Beading threads

If you've ever stood in a bead shop (or scrolled through an online bead shop) staring at the thread options wondering which one to pick, you're not alone. Thread choice can feel overwhelming at first, but once you understand what each one does well, it starts to make a lot of sense. Let's walk through the main types I have experience with and when I reach for each one.

Nymo

Nymo is probably the most widely known beading thread, and for good reason — it's affordable, widely available, and comes in a huge range of colours. It's a nylon thread that works well for loom work and off-loom stitches like peyote and brick stitch. The one thing to know about Nymo is that it can be prone to twisting, tangling and fraying so I'd recommend running it through beeswax or thread conditioner before you start. This was the thread I learnt to bead with. 

KO Thread

KO is a Japanese nylon thread that I have a  soft spot for. It's finer and smoother than Nymo, which means it passes through small bead holes easily — brilliant for anything requiring multiple thread passes. It has a lovely drape and doesn't tangle or fray as much as Nymo in my experience. If you're doing intricate work with size 15 seed beads, KO is worth trying. It's a little pricier, but for the right project it's absolutely worth it.

One-G

One-G is another Japanese nylon thread, similar to KO but with a slightly different texture and feel. Where KO is very smooth, One-G has a subtle grip to it, which some beaders find helps keep tension more consistent. I find the two fairly interchangeable for most projects, but I tend to prefer One-G for beading which requires a bit of structure — that gentle grip seems to help the beads sit just right.

Fireline

Fireline is a braided fishing line that was adopted by the beading community, and honestly, it's easy to see why. It's incredibly strong, resistant to fraying, and holds its shape well — which makes it a great choice for more structural work or anything using heavier beads. It doesn't need conditioning and it's very resistant to abrasion which makes it perfect for working with crystals and pearls which can have sharp edges. The trade-off is that it has a bit less drape than a nylon thread, so for delicate or flexible pieces it can feel a little stiff. 

Fireline mainly comes in two colours - crystal (white) and smoke (black). It also comes in different thicknesses or weights - depending on what size fish you want to catch!  If you buy Beadsmith branded Fireline, 4lb is fine, and good for multiple thread paths, 6lb is good for everyday beading and 8lb is sturdy and really only suitable if you're not using size 15 seed beads. 
I tend to buy my fireline from a fishing supply shop, and my preferred thread is Fireline Thermally Fused Tough 0.10mm, and honestly this is my favourite go to thread. 

So Which Should You Choose?

Here's a quick rule of thumb I go by:

For everyday seed bead stitching without many crystals or bead embroidery: KO or One-G

For heavy beads, structural pieces or anything with a lot of crystals: Fireline

For loom work or when you're on a budget: Nymo

For tiny beads with tight holes: KO or a fine fireline

There are lots of other threads out there, wildfire, SoNo, durathread, S-lon to name but a few, but I don't have experience working with these, so I can't give an honest review of them. 

Honestly, the best thing you can do is try them all on a small project and see which one feels right in your hands. Every beader ends up with their own preferences, and yours might be completely different from mine — and that's totally fine!

For years, KO and One-G were my favourites, and now I almost exclusively use Fireline. Do you have a favourite thread I haven't mentioned? I'd love to hear about it in the comments.

Square Dance

The right angle weave family of stitches are without a doubt, my favourite family of stitches to work with. There is such variety possible; it can be both fluid and have wonderful draping properties, or really structural. 

The pattern I'm sharing with you today uses double right angle weave and cubic double right angle weave. "Regular" right angle weave (I'll call it RAW from here on in) is made from groups of four beads, but double right angle weave (DRAW) each group of four beads is surrounded by another group of four beads, which join the units together. 

If you enjoy this pattern, the next one I'm going to share is a bracelet which takes this a little further.

When I first made these earrings, a few years ago now, they got so much attention from my beading friends that I was asked for a tutorial. This tutorial was initially published in Bead and Jewellery Magazine issue 118. 

If this much sparkle isn't your thing, you can replace the crystals with pearls - there's an example of this at the end. 

What you'll need to make this:

Quantities are given first for earrings, then for necklace

A. Size 11 seed beads (2g, 3g)
B. Size 11 seed beads (1g, 2g)
C. Size 11 seed beads (1g, 2g)
D. 4mm Preciosa bicones (18, 24)
Findings - for earrings, 2x wire guardians 2x ear wires
Findings - for necklace, chain of desired length, clasp, 2 x jump rings

Anything else? 

