Lookit!!!
And that’s just one handtruck full. There are still about 20 in the truck!
We don’t give you specific patterns to follow when making the leaves, but you can look at the detail photographs and figure out what we did. We used one color of main leaf bead, one or two accent bead colors, and sometimes a different leaf vein color. You DO NOT have to copy our leaves if you want to use other color arrangements. Make your leaves the way YOU want your leaves to be. You can change the main leaf colors from side to side, you can mix up several colors. You can make solid color leaves if you want. Or striped ones! Your choice!
And if you find that you’ve made a leaf you’re not in love with, try weaving larger bright accent beads to some of the accent points. Or cut it apart and pair those beads with others.
Here are a few helpful hints to save you time, though.
Each Dancing Leaves kit contains two spools of size D C-lon beading thread. Use which ever color you like. Using darker thread will darken the appearance of transparent beads, lighter thread will make them look lighter. You can switch thread partway through a color segment to blend bead colors better. Or not. Don’t worry about it if you switch colors in the middle, it will add more interest.
If you have to add thread, leave yourself 4-5 inches of tail, and weave it in circles through 3 or 4 beads to lock it in place. You can make half-hitch knots around the thread, and then go through another few beads. Start a new thread by weaving circles through 2 or three beads and come out ready to add your new beads.
If you absolutely MUST tie a knot, try the magic invisible knot we use:
If you are a Fireline person, feel free to use it instead of the included thread. It will make everything just a bit stiffer, which is probably why you use Fireline in the first place. Use the 4lb for best results, as some of the beads get several passes through.
Yes, Beloved Campers, this weekend is DFW Fiber Fest in the Grapevine Convention Center.
What (I hear a faint voice calling) the Heck is Fiber Fest? Well, imagine Spring Break for Grownups, with all the usual SpringBreaking high jinks, with all the lovely fiber, yarn, and toys anybody could dream of, but without sand, sunburn, and the horror that is Swimwear.
That, my dears, is what it’s all about. And the Artful Bead is thick in the middle of it again this year.
The vendor area is open 9:00am – 6:00pm Friday and Saturday, and on Sunday but I don’t have it handy. Check it out at www.dfwfiberfest.org.
Oh, yeah, one more thing.. I’m too lazy to add that link tonight. So just type the dang thing in, OK?
I have to get some sleep now. Our booth is directly across from Brooks Farm Yarns. (Yes, the EXACT same yarn that mugged me 3 years ago and made me buy it and take it home. And it turned into a lovely kimono jacket, if I do say so myself.) I know it was watching me. Waiting to throw itself across the aisle and into my arms.
And then…
It will be all soft and colorful at me. And I will have to pay for it and take it home.
I make a crappy victim, don’t I?
Each Dancing Leaves kit contains a small colored folder with three needles taped inside. There are two size 10 needles and one size 12. Use the size 12 needle (the smaller one) when you want to work with the size 15’s, or with the Czech beads if your kit contains some. All three of your needles have been “decapitated” for you – we cut the sharp points off. This makes it easier to avoid catching and splitting the thread.
Don’t worry if your needle ends up looking a bit twisted. You can straighten them out several times, if the curves make it harder to work with. Most of us end up with “noodle needles” eventually, and keep using them till the bitter end. Even when one breaks in half, you can use it to weave in tail threads.
Each Dancing Leaves kit contains one packet of 7 colors of size 11 round seed beads, labeled 1 through 7. Most are Japanese, made by either Miyuki, Matsuno, or Toho. Some kits contain vintage (late 1960’s) Czech seed beads, which may still be on thread. Czech beads tend to have smaller holes, so if some of these look especially small, or the needle doesn’t fit, either throw them away or save them for another project or a leaf. We have included enough beads to make the lariat nearly 40” long, so you should be in no danger of running out.
The other bead packet contains several different sizes and shapes of seed beads, from 15 rounds or hex beads to size 8 triangles and 6 rounds. Separate the larger beads (especially drops) to be used as accents on the leaves. You may also want to use the 15’s as accents as well, the choice is yours. You don’t have to use all of the colors if you don’t like some, and feel free to mix in any others that you have. There are also packets with more of the 11 round beads used in the lariat, in case you want to mix them to make a really big leaf.
Sorry for screaming, but it’s JUST SO EXCITING!!!!
The classes are all full, but the vendor area is open to anybody who pays the $2.00 admission charge, ($5 for the whole weekend) and that works out to less than a dime per vendor, I think. And it’s not just yarn, Knitting Lagniappe has wonderful ceramics, and there was a wonderful handmade basket vendor last year. And the booth with the little travelling project bags that were all SO FANTASTIC that they completely sold out of inventory on the first day and had to stay up all night making more, just so they would be able to take orders. (Yes, they were THAT cool! and would work for beading as well as they do for knitting.) They will be back.
Many of the vendors are local but not all, and most of the farms don’t really have a storefront where you can just walk up some afternoon and squeeze yarn, so this is a great showcase, and a chance to meet a lot of the local knitting store owners too.
We will be in a slightly different spot this year, more toward the center row, off to the left as you walk in the main door. You’ll hear the noise of the Giant Bead Bowl being sifted through, I’m sure.
And we will have all of the colors of our new Dancing Leaves kits, along with our Tila and Triangle kits. We have two new Limited Edition triangle kits for this summer, too – Lizzie’s Ray of Sunshine and Michell’s Pacific Coast! Both are perfect for blue jeans, hot days, and relaxing in the shade.
AND we bought a MBT of size 8 and 6 round seed beads for the Betsy Beads book! They are (say it in that voice, now!) “***FABULOUS!!!!***” (Tried to get the book too, I guess you all got there first. Dangit.) And a lot of other wonderful colors for everything else! We’ll have those with us, and lots of beading supplies, looms, and fun!
Come see us! But don’t go down the close-to-the-airport 121 way, that leads to undue traffic stress. From North Dallas, come down 121 to the Highway 26 exit, follow that till N Main Street in Grapevine, go South (left) until you are just a couple of blocks away from 121/114, and look for the Library/Convenvention center on the left.
If you have been to the Carrollton store you have probably seen the lariat necklaces hanging on the classroom wall.
Very soon now there will be kits! Lovely complete kits in four different color ways!
We will post pictures as soon as they are available.
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