An introduction to whipped and threaded bead stitches on stitched leather cord

As I promised, here's a closer look on the stitches I used for the 'candy berry' bracelet in yesterday's post. (Candy berry is short for opaque berry pearl matte beads on nappa in the colour candy.) This isn't a "real" tutorial, but I still hope it will be a useful introduction for beaders, jewellery makers and needleworkers, including those that aren't familiar with whipped and threaded stitches.

The illustrations are just simple sketches, but as the stitches are simple too, I hope the close-up photos together with the illustrations will still make the patterns clear and easy to understand. Please feel free to ask if you have any questions (in the comment section or privately via e-mail).

Choosing supplies

First, let's say a few words about supplies. For this bracelet I used a flat nappa cord, which is softer than many other leathers. You want a softer material in order to be able to get a needle between the stitches and the leather. Also, the seam shouldn't be too tight for the same reason, but it should be made with a tough thread that won't break when you press a needle under it.

I found my czech 11/0 seed beads to be the perfect size for this, not least since they're about the size of each stitch in the seams, but you might also want to try smaller beads for a more delicate look.

As for beading threads, I'm using my favourite (K. O.), but feel free to substitute with your own favourite. It's a good idea to match the colour of the seam so the thread blends into it, but as you can see I didn't follow my own advice, using a dark purple thread, and as long as it is more or less in tone with the colour of the seam and/or leather it will be rather invisible.

The needle I use is a size 10 ballpointed bead embroidery needle, which have a blunt point. Sharp beading needles are more likely to damage the seam and leather. If you still find that you push the needle into the soft leather, be sure to alter the angle of the needle so it is parallel with the surface of the leather. If that doesn't work, turn the needle so you push it under the seam eye first.

Simple whip stitch

The bracelet above is made using a basic whipe stitch, adding one bead per stitch. The difference between a whip stitch and a threaded stitch is that a whip stitch is worked in the same direction every time (so it goes over and under a seam) while a threaded stitch is sewn back and forth under a seam.

Most of the stitches discussed here only uses one bead per stitch, but do feel free fo add more than one bead if the spacing and bead size allows for it. You can create whole new styles that way.


Filling it up

If you don't like the "zipper look", you can fill in the bead rows afterwards by going through the beads, picking up one bead after each bead you pass through. Remember that the flat cord will curve once used so even if it might look a bit cramped when the leather is lying flat on the beading table, it will look ok once worn as a bracelet.

I haven't tried making more than one whip stitch per stitch in the seam, but that could also work. If adding more than one bead, be sure to adjust the stitch as the beads will be likely to arch or turn the hole up.


Basic threaded stitch

You can also make threaded designs. I don't have a photo of the basic threaded stitch so I'm afraid you'll just have to make due with one of my sketched illustrations. Here, you see the difference between whipped and threaded stitches.

Double threaded stitch

If you want more beads than in the example above, you can make a double threaded stitch by mirroring the first row of stitches. Start as above and then follow the grey thread path below.

Design tip: No one says you need to use the same colour/size/number of beads for every stitch.


Wide threaded stitches

I tried two variations of threaded stitches for parallel seams when making my candy berry bracelet: one filling the space between the seams and one creating a zig-zag pattern.

These are just two examples: by changning the number of beads, the direction of the threads (straight or zig sag), where you add the beads (in the middle and/or on the edge) and/or doubling the threaded stitches, you can create a plethora of bead patterns. Don't be afraid of experimenting!


Finishing

Almost forgot this part. I secure the thread the way I would in an ordinary embroidery, by whipping or threading it on the flipside. The easiest way is to finish of the bracelet with glue-on end caps. Just secure the threads at the end of the leather strap so they too will be glued together when attaching the end cap.

I don't start nor end with a knot, but feel free to make a small, inconspicuous knot if you find that pulling the stitches tight pulls out the thread end. Do it near the end so it's covered by the end cap or in an inconspicuous place where the knot or secured thread won't show.


That's all, folks!

