Native American Style Beadwork
This piece was my first shot at a "big" plains Native American style bead job. It took about 20 hours. I believe these are size 7 seed beads and the button is made from elk antler. The leather is chemically tanned deer hide. This was a pipe pouch I gifted to a friend for help he and his wife graciously offered while I was in the hospital.
Brother! Nicely done. Two things I see here. 1.] you tried to bead that is the first thing. it is not as easy as it looks and there are many ways to bead and 2.] the stray red bead should have been on purpose. It is the bead for the weaver. every piece I ever do has an imperfection purposely placed into it. sometimes it is a glaring mistake other times it is not so noticeable but it will always be there. There are many legends of the weaver across the world in many cultures but they all have a similar motif. So i make sure none of my pieces are "perfect"
I'm glad you found this post! I thought about you and this post when I saw your beadwork. Yes, beading is difficult and very time consuming. Also, I did not use a loom. I kept the sage burning while beading and smudged all of the material, giving thanks for each piece. I gifted this to a friend after he took care of my dog when I went into the hospital while on a trip. A-ho, thank you for the comment!
This piece is lazy stitch applique no loom needed. the technique is definitely the easiest to start with but allows limited control over the beads. But I love the piece none the less. If I would receive a piece such as that I would wear it with pride.
Thank you. I appreciate your kind words. Honestly, I have not beaded anything else since I finished this piece. The patience of the Old Ones must have been infinite, especially considering the tools they had to work with. The number of hours alone in the beading of the modern regalia for a fancy dancer is staggering. It is truly an art.
also think at the time metal needles were not common.. the would often use bone......
Nice work! I love the paw. Did you draw it out first to determine where the red would go or did you just wing it?
Thank you! I actually found the bear's paw online already in a grid pattern for beading. I printed off some bead graphing paper (I guess that's what you call it) and drew out the borders. There was quite a bit of trial and error in the beginning, but the beading itself had a very calming effect. Except for when I stuck myself with the needle. :D
The rows are not as tight as they could be, and there is one stray red bead at the tip of the "thumb" nail. But when I was teaching on the Navajo res, I heard that the rug makers will leave a single imperfection to symbolize the imperfection of life. I went ahead and left that bead in there. If I know about anything, it's imperfection. ;)
I've heard that too, but in Iranian rug weaving. It's to remind us of imperfection and also of the human being who hand-tied every knot. Or strung every bead in your case. Cool how it's cross-cultural.
In my brain though, the first person to make a mistake was like, "Dang it. Well, I can always tell people it symbolizes imperfection." Heehee.
Great art work @yournextstepdad upvote
Thank you! I've given you a follow and look forward to seeing your future stories. My maternal great-grandfather came to the US from Germany. Last name Wilke.
Ok sounds good .. I am on your next post curious.I follow you