It's all about the bead

Last week I spoke about the tools and findings you will need to make and complete any beading project.  This week I look at the most important component of your project. The BEADS.

Here we find my biggest weakness, there are sooo many pretty beads in all sorts of shapes and colors and sizes and components, from crystal and plastic to stone and pearls and everything in between.

This is not a shop display, this is my work room!

One of the first things you should know, and about the last thing I learnt, is the size of the bead and also the type of bead.  There are so many that I can't list them all here.

Depending on what you want to create, size does matter.

These earrings were a learning project for me so I used the crystals I had on hand, as you can see they are huge!

Precision cut seed beads

Mixed beads

Seed beads come in different qualities as well as shapes and sizes. The cheaper beads are not all the same size and are sold by the Kg. The more expensive precision cut beads are machine cut and exactly the same size.

This is a ring I made when learning Peyote stitch, as you can see it is uneven and not pretty, the beads were the cheapies and in different sizes

This is what you make with precision beads!

Clay Beads

Glass Beads

Paper beads, easy to make at home from old magazines or news papers, glue and clear nail polish

It is very important to know what you want to make, not so much whether it is a necklace or bracelet orearrings, but it is also about whether the item is to be worn for everyday wear or smart only, is it to be a statement piece and is it for an adult or a child, a man or a woman.

When I first started I mostly used cheap glass pearl beads and as I became more confident I moved on to stones, like Agate and even fresh water pearls.

Small glass pearl beads, look good and are great for beginner projects when you don't want to spend a fortune

Beautiful pastel Agate beads

glass pearl beads, with Czech crystals and silver tone balls and flower spacers, it looks elegant and expensive.

I have a hard time choosing beads and now have a collection to rival a bead store! If you have an old necklace or bracelet that is out of style, remaking it with a few little updates is a great way to experiment without going looking,

A lot of beading supply places will have 'kits' that you buy to make a specific project. This saves you a lot of time and money as these kits come with exactly the beads and findings that are needed. As we progress with learning I will make kits available in Adiesdesigns for purchase.

From the 1st June 2015 I will be stocking basic tool kits in Adiesdesigns.