I hope you enjoyed my little introduction to beading on stitched leather cords. It's a great idea for anyone considering to bead on leather, but don't want to or don't have the tools to punch holes in it. Here you can undo your stitches without being left with a permanent hole. And that's just one of the things I love about these stitches and working on this kind of flat leather cord. Hopefully, you will like it just as much as I do!

Footnote: For a very good book with several examples of whipped and threaded stitches with beads, see Jane Davis' Bead Embroidery The Complete Guide: Bring New Dimension to Classic Needlework. If buying or borrowing the book isn't an option for you right now, you can read parts of it at Google Books. Threaded back stitch is found on pages 90-91. She doesn't show whipped back stitch (which is what's used in the bracelet), but you can find a variation of it in the whipped chain stitch on page 99.

The scrapped design

I mentioned in yesterday's post that I scrapped my first version of the berry metallic bracelet, which used 11/0 seeds. At the time I forgot that I snapped a couple of shots of the WIP before ripping it up, but now I found them while uploading photos to the computer and so why not show them?

Why didn't I go with them? Well, in the photos it doesn't look horrible, but IRL the colours of the beads didn't really match the leather and the size of the beads made the bead stitches stand out too far. I didn't like how chunky it felt, it was more like arches of beads rising over the flat cord than a rope of beads laying against the leather as in the finished bracelet.

I just felt the easiest fix was to find a better colour match and that automatically also meant using smaller beads -- and vice versa. I could perhaps have saved it by using few beads per stitch and making new holes so that the stitches don't end and begin in the same holes, leaving a gap in between for the beads so the first/last beads don't push up the arch of beads. But I don't regret switching to a different set of beads.

A pic of the finished bracelet for comparison if you haven't read the post showing the finished bracelet (or have read, but forgotten what it looked like in detail):

Three leather bracelets

Today I've got three new bracelets to show. I got three different flat leather cords from Endless Leather and challenged myself with trying something new with them. The first piece was also a colour challenge as I opted for colours matching Pantone's Color of the Year, Radiant Orchid.

Let's start with the Radiant Orchid bracelet. For this one I used a soft, stitched nappa cord in the colour Candy and czech 11/0 seeds in the colour Opaque Berry Pearl Matte. The idea was to use one of my favourite stitches, whipping, to attach beads to the leather cord, utilizing the existing seams on each side of the flat cord. By using the seam, you don't need to make any holes in the cord so it's great for those who don't have hole punches, awls or similar tools for making holes in leather.

Below, you can see the cord partially beaded, showing the double seams it had from the beginning. You can also see a pic of the unbeaded cord at Endless Leather's website if you need a better idea of what it looked like before beading it (never thought of doing "before" photos).

I did try a few variations, as you can see above, but settled for a simple whipped stitch for this first bracelet. And while it's simple, I am quite pleased with it as my idea panned out really well. While waiting for the cord to arrive, I worried that the seam might be too tight or the nappa too hard, making it impossible to push the needle and thread under the stitches -- but this cord turned out to be perfect for this technique! If I hadn't run out of cord, I would probably have many many more bracelets just because they're so fun and easy to make.

(If you like the technique, stay tuned: I'll be doing a post showing more in detail how the embroidery is made.)

For my second bracelet, using a flat metallic leather cord, I wanted to use another one of my favourite stitches (in both "thread embroidery" and bead embroidery): the stem stitch.

First I tried it with 11/0s in one colour, but it felt too chunky so instead I went with size 15/0 black seeds and 13/0 copper charlottes. The change of sizes is the reason for the long stitches: the holes in the leather were spaced for the bigger seeds. It's also the reason why I don't have double rows of stem stitch, an idea I thought about for a bracelet I wanted to embroider with vaxed linen cord. On the other hand, making two (mirrored) rows, would've obscured the pretty metallic colour of the cord too much. So I'll save that idea for another bracelet.

Be sure to notice that big magnetic heart clasp. Normally I prefer smaller clasps, but this chubby copper heart was hard to resist.

