• Argyle Cubes Necklace • |
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For the cubes:
• Two spools of black Nymo thread, size D
• Size 11 or 12 beading needles
• Thread Heaven
• Toho Black Matte Seed Beads, size 11, approx. 30 grams (A)
• Toho Bright Green Silver Lined Beads, size 11, approx 15 grams (B)
• Toho Gold Metallic Beads, size 11, approx 15 grams (C)
To assemble the necklace:
• Two black fire polished glass faceted round glass faceted beads
• Twelve bright green fire polished round glass faceted beads
• Two small black faceted glass rondelle beads
• Twentytwo large black faceted glass rondelle beads
• One gold colored toggle clasp
• Two gold split rings
• Two Beadalon gold crimp tubes (Size 2)
• Beadalon 7-strand Craft Series Bead Stringing Wire (Silver)
• Crimping pliers
• Round nose pliers
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Designed By Nicole Schlinger |
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1. First, we will make the cubes and then string the necklace. I made 11 cubes for my necklace. You may wish to make more for a longer necklace (as pictured, the necklace lays at the base of the neck) or fewer if you wish to string more beads between the cubes.
2. To make each cube, we will weave a small tubular peyote cylinder and then make structured decreases at each end to mold into the cube shape. If you know tubular peyote stitch, simply follow the graph below. Keep a very tight thread tension!
3. A working knowledge of tubular peyote will help you follow these instructions and successfully make your Argyle Cubes necklace. For a free primer on tubular peyote, visit: beadwork.about.com.
4. Otherwise, here are directions for tubular peyote:
a. Cut a length of Nymo thread comfortable for you to work with. Stretch the thread all along its length and then pull through your Thread Heaven to condition. Run between your thumb and forefinger to get rid of the excess Thread Heaven and then thread your needle. Note: there is a LOT of tension on your thread to keep the seed beads in a rigid shape. If you do not stretch your thread, it will stretch over time and your cubes will lose their crisp corners.
b. String one C bead and pass back through it to make a “stopper bead”. Leave at least a 6 inch tail that you can use now to hold onto your work and knot and weave the tail back into the piece later. Then string the following sequence of 39 beads: 9A, 1C, 9A, 1C, 9A, 1C, 9A. Go through the first stopper bead to make a ring, go through a few beads and knot each time to secure. Come out of a C bead and begin your tubular peyote. Since rows of peyote are counted on the diagonal (each half step up being consider a row), this base ring is actually your first two rows of peyote.
c. To work your peyote tube, string one C bead, skip one bead and stitch through the next A bead in the base ring. The new bead you just stitched on will force the bead below it downward, creating three rows. String one A bead, skip one A bead and stitch through the next A bead on your base ring. Do the same with a B bead, an A bead, and a C bead. Continue doing this to follow the pattern.
d. When you get to the end of a row, you need to “step up”. Do this by passing your needle through the first C bead where you started and then the first C bead you stitched on in row 3.
e. Your peyote will be much easier now that you have established your first three rows. You’ll see the “slots” where your beads should now fit. String one A bead and stitch through next C bead that is “sticking up”. Your A bead will snap right into that slot. Continue following the pattern until you have made the entire tube.
5. When you have made your tube, you are ready to begin the decreasing on each end that will make a cube.
a. Before you start, make sure you have at least 18 inches of remaining thread. It’s hard to end or begin a new thread once you start the decreasing process. If necessary, knot between several beads, weave through a few beads and cut off the thread. Start a new thread in the same way. Weave through a few beads, knot between them, and come out of the bead where you left off.
b. First make one round of peyote stitch entirely in A beads. Make sure your needle is coming through directly above the C bead that will be in the corner of your completed cube. It helps if you pinch your tube into a cube shape, making the edges at the appropriate place (where the C beads come to a point at the top of your tube).
c. If you were to continue normal tubular peyote, you would put a bead in the next slot. Instead you will “skip” this bead and simply pass the needle through to the next bead. Pull HARD! You will see the two beads form a little “V” shape. You may want to knot here so keep the tension. Stitch normally using A beads to the next corner and do the same. When you have completed all four sides, you’ll be back at your first corner. Stitch through that corner again and step up through the “up” bead in the row you just completed. .
d. The next row really forms the stiff corners that give the cube its shape. Stitch 3 C beads normally until you get to the gap where you skipped the corner in the previous row. Stitch across to the next “up” bead on the other side and pull HARD. You will see a corner. Again, you may need to knot here to keep your tension tight. Repeat on all four sides.
e. The third row is as follows: Stitch two A beads in normal peyote stitch. When you get to the corner, String one bead and stitch through the corner. The corner will start to feel more stabilized at this point.
f. The fourth row is one regular peyote stitch and one bead in the corner, which will go immediately on top of the previous corner beads.
g. The last row is just four corner beads. Go back through these beads several times to make sure the tension is tight and these beads are secure. Knot between each bead, weave through a few beads and cut your threads.
6. Repeat the same thing on the other side of your cube. You will not need to repeat step B, since there is already a row of A beads from your initial ring of 9A, 1C which you used to start your tube.
To assemble the necklace:
1. Cut a 2 foot length of Beadalon flexible bead stringing wire.
2. String one gold crimp tube and 15 A beads onto the wire. Pass through the gold crimp tube again to form a loop. Make sure you leave at least 3-4 inches as a “tail” to weave into your work. Crimp your crimp tube using the crimping pliers.
3. String one black faceted round bead, one green faceted round, one small rondelle, one large rondelle and one cube. Make sure you are stringing these beads onto both the main string and the tail. This will make your work durable and professionally finished.
4. Continue with the following pattern: one large rondelle, one green faceted round, one large rondelle, one cube. (Continue stringing onto both the main string and the tail until the tail has been completely covered.)
5. At the end, repeat the starting sequence in reverse: large rondelle, small rondelle, green faceted round, black faceted round.
6. Then string your crimp tube and 15 A beads. Pass your string back through the crimp tube. Pull the tail tightly and crimp.
7. At this point, you need to weave the tail back through the remaining beads for at least 2 inches. Then pull it taught and cut VERY close to the last bead and tuck in the remainder. This is a little tricky and just takes some time to get the tail hidden.
8. Last, split your two gold rings using the round nose pliers, place one half of the clasp on each ring, put the seed bead loop through the ring, and close using your pliers.
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