Mary Ellen Merrigan

Beaded creations always delight me. Not only do I have fun in the designing and making, it’s rewarding to see others use the beading projects I create. Comfort to me is a needle and thread with multiple choices of seed beads and a proven seed bead design. In this case, variety comes from the assortment of seed beads and the seed bead design that incorporates them successfully. Since I seem to have an endless supply of size 11 seed beads, I'm always in search of the perfect project in which to use them. As an experiment, I set out to develop a seed bead design for business card holders. This functional item of beaded beauty could add special joy to the work day. In the example above, one of my business card holders was on display at a recent David Drummond workshop. Sure enough, a beaded business card holder delights its owner and causes comment when it’s produced. A few of my recent seed bead design examples include this animal print with its retro button, or a stylish black item that sports a mother-of-pearl closure. In a “sweet” moment, I chose the pink seed beads to frame plain ecru ultra suede. Later I decided that the light color might show wear quickly. With that flaw in mind, I embellished the next design with bronze paint and stampings and then used amber colored seed beads for the borders. A vintage button added a perfect closure. Another blue on blue piece (pretty blue ultra suede and light blue seed beads) stitched together quickly. A small round silver button provided its completed touch. Seed bead business card holders are here to stay. A small collection is available at my display at Amapola Gallery, where I’m one of four featured artists for the month of May. See last week's post for more on my current new works. This seed bead project is one I can travel with. I gather a collection of pre-cut ultra suede swatches, baggies of seed beads, special buttons, needles, thread and scissors into a see-through mesh bag and keep them in my travel stash, where it's ready to accompany me to a gallery demo or a long road trip. When I tire of bead embroidery, I can return to the fun and functional project of seed bead design for business card holders. How do you take your seed bead designs on the road?

Art Donation Fun – Artistic Shovel Auction

Wear Elegance with a Cameo Bead Embroidery Cuff

Seed Bead Design for Business Card Holders