A Beginners Introduction to Beads and Beading
Sunday, April 5th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
Beads are small objects of decoration that are usually used in jewelry. In order to be used beads must usually first be pierced so that thread can be passed through them so that they can be joined together on a string. However beads can also be used to decorate the surfaces of items such as sculptures and wall hangings in which case there would be no need to pierce them. Beads can also be used to adorn personal items such as handbags and purses. They can also be used in home furnishing such as table cloths and cushions. Beads differ vastly in size from tiny little beads that are too small to handle without precision tools to large beads that are more than a centimeter in diameter.
Please don’t get confused by the term “seed bead”. It doesn’t actually mean that the beads are necessarily made from seeds, although some beads are. The term “Seed bead” is a generic term that is often used to describe any small bead.
Beads can be made from all kinds of different material, but glass, plastic and stone tend to be the most common. But they can also be made from bone, horn, shell, ivory, coral, pearl, metal, gemstones, polymer clay, metal clay, resin, wood, ceramic, fiber, paper, seeds and synthetic materials. As you can see, one thing about beads is that there is no shortage of different materials with which you can work with.
Beads have been around a very along time since the first known civilizations. One of the earliest findings of jewelry are a pair of beads made from sea snail shells that are estimated to date back 100,000 years. As well as for jewelry and personal adornment beads have been used for religious reasons, curative agents and as talismans for good luck.
The craft of making things out of beads is called beadwork. Beading can be practiced using many technqiues such as stringing, embroidery, knitting, crochet, loom-weaving and off-loom weaving.
Beadworking is a craft that can be practiced by hobbyists of all abilities. Novices beaders can put together very simple items of jewelry in one short session. It may takes weeks of meticulous work for experienced beadworkers to create some of their beading projects and they will often need to use special tools and equipment.
For more information about beads please visit http://www.beadyeyez.com
