Welcome to Flat Netting Stitch Edge Variations.

In the Intro to Netting Stitch, I described netting stitch and it’s many variations. And I provided details about the lessons plans for the Netting portion of Bead Weaving 101.

In the last post Flat Netting Stitch Basics, we learned about the structure of Vertical and Horizontal netting, we talked about 3-bead and 5-bead netting variations and we discussed how to pick up the first row.

Through the video, I demonstrated the technique using an ornate looping turnaround. Today, as promised, I am going to teach three other variations on the turnaround that add more design options to use in your designs. 

  • 3-bead Flat Edge Turn
  • Pointed Tip Turn (Video)
  • Picot Turn (Video)

Throughout the series, I will be providing my Affiliate Links for the materials and tool where applicable. Using these links to make purchases, helps support the in depth free content I provide for you here on The Alluring Bead Boutique and A Jeweler’s Life Blog.

Tools and Materials in Today's Lesson

The Bead Weaving 101 Series is based in part on my review of the 2019 Bead and Button Bead Stitching Handbook. 

You can read my initial Book Review.

You can order your own copy using my Amazon Affiliate link by clicking the book on the right. 

Learn more about the Series.

For flat netting, a Stop Bead is required to hold the initial row in place on the thread and also helps with keeping the correct tension as the work grows. 

Check out this Post if you need a refresher or have not used a stop bead before. 

Before we start....

As I was filming the videos you will see in this post, I was working directly from the 2019 Bead and Button Bead Stitching Handbook.

I soon realized that I wasn’t crazy about the initial turnaround used in the instructions. So I wound up taking off my stop bead and removing some beads. In the Picot Video, I actually started over to demo what I found. 

Structurally speaking, the turnarounds I am demonstrating today will work the same in Vertical or Horizontal netting. 

They will also work for 3-bead, 5-bead and so on netting variations. 

So let’s go ahead and dive into the the 3 bead Flat Edge turnaround first. This is the option provided in the basic instructions of the 2019 Bead and Button Bead Stitching Handbook.

3-bead Flat Edge Turn

On the right you see a mid-section of the bead work that I am about to demo for you.

Notice the top and bottom edges are quite different from the edges we made in Flat Netting Basics. 

There are only three beads between rows, giving the bead work a much flatter, straight line edge. 

In this lesson, we will be using 5-bead vertical netting as we learn the turnaround. 

With a stop bead in place, pick up forty 11/0 seed beads.

Carry the beads down to the stop bead.

Skip over the last 9 seed beads and pass up through the next 11/0.

Pick up 5 beads, skip over five beads on the base row. 

Pass up through the 6th bead on the base. 

Repeat these steps until the end of the row. 

 

Your working thread should be exiting the last seed bead on the base row, right next to the stop bead. 

Pick up six 11/0’s.

Working back in the opposite direction sew through the third  bead.

This is the center bead of the last netting stitch in the previous row. 

As you add the last five bead segment, pass the needle through the third bead.

The beads in this section are the nine beads we skipped over on the very first turnaround at the beginning.

I like to flip my work and sew upwards.

From here, repeat the last two steps until you reach the desired length of vertical netting.

  • Pick up the 6 beads for the turn, pass through the center bead of the previous netting stitch. 
  • Pick up the five beads of the netting stitch and sew through the center bead of the next netting stitch. Repeat to the end of the row. 

As your add more rows, the edge of the bead work will have only three beads sitting between the cross over beads at either end.

The beads are shown here with the needle for emphasis. 

And that is how you do the traditional flat edge turnaround.

The next two variations are in video form so let’s get right to it. 

Pointed Tip Turnaround

Picot Turnaround

So now you have three new ways to take the basic Flat Netting stitch to new levels in your designs. 

I have one more Flat Netting variation to share with you. 

In the next post, I will be demonstrating Circular Netting Stitch, so stay tuned.