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*Beading Trays*....ya we all love those ceramic beading trays in the catalogs....sometimes can be found at the occasional bead shop for top $dollar$.....*Fagetaboutit!!!!* in my New York Accent...hehe....go to Wallmart and buy a $2 painters tray...you know, the lil round ones with all the lil wells for paint?....dish out the colors your working with for your project....ya got em all right there and its easy to dip your needle in and get beads.
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![]() littlecrow
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*Mexican Jumpin Beads*....know when your trying to get seeds on the needle and they seem to hop away from you?...static...try running the needle carefully through your hair...if that doesnt work spritz a lil static guard ...this happens to me all the time .esp in the winter..* hehe..swishing slippers across the carpet headed toward hubbys ear....ZAP!!!!!*
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![]() littlecrow
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*OTHER "beading in progress" CONTAINERS* If you love garage/boot sales, this hint is for you - old (clean, of course) ashtrays, deviled egg plates, old dessert plates, pickle dishes, and shallow candy dishes are wonderful for handling/storing beads for a particular project in progress. Don't forget to line the bottoms with Fun Foam to eliminate bounce and static :)
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![]() beadphreak
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*Signing Your Work* I love to buy artwork that is signed dont you? It just seems "worth" more if the artists signature is there. Lots of ways to dothis .... I use a wood burner to sign the back of my leather pieces.....You can put your initials with beads in embroidery....use a reoccuring "signature" bead in all your strung pieces..Hubbys Dremel tool is great for signing peices of stone......Little things like this will make your work stand out from the rest!! *NOW GO OUT AND RAID YOUR HUSBANDS GARAGE FOR TOOLS!!...MUUUHAAAHAAAHAAAAA!*
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![]() littlecrow
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MoonDanceDesigns has a wonderful lap tray with a padded bottom to keep the work surface flat. It comes with a fun foam sheet. This is just the ticket if you bead on your lap - everywhere! They also have the best anti-static pile sheets at $2.50/3. These were a great find for me.
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  palmuser99
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another trick I have found when sewing on leather in a pinch is to use a small piece of leather to wrap around your needle and it gives it the grip you need. Also when using a beading needle and things get tuff to put the needle through i grab may little square pliers and very carefully grab the needle and use it to pull the needle through but also to gently push too!
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Handymomma1
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Bead Projects u want to come back to - you can store them in canvas/plastic pencil cases, plastic front lets you see which project and the back thickenough for any needles-so they won't poke thru
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gotkraftytoday25
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Bead Storage: Here's another one for those of you who work in the medical profession, or know someone who does: (Unused) urine jars from catheter kits or drug screen collection kits make AWESOME containers for your beads!! I've worked in an occupational medicine clinic, and now I work in an area where they do heart surgery. On our heart patients, they don't use the bottles when they insert a catheter, so they usually just throw those away. They are sturdy semi transparent plastic with screw top lids.
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![]() MissMagpie
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Fireline for beading...works great...just try to break it ....now pick up your nymo and try to break it...see?...told ya so....holds tention well when doing freeform peyote , thin enough for smallest beads...(i use 6 and 8 lb..walmart carries it...$15 range for 125 yds...i could go on and on...*sumbody shut me up!!!*...lol
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![]() littlecrow
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Fireline-threading needles-I like to use small needles. Nothing makes me madder than a needle that is too fat for the bead. Had trouble at first threading fireline in these small eyes. Just pull it gently between your teeth and it will flatten perfectly. Kept me from a couple mad fits already.
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![]() samandsha
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For those of you that use bee's wax (the big chunck)....You can melt it down and pour it into an empty chap stick tube. When you need some bee's wax just twist it up and use it. Then untwist and replace the cap to keep the wax clean.
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![]() MAYA
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Glue......AAAAAAaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...*one of those dreaded 4 letter words!!!!....lol....stay away from it as much as possible...Ive had people tell me and I have read it in books.."use a lil superglue on your knots"...NO WAY!!! BAD BAD BAD!!!....ROFL....its makes the thread rock hard and it can SNAP! right in two...tinktinktinktink..hear your beads hitting the floor?.....Now i do use an epoxy when attaching a cab to leather, just a dab in the center to hold it while i bead around it.
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![]() littlecrow
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HEY ALL-IF YOU KNOW ANY NURSES OR HOPITAL WORKERS...MORPHINE GLASSINE CONTAINERS ARE THE BEST BEAD HOLDERS....SIMILAR TO WHAT SEED BEEDS COME IN BUT STURDIER!
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-Mattibird-
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i bought a small plastic lazy susan like you get to put spices or dishes on in cupbord. glue a piece of suede or use chamois for cleaning car on it. i makes it easy to pick up beads they stay put and do not roll away or around dish . you can make piles of colour and move dish around to reach different colours. it works great.
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-chumis
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If you are using white nymo thread and you don't want it to show...You dye the threads using Sharpie Markers to match the beads.
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![]() MAYA
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