It's my birthday week and I'm celebrating with a sale! Every pattern in my shop is 30% off! Stock up on your favorites today!
But hurry this sale is only good until Friday, April 30, 2021.
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I have been doing a bunch of tutorials over the last few weeks, so I thought we could mix it up a bit today. You can check out my tutorials HERE, HERE, and HERE if you are interested. But let's get back to the topic at hand. It is my birthday month, so I’ve been eyeing up Etsy and all it’s goodies. You know, for some super sneaky suggestions I’ll make to hubby (and by sneaky, I mean I’ll just show him what I want, haha).
This article includes affiliate links from Etsy. That just means that I get a little fee if you click on the link or purchase something and no additional cost to you. That little fee helps me keep writing these articles. All my opinions are my own. I am featuring these products because I love them.
So what have I been longing over on Etsy? Oh so many things, but I had to narrow it down a bit. It was hard because there are so many amazing things on Etsy. So let’s take a look at my top faves right now.
First off we have this adorable necklace. This little guy is on every list I make because I love him so much. I bought one for my friend when she finished her PhD, and she loved it. It was so well made and just a perfect little necklace. So I keep hinting that I would sure love one of these guys (especially with my love of SUE). Maybe I’ll just grab one for myself this year. I think I’m worth it.
I also am really loving this guy. Oh my look at him. I would absolutely love this guy. First off I have this weird thing about glass. If something is glass, I must have it. The amount of glass things I own is obsurde, but I’m getting off topic here. Who wouldn’t love a little Nessy? That little face is adorable. This is definitely high up on my list of desires.
Next I’ve been on the hunt for some amazing citrus soap. I bought some years ago and I loved how fresh it smelled, now I want to fill my showers with more of that. This soap looks like it would fit the bill. I’m all for a luxurios soap for relaxing in the tub (if that actually ever happens). I know this soap is very high up on my list of birthday wants.
I have also been pining over everything from this designer. I love everything they have in their shop. I really love the Sugar Skull earrings. They also have a matching ring, so you know, it would make a perfect set for someone’s birthday (hint, hint hubby). Everything in this shop is beautiful so everything would make an amazing gift.
I, of course, have some beaders goodies on my list. I’m always looking for a good bead organizer. I have quite a few and I love them all. Aaaand they are all full because I always have a million projects going. This organizer looks great. It has a lot of little sections for those super colorful projects and I love that each section is labeled with a letter so you never forget what color is what. This is very high up on my list.
I also have an absolutely amazing pattern on my list. Look at this very cool Nightmare Before Christmas beaded star! I love NBC and I love beading, so it’s a perfect match. I have both of the SW patterns from this great designer and they are really fantastic. So I know this one will be just as amazing.
So those are my top birthday picks. All amazing and would all make great gifts for anyone you know that’s special to you (I wonder if my husbands even reads my blog? He should.). What are some of your favorites on Etsy? I’d love to see what you are pining over. Leave a comment below with your favorites.
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 I have started making tutorial videos and instructions for different bead stitches. A few weeks ago, I went over Even Count Peyote Stitch and if you're interested, you can see it here. And then last week I went over Ladder Stitch. This week we are going to go over brick stitch. So if you've ever wanted to learn how to do brick stitch, check it out below. This article includes affiliate links from Etsy. That just means that I get a little fee if you click on the link or purchase something and no additional cost to you. That little fee helps me keep writing these articles. All my opinions are my own. I am featuring these products because I love them. Just like before, there is a video and written instructions, so however you like to learn, there is an option. This is only my third video, so it's not perfect, but I'm getting better with everyone that I do. I am also working on setting up a YouTube channel for my videos, so that should be a thing within the month. So let's get started! When starting brick stitch, you need a good base. That base is made using ladder stitch, check out my last tutorial on how to create a good ladder stitch base here. So you want to learn how to do brick stitch? Well, what are we waiting for, let's get learning. First, when doing any beadwork, you want to make sure that you are using a comfortable amount of stringing material. There are a few camps when you talk about thread length.
