About Beadwork

Beadwork is essentially the craft that involves working with different kinds of beads to create a piece of jewelry, beadwork on different kinds of textiles. These beads can be used to create various kinds of products and this is a hobby that can be used to adorn clothes, bags, household items and more. In fact one can even create entire sculptures and wall hangings.

Beadwork has a rich cultural heritage and this is a hobby that dates back many centuries. Native American beadwork is considered to be an art form that is still practiced in some parts. It is thought that glass beads have been used in America for the last 5 centuries.

The Ursuline nuns are said to have introduced floral patterns to tribes in the Great Lakes. The tribes immediately applied these new patterns to beadwork and created some interesting products. The popular bandolier bags that this area produces can take up to a year to produce. Each of the tribes like the Nez Perce, the Plain tribes, the plateau tribes and subarctic tribes created their own signature style of beadwork. The Huichol Indians of Jalisco and Nayarit have a completely different style of using beadwork that includes sticking the beads on to different surfaces like wood or gourd. This is something that they did using beeswax and resin. Some of the other products that are made using beadwork that are extremely popular include cradleboards, beaded portraits, beaded dolls and 3D beaded sculptures.

Beadwork in Europe also dates back many centuries. It can be traced back to the time when shells and animal bones were used as beads. While French beaded flowers were made as early as the 16th century, lampwork glass was invented in the 18th century. Seed beads started to be used for embroidery, crochet and other off loom techniques as well.

3D beadwork is a slightly different kind beadwork. This is an oriental kind of craft that was practiced in Japan and China many years from now. There are not too many beadwork 3D patterns that are available and those that have been brought down from the ages are present in oriental languages and scripts. The specific craft of 3D beadwork is called beadweaving.

Today there are various sites that are dedicated to beadwork. These sites have various patterns that can be copied in order to make patterns. There are also specialized sites that can help you create different patterns on different products. So while there may be some sites that are dedicated to making bead bracelets, there are others than can give you information about how to use beadwork on apparel.

NOTE: Information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Some content is compiled from 3rd party sources. If you are aware of incorrect or outdated information, feel free to contact us.