I have to say, it looks great. I think it's much easier to navigate than it was before, because it allows users to winnow down their searches as they go. To change a search just slightly -- for instance, if you'd like to search for some yellow round seed beads to go with the red ones you just selected -- takes only a couple clicks, rather than having to start a whole new search, as shoppers had to on FB's old site.

Yesterday and today, I've worked a schedule that puts me taking a lunch during a time when the odds of having the breakroom to myself are significantly lower than normal. I shouldn't be so self-conscious about beading in front of people, I know, but I still feel that way. Therefore, I left my beadwork at my desk. However, yesterday I went into the breakroom expecting it to be close to capacity. It wasn't. As a matter of fact, I did have it to myself for about 10 minutes, and then one person walked in. Just one. No one else did during my entire break. Today, I plan to take my beadwork.

With another festival I'd like to attend coming up in October and a push to get my Etsy shop up and running, I've been considering how much of a stockpile of finished beadwork I'd like to have on hand. As I finish items that I think look good enough, I'll list them on Etsy. But by the time the festival arrives, I'd like to have the following: 15 kids rings. 10 kids bracelets. 10 adult necklaces. 10 adult bracelets. 2 bookmarks. At the rate I've been finishing items, though, that's a tall order. Hopefully, I'll be able to find some extra time beyond my at-work lunches to get some beading done.

Here's where I stand on the black bracelet I've been working on. It's in a herringbone stitch (I clarify that because the photo looks so awful). I've decided that if this looks good when it's finished, I'll make a necklace to match. This is s a similar bracelet I've started with my green beads. For some reason, these beads photograph much better, perhaps because they have a matte finish instead of a gloss. If that is the case, I'll need to do quite a bit of practice photography with the shinier beads to get a decent photo for listing it on Etsy.

"Easy Bead Woven Bracelets (Easy-Does-It) Bead & Button Books Here's another bead book I like to thumb through when I'm running short of ideas, and it's about what one would expect from the editors of Bead & Button, one of my favorite beading magazines. I'd wear any of the bracelets featured inside. The book gives a great (though simple) tutorial on beading basics and features tons of illustrations and photographs detailed enough to help beaders follow along.

Darn, I missed it! A bead convention comes to town every June, and each year, I look forward to going. It's never very big, but it's a chance to see what others are making and pick up some beads that I don't see at my usual shops. The organizers had sent me a flyer about when it would be, but I never made note of it. Just yesterday morning I realized it had come and gone, and I didn't even notice. Working lunch I spent my lunch hour Wednesday beading again. I've kind of put the green bracelet aside to work on the black one, and I think I've reached the halfway point. I think I'm probably going to take apart the green one and start again; I have a different idea about what I'd like to do with those beads and I don't have enough to make two. Maybe if the black one turns out well, I can sell it on Etsy, buy more green beads and make both ideas. "In August" doesn't mean August 1, apparently As I mentioned Tuesday , Fusion Bea

Terms and tools to help novice beaders. Click links below for more detailed descriptions and images. (This list will update often.) Beads: Types and Descriptions AB finish Bicone beads Bugle beads Crimp beads Facet Opal beads Opaque beads Translucent beads Transparent beads Tools Flush cutters Stringing Material Silamide thread Tigertail Everything Else Beeswax Findings Jump rings Seed bead sizes Wire gauge

Back when I first started beading, I spent a lot of hours in front of the TV as I worked on projects. These days, pulling a tray table full of beads in front of me as I watch TV is just too risky. My little girl is just far too curious. She's either reaching for stuff on the table or trying to crawl under it to get to me. As I've mentioned before, I've started taking my beadwork to work with me so that I can work on it during my lunch hour, and I've really been enjoying it. Rather than watching a movie or TV show like I used to, these days I switch on my iPod and listen to podcasts. Doing this has given me an added, unexpected benefit. I used to feel very restless when I had lunch in the breakroom. I'd often go shopping for part of the hour. It would feel more like a break if I got out of the building. But these days, I don't mind the breakroom so much. It's relaxing to work on my beads and just listen to stuff I enjoy. I only wish I could have two hours f

Yay! I received my order from Fusion Beads in the mail yesterday. I now have plenty of size D thread, some beads in pink hues for my children's bracelets, some blue beads and some size 15 black beads (far right) for a fringe on a bracelet I have in mind. I also got a notice that the Fusion Beads website (should debut tomorrow) was being revamped and a coupon code for 10 percent off my next order from the new site. I'm curious to see what changes will be made. I haven't had much time for beading over the past couple of days, but I should be able to make some headway on the herringbone bracelet during my lunch break at work today.

