Huichol Bead Art

[asirimarco]

Got some pictures of the bead art the Huichols do - it cannot be described with words. The first one is my thumb nail - they did it to show us how it is done. Spread a little brown bees wax on my nail then placed the beads one by one - took about 30 seconds. They are #11 seed beads - the kind that are all exactally the same size.

These are the beads - they put them right from the string onto either needles, dressmaking pins or guitar wire

Here is a partially completed horse. the horse is partly covered with the beeswax - in front of it you can see some of the strings of beads.

This is the guy who was working on the items and did my nail. Here he is working on an iguana - the men usually do the bead work.

This was in the store - they had just sold it for US$2000 - it was about 2 feet high

Another figure they had finished - about 20 inches high

This is a close up of some of the beads

Some of the jewelry they make

And this isn't bead work but wanted to share it - it was about 5 feet tall - the whole animal - covered in thread pressed in wax

Bill struck up a conversation - of course - with the man and his son took us to where the bees wax and beads and wire were sold. So guess what our new hobby will be......also bought some egg forms and Bill got an iguana to work on.
They make it look so easy - but I've tried it before and it wasn't. But now we know more about how to go about it.
Hope you enjoy

[mitch5252]

That giraffe is ALL thread, no beads?? Unbelievable.

[mtngal]

OMG these are so amazing! Thank you for sharing your visit!!! My daughter brought home a 'stag' from our visit to MX last year. It hangs in her office in Austin. It is stunning on her bird's egg blue wall. I would love to visit this place. thank you thank you thank you for taking us there!

[asirimarco]

Here is the complete giraffe - it is entirely made of thread and yarn - no beads.

[Sparkle]

That was great to see how they are made. I have seen items for sale here in Baja. I'd love to get something, but nowhere to put it in my rig. I didn't know they did jewelry however, so if I see that I'll take a look.

[AlmostThere]

Ok. This is an obvious question to me, so I'll ask. Doesn't the bees wax melt when it gets warm?

[VickieP]

Ok. This is an obvious question to me, so I'll ask. Doesn't the bees wax melt when it gets warm?

I was wondering the same thing! How do they get the beads to stay in place, is it finished with something that seals it?

[asirimarco]

I wouldn't leave it out in an unairconditioned house in Las Vegas in the summer - but no - I have a small pig I bought several years ago and it lived in Vegas and now lives in Indiana and we do nothing special to keep it
Beeswax must have a high melting point - don't really know - the little decoration on my fingernail they told me to put clear nail polish on it before taking it off - but as far as I can tell there is no sealing on them. If we go back into PV or come across it again I'll ask.

[BarbaraRose]

That is so cool! I was also wondering about the beads coming off. The beeswax must be somewhat soft when they spread it on and when putting the beads on in order for them to stick, so maybe it hardens up later to hold them on good? Looks like something I would like to try. Do they sell kits anywhere?

Barbie

[JanetA]

all I can say is WOW!

[mitch5252]

..
From Wikipedia

Beeswax has a high melting point range, of 62 to 64 °C (144 to 147 °F). If beeswax is heated above 85 °C (185 °F) discoloration occurs. The flash point of beeswax is 204.4 °C (399.9 °F); there is no reported autoignition temperature.[6] Density at 15 °C is 0.958 to 0.970 g/cm³.

..

[asirimarco]

Thank you - still wouldn't leave it out in the summer without ac in vegas - I had 2" candles melt there one year while we were gone.

[sunshinecruiserTN]

OMG, how beautiful. Glad you shared that with us and I can't wait to see your project completed. Have fun.

[carold]

Absolutely beautiful!!!! Bet you could make one helluva multicolor flamingo with either process. I do have a little wall space in the RV and think I could find room for a small hanging, if I ever get that way. Looking forward to seeing what you come up with. carold

[Bethers]

Like Jean, I've seen them for sale in the border towns and now down here and was always curious. So neat that you discovered more about them. I'm looking for a new "small" hobby for in the rv - but think I'd probably be making more of a mess than anything worth keeping or even giving away

That really is neat.