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Crystals

Ever since Daniel Swarovski invented his faceting machine, crystal beads have been in demand by high-fashion designers all around the world. Crystal beads are more popular than ever, and for good reason: who can resist the sparkle and shine of a beautiful crystal bead? No matter what their effect in a jewelry design, crystals captivate us with their gemlike sparkle. Wedding dresses, hair pieces and beaded jewelry are often sprinkled with crystals, illuminating a unique brilliance on a most special day. Crystals also adorn countless designer gowns, handbags, shoes and other accessories. Wonderful faceted crystal beads cast a spell on us that is impossible to shake. Is it any surprise that we are entranced by the shimmering delights of crystals and want to showcase them in our handmade beaded jewelry?

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  • Seasonal Color Trends: Transition Jewelry Into Fall
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  • Wish Necklaces Re-Imagined
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  • The Beyond Beadery Road Show at York Beads, New York City
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  • Anklet Inspiration, Part Deux
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  • Don't Go Around in Circles with Circular, Flat Peyote Stitch
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  • Love These Crystal Beads!
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  • Free Beading Project: Bead Netted Bottle
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  • Have You Tried Crystal Clay?
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  • The Great Jewelry Making Makeover!
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  • Summer Trend: Neon Jewelry
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  • Polymer Clay Bead Making: Expert Advice from Lisa Pavelka
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  • Bead Substitutions in Seed Bead Patterns: What Works, What Doesn't
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  • The Great Thread Debate: Beading Threads for Bead-weaving
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  • Work Table Wednesday: Vintage Treasures from A Grain of Sand
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  • Readers Share: Amazing Bead Embroidery!
    I'm sure I've told the story before, about how the first time I attempted a piece of bead embroidery I wound up chucking it in a drawer for two years before I had the courage to pick it up and try it again. Well, it's been a very long time
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  • Help Choose Our Next Bead Star!
    If you haven't yet taken a few minutes to check out all the gorgeous beaded jewelry entered in this year's Bead Star competition , now is the time to do it! (Voting ends on Monday, May 28th, 2012. For complete rules, click here .) Voting is easy
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  • Have You Voted Yet? Times a Tickin'!
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  • Favorite Beading Supplies
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  • Going 'Round in Triangles With the Fabulous Jean Power
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  • Cast Your Votes for Bead Star 2012!
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  • Bead Hoard Curiosities Club for May
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  • Resources for Newbies
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  • The Perfect Gift for Mom
    Mother's Day is almost here, and it's not too late to start making something beautiful and handcrafted to let your mom know that you appreciate everything she does for you. Whether your mom loves to make or receive handmade beaded jewelry, or
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  • Free Jewelry Designs for Mother's Day
    Are you ready for mother's day? With just under two weeks left until the big day, you still have plenty of time to make up a special custom beaded necklace, bracelet, or pair of earrings, just for mom! Heck, if she liked the glitter macaroni necklace
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  • Use a Little, Use a Lot: Just Use Some Crystal Beads In Your Next Beading Project!
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  • The Picture Perfect Beading Challenge is Ready!
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  • Jump Start Your Wire Jewelry Skills!
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  • Ideas for Making a Keepsake Necklace
    Spring in my part of upstate New York means warmer days, open windows, laundry drying in the sunshine, working in the gardens, and lots and lots of outdoor activities. It also brings graduations, weddings, proms, and other special events. And of course
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  • Bead Table Wednesday: Beading Outside of My Box
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  • Make a Cabochon Bezel with Right-Angle Weave
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  • Inspired By Cabochons!
    When I was in Tucson back in February, some of my favorite purchases were the gorgeous cabochons that I saw popping up everywhere. Cabochons have always fascinated me as a beader, and I love figuring out new ways to incorporate them into my finished beaded
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  • Why Should You Use Right-Angle Weave?
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  • Do You Kumihimo?
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  • Channel Beads from Nunn Design
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  • Start With: A Simple Strip of Peyote Stitch
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  • Crochet Some Jewelry!
    I learned how to crochet when I was four or five years old. My mother and my grandmother had a seemingly endless supply of crochet hooks, yarn and ideas, and my sister and I grew up with a steady supply of warm, handmade crocheted sweaters, hats and vests
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  • Beaded Beads for Beadwork Magazine's 15th Anniversary!
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  • Readers Share: Beautiful Beaded Wedding Jewelry
    When my husband and I were planning our wedding, I remember not feeling nervous or jittery at all -- until some very helpful soul said to me, "You know, everyone is going to be watching YOU." I panicked for about thirty seconds before I realized
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  • Shell Pearls from Lima Beads
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  • Enter Your Jewelry Designs in Bead Star 2012!
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  • Bead Soup: How to Make It, How to Use It
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  • Take Those Seed Bead Patterns and Make Them Your Own!
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  • The Gemstones of Spring!
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  • Mad Men Inspired Jewelry!
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  • Readers Share: A Bounty of Brick Stitch Projects!
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  • Free Bracelet Making Project: Make a Simple Bead Embroidered Cuff Bracelet
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  • My First Adventures in Chain Maille!
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  • National Craft Month: Pass On Your Passion and Win Some Goodies from Interweave!
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  • Make Your Own Pandora-Style Beads!
    Ok, so this may require that you dabble in a medium you have never thought about before, but if you're willing to try your hand at a little polymer clay to make your own large-hole beads, it looks like Sculpey--one of the authorities in polymer clay
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  • Captured Crystal Cubes Earrings
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  • National Craft Month: Fusion Beads 30 Day Challenge
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  • Bead Table Wednesday: Downton Abbey-Inspired Beading
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  • Stuff Beaders Say
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  • Gemstones for 2012: The Year of the Dragon!
    Growing up, two of my best friends were Chinese girls who had spent several years living in India before coming to the United States. Through them, I learned so much about Chinese culture (and cooking - yum!) that I fell in love with everything about
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  • Bead Table Wednesday: Scatterbrained Beads
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  • Bead Crafts: More Than Just Beaded Jewelry!
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  • I Gotta Have That Beading Tool!
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  • Tucson Bead Shows 2012, Day Two!
    My second (and last!) day in Tucson, I had originally planned to hit The Best Bead Show, To Bead True Blue and maybe sneak over to one of the gem and mineral shows, since my son was asking for geodes and green-and-purple rocks.Little did I know what I
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  • Earring-a-Day Challenge Recap: How Many Pairs of Earrings Did You Make?
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  • Tucson Bead Shows 2012, Day One!
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  • Name That Beadwork: Win a Kit of Vintage Beads!
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  • New Year's Resolution: Buy More Crystals, Wear More Crystals!
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  • Wrapped Around Your Wrist: 6 Free Beaded Bracelet Patterns from Beading Daily!
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  • Beadwork, February/March 2012
    The February/March issue of Beadwork is full of firsts! See the first projects from our new (and extraordinary) designers of the year: Diane Fitzgerald, Leslie Frazier, Jean Power, and sister duo Sue Jackson and Wendy Hubick. And check out the first beaded bead in our 15th Anniversary Beaded Bead Contest
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  • Freeform Peyote Stitch: Feels So Wrong, But It's So Right!
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  • Pearls Never Go Out of Style!
