Beading.Beadwork.Beads

Color Theory Exercises

Chris D. sent me this link to a site that talks about Joseph Albers from the Bauhaus school and his work with color theory. Thanks, Chris!

Color Rules of Thumb

This is a very useful page about color theory from Write Design Online: http://www.writedesignonline.com/resources/design/rules/color.html

While working at Bead Obsessions, the help I was asked for most often was for help choosing colors. I usually said things like "Choose colors that make you feel good," or "Listen to your gut." That's what I usually do. I make a pile of beads (or yarn if it's a knitting project), look at it, watch it in different lights or as the light changes, and gauge how I feel about it.

Or I might use things in art and nature as inspiration for color choices. The link above uses art as examples to explain the terms used in color theory.

Finished Projects in the New Year 2011

Look! Finished projects! It feels really good to get stuff done, right?

The above photos are of Josephine's Button Bracelet. I finished this sometime in December before Christmas.

Then, I finished this:

It's bead embroidery around window beads linked together into a bracelet. The clasp is a beaded toggle bar with several loops so the size is adjustable.

Last night, I FINALLY finished this:

 

The bracelet above is my take on Diane Dennis's Fire Mountain Bracelet. The cabs are polymer clay, and I bought them online years and years ago--I don't remember the artist's name, unfortunately. The cylinder beads are Toho Aikos, #618 (yummy), and Toho size 15 rounds. The accent beads are glass and wood from my stash. 

I go back to college starting today (persuing a third degree), so I think I won't be quite as productive as I have been in the past few weeks. :o)

Brick Stitch

I like to think of brick stitch as being the opposite of peyote stitch. The stitches are each done very differently, but unless you look at the thread paths (usually under magnification), you cannot tell the difference.

But of course there are differences: As you're stitching peyote stitch, the sides of your work (where the ends of the rows are) are smooth and even, and the beads of each row form a zig-zag shape (i.e., up beads and down beads). As you're stitching brick stitch, the sides of the work (where the ends of the rows are) are uneven, forming a zig-zag shape, while the rows are flat and even.

A second difference is the way the beads lie. In peyote stitch the hole in the beads face the beginning and end of the row. In brick stitch, the beads sit so the holes are facing up and down.

The third difference is of course the thread path, i.e., it's a different stitch from peyote! So let's give it a try.

There are three ways to begin brick stitch. One way is to build a base row using ladder stitch. This is fine, but it's a different stitch, and therefore the tension is not the same as it will be in brick stitch.

Another way is to build it off the flat side of a piece of peyote work. See this project for an example.

The way I'm going to show here is a traditional method used by the African originators of the stitch. I read about it in a book some years ago, and I think the book was by either Diane Fitzgerald or Virginia Blakelock. The author was studying old pieces of beadwork and discovered the ancient stitchers did not use ladder stitch to begin brick stitch.

Please note that if you're following a pattern for your project, you have to follow it as you're stithing the method below.

Anyhoo, here it is.

1. Put a needle on a conditioned length of thread. You can use a stop bead if you'd like. String three beads. In the photos below, I'm using double Delicas. Go back down through the first bead strung so that the tail and the working thread are exiting from the same bead in the same direction.

  

2. We'll be building rows 1 AND 2 of your brick stitch project (cool, huh?)--don't forget to follow your pattern if you're using one. If you're right-handed, your working thread should be on the right and you should be holding the tail with your left hand. If you're left-handed, it's the opposite, of course.

3. Pick up a new bead, and right-handers will go up through the bead to the top right, and left-handers will go up through the bead on the top left. I'm right-handed, so the photos reflect this.

4. Continue to work to the right or left based on your dominant hand.

5. Now pick up another bead and go down through the bead on the bottom right or bottom left.

6. Continue steps 3-5 until rows 1 and 2 contain as many beads as desired. If your row 1 has fewer beads in it (as in the photo below), the working thread will be exiting the last bead added to row 1 (see bottom right bead in photo below). If my hypothetical pattern called for rows 1 and 2 to each have four beads, the thread would be exiting the top right bead.

7. My project here has three beads in row 1, four beads in row 2, and five beads in row 3. Rows 1 and 2 are complete (see photo above), but my thread is in the wrong place since it's exiting a row 1 bead. I have to reposition my thread so that it exits a bead at either end of row 2. See the photo below. Of course, to reposition, you travel through the beads, not across the outsides of them. That would be gross.

8. Now we're ready to begin brick stitch proper. But let's notice a few things before continuing. The rows in the photograph above are horizontal, so notice how the side of the piece are zig-zagging, and notice how the top of the row is flat and smooth. Compare this with a piece of peyote being stitched in the identical direction. Next, notice the holes in the beads in the photos above are facing the top (and bottom) of the project, whereas in peyote, they holes are facing the ends of the rows (or edges of the project). Last, notice the thread connecting the tops of the beads. I call those connections "bridges." We'll use those bridges to work brick stitch.

Brick stitch is picking up one or two beads, taking the needle under a bridge, and then taking the needle back up through the last (or only) bead added. At the beginning of EVERY row of brick stitch (no matter if it's an increase row, a decrease row, or an even row), you pick up two beads.

