Beading Books

what books would you reccomend to a person who is just beginning bead embroidery?

ilovebeads96 — Tue, 17 Jan 2012 07:18:10 GMT

i want to learn how to make bead embroidered jewelry.

Anyone read these?

sixbeader — Thu, 08 Dec 2011 16:54:42 GMT

Has anyone read these books?

Mastering Beadwork Carol Huber Cypher

Shaped Beadwork Diane Fitzgerald

Bead Riffs Rachel Nelson Smith

If you have please tell me what you think of them, I'm trying to decide whether or not I want these for Christmas.

Thanks for the advice!

Rachel

Simply Pretty Beading?? Tried it??

TessM@7 — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 12:58:01 GMT

I recently purchased the book Simply Pretty Beading by Patricia Ducerf -- it was the cute variety of rings that snagged me! However, once I got home with it and looked further at the instructions, I was disappointed to see that they aren't as detailed as I think I need. Does anyone have this book or tried these patterns? I tried doing an internet search for the author in case she might have a website, but just got places where the book could be purchased.

She refers just to "seed beads" with no specification about size (so I'm guessing 8/0 - although some of the pictures look like maybe 6/0) and also uses "wheel beads" - which I've never heard of, but to me look like rondelles??

I think I'm in for alot of trial and error beading with this one -- which isn't good for me b/c I'm much more of an instant gratification gal!! HA

~ Tess ~

Help Some Newbeads (Newbies)! What's on your bookshelf?

budgiemommy — Sun, 18 Sep 2011 13:58:04 GMT

I thought that this would be a great post to help guide some newbies through the ocean of beading books out there. Beaders can list the books that are on their shelves, and indicate their favorite. I hope to keep this going as a service to our new beading friends. I got all of these books from Amazon.com.

I will start:

What's on my Bookshelf:

Beading With Cabochons - Jaimie Cloud Eakin - Love it!

Mastering the Art of Beading - Genevieve A. Sterbenz - Nice book on different beading techniques from stringing and beading to simple wire-wrapping. Haven't tried any projects yet.

Beaded Allure - Kelly Weise - Lovely book with really feminine pieces.

Out On a Loom - Margie Deeb (Just got this one. Haven't read through it yet)

The Art of Bead Embroidery - Heidi Kummli & Sherri Serafini - Nice starter book on bead embroidery.

Beaded Opulence - Marcia DeCoster - Beautiful book. Haven't tried any of the projects yet.

The Beader's Color Palette - Margie Deeb - Great textbook for color theory.

Beaded Colorways - Beverly Ash Gilbert - Another great color theory book.

Mastering Beadwork - Carol Cypher Huber - A must in every beader's library. This is the first book I bought on beading.

Your Seed Bead Style - Editors of Bead & Button Magazine

Zulu Beadwork - Diane Fitzgerald

Indian Beadweaving Patterns - Horace Goodhue - Another important book for beaders. Another one of the books I visit often.

Designer Bead Embroidery - Kenneth D. King

Sensational Bead Embroidery - Sherry Serafini - One of my favorites.

What I Ordered Recently:

Art & Elegance of Beadweaving - Carol Wilcox Wells
Embellished Beadweaving - Laura McCabe
Beadwork Creates Beaded Rings - Jean Campbell

Wish List:

Dimensional Bead Embroidery - Jaime Cloud Eakin (Waiting for this for a year folks!!!)

Favorite(s):

Beading With Cabochons
Sensational Bead Embroidery
Indian Beadweaving Patterns

You know...listing these books I just realized that I haven't bought one novel in two years? They're all beading books! LOL!

Beaded Horses Book

gac@2 — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 01:21:19 GMT

A few years back, I saw a book of patterns of only horses. I can't find it anywhere now. Would anyone know the exact title? Where to get a copy? It was soft cover and around 8-1/2 x 11 inches size. Please help.

Thank you.

gac

FreeForm Peyote Beading: Design and Creation of Original Wearable Art Jewelry

KipperCat — Tue, 12 Jun 2012 00:04:15 GMT

Karen Williams' book gave me the confidence to try freeform with wonderful results. In the past, I've read several sets of instructions for freeform peyote beading, but none as comprehensive as this. It gives you the tools to make wonderful pieces. It also describes step-by-step how the author made some of her own pieces. Now I'm ready to branch out & include other bead stitches in my freeform.

This is a great book for any beader, just for the design information in the first several pages. These principles apply to any type of beadwork. I also noted the balance of type, illustrations & white space in the book. I was never overwhelmed with all the information on the page. This aspect of readability is sometimes forgotten in books that cover a primarily visual topic.

