I said I would show you how to make beaded flowers. Today we start! I’m going to tell you what I know about making French beaded flowers. My way is only one way.
And let me warn you…I do a lot of things the opposite way most of the books show you. I didn’t think I was dyslexic but somehow when I taught myself I taught myself backwards. The end result is the same as long as I’m consistent and sometimes I have to re-think the directions in some of the books I have, but it works just fine for me. I will show you my way and then you can decide to do it whatever way suits you best.
Over the course of the next couple of weeks or so I’ll share with you all the tools and materials I use, some good sources for them that I’ve found, and then I’ll show you the two main types of flower making techniques — looped flowers and what I call the Center Post Method (I’ve seen it called lots of other things. I think I may have made this one up!).
This is my latest project. It was adapted from a Japanese beaded flower book. I made a few minor changes. I’ll be using it to display on my table at my booth for an upcoming bridal show. There will be a cut glass vase in the middle and it will hold the entries for a drawing I’m holding for a beaded flower hair clip. I just loved picking the colors and seeing all the tiny flowers take shape. It gave me a breath of spring in the cold days of winter. And it really said bridal to me. I can see a version of this as a circlet headpiece for the bride, can’t you?
The two different techniques I mentioned were used in this wreath. If you look at the detail, the pink flowers and buds and the calyxes underneath are made up of loops. The leaves have a center row of beads and additional rows surround it creating a leaf (or petal) shape using the Center Post Method.
You can see the loops a little more clearly in this picture. Each flower is made up of two layers of continuous loops joined together and a center of yellow beads is also added. I’ll tell you more about that “funny looking bowl thing” later on!
You may not think so, but this is a project even a practiced beginner could make. All it takes is a little know-how, some patience and some time. Hopefully, by the time I’m done with this series of blog posts you’ll feel confident enough to give it a try.
I’m happy to answer your questions as we go along, so don’t be shy!
How did you get the stems to be so thick?
Ah, you have to wait and see! But a hint…there’s more wire in there! It’s called stem wire. I’ll be discussing all the different materials and how you make stems a few posts in the future. Tomorrow I’m going to talk a little about the history and then on Wednesday we’ll start talking about the materials we use (if life doesn’t interfere of course!). So check in every day and it will all begin to make sense.
Your wreath is gorgeous, Georgene. I can see a lot of uses for that and not just for brides either. I think it would make a beautiful table centerpiece with a hurricane candle. I can’t wait to read more about the process although again, I’m pretty sure I don’t have the patience for making these.