I saw an ad for a site called Tophatter while I was online yesterday. It caught my attention because it mentioned auctions for craft supplies. So I followed the link and registered to see what it's about. I expected something similar to eBay, but it isn't because the auctions are live. It has more than just supplies, too. It has some finished work, such as knitted headbands, bracelets, earrings, handbags, rings, etc. I'm not sure everything on the site is handmade, like on Etsy , but I do think it's kind of interesting. It might be a better place for winnowing down some of my bead stash.

When I first became a beader, all of my supplies fit in a shoe box. Since then, it's grown to fill 10 drawers of varying sizes. My husband and I have been considering the space available within our tiny home lately as our daughter grows. He's been selling off some of his collection of comic books, and following his example, I've been thinking lately about selling some of my extra beads, too. Now that I've spent a little time working on my Etsy shop, I've been thinking some about listing some of the extra beads, findings and other stuff there, but I'm just not sure how I'd like to package them for sale. By color? By style? It would be nice to be able to compact my beading supplies into fewer drawers; I'm just not sure if I can part with enough to make a difference.

For any beaders, myself included, who love to look at bead books but can't afford to buy them, here is a little tip. Many public libraries participate in interlibrary loan, a program through which patrons have access to books that their local library might not carry. I'm not sure how many people are aware of that service; until I worked in libraries myself in my 20s, I had no idea the program existed. My husband didn't know it existed until he met me and I told him about it, and it's really come in handy for both of us because our local library is small, has a rather dated selection of craft books and doesn't get new books in very often. If there's a bead book (or a book on any other topic in which you have an interest) that your local library doesn't have, it's worth the time to ask the staff if you can get it through interlibrary loan. I've worked in three different libraries, all of which offered the service and none of them charged for it

When I first started beading, I used wider needles than I do now. Quite often, the string I had would work just fine until I had to pass the string through a bead a second time or third time. The thick string I had in combination with the thickness of the needle would just kind of get the bead stuck right at the eye. Since then, I've become a big fan of wide-eye needles (example here ) and have amassed quite a pile of thin string in sizes 00, 0 and B. Well, since the time I bought all of that string, I've found that yes, it passes through the thinnest of barrels quite nicely, but it isn't very strong. I started to notice that most seed-bead projects in Bead & Button and other magazines I've purchased recommend D-size thread. I have a few spools of that, but the 00, 0 and B sizes far outnumber the D. Just last night, I got a little tired of making several extra passes through a bead with the thin threads to make up for their lack of strength and I put in an ord

As I mentioned in Friday's post , quite a few ideas for future projects have come to me lately. I think it's because I've been working on things a lot more often lately. It's almost like a dam breaks sometimes. The hard thing now is figuring out what I work on next. Because I was in the middle of my green bracelet  when I started thinking of other projects, it's been hard to stay on course. I've started a second green bracelet already to try out one of the ideas I have, and I've been fighting the urge to start on a black one to see if my idea will work. I know I better enjoy the flood of ideas while it lasts. All too quickly, it passes and I'm left scrounging for ideas again.

"Designer Beadwork: Beaded Crochet Designs" by Ann Benson The baby sitter my siblings and I had when I was about 8 years old spent a lot of time watching prime time soap operas such as "Dallas" (the original) while she crocheted blanket after blanket. Sometimes, she'd switch it up and work on a doily instead, but for the most part, she made blankets. I don't know where she put them all. To keep my older sister and I occupied, they gave each of us about half a skein of yarn and showed us how to crochet, too. We'd make mini-blankets and unravel them only to start all over again. I never learned to do anything more than a basic stitch, but that's all I need to know how to do to make the beautiful necklaces, bracelets, etc., in this book. I like that author Benson explains how to incorporate patterns into what you're creating, too. This book is well worth the money for anyone who has an interest in both crocheting and beading.

While trying to decide how to best make the green bracelet work, I had yet another idea -- this one for a black bracelet, also in the herringbone stitch. The design kind of springboarded off the idea for the green. I'd like to make something that's multi-colored, too, but I'm not sure what yet or what type of stitch.

The ideas for the green bracelet I started the other day are still swimming in my mind. I fell asleep Monday night with a thought about why the original plan might not work -- there might not be enough support in the middle for it to keep its shape. However, I'm not ready to just scrap the plan yet. I want to know if it will work. If it does and it looks good, great. If it doesn't or it does but it looks bad, that will be good to know when I'm working on other projects.

I have no listings yet, but I've been working on my Etsy shop. For readers who are interested, please click here . If you have any feedback on my policies or the "About Me" page, feel free to send them along.

