Beading Arts

Super Simple Jewelry: Modern, Versatile Pieces to Make in 30 Minutes or Less by Inc. Kollabora Bead-opedia: The Only Beading Reference You'll Ever Need by Kerrie Berrie 26 Quick Stitched Elements: Endless Jewelry Possibilities   by Thomasin Alyxander ( my review ) Let's Hubble!: A journey into the brand new beadwork stitch by Melanie de Miguel The Complete Guide to Making Wire Jewellery: From Beginner to Advanced, Techniques, Projects & Patterns by Wing Mun Devenney Bead Play Every Day: 20+ Projects with Peyote, Herringbone, and More by Beth Stone Handmade Jewelry: The Beginners Guide to Making Homemade Beaded, Clay, Fabric and Wooden Jewelry by Sandra Etsy Technorati Tags: bead embroidery , handmade beaded jewelry , wearable art , beads , jewelry , necklace , mixed media , beading

The piece I learned to make in a class taught by Nancy Eha I like to take a class from time to time, but I haven't taken one for awhile.  So I've been mulling over what I might like to do and thinking back on the classes I've taken in the past that I think were really successful.  A number of years ago, my friend Debbie emailed me to suggest that we go take a beading class together , and my first thought was that it would be a pleasant way to spend the day with her, but not much more.  Wrong!  It turned out to be one of the best classes I've ever taken.   Although I’m used to teaching myself whatever technique interests me, either by the brute force of trial and error or by reading about it, I’m not a total stranger to the classroom.  Usually I like to take technique-based classes to improve my learning curve, or when the subject included expensive equipment that I wanted to try out before launching into buying it.  But here was Debbie, sugge...

Repair Clay Sculpture DIY Is this clay sculpture beyond repair? Eileen's puppy smashed it; then ate some of the pieces! Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Looking for easy crafts to make for the upcoming holiday season? Jean reviews the fun-filled felt crafting book, 'Tis the Season to Be Felt-y ! Don't miss this one! My Grandmother's Fruit Salad Here's a recipe that has been popular in our family. Over the years, friends and in laws have enjoyed it and continue to make it for their family. Halloween Square Pattern Connie's added a free Halloween-themed chart that will be a treat to trick out with buttons, beads, or charms. DIY Tassel Necklace This simple necklace can be made in about five minutes from a tassel keychain. Easy and on trend for fall! Book Review A new video-based book review is up on the Crafty Princess' YouTube channel.

This is the kind of book that I just love!  Lots of little motifs or elements, as Thomasin Alyxander calls them, endless possibilities for combining and recombining into lovely jewelry!   26 Quick Stitched Elements is published by Kalmbach, so you know you will get the well-illustrated basics in the back, and the easy to follow instructions and illustrations throughout the whole book. Alyx wants you to be able to take her elements and use them as in all sorts of projects, so she shows many different colorways, variations in details, and suggested uses for each one.  The book focuses on shaped beads, and on integrating them with seed beads, rounds, and bicone crystals.  There are lots of rounded elements included, which can be used in so many ways: as earrings, bracelet pieces, charms, pendants, part of a more complicated necklace, etc.  There are complicated-looking jewelry projects included, but after you've read through the elements portion, you'll see ...

I love the colors turquoise and copper together.  Since blue and orange are complementary colors on the color wheel, both hues seem to pop out when they are used together Whenever I make a heavy necklace, I tend to make it longer to help balance the weight.  If you follow the instructions here exactly, you will end up with a very long necklace that adjusts from 27 to 30 inches.  I like to twist the necklace up to wear it, which shortens it somewhat, but it is still a very long piece.  If this will be too long for your frame, shorten it up accordingly. Materials & Tools 40” beading wire , brick red, .019” diameter 5’ copper chain , 21 gauge Copper end bars with chain and clasp , 3 hole Beads : 56 copper open hex beads, 8mm 77 copper bicones 78 turquoise rounds, 4mm 43 carved MOP leaves, mix of turquoise, light and dark amber colors Turquoise donut, 40mm 6 hammered copper disks with hole, 10mm Copper bail tube with loop 15-20 seed beads, size ...

Silhouette Word Art Stencil Design a Silhouette word art stencil on cheap self-adhesive shelf liner. Links to free font downloads used and how to ungroup, weld and slice letters in Silhouette Studio. Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean continues to be interested in making 5 wrap bracelets and shares some thoughts and tips! Bead Crochet The Crafty Princess reviews a new book about bead crochet. Art Bead Scene Do you like a beady challenge, asks Michelle! The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton Labradorite was the inspiration for the Warrior Stone Challenge. See what the participants made with this lovely kit!