    I really didn't intend on using all these crystal pearls in my bead embroidered collar. But they found their way in, just the same! I really wasn't planning on using pearls in my latest big piece of bead embroidery. This piece was the first large
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  • Challenge Yourself for the New Year with Variations on Tubular Herringbone Stitch
    Why do I love tubular herringbone? Oh, let me count the ways! I first discovered this fantastic stitch when I was just a beginning beader and for some reason, I had a tough time figuring out how to work flat herringbone. One of my beading friends suggested
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  • Beading New Year's Resolutions
    I can hardly believe that we're in the last few days of 2011! While most folks are making New Year's Resolutions to lose weight, quit smoking or exercise more, I'm thinking about how I can cram more beading into the coming year. I'll sit
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  • Beaded Chain Jewelry by the Light of the Moon
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  • Free Beading Project: Crystal Bead Chain
    This sparkling crystal bead chain works great by itself or with a special pendant. This project was inspired by an amazing ceramic and crystal pendant I bought from Lisa Peters Art on Etsy . I loved the colors as well as the way Lisa combined the ceramic
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  • What's Your Favorite Bead for Jewelry-Making?
    We all love seed beads, that's why we're here on Beading Daily. But there are so many other beads that you can add to your bead-weaving and jewelry-making projects to make them more interesting! With new beads coming out from companies such as
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  • Favorite Bead Shops: M & J Trimming
    Some of the fabulous metal sequins, buttons and trims I bought in New York City! While M & J Trimming isn't technically a bead shop, for anyone who loves to create beaded jewelry and accessories of all kinds, this is the place to go! I'd heard
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  • Favorite Bead Shops: City Beads
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  • Chinese Crystal Beads
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  • Where to Find Free Beading Patterns on the Internet: About.com Beadwork
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  • Shopping for Beads in New York City!
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  • Favorite Bead Shops: Beads on Fifth
    Me, my two friends, and all those beads at Beads on Fifth in Manhattan! Some of you may remember that a couple of weekends ago, I decided to take a little break and do some bead shopping in New York City with my friends. Each bead shop that I went to
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  • Seed Beads We Love: New Twin Two-Holed Seed Beads
    In case you haven't seen the latest innovative bead to come out of the Czech Republic, let me introduce you. Dear Reader, please meet the new Twin seed bead from Preciosa Ornela. These lovely little seed beads are slightly longer and wider than a
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  • Get Your Sparkle On: Tips for Bead-weaving with Crystals
    The Ootheca cuff by Rachel Nelson-Smith is a perfect example of how crystals can provide sparkle without being front and center. I love bead-weaving with crystals, but I don't think I do it often enough. (Somehow, it just doesn't work for me to
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  • Gemstone Cabochons: How to Find Hundreds of Interesting (and Affordable) Gemstone Cabochons
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  • Beading Business: Expert Advice from Diane Fitzgerald
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  • Deck the Halls With...Seed Beads!
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  • Mixed-Media Jewelry-Making with Resin: Five Things NOT to Do With Resin
    This summer, I started playing around with resin after seeing some absolutely beautiful resin pendants and earrings at my local farmer's markets and craft shows. It seemed easy enough: measure, mix, and pour. My first few resin pendants and earrings
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  • Bead and String Reference Chart Poster by The Beaded Phoenix
    Don't get me wrong - I love technology. I love being able to subscribe to my favorite beading magazine and have my issues delivered to my iPad, and I love being able to download movies, music and books without having to wait for the mailman to deliver
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  • The Challenges of Bracelet Making: How to Make Great Beaded Bracelets That Fit!
    I love making beaded bracelets , but bracelet making presents its own unique set of jewelry-making challenges! "Kissing your hand may make you feel very good, but a diamond and sapphire bracelet lasts forever." - Anita Loos I think Ms. Loos
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  • Do You Love Bead Embroidery? Here Are Five Free Patterns for Bead Embroidery!
    If you've ever seen the awesome and inspiring bead embroidery of artists like Sherry Serafini, you might have been inspired to try your hand at this particular beading technique. Unlike other types of off-loom beadweaving, bead embroidery is the stitching
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  • Necklace Making: Five Ideas for Designing Beaded Necklaces
    Necklace making is something that has always come easy for me. Even now, I find that my sketchbooks are full of more necklace designs than anything else, and I'm always finding inspiration for new designs everywhere. My process for designing and making
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  • Free Beading Project: Colorful Wire Wrapped and Crystal Earrings!
    This bright and cheerful wire-wrapping, wire-coiling teardrop earring project was designed by Lindsay Burke for Fusion Beads. With the upcoming holiday season, these would look great for all those office parties and family get-togethers on your busy calendar
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  • Project Accessory Bead Along, Week 2: Inspired by Swarovski
    James, a professional shoe designer, offers assistance and advice to David. For just a few minutes while watching the second episode of Project Accessory the other night, I really, really wanted to be one of those contestants and get ten minutes at the
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  • Four Fun Ideas for Earring Making!
    When I first started learning how to bead and was learning basic jewelry-making, I loved earring making. I didn't realize it at the time, but making earrings a great way to learn new beadweaving stitches and jewelry-making techniques. Handmade earring
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  • Mastering Right-Angle Weave with Marcia DeCoster
    Learn cubic right-angle weave wen you make Marcia DeCoster's Tesserae Necklace. Right-angle weave has always been a favorite beadweaving stitch of mine, ever since I made my first project with it back when I was taking beadweaving lessons at a local
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  • What's In a Name? Maybe a Free Beading Kit!
    The piece: a twisted herringbone rope accented with two lush tassels of fringe and a crystal flower centerpiece. Come up with the best name for this piece of beadwork, and you win the beading kit pictured below courtesy of Red Panda Beads! Sometimes I
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  • Project Accessory: Bead Fearlessly!
    Dangles from an old crystal chandelier make the perfect accent for a braided necklace and belt! You might not believe this, but she's using match sticks to create a necklace! Some of us around here at Interweave were so excited by the new Project
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  • Beads Plus Fibers Equals Fun!
    My little Mirrix bead and tapestry loom is a far cry from the huge floor loom my mom had when I was a kid, but it makes weaving so much fun! My mom had a floor loom for weaving fibers when I was a kid, and the thing was a monster. I can remember on more
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  • How to Mark Your Place in a Peyote Stitch Pattern Plus a New eMag!
    Last time I was talking to you about peyote-stitch patterns, we were talking about the best way to learn how to read a peyote-stitch pattern. Reading a peyote-stitch pattern can be made so much easier if you have a firm understanding of the basic mechanics
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  • Free Project: Fabric Beads Make Fun Embellishments!
