Under the motto that not everything can go well, let’s talk about what went wrong.
I wanted to crochet beads again and had already done this twice with a wonderful result. So I thought why not take a more difficult motif and work with everything I have.
Now this is a warning to anyone who wants to try this! Research on the internet really didn’t tell me much. And nowhere could I read that certain combinations are not allowed. Even though I’ve searched like crazy.
The above image is what I wanted my necklace to resemble. I think this is wonderful, but this is a payment pattern. So I didn’t want that.
While searching for a free pattern and clear instructions, I discovered some nice things. Such as the free software to make your own bead crochet pattern.
https://bead-patterns.com/_CDL_MASK_31__
At the link above you can find various programs to work with beads and make designs.
Now I found this design and customized it with the right colors. I did this all manually, just on a piece of paper. And I started threading.
Which brought me to the next obstacle. It’s been a while since I did this haha.
How many pearls do you need to string now?
Nowhere on the internet could I find how many beads I needed to string on to make a necklace of about 30 cm. How long should your beaded wire be?
I still don’t know. In my previous designs I strung on about 3m of beads. So for a pattern of 9 instead of 6 beads I strung about 4m in circumference. 1 meter more.
Everything went fine until here. Threading took a lot of time, especially checking the correct order and quantity.
But okay, that’s part of it. Until now I still didn’t know that I was making a big mistake and that all my work would be lost.
Since I used beads that I had on hand, I ended up with different sizes and types of beads mixed up. At first I thought it wouldn’t be that bad. Especially because I also worked with different pearls with the cellini spiral.
As you can see in the photo, the dark gray beads are size 0/11. The other beads are size 0/9, with the silver-gray and black ones being round and all others being square. So 1 big mix.
Setting up the necklace didn’t go smoothly either. Because there isn’t really a set pattern it was difficult to see when the 2 row of beads started. So counting, counting, counting and lots of fiddling.
The solution
I finally succeeded by putting the necklace on around a pencil/stick. I stuck this in the middle as a support so that the first row stayed in place and did not keep turning around. After 5 times it worked haha.
I found this to be the most clear and helpful post that explains bead crocheting step by step.
http://perlesauvage.blogspot.com/2008/01/bead-crochet-rope.html?m=1
The beginning of such a necklace is never immediately beautiful. So always continue to see the result.
I was so happy to see it turned out so beautifully.
Then it went wrong
Finally big enough now to remove the support and continue crocheting completely free of tools.
Unfortunately the 0/11 beads were pushed out by the 0/9 beads causing the entire pattern to shift. Now I have the choice to continue working or loosen everything again? Sorting all the beads again will also take a day.
Anyway, I hope my failure helps you guys not make the same mistake 😉
And what about the choice? I have chosen not to continue working on it. Consequently, 4m of pearls were loosened and sorted again. I won’t make this mistake twice. Even though I have the impression that with certain motifs it is possible to work with different sizes of beads. I think practice makes perfect, although I’ve had enough of it now 🙂 .