Beadwork for Dec 2010

I'm pretty unhappy with the latest Beadwork. I did enjoy all the interesting patterns in earlier issues but going back through them, I notice a big change when Melinda Barta became the editor. It seems to me that most of the patterns are doing the Laura McCabe rivoli type thing or RAW and actually t he patterns by Macia DeCoster in RAW are easier than most of the other ones. I enjoy Rivoli too and once learned it but I don't care to keep on with it all that much as it takes a long time for one thing. Now in this latest issue there is just about nothing that is easy. There are a few quickie easy ones at the beginning which don't appeal to me and also one bracelet Arabella near the end which has been done many times already. It's the peyote thing. The only difference here is that the embellishments are different. But frankly I don't even call that one a pattern. However, there is one interesting item in an adv in the back on page 104 the middle picture. It looks to me like brick stitch holding the ever increasing pie shape of beads which I learned to do this week from a Deb Roberti pattern. So maybe I'll try that one from the photo. The article on David Chatt is nice for him but rather sad for me as he seems to have abandoned beading for now. The actual projects only begin on p.40 after wading through pages of advertising. First one is a herringbone rope with a McCabe pendant, etc. Then come the three editorial quickies .DeCoster has an interesting pattern idea as long as I change the beads as I don't care for the pictures. The Kan necklace is another RAW with netting thing. The beaded tubes don't appeal to me. Next is another McCabe wannabe. Then a RAW cuff in two layers and I don't care for that idea either as it just makes it all that much heavier. Next is a peyote triangle with a spiral rope which might be ok if I adapt it as I definitely don't care for the colors. Then a bead embroidery which has been done often before a d finally a bracelet which looks nice but again is a McCabe wannabe. Final project of a brooch is a bit different but still RAW. So just about all of them are going to take a lot of work and are not for the beginner and probably not the intermediate beader either. The advanced beader can take out some ideas and do her own thing as she probably has her own copy of the McCabe book. Also the reason I am so disapppointed is that Interweave Press bought out Step by step beds and then forced it to go to easy beginner projects and then a few months later killed it. So now there is nowhere for the easy pretty patterns that were in that magazine unless Bead and button gets smart and sees there is a big opening for beginning projects. I'm making a bet with myself that Barta will be on her way sometime soon as people walk away from Beadwork. Really, for whom is the magazine now?
And going through my printed out patterns from all my magazines, I am not that surprised to see how many came from Step by step Beads when Rogalski was the editor. They were fairly easy to do, interesting, taught me something as well, and in a rather short beading time I was able to come up with a piece I enjoy still today. So where can the beginning beader or fairly new one now go?
One hopeful note for the end: happily the 4 beaders of the year are being replaced by 4 more. One is McCabe herself, two is Carole Ohl who is a favorite with me. The other two remain to be seen.

Eye of God earrings

This was a pattern in Beadwork and I used 1.5mm Toho cubes instead of the regular beads called for. I like it very much and these will be earrings and perhaps also part of a bracelet.

roberti bracelets

Worked according to the Roberti bracelet pattern but in 3 of the bracelets I c hanged the size of the cube to 1.5mm and I'm very happy with it. I'm using also in one of them a thread called Sonoho which I bought in Singapore. I'm told it's another name for Sono. Anyway it works like the 1G and the KO but it might be more economical as it comes on a much larger tube. I also used Fireline crystal in one of them but I find this difficult as the pattern is brick stitch. I also made a pair of earrings as I didn't have enough of that pink color for a bracelet.