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  • Super Beadwork, June/July 2011
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  • Denise Peck's Red Carpet Jewelry
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  • Match Pantone's Spring Colors to Your Bead Stash
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  • Behind the Scenes of Beads Baubles and Jewels, Plus a Free Project
    One of my fave pleasures of being a designer is sharing my creations with jewelry makers like YOU! I really enjoy having so many venues for show-and-tell: books, classes, Beading Daily , and particularly TV shows. It's always fun and exciting (and
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  • Dos and Don'ts for Combining Crystals and Wire
    I was lucky enough to spend some time with the folks at the Rocky Mountain Bead Society last week. During their Show and Tell (a wonderful tradition with most bead societies where members present their new creations), one of the ladies showed off a couple
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  • Wireworking Wonders with the Masters
    My, oh my, does this shindig look like a grand time! Playing with this winning bunch of wireworking masters couldn’t be more entertaining. Wonderful wire and metal techniques for all levels from beginner to intermediate will be explored October
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  • 7 Fun Facts about Crystals
    I am a lover of factoids. Some people don’t appreciate this. They shake their heads and call me a Know-It-All. But I just can’t help it. I love knowing the details about life and sharing them profusely in an extremely nerdy way. I’ll
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  • Master Wireworking the Easy Way
    Wire isn’t mastered in one take Wirework is not wirework is not wirework. Those of you who have played with or mastered wireworking know what I mean. It’s enticing at first: those wire projects lure you in with their hip metal style. Then
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  • Summertime and the Beading Is Easy
    Summertime Memories Fireflies, freshly mowed grass, s’mores on the crackling campfire at dusk, hide-n-seek till dark, root beer floats, sand in my toes, collecting seashells on the shore, bright sundresses and groovy sandals—all fond memories
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  • Lariats You Will Love and a Free Project
    Simple and sensational lariats– What’s not to love about lariat designs? They can be tied or looped to suit whatever length you need. Many designs are fast and easy to make: Dangle a pair of big baubles at the ends of a cool chain. Tie clusters
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  • 10 Tips on How to Design with Big Beads
    How to make your bigger beading better– With our first Bead Fest in Texas coming this October, my thoughts turned to making bigger pieces. After all, Texas is known for its grand scale in everything, so why not jewelry? I mentioned this topic to
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  • 5 Free Brick Stitch Seed Bead Projects!
    5 Reasons to Love Brick Stitch– I’ve said it many times before—I love playing with seed beads using brick stitch! I think brick stitch was the first seed bead pattern I mastered—before peyote, that’s right. It is just so
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  • Fast Gift Idea: Easy End Cone Earrings
    Oh no! It’s (insert impending occasion: Mother’s Day, graduation, my BF’s birthday) and I still haven’t made a gift yet! That thought used to send panic through my veins, but not any more. I can whip up some earrings pretty instantly now, but I have a secret ingredient which makes
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  • Flower Jewelry from Beading Daily Members
    Florals are sprouting up on every runway this spring, according to all the fashionistas. From dainty, flowery prints to bold blossoms, flower power is back in style on dresses, tops, and accessories. So what do you make to be in vogue this Spring? Beading Daily members are clearly inspired by garden
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  • Give Pearls a Try: 8 Popular Shapes for Modern Style
    I was just doing a little spring cleaning and ran across my mom’s jewelry box. It’s filled with what you might expect in a box circa 1958: elegant enamel and crystal brooches, Bakelite bracelets, bold glass cabochon earrings, and a few single-strand pearl necklaces. The pearl necklaces made
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  • 9 Perfect Jewelry Designs for Mom
    Make it for Mother Mother is a verb as well as a noun, just like the word bead. Anyone can mother another person (or pet), even guys. Mothering is layered with many activities: caregiver, friend, doctor, financial adviser, banker, chauffeur, maid, event
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  • Indulge in 5 Creative Gifts for Yourself
    To-do for you– Like many of you out there, my to-do list is very long and complicated. So much so, actually, that I’ll admit I have a second to-do list that prioritizes the first to-do list. And like Pavlov’s dog, when I cross something
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  • Top 5 Favorite Stitches
    So many beads, so little time! Peyote. Right-angle weave. Netting. Herringbone. Square stitch. These five stitches rank highest in every survey, project commentary, and request we hear on Beading Daily and in our magazines. And these are just the basics—each
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  • A Bead Stringing Chart for You!
    Is your stash keeping up with your creativity? Like many of you, my beading stash behaves like a kudzu vine. It grows anywhere I set it. Take my office, for instance: The closet is full, and its contents have begun creeping across the floor. The books
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  • What to Wear with Beige
    I have to admit, I’m no fashion maven. Oh, I like to gussy up every once in a while, but I’m usually relegated to the T-shirt and jeans regimen like many of the other women my age. I do like to follow the trends, though, especially when I
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  • Beading for a Cause
    Beaders make the world a better place As individual artists, we raise money and awareness for charity and causes, and there are many organizations who dedicate themselves to improving life for people through the art and craft of beads and jewelry. Get
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  • Why Math Matters in Jewelry Design
    Design tips you can count on I always knew I was going to art school. I did not need math to be an artist. Guess what? Mom and Dad were right. Artists need math. Not algebra, thank the gods, just a grasp of numbers and relationships. At the very least
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  • What’s Your Steampunk Style?
    Beads, baubles and steampunk By now most of you have at least heard the term “steampunk.” Coined in the 1980’s, steampunk refers to a genre of fantasy and science fiction featuring steam-powered machinery and Victorian-style decorative
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  • Inspired by Big Bold Beads
    Inspired by Big, Bold Beads I was just paging through the wonderful new Spring issue of Stringing magazine and was floored when I came across Wendy Baker’s sumptuous necklaces and bracelets. They are made with new and vintage metal flowers, beads
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  • Show Off Your Cabochons
    Working with cabochons I used to have something called a worry stone. It was a small polished stone with a smooth indentation, offering a tactile path to serenity, like a kid who rubs the satin on a comfort blankie. I have the same sense of “ahhhh”
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  • Find Your Jewelry-making Mojo with Kumihimo Braiding
    Mutual attraction: beads and wire My passion for all things beady has taken me to new levels of determination, levels of obsession . . . and I know you all know what I’m talking about. We practice and practice an element of our craft to get it right
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  • What Rocked Tucson in 2010
    What is the Tucson Bead Show? Tucson during the bead shows is impossible to describe. It is not “a bead show,” not even “bead shows.” It’s a universe of about 50 independently produced venues of beads, gems, jewelry, minerals
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  • Try 4 New Wire Design Trends
    What's coming up in wire style I was at a restaurant with friends recently, and there was a psychic set up in the corner. I figured, why not? So I bellied up to her table and she began . . . “Ah, you’re working too much, but it’s
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  • A Treasury of Beadwork Back Issues in 1 CD
    Marlene Blessing is the editorial director o f Beadwork A Treasury of Beadwork in 1 CD A challenge was put to the editors of Beadwork to choose their favorite sources of inspiration from the entire year of 2007. This is the year presented in Beadwork
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  • Get 6 New Free Wire Projects
    Last year I traveled to the Tucson bead shows with a friend who will remain nameless a) because most of you know who she is, and b) you’d just be dang jealous. You’d not only be jealous because I got to travel with her (she’s one of
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  • Top Beading Daily Projects from 2009
    Beading Daily Readers' Favorite e-Projects from 2009 This is my first post for 2010, so Happy New Year! Before the holidays I buzzed around the forums chatting with you about what projects you like on Beading Daily . It became clear there were leaders
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  • Free Earring eBook and 2 Easy Ear-Wire Designs
    Puttin’ on the Glitz This past weekend I was getting ready for a holiday party. I had on a snazzy new outfit, but of the hundreds of pairs of earrings I own, I couldn’t find a single set to wear. Sound familiar? Luckily, we’re beaders
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  • Bead Fest Wire Classes for Every Jewelry-Maker!
