I made another Hope Stone. This one, the fourth or fifth I've made, was for the door prize drawing for survivors at our local Relay for Life.
Glass stones with "HOPE" inscribed are given at the end of the Survivors' Victory Lap at the Relay for Life. The idea is that one survivor can pass the stone on to another person who is in special need of hope. I think that most cancer survivors will agree that immediately after diagnosis and during active treatment, any extra hope is welcome.
You'll have to look hard to find the word "HOPE" on this stone, but it's there. The stone is mounted on Lacy's Stiff Stuff that I painted with Dye-na-Flow. Since the stone is translucent, I didn't want to use glue. I stitch back and forth across the stone to temporarily hold it to the backing. Then I attach the beads to the backing to bezel the stone on.
The method for bezelling (Is that a word?) the stone on has varied from item to item, mostly because I never remember how I did it before. It's pretty much reinventing the wheel. Our library has a couple of books that show how to attach the stones, but they never seem to be in when I'm ready to use them. One is Beading with Cabochons by Jamie Cloud Eakin and the other is Beading on Fabric by Larkin Van Horn. The two authors use different methods, so I figure that gives me the opportunity to invent my own.
One issue with these Hope Stones is that they are relatively thick with a somewhat straight edge. That needs to be taken into account when attaching them to the backing.
I then attach an ultrasuede backing with a picot stitch and add fringe at the bottom. I used to find keeping my fringe symmetrical a fussy task. Then I invented a way to keep the beads organized. I got a piece of cardboard--like a cereal box--and cut it about 5" by 8". Then I made elongated "donuts" of masking tape* and stuck them on the cardboard. Voila! A 5" by 8" piece of sticky stuff. I found that I could lay out rows of beads for each fringe, and they wouldn't move around. I could put the whole thing in a plastic bag and press the bag onto the tape, and the beads would stay in place if I had to stop before finishing.
I'm working on another Hope Stone now for the mother of a friend. If you want to see the second one I made, look here.
*If you don't know what masking tape donuts are, ask someone who taught school before there was poster putty.
2 comments:
Marty!! Thank you for the tip. I had such a dilemma with the fringe when I beaded my sun face. I often wonder how perfectly beaded fringe is laid out and kept in place when you are designing it. You have the perfect solution.
I have mentioned this before, and I will say it again, you are one of my very favorite bead embroiderers. Thanks for sharing your tip. I will definately use it.
xx, Carol
Sorry, I went on about your tip and forgot to comment on the pin. This is such a wonderful idea. Putting the stone in a pin to be seen and admired would certainly give hope to the recipient and a fond memory that they have the support of so many survivors. Whether its your original idea or others are doing it too, its powerful.
xx, Carol
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