And now the question — if I love it so much, why did I state in the title of this blog that I’m not giving up my beading needles? Well, I have found that InstaNeedle is fabulous for hemp and cotton and silk and the like – thicker cords that you would use for stringing, knotting, kumihimo, and crochet. And true, you can stiffen the end of beading thread and even Fireline with it. But even with several coats of InstaNeedle on the end of your beading thread, I doubt it will ever be stiff enough to eliminate the need for an actual metal needle. I was able to do some basic beadweaving with InstaNeedle, but as soon as I needed to get the thread into a tight space (which happens in almost every beadweaving project eventually), I found that it just couldn’t push its way between the beads. Now, if you are using large beads, like 6/0 seed beads, or are working a pattern where the bead holes are easily accessible at all times, InstaNeedle may still work, but I suspect unless you use a thicker cord, the weight of the beads will prove to be another obstacle.
I haven’t tried InstaNeedle in every possible scenario yet, but I suspect I will continue to find it very useful for lots of different project types. Probably not beadweaving, of course, but plenty of others.
Ready to try it for yourself? You can find it at InstaNeedle's website. (They also have a product called a "Debonder" -- in case of "accidental bonding!")