Beading Projects
by Willie Vannerson, ASM, Troop 149, McHenry, IL
 | Introduction |
| OA Pocket Ribbon |
| OA Sash |
| Resources |
I was camping at the Circus World Heritage Baraboo in Baraboo, WI this spring (2000). This is an annual scouting event for Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, Brownies, Girl Scouts and Venture Scouts that is run mostly by the area's OA lodge and local troops. Aside from all of the wonderful activities they offer, the OA folks set up a pavilion they call the "OA Corral." In it they run many different demonstrations, including rope making, model airplanes, silk screening and other. One booth caught my attention right away. Several vigil embers from the lodge were showing off their beadwork. Most of the samples were reproductions of different lodge flaps. The also had several beaded OS sashes. I had seen such sashes for the first time at the OA winter banquet just a few months earlier. Now I was able to get a real close look. I was even able to pick one up. I was surprised how heavy it was!
I spent a good hour chatting with Ken Larson, Tichora Beadweaver, a delightful OA member from Madison, WI. He gave me a run down on the basics. He also explained that he and his friends had been doing beading for years and that he even teaches the craft at NOAC (National OA Conference).
OA Pocket Ribbon (top)This is a great beginners project. It an easy pattern to learn from and should
only take a few hours from start to finish. See Shawn Ashe's WebPages, http://www.lowellonline.org/scouting26/program/ribbon.html, for the patterns.
NOTE: Shawn Ashe's web site is no longer online. Shawn has given me persission to post his patterns. I have added a new page to hold his designs. Or you can download an Acrobat PDF file of the original web pages he created.
| OARibbon.PDF Shawn Ashe's OA Pocket Ribbon patterns. |
I'm an Ordeal member as I did my ordeal when I was just seventeen. But I plan on going for my Brotherhood and reconfirming my commitment to cheerful service when my son is elected into the OA and does his ordeal. So I'm going to make a brotherhood sash for myself. Most OA sashes are made by vigil members. But I'm not likely to be nominated for vigil so I'm going to go ahead and make a brotherhood sash. The basic pattern comes from Shawn Ashe's web site. He does a great job on providing the patterns and instructions on how to make it. I would only add a few items to augment his site.
NOTE: Shawn Ashe's web site is no longer online. Shawn has given me persission to post his patterns. I have added a new page to hold his designs. Or you can download an Acrobat PDF file of the original web pages he created.
| OASash.PDF Shawn Ashe's OA Sash patterns. |
I set up my loom to start on the sash. I first tried extending the loom by using four foot wooden dowel rods. Shawn's extended his loom to eight feet using aluminum rods. I figured on four feet and then rotating the work around so I wouldn't need such a long and ungainly setup. I also figured I could use wood because of the shorter length. I was wrong. Even at only four feet the warping threads started to bend the rods. They didn't break, but I decided not to chance it. I could envision them breaking in the middle of the project, and that's a headache I can live without.
So I unwrapped the warping thread and bought a 3/8" diameter aluminum rod from Ace Hardware for about $10. The rod was eight foot long so I asked them to cut right in half, 2 four foot lengths. I then used a hand drill to make a small dimple at the top of each end so the eye screw on the loom ends would recess into the dimple and prevent the end piece from sliding up-and-down. The eye screw usually embed into the wooden dowel. I'm still figuring on rotating the piece to work on the back side. I did this for the pocket ribbons so I didn't have to waste warping thread and it worked alright so I'm pretty sure it will work for the sash too..
Shopping List
Shawn recommends using the Wandering Bull as a source for good quality and consistent beads. But he doesn't provide details on what to buy. So I've compiled a shopping list, including the Wandering Bull's part number, so you can make a one stop purchase for all your supplies. They didn't have a transparent white bead so I opted for a clear bead.
Table: OA Beaded Sash Cost
| Item # | Description |
Qt. | Cost | Extended |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0000-000-000 | Spool of warping thread (button thread) | 2 | $0.99 | $1.98 |
| 0000-000-000 | Spool of Nymo Nylon warfing thread (beading) | 1 | $5.50 | $5.50 |
| 1000-110-026 | White beads | 5 | $1.95 | $9.75 |
| 1000-110-002 | Transparent beads | 3 | $1.95 | $5.85 |
| 1000-110-075 | Orange Beads | 1 | $1.95 | $1.95 |
| 1000-110-082 | Red Beads | 1 | $1.95 | $1.95 |
| 1000-110-098 | Dark Red Beads | 1 | $1.95 | $1.95 |
| 0000-000-000 | English Beading Needles (25 pack) | 1 | ||
| 3010-691-911 | Master Beadwork Kit-Ojibwa | 1 | $25.95 | $25.95 |
Sash Back Designs
Shawn provided some real cool designs in translucent white for the back. He suggests that you should personalize the design by adding your own. So I did. Here are the patterns and why they are important to me. I was originally going to bead the patterns in clear beads, as Shawn had done. However, my wife talked me into doing them in color. So I modified the patterns and have added them to this page. Selecting the color beads is a challenge since web images from the suppliers can be misleading. So I ordered several close colors, like two different greens, to make sure I had a decent color to bead with. The extra cost of a hank of beads unused is nominal, usually less than three dollars. I'll add the bead color numbers I used to that pattern decriptions at a later date.
