Bad Blogger, Great Beader

I've been a bad, bad blogger, I know really truly awful. :(

It has been such a busy month....and a half.... or more since I last posted and I apologize greatly. But I have had a revelation that I had yet to seem to grasp, and have now started to create my own pieces Just by looking and beads and letting my hands do the work. Don't get me wrong the colors have always been mine but with out following some rough outline or at least a picture in a passing magazine and go from there, but now I find myself drawing little inspiration from pictures of other peoples stuff. Then magically on vacation in Arkansas, in the SNOW (which doesn't happen in Arkansas.....ever.... unless you leave your cold home state of Oregon and go to said Arkansas) I found some inspiration and it started with bracelets and then went to earrings and even a necklace, not all of the same kind mind you. But the point is that it started to flow and all of a sudden all of these weird stitches that I have used mostly just with themselves started to fit together to make pieces. Not that any of these are so elaborate, but BABY STEPS and I am on my way!

So to follow are some of the photos of the things I did while I was snowed into my hotel for five days..... FIVE DAYS of a seven day vacation, not because we couldn't drive in the snow, but because ever Arkansas native apparently thinks that you can break on ice and in fact it is the preferred method of driving in the snow.... LOTS of accidents.

So I made this piece and I love it, but red is not my color so it will shortly be up in my etsy store. It is made with Size 11O/T seed beads and a 12 MM Glass pearl, along with glass, plastic and I think ceramic beads, It has a beaded toggle clasp as the closure.

 This little Gem of a bracelet was my first attempt at a the larger beads with smaller beads. It has purple lined blue seed bead size 8 o/t and a clear with AB finish size 11 o/t this bracelet took about six hours of working plus making and attaching the clasp. But I couldn't be happier with the results, it was a gift for my boyfriends mother.  By the way, I feel like this needs mention, I have given up my alliance to never use anything but nymo. I had a bad experience with a spool of black that I bought, Although I don't really think that it was nymo I think it was miss marked, but it just frayed and unraveled about the sixth line in on peyote and broke my heart. So that sent me on the quest for the next best thing, and I happened to pick up a spool of the most expesive beading thread i have ever bought, but 40% off thanks to a Joann's coupon. And what I bought was WildFire beading thread. I have a thing against monofiliment because it's to slick for me, But this is a heat treated and coated thread, and is like a super Nymo. I just made my first ring with it for a regular wearer when her favorite ring broke, and since rings are the most abused things I make, I figured it would give me a good gauge on what it can take, but I have a feeling it will take a lot being that I can't even seem to break it no matte how hard I hold tension ( I tried, and cut myself in the process, my wrap finger aka my index finger is a bit sore right now from five days of continuous beading, the top knuckle crease is missing a wee bit of skin.... worse then a paper cut.) So when you do use this thread, and if you are a puller like me, remember that it is very sharp. I think a 50 yard spool was around 16 dollars ( Oregon doesn't have sales tax so that's just cost) But Joanns regularly has 40% off a single item coupon, so that's when I buy all of my expensive beading things I can actually by from them, like mounts and thread, and sometimes if I want it right that second accent beads. But I don't think I could be any more pleased with the Wildfire frost 10lb test thread. 

now then moving on finally. The Earring is actually where the pendent design came from, I was wanting something chunky and fun. I have always loved the coral fringe but tend to use it in all the wrong places and I just happened to have a think about some earrings using it, and I had some new shinny glass pearls that I really liked and was itching to use. Thus these earrings were born. Although I have this itch where I can't leave things alone and I don't like doing things unless its complicated, obviously, that's why I am a seed beader. Noting worth doing takes less than a hour or 36... 

Anywho.... 

So the hotel had this really awesome HUGE bent corner desk, and I used it all, every bead that I packed in my suitcase designated for beads (Southwest lets you check 2 and I don't own that many cloths, obsessive? Horder? Hobby!) was spread out on that table and it was wonderful! as you can see by that picture I really don't keep a tidy tray, in fact if it's a day of beading I have to myself I usually just leave whatever falls out of my velcroed triangles on the tray until I am done beading and then I scoop them up and add them to my bead soup that I may one day use.. or at least look at because I think its pretty. Speaking of pretty, here is  another photo because they are pretty.. yes this is the back of my laptop, don't judge, I didn't have a set up in the hotel. 

 Last but not least, the second bracelet I made, which I also really like Its got a metallic 8 O/t bead and black matte 11 O/T. Now I only had frost colored thread with me, so after I took this picture I went through and with a sharpie and colored all of that white black. 

Well that's almost last, because I do have one more bracelet that I made while on vacation, but it doesn't have a clasp yet and I haven't taken pictures of it yet. however it is a blue and black one. 

  Ok 

I am done. 

