Have you ever opened up a kit that contained so many different kinds of beads that it overwhelmed you a little? It has happened to me. I was at one of our stitch retreats and I thought it would be fun to start a Mill Hill Halloween kit. You know - the really cute ones on perforated paper. As I removed all of the contents of the kit from its packaging, I saw those little bags of beads. Hundreds of beads, all different colors, and two different sizes. All mixed up. And I wondered how I was going to organize them. Well at that point I decided to stick to stitching and leave the bead organizing for another time.
One of the Sisters In Stitches came up with an idea for organizing those beads that I think is perfect. It's one of those "why didn't I think of that?!" ideas that I'm glad she shared with us!
It involves
Tacky Bob, which I think is an amazing invention in itself. In case you've never heard of Tacky Bob, it's a CD case-looking thing with a very sticky interior. It keeps those beads secure and allows you to pick each one up individually with your needle.
But Thea took it one step further. She bought some little number beads at a craft store and used them to identify the beads. The chart she was using for this one had number symbols.
At our last Stitch Day, Thea was working on a Mill Hill Easter Egg chart which had different kinds of symbols. She drew each symbol with a pen or marker and then used a paper punch to cut them out. Into the Tacky Bob they went denoting each type of bead in the kit. Genius!
OK, you still have to separate all of the colors and sizes, but just think about it. If you complete this little separating chore ahead of time, then you'll just get to experience the fun of stitching as you complete your project. You won't have to stop and search out each kind of bead in that crazy mixed-up bead soup.
The next time I'm watching a movie or something, I'll find that Mill Hill kit and do my bead separating then. So when I'm ready for stitching they'll be all organized and ready to go! Thank you, Thea, for this idea!
Such a cool, very cool idea :)
ReplyDeleteSmiles :)
I have a number of those Mill Hill bead kits! This is a brilliant idea, thank you for sharing it!
ReplyDeleteVery cool idea. I may have to try it on u current Mill Hill kit.
ReplyDeleteI don't do beading but it seems such a neat idea! thank you for sharing
ReplyDeleteWhat a clever idea! Thanks for sharing;)
ReplyDeleteHello Cathy! What an ingenious idea! Beads can be so fiddly! Thank you for sharing! :) x
ReplyDeleteOk, now that's just genius!! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteThat is utterly brilliant. I am now off to search for tackybob... or do you have a link
ReplyDeleteThere are many online sources for the Tacky Bob. Here's just one:
Deletehttp://www.123stitch.com/item/Flying-Needle-Tacky-Bob/123-8795
That *is* a neat idea! I tried one of those Mill Hill kits once and finally wound up leaving off most of the beads just to get it done after it had sat half finished for more years than I'm going to admit to.
ReplyDelete