I really like this book!!

ps - I just wish I'd written this when I read the book 6 weeks ago. The review would have been much more detailed.

Invisible photos in ebooks?

Radiance@3 — Fri, 25 May 2012 01:56:04 GMT

For quite awhile now, every free ebook I download comes through with some of its photos and/or graphics missing. Is this happening to anyone else, or am I special?

I'm on Mac OS 10.4.11, which I know is old... but upgrading is not an option right now, so I'm hoping someone can point me to some other solution. Thanks!

Dimensional Bead embroidery: A reference guide to techniques by Jamie Cloud Eakin?

ilovebeads96 — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 19:26:50 GMT

I just ordered this book and Im so excited!!!!!!!!!!!! Can some one who has this book tell me what are the materials i need because as soon as i get the book i want to get started. So please tell me what the book says i need, Thank you!

Jewelry for the New Romantic by Nealay Patel.

SoftFlexGuy — Fri, 16 Dec 2011 21:27:49 GMT

We have an exclusive look at a great new book on our blog.

Jewelry for the New Romantic by Nealay Patel. Jewelry for the New Romantic will guide you through creating ten beautiful jewelry sets; each containing a necklace, bracelet, and earrings. The book is filled with easy to follow instructions and clear illustrations. Learn how to create designs that incorporate color and edgy style along with traditional beading techniques.

Just to give you a little taste of the types of projects in this book, the author has allowed us to share the instructions to one full project. Enjoy!!!

The full project and pictures are on our blog:

http://softflexgirl.blogspot.com/2011/12/new-book-jewelry-for-new-romantic-by.html

The Art of Beaded Beads: Edited by Jean campbell

sixbeader — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 15:17:13 GMT

Do any of you own this book? If so, are the instructions hard to follow or is just it me? There are some really beautiful patterns in the book.

Thanks for your help!

Rachel

Review of beads buttons and bijoux by Nathalie Delhaye

Chibabies6 — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 23:47:41 GMT

Okay, I really try to be honest and represent the 'beadweaver' in my reviews. So .... Let me just say I USED to think there was no such thing as a bad beading book. I got this book for $1 and was still disappointed.

This book features 58 original designs and out of those 58 there are 5 worth looking and those are similar to stuff you could find elsewhere easily. Designs are things like buttons on a long string as a necklace, and other oddities. And while I am all for using buttons and various things within a design, the designs in this book simply lack sophistication reminding me of elementary school projects. All that is missing is the macaroni necklace.

Several of the pieces look very uncomfortable to wear and would catch on everything with odd bits of various things sticking out in random directions.. Many of the pictures display poor workmanship with a wire beaded necklace that has black wire showing between the beads in multiple places, etc. The photography is well done.

There are a few ideas I got from this book, but in the end, I intend to give it to some children because I do not think it would be used enough to be worth the space on my small beading book shelf and they may like making crazy button rings!

Sorry to be harsh .. but .. well you will just have to peruse the book!!

Review of Beaded Cords Chains Straps & Fringe - a beadwork magazine project book

Chibabies6 — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 23:27:45 GMT

I love love love chain stitches and the best thing about this book is the variety of techniques and styles. Everything from the simple to the complex is represented here.

All the basics are covered like daisy chains and herringbone ropes and a few beauties you just wont see other places like Diane Fitzgeralds Caduceus Chain which is well worth the purchase of the book alone in my opinion.

The fringe designs are a nice bonus to help spur some inspiration and cover all the basic fringe designs in one place as well.

Overall if you are looking for a quick reference guide to chains and fringes to work into a project or use alone this is a great addition to your beading library. I use it a lot. This booklet is a great resource when you just dont know what you want to do. LOL

Review of Beaded Beads by Jean Campbell

Chibabies6 — Sun, 24 Apr 2011 14:30:11 GMT

I have to say I just love this book!! The instructions are very detailed with diagrams and the variations and embellishments are just endless. The designs cover a great variety of styles and if you are a seasoned beader this is a great way to learn new stitches without having to commit to weeks on a single project.

I often find myself working on a project that takes weeks to complete and this is awesome for something you can just sit down and finish for a good break. And these are just sooooo fun!!

I have made 2 pinata beads that are totally different using different sizes and crystals versus seeds. So get this book and just let your imagination run! Definitely worth the money!

Also, I've seen some reviews that fuss about the color choices in the book and while I agree they lack sophistication I'm glad they did it the way they did. I find it frustrating when choosing colors for a project if I have to try and figure out what color is going to go where in an example photo where it is hard to tell. This book makes it easy because the colors used are bright and contrasty so I can easily know what color is going to be where on my finished pieced.