9. My project has five beads in row 3, so that's an increase from row 2. So, I'm picking up two beads, and because this is an increase row, I'm taking thread under the FIRST bridge.

Now I'm taking the thread up through the last bead added, which in the photos above and below is the bead on the left in row 3.

10. Now I'm ready to make another stitch. Pick up one bead and take the thread under the next bridge. Then take the needle up through the bead just added.

11. Again, my row 3 is an increase row. This means I started the row by going under the first bridge, and it means I have to use the last bridge twice.

12. To work a row even (i.e., the row about to be worked has the same number of beads as the last row), start the row with two beads (as with the beginning of every row) and go under the second bridge (as we did for the increase row), but only go under the last bridge ONCE.

13. To work a decrease row, begin the row with two beads (as with the beginning of every row), but this time go under the SECOND bridge. At the end of this decrease row, go under the last bridge ONCE.

In brick stitch, every stitch takes two needle passes: the first pass is under the bridge, and the second pass is through the last (or only) bead added. Your thread has to be exiting a bead before you're ready to make the next stitch.

Adding More Thread

I hate adding more thread. It's right up there with finishing work; when I'm done knitting a sweater or stitching a bracelet, I want to wear it, not sew it together, weave in threads, add findings, etc. But, alas, adding thread and finishing work are almost always necessary in handwork.

There are a couple of ways to add thread to a project in progress. This post covers the technique that can be used in literally every project.

The most important rule is this: Always add a new length of thread BEFORE you end the old thread.

Why? Because in some stitches/projects, if you end your old thread first, you have no way of knowing where to start stitching again. In other words, use your old, short thread as a place marker. Don't end your old thread until your new thread is coming out of the same bead in the same direction  as your old thread.

So, to anchor a new thread, begin by going through some beads some distance away from where your old thread is hanging. Pull the thread through the beads, leaving just a short tail (see Figure 1). In Figure 1 below, the old thread has a stop bead on it, and the thread is purple. The new thread I'm adding is yellow.

Figure 1

Using your needle, pick up a thread that’s in the ditch (or between connected beads) next to the bead where your thread is exiting (see Figure 2). Pull the thread, forming a small loop, and take the needle and thread through this loop to make a knot embedded in the beadwork (see Figure 3). This is just as if you were hand sewing or sewing on a button, etc.

                                  
Figure 2                                                                            Figure 3

Weave through some more beads (Figure 4) and make another knot. Make a total of three or four knots, always weaving through beads between knots, and always heading toward the bead your old thread is exiting.

Figure 4

Figure 5 shows the new, anchored exiting the same bead in the same direction as the old thread. Cut off the short tail left at the beginning of the anchoring (the one on the right in Figure 5). This photo pictures the real thread I added to the project; I didn't really want to stitch with yellow thread with this.

Figure 5

To end your old thread (which you can do as soon as your new thread is in place, or you can do it later), weave through beads and make little knots between the beads, just like you did to anchor your new thread. After making three or four knots, weave through a few more beads, and then trim the thread.

Ladder Stitch

Ladder stitch is a valid stitch on its own, but it's used most often (in my experience) as a base or starter for other stitches, such as Ndebele and brick stitches.

1. On a length of conditioned thread on a needle, string two beads. You can use a stopper bead if you like. I usually just wrap the tail around my finger since after the first stitch in ladder stitch, the beads won't fall off the thread.

In the photos below, I'm using bugle beads. The tail is at the bottom of the photo, and the working thread is exiting at the top.

 

2. Without adding any beads, circle back through the first bead added. This will make the two beads sit side by side.

 

Notice that in the photo on the right, the tail is exiting the first bead from the bottom and the working thread is exiting the same bead (the first bead) from the top.

3. In ladder stitch, the working thread ALWAYS has to exit the last bead added before you can make the next stitch. So now without adding any beads, pass the needle down through the last bead added (in this case, the second bead, or the bead on the right in the photo below).

 

Both the tail and the working thread are exiting the bottoms of the two beads.

4. Add another bead and CIRCLE (i.e., the needle travels again in the same direction through the bead) back through the bead your working thread is exiting. See the photo below.

 

5. Before you can make the next stitch, your thread has to be exiting the last bead added. Take the needle through the last bead added, as in the photo below.

 

In ladder stitch, each stitch requires two passes: the first pass is to add a new bead to the work, and the second pass is to reposition the needle for the next stitch.

Also note that the direction the needle is facing at the end of each stitch changes with each stitch (unless you are flipping your work with every stitch), i.e., at the end of the first stitch, the needle (and working thread) were exiting the last bead at the bottom of the work, and at the end of the next stitch, the working thread and needle are exiting the top of the work.

Here's what a series of round beads (and one hex bead) look like put together with ladder stitch:

 

Ladder stitch isn't the prettiest of the stitches, and it is difficult to keep a nice even tension. It looks good when using bugle beads, but you must be very careful as bugle beads can have very sharp edges that will cut your thread.