    My Bead Fest Wire class wish list Hey, everyone! Although I have been working on Beading Daily blogs for months now, most of you don’t know me. My name is Erin Carey and I am the Beading Daily intern at Interweave. I have helped with most of the
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  • Your New Beading Daily!
    Welcome to the new Beading Daily ! I've chatted with many of you on our forums since the new Beading Daily magically appeared last week, and it's been so much fun hearing your reactions of delight and surprise. Your pleased responses have made
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  • Bead Star Winners Revealed!
    Meet our Bead Star 2009 Winners and learn how you could win next year! We love to vote for favorites, don’t we? We choose American idols, dance stars, and even new M&M colors. So when it came to choosing favorite jewelry designs, no wonder more
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  • Favorite Pearl Projects & How-to Tips from Readers
    The allure of pearls Oh, those pearls! They've captivated us for eons, in hues that span the rainbow, with textures and shapes from dewdrops to crusty grain. Lustrous. Shimmering. Exotic. Birthstone of June babies and traditional gift for thirtieth
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  • Handy Guide to Jewelry-Making Terms
    What's in a name ? I live near this kid named Christian. Nice boy, a little shy, but very polite. "Hi, Christian!" I yell from the porch when he walks to the bus. "Hi, Mrs. Campbell." "Hey, Christian! How's your sister
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  • Design Wire Jewelry with Attitude!
    Keep it together with wire. It’s my birthday this week and, according to a friend, I’ve officially arrived to the point in my life where people will start saying “Yes, Ma’am!” when I ask them to do something. Boy, if she’s
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  • 4 Tips for Crystal Jewelry Projects
    Make your jewelry special with sparkle ‘Tis (almost) the season to be glam! Even I, ever the industrial chic, seed-beads-4-ever chick, totally love the look of crystal jewelry at this time of the year. There is a magnificent brilliance that only
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  • 3 Tips for Strong Beadwork
    How to stitch beadwork that lasts It was a close friend’s birthday recently, so I made a card, printed out some photos, and included a CD. I put the items in a paper envelope, but realized the CD would break. So I added a piece of thick cardboard
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  • Make Victorian Jewelry for Gothic Glamour!
    Fashion with Passion My daughter, her friends, and many of my grown women friends have all read the popular gothic romance Twilight . I’ve been resisting because delving into the lives of a bunch of lovesick hormone-laden teen vampires sounded pretty
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  • Studio Storage Tips and a Free Circular Brick Stitch Project!
    Organized Chaos: Mess for Success I am totally self-indulgent when it comes to beading. I start this, that, and the other project as my stash inspires me, and though I finish tons of jewelry, many projects wait to reach fruition. Each time I need to bead
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  • 5 Tips for Beader’s Eye Health
    Eye Care When I started wearing my glasses full-time last year I thought I was going to go mad. I hated wearing them. Not only did I feel like I was instantly separated from the rest of my life by a glass wall, but the frames were always in my sights
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  • Is Your Jewelry Design Finished? 5 Tips to Help You Decide
    A few short years ago I decided to quit my day job and attend culinary school. Okay, so it wasn’t exactly on a whim, but I had finally decided to follow my passion and learn the art of creating beautiful cakes and pastries. Although I learned how important it is to work neatly and to mise en place my
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  • New Right-Angle Weave eBook: 5 Free Projects
    One of the fascinating things about beading is that just by changing the beads you can make a project look completely different. Take the Triple Quatrefoil by Tina Koyama, one of the featured projects in our latest free ebook, Right Angle Weave: Beading Daily Presents 5 Free Beadweaving Patterns. In
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  • Create a Seed Bead Necklace with an Interchangeable Pendant
    I may be the owner of the last reversible skirt in America. To be honest, I've only worn it with the pattened side showing, but I love the idea that I could wear the plain blue side showing if the mood ever struck. I especially enjoy packing that skirt for trips. It lets me pretend that I'm one
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  • 7 Ideas for Displaying Earrings
    Several years ago, I made a pair of earrings that I wanted to submit to a magazine. Normally, I photographed all my jewelry flat on a piece of scrapbooking paper, but these elegant, multi-part dangles looked like a jumbled mess when I tried that.
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  • How to Create the Perfect Gift Earrings
    My husband and I will be married 20 years next month, so I was thinking about something to get him as a gift. We always go practical (he set the tone with the Listerine incident of 1985), so I was thinking of something more fun, like tickets to a musical or a weekend at a spa . . . Okay, okay, I guess
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  • 10 Favorite Tips, Techniques, and Projects from Beading Daily
    Beading Daily turned two on August 1st. When I started several months before our official launch date, there were 1,500 members. Now there are more than 100,000! It's amazing that despite this huge growth, Beading Daily still feels much like it did when it started—a fun place to hang out with your
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  • 5 Free Beaded Necklaces: New Beading Daily eBook
    At first glance, the five necklaces in our latest ebook, Jewelry Making: Beaded Jewelry Projects from Beading Daily: 5 Free Beaded Necklace Patterns, have nothing in common. From a 16" necklace sparkling with a right-angle weave crystal pendant to a 26" rope of simply strung seed beads and
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  • From Seed Bead Circle to Spiral Peyote
    I have a good friend who buys only the exact number of beads that she needs for a project. Leftovers drive her crazy. I drive her crazy, too—how can I buy beads and have no idea what I'm going to do with them? But I've been beading long enough to know that an idea will eventually come and the
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  • Free Project: Modern Wire and Crystal Bracelet
    Before I learned to make my own jewelry, I almost never wore bracelets because my wrist wasn't the "typical" size carried in stores. Bangles and cuffs, with their one-size-fits-many styling, were the exception. Two of my favorite cuff bracelets are in the book Wire Style and suprisingly
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  • New Free Earrings eBook
    6 Reasons We Love to Make Earrings Soon after joining Twitter (under the name BeadingDaily ), I asked jewelry designers to tell me what they liked about making earrings. Within minutes, I was deluged with reasons. Here are just six: 1. "It's
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  • 7 Tips for Designing Summer Jewelry
    I am so a Summer girl. Warm weather means lighter clothing in both color and fabric weight, so I can wear jewelry against my skin instead of around a turtleneck--so many more parts to adorn, from throat and ears, to arms, wrists, ankles and even toes. (I have to admit I can’t get comfy wearing toes rings
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  • Free Metalwork Earring Instructions
    Last month I was lucky enough to take an intensive 2-day jewelry making workshop. Not only did I learn a lot in the workshop (notably, how much easier it is to use a jeweler's saw if you don't push down into the metal as hard as you possibly can), but I also learned a lot from my repeated trips
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  • How to Use (and Mix) Metals in Jewelry Designs
    Some things are better done solo. Shopping for unmentionable comes to mind. Or flossing. Or, in our opinion, diving (we are still shocked that synchronized diving is an actual Olympic sport!). But writing beading books?
