Making a Native American Style Fetish Necklace with Squaw Wrap Closure

I love Native American style carved animal fetish necklaces.  I bought mine over 20 years ago on a trip through the South West.  I'm pretty sure I bought it in New Mexico, possibly Arizona.

I was inspired to try and make my own when I recently bought some carved butterflies from Fire Mountain Gems (FMG).  As you may know if you follow this blog, I don't do a lot of stringing projects.  I don't think I'm particularly good at it, but like anything, I know that if I practiced more I would improve.

So, here's my practice.

Making a Beading Mat (Beading Tray)

If you've been following my blog for any time, you probably know that I like to take my beading and jewelry making to go.  Mostly, that means to my kids baseball and softball games - but it also means to various parts of my house.  

I'm always trying different ways to take my beading with me - from how I store my beads to the dishes I put them in when beading to the work surface.

This post is about my portable work surface, or beading tray.  One that I made myself, of course.