I noticed that some beading artists choose either embroidery or bead-weaving and stick with it for the major part of their beading career. Did you notice?
I am one of those people who like to explore and combine all kind of experiences. Using a variety of techniques makes it harder to achieve perfection, but it certainly pays off when it comes to design execution of the idea.
My blue necklace project proves it.
Lapis Lazuli Necklace Embroidery and Beadweaving Design
In the beginning, it was an idea of a pendant.
I thought when I finish the embroidery I would find a chain of matching color and call it a day.
Simple.
Well, not so much.
The Embroidery
The embroidery idea was based on a clients idea of a color, size and garment style she was going to wear it with. I just needed to organize it into a detailed design and sew all the details onto the surface of the pendant.
You might think that lapis lazuli cabochon is the center of the design. Well, technically, it is true. However, I think, the major role in pendant design belongs to the variety of beads. And I would use even more beads if I could. Unfortunately, they just didn’t fit in.
Surprisingly, I did not use pearls. Usually, pearls end up taking over, as I tend to make them primary accents of the design. It is noticeable in my Denim Bay necklace and Pearly Fish design.
On my Instagram photo below I wanted to display all the beads I used in this necklace project. Unfortunately, I forgot to include a couple of more types of beads I used. The necklace was already delivered to the client, and I missed my chance to retake that photo.
View this post on Instagram
The Beadweaving
Bead embroidery went as I planned, but when I needed to choose a cord, a chain, or something else to hang this pendant on, I could find a better solution than a simple herringbone stitch cord.
The problem was, my client did not mention such an option. I decided to risk it and present the necklace the way I thought it should be done.
It was totally worth the effort!
The beaded cord united the pendant details with the repetitive herringbone motifs of the beadwoven design.
The Result
When the necklace was accepted by the client, I accepted my inability to focus on a narrow set of techniques. I feel I need even more of them to create better pieces.
I am sure you have an opinion regarding technical skills and design improvement. What do you think, it is better to choose between bead embroidery and beadweaving? Or keep working on all known techniques, to improve the overall beadwork skill level?