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  • Express Your Personality with Beads
    Queen Elizabeth I . . . the color ‘cornflower’ . . . Yoda . . . What do they have in common? Apparently, according to the online personality quizzes I’ve been taking lately that tell me things like which famous figure, color, and Star Wars character I am, it’s me! I know they’re not exactly scientific
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  • Ribbon Challenge - Beading Daily Readers
    I invited three active Beading Daily forum members to make something with a piece of hand-dyed silk ribbon that I had picked up from Class Act Designs in February at the Tucson bead shows.
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  • Wedding Jewelry Ideas from a Bride-to-Be
    On August 2, 2008, my life changed forever. My fiancé Michael got down on one knee, took my hand, and asked me to marry him. The first words out of my mouth (wet with joyful tears) were, “Absolutely, 100 percent, yes!”
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  • New: Free Wire Jewelry Ebook
    A Lifetime Supply of Wire When I started working with wire, my local bead shop talked me into a 20-foot spool of silver craft wire for practicing wrapped loops. I left there convinced that I had bought a "lifetime" supply of wire. It took me
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  • Learn Odd-Count Peyote: Free Video and Tips
    Do you think odd-count peyote is a wicked ol’ stitch? Does the extra time and tangle to make that quirky figure-8 twist at the end of every row just burn you up?
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  • Create These Easy Crystal and Seed Bead Earrings
    I've been looking for an earring project for an April birthday gift and this week's free project from Step by Step Beads, Crystal Corona Earrings, is perfect. The materials (crystal bicones, seed beads, ear wires) are common ones you're likely to have in your stash already or could easily
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  • Create an Artsy Pinwheel Necklace
    Have you ever created a necklace with more than one focal bead? When I saw Katie Hacker's free Perfect Pinwheels necklace from Beadwork, I admired how she managed to use more than one large bead in her asymmetrical necklace. While I've combined smaller beads together to make larger pendants,
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  • Jean's Top 4 Bead Trends for 2009
    I don’t wear the latest fashions, have a cutting-edge hairstyle, or know the latest greatest new bands. In truth, my fashion needs don’t require much more than a t-shirt and jeans, long hair means no fussing, and the soundtrack to my life includes music purchased on CDs rather than on iTunes. But there
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  • Free Video: Learn Peyote Stitch Today
    In my beginner tap class we practice the basic steps over and over. Single taps, single flaps. The fun part is adding sounds to the basic taps, taking a shuffle and making it double shuffle, then combining basics into a time step, a double time step, a triple buck time step! The more sounds we make,
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  • New: Enter the Semiprecious Beads Contest
    When you're starting out, it's easiest to string one or two types of beads together. Combining three or more can be tricky. You'll need to juggle multiple colors and possibly different shapes and sizes. Because of the design skill involved, I thought it would make a great Beading Daily reader
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  • Fun Ways to Combine Semiprecious Stones
    Admit it. You’re interested in the healing properties of semiprecious stones. You may think the notion is a known fact or a bunch of garbage, but when someone mentions it, you either *** your ears or raise your hackles.
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  • Quick Beaded Valentine Cards, Plus New Reader Gallery
    The first reader gallery of 2009 includes designs by 35 readers from all over the world, including Mexcio, Greece, the United Kingdom, and Germany. From simple strung necklaces to a Victorian-style beaded bag with size 15 beads to a bead embroidered pin, you'll find something to love in this gallery
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  • 5 Reasons to Love Glass Beads
    To my delight, an advanced copy of my new book, Create Jewelry: Glass, arrived a couple of days ago. It’s been nearly a year since I finished making the projects and writing the instructions. Seeing the projects in print brings back memories of just how much fun this book was to make. Of the four books
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  • Romantic Beaded Fringe: 3 Lacy Techniques
    It was Valentine’s Day, 1985…my husband and I had been dating for a couple years…and this was the day I knew romance, poetry, and flowers wouldn’t be a big part of our relationship: He gave me a bottle of red-colored Listerine.
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  • Beads, Baubles, and Jewels TV: Behind the Scenes
    A few weeks ago, we taped thirteen segments for the 2009 spring season of the PBS-TV show Beads, Baubles & Jewels, which airs in June. Our theme this time was “Taking your jewelry-making to the next level,” and all our final projects and step-outs were completed immediately following the holiday
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  • 5 Shopping Tips for the Tucson Bead Shows
    Usually the weather in Minnesota at this time of year makes people cuss and throw things. But I’m happily whistling away as I pack up beading kits and my Bermuda shorts. You see, I get to join 60,000 of my rock, gem, and beading enthusiast buddies and head down to Tucson, Arizona in a couple weeks!
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  • Michelle's First Trip to the Tucson Bead Shows
    Beading Daily editor Michelle Mach shares photos and news of her first trip to the Tucson Bead Shows, February 2-6, 2009.
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  • Meet the New Beadwork Editor Plus Five Free Peyote Patterns
    Meet the new editor of Beadwork, Melinda Barta. An interview by editorial director Marlene Blessing.
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  • Create Oxidized Wire Post Earrings
    Some days (OK, most days) you amaze me! In the Reader Showcase area of the forums, I was blown away by Australian member Huan Pham who created the beautiful wireworked seahorse pictured here. Isn't it amazing? View the larger photo in the forums if you want to be impressed by his precise wirewrapping
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  • How to Bezel Cabochons and Answers to Other Reader Questions
    Beading Daily readers are full of questions! I was reminded of this when editor Michelle Mach sent me dozens of your questions this month, ranging anywhere from “How do I hang an 18mm heart pendant? Jump rings don’t seem to work.” (use a pinch or prong bail instead) to “How do I remove a crimp cover
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  • Match Your Jewelry to Your Neckline
    In the winter issue of Stringing, editor Danielle Fox wrote a great article titled "Jewelry Rules: How to Accessorize 5 Favorite Tops." The basic idea is that different types of necklines work best with different types of jewelry. I found the article fascinating--probably because I've figured
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  • Are You the Next Bead Star?
    Singers have American Idol. Fashion designers have Project Runway. Cooks have Top Chef. And now beaders have . . Bead Star!
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  • Create an Easy Elastic Beaded Bracelet
    Here's a confession guaranteed to fill up my inbox with reader mail: My favorite beaded watch is made with pretty Kazuri ceramic beads in various shades of blue, silver beads, and a silver watch face. Very simple to make and easy to wear. So what's the big deal?
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  • How to Store Pearls, Plus Free Necklace Instructions
    When I read Jean Campbell's post on last-minute gift-giving, I had to laugh when she mentioned pearl jewelry as one of her go-to last-minute gift ideas. Pearls (rather than crystals or gemstones) are definitely my go-to bead type when I'm stumped for a design idea or need a quick project.
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  • Make Easy Patterned Metal Earrings
    My friend Jan recently dragged me to a knitting class. Of course, I knew that we'd need to buy yarn and needles (I do work for Interweave, after all!), but I was suprised to learn that we needed more than two needles, plus a stitch holder and darning needle. (And a crochet hook for those klutzy types
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  • Your Favorite Beading Gifts and a Simple Winter Bracelet
    Months ago I asked Beading Daily readers to share their favorite bead-related gifts. If you're still shopping, take a look at these ideas that will fit a range of budgets, including a few that won't cost you a dime!
