A few years ago my sisters and I started up an art trading group that was fun but a bit disorganized. This year we revamped and simplified so it would be easier for anyone to participate whenever they want to or have the time. For the first trade this year I made this bead loomed piece on a fabric background.I graphed this pattern years ago with the intention of turning it into a loomed necklace and it has been buried in my big binder of patterns since.
When I came across it searching for ideas for my ATC, it occurred to me that the finished piece would be nearly the exact 2.5" x 3.5" size of a trading card if stitched with Czech seed beads. The challenge for me was that I wanted only to bead the pattern and not the background and I wanted to do it on a loom.
This is simple enough to work on the loom - it is a question of what to do with the warp threads once it is off the loom. That's a lotta thread to deal with. The solution was to use my new favorite material - sticky backed craft foam. It is super simple to cut to the correct size. I cut the fabric slightly larger and carefully (so that one of the diamond shapes in the print would land in the center) stuck it to the sticky side of the foam. Then I cut my work from the loom and pulled the warp threads that were exposed in the center of the design until they were long enough to cut in half and still be able to thread a needle onto. With the beadwork positioned exactly where I wanted it on the fabric covered foam I threaded and stitched each warp thread straight down through the foam (starting with the center to best control positioning) until all of the warp threads were on the back (front?) side of the foam and the beadwork was secure to the fabric side of the card.
I trimmed all of those crazy warp threads so they would be short enough to lay flat on the back. I then cut a piece of matching card stock to the same size as the foam to create a backing that could further strengthen the card and cover the warp threads. I spray glued the back of the foam and the card stock, pressed down the warp threads, folded the fabric edges over the back and covered it all with the card stock.So now the pattern is yours to do with what you like and you can try your hand at stitching your loom work to fabric or foam or whatever makes you happy. We also invite you to participate in our Art Card Trades that welcome all mediums and skill levels. Enjoy!
