Daniel Millions asked:


Handcrafted beaded jewelry is jewelry that is handmade using beads and a material to hold the beads together. The handcrafted beaded jewelry includes rings, bracelets, earrings, necklaces, belts, anklets, pendants, children’s jewelry, bridal jewelry sets and other jewelry sets. The beads found in beaded jewelry can be manufactured from a variety of materials.

The beads that are used to make the jewelry may be glass, crystal, wooden, ceramic, metal, pearl or stone. There are bead artists who create customized beads from different materials. It is possible to create birthstone jewelry with beads since precious and semi-precious stones are used to make beads. One piece of jewelry may have different varieties and sizes of beads used in its creation. For instance, a southwestern style necklace may have different sized silver, turquoise and coral beads on its strands.

Depending on the pattern or instructions that are used to make beaded jewelry, the jewelry item may have been woven. When handcrafted beaded jewelry is woven, the bead artist is able to create pictures on the item. A woven bracelet may have a depiction of roses against a leafy background on it or any other picture that is desired by the artist or customer. A bead artist can be very creative with woven jewelry in a similar way as the quilter or painter. It is possible to weave beads into different shapes that will suit the purpose of the ornament.

In that case, needles and a strong beading thread are used to weave the beads by hand or with a loom. The result will be a flat piece of beadwork. The flat beadwork is versatile and can be as tiny or large as the bead artist desires. If a small rectangular piece has two edges sewn together, it can be used to form a small bag as a pendant. A long woven piece of beadwork may be left flat to serve as a belt. If the two long edges are sewn together, the result is a beaded pipe form that can be used to create handsome necklaces or bracelets.

Thin wire can be used to create jewelry instead of the needle and thread. When wire is used for stringing beads, the jewelry is sturdier than the threaded beads. There is less room for creativity with the wired beads since they can only be strung on the wire but the simplicity of manufacture does not lessen the beauty of finely made beaded jewelry.

Handcrafted beaded jewelry is valued for its elegance and the hard work that goes into their manufacture. Bead artists need good eyesight, a steady hand and patience to create their jewelry. The many hours that a bead artist needs to create their jewelry are appreciated by anyone who has ever tried to use beads to make jewelry.

Many handcrafted items of beaded jewelry are one of a kind pieces that will not be duplicated again. Many collectors of handcrafted beaded jewelry can enjoy their jewelry decades after their purchase since the handcrafted beauty of the jewelry never goes out of style.



Lisa

Karen Lincoln asked:


Beads have become part of our lives, and these are used in various things such as the jewelry that we wear, or on other decorative things in our homes such as table mats, bed covers etc. The greatest part of using beads, is that you can get creative and create your own beading designs and decorate different things that you use. You can decorate a hand bag with beads, and thus making it really attractive. When you work with beading, you need to have patience, time and creativity. If your doing beading in a professional capacity, you need to be precise, so that your beading designs look neat and intricate.

If you’ve understood the simple basics of beading, you can work on varied beading designs, be it simple designs or more complex such as Peyote designs. Geometric and floral patterns are simple beading designs. Creating, animals or huge table cloths, is a lot more complex.

Majority of bead work is done with thread. However you can get innovative and use different materials with beads. Wires have become increasingly popular, mainly because its so easy and flexible to work with. Attractive hair pins and clips, with bead work is done using metal strips. To do this, you need to bend the metal as by doing this the beads don’t fall out. Create a loop by attaching the two ends of metal. You can use aluminum strips, which are extremely thin and workable to create dangle bead earrings. If you stick both ends of the strips by folding one on top of the other, you can make beautiful pendants.

Beads made of glass or wood, or transparent plastic can be used to make bracelets. Bright colors make jewelry more attractive. You can also use large beads to make a chunky bracelets which are quite popular with teenagers. It’s actually very simple to make a bracelet. Just thread some beads together, add a hook at the two ends of the threads, and you have an attractive bead bracelet. Using rubber instead of thread is also something unique and creative. However one thing that you need to be mindful of, is taking care not to stretch the rubber while your putting in the beads. Only when your wearing the bracelet, can the rubber be stretched. It’s advisable to make a rubber bracelet by using the rubber that fits the size of your wrist.

Floral designs are another common feature amongst beading designs. Various flowers such as daisies, roses etc can be made. Also, you can use smaller beads to create small leaves, adding to the attractiveness of the beading designs. These can be rather complex, and you need to be a little patient while creating these beading designs.

Beading involves creating loops of beads or parallel lines of beads. The square, the peyote and the loom are the patterns that are formed. Designs are made from these patterns, which are then used in a myriad of different forms to create beading designs. These beading designs look rather complex, which is not really the case. If you use a beading kit, you can learn to create various types of beading designs. Or you can also copy existing designs to learn different techniques. While beading is relatively simple, it does require some practice and a whole lot of patience.



Marcia