Campin' 'n' Beadin'

My DH and I went camping this past weekend. As we drove farther into the countryside, he noticed that the Gs at the ends of my words were disappearin'.

This is what I brought with me:

It's Josephine's Button Bracelet by Melanie L. Doerman in the February/March 2008 issue of Beadwork. It's great to work in sunlight! I'll post more photos of the project as soon as I get it finished. I have some gorgeous vintage buttons, and this is a good project for them as it doesn't require that the shank be removed. Also, it's a good exercise in odd-count flat peyote.

Here's the view from the campsite:

I love autumn.

Bezelling a Rivoli

Here's a great way to make use of even-count tubular peyote stitch. Swarovski rivolis and fancy stones have become very popular, mostly due to the fantastic work of Laura McCabe. The photo below is my Ice Queen Pendant, which features a Swarovski rivoli in the center.

 

Before you begin your bezel, coat the back of your rivoli (if it's foiled) with clear fingernail polish. Do this because skin oils, lotions, and perfumes and interact with the foil and cause it to come off the crystal. Without the foil on the back of the rivoli, you'll lose the color and sparkly effect. And do it first so the polish is dry by the time you're ready to hold onto the rivoli.

Use about a yard of conditioned thread and cylinder beads (Aikos, Delicas, or Treasures). In the photos shown below, I'm using a 16mm rivoli. String on the number of cylinder beads necessary to go around the rivoli. You can find a chart that tells you how many you are likely to need here. The number can vary due to your tension and the specific beads you're using.

For my 16mm rivoli, I'm using 42 Aikos. String your cylinders and double/triple count to be sure you have the correct number. Now we have to form a circle. I like to circle back through about half of the beads, leaving a 6–8” tail. The other way to do it is to tie your thread into a circle, being sure you leave a bit (about a bead's width) of room, i.e., don't make your circle too tight.

I prefer to circle back through beads for two reasons: First, as long as I don't split my thread with my needle (which should never happen anyway), I can adjust the tension in the first row of peyote. Second, if I make a mistake and have to pull stitches out, I don't have a knot with which to argue.

So, once you have a circle of beads, stitch one row of tubular peyote, continuing to use the same cylinder beads. Be sure to step up at the end of the row. You now have three rows of peyote (see how to count rows of peyote here, scroll down to step 8). 

Now stitch two rows of peyote with size 15 rounds. The photo below shows three rows of peyote complete and the first row of 15s started. Notice the beads are forming a tube, not a doily, i.e., the beads are lying flat on my finger.

Set the rivoli inside the bezel to see how it fits. The circle of beads should be slightly larger than the rivoli, i.e., the cylinders should appear all around the edge of the rivoli.

This is the back of the work. You might have to add a row or two of 15 charlottes to snug the bezel around the rivoli (I added one row of charlottes to this side of the bezel). The charlottes can tighten up your bezel a bit, but sometimes they are there just to add detail. If you stitch into the back of the bezel with the rivoli in place, be very careful not to scratch the foil with your needle.

Move working thread to front side of bezel and stitch one row of peyote with size 15 rounds. Now hold the rivoli inside the bezel, being careful not to scratch the crystal with your needle.

Stitch one more row of peyote with 15 rounds (a total of two rows). Check the fit and add a row or two of 15 charlottes, as needed. End threads. Et voila, you have caputred your rivoli!

Thread Conditioners

Hey! I'm back!

It's been an interesting summer and fall. I closed the retail front of my bead shop, Bead Obsessions, and opened the online shop. I still have lots of work to do for the online shop, but it's coming along.

I thought I'd ease back into blogging by writing a bit about thread conditioners. I can't imagine stitching without them.

My favorite is Thread Heaven. It's great on nylon-based threads, such as SoNo and OneG (and 
 
essential on Nymo, if you're still using that!). It uses static electricity to deter tangling and knotting, and it protects your thread against UV damage and mold. It's also acid free, so it won't eat your threads. I've learned through my association with the Washington Ship Model Society that museums use it on threads used for rigging in model ships to help preserve said rigging.

The other conditioner I use, mostly on Fireline, is Microcrystalline. 

If the maker of this has a Web site for this product, I couldn't locate it immediately. It is synthetic beeswax and is white (beeswax is yellow). It will add stiffness/body to your work and also deters tangling and knotting.

Which you use is personal preference, unless you want your piece to be on the rigid side; then you should use Microcrystalline or beeswax.

To use either, hold your thread on top of/pressed into the product with a finger/thumb of one hand while drawing the thread with the other hand. Then run the thread through your fingers again; in the case of both products, this will remove clumps and excess product, and in the case of Thread Heaven, this last action is what actually statically charges the thread.

If the air is particularly dry or if I've been away from the project for a long time, I reapply the product before resuming stitching.

Mid-July Finished Object!

Over the weekend, I finally finished these:

   

They are the Symmetry in Motion Earrings, designed by Cynthia Rutledge. Cynthia was at my bead shop, Bead Obsessions, for four days in March 2010, and this is one of the three classes she taught.