The beads to use for portières or large pillows are round ones that are three eighths of an inch in diameter.
For curtains, table covers or any article where the weight of the large bead is not desirable use a smaller bead that is not more than a quarter-inch in size.
Scrim curtains with a single row of the smaller beads add a pretty touch of colour to the otherwise plain window. Almost any shade can be had in the beads, but the trouble is that they can not be bought at every store. A bead supply house is the one from which to get them. They cost only one-quarter as much as when bought in a department store.
Ecru scrim with a row of turquoise blue, canary yellow and sage green beads and the simple twist stitch such as described in the chapter on "Simple Stitches in Drawn Work," makes a curtain suitable for a simple room. The way to accomplish this work, is to take a stitch on the drawn thread, in the regular way for the twist stitch, then slip a bead on, then take another stitch, then a bead, so on to the end.
If a skeleton square of beads is desired on a sofa cushion it is advisable not to draw it out in the same manner as for a curtain.
For a two-inch border to be set in four inches from the edge, crease the cushion through the direct centre. Measure four inches from the edge and cut the material on the crease for two inches. Treat each side like this. Draw the threads out on each side of the cut, stop when you get four inches from the edge. Of course the material must be in a perfect square and just the size you want for the pillow before you begin any of the work. Place the beads as explained for the portière. Do not cut the threads you drew out but, threading a needle with two or three at a time, carry them through the beads. In this way there is no necessity for cutting and buttonholing the corners where the border intersects, as in drawn work. Loose woven materials such as monk's or arris cloth are extremely hard to buttonhole and even after very careful work they are apt to fray.
If a fancy edge is desired for the pillow one made of beads is far more appropriate than anything else. After the pillow is complete and made up, put on the bead edge by catching a bead to the material at a short distance from each other.
For a canoe or porch pillow there is nothing more durable than bead pillows of a dark colour worked with gay coloured beads.