Using seed beads for your creations be it jewelry, clothing or household items you may likely follow a pattern. A seed bead pattern is basically a set of instructions that guide you thru your design. Seed bead patterns can be obtained either as downloads from specialist pattern online sites or from craft stores and independent shops.
However if you have advanced from following other people's patterns and would like to try out making your own but don't know where to start, here are some easy tips that could help you along the way.
Grasp the basics of bead work. This may sound obvious but prior to going head first into pattern design ask yourself is your ability level good enough. Have you mastered the tools available in bead making to be able to produce an easily followed pattern.
Agree on the complicatedness of design you need to make a pattern for. If you're a relative beginner at seed beading maybe design a simple single thread design pattern first before entering into more complicated designs as an example a beaded bag or multi layered necklace.
Ready your design. Using graph paper is a good way of planning your design, treating each square of the paper as a bead once complete together with the various colours it'll give you a good idea the way in which the design is forming. This technique is also good for considering the scale of your design.
Make note of your materials. Sorting out the quantity of beads needed and what size and colour quantities along with the tools needed is critical when making a pattern. I like to make inventory notes on the way when designing my pattern this way you are not compiling at the end of the design which is much harder to maintain a record of.
Eventually try out your pattern, give it a test run and see if any changes or tweaks are needed. It is always best to soak test your pattern before unleashing it on the world, this means you will not have to adjust the pattern when people are actively using it as this may spoil your reputation.
However if you have advanced from following other people's patterns and would like to try out making your own but don't know where to start, here are some easy tips that could help you along the way.
Grasp the basics of bead work. This may sound obvious but prior to going head first into pattern design ask yourself is your ability level good enough. Have you mastered the tools available in bead making to be able to produce an easily followed pattern.
Agree on the complicatedness of design you need to make a pattern for. If you're a relative beginner at seed beading maybe design a simple single thread design pattern first before entering into more complicated designs as an example a beaded bag or multi layered necklace.
Ready your design. Using graph paper is a good way of planning your design, treating each square of the paper as a bead once complete together with the various colours it'll give you a good idea the way in which the design is forming. This technique is also good for considering the scale of your design.
Make note of your materials. Sorting out the quantity of beads needed and what size and colour quantities along with the tools needed is critical when making a pattern. I like to make inventory notes on the way when designing my pattern this way you are not compiling at the end of the design which is much harder to maintain a record of.
Eventually try out your pattern, give it a test run and see if any changes or tweaks are needed. It is always best to soak test your pattern before unleashing it on the world, this means you will not have to adjust the pattern when people are actively using it as this may spoil your reputation.
About the Author:
Siffion Quaid has had an interest in bead jewelry for a long while and where to buy beads. On his website are tons of articles making reference to beads and also making seed bead patterns.