I try beading with dental floss

When I knitted Roxie this spring


Roxie by Lisa Grossman

I could not figure out the Tsarina's instructions for using dental floss as a beading tool. I put in all these stacks of beads one by one with a crochet hook.



Then someone on the Tsock Flock Ravelry group explained it a different way, and I got it. It goes like this.

First you need Oral B Superfloss.



This stuff has a a stiff nylon end intended for threading through braces or other dental obstructions while flossing. However, it also works as a beading needle.

When you string beads on it, they stay on because the middle section of the floss is puffy; it scrooches down as you slide the bead on, but then expands so it won't slide off.



Once you have a bead or two strung on, you put the stiff end of the superfloss through the stitch.



Fold the tip back so that you can slide a bead down over it like this:



Now pull the stitch off the needle using the loop for traction.



Slide the stitch from the floss loop to the stitch loop. Some beads are smaller than other, so if the bead won't go, you can just take it off the loop and try again with the next bead.



The bead can be put on before or after the stitch has been knitted. In Roxie the beads were put on after the stitch was knitted. In this swatch, the bead on the right was put on before the stitch was knitted, and the remaining bead was put on afterwards. They seem equally secure, but you would need to decide which method to use before starting and stick with it.