The insatiable desire for attractive and unique fashionable jewelry pieces is evident. The jewelry market is filled with a plethora of beautiful, elegant, expressive and sophisticated lines of jewelry items.
Although jewelry pieces made of gold, platinum, and silver are very popular with jewelry collectors, beaded pieces are also much loved.
Many people all over the world are devoting time to developing their own designs and lines of beaded pieces. Jewelry beading has become one of the most developed hobbies in the world today. Not only are people being creative with their designs and beading techniques, they can share or even market their designs to the world jewelry market.
Evolution of Beading
The history of jewelry beading dates back to many centuries ago, and it has existed across countries and cultures. Who could forget the Native Americans’ distinctive peyote stitch, and the Christians’ rosary beads? Beading has been well established in several world cultures while most people don’t pay it much attention at all.
However, thanks to fashion designers and innovative jewelry makers, beading has found its place again in the world market. Fashionable and attractive beaded items can be used for various purposes. Mostly, beaded jewelry pieces are used for beautification and decoration purposes, and for religious and ceremonial reasons.
To come up with stunning and exotic beaded jewelry pieces, modern beading incorporates beading techniques from Africa, Europe, America, and the Far East. Some techniques and patterns of beading were also borrowed and incorporated from the cultures and traditions of the prehistoric era.
The Native Americans integrated their customary woven art designs with seed and glass beads. These seed beads and glass beads were presented to the Native Americans by the European market traders and travelers.
Early bead weaving did not require needles. The earliest form of beading involved a technique that is somewhat akin to the braiding technique. Innovation throughout the years introduced needles for beading to create enhanced detail. With needles in modern beading, it is easier to return to or pass through one tiny bead several times.
Another development in beading was the use of metal tools that were introduced by the Europeans, and the construction of looms. Looms allowed a separation of two long cords into and warp and weft, offering wider bead weaving possibilities.
The earliest bead weaving involved animal sinews that were used to create strings. However, in modern bead weaving, stronger and more durable beading threads are used. These specialized beading threads are advantageous because they can be tremendously long, making work easier because there is no need to tie a lot of knots, and resulting in a smoother finished piece.
Birthstones for Beaded Jewelry
In some cultures and societies, people relied on the perceived power in stones for protection, prosperity, and wealth. Take, for example, the diamond. In some cultures, these precious stones provide protection against dark magic. Sometimes diamonds are said to bring charm and luck to their wearer.
Birthstones are popular in many cultures. Each month, January through December, has a specific stone assigned to it. An individual’s birthstone is simply the stone symbolizing the month in which she was born. There are several birthstone charts available, but the most widely used is the modern American birthstone chart. This chart was used since the advent of the 20th Century.
Some people believe that each birthstone offers special and distinctive protection and powers. Wearing your birthstone as a part of your clothing, as an accessory or jewelry, some believed, would protect you from dangers and illnesses, or bring you wealth or success in your life. Thus, birthstones are commonly used in creating stunning and elegant beaded jewelry pieces.
Care of Beaded Jewelry
Beaded jewelry can be more than just a hobby, or an expression of self and your creativity. It can be an investment too. To this end, it is important to take extra care with your beaded jewelry pieces.
Before you begin the cleaning process, get to know your beaded jewelry pieces. Know what type of beads and materials make up your pieces. Although some jewelry cleaners are effective for metals, they might do more harm than good on your beaded jewelry items.
If you have glass beads, the best cleaning technique is just to wipe them with a soft cloth. If the beaded items need more than just mere wiping, use a damp cloth dipped in liquid soap and gently clean them. Don’t soak your beads in water or any other cleaning solution.
To clean items with leather thronging, take off all the beads and polish the leather using the right hue of polish. You can try using some leather conditioners and special leather oils too. If you notice that the leather is starting to become brittle, restring your beads on a new piece.
Wooden beads can be cleaned with a wet sponge or damp cloth. You can try using furniture polish for your wooden beads. However, never use furniture polish on your colored jewelry bead pieces.
For other materials like sterling, gold, silver, platinum, you can use jewelry cleaner solutions regularly to maintain their lustrous and bright look. To keep your silver pieces tarnish free, just wear them often.
Never assume that your beaded jewelry pieces can withstand any jewelry cleaning solution. If you are in doubt, perform some test on excess beads and metals before using the solution to clean your beads. A soft cloth with minimal moisture is always safe, and the best way to clean your beaded jewelry pieces.
Beaded jewelry can be incredibly satisfying to make, own, and wear. There are many books available that teach basic and advanced beading techniques. Handmade beaded jewelry also makes a wonderful gift, because you can give your one-of-a-kind friend a one-of-a-kind piece of jewelry that you designed to match their personality and tastes.
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February 1st, 2008 at 5:28 pm
Very informative article. Thanks for taking the time to research and write it.