More about Beading Needles - Tulip Review

I promised I'd get back to you about the newer Japanese beading needles after I had time to give them a work out.  Well, I am very pleased indeed.

                               
The company name is Tulip - easy to remember -  and they are located in Japan. They are well known and respected already for their fine quality quilting needles and in December of 2010 they sent their first batch of beading needles to a US distributor to see how they would be received.  They went over extremely well and now they are available through many shops in North America.

From my initial experience with them, I have to say I am delighted with the quality and wearability of these needles.  On average,I am in the habit of using # 10's for my bead embroidery on fabric so that is the needle I am reviewing here. However, Tulips are also available in 11 and 13's for those who wish finer needles for smaller delicate beads and for jewellery makers etc. They come beautifully packaged in a pink cardboard box with a window and when opened, the needles are housed in a very strong plastic tube with a solid cork closure.  The moment you set eyes on the needles, even before they are out of the box, you can't help but notice their excellent quality.

                                                                                 

The eyes are gold plated and easy to thread.  An absolute charm. You can see from the photo below what quality the eyes are. Clean and clear with no snags when threading and you don't have to get out a microscope to see the holes.  The eyes slip through fabric easily too with very little separation to fibres.

                            


 They are durable and do not bend or break like standard beading needles. They are flexible and springy and the tip is rounded ever so slightly to slide easily into beads while preventing thread splits. The beading experience is very smooth and I believe there is less hand fatigue using them, which is especially welcome for me and something I think many beaders will appreciate!  After repeated use, the needles remain quite straight and bounce right back after major bending through lines of beads and layers of fabric.
I have heard from other beaders who have used them for extended periods that their longevity is superb.

                             


They proved their superiority to me when I couched down beads over a thick cord through two fused layers of cotton fabric and a layer of batting. There was plenty of stability within the needle, slight flex but no horrible bending or distortion and I did not have to force my hand to push it through. Also there was no sticky build up on the needle from the fusing.   The average price is around $5.00 US for four needles, which is great value when you consider the quality and longevity of them.

I was suitably impressed and although my experience with them is limited , I would definitely give them a thumbs up and A-1 grading.  I know they will be my needle of choice in the future.

Tulip also carries tapestry needles, crochet hooks and needle felting tools.  I think their products are well worth looking into.

Philosophy Friday - Feeling at home....

" Methinks it is a token of healthy and gentle characteristics, when women of high thoughts
 and accomplishments love to sew, especially
as they are never more at home with their own

 hearts than while so occupied. "

               - Nathaniel Hawthorne          

                    The Marble Faun 1859

                                                          

                                                             

                                                                                                        

Mother's Day - 2012

I am grateful for the gentle ground she still walks upon.  Thank you dear one for the gifts you have given me and the love you have so selflessly shared.  I will protect and cherish you for as long as I am privileged to have you in my life.

To the DA - thank you for the tenderness and your sweet spirit.  You are a man among men!

Philosophy Friday - On a lighter note......

but still stitching/sewing related......

                                                                    

"I hate a woman who offers herself because she ought to do so, and, cold and dry, thinks of her sewing when she's making love. "   ~Ovid

Yes, THAT Ovid - the writer of at least three volumes of  love poetry, self professed expert in love and the man who described himself as " praeceptor amoiris"  or " teacher of Love " - well it seems that some female called his bluff !  (-:

 I  smile at  his use of the word " hate " - wow that gal must have been something else!  I would have loved to have heard her version of the story !

It's  an established fact that I am devoted to my art  BUT what man could be that dull or stuck on  himself that a woman could not be enamoured by his sweet charms or think of anything else in a moment of passion?  Jeesh ........Ovid, be damned !

Just not the needleworkers........

                                                                          

                                                                                    

                                                                                        

Came across this article today.  Seems it is just not the needleworkers who are finding complaint with offshore products:

http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/music/news-and-features/pipers-lament-the-sour-note-of-bags-made-in-china-1-2277993

Philosophy Friday - Three Rules of Work

Three Rules of Work: 

Out of clutter, find simplicity
From discord, find harmony
In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity.
                               .....Albert Einstein

                            

                            

Olympic Pennant Travels Continued

For the month of May, a large number of the Olympic pennants will be hanging at the Stockton Discovery Centre in Luton, Bedfordshire UK, a city 30 miles north of London.  The Centre was formerly the Stockton Park Museum and was refurbished and rebuilt, opening again in July of 2008.  It is situated on the grounds of Stockwood House and has been designed with the best of environmental and sustainable principles.  It is run by the charitable Trust, Luton Culture.

The centre runs many educational programs in conjunction with schools and institutions, featuring geology, archaeology, social history and rural crafts. It showcases the history of the region dating back to Roman and Anglo Saxon times.

The centre also houses the Discovery Gardens which features classical gardens including sculptures, a Sensory Garden, a World Garden and a Medicinal Garden and displays the styles of the various gardens through the centuries.

The Olympic pennant exhibit will be an interesting forerunner to upcoming  events planned at the centre .  There will be an Olympics Opening Ceremony Family Fun Day on July 27th and then a Paralympics Family Fun Day on August 29th.

Upon learning the pennants would be displayed in Luton, I took a bit of a trip down memory lane.  My best friend during my teenage years, Suzy, spent time in Luton on one of her first job forays. At the time, she did not have many kind words to say about the area itself, although she loved the people and the friendships she made there.  I think there has been considerable growth and improvements to the community over the years. I dug through my old box of papers to find a bundle of letters she sent me from Luton and it was interesting to read them again, after the passing of several years had eroded some of the memories.  Tragically, my young friend passed suddenly from this world not too long after returning to Canada from overseas.  To re-read these old letters filled with stories of first loves, fashion of the day and new experiences in another country, while also reminiscing about old times together, was a sentimental journey I had not anticipated would be connected to my participation in the Olympic Pennant project.  How sweet to think my pennant hangs in Luton close to 42 years after my beloved friend's adventures there.