Working With Rivolis

I’ve never worked with Rivolis until recently. I saw several different patterns and Bead & Button kept saying, “we just can’t get enough of Rivolis.”  I will admit—they’re freaking GORGEOUS. However, kinda hate working with them (so far).

I bought some assorted sizes from my usual source, Artbeads.com. I bought them in Montana Sapphire (a new favorite color of mine.) I was at the Long Island Bead Festival recently and bought some more rivolis in a lighter blue for contrast.

The first pattern I tried was Bead & Button’s, Rivoli square dance. Figuring out the correct number of beads needed (even using the chart on the diagram) was tricky. Once I completed the bracelet I was in total awe.  However, I was concerned about the rivolis being secure.

Even though this is a little over-the-top in style, I wore it the other day. I was VERY upset when I saw one of the rivolis was missing from its’ cage. I had even modified the design adding an additional round of beads to hold it in place.

Last night I reached into a pot holder and felt some kind of pebble in there. Before I screamed at my kids, “Who was playing with my potholders?” the beautiful blue rivoli fell out. So now I have it; but I need to figure out a way to secure it. I’m thinking some jewelry glue. Any ideas?

A free project that you can download off Bead & Button’s site is called “Stones with corners.” Before I throw in the towel on rivolis, like I have with making homemade cheesecake, I’m going to try this pattern next. So far, the rivoli sections seem more secure. I’ll keep you posted!

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Tribute to Downton Abbey

Disclaimer: I want to thank Artbeads.com for providing me with the gorgeous crystals and seed beads to create this fantastic necklace.

I was asked by Artbeads.com to create something with the theme, ‘What’s Old is New Again.” I recently watched season 1 of Downton Abbey on Netflix. I am dying to see season 2—but in the interim I’ve been watching a ton of movies or TV series that feature the royals. It’s no surprise that the jewelry showcased blows my mind. The amount of detail and grandeur is amazing. (And now I’m hooked on Tudors!)

When I saw this pattern, Fit for a Queen, in my most recent copy of BeadAndButton.com’s magazine, “Right Angle Weave” I knew I just HAD to make it. It features pendants by Swarovski, xilion bicones, and tons of gorgeous seed beads. I finished the necklace with a really pretty antique S clasp.

My only issue with the pattern is that I think they miscounted the number of crystals. In the section regarding “Small Units” they say to substitute 3mms for the 4mms, 11s for the 8s, and 15s for 11s. If you do that, you’ll need another 75 3mm bicones. When I looked at the picture more closely (after running out of bicones) I noticed that it looks like instead of 4mms they are using the 8 seed beads. I really liked the look of more crystals so I ordered more bicones to finish the project.

 

What I used

• Montana Sapphire crystals in 4mm and 3mm
• Swarovski Pendants
• TOHO™ Bead Round 8/0 Frosted Silver-Lined Dark Gold
• TOHO™ Bead Round 11/0 Metallic Dark AB Iris

Mother’s Day

I’m participating in a “Make it For Mom” contest on Artbeads.com. My entry is not a bead weaving piece (which is not like me). But this is a bracelet that I really love because it features my three children and their birthstones (which happen to all go really well together).

If I win the contest, I would get a $250 gift card. Which is probably just enabling my heavy bead-habit. But I’d appreciate it anyway!! Please vote for me!

What Do I Need to Get Started?

I teach weaving at various libraries on Long Island. The first thing people do when they show up to my class is start pulling out pliers. For weaving, it’s rare that you need them. I’m going to list out a few things that you must have and then a few things that would be cool to have.

Needles

Many weaving projects are no-needle-required. But most of the time you need needles and there are a TON to choose from. It’s really all about what you’re comfortable working with.

My favorite needle is by Beadalon. It’s flexible and has a large eye (easy for threading) that collapses when it goes through the beads. The only problem with needles in general is their color. They are EASY to lose. I think they should make them in really bright colors. I’m sure there are needles all over my house. I lose them a lot (don’t tell my husband).

Other needles go by length, stiffness, and size. If you’re working with small beads (11/0 and 15/0) you’ll want a skinny (fine) needle. I normally work with fine gauge needles but that means they’re also delicate and they don’t last too long. Needles are something that I buy all the time. Fortunately, they’re not that expensive.

Thread burner

Honestly, this isn’t something you need to buy right away. A really great pair of scissors works well too. But a thread burner is the way to  go if you’re going to a lot of detailed weaving.  A thread burner can get really really close to the beadwork and literally burns the thread. I know it sounds ridiculous, but once you’ve used one, you don’t want to go back to scissors.

Stringing Materials (Thread)

When reading directions you’ll see a lot of them call for NYMO or tell you to condition your thread. I am a fairly lazy person—conditioning thread sounds like a lot of work to me. I prefer to use Fireline. This stuff is SUPER strong. If you stitch with a lot of crystals, you’ll want to use a product like fireline. It’s a bonded material so the crystals are less likely to cut the thread as you’re stitching. Regular thread is not as strong and can break from crystals. Remember—crystals have sharp edges.

