Beadwork's 15th Anniversary Beaded Bead Contest: Treasure Trove Beaded Bead

Over the weekend I eagerly wove the next beaded bead in Beadwork's 15th Anniversary Beaded Bead series, Cynthia Newcomer Daniel's Treasure Trove beaded bead:

This design is quite different from the previous beaded beads in this series, in both symmetry and construction, yet I love how it fits so squarely in Cynthia's unique design style. If you've ever tried her Lagoon or Geode beaded beads, you'll notice a similar symmetry and a familiar construction strategy. I think this beaded bead would pair very well with her Itsy Bitsy earrings.

This design uses a lot of thread and several repeat passes through the same threadpath in each step, and justifiably so in order to achieve the correct tension to hold the beaded bead together without unwanted wonkiness. While this approach can lend itself to tangled threads, it has the advantage of requiring next to no reinforcement to make it solid and sturdy after the final seed bead is added to the design, which is quite satisfying if you get impatient like I do.

I also tried weaving this beaded bead with round crystal pearls for the large inner beads instead of fire polished beads, which led to a slightly shorter but wider variation.

I also used a few different colors of the smaller fire polished beads, but I think I like the original color patterns better.

The Treasure Trove Beaded Bead pattern can be found in the August/September issue of Beadwork Magazine. More information about the 15th Anniversary Beaded Bead Contest is available on the Beading Daily website. Check out my versions of the previous beaded beads in this series here, here, and here.

The last addition to this beaded bead series will be published in the October/November issue, and it was designed by none other than yours truly :). I can't wait to see it in print!