There are various different forms of beading that you can choose from, one in particular being tapestry beading. Tapestry beading is one of the more decorative forms of beading, but it is also the most difficult. Basically it is just like any other type of beading only with the use of tapestries.

What are Tapestries?

Tapestries are forms of textile art, and they are typically woven by hand on a vertical loom. Colorful patterns and images are created by the weft-face weaving technique that is used, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work. This is much different from cloth work, in which both the warp and weft threads are usually visible.

There are numerous famous tapestries in the world which can be used as examples, such as the Apocalypse Tapestry, which is the longest tapestry in the world at 140m long. Then there is also the Sampul tapestry, the Hestia tapestry, the Bayeux tapestry, and the Hunt of the Unicorn, which is a seven piece tapestry from 1495 to 1505, and which is currently being displayed at the Cloisters, Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

Tapestry Beading

Tapestry beading occurs when beads are placed over top of these bright and beautiful types of designs, and although tapestry beading can be quite a demanding project in terms of time and effort, it creates stunning results in the end.

There are certain materials that you need to use for this particular sort of beading, and in particular you need very sharp needles. Tightly woven tapestries will require an especially sharp needle in order to be able to penetrate the weave, while looser fabrics require a blunt tipped needle. This is because the blunt needles basically just push aside the fabric threads that you are beading on and go in between them.

Determining the proper thread size is also very important when working on tapestries, and the thread that you are using will decide how large an eye you are going to need. Typically your pattern will let you know what type of thread you need, or you can do your own research and learn about the particular type of tapestry that you are working on if it is pre-made.

You also always want to be sure of what it is that you want to accomplish, before you get started. After all you do not want to ruin a tapestry by making a mistake, especially if it is a more expensive one, and so taking the time and putting in the effort beforehand to plan carefully is critical.

When it comes to beading wire, there are a few different types that you have available to you. Copper is one of the most popular types of beading wire, and although it tends to work well with most designs and looks especially nice with earth tone colors, there is the issue of how it tends to darken and discolor with age.

Then there is galvanized beading wire, which is a dull silver color and which is harder than the more commonly used silver wire. Sterling silver beading wire is another of the fan favorites, namely because it is so universal. Sterling will tarnish however, and so it is best to keep it in zip lock bags or sealed containers when you are not using it.

Fine silver is the highest quality silver beading wire that you can get, and is made of 99.9% pure silver. It has fewer alloys and so it does not tarnish as quickly as sterling silver does.

As well there is gold-filled beading wire that you can use, which, although it has many layers of gold, is not actually made of pure gold, and this is important to remember because gold-filled jewelry is not nearly as expensive as jewelry that is made from real gold. The real gold beading wire is available in various karats, from 10-24 for example, and even different colors, but this wire tends to be the most expensive.

Soft Flex Beading Wire

Soft flex beading wire is a type of beading wire that is manufactured by the Soft Flex Company, and soft flex beading wire is one of the most commonly used beading wires in the world.

When it comes to buying soft flex beading wire, there are a few factors that you are going to have to take into consideration before you can make a final decision. One is determining what diameter wire you are going to need for your project, and the options are: .010”, .014”, .019”, and .024”. The larger diameter you go with, the larger and heavier beads you will be able to use.

You also need to understand the difference between soft flex beading wire and soft touch beading wire. Basically soft flex is the original line, and it was actually the first stainless steel wire to be knotted and it truly revolutionized the bead stringing industry. It is definitely one of your best options of all when it comes to beading wire.

Using small, tiny beads in homemade designs is called seed beading, and its popularity around the world may surprise you. Seed beads are commonly round, about a millimeter in length, and they have a small hole drilled straight through them. They are most often used for on and off loom weaving, and are usually black in color when they are used as spacers in beaded necklaces and bracelets, but that’s not the only type of seed bead that there is. All small, glass, multicolored beads can be considered seed beading, and these mass-produced colored balls can be woven into fabric to give it a nice, shiny, glossy feel.

Packaging

There are two different types of seed beading package sizes. The first is called a hank, which is about the size of a small Ziploc bag full of seed beads. Usually, these hanks have about twelve to twenty strands of beads inside of them. The second style of packaging is by grams, which to me is much easier to understand. However, selling beads by weight seems to be purely a Japanese trend.

Does Price Affect Quality?

When buying seed beading supplies it is a good idea to go straight to the company and buy direct, rather than buying store brand beads. Most stores brands like Wal-Mart, K-Mart, Kroger, Food Lion, and Piggy-Wiggly sell their own, cheaper beads, but for something that doesn’t cost that much to start with it makes no sense to save that extra few dollars by buying these cheaper knock-offs when really their quality is so poor that not even all the beads in the same pack may be the same size, let alone be without imperfections. Cheap plastic may be okay for your Boy Scout troops and your Craft Day at school, but when you are seriously using seed beading to create forms of artwork there should be no doubt in your mind on which type of beads to purchase.

The Ironic Wordplay Of Seed Beads

If I was an Agriculture teacher, I would tell my students that we were going to spend the class doing seed beading. Then, I would send them all out into the oak forest behind the high school to collect acorns. Using a power drill, I would show them how to make a neat hole through each of the acorns without crushing the outer shell. I’d tell them to thread the wire through, and when they were all done I would send my entire class to the art teacher’s room, to show her our seed beading techniques.