Bead Journey

Twenty-five projects from the BeadStyle Around the World special issue and eight new projects showcase beads and jewelry styles from all over the globe. The step-by-step photos and instructions and projects from Asia and the Pacific Rim, Africa, Europe, and the Americas, make this an easy-to-follow and unique beading guide you’ll want to learn from.

Beading experts, teachers, and jewelry designers Bert and Dana Freed share their expertise in this delightful collection of jewelry patterns and projects. Using a wide range of stunning beads in lovely color combinations, the pieces may look complicated, but are very easy to make following the clearly explained techniques and directions. The projects are organized so that you start with the foundation of bead crochet---the basic chain stitch---then progress through each level to achieve more advanced techniques. Each section opens with clear photographs that demonstrate the techniques needed for the proceeding projects. The "Advanced Tips and Tricks" at the end of the book offer additional tips and tricks for making your bead crochet experience go as smoothly as possible. Beautifully photographed, Bead Crochet Jewelry provides all the inspiration and skills you need to create unique jewelry pieces to wear or give as wonderful gifts. From dangling earrings to chunky necklaces and plaited bracelets, these beautiful and intricate-looking pieces are sure to stand out and be admired by all.

Bead Play Every Day features over 20 projects with a creative twist on traditional stitching techniques. Stitchers will learn a single technique by making a small, easy to complete component. Then, through repetition and creative experimentation, they will take on a larger project to perfect the technique. The results are beautifully stitched necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Beth Stone has a dimensional, inquisitive approach to stitching that is perfect for stitchers who are ready to experiment with making their own design choices.

"Beadwork is a puzzle with infinite solutions," says author and bead artist Beth Stone. In Seed Bead Stitching, she explored the many possibilities for creating jewelry with colorful seed beads and charming accents such as pearls and gemstones. In More Seed Bead Stitching, Stone, whose encouraging tone, creativity, and expert knowledge made the previous book so popular, includes new techniques, more variations on techniques, and more detail on concepts she previously introduced. The book contains a wealth of options for making gorgeous beaded jewelry. After outlining the basics and supplies, Stone presents a series of styles such as Ndebele, Daisy, Inspiration, Peyote, and Spiral, with variations for each. Equally useful for crafts of any skill level, the book includes a dozen different fringe techniques; strategies for combining tubular stitches and accent beads; a section on skinny stitches; and a bonus project of square pillows.

On the anniversary of the plane crash that took the life of her beloved grandmother and threw her own mother into deep depression, 16-year-old Katelyn Marie Roberts discovers a single bead from her grandmother’s rosary—a rosary lost in the crash. A chance encounter with a stranger, who tells Katelyn that a similar bead saved her friend’s life, launches Katelyn and her family on a quest to find the other missing beads. Their journey, filled with glimmers of hope, mystical events and unexplained grace helps Katelyn understand that faith, family and the help of others can restore what was lost.

Step-by-step photographs and illustrations guide readers through the basics of classic stitches and playful variations. Includes an introduction to the basics of beads, threads, and bead-stitching techniques.

Jewelry makers are always on the lookout for quick, easy projects they can create to give as gifts or teach in on-site classes. In Ready, Set, Bead!, popular teacher and designer Jane Danley Cruz offers more than 25+ projects that can all be created in less than four hours, some with variations and alternate colorways. The projects are arranged by time to completion, from quickest to longest. All the instructions and photos for each project are contained within the projects, so the reader does not need to refer to a separate section for basic stitch guidance. The projects are suitable for beginning stitchers or more experienced jewelry makers looking to create quick, unique gifts or teach classes. Stitches include herringbone, netting, and right-angle weave, and all beads, findings, and materials are readily available in bead and craft stores.

An inspirational, hands-on how-to guide for making and praying with beads, for people of all faiths and traditions. In stories and pictures, this book shows how people of all faith traditions use prayer beads as a spiritual tool and a means of expressing their creativity. Every major world religion has a tradition of praying with beads and all are explored here, including the history and use of beads and specific prayers. Describes in detail and with diagrams how to make sets of prayer beads for personal use.