I made these bracelets almost a year ago and I have no idea why I’ve never posted them! My first attempt at loom work was a disaster and it was almost an entire year before I attempted it again. I had purchased a simple bead loom at my local craft store and followed some simple instructions from the manual but I quickly gave up and let it collect dust. Until one day I came upon a photo of Anabel Campbell’s Navajo Loom bracelets. They were so gorgeous with their metallic pastel colors that I couldn’t resist trying one more time. Of course, I needed a refresher course on loom weaving and after a while a discovered the best looming tutorial: How to Work with a Bead Loom. This video tutorial covers everything from how to get the freakin’ string on the darn loom and how to finish the bracelet! Before finding this video, I only found tutorials on how to string on the beads but never anything too detailed that a beginner like me was looking for.
If your looking to start looming always remember to not pull the thread tight at any time, even when finishing the threads off. In the vid tutorial, she specified not to pull tight since the piece would tighten up over time. Of course, I didn’t listen and next thing I knew I had a crooked warped bracelet :( So I tried again, without tightening the threads and I was happy to see the piece lay flat and flexible.
For the beads used, I always recommend size 11/0 delica seed beads. Rounds are great but they aren’t always consistent in size and shape so your piece could look a little uneven. The exact types of delicas I used are all Galvanized delicas from Fusionbeads.com. They have a gorgeous metallic finish and the color lasts for a long time, unlike other simple non-galvanized delicas.
I hope to make another loom piece soon but I really want to attach it to a leather backing. If anyone knows a great tutorial for this, please let me know!
Here's the charts for both bracelets :)
