Beadwork for Beginners: Fundamentals, Techniques, and Expert Advice

Beadwork and beadwork are becoming increasingly popular among numerous types of needlework. This is understandable. Products from this material are of extraordinary beauty, and the prices of parts are quite affordable. Having mastered the simplest techniques, you can bring this type of creativity to everyday life, decorate clothes for yourself and children, make interior gizmos, embroider paintings and icons. In the article we will give useful information on working with beads for beginners.

Needlework tools

Each individual type of work with beads requires certain devices.

To weave products you need to prepare:

• beads;
• glue;
• fishing line;
• scissors;
• reinforced lavsan thread;
• needles
• wire;
• fasteners for locks.

For embroidery you will need:

• beads of various shapes, colors and sizes;
• special needles;
• thimble;
• scissors;
• threads
• hoop;
• the cloth.

It’s not just for beginners to choose the right material, therefore, for working with beads for beginners, ready-made kits with everything you need are on sale.

What kind of beads are needed?

To date, a wide range of beads of various shapes and sizes is presented in needlework stores that it is not surprising to get confused. For handmade beadwork, beginners need to consider the following expert advice.

Before buying, it is recommended to pay attention to the quality of the beads - the type of the finished product depends on this. Of course, the material is selected based on the budget, but it is better to refuse the cheap Chinese offer. When using beads of the same size from one set, the embroidery will turn out to be heterogeneous. In addition, it is likely that the paint will be washed off of the parts. It is best to buy Czech or Japanese beads.

When choosing it is worth considering:

1. The size of the canvas. The diameter of the beads should be slightly smaller than the cell of matter - this makes the embroidery even.
2. When using multi-colored elements, all types should have one shape and size.
3. Beginners should give preference to beads No. 10, it is the most common and with a shortage it can always be bought.

Embroidery on textile

For beginners to work with beads, it is best to use high-strength and dense threads that exclude stretching and twisting so that as a result the embroidery does not deform and looks neat. Moreover, the hand is not yet full. Usually, cotton or silk threads are used for this. If you could not get them, you can use synthetic analogues. They should be thin and match the color of the fabric or beads. Experienced craftsmen recommend rubbing the thread with wax so that it does not get confused.

The base fabric should be durable, not fade or wrinkle. It is good if it has dirt-repellent properties. To decorate thin matter with beads, a non-woven is placed under it. A special fabric for embroidery is called canvas. It is a dense material with small cells. Before embroidering, it is advisable to rinse and iron the fabric. To maintain the shape, you can starch it.

To perform embroidery, you need to use special needles. You can buy them in the departments for needlework, in a set or separately. Embroiderers prefer needles No. 10 and 12.

Types of seams

To get started with beadwork, you need to study the rules for attaching beads to fabrics.

Many different options are known, but some of the most popular types of seams are:

• monastic;
• arched;
• fasten.

The monastic stitch is among the simple techniques for the beginner to master. The beads are fixed with a diagonal stitch directed from the lower right corner of the canvas to the upper left. Algorithm of actions:

1. Thread the needle through the eye and make a knot.
2. The needle is passed into the lower right corner from the inside.
3. Stretching from the front side, beads are strung on the needle. Through the upper left corner pass down to the inside.
4. Then again they pass into the lower corner, but from the neighboring square and repeat the manipulation.
5. In this way, the entire row is stitched to the end.

You can determine the accuracy of embroidery actions by turning the fabric over: it should have exclusively parallel stitches.

To work with beginner beads, you can use the arched seam. It is also simple and is used when it is necessary that the product is not too rigid, and the beads are not very tightly attached to the fabric.

1. The thread is brought to the front side from the inside and stringed several pieces of beads.
2. The last bead is fixed on the fabric. To do this, the needle is passed down to the inside and again pulled through the front side, passing through the last bead.
3. Then again they string several beads and continue to sew according to the known pattern.