There are other threads that are nice too because they come in various colors which blends well with the beads. Fireline or Wildfire only come in white or black. So you’ll have to decide what works best. If your tension is good, often you don’t even see the thread.

Other Tools

When I work I use the lid of my storage bin and lay a piece of felt in it. I use that as my work space. I do a lot of beading while watching TV (on the train, on a plane, in hotel rooms, you name it). The storage bin holds my instructions and supplies and when I work I just use the top for my work surface. The felt keeps the beads from rolling around too much. But if they do roll off the felt they are caught in the lip of the lid.

Got any tips you can share?

Seed Beads Demystified

One of the things that I found so confusing was understanding the sizes of beads. What exactly is an 11/0? What’s a delica seed bead? What’s a good seed bead and when does it matter?

How Seed Beads are Sized

If I were to take my seed beads and line them all up one right after another, how many would it take to make that line add up to one inch? Therefore, the bigger the number, smaller the bead. So, when you see that a seed bead is a size 8/0 (can also just say “8) it’s a rather large seed bead (especially if you’re a weaver). I normally work with 11’s or 15’s. Those are quite small and if you don’t wear glasses now you will quite soon.

Types of Seed Beads

Delica is a very specific type of seed bead. It is cut very straight. Imagine taking a pipe and cutting it in half. That is the same idea with delica beads. Many weavers prefer them because when you’re doing a specific pattern the delicas will line up perfectly. I sometimes like delicas (for peyote it really comes out beautiful) but I also really like the “rounds” type of seed bead. There are also seed beads in hex, triangle, and square (cube) shapes.

Choosing a Bead

If you’re going to do an intricate design, you need a serious quality seed bead. If you buy junk, they will all be mismatched in size/shape and you’ll be really annoyed trying to work with them. Seed beads don’t have to cost a fortune (unless they’re gold lined etc). There are some really great seed beads out there by Miyuki and TOHO. I find the best deals for seed beads are online.

My Favorite Vendors

• Artbeads.com
  A great place to shop. If your order goes over $10 (that’s easy for me to do) then it ships free. I LOVE free shipping. They frequently have coupons available if you spend over $40.
  
• BeadinPath.com
  I really love their beads. They have a LOT of vintage and acrylic that you might not find anywhere else. My favorite thing about their seed beads is the packaging. They come in tubes. I love the tubes because it makes storage and viewing your loot of colors so much easier.

There are plenty of other vendors out there but I honestly just shop at these two. I think that if you really get into stitching/weaving, you’re going to find that online is the place to shop. You’ll save a tremendous amount of money and you’ll get consistently great quality beads.

My Favorite Reads

Jewelry magazines and books are a lot like recipe books. Once you find a good one, you don’t like letting go, and you can keep them on the shelf forever.

I’ve checked out a LOT of books from my local library. Some have gorgeous pictures and really cool looking designs but the instructions BLOW. I’ve tried to do what they wanted and cannot follow them at all. I would consider myself an advanced weaver—I know most stitches and can design my own work as well.

Certain magazines are better than others too. Again, use your local library and see which appeal to you. If you really like them, then subscribe so you can keep them in your home.

Library tip: Libraries have to eventually get rid of old magazines—there’s only so much storage space. If you make nice with a librarian, they’ll hold the magazines aside and give them to you. Bead & Button is my favorite magazine and ordering just ONE pattern from an old issue is at least $3. So getting those old magazines is a real cost savings as well.

Magazines I’ve Enjoyed
(Many have great newsletters and free downloadable projects)

• Beadstyle
• Step by Step Beads (now Beadwork Magazine)
• Bead & Button  (my all-time favorite)
• Beading Daily

Books I Would Recommend:

• Crystal Beaded Jewellery
• The Seed Bead Book: Over 35 Step-by-step Jewellery Projects
• Bead Romantique

What are your favorites?

How I Became Addicted to Bead Weaving

I am a crafty person. Always have been. And I have 3 kids who also like crafts, so it’s not uncommon for me to be at the local craft store Michaels. I walked in one day and they were having a make-it-and-take-it event.  The sparkly crystals caught my eye. I did the activity and then found myself buying jewelry supplies en masse.

I don’t have time (or patience) to take classes so I went to my local library and checked out every book available on beginning jewelry making. After stringing several anklets, bracelets, earrings, wrapped pearls, and necklaces I found that the jewelry magazines featured more detailed pieces that involved stitching (or weaving). I love detailed intricate type work so this really appealed to me.

In the beginning I found the directions VERY hard to follow (and my profession is writing technical directions). But, it’s a little like tax or legal documents, once you get the hang of the lingo, you can follow along. Most magazines feature how-to sections for basic stitches.

My first weaving piece was a daisy chain (shown here) using Swarovski crystalized pearls and jade chips for the leaves. You can do a lot with daisy chain and it’s not that difficult to master. I think I originally learned it in Girl Scouts. I recently taught my daughter, Belle, how to do the daisy chain and she’s 5 years old.

If you want to try bead weaving I would suggest you try some of the simpler stitches like cross weave (example shown here) and right angle weave. If you look in magazines like Bead & Button, you will find some designs that you can do.

Email me if you need some beading inspiration!