Fireline (I use 0.10mm)
Size 12 beading needle (I use Miyuki brand)
Bead mat
Scissors or thread zap
Pliers for opening and closing jump rings and ear wires

Follow steps 1-17 to make the components, then to turn the components int earrings, follow steps 18-29. To turn them into a necklace, follow steps 20-23.  

1.     On an arm-span length of thread, pick up 4(A), leave a 4-5 inch tail thread, go through all 4 beads again and then through the first bead once more.

 

2.     Pick up 1(B), go through the next (A). Repeat this 3 more times, adding a total of 4(B). Step up by going through the first (B) added this step.

3.     Pick up 4(A) and go through the first (A) added.

 

4.     Pick up 1(B), go through the next (A), repeat 2 more times, adding a total of 3 (B) in this step. Step up by working through your beadwork to exit from the second (B) added in this step.

5.     Repeat steps 3 and 4 but this time step up to a (B) on the side of your beadwork to start a new row.

6.     Pick up 4(A), go through the (B) and the first (A) again to form a ring. Pick up 1(B), go through the next (A), repeat two more times (total of 3(A) added). To step up, go through all the beads in this DRAW unit again until you are exiting the 3rd (B) added in this step.

7.     Pick up 4(A), go through the (B) and the first (A) again to form a ring. Pick up 1(B), go through the next (A), repeat this (total of 2(A) added). Go though the (B) from the side of the DRAW unit in the previous row and then through the next (A) from the current DRAW unit. This will link the two rows together. To step up, go through all the beads in this DRAW unit again until you are exiting the 2nd (B) added in this step.

8.     Pick up 4(A), go through the (B) and the first (A) again to form a ring. Go though the (B) from the side of the DRAW unit in the previous row and the next (A) from the current DRAW unit. This will link the two rows together. Pick up 1(B), go through the next (A), repeat this (total of 2(A) added). To step up, go through all the beads in this DRAW unit again until you are exiting the 2nd (B) added in this step.

9.     Repeat steps 6, 7 and 8 to add a third row of DRAW to create a 3x3 square and step up to exit one of the (B) beads surrounding the middle group of (A) beads.

10.  This step is going to create a double cubic right angle weave (DCRAW)unit in the centre of the DRAW square. Pick up 4(C) go through the (B) and the next (C) to form a ring. Pick up 1(B), go though the next (C). Do this for a total of three times. To step up, go through the (B) in the base, one of the (A) beads in the centre and the next (B)  around.

11.  Pick up 4(C), go through the (B) and the first (C) again to form a ring. Pick up 1(B) and go through the next (C), twice. Go though the (B) from the side of the previous  ‘wall’ of the DCRAW unit, and then the final (C) bead. To step up, go through the (B) in the base, one of the (A) beads in the centre and the next (B)  around.

12.  Repeat step 11 to build the third wall.

13.  Pick up 4(C), go through the (B) and the first (C) again to form a ring. Go through the side (B) of the first wall and the next (C). Pick up 1(B) and go though the next (C). Go through the side (B) of the third wall and the next (C). To step up, work your thread through this unit so it is exiting from the (B) at the top of this wall.

14.  Pick up 4(C), go through 1(B) and the first (C) to form a ring. We will now link the (C) beads to the top of the DCRAW unit. Go though the next (B) on the top edge of the next wall, go through the next (C) bead in the top ring. Repeat twice more until all walls are joined.

15.  Work your way through to one of the side (B) beads on the edge of the DCRAW units, this is where you will start the crystal embellishment.

16.  Pick up 1(D), go though 1(B), 1(A), 1(B), pick up 1(D) and go back through the (B) your thread was exiting from at the start of this step. Step up by working your thread around the DCRAW unit to exit from the (B) on the next corner.

17.  Repeat step 16 to add 2(D) beads on each corner. After adding (D) beads to the last corner, step up by working through the DCRAW unit and through the first (D) bead added in step 16, and out through the (B) bead on the corner. 

18.  Pick up 1(A), 1(B), 1(D), 1(A). Go through the wire guardian, pick up 1(A), g back down through 1(D), 1(B), pick up 1(A) and go down through the (B) on the other corner. Weave in, tie off and cut your thread ends.