This seam is ideal for embroidering flowers with beads and other details on the canvas and other fabrics. It is often used to embroider round and smooth lines.

The technique is fixed in that the beads are strung on the thread, and after that the finished ribbon is sewn to the fabric with the help of miniature stitches between the individual beads.

What are the weaving techniques?

Lessons on working with beads for beginners, in addition to embroidery on fabric, also include methods for making crafts from this material.

Basic techniques for performing work:

1. The monastery weaving is based on the principle of arranging each bead at an angle of 90 ° and linking them four in the shape of a cross. This type is widely used by beginner needlewomen.
2. Mosaic weaving. This technique is characterized by the staggered arrangement of beads. The canvas is woven tightly, due to which the finished products look especially impressive.
3. Needle weaving allows you to create spiky details. An even number of beads are strung on a small piece of wire, hold the last one with a hand and thread the wire through an odd bead.
4. Parallel weaving is commonly used to create three-dimensional shapes. It is also suitable for making jewelry.
5. Buttonhole weaving. This technique is based on the creation of small bead loops. Typically, branches, tree leaves, and bead flowers create this method.
6. Circular or, as it is often called, French weaving is widely used for the manufacture of flower petals and other similar details. This is one of the most complex and at the same time interesting techniques.
7. Mesh weaving allows you to make openwork products. It is often combined with other decorative elements: stones, flowers, beads.

How to embroider paintings?

In specialized stores for beginners, work from beads with their own hands presents a wide selection of schemes. The actual drawing is applied to the sketch and the color of the required beads is indicated.

The following instructions must be followed:

1. The fabric must be hooped. The picture begins to perform from the upper left corner.
2. The beginning of beadwork - fastening the thread. Work begins by knotting at its end and threading the needle from the wrong side to the face.
3. The pattern is embroidered horizontally to the right, securing the beads with a monastic seam.
4. The next row, on the contrary, leads from right to left. For rounded elements, an arched seam is used.
5. The finished picture is framed to maintain shape, the effect of completeness of work and beauty.

Clothes decoration

This type of needlework attracts many women, first of all, with the opportunity to decorate familiar things with original embroidery.

To complete the pattern, do the following:

1. A picture is printed on paper and transferred to tracing paper.
2. The circuit is attached to the fabric with pins.
3. According to the picture, beads are sewn onto textiles.
4. The thread is not recommended to tighten strongly.
5. Where the embroidery is done, the tracing paper is carefully cut.

Recommendations of specialists

Specialists advise beginners in beadwork to adhere to the following rules:

1. For the design of children's clothing, it is better to select miniature pictures.
2. The embroidery made by individual elements looks original.
3. Better to start with simple and small images.
4. It is important to ensure that not only the front, but also the wrong side is neat.
5. The optimum distance between the stitches should be 1 mm.
6. The thread tension should always be the same so that the beads do not sag and create a hole from excessive tension.
7. A thread treated with beeswax does not get tangled and becomes stronger.

Beadwork for Beginners: Flowers

Using the technique of beadwork even at a simple level, you can make not only beautiful jewelry, but also whole compositions. Floral bouquets with field or exotic plants look very nice. In the presented embodiment, a method for weaving jasmine is considered.

To work, you will need white and yellow beads, as well as two shades of green.

Consider step-by-step execution:

1. Parallel weaving technique makes half of the petal. Start the row with three beads, and the next pair of rows add two each.
2. In the next, fourth row, add one bead, as a result of them should be eight. With this number of beads, four more rows are weaved. The next level is reduced by 1 pc., Then 2 rows - by 2 pcs., Returning to the original number of beads.
3. Then weave the second half, in the process of attaching it to the first. It will make a whole petal.
4. Then four similar elements are made in a similar manner. Starting from the 8th row, attach a new petal to the previous one.
5. According to the scheme, several stamens are weaved, one pestle and green leaves.
6. Further, all the elements are connected.

You can decorate a hair clip with such a flower, make a brooch or create a whole bouquet.