Why Seed Beads?

So, Marcia had a great question today: Why seed beads? Why do we choose tiny, infuriating bits of glass as our medium?

Have you noticed that most of us who work with seed beads are not exactly known for being patient? Take note the next time you are in a group of seed bead fanatics. Take me for instance. I am hardly patient. When I want something I want it NOW. I want results immediately, yesterday even. I like easy recipes that have little prep time and almost no cook time. I speed read, skimming the pages. But I can take the time (anywhere from two hours to six weeks) to work with the tiniest beads to create something like this:



Comment: Oh my gosh, you must have really good eyes.
Response: I just use very good lighting while I work and wear my glasses.
Comment: How long does it take?
Response: Well, that depends on what I'm doing, how I'm feeling and how many mundane interruptions occur.
Comment: Wow, you must have a lot of patience!
Response: See above.

Why do I love seed beads? Have you looked at the color choices available to us today? Delicas® alone are available in almost 900 colors! That kind of boggles the mind, doesn't it? I also love the fact that I can take that little bit of glass, a needle and thread and then make the most luscious creation:



If you work with seed beads, tell us why. Why did you choose them? Why do you stay with them? Could you live without them?? Inquiring beaders would like to know!

SSDD

That is pretty much what my weeks seem to be comprised of, with the exception of last week -- same shit, different day. *sigh* And through it all, I feel content to just sit and stare at (pick one) the computer/TV/back yard/belly button.

Nope, nope, nope -- I exaggerate. It's not always that dull. Sometimes it just seems that way.

In an effort to bring a sense of normalcy to my surroundings, I pulled out a piece of beading that I started before we left for the wilds of west Texas. When it is finished, it will be a breathtakingly beautiful bracelet, if I may say so. And it's in (drum roll) VIOLET AND TEAL. Yes, yes, that is correct -- my faves, together again.

The base for this piece is MADDENINGLY, TORTUOUSLY, SEEMINGLY ENDLESS, but it will make the most stupendous teaching piece. Yes, that is correct, I said TEACHING PIECE. Maybe I should call it the S&M Special. I'm not kidding. I have been working on this for about 20 hours now and the base, which is stitched with size 8 seed beads, is only a third of the way complete, and I haven't even started the embellishments yet. One third of the way is all that's done after 20 hours!! Geez, T -- are we feeling a little masochistic these days?? So tell me, beady buddies, what is the most masochistic piece you have worked on?

NEWS FLASH! For you lampwork bead lovers, Pam Way is participating in a trunk show this Sunday, December 2 (my mom's birthday), from 10:00 to 5:00, at Blue Moon Glassworks in Austin. Focal beads, sets, gift items --- all made by her, one bead at a time, at the end of her sofa, in her living room, in South Austin. And yes, I am president of her fan club, but by golly, I've watched her work evolve over the years and her beads are fantastic. And not only that, they are affordable. Blue Moon is located in Hyde Park on 108 W. 43rd Street.

And so, Gentle Reader, I leave you with this very Zen thought for the day: No matter where you go, there you are. (And yes, Buckaroo Banzai fans, he did say that, but Confucius said it first!)

Look Pooh, It's a Blustery Day!

You know, it kind of sucks being a human barometer. Whenever the weather undergoes a drastic change, I get a migraine. Hurricane season in Houston was sheer torture for me. Tornado and thunderstorm season on the prairie isn't much better. And a blue norther will knock me down every time. It's a bit better today, but the wind is blowing all kinds of stuff around, so I'm not sure how I'll feel this weekend. T-man wants to take a ride Sunday if the weather holds. Oh well, I'll just take cold medicine and try to hold on!

So, the bead stash. I got lots of charlottes and the new permanent galvanized finish seed beads and, of course, some rivolis from Beyond Beadery. Chatting with Betcey was great, and she had a wonderful helper with her. We had several things other than beads in common. I could gleefully have stayed in that room all day. I got some interesting fancy jasper crescent moons and carved leaves plus a strand of the richest apatite coins I have ever seen from Zeka Beads and handfuls of wonderful glass from my beady pal Melissa (who does not have a web site). Plus I hit LB before I left to pick up some size 15 cuts --- very yummy, those are. I am a happy beader.

