Friday, May 2, 2014

Playing with my beads...


Last night I made a few samples of Sam Wescott's "Toying with Tiles" pattern which you can buy on Etsy HERE. I think you can see that the beads you use can make a big difference in the outcome. I used some irregular Matsuno copper beads in the sample on the far left and the netting is all wonky. The sample on the far right looks pretty neat but the netting sticks up a little because the SuperDuo beads that I used are short and fat. The sample in the center is the best of the three because the SuperDuo beads are long and thin, I used good quality seed beads and I also used Nymo B thread, which is extra fine. I used some cheap thick thread on the other two samples so it sort of piled up on the SuperDuo beads causing a hump. Nymo B is so fine that it doesn't seem to build up with multiple passes through the beads. FireLine should work about the same.

My two favorite color combos are the middle sample and the pink one on the right. Here's the break-down on the beads I used:

FAR LEFT SAMPLE:

  • 15/0 seed beads Matsuno "Copper" (15-457A)
  • 11/0 seed beads Miyuki "Matte Root Beer" (11-135F)
  • CzechMates "Milky Alexandrite Copper Picasso"
  • SuperDuo beads "Opaque Violet Dark Travertine"
CENTER SAMPLE:
  • 15/0 seed beads "Metallic Chocolate" (no info available)
  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Hybrid Light Beige Picasso" (11-Y306)
  • CzechMates "Milky Caramel Bronze Picasso"
  • SuperDuo beads "Matte Ultra Green Luster"
FAR RIGHT SAMPLE:
  • 15/0 seed beads Miyuki "Light Bronze" (11-457L)
  • 11/0 seed beads Toho "Inside-Color Montana Blue/Oxblood Lined" (TR-11-363/c)
  • CzechMates "Opaque Rose Gold Topaz Luster"
  • SuperDuo beads "Crystal Bronze Pale Gold"

5 comments:

  1. These look lovely, Linda! And yes, materials are so important. The different quality levels in alleged SuperDuos is enough to make one mad, so making samples is a good idea!

    (Also, the color combo in the center one is gorgeous!)

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  2. Replies
    1. There's a link to it in my post. It's for sale on Etsy.

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  3. So considering that all SuperDuos are not created equal, where are the long & thin ones purchased? Or, is it just a matter of different colors being different shapes?

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    Replies
    1. The thing is you never see a brand name on any of them so who knows if a shop gets them all from the same manufacturer or from several different ones? I think that part of the difference is due to the coating on them. The luster ones usually have a very thick coating, which makes them kind of fat, and the matte ones tend to be thinner.

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