Owasippe Scout Reservation
Owasippe Scout Reservation is where I grew up. so it's only natural that I would want to mark its importance by adding its logo to my sash. Owasippe is also the name the lodge I was elected into and took my ordeal. The indian head represents Chief Owasippe, leader of the local Potowatame tribe in southwestern Michigan.
National Camping School
I attended National Camping School in 1977 at Camp Tamarack in Jones, MI.
Owasippe Staff Association
The Owasippe Staff Association (OSA) is a collection of former staff members from Owasippe who still feel strongly about the camp, its purpose, it's past and its future. (I enlarged the color version a bit to improve the lettering and to have the logo intrude upon the clear bead margins lake most of the other logos).
Owasippe Lodge 7
This is a derivative of the Owasippe Lodge #7 pocket flap symbol. This was the lodge I was in when I first became an OA member. The color version is different from the clear bead version. I modified the "7" to have more flair and I removed some of the inner clear bead edging to show the same intruded look as most of the other logos.
Wulapeju Lodge 140 Peace Pipe
This is a the symbol from my current lodge. I worked in the background arrows but it seems a bit tight, so on the second color version I overlaid the pipe over the clear sycamore leaf design. This helps give it more height, like the other designs but I'm not sure it it makes the image too busy. The actual clear beads will look less obvious than the gray color used in the pattern and the pipe should show up better than the pattern indicates. I'm also playing with couple of designs that turn the pipe tip up 45 degrees to make the pipe longer but the diagonal lines of the pipe get odd looking when plotting the image on the square grid of the pattern. This is the last logo to be done on my sash back (I've done all the others as of 7/2003) so I may just go ahead and try the sycamore pattern and see how it looks. I can always remove it if I'm not satisfied.
Sycamore Leaf
Troop 149 is in the Sycamore district of Blackhawk Area Council. Also, Sycamore is also the English translation of Kishwaukee, the OA Chapter our troop belongs to. So I'm adding a pattern with the Sycamore leaf.
Blank Pattern
Here's a blank pattern you can use to help create your own design.
An longtime Scouter and beader, Mr. Charmichael from California, asked if I had any buffalo or indian head patterns. I didn't at the time but decided to create them for him. These next two patterns are for him. The profiles should be familiar to those who collect coins as they're based upon the popular buffalo nickel. The color version of the buffalo is modeled after Andy Warhol's interpretive painting of the buffalo nickel.
Indian Head Nickel
Resources (top)
| Hillsinger Fine Hand Beadwork - Bead Facts |
| Wandering Bull |
Hillsinger Fine Hand Beadwork - Bead Facts
The now defunct Hillsinger web site had a bunch of good info on the different stitches, how to calculate the number of beads needed, and more. So I've uploaded a PDF version of the Beading Basics pages here. (please let me know if anyone finds this site resurfacing somewhere so I can establish live links) Pay close attention to the page "The Three Pillars of the Hennenite Cult." The three pillars are "No Beeswax," "No White Thread," and "No Sharp Needles."
All of their arguments make sense and I can personally vouch for the last pillar. I was leery, but I went ahead an sniped the tip off of my English beading needle and the result is fantastic. It's so much easier to bead and, more importantly, to back out when you make a mistake than it is with a sharp pointed needle.
The argument for the black thread makes sense except the OA sash project uses mostly white beads. So I'm going to stick with the white Nymo thread. I did start a beaded necklace for my wife using white thread and I can easily see where black thread would have looked better. So I will buy a spool with my next order.
I am now just trying Thread Heaven as a thread conditioner instead of beeswax. Beeswax is tacky and collects dust, eventually getting your project dirty. Thread Heaven has none of those faults. It conditions the thread making it easier to work with and protects the fibers, which will make it more durable. Time will tell if it truly does all that it claims, but almost every beader I've talked to insist that it's an absolute requirement for any beading project. I think I'll stick with their experience.
Wandering Bull
Shawn recommended the Wandering Bull, http://www.wanderingbull.com, as a source for good quality bead, which I have found to be true too. I have also found them to be very personable and helpful. They were able to put together my initial shopping list solely based upon Shawn's web site. They also were very patient as I emailed a string of emails with newbie type of questions.