Awesome well done book!!

Review of Beautiful Beaded Rings by Meriem Varone

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:24:49 GMT

If you like to make rings this is a wonderfully full collection of designs. Some are quite simple and many are very intricate. All are rated by difficulty.

I like the variety of shapes and designs throughout this book. The finished pieces are highlighted wiht beautiful full color pictures in multiple color choices and from multiple angles. With so many designs there are certainly things here you will not find elsewhere. The designs showcase a variety of styles and techniques.

You should be aware that many of the disigns in this book require some wire work as well. Some designs do have written instructs but the simply ones only give you a diagrahm showing the thread/bead pattern to work with. There for this is not a beginner book. You will need to know how to read a diagrahm with or without written directions and the author often assumes you know the basics of beadweaving.

I purchased this book partially to make rings and partially to get some designs to make pendants and bracelet focal pieces and am very pleased with it.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

Review of Beaded Allure by Kelly Wiese

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:21:01 GMT

This is one of the few books I've seen where I truly love all of the designs except one. Most are spotty with things I love and many I do not. Having said that, this book will appeal to you if you enjoy lacy delicate feminine pieces. You will not find a 'variety' of projects. You will get 25 beautiful designs in one style. :)

The instructions are well done with photo images of each step. All materials are listed for each project. A section in the front goes over stitches commonly used in the book. All projects are rated for difficulty with 1-3 stars.

I like that there are some new stitches and components to the designs that you could use elsewhere.. a beautiful bracelet that connects 3 peyote bands could highlight any focal piece and a lovely delicate chain stitch from a lariat necklace is very versatile as well.

This is not a good choice for beginners as the designs are intricate. Not difficult per se but intricate and a beginner could easily feel overwhelmed.

So if you are looking for something different than the norm and enjoy a delicate style of jewelry you will be very pleased with this book. The projects are simply elegant and very 'old hollywood' in style and beauty.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

Review of Mastering Beadwork by Carol Huber Cypher

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:19:25 GMT

I just love this book. It's one of my ultimate favorites in the beading library. :) In addition to being a wonderfully complete resource and project book it's written in a very conversational tone and every time you open the book the authors love for beading and her joy in sharing that passion just jump from the pages.

It has all the standard things you would expect by the title.. Lots of instructions for 13 top stitches including 63 projects along the way. So certainly a lot to delve into with this book. The instructions are clearly written with diagrams and color pictures of each finished piece. The projects are varied from jewelry items to card cases, etc.

The chapters are well laid out with several projects for each stitch. Each stitch is introduced in a page or two letting you know the versatility and common uses of the stitch as well some tips and tricks.. The first project is the more basic with each project building on the one before it.

There are wonderful little sections throughout each chapter that challenge you to try a little variation of each given design or warn you of a common mistake, etc. Little informative boxes on interesting odds and ends are sprinkled in too..

The author is a beading class teacher and that really comes through in this book. You are not simply learning to make a bracelet. Everything in this book is about mastering each stitch. Learning the variations and understanding why the look of each piece changes with varied bead sizes or tension, etc.

This is a must have book for all those beading enthusiasts who just want to know more and would like to truly master a technique enough to begin creating your own designs.

I do recommend this book for all levels. Intermediate to advanced beaders will be thrilled with all the extras and while a true beginner may find it daunting it will save a lot of mistakes along the way and get you off to a solid start.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

Review of Creative Bead Weaving by Carol Wilcox Wells

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:15:39 GMT

This is really great book on beading and different from most of the books out there. Honestly, I will probably make only one or two of the projects listed as most of them are just not things I would ever want to make. Having said that.. this is the one book you will reference often throughout years. It has clear instructions for all the the stitches plus hard to find instructions for things like increasing and decreasing for all the various stitches and how to transition smoothly from one stitch to another. The pictures and instructions are very clear and easy to understand. It also discuses things like tension, etc and how this can vary depending on what you are making and whether the beadwork should be stiff or supple. Anyone looking for a great beading 'reference' should have this book in their collection.