I personally like to use the second method. I will measure out two arms lengths of thread, then I will double up the thread (sometimes I use a double thread, sometimes I use a single thread, but I pull 90% of the tail end through the needle, so it's about one arms length worth of material for each pull). I find this method is the easiest on my hands and arms when I bead. When I first started out, I tried the first method and it was so frustrating to me. I had so many tangles it made me want to give up, but I didn't want to work in new thread (a fear of all new beaders). But I eventually learned that working thread in is not something that should be feared and it's a lot easier than you think (there will also be a short tutorial for that). It is up to you what you want to use. There is no right or wrong way and you have to find the way that works best for you. As always, I'll be using these great melty beads (perler beads) so that you can see every step clearly. I'll also be using a large needle and some heavy duty thread. These are not only great for me to demonstrate different stitches to you, but they are great for people who are new to beading. So if you're worried about using those tiny little beads, that's okay, start with these and it will be smooth sailing.   Let's get started. First we'll thread our needle. For brick stitch, you do not need to use a stop bead. We are going to construction a bottom by weaving in and out of the beads. This will create a strong foundation for our beadwork. This is done by creating a row of Ladder Stitch. You can see the tutorial here. In this example I used 5 beads for my ladder stitch base. See Photo 01  Once you have your first row of ladder stitch finished, we will start on row two. Row two is where we will start our brick stitch. Pick up two beads for row two. In this example I used blue as my second row and these beads will be #6 and #7. See Photo 02   Move your beads up to the base row. See Photo 03  You are now going to take your needle and go UNDER the thread between beads #4 and #5. See Photo 04 Make sure to not go through your thread. This will weaken your thread and it will also make it very difficult to undo any beadwork (fingers crossed we don't ever have to do that). Pull the thread all the way through until beads #6 and #7 are snug up against your base row.   Now to get your beads to sit snuggly in place, you want to go up through bead #7. Pull your thread tight and you are ready to add the next bead. See photo 05 You might notice that bead #6 will hang over the edge, that is what we want. This stitch will look like peyote turned on it's side. Each new row will be started using two beads like this.   Your thread will now becoming out of the top of bead #7 in the second row (blue in this example). See Photo 06 You are not ready to add the rest of row #2. The rest of the row will be added one bead at a time.  Pick up one bead (this will be bead #8). See photo 07   You will now go through the thread between beads #3 and #4. See photo 08 Pull the thread tight and bead #8 should fall into place next to bead #7 Bead Tip Each bead added will be in-between the bead below it. This is why it is called Brick stitch because it looks like the alternating bricks in a brick wall.  You will then go up through bead #8 to secure the bead in place. See photo 09 Pull your thread tight. You are now ready to add your next bead.  Continue adding one bead at a time like above. Pick up a bead, go through the thread between the bottom two beads, then go back up through the bead you just added. Continue this until you get to the end of your row. You will notice that when you get to the end of this row, your last bead (bead #10 in this example) will be indented a bit. This is what you want. Each row will be offset to one side compared to the one below it.   To add the third row, it will be yellow in this example, you will pick up two beads again. See Photo 11 This is how you will start every new row, with two beads. Those beads will hang over the beadwork below it.  Go under the thread between beads #10 and #9. See photo 12 Pull your thread tight.  When you pull your thread tight, your beads will line up next to each other. Bead #11 will hang over the row below it. Go up through bead #12 and pull your thread tight. See photo 13  Just like before, you will add the beads one at a time for the rest of the row. So pick up one bead. See photo 13 You will then go under the thread between bead #9 and bead #8. Pull the thread tight. Go back up through bead #13. Continue this method for each bead.   The third row (yellow) will be offset from the second row (blue), but will line up with row number 1 (white). You can see clearly now why this stitch is called brick stitch. See photo 15  Continue adding rows like this until you get to your desired length. Each row will be offset from the one below it. It will look like peyote stitch on it's side. See photo 16  You can see how brick stitch compares to peyote stitch in photo 17 (peyote swatch is turned on it's side for comparison). Brick stitch is much more rigid than peyote stitch, so it is great for projects that need to hold their shape. So that is basic brick stitch. I use this stitch a lot for pendants, pins, and earrings because it is more rigid. I will be doing a tutorial on increasing/decreasing brick stitch at a later date. I will also be doing a tutorial on reading a pattern. So stay tuned for those! So what did you think of this tutorial. Leave me a comment below letting me know what you thought. Did I leave out something important? Should I explain something a bit more? Would you like more photos? I'd love to hear from you!  Looking for more beady tutorials?Even Count Flat Peyote Stitch - Click Here Ladder Stitch - Click Here Square Stitch - Coming Soon Herringbone Stitch - Coming Soon Two Drop Even Count Flat Peyote Stitch - Coming Soon Odd Count Flat Peyote Stitch - Coming Soon And many more! Other Helpful GoodiesWant to know how I keep track of where I am in a pattern? Click here to read about my method for staying on track. What are my favorite beads to use for peyote? I love me some Delica cylinder beads. There are a number of awesome choices HERE. What are my favorite needles? Check out these great Tulip needles. They are some of the best needles out there. Click HERE for more info Want to get beady updates sent right to your inbox? Maybe you'd be interested in a 25% off coupon? Sign up for my email newsletter today and get all that and more! 
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VictoriaJust a girl that loves to bead, take photos, and cuddle with her new baby and her pug. Categories
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