RaniMaria : things I love

Beading is an incredibly fun and enjoyable hobby, and one of the best available pieces of beading equipment, without a doubt, is the beading machine. Not only does the beading machine allow you to make your designs faster, but they will be tighter and more secure as well. There are various different types of beading machines that you can choose from, with the most popular being the regular beading machine and the knitting beading machine.

Regular Beading Machine

The more conventional beading machine is a machine that is very similar to a sewing machine. You insert the beads that you want to use into the machine, get the item ready that you want beaded, and voila. A few minutes later you have completely transformed and enlivened something.

Knitting Beading Machine

The knitting beading machine is very popular as well, and it allows you to decorate your knitting in some really fabulous ways. You can instantly improve a plain stocking stitch sweater or cardigan with a beaded flower or beaded edging, and you can even decorate fairisle patterned garments with beads to add extra color and give them that finishing touch.

Lace garments, believe it or not, can also be beaded, as long as you make sure to insert the beads into the more solid parts of the fabric to keep from tearing the material. You can even use your knitting beading machine to decorate your home furnishings with beads, for instance your bedroom curtains, blinds and lampshades. The options are really endless here, and you can be as creative and have as much fun as you want.

Remember to select the beads that are most suitable for the particular fabric that you are knitting - you are going to need different types of beads for silk material than you are for cotton, for instance. Also you always want to make sure that if you do decide to use beads on something that the aftercare of the garment is not going to be too difficult to keep up with. Beading on children’s clothing is not always the best idea for instance, because they are very active and the beads are likely to get damaged or even fall completely off.

The most important thing however is to make sure that you have fun, because this is what beading is all about and if you take it too seriously, you are not going to be able to enjoy yourself at all and it will really be pointless.

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.