Hi! I’m Terri Gable, owner of Studio Baboo, a Big Little Bead Store. Today, we’re talking about basic beading. In this clip, we’re going to learn how to do Brick Stitch. When you look at Brick Stitch, you may think that it looks very much like Peyote stitch and it does. However the stitch is entirely different and you get a much firmer piece of bead work when you’re finished. Again, I’m using a large bead for our demonstration so that you can clearly see the stitch and how the beads sit together. So I’m using a large size 8 hex cut bead today. Now Brick Stitch, we’re ready to do our Brick Stitch. Here’s a little finished sample. You can see that it looks very much like the Peyote stitch we showed you, this is with a larger bead, this is with a smaller bead but the stitch is entirely different and when it is finished, it is much, much stiffer than the Peyote stitch. Now Brick Stitch is started actually with a different stitch called Ladder Stitch.

We start with two beads on our needle. Slide this down to the stop bead. We’re going to make a little circle. Our thread is coming out of, this is the needle end of the thread. We’re going to take our needle around and we’re going to go back through the bottom of our beginning bead, like so. We pull that tight. We’re going to make those beads, look my stop bead up there. Make those beads sit side by side. So, you can see their little openings are side by side. The needle needs to now come down through this bead. So we’re ready for the next one. I always take that little stop bead and I’m going to snug that up tight. Here you go and I pick up another bead and going down. Beads coming out of the bottom are coming around to the top. The tail is a handy little device to remind you which is the top and the bottom of your work. Let that lay by the side. Which is the top and the bottom of your work and which is your beginning, which direction you’re stitching and up through the bottom again. Continue stitching in the same manner until you reach the end of the row. This time we’re coming down through the top and up through the bottom. That's what we call our base row of ladder stitch.

Now we’re ready for our second row of Brick Stitch. You’re going to pick up the bead and you’re going to pass your needle under the thread that is going between the two beads on the base row. So my needle is coming under that thread. That is pulling loose because it is my first row. Just take your time to tighten that. Put your thread through; make sure that is snug, perfect. Let your bead slide down to your work and now we’re coming under and back through that bead again and I pull that tight. Unless your thread will show along the edge here, we’ve chosen to use white threads so that you can see the thread path but if you do this with a gray thread, you won't see that at all. Again pick up another bead, needle under the two threads that are going between the beads on the bottom row. Pull that tight and then stitch back up through the bead you just added. Just pull that snug. I’m going under the thread, back up through the bead. Now we’re ready to continue across in this direction.

Now you might be tempted to flip this over and work this way again. But if you’re beading a pattern, you need to be able to stitch from one direction and the other. We’ve finished our second row of Brick Stitch. If we’re to turn and go in the opposite direction and just continue the way we were, the Brick Stitch will naturally decrease and it will turn into the shape of a pyramid. If you don't want it to decrease, we need to pick up two beads at the start of each row. So it's two beads. You will needle under your thread just like you have been doing. Hold the thread and make sure that those two new beads sit side by side. And then you’re going to needle up through the last bead that you picked up. It’s alright if it falls apart like this. You will put gently on the thread. Guide this into the position and pull snug and now you’re ready to go. And that is how we do Brick Stitch. In the next clip, I’m going to show you how to do the Herringbone Stitch.