{Rule #1 In Making French Bead Flowers Is Like Ballet}
Monday, January 12th, 2009 Subscribe To Our Feed
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French Bead Flower Making – Rule # 1 Is Like Rule # 1 in Ballet
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What in the World couldthe art of French bead flower making conceivably have in common with ballet?
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If you would like to be a Irish step dancer, gymnast, modern-dance dancer, tap dancer, or jazz dancer – you must first learn excellent technique. For all these forms of dance, the best place to develop good technique is in ballet class. At Ballet class, you will be taught how to properly carry your head, point your toes, stretch your spine, and make your arms move like the fronds of a weeping willow.
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For making French bead flowers, you should expend the effort to learn excellent technique. What is the single most important technique in this art?
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Rule # 1 – Keep your basic wire straight.
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Doesn’t that sound easy? Well, of course I will keep my basic wire straight, you say. What could be easier than that? You might be surprised. This can be a real challenge for someone new to the art.
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What must you do in order to prevent a crooked basic wire? Let me give you a few hints. 1 – Fasten a nail or tack into your working surface, and wrap the top of a very long basic wire around it. Keep tension on the piece as you start to wrap the spool wire. 2 – As you are fitting the rows of beads into position, give the top basic wire a tug. Then wrap the spool wire, and give the top basic wire another tug. Turn the piece over and check whether the wire is straying off-course. 3 – Learn to “finesse” the beads. If you can’t fit another bead in the row, it’s permissible for the top wire to reach over ever so lightly on that row, as long as you remember to compensate for it the next time you come up to the top basic wire, and if the overall impression of the piece is straight.
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When you have completed several rows of beadson your piece, turn it over and see if the wire really is straight. If you discover that it’s not straight, the solution is to disassemble it and try it again. Practice. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes; that’s the best way to learn the art. It’s only wire and beads – they are gentle teachers and will never lose patience with you. This is a new learning experience for your hands, your heart, and your mind. A new undertaking presents each of those departments with a hurdle of its own.
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