Hello Lynsey, welcome! We know you from your remarkable designs in beading, which are very unique and we love them! Can you tell the readers a little bit more about your designs? First of all, what do they look like and where can we find them?

HI Carine. Thank you so much for inviting me! For people not familiar with my work you can find me at ThreadABead.com.  My designs are beaded using simple bead stitches but mostly Peyote. I have quite a range of designs from boxes and ornaments to even fairgrounds, villages and trains with some elves and teddy bears in between. My work is colourful, maybe little bit quirky, but above all fun.

Teddy bears, trains and even villages, that sounds hard to make. Do people need to have experience in certain techniques?

I always write my patterns with the assumption that the beader is a beginner. I like to encourage people to bead what they like, rather than what they think they can do and be proud with what they can achieve. The patterns are step by step and very detailed with many photographs and illustrations. We also have a free learning section on our website to help and I am always happy to answer any questions.

That’s very reassuring, having you there to help when needed. And you told us that you used mainly the peyote stitch, why did you choose that technique, above others?

That is an incredibly good question! It is something I have never thought about, now I am wondering why myself……

I think of all stitches I find Peyote the easiest and most enjoyable to bead and so that is what I use. It is an incredibly versatile stitch, and you can bead any shape you desire so there is a limitless end of possibilities you can create. It is something I certainly never get bored with using.

I defenitely agree, the peyote stitch is also my favourite stitch by far. On the website we see that you also offer complete packages, what do people get when they buy your kits?

Rather than kits we sell component packs that contain everything you need to make the item except the pattern (which we make available either digitally or printed). We call them component packs to differentiate between a pack and a kit. The only difference is a kit typically contains printed instructions (so absolutely everything you need to make something).

So with us you can choose to have the pattern printed or electronic and choose when you want the component pack or not. It means we do not have to include the costs of printing and the pattern within the pack.  It gives the beader greater flexibility on what they want, some may want a digital patterns and 2 packs, others may want just a printed pattern, some want the whole lot.

That’s easy.. and what is in such a component pack?

Component packs contain things like beads, thread, needles, findings and any extras like wadding, card, acetateetc. We know sourcing items for a project is not a fun part of beading and so we like to eliminate this problem for our beaders. Many beaders tell us they like the option of the packs so they know when they are ready to bead the item, they have everything they need without worrying.

Which one was the most fun to make, and why this one?

It is perhaps my range of Christmas stocking patterns that I have found the most enjoyable to design and bead.  They were patterns that I could design in advance and then just sit and bead.  I loved being able to watch the scenes grow as I worked and see the colour choices I made come to life.  As I design them in advance there is no ripping out and redoing the same section over and over until I am happy – which is much more relaxing for me

What ideas do you have for the future? Of course, you cannot tell which patterns there will be, but maybe you could tell something about the setting? Or tell more about how you invent new patterns? How do you get the ideas?

I do not work far in advance; I wish I did! There is never a plan. I find if I plan it never works well for me and I struggle to be creative or get bogged down in indecision. I have a design book where I sketch all my ideas and I will usually have a look through and see if something stands out to me if I have no other ideas.

As to where my designs come from; some things come to me in flashes of inspiration, sometimes its something someone has said or shapes I think would look good in a beaded form. I prefer the challenge of creating rather than the actual beading. I hate beading the same thing over and over and when I create a design, I usually have no idea how I am going to bead it, that is the fun (and sometimes stressful) part for me … working out how.

Sometimes however, it can be quite a random process on how I get to a finished design. What I start out making may not be what ends up being published. For instance, I released a Bunny in a Carrot car design not too long ago, but that was not the original plan. I created the bunny first and he was supposed to go on a boxdesign I had sketched out. But once I made the bunny, I just did not feel the design was right for him. It was my husband who said he thought I should put him in a carrotcar instead as a joke. It was a random remark, but as soon as he said it, I realised that was exactly what my bunny needed.

You are located in the UK, do you also send across borders? And when you do, what are the shipping costs?

We send all over the world, shipping is weight dependant and is calculated at checkout so you can see the shipping costs before you buy. We offer free international shipping on purchases over £100, which is a great saving.

What is the golden tip you would like to share here with every-one?

There are so many tips a beader can pick up to make things easier… but the absolute golden tip I would give to anyone, is if there is anything you are stuck on, ask for help!

Whether that is the designer of the pattern you are working on, beading friends or bead shops. We all have so much knowledge to share and while I cannot speak for everyone, I do not mind passing on information to a beader to help them get the best out of their beading. I much prefer that than to think of someone struggling and not being able to bead, its surprising how many beadersdo not follow this simple advice.

Lynsey, thank you very much for telling more about you and your designs! We like the patterns so much and our colleagues are working on patterns also!