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  • Free Right Angle Weave Bracelet Instructions
    Some beading abbreviations crack me up. "RAW" (right-angle weave) is one of them. I told a non-beading friend that I was writing about RAW this week and she paused and then politely said, "I didn't know you were into wrestling."
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  • Last-Minute Beading Gift-Making Ideas
    We both know that a handmade piece of jewelry is one of the nicest gifts you can give someone. People love receiving jewelry that was designed specifically with them in mind, and when the wearer knows the designer personally, she’s afforded another layer of bragging rights.
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  • Free Seed Bead and Crystal Peyote Bracelet Project
    If it's been your dream to see your project published, but have felt nervous about the submission process, you'll find inspiration in Lynn Davy's story. One of her first submissions was to the "Bead Boy" reader challenge in Beadwork magazine two years ago. She might never have worked
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  • Pick Your Prize Winners, Plus Meet an 18-Year-Old Jewelry Designer
    What can a passionate seed bead artist who’s just eighteen accomplish? Anything she wants! I first saw Scarlett Lanson while she was viewing the stunning crystal creations in Swarovski’s annual design contest display during this year’s Tucson Bead Shows. Little did I know that this young woman in jeans
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  • 6 Brick Stitch Tips, Plus Free Seed Bead Pendant Project
    Brick stitch, aptly named for the way the beads sit like bricks in a wall, has to be one of my favorite all time stitches. After building my bead vocabulary with lots of techniques, I still rely on brick stitch in its many forms for most of my signature designs.
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  • Vintage Jewelry Inspiration: Design Sketches and Ideas
    In the fall issue of Stringing, the editors (Melinda Barta, Danielle Fox, and Elizabeth Murray) all went shopping at flea markets, antique stores, and thrift stores and with some advice from jewelry designer Mysti Gulsrud, they each created a design using modern components and antique finds.
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  • Free Wire Spiral Earrings, Plus New Reader Gallery
    What makes a piece of jewelry a "winter" design? Is it jewelry type? I hardly ever create bracelets for winter because I know they'll just be buried under miles of sweaters and jackets.
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  • Fearlessly Creative: An Interview with Kristal Wick
    Kristal Wick is one of those folks who sparkle with creativity-- just take a look at her colorful new book, Fabulous Fabric Beads! I was lucky enough to catch a few minutes with Kristal before she took off to the International Quilt Show in Houston. I asked her about her signature beads, her love of
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  • Tips for Making Your Own Fabric Beads, Plus Kristal Wick Interview
    A few years ago I tried to make beads from ribbons. Sounds pretty easy, right? Cut a piece of ribbon, roll it up, and glue it. What could possibly go wrong? (How much time do you have?) My beads came apart at the seams and they were easily squashed. I couldn't figure out how much ribbon should overlap
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  • Learn to Create Wire Jewelry on a Budget
    One of the things I love most about jewelry is the diversity it affords (no pun intended!). Sure, I drool over the Tiffany’s catalogs, and gawk at the windows in the Diamond District when I’m in New York City. But my favorite pieces of jewelry contain no gold and no precious stones. Instead
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  • Pick Your Prize Giveaway, Plus Power of Beading Contest Winners
    We raised $1,143 for two cancer charities, the American Institute for Cancer Research and The Wellness Community, by selling the instructions for the Awareness Ribbon Pins created by designer Kerrie Slade. Thanks to everyone who helped make our first fundraiser a success! Two lucky readers also won the
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  • Power of Beading Contest Winners
    In September 2008, Beading Daily held a contest for all readers, asking them to tell us how beading helped them through a difficult time. (You can read the original call for submissions.) We received more than 200 entries from all over the world. Kerrie Slade, the U.K. designer who created and donated
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  • Seed Bead and Wire Halloween Earrings
    Do you bead for the holidays? Which ones? Halloween? Easter? Christmas? How about National Chocolate Day (October 28), Poppy Day (November 11), or Read a New Book Month (December)?
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  • Simple Wire and Crystal Ribbon Earrings
    I recently heard from my high school friend Kristy who was planning on running a race in California to raise money for cancer research. When I saw Sandra Lupo's wire earring project, I immediately bought some half-round silver wire and a 5mm rose Swarovski crystal pearl to make a pendant version
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  • Fall Jewelry Trends, Plus New Gallery of Reader Designs
    Fall Jewelry Trends When I say "fall jewelry", what comes to mind? Leaves? Rich colors? Certain metals? Lately I've been reaching for my copper and brass beads and findings--somehow those metals feel more earthy and fall-like. Even when
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  • 5 Tips for Designing with Color
    Color is such a key element of good design. Yet each of us wrestles now and then with being in a color rut—“I only buy purple beads”—or wondering what shade of blue brings out the best in a new multicolored lampwork pendant. Do you ever watch The View on TV? If so, you’ll
    Read More >>
  • Win a $500 Jewelry Supply Shopping Spree
    A quick chain maille necklace is like a quickie meal at an exclusive 5-star restaurant. It just isn't possible!
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  • 5 Tips on Today’s Affordable Semiprecious Stones
    There’s magic in stones, and I’m not just talking about some of their mystical properties. (Certain of them are supposed to be good for everything from courage, to protection, love, and foretelling the future.)When Jamie Hogsett and I recently produced our latest book, Create Jewelry: Stones, I was fascinated
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  • At-Home Tarnish-Busting Remedies
    I help out at one of my local bead shops every so often. As one of the store managers mentioned, it helps sate “Jean’s need for adult conversation.” That pathetic reality aside, I also like to be at the shop to see and hear about what other beaders are making and doing. It’s a
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  • Reader Gallery: Beadweaving + Stringing Projects
    I love combining bits of beadweaving with small bits of stringing or wirework. Check out my Lazy-B Ranch (ladder stitch and stringing) or Love Birds Necklace (daisy chain and wirework) as examples.
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  • Jewelry Using Combined Techniques
    Designs by Beading Daily readers that combine beadweaving techniques like square stitch or herringbone with simpler techniques like stringing or basic wirework.
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  • 5 Ways to Stretch Your Beading Budget
    Beading and saving money are two topics near and dear to my heart. My Celestial Sparkle necklace was inspired when I could only afford a single strand of borosilicate beads. I wanted to showcase them in a necklace, but everyone who saw the tiny strand said I should just give up and make a bracelet. Luckily
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  • Artists Inspiring Other Artists: 3 Examples
    In my editor’s letter in the Summer issue of Stringing, I mention how a comment from Beth Garbo, owner of Mystic, Connecticut’s You’ve GOT to be Beading, struck a chord with me: "Our customers love Stringing magazine—it’s awesome to see them inspired by other artists." It made me realize that
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  • Power Crimping and Other Crimping Tips
    Ah, the time-eating joys of the Internet…I just Googled the word crimp and the #1 entry that came up was the “friendly rap” stylings of The Mighty Boosh, a surrealistic comedy troop that our BBC-viewing friends probably know well. Being from the States, I had no idea! Judging from the half hour I just
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  • Bead Spree Winners
    When I retire from Beading Daily, I want Ed McMahon's job. You know, the guy who drives around handing out those huge million dollar checks?