Bead Musings on a Cloudy Day

Yes, it's cloudy, definitely overcast. And it's a week into October! When did that happen? And I feel that I have accomplished so little this past summer. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to buckle down and work harder this fall.

If you happened to visit my web site, you saw that I'm listing new items in my Etsy shop, and so far I've got ONE new listing in there. Hah! It is to laugh. I always forget exactly how much work can be involved in a listing. Plus, in the scant two months that I've been listing, I have learned soooo much about my camera and taking good photos. I'm still working on that. On the upside, I have made 11 pair of earrings in the past week. Of course, one went to me (to go with my Sheherazade beaded necklace), N took one pair, and A got a pair. Not bad, considering working with wire is NOT a thing I enjoy. After I get the pictures finished, I'll get back to my tiny seed beads and mailing projects to the angels. The new beading kits will be awesome, if I may say so. There will be more blues, some reds, my favorite creamy ceylon 203, rosey golds, and I'll try to work some purples in there just for Juls. And those are just the kits for February. There will be more for June.

So, keep checking the Etsy shop and let me know what you think. By the way, you can click on "Add Seller to Favorites" without an Etsy id. You will show up as a secret admirer. Or get an id and start you holiday shopping early! This may well be what I do this year. Okay, fellow beaders (and other readers), it's back to the camera for me. By the way, it just started raining out here on the prairie. Yuck.

Do you get beady eyed?

You know what I'm talking about. You've beaded so long that your eyes are crossed and teary? Or you are suddenly no longer able to see the big screen TV, but you can easily focus on the size 15 seed beads on your needle? Yup, you are beady eyed! Please feel free to join the club!

The necklace I'm working on decided it liked a beautiful porcelain bead I had rather than the one hubby made. That's okay. The necklace will still be stunning and I have a new plan for the special bead he made. And yes, the piece is predominantly green. I have joked with the hubby that if I had spent all those years selling nothing but purple and green beads, I could have made a mint!

"Okay, you're gonna love this one. A Dachshund, a Poodle and a Great Dane go into a bar . . . "

Well, I've been asked why I didn't finish the joke. You see, Oliver was telling it when he was suddenly distracted by a cat. He never got to the punch line.

Bead Me Up, Scotty. NOW!

Okay, I know you have all been waiting for the free kit comment contest and I do apologize. It's not quite ready. I need to attach the clasp and take pictures, not to mention putting together the instructions and the kits. Due to extenuating circumstances, that I don't really want to go into on the world wide web, our life was turned a bit upside down today. And things will get better, but today necessitated things other than blogging. I will finish the bracelet this weekend, and we will have the contest next week.

In the meantime, I'll give you a topic to discuss amongst yourselves --- the challenges of color theory for artists who work with tiny bits of glass held together with thread, or more commonly, "Why Don't These Colors Work? They Looked Fine When I Held the Tubes Together in the Store!" The Bead Goddess Margie Deeb, has covered this topic numerous times, as have several other beaders, including Pam. If you are at all serious about beadweaving, you must learn color theory with glass beads, and sometimes even relearn color theory, especially if you have had any type of art training. When working with glass, you must learn to deal with light reflection and refraction, you must learn to deal with transparency, with matte, with gloss -- it's a whole different ball game.

Your challenge: pick some seed beads you like -- different shades of the same color, contrasts, coordinates, mixes, whatever. Work a small piece, it doesn't matter what stitch, BUT do one piece with white thread, one with gray, one with black and one that blends. Now see which colors work well with each other and with which thread, and which colors make you want to gag! I think you'll be surprised. And then . . . .

let the rest of us know how it went. Click on "comments", type your comment. If you have a Google ID, type it in, if not click on "other" and if you really don't want us to know who your are, click on "anonymous".

Have a great weekend. We are celebrating N's 19th birthday, which is Monday. When she was born, it gave a whole new meaning to "Labor Day"!! It's hard to believe it was 19 years ago. I will be back on Tuesday morning, bright and early.