Whenever I have a project that uses a new stitch this is the book I grab for stitch instructions. Always clear and concise.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

Review of More Seed Bead Stitching by Beth Stone

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:12:29 GMT

Really enjoyed this one and it's clear and easy to use. Nice pictures using color coded beads in the diagrams make following along easy. I really hunt down chain stitches so this was a great find for me. I like the way the author makes a few changes and gives a new look to stitches most already know. I have also found myself experimenting more on my own with bead counts and sizes which I also think is a good thing. So if you are looking for chain elements that are very versatile this is a great choice for you.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

Review of Bead Quilling by Kathy King

Chibabies6 — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 15:06:59 GMT

Ok.. first let me say that I am really loving bead quilling. It's a wonderful little way to add texture and interest to my beadweaving pieces. Perfect for making beautiful elements that stand out in a finished piece.

As for the book.. The technique is not well explained. It shows you how to put together the first 2 sets and that is it. considering this book is about only one technique I expect that to be explained well. The other instructions are adequate for making the designs and the techniques for joining and scrolling the bead quilling is fine.

You will need to use delicas for this. So just know from the start this will not look great with anything else. You need exception uniform beads so delicas. Also I'd recommend Tohos One G thread for you quilling as it's inexpensive, high quality and comes in about a dozen nice colors.

In my opinion many of the designs are just not pretty and I didn't care for the colors used either. The designs do not really how off this technique well. There are several that are gorgeous but also many that are just ugly especially in the beginner section. But again this is a matter of personal taste.

The book is laid out well and it's easy to find what you need whether its a project or just a quick page to find out how to encircle a bead. I've make scrolls and flowers and leaves to use in other pieces picked out of the designs in this book and am very pleased with them.

I probably wont make any of the designs in the book as it as they would use a ton of delicas and most of them I didn't like. (I like 2)

All in all I'm glad I purchased the book as it is the only one on this technique and the technique is just wonderful. A quick and easy way to add something unique and new to beadweaving designs. So yes it is worth the money especially if you can get a deal here on amazon. :-) I would definitely recommend this to those who are looking for something interesting and new to add to their designs.

* I'm copying over my beading book reviews from 'book selling' sites..

HAVE YOU SEEN THIS NEW BOOK???

MeganH@18 — Sat, 08 Jan 2011 20:27:16 GMT

It hasn't been released yet (darn it!) and I have to wait until April. Just the cover is making me droooooool. Somehow or another I have lost (for the 2nd time!) the Art of Bead Embroidery book that Sherry Serafini was part of and will have to buy yet another copy (my 3rd!!!). Let us all begin the countdown to April......

http://www.amazon.com/Sherry-Serafinis-Sensational-Bead-Embroidery/dp/160059672X/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_1

Megan (impatient in Pennsylvania)

I bought Jean Campbell new book, Creating Glamorous Jewelry with Swarovski Elements and can,t find the jet 30x22mm oval fancy stone# [4127] or much else help!

jantucky — Fri, 01 Apr 2011 17:35:17 GMT

Can,t find most products in the book.

Go To books for beginners

Tide Together — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 04:17:45 GMT

What books would you most recommend for beginners? I use items found while beachcombing so I am interested in all aspects of design (beading, wire, and chainmail) as I have the focals and just need settings for them.

EVERYTHING is a new idea for me at this point. I've only been designing since 8/2011. I'm lucky to have very original materials to work with but I need technique and design to continue advancing my pieces.

Thanks for any advice you may have!

Popular Beading/Jewelry Books

Michelle Mach — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 15:13:09 GMT

Hi everyone,

I've been playing around with Library Thing, which is an online place where people can record the books that they own. It's pretty interesting to see which titles are popular and which are recommended based on what you already own. Two of the top beading authors (based on the number of people who own their books): Carol Wilcox Wells and Margie Deeb. (You can read more about Library Thing on my blog.)

What's everyone reading? Have you found any good beading/jewelry books?

Happy new year!

Book Give Away

trieschman — Sat, 18 Sep 2010 02:17:14 GMT

I am giving away a signed copy of Jewelry Design Challenge

http://craft-connection.blogspot.com/2010/09/giveaway-jewelry-design-challenge-book.html

Hurt Book Sale - What did you buy?

SEllen 2 — Thu, 17 Jun 2010 16:11:12 GMT

I'm now officially broke...again I new the hurt book sale was coming but I thought for some reason it was in July last year. Oh, well.

Here's what I bought :

The Beaded Garden: Creating Flowers with Beads and Thread by Diane Fitzgerald and also her

Zulu Inspired Beadwork: Weaving Techniques and Projects

Contemporary Copper Jewelry: Step-by-Step Techniques and Projects by Sharilyn Miller

I've been wanting the first 2 for awhile since I first read one of Dagi's post talking about them. And then of course seeing Sydney's flowers made me want to learn how to do them. The other one just sounded interesting from the description. If anyone already has it let me know what you think.

Have a great day