These beads are the tiniest I have ever worked with and since they are vintage, they are not uniform in shape or size. When I first realized they were uneven, I almost pulled them all out to start over but I remembered that I had been given these beads and had been saving them for something special. It somehow felt like they belonged there.
Despite how frustrating they have been, I have come to embrace the challenge. I have been thinking about how different it would have been to be beading decades ago. There were no online retailers or corporate craft stores, so supplies would have been more difficult to access. I often take for granted how easy my life is now compared to the struggles my ancestors would have endured.
Makes me think about my grandma and the random “bead soup” in vials that I inherited when she passed. For a time, I kept them hidden away, like the most precious treasures. But then I realized they were meant to be used and appreciated so I now I bring them out when I am creating special gifts and it makes me feel closer to her. I am always careful not to waste a single bead because that’s what my grandma would have done and even though many won’t fit through my needle, I continue to save them with the hopes of using them in another way.
