One tends to think of geometric forms as being hard edged, and rigid. Certainly thread tension has a big impact on the drape of beadwork, but the fact is that some stitches have a much more fluid drape than others; single needle right angle weave is particularly soft, and ndbele can be, as Margaret shows in this bracelet.

Ndbele square-stranded bracelet. copyright 2006 Margaret Sutherland. All rights reserved.

Margaret has taken up seed bead work relatively recently, and likes to take classes of projects; then she often makes variations, particularly in color. This bracelet is of a type that's been kicking around for awhile, though the most popular version is usally in a very graphic black and white combination; the square sided strands are, in my opinion, a particularly handsome variation of the bead-stitched tube. With the addition of the flowers and the subdued earth-tone color combination (not to mention the matte surfaces) this lends an organic quality to the piece.

file created 12aug06

Unless otherwise noted, text, image and objects depicted therein copyright 1996--present sylvus tarn.