Stitching 101 - Beading

For adding a great finish to your stitched designs, seed beads are a lovely touch... super for sparkle and texture effects too.

It is best to use a specially designed beading needle to add seed beads, but a size 28 tapestry needle may work. The needle will have to be smaller than the needle you use for cross stitch and it will have to be sharper. Choosing the right needle will save you a big headache as the beads can get stuck on your needle.

Diagonal bead (requires 2 strands of floss)

	Use the first arm of a cross stitch (half stitch) to add the seed bead. Insert the needle from the back of the fabric, add the bead, then take the needle back down. This will ensure the bead stays in place.
	Add the top arm of the cross stitch, making sure that one strand of the thread falls on either side of the bead to help hold it uprght. You can also jump this step, but it helps to secure the bead in place .

Straight bead (1 or 2 strands of floss at your choice)

Follow the first step for the diagonal bead. Once done, bring the needle up again in the bottom right hole but before completing your top stitch, push the needle through the bead hole again. Then take the needle back down in the top right hole of the fabric.

Voilà!

You can find all the stitching 101 posts here or you can download them in PDF on our Guides Page