Beading Basics

I'm about to start one of Mirabilia's pattern, Titania. I have cross
stitched with beads as embelishments, so i'm a little lost here. What
kind of thread do I use? how are the beads stitched on? Can anyone
help?

Thank you.

Elizabeth MacLeod

oops, apologies.... i meant to say "i have never cross stitched
with...."

Thanks again,

Elizabeth MacLeod

My general experience so far, on a limited basis, has been using an
unobtrusive shade of floss. I would look to match either the fabric shade or
surrounding stitch colors. That beside the point, I also noted that you are
planning to bead on Mirabilia patterns. I have noted that some Mirabilia
patterns has scattered and independant beading sections (away from blocks of
stitching). I am considering using Nymo thread when beading on my
Mirabilia's (somewhere down the road).
One thing I cannot stress enough though is I use full crosses when attaching
my beads. I feel this ensures more stability and helps the beads to behave
nicely without that durn "wriggling".
Just my own experiences...
--
~Connie~

I'm about to start one of Mirabilia's pattern, Titania. I have cross
stitched with beads as embelishments, so i'm a little lost here. What
kind of thread do I use? how are the beads stitched on? Can anyone
help?

Use Nymo, either white or light grey. It doesn't show at all. Don't
stitch under the bead, it'll fit nicer to the spot. And most of all, use
full X when attaching the bead. Test on other fabric first, how does the
bead look like if you put it horizontal or vertical.
It'll end up vertical if you start stitching from lowleft to upleft,
upright to lowright. If you want the bead to stand up, then stitch from
lowleft to lowright, upright to upleft.

Johanna

--
Johanna Koski
Finland, Europe

) writes:
I'm about to start one of Mirabilia's pattern, Titania. I have cross
stitched with beads as embelishments, so i'm a little lost here. What
kind of thread do I use? how are the beads stitched on? Can anyone
help?

Thank you.

Elizabeth MacLeod

I am no expert, and have done very little beading. However, when I
did some a few months ago, I felt a lot happier having the ends more
firmly anchored at the back than I usually do. When a normal cross has been
anchored, there is almost nothing which tends to loosen the stitches from
the front. However, a bead is different. It has weight, and can easily be
knocked. I have no idea whether I was just being paranoid, but I used a
much more secure anchor at the back of the work for the threads I used to
bead. HTH.

--
Jim Cripwell.
From Canada. Land of the Key Bird.
This creature of doom flies over the frozen tundra in winter,
shrieking its dreaded call; "Key, Key, Key, Key rist but it's cold!!"

There is also an option if you want the bead to be diagonal. Stitch the
bead on with two strands of your selected thread (Nymo, color to match
fabric, color to match bead, color to match surrounding area of
stitching--your choice). Bring the thread up just as if you were
starting a regular cross-stitch. Go through the bead and take needle
down into fabric just like the first leg of cross-stitch. Bring thread
back up for second leg (diagonal the opposite direction) and make a gap
between the two strands of thread. Lay them so one strand is on each
side of the bead--do not go through the bead--and complete the second
leg of the cross-stitch. Snug the threads up around the base of the
bead. This will let the bead lay diagonally but prevents the
floppiness. Using two strands also gives you more bulk for securing
your tails on the back of your work. You will want to complete both
legs of the stitch on one bead before moving on to the next bead.

Picking a thread color is purely to your taste and your method can
change from one project to the next. For example, if you are using
clear crystal beads to add the glint of ice to a winter stream, you
might want the thread to match the surrounding stitching (the stream).
When using beads in an otherwise unstitched area, you might want the
thread to match the fabric. You can even choose to use different
methods within one project. Just try it out to see what you like best.
Because of the bulk of the beads, you get an idea of how it will look
fairly quickly so you don't have to test-stitch 100 beads before
starting your project. Likewise, you can have some lay diagonally, some
vertically, and some horizontally within one piece--especially on
samplers--to get the effect you desire. Have fun!

Johanna Koski wrote:
Use Nymo, either white or light grey. It doesn't show at all. Don't
stitch under the bead, it'll fit nicer to the spot. And most of all, use
full X when attaching the bead. Test on other fabric first, how does the
bead look like if you put it horizontal or vertical.
It'll end up vertical if you start stitching from lowleft to upleft,
upright to lowright. If you want the bead to stand up, then stitch from
lowleft to lowright, upright to upleft.

--
Brenda