Desert Road Collar

When it comes to mastering beading techniques, sometimes distance is just as important as practice. This week I discovered all over again how much different a design can seem when you haven’t used it in a while. The double chevron technique I had chosen for a new collar was a last resort - I wasn’t eager to revisit this stitch, because I remember it being time consuming and a little awkward. Then I remembered how great the results are, and knew it would be worth it.

I started with a palette of dark beige and terracotta to represent roads, and peridot and emerald for vegetation. The Ancient Egyptian god Min had domain over crops and travelers, and I wanted to capture both. I had also hoped to use some green white hearts, and a mix of emerald and rootbeer 8/o’s. When I switched out my stitch plan, I had to pare down the accents to just one color.

It wasn’t until the necklace was finished that I realized that it wasn’t the task I was expecting it to be. It was fun, and again I’ve got a great looking collar. “Practicing” double chevron again made it seem a little bit easier than before - something that continues to happen with any stitch until you can practically whip a piece together without looking (not that any beader would!).

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