Kidgrassdancer16

What does everyone use?
I'd like to get some dual-roach pins going on, maybe with some streamers in the front, but I have no idea what to use or how to bead them. Anyone have any suggestions?
;) thanks

WocusWoman

I made my first one for a man this last year. He gave me a stick, it looked like a very thick skewer stick. I tacked (I use some beading thread and good glue first) leather onto the end, about 2-3 in length, then sewed up the side with senew using baseball stitch. I then covered the leather covered end with seed beads using peyote stitch. After that I did his feather in the same manner, and attached it to the end of the finished stick. It looked really good. I would suggest getting a good wooden dowel made of a HARDWOOD, and then preparing that for a roach pin. You just made a pinted end, and then sand the whole thing down until it smooth. I would also suggest also staining or oiling the stick slightly, then rubbing it off, so the stick doesn't look like it came straight off the hardware shelf...WW PS, they really are a really easy project to make on your own.

sookout sh'nob

I like to use a dense wood with a tight grain - straight from the bush. Density & tight grain lend thenselves too a really smooth pin. Split it with the grain if you can rather than cutting it with a saw - The smoother the pin is, the less likely it is to snag on your hair (or splinter and catch your hair in pinch-vise).

Oak and some species of apple work well. Ironwood and tamarack aso work really well - but need to be worked quickly before they dry and become very difficult to carve. Maybe chokecherry would be good - I know some folks use them for piercing pins during sundance (I don't know why, but I'm dead sure a smooth pin would leave fewer particles behind for a nasty infection to develop). Maple is also a pretty good wood.

You could lathe turn the back ends of a pin to get really nice shapes into
the wood. Maybe try an exotic like African Mahogany or something.


All that said, I prefer to carve my pins from fresh bones.

WocusWoman

Up here in Central Alaska, we clean up a thin leg bone and use it on hair barrettes, that would work very good for a roach pin. I'd make sure you use one from a large moose though, as they differ in size depending on the age of the moose.

winterwhite

You might also try a couple of African porcupine quills, they're striped brown and white, huge compared to North American porkies. They're tapered on both ends so they won't snag in your hair and flex rather than break. If you're putting feathers or ribbons on the ends a small fishing lure swivel works really well.

tribaltagz

I always used the Jumbo Skewers or chopstix. Have to be sure to sand them though. Bamboo will finish out smooth and it's already shaped kind of the way you need them without making too many modifications to it. Also, I always peyote stitch on a masking tape "base" rather than leather as it helps keep the profile of the beadwork from being to bulky and look "klunky".