I've started the ladder on my next project -- the dark green bracelet. I'm not sure how it will turn out; in my mind, it looks pretty good, but whether that translates well to a finished project remains to be seen. Hopefully, it will. Birthday present I just thought this was cute, so I thought I'd share. My 11-year-old nephew loves to make things and experiment, and he made this sailboat for me for my birthday using craft sticks. A few years ago, he made me a SpongeBob out of some blocks of wood he found. That's the type of things he does. A few years ago, I went to visit my parents and found him in the front yard with a turtle. He wanted to turn the turtle loose and see if he could catch it again later. To make sure he'd know he had the same turtle, he was painting an OU for the University of Oklahoma (he's a big fan of the football team) on the turtle's back in Sooner red. I think the paint must've washed off in the rain, but I still thought i

With the rose-colored bracelet out of the way, I'm now ready to move on to the green bracelet I had in mind. My initial plan was to make the green as a right-angle weave, too, but I think I'll go in another direction with it. Over the past couple of nights, I've fallen asleep thinking about ways to vary the right-angle stitch, and eventually started thinking about using the herringbone stitch instead.

then this baby is done. I finally completed it during my lunch Friday. I'm not entirely happy with how it turned out; I might like it better once the stray strings are clipped, so I'm not yet certain whether this will be my first listing on Etsy or not. But here it is .. finally.

My mother-in-law got me an Amazon gift card for my birthday, and I had decided to use it to get a subscription to Bead & Button for my Kindle. My Kindle has a black-and-white screen, so I wasn't too sure how the images would reproduce. Then I noticed that Amazon lets customers try out magazine subscription for two weeks, so I figured I had nothing to lose. However, I won't even be able to try it because this particular magazine subscription won't work with my Kindle. Bummer. It will work only with a Kindle Fire. I got the Kindle as a gift from my husband last Christmas, and one of the first things I did was buy a digital bead book. It's called, "Simple Seed Bead Rings You Can Make" by Janis Websdale. The book itself was fine. The pictures were pretty sharp considering they weren't in color, which is probably how they were intended to be viewed. But, it was pretty basic stuff. I have been making seed bead rings like the ones featured for about a decad

I finally got the right-angle weave bracelet I've been working on as wide as I'd like for it to be, and I've started on the clasp. Here's the work in progress. I'm a little nervous about clipping the strings from the places where I've had to add thread. Once before, when I was working on this bracelet: I wound up clipping an edge thread, too, causing the bracelet to pull apart in the middle. I was able to stitch it back together, of course, but it didn't seem as smooth. I guess if I were smart, I wouldn't wait until the whole thing is complete to clip my spare strings. That way, it would be easier to fix as I go if I do accidentally get too much or clip a string that's holding the piece together. However, I always feel like the transition is stronger if I get a row or so away from the work.

I intended to make today's post about another bead store I had visited while on vacation a few years ago. I thought the selection was good and the woman running the cash register (I assumed she was the owner) was very friendly, chatty and helpful as I browsed for beads I hadn't seen at home to add to my stash. The store was called Bead Haven  and it was located in the New Town section of Williamsburg, Va. However, in my search to find a link to it, I see the store has been closed after nine years of business. I don't know that we'll ever vacation out that way again, but it was nice knowing there was a good store to stop in if we ever did. Bead Haven, I only visited you once, but I still miss you.

"Beadwork Creates Bracelets" edited by Jean Campbell I have a lot of reasons for liking this book. I bought this book fairly early in my beading hobby, and it showed me that a clasp doesn't have to be a premade finding. Of course, I've seen tons of examples since then of people using beads and string to create their own clasps, but at the time, it was news to me. On the subject of clasps, this book also showed me snap-lock clasps, something I'd love to try but I haven't found at any of the online bead stores I frequent. Perhaps I need to expand my search. Every project in this book is something I would personally wear, so they all are my style. I don't think I can say that about any other book or magazine I've ever picked up. (Not that other projects aren't cool or stylish; they just don't match my own.) This book has a mix of projects made with string and with wire, another bonus. I'd considered trying wire projects myself

Welcome! This is my 100th post on this blog!  I wish I had something outstanding to post for this occasion, but I don't. All I have are just a handful of odds and ends. I've finally reached the width I want on the rose-colored, right-angle weave bracelet I've been working on. Now, I just need to finish this last row and then it's on to the clasp. I've thought about weaving some Charlotte beads* into it, but I can't find the ones I want. In search for Charlottes, I came across a new online bead retailer. It's called Shipwreck Beads , and it seems to have quite an extensive selection of Charlottes. I've never ordered from them before, but once I do, I'll mention my experience with them here. A couple of my nephews are into crafts, too. One is an ace at making dream catchers. The other likes to work more with beads making bracelets and stuff. However, this past weekend, he gave me something he made with craft sticks: A sailboat. That's my birth

