An orchid corsage that will last forever would be the perfect gift for Mother's Day, especially if it is created by you!

Materials:

• Size 11 seed beads: The following colors of Chezh seed beads were used in the model. White iris, transparent lavender iris, transparent yellow & lavender.
• 28 gauge wire
• White florists tape
• A bead spinner makes quick work of loading the beads on the wire.

Bead counts for the rows of each petal & the sepals will be listed, but you may have to adjust the number to fit your beads & tension.

Fig. 1: There are actually two main components that make up the orchid; three petals & three sepals.

1. The center petal on the bottom is called the lip, or labellum
2. The other two petals are above & to the sides of the lip.
3. There are three sepals, which should be positioned behind the three petals 

Start by completing petal 1 (the lip), including the frill.

Load approximately 130 white iris & transparent iris lavender beads randomly onto the wire to make this petal.

Fig. 2: Make this petal with one pointed end & one rounded end, adjusting the bead counts given below as necessary.

Keep your beads snuggled close together & your rows of beads close together.

Base Row		5
Row Two		7
Row Three		13
Row Four		17
Row Five		21

After completing the rows of French beading. roll the piece to form a cone-like shape at the pointed end. With needle & thread, stitch the first 7 beads of the outer two rows together. (See diagram)

FInish the wire at the end of the rounded petal as directed at the black arrow. Clip the wire of the other loop & straighten it out to form the stem.

Starting at the red arrow, begin adding the frill with the lavender seed beads.

Fig. 3: (Detail for adding the frill to the lip)
Using needle & thread & adding from 3 to 5 beads at a time, work around the rounded edge of the petal as shown.

Refer to the detail for the stitching method. There are fewer rows added at the upper edge of the frill then at the bottom edge.

I will not guide you through completing the frill. Refer to the picture of the completed orchid at the top of this page.

If you want a more ruffled effect, increase the number of beads added to the last couple of rows.

Fig. 4: The other two petals are pointed at the stem end & rounded at the outside edge.

You should have at least 250 beads loaded on the wire for each of the two petals. Mix the two colors & load them randomly as you did before.

Counts for the rows of the other two petals are:

Base Row		4
Row Two		7
Row Three		11
Row Four		17
Row Five		21
Row Six		27
Row Seven		35

After you finish making the rows of the petal, trim the wire on the rounded edge & fold it to the back of the petal. Clip the loop of the other wire & straighten it out to form the stem.

Make the second petal in the same manner.

 Fig. 5: The column is made with yellow beads & a 6 to 7 inch piece of wire.

Begin by loading 7 beads onto the wire & push them to the center, then twist the ends of the wire to form the beads into a loop.

Load 5 beads on each end of the wire & twist the two ends of the wire together as shown.

Work the wires of the column down into the center of the first petal made. 

Fig. 6: Lightly wrap each of the three stems with white florists tape close to the beads. Then group them together as shown & twist the four stem wires together.

Fig. 7: The three sepals of the orchid are pointed at both ends & they should all be about the same size.

You should load at least 220 beads as before for each of the sepals. The bead counts for the rows are: