When I began encrusted beading I was familiar with seed beads and had used them in the artist books that I had been making for many years. As I read and explored the magical world of beading I saw something called 'delica' beads but I had no idea what they were. I'll admit that when I first looked them up on an on-line bead site I found that they were more expensive than the seed beads I'd been using so I just skipped over them. One day, quite by accident I bought some Delicas at a local bead shop, thinking I suppose that they were the seed beads that I was so familiar with. Once I started beading with them I found many differences -- the larger hole was quite easy to work with and their uniformity made a neatnik like me sit up and take notice. Then I discovered their color ranges. At that point the whole thought of expense just dropped by the wayside because Delicas had put me under their spell. These days I probably use Delicas 85% of the time. 
Seed beads are just as wonderful and in some ways they are more flexible than Delicas because they are rounder and are easier to use when there is a large expanse of base to cover. But I am entranced by the Delica colors. I love to use muted colors in monochromatic and analogous color schemes. Delicas seem to provide me with the shades that I'm looking for. What do you think, do you have a favorite or do you use both types of beads interchangeably?
Oh and the pictures you see here are from the first of my 'First Steps' collection. More to come in a later post.
"Each day comes bearing its own gifts. Untie the ribbons." - Ruth Ann Schabacker
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