Tip Wednesday: The Bent Needle Effect

I know it's supposed to be Tip Tuesday, but Tuesdays are just way too hectic, so we're movin' it to Wednesday. Not as catchy, but I think you get the point.
Okay, this tip came from me not wanting to toss the myriad of needles that I was bending while working on my weaving projects. Instead, I've found that they are extremely useful for bead embroidery. First of all, you'll need a bent needle. Case in point:
Then you'll need your lastest embroidery project. Now, the photo below shows where the needle becomes useful: At this point, I have already tacked those three beads to the backing using the thread. I'm getting ready to finish the last step of basic backstitch by drawing the needle through the three beads again before I add another three beads. Do you see how the bent needle pops right off the backing making it super easy for me to grab the needle and pull through?

Compare it to this shot with a straight needle. Here, I would have to either bend the backing or either use my fingernails to push or pull the needle through the beads. It's not a huge deal, but it's one of those simple little things that makes bead embroidery go a lot faster for me and gives me a reason to keep using a bent needle. I will say this, for beadWEAVING projects, I prefer the straight needle, because I'm holding the project in my hands and I can manipulate the angle, but for bead EMBROIDERY, the bent needle is my preference.

I hope that you can find this a little useful, and I'd like to mention that the cab used above is a fused glass cab from Lawatha. Here are two more of her cabs that I beaded up yesterday. They're beautiful and took no time at all to make. Thanks to a little bent needle! :)