See part one from last week at the link. Metal Fabrication Soldered Alchemy by Laura Beth Love Seed Beads Stitching with Two-Hole Shaped Beads by Virginia Jensen Beautiful Designs with Super Duos and Twin Beads   by Carolyn Cave Bead Metamorphosis by Lisa Kan Beaded Ropes and Chains by Karin Van Vorhees Bead Play with Tassels by Jamie Cloud Eakin

Back in the Spring, I made a bead embroidered pendant with ribbons as the background.  Once Spring was over, I started thinking that the Easter egg shape wasn't as versatile as I wanted for long term wearing.  I put a lot of thought, work, and time into the original design, so I was kind of hesitant to change it and possible "ruin" it. Before But, as it turns out, change can be a very good thing!  See my update here . Copyright 2015 Cyndi Lavin. All rights reserved. Not to be reprinted, resold, or redistributed for profit. May be printed out for personal use or distributed electronically provided that entire file, including this notice, remains intact.

Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean reviews a fab book by Keiko Sakamoto on wrap bracelets: DIY Wrap Bracelets, 25 Designs using beads,thread, ribbon,cord and more. So fun! Blue Mood Connie's added a new chart to her Etsy shop that will be easily adapted to any holiday or season. Find links to all her pattern sources in the blog as well. Get Colorful Coloring intricate designs is a new trend for adults and a great way to relieve stress. The Crafty Princess has a free downloadable image from a new coloring book available on her weblog. Art Bead Scene Check out Claire's inspiring take on this month's challenge painting - and her art bead selections to whet your appetite! Chalk Paint Plaque — Something Wonderful Recipes for chalk paint and how to use it to create an inspirational wall plaque. The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton This just in! Pantone has announced the Fashion Color Report for Spring 2016! What's your favorite ch...

I get to review a lot of books each year, and I thought it might be helpful to list the ones I've done so far in 2015 by topic.  Here's the first half of the list...part two will be next week.  These are good books for you to consider for gifts or for yourself! Wirework Modern Chain Mail Jewelry   by Marilyn Gardiner Soldered Alchemy   by Laura Beth Love Decorative Wire Findings   by Melody MacDuffee Advanced Chain Maille Jewelry Workshop by Karen Karon Freeform Wire Art Jewelry by Gayle Bird Handcrafted Metal Findings by Denise Peck and Jane Dickerson Design Crafter's Guide to Patterns   by Jessica Swift Easy Jewelry Making by Bead Style magazine Jewelry Making 1-2-3 by Karin Van Voorhees 18 Beaded Jewelry Projects by Dorothy Wood Fiber Fiber & Cord Jewelry   by Ashley Bunting Part two will be posted next week!

Calypso ~ total necklace is 24 inches in length,  central pendant is 3-1/2 x 3 inches 1. Glue 3 ammonite slabs (or other cabochons ) onto ultra-suede . Bead embroider around the slabs, adding seed beads , freshwater pearls, and coin pearls .  I used many vintage seed beads in this piece, including rare French cut steels, but easily available Delicas can be substituted.  The instructions for stitching back stitch and stack stitch, used here are in the free first chapter of my e-book, Every Bead Has a Story .   2.  Back the embroidered pieces with another piece of ultra-suede to hide the stitching, and stitch beads all the way around each piece to cover the raw edges.  I used edging brick stitch, which is also taught in the free chapter linked above.   3.  Create 2 freeform peyote pieces with seed beads, pearls, and lampworked beads (I used my own), which are stitched to the embroidered pieces in order to join them. 4.  Fr...

Snap out of it, Jean! There's beading to be done! Jean discusses the beauty of wrap bracelets and shows her most recent creation! Decoupage Outdoor Furniture Products and techniques to decoupage outdoor furniture including step-by-step picnic table directions. Art Bead Scene Check out September's gorgeous new challenge piece from artist Vanessa Bell! Necklace Tutorial Crystals, Pearl beads, and chain make up with colorful necklace that has an antique feel to it. SAL Diamond Three Connie's posted the latest Diamond section for the free SAL (stitch-along) and she shows two different examples of how it could be stitched. The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton Soldering is fun and Andrew has been obsessed with making rings. But... he took a short break to whip up a pair of earrings!

Handcrafted Metal Findings: 30 Creative Jewelry Components   by Denise Peck & Jane Dickerson  Interweave/F+W; $24.99 Commercial findings are great, and can save you time when you're constructing a piece of jewelry, but there are plenty of times when nothing but your own handmade design will do!  Do you really want to see the piece you spent 40 to 50 hours on sporting the same popular clasp as everyone else's piece? Denise Peck and Jane Dickerson have teamed up to edit and present Handcrafted Metal Findings , published by Interweave .  They use both sheet metal and wire to craft 30 different findings.  And almost as a bonus, there is a step-by-step project included to showcase each finding being used.  In the back are basic techniques, materials, and tools sections, just in case you're not familiar with all that the projects entail. Joy of joys!  There is a "Resources" box for each project, telling you exactly where you can g...