About a year ago, my husband and I were busy making room for our baby stuff and the impending arrival of our little bundle of joy. At the time, I had my beads tucked away in several places. I had several small containers tucked within a wheeled file cart, which worked well, until my bead stash outgrew it. To get ready for the baby, I bought one of these   and a set of these , which is where I keep them all now. The upside: I have all beads in one place, including room to put my beading books. The downside: Everything's only marginally organized. I have a drawer for findings, two that hold my seed beads, which are in smaller, plastic bead organizers. Today, I went hunting for a hank of gold-plated Charlotte beads I'm sure I have, but now I can't find them. I remember where I had them stashed before we started reorganizing for Baby, but I have no idea where they wound up afterward. I've thought about getting one of these  or a couple of these  so that rather t

The next arts & crafts festival I plan to attend will be held in October. That gives me about three months to get a decent stack of bracelets, necklaces and earrings -- and maybe even a basket or two. The baskets, if I make them, will be small, though. I hope the next festival is a lot cooler than the last. Octobers can be kind of unpredictable where I live, but a nice cool breeze all day long would be great.

Happy Independence Day to all! Hope you're having a great Fourth! Eventually, I'll head off to work today. Holidays are typically kind of laid back at work, so it's tempting to take my beads with me to work on my bracelet during downtime. However, I think I'd feel pretty self-conscious working on it at my desk. Maybe it's because I work mostly with men.

Blogging Break I took a break from blogging yesterday. My husband, my daughter and I all went on an hourlong drive, had lunch in another town, visited a comic book shop (my husband's hobby), then headed back home. Not too long ago, the city we visited had a bead shop, but it has since gone out of business, which is too bad. I never had a chance to visit it while it was there because the only days I had off were days the store was closed. I really shouldn't spend money on beads right now anyway, but I still like to browse. Speaking of Browsing My favorite brick-and-mortar bead shops are ones that have finished work on display. I've been to a few that are just beads, that's it. In my favorite stores, I like to see work other people have done to be inspired by how they've put different colors and textures together.   Forgoing Tutorial Monday I've changed my mind about doing a tutorial every Monday. I'll still do them, just not that o

I have a lot of beads in primary and secondary colors, but very few in shades such as pink and neon green, such as these (pink) and these  (green). I think shades such as these would appeal to children more so than the primary and secondary hues I have, and I'd really like to expand my variety of kids bracelet designs. Of course, this will be AFTER I complete the right-angle weave bracelet. (Side note: I worked on it again on my lunch break yesterday. I'm really enjoying using that time to do some beading. I love my little girl more than anything, but it's nice to have that time without having to worry about her knocking beads over. I don't know why it never occurred to me to do that before. The only bad thing: My lunch break is only an hour.)

I wasn't able to take a photo of my new kids bracelet before posting, so I've included it here (foreground), along with a photo of the right-angle weave bracelet I've been working on for more than a month now. During my lunch hour at work yesterday, I was able to make a little more progress on it, very little, not quite a complete row. I don't plan to make another kids bracelet until I get the rose one finished. Last evening as I was driving home from work, I started having some thoughts about how I'd like to do the clasp for it. I'm thinking the bar-and-toggle style.

I spent my lunch hour beading again on Tuesday and whipped out another kids bracelet. While I'm glad I have yet another piece to add to my finished pile, I was kind of kicking myself because I could've worked on my right-angle weave bracelet instead. I've been carrying it around in my purse for a couple of weeks now waiting for a chance to work on it, and when finally I get the time once that the festival has passed, what do I do? I forget all about it. I'm really anxious to see how it turns out, because I think the same weave would look really good with a matte green bead I have. I also have a plan for a square-stitch bracelet. I'm getting a mini backlog of ideas building.

The arts & crafts festival was this past weekend. I didn't get anywhere near as much stuff made as I had hoped -- I made a whopping two kids bracelets -- and I pulled a few things I had made about five or so years ago out of a drawer. Everything I took fit in a quart-size zip-close freezer bag with room to spare, but I still managed to sell six items and make $19. That's actually better than I had expected, considering how few items I had and that the booth was free. Still, though, I wish I had taken more. Before I go to another one, I want to have quite a few items on hand. Maybe by this fall.