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  • That's So You! Finding Your Own Personal Jewelry Style
    I have a style, more than one, actually. Along the way from there to here, in the many years I have been making adornment, my work took on a certain look. The shapes of my designs, the materials and techniques, and especially the colors I choose have become part of my identity as an artist. Sometimes
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  • Beading Thread 101
    Many seed-beaders don’t realize that beading threads have different widths, strengths, and qualities and blindly buy their thread based on price, color, or availability. But the type of thread you buy is just as important as the beads themselves. Thread truly is the backbone of an off-loom or loomed
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  • Sketching Beading Designs: Examples and Ideas from Readers
    Back in April, I wrote about how I sketched the design for my chain maille necklace ("Rambling Rose"). I had so many emails from beaders who also sketched their designs that I decided to ask everyone--Do you sketch your designs? More than 1,300 responded and only 26% answered "no"
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  • 5-Minute Hammered Wire Earrings
    Each month, one of the magazine editors will share a free project with Beading Daily. Today's guest editor is Denise Peck, editor in chief of Step by Step Wire Jewelry magazine and senior editor of Jewelry Artist . An editor by trade and a lifelong
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  • A Quick Guide to Bead Speak (A Beginner's Glossary)
    Are you new to beading? Are you wondering what can you do with all those beads you have stashed away? Beading Daily contributing editor Sandi Wiseheart shares a quick overview of some common beading techniques: Stringing: This is the first thing most
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  • Healing Beads: The Special Meanings of Gemstones
    Healing Beads After experiencing a frustrating year of health concerns, doctors, and hospitals in 2007, I started seeing a naturopath. I'd never been to a natural healer and can't claim I welcomed Diane into my life without a big dose of skepticism
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  • Thread is Cheaper Than Frustration and 4 More Thread Tips
    "Thread is cheaper than frustration." That was some recent advice I received from Bead Expo Philadelphia instructor Liz Smith. I laughed when I read her email because it reminded me of when I started to learn beadweaving. Coming from the world
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  • Learn to Create Perfect Simple and Wrapped Loops
    Wired on Wire Remember your first simple loop? I remember mine. Santa Monica, 1990. It wasn't neat and it wasn't pretty, but it opened up a whole new wirey world to me. I guess you could call it an "entry" technique. Not far behind were
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  • How to Win Beading Competions: 6 Tips from a Contest Judge
    What would you do with $1,500? If you had a $1,500 gift certificate to spend at a huge online bead store, what would you buy? Every kind of gemstone available? Enough seed beads or toggle clasps to last a lifetime? A top-of-the-line set of beading tools
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  • 5 New Treasures in My Bead Stash
    I went at little bead crazy at Bead Expo Portland . Maybe it was the crazy weather (sun-rain-hail-snow!). Maybe it was the fact that the last bead show I attended was back in September and I was feeling a bit bead deprived. Maybe it was the huge bead
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  • Must Earrings Match?
    Certain things in life should match: shoes, dinner plates, hubcaps, knitting needles. What about earrings? One of my favorite pair of earrings in college was a cowboy boot and hat set--one silver earring of each. In my mind, the two definitely went together
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  • Glass Design Challenge Winners, Plus More Beading Contests
    More than 150 beaders from around the world submitted their designs to the Glass Bead Challenge! The variety of entries was astonishing--every color palette imaginable and all types of glass beads from crystals and pressed glass to lampwork. After the
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  • Inspired by Attire: Using Clothing to Inspire Jewelry Designs
    Today's guest editor is Danielle Fox, editor of Stringing magazine and author of the new book, Simply Modern Jewelry . Danielle shares her tips for using clothing to inspire jewelry designs. Even if you are already perfectly accessorized, you might
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  • V Scallop Necklace Preview, Plus an Interview with Lisa Kan
    Meet Designer and Dreamer Lisa Kan Have you ever dreamed about quitting your job and beading full time? Lampwork artist and bead designer Lisa Kan had the same dream. In 2001, she was a quality assurance engineer when she began lampworking. Now she sells
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  • 6-Strand Pearl and Crystal Wedding Bracelet
    If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? No wisdom here on that question, but I can tell you that if you whisper the word "wedding" in an empty room, everyone within 50 miles will hear you--and regale
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  • Wedding Jewelry by Readers: A Gallery of Designs
    Nothing makes a room full of jewelry designers more excited than hearing news of an upcoming wedding. Want proof? The Beadwork editors and I recently met with Hwa Soo Park of Ezel Jewels , a talented designer who creates her own tiny, delicate findings
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  • Personalize a Chain Maille Bracelet
    It's All About Family One of the joys of giving handmade jewelry is the ability to create something unique for one particular person--something that you can't just go buy in a cookie-cutter mall. The Dear to My Heart bracelet by Jean Yates is
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  • An Interview with Lisa Kan
    Is there anything that Lisa Kan cannot do? I'm sure there must be something, but I couldn't think of anything! A jewelry designer, lampwork artist, and metalworker, Lisa's beads and finished jewelry can be found in Beadwork, Stringing, and other beading magazines. She regularly sells her
    Read More >>
  • The Dangers and Joys of Braided Thread for Beading
    A First-Aid Kit for Beaders? How's this for an idea? Beaders should keep a first-aid kit near their workstation. I am constantly running to the medicine cabinet to get a bandage. You know like when you're trying to get at a particularly tricky
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  • Top Organization Tips from Readers
    Organization Tips Large and Small Sometimes a small organizational tip can make a huge difference. My headpins are stored in tiny plastic bags and as a result, they are bent every which way. When contest finalist Susan Jacob mentioned that she kept her
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  • Beginner Project: Peyote Stackable Rings
    On Wednesday, Jean Campbell talked about not wearing her beaded rings until she was inspired by artist Frida Kahlo who apparently lived by the jewelry motto "more is better"! I confess do not wear my beaded rings either. (I'm sensing the
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  • Jewelry Ideas for Valentine's Day
    Isn't It Romantic? I'm not an especially romantic person, particularly when it comes to jewelry design. As I mentioned in an earlier post (" Playing with Color ") I have no pink beads in my bead collection and certainly no heart beads
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  • Choose Your Free Beading Project
    Introducing Bead Romantique Last fall I saw a preview of the new spring beading books from Interweave. There are some terrific new books coming out, but the one that really captured my imagination was Bead Romantique by Lisa Kan. ( See a preview .) This
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  • 12 Reader Tips for Selling Your Jewelry
    I never used to wear jewelry to the grocery store, but after reading about all the sales that Beading Daily readers have had standing in the checkout line (" Your First Sale "), I'm rethinking that business strategy! Here are a dozen more
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  • Peyote-Stitch Barrette with Picot Edging
    Creating the Flower Girl Barrette Writers are often advised to imagine their ideal reader and write for that person. A recent Beadwork challenge proved to me that this advice could be adapted for jewelry designers as well. Free Project: Flower Girl Barrette
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  • Ideas for Floral Earrings
