I MAKE ALL THE MISTAKES IN THE BOOK
Posted by learntobead on May 14, 2020

I MAKE ALL THE MISTAKES IN THE BOOK
Recently, one of my jewelry making friends, while attempting to attach a clasp to a bracelet she was making, exclaimed in frustration: “I MAKE ALL THE MISTAKES IN THE BOOK!”
My first thought was, What are these mistakes?
And that led me to ask this question of my readers:
QUESTION:
WHAT ARE SOME OF THE MISTAKES THAT YOU HAVE MADE THAT SHOULD BE IN THE BOOK?
From me:
I am usually working on projects and waiting on customers or answering their questions at the same time. What I have done, more times than I can count is one of two things. I either pick up my work to continue the project, and head in the wrong direction. Or, I repeat the last step I did rather than continue with the next step.
Those are the most common mistakes I make too. Another one I make is one there’s no excuse for. I pick up 2 beads instead of one and don’t notice until I get back around to the mistake in the next row or round.
Skipping a bead, or leaving thread around the edge of a bead and only realising you have done so after you have woven in the ends, I had to redo a beaded bezel this afternoon after doing the first one. 😦
I sometimes think I will be able to back out my thread by stitching in reverse instead of taking off the needle and pulling the thread out. Bites me in the behind every time.
Kate McKinnon, author of “Contemporary Geometric Beadwork”, recommends breaking the offending double bead (delicas, or seed beads) by pushing a map pin through it and into a rubber eraser. Works great. Once I tried using a needle nose pliers to break the bead, but the glass sliced through the Fireline thread, so that move is too risky for me!
The only thing about doing that, Evelyn is that you end up with a little bit of loose visible thread where the extra bead was, if you don’t burst the thread. If it is on the inside, or will be covered by layers of embellishment then you may be able to get away with it, but may be obvious on a simpler piece.
“Catching A Loose Thread From A Twisted Bead” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryPtjHqtHeE
I saw that, it depends on the piece, it doesn’t always work.
It would for that technique because you can take it down into the columns of herringbone between the sections of peyote. The problem I had today was with a peyote bezel, I tried doing that but it wouldn’t lie flat and I had the extra bulk from the second thread, so I just redid the bezel — I’m just fussy about the finish.
What are all the mistakes in the book that you make? Share in the comments section.
Other Articles of Interest by Warren Feld:
Do You Know Where Your Beading Needles Are?
Consignment Selling: A Last Resort
Odds or Evens? What’s Your Preference?
My Clasp, My Clasp, My Kingdom For A Clasp
Why Am I So Addicted To Beads?
The Bead Spill: My Horrifying Initiation
You Can Never Have Enough Containers For Your Stuff
Beading While Traveling On A Plane
My Aunt Gert: Illustrating Some Lessons In Business Smarts
A Jewelry Designer’s Day Dream
I Make All The Mistakes In The Book
How Sparkle Enters People’s Lives
Upstairs, Downstairs At The Bead Store
Were The Ways of Women or of Men Better At Fostering How To Make Jewelry
Women and Their Husbands When Shopping For Beads
Women Making Choices In The Pursuit Of Fashion
Existing As A Jewelry Designer: What Befuddlement!
How To Design An Ugly Necklace: The Ultimate Designer Challenge
I hope you found this article useful. Be sure to click the CLAP HANDS icon at the bottom of this article.
Also, check out my website (www.warrenfeldjewelry.com).
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