This necklace is my first adventure in peyote stitch. I decided I wanted to learn peyote stitch, so I downloaded some directions from the web and taught myself circular peyote. I used green iris seed beads and golden teardrops from my local craft store along with my all-time-favorite Czech glass druks that are clear with a partial dark blue AB coating.
I started out to make a necklace that was a single circular peyote tube with some dangles on it. Well, those beads had a mind of their own. The necklace just wouldn’t lie right and folded up in the middle. So I stabilized the middle of the necklace by stitching a second tubular layer of peyote stitch over the first, where I’d attached the dangles. I then had to add another row of teardrop fringe to balance the front. Because one tubular strand of peyote looked skimpy with two layers of fringe, I doubled the length of the tubular peyote on each side. Late one night, I folded the tubes and attached each end back into the stabilized fringe area. The next morning, when I went to put it on, I discovered a problem. I had attached the ends so I had two long U -shaped loops rather than two circles to slip over my head. How was I going to wear the necklace? I fashioned a button closure with three strands featuring my favorite druks and a glass foil bead I had in my stash. For the loop end, I
worked circular peyote. TA DA!! All in all, I calculate that I spent about 100 hours of prayer on this necklace, considering that my top “beading speed” was 1½ inches of peyote in 15 minutes.
My hair is long, and I often hold it back with a headband. When, I found four whole strands of my favorite druks, I wire-wrapped them onto a headband from the local dollar store.
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About 6 weeks later, my 13-year-old son was at the dollar store and bought me some slip-on sandals that had cheap beadwork on a plastic grid.
You guessed it! I ripped off the old beads and am halfway finished redecorating my sandles.
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