    Free Project: Caribbean Breeze by Sandi Wiseheart I know, I know. Most of you are probably glancing outside at all the snow and ice on the ground and wondering if I have my calendar wrong. Yes, it's still January and yes, I'm talking about floral
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  • 10 Reasons We Love Making Beaded Gifts
    y Holiday Beading Above: One of my holiday gifts decorated with a ceramic snowman bead from Studio 59 . I've finished my holiday beading! It helped that my list was short this year--two pairs of earrings, a purple chain maille bracelet, and a few
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  • Easy Beaded Snowflakes
    Easy Beaded Snowflake Ornaments View the snowflake gallery It's that wonderful time of the year. Well, wonderful for some; wonderfully stressful for others with not only the holidays, but all that year-end, wrap-up stuff at work. I decided to offer
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  • Ideas and Tips for Using Bugle Beads
    I have a growing collection of bugle beads that I don't know what to do with. Red bugle beads, silver bugle beads, green, blue, purple . . . (Am I the only one who buys beads with not even the foggiest idea for project?) Every once in awhile, I pull
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  • Meet the Beading Daily Challenge Winners
    Beading Daily Challenge Winners Thirty-four brave beaders took the first Beading Daily challenge: It Takes Two. For this challenge, beaders had to choose two techniques and create an original pair of earrings. Wireworking was definitely the most popular
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  • Elegant Netted Bracelet
    Can I get you a bracelet with that moose? Does it matter where you sell your jewelry? Over the weekend, I had two very different experiences shopping for beaded items. On Saturday, I went to a craft show in another town. The show, held in a historic building
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  • O-Ring, Crystal, and Wire Earrings
    Oh, Those O-Rings! When was the last time you shopped in a hardware store for your jewelry components? (It's been a couple of months for me, personally.) This week's featured project from the editors of Step by Step Wire Jewelry uses three sizes
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  • 4 Beaded Bead Projects
    Making Ladder Stitch Beads Step by Step Beading Daily Reader Chris O. asked for illustrations for this week's featured project, the Lazy-B Ranch Bracelet . I took some quick step-by-step photos at my kitchen table. I used dark thread so that you could
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  • The Beaded Sculptures of Natasha St. Michael
    Meet Bead Artist Natasha St. Michael I first learned about Natasha St. Michael's three-dimensional beaded sculptures when looking through back issues of Fiberarts magazine. For those of you not familiar with Fiberarts , this internationally focused
    Read More >>
  • The Amazing Power of Beads
    If there was a fire threatening your home and you had only minutes to grab a few things, what would you take? One Beading Daily reader and Beadwork contributor, Cathi Tessier, knows. Cathi was one of the estimated 500,000 people recently evacuated in
    Read More >>
  • The Sparkle of Silver (And Other Favorite Metals)
    The Sparkle of Silver (And Other Favorite Metals) Rectangle Bangle by Stephanie Everett features silver wire. Who doesn't love silver? Apparently, not many! More than 1,000 readers voted in the latest poll ("What's your favorite metal?"
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  • Are you up to The Challenge?
    The First Beading Daily Challenge I'm SO excited to announce the first challenge for Beading Daily members! I was supposed to wait until Friday to announce it, but frankly, I thought I might explode if I waited any longer! The theme: It Takes Two
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  • A Case of Bead Doom
    A Case of Bead Doom On Wednesday (" Make Your Own Pendant "), I wrote about creating the Love Birds Necklace , my Beadwork challenge piece. After finishing the pendant, I thought the necklace needed something more--like individual seed bead
    Read More >>
  • Beads. . .It's What's for Dinner
    From your wrist to the table: The Faerie Queen Cuff Beads for dinner? Not literally, of course. I may not wear a lot of glittery jewelry myself, but I love seeing my table dressed up! A much smaller version of the Faerie Queen Cuff makes a beautiful napkin
    Read More >>
  • Shining Example Necklace
    Happy Labor Day! If you have the day off, I hope you're enjoying yourself! Traditionally, Labor Day has marked the end of summer and the beginning of fall in the U.S., even though summer officially does not end until September 22. I always find this
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  • A Wedding Story
    Many beaders I know got their start making wedding jewelry. When I heard how Rebecca Campbell created the Filigree Drops (from the book, Create Jewelry: Crystals ) for her sister's wedding, I knew I wanted to share her story with you. I hope you enjoy
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  • Dazzle Them with Crystals!
    In a recent survey, 44% of Beading Daily readers named crystals one of their favorite types of beads. Most crystal fanatics are fascinated by the sparkle and shine of crystals, but I find the names of the crystal colors intoxicating: rose alabaster, padparadscha
    Read More >>
  • Fluent in Beads: An Interview with Carol Huber Cypher
    This is my first official post on the road. I'm at BeadFest Philadelphia this weekend, so if you're at the show, please stop by the Interweave booth and say hello! I first met Carol Huber Cypher at Bead Expo in April, when she stopped by the Beading
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  • 10 Reasons to Bead Happy
    Ever have one of those weeks? You rip your skirt getting out of the car, your boss says something upsetting, the grocery store has absolutely no mint chip ice cream . . . And then something happens to put it all into perspective. In my case, I found a
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  • Designing with Pearls
    Wild Trellis shows off top-drilled pearls Katie Hacker recently wrote a fun blog entry titled " Then and Now ," where she described the process of pulling out old projects to see how far you've come. (She has a photo of friendships pins
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  • Color Your World
    My green pearl nightmare! I spent the weekend experimenting with color. For my first experiment, I used Jamie Hogsett's Champagne Necklace (from the new book, Create Jewelry: Pearls ) as my inspiration. I used a narrower ribbon and thinner wire (26
    Read More >>
  • Fall Trends in Jewelry Design
    I have mixed feelings about fashion trends. On the one hand, I get bored easily and I like to shake things up. On the other hand, I have a considerable collection of embarrassing photos of me wearing trends that, well, let's just say didn't hold
    Read More >>
  • Y-Necklaces: Why Not?
    The Y-necklace (along with The Rachael haircut) was one of the lasting effects from the popular TV show Friends . As you can see from the photo, the Y-necklace is named for its "Y" shape. A recent article in JCK.com mentions the comeback of
    Read More >>
  • Dragonfly Pin and Other Beading Challenges
    The Challenge The idea behind the Beadwork challenge is simple: give different designers the same materials and see what they create. The August/September 2007 kit was from Lady Bug Beads and contained seed beads, Czech pressed-glass beads, crystal bicones
    Read More >>
  • A Handful of Beads
    I bought these beautiful borosilicate (boro) teardrop beads from Sonoran Beads at a bead show last fall. I loved the way the beads snuggled up next to one another on the elastic strand and the springtime blue/green color combination. I wanted to make
    Read More >>
  • Calling All Bead Princesses!
    “Perhaps we all need a little tiara magic in our lives. . .”—Sandi Wiseheart, Faerie Crown designer For those of us who are not afraid to let our inner princess out—at least in the privacy of our own home—the Faerie Crown
    Read More >>
  • Creating the Spiral of Kronos Necklace
    Beading Daily contributing editor Sandi Wiseheart describes her experience with the April/May 2007 Beadwork challenge kit supplied by lampwork artist Cindy Gimbrone . "Cindy Gimbrone calls her lampwork spirals "The Spiral of Kronos." There
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  • Love Those Lariats!
    If you're ready to move slightly beyond a basic strung necklace, try the Lovely Lariat Tassel . It starts out like a very long—more than 4 feet—single strand of Swarovski crystals, seed beads, pearls, carnelian rondelles, cintrine beads
    Read More >>
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