Bead Embroidery Pendant

For this project you will need:

Good scissors and a beading mat are also helpful! Okay, lets start…

1. To make this pendant, attach the cabochon to a stable backing material that will provide support for your beadwork. You can start with a cabochon from
my store and glue it to an appropriate backing with two part epoxy glue or E6000 glue. I prefer to double up Stitch-N-Tear fabric stabilizer as a backing material, but Lacy’s Stiff Stuff is also a fine choice.

2. Backstitch around the cab with delica seed beads.

3. To backstitch I add two beads at a time. I come up between the two beads and I exit out the second bead.

4. Continue backstitching around the outside of the cabochon.

5. The first row is complete and now you can continue and add as many rows as you would like.

6. Here you can see the backside of my work. I try to knot at least at the end of every row around the cabochon, that way if my thread breaks I don’t lose all of my hard work.

7. Once you are done adding rows to your pendant it is now time to trim the backing material. Carefully cut away extra stabilizer, making sure not to cut any of the stitching thread.

8. To finish the back glue ultrasuede or leather onto the back of your piece. I glue the piece and let it dry, then I trim the ultrasuide to match the backing.

8. Now add one additoinal row to secure the ultrasuede to the beaded front. To edgestitch add one bead at a time. Go down through the bead, backing, and ultrasuede, then make a very small stitch and come back up through the same bead. Continue around the outside of the piece.

9. Now we just need loops to string it with and it should be finished. You could also add fringe or some additional beadwork here if you’d like.

10. Use peyote stitch to make the loops. Start off with three Japanese seed beads. Go back through the third bead to start your peyote stitch, pull it tight. Continue back and forth until your “peyote ladder” is long enoug to make a loop.

11. These Diagrams show how the beads are added. My loops used 19 beads.

12. Once you have your strip long enough, fold it over to make a loop and stitch it to your pendant.

13. To finish the necklace as shown, string 15 delica seed beads onto Beadalon. Loop the seed beads through your peyote loops, bring them trough a crimp bead, crimp it, then added a crimp cover. Now you can continue to add beads so that the necklace is the desired length.