I spent every possible moment of my childhood in a library. I loved the smells, colorful pictures, hushed silence, and the sounds of flipping through the pages of well-worn and beloved books. I continued spending every waking moment in the library as an English major in college, although the pictures in the books I read then weren’t quite as pretty (not even close) as in my childhood treasures, I still relished my time in that sacred place filled with words of wonder and enchantment.
My literary tastes have changed over the past years, and my personal library is now filled with DIY (Do-It-Yourself) books in a wide variety of mediums and creativity. Some I simply peruse when I need a splash of inspiration. Others I know by heart! I want to share my list of must-have books (in alphabetical order) that every beader needs on their shelves, including the following techniques: seed beading, wireworking, soldering, beaded bracelets, bead stitching, and stringing.
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100 Beaded Jewelry Designs: Easy-to-Bead Necklaces, Bracelets,
Brooches, and More
Stephanie Burnham
Nothing like beaded
bracelets to relieve a little stress in the evenings while catching up
on Glee, Oprah, or American Idol? |
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All Wired Up: Wire Techniques for the Beadworker and Jewelry
Maker
Mark Lareau
Wireworking is a favorite jewelry
technique, and this book is chock-full of all the techniques you need in
the wire world. |
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Beader's Companion: Expanded and Updated
Jean Campbell and
Judith Durant
Updated from the first best-selling edition, this book
covers loom-weaving and off-loom techniques, bead knitting, knotting,
basic wireworking, and more. Great to help you start your beading
journey, with plenty of extras for the more advanced bead seeker.
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Beading for the Soul: Inspired Designs from 23 Contemporary Artists
Deborah
Cannarella
This is a beautifully inspirational book. Wander through
it when you need a breath of fresh passion.
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Color Works: The Crafter's Guide to Color
Deb Menz
This
luscious book is filled with great color guidance for all sorts of
mediums; particularly helpful in beading and jewelry making.
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Getting Started Stringing Beads
Jean Campbell
This is a
great introductory book for anyone who wants to jump into jewelry
making. The step-by-step instructions and pictures rock!
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Getting Started
with Seed Beads
Dustin Wedekind
This title says it all, and as many of you
know from reading my June 14 beading daily post all about my escapades
with seed beads, I’ll be diving into this baby ASAP!
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Marketing and Selling Your Handmade Jewelry: The Complete Guide to
Turning Your Passion into Profit
Viki Lareau
When you finally run out of ALL your storage space (including using the
oven for bead storage), it’s time to sell your creations to support your
habit. This classic shows you the way.
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Step-By-Step
Jewelry Workshop: Simple Techniques for Soldering, Wirework, and Metal
Jewelry
Nicola Hurst
This comprehensive guide dives into all
the metal favorites; wirework, soldering, filing, sawing, combining
metals with stones, the whole enchilada!
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The Bead Directory: The Complete Guide to Choosing and Using More
than 600 Beautiful Beads
Elise Mann
This is esentially the
encyclopedia of beads! Beads of all styles and materials with pictures
of everything!
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What are your fave books? Share with other beadsters on Beading Daily.
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FREE PROJECT
Download this free project from Beading Daily
Lucky Turquoise
Lucky you! You get to make this cool necklace featuring multiple-strand stringing, turquoise, silver, AND save with our Hurt Book Sale!
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Filed under: Beaded Beads, Bead Making, Stringing, Wire Jewelry, How To Bead, Seed Bead Patterns, Bead-weaving, Bracelet Making, Bead Knitting, Necklace Making, Beaded Jewelry Design, Beads, Jewelry Making, Beading Daily