That leads us to the third and last bracelet, which unlike the others doesn't feature seed beads. For a while the idea was just to use seed beads, but I wasn't happy with the ideas I came up with. So as a last minute resort, I picked up an antiqued silver-plate tea rose, put a matching lavender bead in the centre of it and wrapped it onto the bracelet. (You can see some of the cord on the rose here, but after taking the photos I pushed it down between the petals to make it more invisible.)

I might redo this one -- feel like making a feather stitch bracelet and this could be a good base... With or without the rose, come to think of it: the feather stitch could be used to make leaves each side of the tea rose. Or maybe make beaded daisy stitch leaves? Hrmm... I need to think this over for a while...


Anytway, that's it, my latest three bracelets. Hope you liked them!

Sequintastic September 2013

It's finally here, my sequintastic post. Many things have come in the way. First I was ill and unable to dedicate much time to creating, then I almost forgot about the hop because I was ill for so long and then yesterday I got the dates mixed up so while I had taken all the photos, I never got as far as culling, editing and writing a post about it. But now it's finally here!

Because I was unable to make a finished piece, but really didn't want to withdraw from two blog hops in a row (had to bow out of the cabochon challenge), I figured I'd instead write a bit about what I'm doing right now. At the moment I'm at the planning stage, sketching on a bead embroidery piece using some of my newest sequin flowers. Not yet having decided on a design, it's all been about trying to combine the different components in various ways to find something I like. Below you will see glimpses from this creative process.

(By the way, I don't know how the photos look on your monitors, but for some reason the white backgrounds change colour on my monitor when I upload them to Blogger. Really annoying and I only hope it doesn't look as bad on your computer as it does on mine...)

The first thing I did was to gather the beads and sequins I wanted to use for my design. I started with the flowers and then the beads pretty much added themselves. They were bought on a separate occasion and never really intended to be used with the sequins. The baroque seed beads from Miyuki were bought because they were new and I was dying to see them IRL. Chose the three colours I liked the best and two of them just happened to match the flowers. Similar thing with the twisted bugle beads. I never used that kind of beads, but I was curious about the gold antiqued matte finish and I could only find that in this bead type. Again, just a coincidence that they happened to go with the flowers and pearlescent big seeds. Lastly, I added the dark leaf sequins (purchased the same time as the flowers).

The beads picked themselves you might say. But now the question was what to do with this mix of components. First I just began by combining them in simple designs that would work just as well as strung or linked jewellery as embroidery borders. After all, just because I want to embroider doesn't mean the components want something else.

My first ideas for Sequintastic September when I signed up had been about using the flowers for a simple but cute necklace. While it was now set aside for this new idea about an embroidery (of some sort), I still wanted to test a few design ideas. And as said above, they could also work in an embroidery.

Sidestepping the chronology I'm trying to follow in this post, I also ended up testing what the flowers would look like doubled. Something I didn't think about before doing the experiments below where the sequins ended up nestled in one another.

I also had to test what the baroques would look like as flower centres. An idea that popped up pretty much for the same reason as above. The beads tried it themselves first. They are a tad too big, though. Unless flower is transformed into a ring of sepals and the baroque bead becomes a berry. Like, say, herb paris (Paris quadrifolia, ormbär). The first version would be great for something like that, though perhaps with another, more round, bead.

After the first little tests of combining components in different ways, it was onto thinking about the over all design. I had no idea what I wanted to actually do beyond using the flowers and then add matching beads to support them. So what do you do after you've poured out all the sequins and beads for a "group shot" (see initial photo)? Well, why not just mix them up and play with them?

I scooped them up, poured them out and took photos from different angles. Then I mixed them and spread them out in a new way, took more photos and repeated.

 I had taken a brown beading foundation and "antique gold" tulle with me and I tried the beads on that as well as on the white photo background. Unfortunately, the tulle didn't really feel as golden and metallic as I wanted against the sequins and beads. This photo session wasn't just about finding inspiration for my design, it also taught me I have to find another foundation to bead on. One that will truly complement the components as this looks like a bead embroidery where the surface isn't encrusted with beads/sequins but one where the surface will be an important and visible part of the design.

