Lazy Stitch Beading

• 1). Thread a needle and knot the end. Beading needles are long, with small eyes that pass through the hole of the seed beads. Beading thread is slightly stiff and waxy. The original thread came from a tendon along the backbone of deer or buffalo.
  
  
• 2). Poke the needle through the hide from the top down, but do not go all the way through. Bring it back up through where the design is to be placed and pull taunt so the knot is secure.
  
  
• 3). String five to eight beads on the needle and pull them through so they are on the thread near the hide. Lie them in a row, flat on the fabric where they permanently sit in the design.
  
  
• 4). Stitch through the hide at the bottom of the bead row and bring the needle through to where the next row of beads begins, without going through to the other side of the hide. One row is stitched to the hide at one end, and the next row to the opposite end.
  
  
• 5). Keep stitches tight and do not let them sag. Knot when finished.
  
  

Applique Bead Stitch

• 1). Thread two needles each with a single strand of thread and knot them.
  
  
• 2). Push one needle into the hide and back out to secure the thread, as in the lazy stitch. This needle places the beads on the hide, while the other secures them to the hide with a small stitch.
  
  
• 3). String three to five beads on the first needle, and bring them through the needle to the bottom of the thread where it goes into the hide. Hold in the shape of the design. Push the other needle through to the front of the hide to secure the design. Go up one side of the first thread, down the other side, and pull taunt. Continue as the design progresses. Stitch marks are now on the back of the hide. Use this stitch for circular pendants, flowers and other irregular designs that do not have straight lines.
  
  

Rolling Edge Stitch

• 1). Thread a needle and tie a knot in the end.
  
  
• 2). Push the needle through the fabric on the edge of a cuff or hem.
  
  
• 3). Pick up five to six beads and roll from one side of the cuff, to the other, over the edge.
  
  
• 4). Stitch through to the other side and string on five to six more beads; keep going until the hem or cuff is encased in beads. This is actually a whip stitch with beads attached.