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.

Beading is a fun and fabulous hobby, and there are actually a few different types of beading you can do, one in particular being loom wood beading. Loom wood beading is basically just like regular beading only you use a loom to complete the actual beading process. There are many different styles and types of beading looms to choose from, each which offers its own separate features and qualities.

The Different Types of Beading Looms

You can make your own loom or you can purchase one at a beading store. Most looms are quite inexpensive but if you buy a larger one you are going to end up paying a bit more. Most people stick with the smaller looms because they are sufficient for most beading projects, such as bracelets and belts.

Learning About Loom Wood Beading

For a basic loom wood beading project you will need: a bead loom, scissors, seed or pony beads, linen or nylon thread, a needle, and bead patterns. The first step involved in loom wood beading is to thread the loom. You do this by unrolling two or three yards of beading thread from the spool, and then you wrap one end of the thread around one of the screws on the loom a couple of times.

Make sure that you are holding the thread tightly, and then slide the long end of the thread through a center slit. Now you want to wind it around the other screw, return it through the opposite center slit, and so on, making sure that you keep the tension even while going through all of the necessary slits. Once you have finished this part of the loom wood beading process, you need to begin bead weaving.

You want to cut off a one-yard length of your beading thread, and thread one end of it through until the length is almost halved, then tie the long end of the thread to the outside warp thread on the loom, making sure to leave at least an inch or two of thread free.

Now you use your needle to pick up the first row of beads, choosing the colors that are specified in your particular pattern. Once you have all of the beads on the needle, you slip them down the thread to the bottom, ensuring that they are snug against the beading threads. Pass the needle now underneath the warp threads, and then pass it through the beads from the opposite direction but this time putting it over top of the warp threads, and this will lock your beads into place for row one.

Then all you do from here is repeat this process for each row, and as you near the end of your thread, you need to run it through the bead row a third time and cut it off, then start the next thread by threading it through the same row a fourth time, then you continue as before, and tie off by leaving just enough of the warp thread to be able to tie a secure knot with your fingers.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you want to bead using a loom, then one of the very first things you are going to need to find are loom beading patterns. There are many different places that you can go to when you want to find loom beading patterns, however there are several in particular that are especially worthwhile, of which will be discussed in detail here.

There are many different places that you can go to when you want to find loom beading patterns, however there are several in particular that are especially worthwhile, of which will be discussed in detail here.

Your Best Options

One of the best places to go for loom beading patterns is Fire Mountain Gems and Beads, which is actually one of the largest and most well established beading supply companies in the world. Besides loom beading patterns, their selection includes: Swarovski crystal and crystal components, gemstone beads, glass beads, metal beads, natural beads, pearls, acrylic beads, seed and bugle beads, wood beads and celestial crystal.

They also offer a wealth of other valuable beading information including tips and tricks of the trade that you can use to become a more advanced and experienced beader.

Another great option for beading patterns is Pin’s Patterns, which is a company that is a very low key, family owned and operated business. They offer advice and information relating to beading that the average person would be interested in, especially beginners. As well, all of their patterns are free and so you do not have to feel hesitant about trying a bunch of different ones out to see which ones are your favorites.

If you do decide to pay for your beading patterns, you want to be absolutely positive before you put any money down on them that they are patterns that you are actually going to end up using. After all, you may find ones here and there that are interesting, but if you are never going to complete the pattern or going to have a use for the resulting creation, then there is really no point in spending money on the pattern.

You should typically only pay money for a pattern if it is one that is unique, or one that you cannot find anywhere else. Otherwise, you are better off just using the various free beading patterns that are available to you, and this way you are not putting yourself at any risk of losing money.