Check Out These Turkish Beaded Good Luck Charms - Fabulous Beading Ideas!

Turkish people hung beaded good luck charms from the rear view mirrors of their cars and trucks. Most of the charms are inscribed "Mashallah," an Arabic word meaning "May God protect you." In other words, "May God keep you safe on your journey." Each of these beaded Mashallah charms features one or more bead-crochet birds that sways as the vehicle moves.
Why do bird appear on this pieces? One guess would be that birds can fly far with ease an little fear of an accident. There might be more to it, however - since birds often appear in Turkish art and craft.
These pieces likely date from ca. the 1950s to the present day - although some might be earlier. Most were made by prisoners in Turkish jails in Cappadocia and elsewhere as a way to pass time, be productive, and have something to sell or give to family and friends.
Beading techniques on these beaded Mashallah charms include bead crochet, bead weaving, bead tasseling, and bead plaiting.
Beaded Mashallah charms have been published in several books, including my own. Below are links to the listings for these books on OCLC/Worldcat.
The Art of Beadwork: Historic Inspiration, Contemporary Design by Valerie Hector (2002):
search.worldca...
Beadwork: A World Guide by Caroline Crabtree and Pamela Stallebrass (2002):
search.worldca...
The Art & Tradition of Beadwork by Marsha C. Bol (2018):
search.worldca...
Thanks for stopping by! Please come again soon.
See you in the next video.
--Valerie
#beading #turkishart #turkish #beadwork #beadweaving #beadwork #beadworking #bead #beadedbird #beadinghistory #rearviewmirror #ornaments #talisman #charm

[@cindyross4377]

So interesting. Thanks for sharing. I visited Turkey a while ago and learned that the prisoners make rugs but wasn’t aware they did beadwork as well.

[@valeriehector]

Hi, @cindyross4377 - How great that you were in Turkey - what a beautiful country. You've taught me something - I didn't know that prisoners made rugs in addition to beadwork! So cool!

[@angelinacroftdesigns]

This is so cool. I cannot thank you enough for showing all this beadwork from around the world to us :) and for sharing your personal stories with us

[@valeriehector]

Thank you for your nice comments, @montagnedesjoyaux9863! It makes me happy to share these pieces - and the stories that go along with them. Thank you for appreciating them - and letting me know. My beaded Mashallahs are modest things - but I love having them - and taking them out from time to time to admire.