Treasure Island Books - Quality Used and Out-of-Print Books -

Treasure Island Books

Specializing in quality used and out-of-print books since the Twentieth Century

PICTURE JASPER BROOCH

This triangular piece of picture jasper measures approximately
2-1/4" (bottom) X 1-7/8" (left side) X 1-5/8" (right side), around which
I stitched glass seed beads. Its uneven shape presented some
beading challenges. The completed brooch measures
approximately 2-3/4" (bottom) X 2-1/8" (left side) X 2-1/8" (right side).

I first glued the stone to a stiff interfacing-like fabric known as Timtex
(later I started using Lacy's Stiff Stuff" for this sort of project because
it needles more smoothly without the wispy lint that comes off the
Timtex while stitching). Next, I bead-embroidered one row around
the stone. From there on I stitched what amounted to a tubular
peyote stitch up, around and slightly over the stone. After that, I
went back to the original bead-embroidered row and used the
peyote stitch to stitch outwards.

This very basic stitching pattern is of my own design. The beaded
edging has a flexible and very slight wave to it.

I found the stone on eBay from a seller called gem-zone. The
company's in China and I've purchased several stones from them.
Their representative, Mark, has excellent customer service and
communicates well in English. He sends all the stones via
registered mail in well-padded envelopes or boxes for safe delivery.
I've been very happy with this company. Their prices are good for
"Buy-It-Now" auctions and, if you're lucky, you can get good prices
on regular auctions, although sometimes the prices are driven up by
aggressive bidders. For shipping from China to the United States,
it's very reasonable.