I thought I'd do this week's tutorial a little differently. Rather than give instructions on how to do a stitch, I'm going to give a few tips. While they work well for me, they might not for everyone, based on personal preference and how you like to hold your work, etc. I'm open to any other suggestions, too, from people who read this, so feel free to comment with your own tips. Even if the project doesn't call for it, I always leave enough of a "tail" at the beginning of my string that I can hold it between my index and middle fingers. This helps me to keep the thread taut. (I hold my work with my thumb and ring finger.) When using a stretchy or monofilament stringing material, I like these needles best. They'll stand up to the weight of the string better than anything else. Pulling the string very fast through the beads make it more likely to tangle. It won't happen every time, but for me, it's often enough that I find that having to s

About a half hour before my husband and I were ready to take our daughter to day care so that we could go to work, my daughter reached for one of my open bead cases on my tray table. I tried to head off a disaster, so I reached for it, too, hoping to grab it in time. Instead, both of our hands reached it at the same time, sending the beads all over the living room carpet. I moved the tray table out of the way, my husband put our girl in her playard, then we both picked them up. This time, I was lucky -- they were size 6 beads, big enough not to get worked down into the carpet very easily. Between the two of us, we got them picked up in about 10 minutes. Then, I went to move my tray table, still topped with open bead containers (a smarter person would've put the lids on after the first fiasco), out of the way and wound up knocking the whole thing over. This time, a mess of size 11 beads littered the living room floor. By then, we had no time to pick them up before we had to go

I'm thinking about attending another arts and crafts festival very soon, even though I still don't have a whole lot of stuff to show. The good news is that booths for this event are free, unlike the last one that cost $75. Getting there won't be cheap, and I'm sure to dine out at least once that day, so to even break even, I probably need to sell about $25 worth. So, I need to get some work done, and quickly. I'm still working on my rose-colored bracelet , even though I don't think I've had the chance to work on it even one time in the past week. In fact,  I'm still far enough away on finishing it that I figured it wouldn't be ready for the upcoming festival. Instead, I decided to see how much kids stuff I could whip out between now and then. When I headed off to work Tuesday, I packed my lunch and a bunch of beads. This is what I made on my lunch hour: Now, if only I could make another five or six of those before the festival.

As I've mentioned before, I love to shop at Fire Mountain Gems. One of the things I like about it is its catalog. It has a lot of designs throughout, along with the title of the project and where you can find a list of supplies for it on the Fire Mountain Gems website. This might be a common thing that beading catalogs do. I wouldn't know, though, because Fire Mountain is the only online bead seller that sends me a catalog regularly.

My husband and I have been dealing with a sick baby again. The poor little girl, I wish I could just sit and hold her all day. Because of this, though, I won't be able to get a tutorial up this week. I hope to get back on track next week. Hopefully, she's doing better then.

I've shopped a time or two at Thunderbird Supply Co. for beads, findings and stringing material. I love the site's variety and that, like Fire Mountain Gems, it offers bigger discounts for bigger orders. Unlike Fire Mountain, though, the combination discount doesn't apply to everything the site offers, just select items, but the prices are still pretty good. Its shipping prices are a little higher than FM, but not enough to deter me from buying through Thunderbird. I browse every once in a while. It's been a year or more since I've bought from T-bird, but I'm just not buying beads as often as I did before I had my daughter.

Yet again, I've made only marginal progress on my latest project. My baby girl was sick recently, and the first day she was sick -- last Tuesday -- she spent the bulk of the day sleeping. I got quite a bit done that day, hence the progress I made last week . However, on Wednesday and Thursday, she spent most of the day wanting to be held. She still slept more than usual, but not enough for me to drag out my beading table. I've done one more row over last week. That's it. I did find a way to take my beading with me to work, though. As I mentioned in my May 30 post , I had taken the bracelet to work but spent most of my lunch trying to unravel the thread. Since then, I've carried it with me, but rather than just dumping it all in my bag, I wrap it around a rolled up sheet of paper towel, just as if it were on a spool, then I fold the paper in half, leaving the beadwork on the outside. So far, it's held up to being hauled back and forth. Yay!

Years ago, I had an idea for a bracelet that called for an odd number of rows in the peyote weave. I was still a newbie at beading, and that was the first time I had worked with an odd-count peyote. It wasn't until I got to the end of a row that I realized the odd-count doesn't work the same as even. None of the books I owned at the time mentioned how to handle the odd count, so I had to Google it. Since then, I've added two books to my bead book stash that have odd-count peyote instructions. The instructions in both books are not only different from each other, but also from the website I found. Rather than include instructions for all ways, I'm just going to outline the one I use most. Just a couple of notes about this tutorial: Like the others I have on this site, these instructions mention working from right to left or left to right, with left being the side of the beadwork that contains the first bead on the string. In all illustrations, beads will be number