The Bead Spot

I've assigned myself beading days, three days a week in which I focus my at-home time creating beaded pieces and striving to develop my creativity. For three other days each week, I plan to work on DIY home projects such as decluttering, painting and redoing my kitchen cabinets. I'm tired of my house being incomplete, but at the same time, I want to stay on track with my beading goals.  For at least the first year or so after my husband and I bought our house, I worked on my home at least once a week. After a schedule change at work, though, that changed. It's not unusual for months to pass between DIY days.  And it's even harder to find the time now that we have a 3-year-old. So I've decided the only way it's going to get done is if I do it. But I don't want to lose sight of my beading goals in the process. I know myself well enough to know that I'll have a tough time sticking with my 3-days-of-beading, 3-days-of-DIY-plan, though. It will take more disc...

At one of my nephew's football games a couple of weeks ago, a woman wearing beaded earrings made to look like feathers sat down in front of my mom and me.  "Mom, look at those!" I said. (My mom works with beads, too.) "I'm going to try to make some like that." Because I didn't know the woman wearing the earrings, I couldn't get as good of a look as I would've liked, so I have no idea what stitch was used or whether the beads were Delicas. I went home, fired up my Bead Canvas software and went to work trying to figure out how to make a feather out of beads. I initially tried a square stitch, because that's what I figured had been used on the earrings the woman was wearing. But no matter how I drew the beads, I couldn't come up with a feather I was satisfied with. So I switched to peyote stitch, then brick stitch, which is ultimately what I decided to use. They're not fancy, but I still like the way they turned out...

On Tuesday, I was digging through my beading supplies looking for jump rings when I came across this peyote weave bracelet I started years ago but never finished. After several hours of work on it, I recall, I decided I didn't like it, and rather than toss the whole thing, I had decided to deconstruct it to save the beads. But on Tuesday, I started thinking that I was too critical, so now it's back on my to-do list. I don't know what type of clasp to put on it yet, but I think it's next on my list. I just hope I can figure out where I put the beads I was using. ...

I spent the past month working on a freelance project, but now that it's behind me, I've turned my attention back to beadwork. It's been a while since I've made rings, but because I've been in the mood to do projects that I can complete in one sitting, lately I've been pulling out my thin wire and making rings. ( Instructions for making rings .) In addition to the fact that it's a short project (I can complete a ring in about 15 minutes), I like that the materials travel well. The wire is thick enough that it's not likely to get knotted in a craft bag, and each small row is secure, so it's easy to stop at practically any point without worrying about losing a stop bead and a whole hour's worth of work. Plus, unlike with loom projects, all the stuff I need can fit in a rather small package. Therefore, this week, during my lunch hour at my day job, I've been pulling out my wire and beads, strapping on my headphones and spending my free ti...

For as long as I've been beading, I've been wrestling with photographing my work. I've never been much of a photographer. Any good shots I have were the result of pure luck. One problem I have is that I have no idea how to hold a camera steady -- an absolute must when you're trying to get a photo of tiny little seed beads. My sister-in-law suggested I get a tripod, so I've put one on my to-buy list. However, even a tripod won't stop me from accidentally moving the camera when I click the shutter button, which clumsy me does just about every time I take a photo. So I went looking for a way to click my camera remotely, and what I've discovered is that I already have one -- on my iPhone. Did you know that clicking the "+" button on iPhone headphones will snap pictures? (Or at least it will on the iPhone 5 ... I don't know about other versions.) Now that I've found a way to hold the camera steady, I can start working on bigger things .....

Here are some books on beading and other crafts that I enjoy. I welcome any information on titles you enjoy as well, so feel free to comment, either on books within the list or your own favorites. Beading "Contemporary Loom Beading: A New Look at a Traditional Stitch," by Sharon Bateman. "Art of Seed Beading," by Elizabeth Gourley, Jane Davis and Ellen Talbott. "Beading in the Native American Tradition," by David Dean. "Little Bead Boxes: 12 Miniature Containers Built With Beads," by Julia S. Pretl. "The Beader's Guide to Color," by Margie Deeb. "Beadwork Creates Beaded Rings," edited by Jean Campbell. "The Beader's Bible," by Claire Crouchley. "Beadwork Creates Bracelets," edited by Jean Campbell. "Designer Beadwork: Beaded Crochet Designs," by Ann Benson. "Beaded Cords, Chains, Straps & Fringe,"  by Beadwork Magazine Other Crafts Basketmakin...

I recently received the sewing machine my mom told me I could have. We still have to attach it to the cabinet, but for the most part, it's just waiting for me to relearn how to use it. My sister-in-law suggested I visit  Tilly and the Buttons to learn. The site, as she said, is very thorough, right down to telling me how to set up the machine. I have plans to make clothes for my daughter as well as tear dresses and dolls, but I know I got to start smaller. Maybe by this time next year, I'll be a pro.