As always take a look at my etsy store which I am just as bad at updating with new merch as I am with posting on this blog. 

ETSY!!!!!!

Dutch spiral tutorial

This is the stitch I love; the way it lays is beautiful. The way it feels and looks it’s just so full of awesomeness!

So to begin I work with nymo thread and a size twelve beading needle if you prefer fire line then use that. It’s not something I care for. I also use a thread conditioner which is thread heaven, however bees wax will work, and I used it for a number of projects before I became aware of thread heaven.

Seed beads used: Sorry I don’t have manufactures or actual names for these the shop I bought them from doesn’t label where they come from.

A 6 O/T seed beads-Silver lined red

B 11 O/T Blue cobalt

C 11 O/T Grey sparkle

Starting:

Begin by stringing 1 A, 4B and 3C onto your needle. Slide them down leaving about a eight inch tail to weave in later. Next back through the A bead and then through the rest, repeat to close the circle go back through only the 1A bead this eliminates the knot and I feel like it gives me better starting tension.

So coming out of the A bead pick up another A bead and pass through the first B bead in the previous row pull snug.

Now pick up 1B bead and go through the very next B bead you are creating the peyote part of your dutch spiral by doing this. 

Repeat step, pick up 1B bead and go through the very next B bead. 

Once again pick up 1B bead and go through the next and last blue (B) Bead 

My thread isn't showing because I compulsively wrap it around my fingers so I can hold onto the work (crochet habit) But in the above photo there are three new up beads for peyote, we need four however so now pick up 1B bead (because the thread is still coming out of the blue)

 and go through the very first C bead in the previous row.

Now it is time for your first 'Swag' as I like to call them. Pick up three C beads and go through the second A bead, which if you notice is offset like a up bead. 

Now you have completed row two and its time to start the third row. So as before pick up 1A bead, next you will want to skip the first B bead as its a down bead, and will be sort of like a cradle for your new A bead. Go through the second B bead, or the first up bead in the new row. 

This row gets kind of messy, your work doesn't really look like much but a heap of beads, but stick with it, it gets better! So next you're coming out of a B bead so you'll pick up a B bead and go through the next up B bead in the row. 

Continue to pick up a blue bead and go through the next blue bead until you are ready for your next bead swag.

So now step into the swag by going through the very first C bead in the second row. Pick up three C beads and go through the up A bead. This is pretty much how it goes for the hole piece, you can adjust the number of beads per swag as wanted. Usually about ten rows makes a full spiral. below are some pictures as a go through this work. 

Rings, Rings, and more Rings also a necklace.

So lately you could say I’ve been neglecting my blogging duty. Mostly because I have….for like, half a month. However with good reason, I have been beading happy… not just like normal oh cool lets make one thing. We are talking SyI happi happi happi off of duck dynasty.

Now not that I have really written much about myself, but I’m the tomboy of the family, I know sounds like a joke I make really girly jewelry and yet I don’t do dress up. I’m not even a makeup wearer. So its not much of a surprise that I very rarely make jewelry for myself, or even wear the few pieces that I have made in the past. This is about to change. At least I finally made a necklace that I both love, and fits my style…Amazing right? Take a gander!

unfinished but its done now. pictures of it finished to come soon

Anyways rings…. So I have ignored learning herringbone stitch (like most stitches) until I want to make something that doesn’t seem to work out in any of the other stitches I know Herringbone I have found that I love. It is a super versatile stitch that can do pretty much anything. The reason being is that you can insert bridges pretty much anyplace. And put pretty much anything in a bridge… I know crazy pants kinda stuff right.

Okay so I am going to cut this post kinda short because now that its been sitting on my laptop screen for over a week I’ve lost its steam…and moved on.. I have Add when it comes to beads. But the great news is even though this post, let’s face it, sorta sucks other than the prettys.  I have the pictures for my first tutorial and as soon as I remember to grab my digital camera cord or by a sd card (probably easier considering my laptop has a card slot) By the way, I bought a new camera (slightly used) just for yall because well I’m a little accident prone when it comes to my phone (cats water dish, left on top of my car outside in a rain storm, several droppings on various hard surfaces) and it still works, but it takes these really, really bad photos (see necklace photo above)  the great crystal ones are from a borrowed phone but that was a short term solution so i am now settling into my new Olympus 14 megapixel point and shoot. I love it… Mostly because I had a 8 mega pixel exactly like it before, but ya know whatever works.

It’s a knotty kind of thing….

As you can probably already tell, I am absolutely 200% horrid at going in any kind of order when it comes to writing about things. Last post I was mentioning Dutch Spiral… this post is to be short (maybe) and sweet, but mostly to the point…KNOTS.

