Beading & Loving It! How to Bead all Summer
Summer is a GLORIOUS time for beading! There’s inspiration to be had in beach sand, freshly cut grass, music in the park and ice cold iced tea! Let yourself get caught up in it and then get your beads out!  Wait, you say you’ve hit a bead rut? Oh, no!  If you’re saying:Beading? What’s that? :-)  When was the last time you beaded?  If you have to think about it, even for a moment, then that isn’t good. That’s what happens when you get caught in the hamster wheel of life obligations and actually, I can relate. My son just finished kindergarten and I was so involved with volunteering and doing homework and the like that I haven’t picked up my beading needle in way too long.  So I’ve thought about it a bit and the realization hit me. In order to have a summer packed with beading, I’m going to have to get back on track.  Lets get to the heart of it.

Bad Time Management
Dang. This one is a stinker. Our habits take over and we spend time getting distracted by the wrong projects, ignoring the projects that we are the most excited about, and thinking that we need a special chunk of time to do the stuff we love.

The only answer is to ration time. Do housework and errands by order of importance and then let the other stuff slide a bit. That way we’re saving  bit of time to do what we love.  Time isn’t your issue? Hm. Then what prevents you from beading?

Bead Burnout
After completing a major project you can fall into that bead block state, where you think if you pick up your beading needle one more time you’ll pass out. Part of you is screaming YEEEEE-HAW! for finishing a big piece of beading, but the rest of you is fizzling into a limp pile on the floor. So, before you jump back into another doozy do a few things. First, pat yourself on the back. Job well done! Now, clean up your workspace. I always feel better when my space is clutter-free. Now take a deep breath and walk away. That’s right… take a step back and relax enough to rejuvenate yourself. Then when you discover the next thing you want to bead you’ll have that new fire of beady passion burning inside that you won’t be able to ignore!  Which brings up another subject.

Being Uninspired
Happens to the best of us. Perhaps its time to learn a NEW kind of beading. GASP! Yes, delve away from your safe little pearl knotting and get wild and crazy with some pliers and wire. Or maybe you need to simply stop doing peyote and get into some R. A. W. or maybe herringbone. Someone once said, “If you’re not runnin’ through the pasture, you’re sittin’ in the poo.” I don’t know who said it, but you know what I mean. Don’t get stagnant. Flies will buzz around your head. Try a new color. Something. If nothing seems to be working, then go out in the world and hit up the museum, the mall, the garden, the grocery store… until inspiration gets you. Then bead.

Bead Rejection
Even submit a piece of your beadwork to a magazine or bead show only to have it politely turned down? Well, give yourself permission to stick your lower lip way out as far as you can for a few seconds, and then pick up your tools and get back to the drawing board. The secret to overcoming rejection is to jump back into the next thing.  That may mean beginning a new bead piece, or simply moving onto the next magazine and show. Be honest and say that it may happen again… but don’t take it as a sign that you’re not meant to bead.  Judging is so subjective. Giving up isn’t the answer. That would be a waste of your gift. 

Get on the right path…
I recently read an article that talked about fear of success or being addicted to perfection… even feeling that there isn’t anything new to make. But the truth is that if you nurture your creative needs, then they’ll bloom. This summer is just beginning, and the chance to make some incredible stuff is around the corner. Seize the opportunity! Challenge yourself to make the things you really want to. And by fall, you’ll be beady blessed.

OH, SUMMER! HERE I COME!  And I’m ready to jump into , flip flops and all.  Join me for a dip!

“I’m re-naming my seed beads. Carribean blue, Maui maroon, Poolside pink, Sunglasses silver… it all about summer beading!”  ~ Gillian, who inspired this article!