Work in Progress: Herringbone Collar

When learning new beading techniques, it can be easy to get discouraged by the results of first attempts. The trick to mastering a new stitch is to keep trying - even if you have to walk away for awhile before picking it up again.

I have always admired curved herringbone weave, made with beads of varying sizes. Like spiral peyote, it’s a little tricky to get the hang of. The first few attempts I made with the stitch turned out horribly, so it’s been years since I’ve given it a shot. For my latest Egyptian Gods necklace, I wanted a collar with close-fitting stitches to imitate vulture wings, and herringbone was a perfect match.

So far things are going great, although it took a long time to decide on a palette and pattern. I wanted varying shades of blue, red, and white or gold, but they had to be done in a certain order to get the right curve. As usual, I was a bit limited by quantities.

After stitching the first length of thread, I was a little worried that the palette might look too much like a Fourth of July banner; but I couldn’t decide on any alternatives that I liked more, so I stuck with it. Sure enough, after a few more rows things evened out and the collar took on it’s own personality.

Last week's rainbow rings turned out great, although I'm falling behind on rings again. I just couldn't resist jumping right into this piece, so I'll have at least 3 druks waiting once this necklace is complete.

What are you working on this week?

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