Christmas ornament

'Tis the season...

You know I enjoy beading - I'm also fond of instant gratification with my beading at times. This ornament provided that, quick, fun and I think it will look good on a tree. It is about 2 inches around with lots of red and some green beads. I used seed beads in sizes 8/0, 11/0 & 15/0. The porcelain cab came from Eljay, and I'd link her, but I can't find a link. If anyone knows Eljay and has the link to her site, please let me know. I've purchased some nice cabs from her - seems it was through a picturetrail site.



Perfect for today as we are under an ice storm warning through this evening. A great day to stay indoors, get cozy and BEAD! Maybe put on a little Christmas music and sip a warm beverage.

I hope you're having a good day in your part of the world.

*** Updated to answer a question ***
The question:
Please tell me how you finish the back side of this and your pins/brooches so neatly? It looks as though you might glue the felt/ultrasuede onto the back and then do that last row of beading on the outside to catch the very edge of the red backing fabric with the stitches? Or do you cut the backing a little larger than the back of the piece, and then bead and trim off the excess? Thanks if and when you have time to share any kind of info

The answer: I'll start from the beginning - I glue the cab onto a (usually) square piece of stiff felt backing; complete all the beading I feel is necessary then cut around the cab/beading leaving a small margin - you want to make sure you don't cut through any of the existing threads. Next I grab a piece of ultrasuede that is a bit larger than my backing and glue it on. If I'm making a brooch out of it, I will glue the pin back on first. Sometimes I will also glue down a piece of poster board onto the back of the cab backing first for a little more stabilization (it should be a bit smaller than the backing - not all the way to the edge). So, now picture a sandwich, on the bottom is the cab (laying on it's front side), next is the stiff felt backing, next is the poster board if needed, next is the pin back (if making a brooch) and last is the ultrasuede (with two small holes cut into it for the pin back if needed). Also, note - when gluing everything down - do not let the glue seep towards the edges if at all possible. Getting a needle through glue is no fun.

The ultrasuede will now need to be trimmed (because I used a piece that was a bit bigger than the cab backing all the way around) to match the edge of the felt backing. Once that matches, I begin my edge stitch. I use the basic edge stitch described in 'Beading with Cabochons' by Jamie Cloud Eakin. Using this edge stitch you stitch the front to back while the bead lays on the edge with the hole pointing out so you can add other stitches to the edge if desired (such as did with the pointed edge).

I hope that helps and is not too confusing!