19.  Make a second square dance component and add earwires.

20.  The connectors for the necklace are made as follows: Pick up 1(C), 1(B), 1(A), 1(B), 1(C) and go down through the other (B) bead on the corner. Weave through 3(A) beads on the back of the component, then go up through 1(B), 1(C), 1(B) – skip the (A) bead in the centre of the picot – the go back down through 1(B), 1(C), 1(B).

21.  Weave through to the opposite corner and repeat step 20. Create two Square Dance units with connectors on opposite corners

22.  For the third necklace component make a square dance component and add connecters on two adjacent corners.

23.  Link the components together using jump rings. Complete the necklace with  lengths of chain and a clasp. 

I've had a real play with this pattern over the years, you can make a necklace with more than three components, or join them with beadwork rather than jump rings. Likewise, you can have a play about with the beads which you use to embellish the units. In these examples, I've used 4mm firepolish crystals and 4mm pearls. The example with pearls, I've used DRAW to make a beaded chain, rather than adding a metal chain. 

As always, I'd love to see what you make using my designs, please tag me on Facebook or Instagram @BeadsByBecs. 

When life gives you left-handed lemons...

 I'm the kind of person who tries my hardest to always look on the bright side of things, but the last few weeks have been rather challenging. I've dislocated my right shoulder, twice. I'm right handed. Thankfully I've been able to pop my shoulder back into place myself both times, so I've avoided a lot of trauma. But still, I've been keeping my right arm in a sling for the last few weeks.  For those of you who are curious, I'm hypermobile, I managed to dislocate my shoulder by turning over in bed.

Not only do I need my right hand for work and life in general, obviously, I need it to bead! My best beading friend, the fabulous editor of Bead and Jewellery magazine, Vicky Roberts asks me to test-bead and proof read a lot of her patterns/tutorials, and when I told her I'd dislocated my shoulder, we agreed I should learn to bead left handed. I think she was actually joking, as she was rather stunned when later that day I sent her a picture of a bezelled cushion stone. I'm sorry I can't share that picture with you, but it's for a top-secret project. 

Instead, here's a piece of modified right angle weave I've done left-handed. This will make up part of the chain part of a necklace designed by Heather Kingsley-Heath - the design is called Katia. I'll blog about it once I've finished it. 

It has made me think though, about how easily I adapted to beading with my left hand. Obviously, I was slower, my tension wasn't quite as tight, but that's not necessarily a bad thing as my usual beading tension can only be designed as fierce! With my right arm in a sling, I can hold the beadwork just fine, so it's just like swapping everything over. 

Usually (right handed), I like to bead in an anti-clockwise direction, but left handed, I seem to prefer clockwise. I also feel like I prefer a longer needle in my left hand, but a shorter one in my right, but it may be too soon to tell on that one really. 

It definitely is much easier to bead left handed than it is to write left handed. I've just about got the hang of using a mouse left handed, and typing with just one hand is slow, and involves a lot of proof-reading (I tend to forget capital letters and apostrophes). 

Months ago, I signed up to do a Zoom workshop with Sabine Lippert for her Fields of Gold necklace which is just beautiful. The workshop is tomorrow, and I still have to keep my right arm in a sling. Normally, I'm a speedy beader, but I I'm definitely going to be one of the slower ones tomorrow. At least I have a really good excuse! 

Welcome back!

It has been a terribly long time since I updated my blog, so sorry for neglecting you all. There have been a lot of changes in my life in the last few years but now I'm in a position to dedicate more time to my passion for beading, and my love for sharing that with you all.

I have been creating during this time, I've designed so many lovely things, and I'm very happy to say that I will be sharing lots these tutorials here on my blog. You have necklaces, ropes, earrings, bracelets, and even some 3D objects to look forward to.

This spring time necklace is one of the designs I'll be sharing first, even though the daffodils are just about past  their best, it doesn't mean you have to stop feeling the spring vibe.

This is one of the most sparke-tastic pieces I've ever designed, I think. It was made using Swarovski crystals, and I loved how the chatons looked like little inkwells of colour in amongst all of the clear crystal. I'm sure it will look equally amazing with Preciosa or Aurora chatons and crystals. This is the Scintilla necklace,

The last little sneak peek I'm going to share with you is a pair of earrings that I designed in my 2021 earring marathon. I did manage to complete the challenge and bead a pair of earrings for every week of the year, which was an epic achievement. This pair I was especially pleased with, and I named them after my little cat, Pixie!

And because she's adorable, I couldn't leave Pixie herself out!

I look forward to Seeing you all really soon and sharing the pattern for my Daffodil necklace with you.