I am a Nymo beader, die hard. I’ve use mono-filament twice and hated it both times.. I have more problems trying to keep the projects together on it than anything else. That being said I have never used Fireline as I am much to cheap to pay that much for something I am not sure I’ll like when I know I have something that I already love. From my research you either are pro mono-filament or anti mono-filament. I have met beaders that use both but still they tend to preference one or the other.

The reasons I like Nymo are simple. I feel that for its thickness which is very small and fits through seed beads size tiny(15) very well; Size B Nymo holds a fair amount of weight. That being said I have learned through-out trial and failure (Beadworks falling apart) you can never, ever tie enough knots.. I average about three on tie on and four or more depending on the weight of the piece at tie off. I might be a wee bit over board but better safe than sorry, if one fails another is there to back it up.

As for the type of knot I use, just a simple loop around one of the strings that is already in the weaving with a few woop-dees through the circle before I pull it tight( ß- doesn’t make any sense I know… its late). So say in a piece of peyote you want to make a knot, I usually go down through the work four or five lines. Then make a loop on the nymo between the beads. Before pulling that loop snug I reinforce it with two or three more stitches through the loop, and then pull tight. and repeat two or three maybe even four other times.

 Beading, even more so Bead-Weaving is a craft that holds a fair amount of weight. For instance the purple Dutch spiral necklace featured below is not something you can’t  forget around your neck. It probably weighs 1-3 pounds (notice I don’t have a scale handy.. anywhere, this is like cooking a pinch of this splash of that who needs measuring spoons just glug it in!) making something like that stay together takes a good bit of fiddle-y-ness and knots.

Below is a update on my unnamed third Dutch Spiral Pancake formerly called warty and weird because of how it looked when it started out. It needs a new name anyone have any ideas?

I Sell On Etsy

Crazy Little Thing Called Beading

Silly Little Thing Called Love…or Beads

Hi all!

Today has been long and I am just now settling down to write. Who knows if this will actually be just a one day entry or a multiple day posting but I will try and squeeze it all out tonight. Thankfully work will not be in need of my attendance until the afternoon so I might just get it done and out to you.

My current bead stitch obsession is Dutch Spiral…. I’ve read about it for a couple of years and never really been interested until I found a YouTube video that made it look not so impossible, and really rather friendly, not to mention how easy it is to make Dutch Spiral your own. Its amazing just how customizable this stitch is.  I LOVE IT.

Now throughout this post I want to include some pictures, I think it only fair to warn you at this stage in my blogging I am not one who can invest in a high priced camera to take beautiful photos. Instead I have my old, slightly (very) water damaged Iphone 4. Which takes…. Okay photographs. However it does struggle with beads because they are sparkly and reflect light.

Warnings aside I wanted to share some pictures/experiences with Dutch Spiral:

What is Dutch spiral:

It’s a mix of tubular peyote and what I like to call “swags” of beads.

The peyote is pretty simple as long as you know any kind of peyote stitches… then you just go in a half circle with it.

The “swag” part is where Dutch spiral becomes super easy to customize because you can do almost anything in the world with it, just with the same beads as normal make them loopy or tight giving you a whole different effect, and then there are accent beads which can alter a piece in even more ways. The point is every Dutch spiral piece that you create can be completely different looking then the one before.

The first pancake:

My first attempt at Dutch Spiral went great; The color pattern was a match to my ‘Flora Bracelet’ currently for sale in my Etsy shop and I was really just kind of playing around with the stitch. I must say when I attempted it I assumed it would be much harder, but in fact it turned out quite well. That being said I have to take out about sixteen lines of it, and have yet to finish the project because I at some point lost a bead on my peyote core inner spiral, a good reason to never bead when tired.

MY second attempt a Dutch spiral was a much more effective result. It was rather quick completion the entire necklace clasp and all within about 14 hours which seems like a very long time for any one my necklace. But in the world of bead weaving that’s a stone’s throw.

 By the third attempt I am already comfortable with some embellishments on different parts.

All in all I find it a great stitch with a abundance of uses.

As always 

JB

I Sell On Etsy

Why Hello There

To Bead or not to Bead; Why to Bead of course!

Hello all, I am Jessie Bradach.

I am just starting in the wonderful world of selling my craft, which is very…. Very part time.

My craft of choice as you can probably tell is beading. I also tend to be very exclusive with a subcategory of beading called bead weaving. This relationship is somewhat new only on its second or third year of obsession. But the embers burn bright with love for my hobby (and elephant as you might have guessed)  Being that I work full time I can not devote every second of my day to beading, but boy if I could I would numb bum and all.

So instead dear readers I promise you the following: 

A soulful promise to try and stick with blogging

A look at almost every piece and even some failures along the way

Perhaps even a few tutorials as I go along. 

And even maybe a few stories here and there.

With love and unending enthusiasm

                                                              JB

http://www.etsy.com/shop/ElephantBeader