Beading technique

[LaurenLee]

I would like to find out what is the best technique for adding pearls or beads to your projects?  I would like to sew a pearl into a repeating design for sleeves and possibly a forepart.

Should I wait till the project is finished? (problem with knots showing?)
Do I sew the pearls on using a continuous thread (knotting each one before moving on to the next) before I flat-line (therby hiding all the maze of threads on the wrong side of the fabric?
Does anyone attempt gluing them on?  (can't see that working myself).


The thought of sewing several hundred pearls,  individually, is daunting.  I can just see me dropping more pearls than I actually attach, and chasing them all over the hardwood floors for weeks...

I know some of you out there have done this, and I most humbly call upon your knowledge!

[Mythrin]

There was some very good discussion on just this subject in the past, but......  That said I will give my opinion for what has worked for me. 

I try to bead prior to putting in the lining, so that the knots are hidden and protected.  I back stitch each and every bead/pearl and knot every 3-5 so that the most I could loose in a knot failure is that.  I knot every 3 when using pearls. I also use doubled upholstery thread and if that is too big to go through the bead's hole I have used fishing line.  With the fishing line I double knott and put a drop of fingernail polish on the knot to seal it.  I have also gone back and put Fray Check on the knots of thread.

One amongst us in the past made the point of not beading the back of a skirt because sitting on them is uncomfortable and most likely to come off.

My daughters bodice doublet that she wore for fights which included rolling around on the ground still has all of it's hematite beads 3 seasons later - so I am pretty sure the technique will make for a durable job though time consuming. 

[gem]

My beading background is from needlework, not costuming, but I can offer a suggestion for the loose pearls rolling all over:  Tacky Bob!.  It's a little box with a sticky interior for gripping beads.

Also, what I do is pull out only about five or six beads at a time, and then seal the container again.  That way if there is a mishap, I'll only have spilled a couple--rather than the whole lot.

[Lady L]

I love handsewing, including beading. 
What I have done and what I am currently working on, I sew on each bead and knot it on the back. I sew the beads on before sewing the lining on the back, so all the threads are hidden. It's less likely for something to catch the threads, if they are all underneath a smooth layer of lining.

[LaurenLee]

Thank you everyone! 

It's my clumsy fingers I'm more worried about - pick up a pearl and have it squirt out from my fingers...shooting them all over the room !  I shall take your advice and bead before anything else, making sure I knot frequently .

[CapnFayeCutler]

Ugh I have the same problem! I'm clumsy like that. I've vacuumed up more seed beads than I care to remember, and I'm notorious for dropping the tray of beads whenever I'm working. 

I like the idea of sewing on beads before lining...Usually I sew the lining on, leave the bottom open, then bead...Apparently I like to make things difficult on myself. I'm gonna try that other method next time.

[gem]

pick up a pearl and have it squirt out from my fingers

Use your needle to pick up the beads--it'll be *much* easier.  Promise!  Alternately, you can hold a handful of beads at a time in your lap, where they'll be easier to grasp and less likely to go flinging across the room.

[Lady L]

Oh, I was going to suggest something similar to what gem said.
I find if I put a few beads into a shallow tray, such as a cover from a jar, or my pin box, then pick them up with the needle and thread, they have less chance of ending up on the floor.

[mollymishap]

I was given the don't-bead-where-you-sit advice, but since I like to torture myself (c'mon, don't we all?  Why else would we wear clothes designed for a mini-ice age in today's global-warming heat, huh?) I decided to disregard the advice and see for myself.

So this is what happened: nothing.  I didn't even remember that they were there. And there are lots of beads on that skirt, all precisely gathered right in the critical spot.  This is a pic (http://www.myfairelady.com/?page_id=9) before I had the beading done on the skirt, you can see the white dots on the bodice at the spot where the embroidery intersects.  There are now hundreds of beads at each intersection of the skirt, too.

One thing of note, though: I typically wear a farthingale and at least one petticoat plus a forepart attached to a skirt underneath that gown.  It's worn closed for that pic, but it opens down the center.  All that extra padding may be the reason my posterior isn't affected by the beads.

Anyway it took me about 40 hours, all airplane/travel/car time to bead the skirt.  I can't sit still long enough to bead at home. 

And as to the method, I used upholstery thread and tied each one off twice, then snipped.  The skirt was fully construced before I decided to bead, so the threads are hidden under the lining.  I need to go back and put a dab of something permanent on them just to be sure, but so far I haven't lost any, and I've worn that outfit post-beading for at least 30-40 hours so far.

Oh, and another thing: if you're going to go through all the bother of hand-stitching beads on, I'd suggest using glass beads rather than acrylic.   They'll hold up better, though they are heavier and more costly. 

Good luck!!!

[Lady Kathleen of Olmsted]

What I do to keep pearls on trim or fabrics is use a sturdy Upholstery weight thread and the good old back stitch method. The size of needle to fit through the hole of the bead or pearl can vary. I use the smallest I have to fit through most of the holes with 2 to 3 threads per bead.

Sometimes I will also use fine clear thread that is delicate in look, but still sturdy.

[nliedel]

Beading is the reason they invented bad reality tv. I use a very thin needle that has an opening you have to pull apart a tad. Big eye needle comes to mind. Pearls, real ones, have a nasty tendancy to be drilled with hole you can't even see light through, these needles get through the pearls and the cloth. I use a strong silk thread with beeswax and knot every third bead.

[Dayna]

Beading needle, silk thread, beads in a container picked up by the needle.  Knot every pearl, knot every inch of continuous seed bead work, lining last.

Remember to consider your materials, do not put non-drycleanable coated beads or pearls on dry-clean only fabric.

When you wash your beaded garment, lay it bead side down on a sheet and secure the perimeter plus a few places within the interior.  That way your garment will wash without all the beads and pearls and etc. rubbing on the fabric (a god-send when you prong set mounted stones on your forepanel).

Dayna

[Master James]

I have done a fully beaded doublet and then did sword play in that doublet so the pearls where smacking against one another quite hard and I never lost a single one.  What I did was to use something from Fire Mountain Gems called silkyon, its a combination of silk and rayon and is VERY strong.  I then used one strand of it and a beading needle and went through each pearl twice.  At every 4th pearl I tied off and kept going.  this was done before assembly of the doublet.  That process was so strong that when I put a peal in the wrong place I cut both strings and the peals STILL wouldn't budge!  I had to forceabley remove it!  It took me close to 3 months of off an on beading to get it all done but I think the final look was worth it.

[Adriana Rose]

I would use one thread, but as you go I would double back trough the bead so that is stronger.

And for the hundreds of beads all I have to say is....

One at a time!


Good luck! you had better post a picture once you are done!