Arts & Crafts
Beadwork
Since before the time of European contact, embroidery has been the art form women used to add beauty to their clothing and to express individual creativity. Although porcupine quills have given way to beads and geometric designs have been replaced by floral ones, the cultural role of embroidery continues in the Northwest Territories today.
History of Beading
Brightly coloured seed beads first became available to the Great Slave Lake Region about the middle of the 19th century, from the Hudson’s Bay Company. About the same time, Metis introduced new designs to local women who were using porcupine quills to make European designs of zigzags, lines, repeated triangles and diamonds.
The women welcomed and enjoyed the brightly coloured beads and new designs. Beads could be used far more freely and easily than the scarcer quills. Owning beads reflected increased social standing and wealth and wearing them advertised it. By the end of the 19th century, distinctive regional styles had developed reflecting the adaptability, creativity and innovation of the Dene and Metis beadworkers.
Beading Techniques
Various materials, such as moose and caribou hides, stroud, and coloured velvet, can be used as canvas for beading. Black velvet was a popular backing in the early 20th century. A flour and water paste is applied using a pointed instrument, to draw pattern outlines on velvet. Charcoal, lead pencil or ink are used on hide.
Today, most beading is done with artificial sinew or dental floss. However, natural sinew is still commonly used for sewing beads along an edge where they are vulnerable to wear.
Decorative beading can be either sewn or woven. Almost all sewn beadwork is “crouched”, a technique that uses the overlaid or spot stitch. This is ideal when the leather or cloth is to be entirely concealed with beads or where very delicate line-work is required. Beads are threaded and laid in the desired position. A stitch is made between every two or three beads. If a broad surface is to be covered, line after line of beads are stitched close together. On an exceptionally fine piece of work, or where there are very short turns incorporated in the design, a stitch is made between every bead. The pattern is beaded first and the background filled in afterwards.
The most common technique for woven beadwork is the square weave on a loom. This style is used in jewelry, headbands, and belts when straight beaded lines are desired. To set up the “loom”, sinew warp strands are threaded through a strip of leather, about a bead’s width apart.
To achieve tension, a leather cord at one end is fastened to something rigid such as a stake and the opposite end is wrapped around the weaver’s waist. By leaning backwards, the weaver creates the proper tension. Another way to achieve tension, is to tie the warp strands to both ends of a flexed bow, resulting in a bow loom. To start a row of weaving, a bead is threaded on two sinew strands. These strands are then divided and one is passed over and the other is passed under the warp strand. The two sinew strands are then passed through the next bead, divided and so on. At the end of the weave, the weft strands are crossed to secure the last bead.
Careful lining and edge finishing are important to the bead-worker. The lining covers any stitches that might show on the back while piping adds flair to the edges. Less common is single-bead edging. It is found in ornamental knife-sheathes and pouches. Using a single row of beads, a thread is crossed over itself between the beads. The threads are hardly visible in the finished work.
Additional Information
(1) Kate Carbin Duncan, Northern Athapaskan Art: a beadwork tradition. Vancouver: Douglas & McIntyre, 1989
(2) Kate Corbin Duncan and Eunice Carney. A Special Gift: the Kutchin beadwork tradition. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1988.
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