do you mind if i knit

My beading path.

This is a detail of a necklace I beaded, after finishing the fluorescent piece. Again, I just went 'with the flow'............. Enjoying myself............. ...... and seeing where an open mind took me. The only thing I have in mind when I'm beading them, is that I want to create abstract shapes. It's quite difficult to reference these pieces to anything. The closest analogy would be sea creatures, but that is not what I have in mind when I'm doing them......... when I really force myself to think about what I am trying to achieve, all I can come up with is that I am playing with shape and colour, like you might in an abstract painting....... except I want to wear my abstractions. It's all the antithesis of my work as an illustrator, maybe that is the key...........

Beading Beginnings.

I don't know why I got the urge to make beaded beads, I was just drawn to the idea. I know that I started beading, to prevent myself from learning to knit! I really wanted to learn to knit, but at the time my local yarn shop was owned by someone who was wanting to be rid of her business, and was completely uninterested in setting me on the knitting path...........That's all changed now, because she sold the shop to Eileen, who has transformed it from a forlorn place, into a wonderful shop with an ever-increasing stock of lovely yarns, and the place people go on a Wednesday evening to knit, crochet, and have a good natter, accompanied by tea and biscuits. I don't think I realised just how addicted I would become to the beading......... it was those colours! Just looking at a selection of beads was enough to make me drool and throw financial considerations to the wind. If I'm learning a new craft, my first port of call will be a bookshop. Gathering, gathering, gathering......... information. I slowly taught myself through instructions I found in those books. I just wish The Art of Beaded Beads had been published when I first started beading, because if there was one book I would recommend, it would be this one, there is some extraordinary sharing of information in this book. I have to admit, my technique was never 'perfected', that wasn't through lack of enthusiasm, it's just that I wanted to experiment, and do my own thing........... as in the necklace I showed you last Friday. While I admire those perfectionists, whose beading is a triumph of technique, enormously, (infact, I'm in awe of them), I'm too preoccupied with doing things that aren't really in the rule book. Ideally, I would combine my approach, with perfect technique, so there's a challenge for me! Some other books I'd recommend are The best Little Beading Book, this has good basic instructions. Creative beading is a charming, inspiring book, with instructions for some lovely things to make.

Dayglo.

This a close-up of the 'fluorescent' necklace I beaded. There are no rules or pattern I follow when I'm doing this beading. I have a basic idea of colour combinations, but the form the necklace will take is a mystery. That's the fun of doing my 'freeform' beading. It isn't a quick process though. This piece represents hours of work. Enjoyable hours....... For me, it was worth it..........

Playing the field.

While I normally prefer to make more abstract beaded shapes, on this occasion I decided I was going to bead a unicorn....... I think he was going to become a pendant, but it hasn't progressed to that stage yet. So before he gets tied up to a necklace, I'm going to allow him a bit of freedom........ and see how he likes it............... He would obviously prefer to be tied up to a chain, hanging round my neck.