DIY Dec 18th
DIY Dec 18th
DIY Dec 18th
ENDERUN COLLEGES
DIY: BEADWORK
Beadwork is the art or craft of attaching beads to one another by
stringing them with a sewing needle or beading needle and thread
or thin wire, or sewing them to
cloth. Beads come in a variety of
materials, shapes and sizes. Beads
are used to create jewelry or other articles of personal adornment;
they are also used in wall hangings
and sculpture and many other
crafts.
Faience is a mixture of powdered clays and lime, soda and silica sand. Mix this
with a little water to make a paste and molded
around a small stick or bit of straw. Now it is
ready to be fired into a bead. As the bead heats
up the soda sand and lime melt into glass that
incorporates and covers the clay. The result is a
hard bead covered in bluish glass. This process
was probably discovered first in Mesopotamia
and then imported to Egypt. But, it was the
Egyptians who made it their own art form. Since
before the 1st dynasty of Narmer(3100 B.C.) to the last dynasty
of the Ptolomies(33 B.C.) and to the present day, faience beads
have been made in the same way.
Beadwork in Europe has a history dating back millennia to a time when shells and animal bones
were used as beads in necklaces.
Glass beads were being made in Murano by the end of the 14th century. French beaded flowers
were being made as early as the 16th century, and lampwork glass was invented in the 18th
century. Seed beads began to be used for embroidery, crochet etc.
Most Native beadwork is created for tribal use, but beadworkers also
create conceptual work for the art world.
3D, or three-dimensional, beading is less common than 2D, or two-dimensional, beading largely
because free 3D beading patterns are not widely available on the internet. Resources are
scarce and difficult to find. It is mainly an East Asian art form, and most 3D beading resources are written in East Asian languages such as Japanese and Chinese, further impeding
access for those in English-speaking countries. 3D beading is widely considered too complex
for most beaders to manage although this sentiment is largely due to the apparent complexity
of many Asian beading diagrams. It is a challenge for pattern designers to create 2D beading
patterns that portray 3D beaded objects.