Maybe it's the autumnal colours, maybe it's the season -- or maybe it's because I often want things ordered and tend to lean towards that even in my creative work whether I like it or not -- but I fell for the "forest debris" look. Beads in layers, flowers and bugles tumbling around freely. It does however pose a big challenge for me: how to I keep this look once I start beading, knowing my subconscious urge to order and sort everything in neat groups and lines? This is a mild chaos without any deliberate pattern. Easy to do when mixing and pouring out the beads/sequins on the table, but harder to keep when stitching each piece onto a foundation. One by one they might want to line up neatly instead of lying on top of each other and fight for the same space. Those initial simple designs would be oh so easy to make, but this feels really hard to recreate. 

While the photo/design session didn't result in a fully formed plan or even a sketch, it did give me many ideas about how to use the flower sequins and also some general ideas for other, future embroideries. And of cause it was also fun and relaxing to just play around with the sequins and beads like this. With a camera by the side it's easy to capture different stages of the "play session" for future reference -- and the photos in themselves can become the result, the artwork (especially if they're better quality than mine; bad light sources and quick editing makes for poor photos). Even if I end up doing something way different, I also have these ideas captured in images for me to enjoy.

~*~

That was all from me. Thank you so much for stopping by (perhaps for a second time even as I didn't have my reveal up in time)! I hope you have enjoyed it. Now be sure to visit the other Sequintastic September participants too!

List of Sequintastic September participants

Sarah (our hostess) http://www.saturdaysequins.com/

 

Dawn, http://designsbydawnmarie.blogspot.com

Mandi, http://www.beadcircle.com

Skylar, http://brisingbeads.blogspot.com

Cyndi, http://beading-arts.com

Karen, http://baublicious.blogspot.com

Lily, http://thecreativeklutz.blogspot.co.uk

Eleanor, http://eleanorpigman.blogspot.com

Kepi, http://kepirasmussen.blogspot.com

Maneki (that's me),  http://wildrosesandblackberries.blogspot.se

Tammy, http://innermusejewelry.blogspot.com

Therese, http://theresestreasures59.blogspot.com

Liz, http://beadcontagion.blogspot.com

Jasvanti, http://jewelrybyjasvanti.blogspot.com

Mischelle, http://micheladasmusings.blogspot.com

Dee, http://agapecreationsjewelry.blogspot.com

Labweorc, http://labweorc.wordpress.com

Blog hop participants without blog share they creations here.

Embroidered rizo flowers

I just had to share these little florals I did last night (an by night, I mean really night -- as in after midnight). It's an idea I've had for some time, probably since before I got these beads from Fru Pärla, but having prioritized other projects it wasn't until last night I acutally sat down and tried that little design idea of mine.

When I finished, I just had to share the result so I got the camera out today and took some quick snapshots. (A bit too quick in some cases -- sorry about the blurry quality in the top photo, but it was the best one I had...)

 

I'm rather pleased with how the different flowers turned out. Ok, using partially green beads on a green foundation wasn't that clever and emerald capri gold's not the most petal-like colour, but I just grabbed what I had closest to me -- and you can still see the flowers. It's not like they disappeared into the felt or anything. But try to imagine them in a solid, floral colour as they might look even better if I tried doing them in, say, purple or pink instead of "half green".

For the medium flower, I'm thinking of making a version with green beads in the outer circles, making it a flower with sepals or leaves around the petals.

That slightly wonky rizon on the left side of the small flower in the above photo is annoying: why didn't I see that before taking the photo? Anyway, if using it in jewellery, it's probably best to add a ring of seeds around the flower so the rizos are completely fixed in an upright position. They usually are, but can be flattened if the flower pushes against something, it snags on a loose thread or you put something on it. Not a probably if it's used in a wall hanging etc, but can be an issue in jewellery.

That's just a problem with the small flower, with the larger ones, the subsequent rows of beads keep each rizo in a fixed position.

By the way, this is a simple little design that'd I could whip up a how-to for pretty easily so if you want to see one here on the blog (and on my other blog), just let me know. ;-)