Creative Beading

Why No Collection Of Native American Collectibles Is Complete Without Antique Indian Beadwork

Native American collectibles are among the most coveted of historical collectors. And, the most collectible of all is any antique Indian beadwork. Painted designs preceded the beadwork most commonly associate with Native American garments. Then, as time went on, they began to make beads out of bone, dried berries and eventually beads, which were introduced by European traders ultimately. How Antique Indian Beadwork Came To Be

In the late 17th century, traders from Europe came to the Americas with brightly colored beads made from glass and ultimately traded them with Native Americans. Since the traders actually carried these beads to Indian villages on ponies, these beads found in antique Indian beadwork are often called pony beads. The majority of these beads were blue and some were white and red as well. That’s precisely why most of the antique Indian beadwork you’ll see from this period is made up mostly of blue stripes with a bit of red and white mixed in. Pony beadwork started to fade in popularity by the middle 1800s, when smaller beads with brighter colors started to be traded between Native Americans and white settlers. Without a doubt, a majority of Native American collectibles feature some kind of beadwork on them. Many of the antique Native American collectibles with beadwork that you see today weren’t made with a needle and thread, but instead with a sinew. Simply put, a sinew is a tendon that’s taken from large game and dried.

The Varieties Of Antique Indian Beadwork

There are three main kinds of Indian beadwork found in Native American collectibles. They are:

Overlaying Or Spot Stitching

This particular type of antique Indian beadwork has many curves and flowers.

Lazy Stitch

This straight-lined style is most often associated with Native Americans from the Western United States.

The Loom Style

This particular style of beading is most likely traceable to the Ojibway peoples. As time and trade wore on, the practice became more commonplace among many other tribes. The loom used was very portable and easy to carry as tribes migrated as well. This loom, which was made to look like a bow, actually was made of a few pieced of flat wood and a sinew.

Still Popular Today

Even nowadays, tribes of Native Americans are mimicking antique Indian beadwork styles to create new Native American collectibles to sell. If you are fortunate enough to have authentic antique Indian beadwork as a part of your Native American collectibles archive, you are very lucky indeed.

Visit this website for Vintage Indian Beadwork today.

www.artgemsinc.com-Basic Peyote: Flat Stitch

Sioux Quill and Beadwork: Designs and Techniques (Native American) $11.32 In-depth guide to ancient Native American crafts focuses on the techniques of the western Sioux. Explanations of techniques involved in quillwork, including dyeing and sewing, beadwork methods. More than 80 photographs and drawings depict handsome motifs on articles of clothing including vests, shirts, robes, dresses, leggings, moccasins, blankets, saddlebags, and shields….