Beading in Crimea

Maria has been having a fabulous time in Crimea. She has been enjoying the sun and the sea, while trying to avoid the jellyfish in the Black Sea.

While there in Evpatoria she was able to share her love on beadwork both young and old at the Lesia Ukrainka Library. 

Since publishing this post this morning I received these details from Maria.

The beading workshop was organized by Fr. Bohdan Kostecky, pastor of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church (UGCC) Mother of Perpetual Help for parishioner and others. It's an 8 year old parish which is now building a church.  The workshops were held in a local library. 

When Maria arrived there were girls sitting at the tables ready to bead. She couldn't get the materials out fast enough. First session was at 1:30 pm and the kids kept coming. They started off with Ladders ("Lantsuzhky" translate to "chains") using various sized of beads - larger crow and acrylic, smaller beads. Maria showed older girls how to do the Picots.  Then they made Daisies using the round 6mm beads at the other end of the table. Ladders and daisies were made using stretch cord for instant gratification. One thing flowed into the next.

teaching ladder stitch

Fr. Bohdan Kostecky checking the instructions while the children create

Promptly at 3pm more ladies arrived to learn how to do netting. They were overwhelmed and surprised at first when Maria asked them to chose which color combo they'd like to work on. Took a few moments to get them going and then of course, it was easy. Everyone got a fair bit done. 

teaching basic netting

Best of all, the "BBC" (Baba told baba) network worked overtime and the news spread about the wonderful experience. Father got a few calls of disappointment from people who missed it because the newspaper did not give the address of the library. Someone from the city office took the workshop and was saying they wanted something like this on a larger scale. A neighbour expressed disappointment at not knowing about this event as the priest daughter walked by bedecked in all her accessories.

everyone enjoying their new skill

On the positive side, next week there will be a donation made by participants for the Church Building Fund in lieu of a kit and workshop fee as Maria donated her time and the materials for the good of the church so it can offer the learning experience, a cultural experience for parishioners and community at large.

Maria with Fr. Bohdan's daughters after class wearing their beautiful creations

To see more pictures check Maria's Facebook album.

Happy Beading!