Bead Arts

There are literally hundreds of books that you could buy on the art of working with seed beads, and most of them are good books, with something good to offer. And since I’m a book and magazine junkie, I own most of them. The ones that I don’t own, I’ve read, courtesy of the local library. It was hard, but I’ve whittled the list down to the very few books that I think are really the best of the best. The first two are excellent books that cover many techniques. The rest are specific to a particular stitch and go into an amazing amount of detail.

The Art of Seed Beading
By Elizabeth Gourley
The author emphasizes the how-to in this book. Every one of the more than 25 projects focuses on a specific tool or technique, complete with color graphs, a list of materials, size and measurements, a color photo, and diagrams.

Making Designer Seed Bead, Stone, and Crystal Jewelry
By Tammy Powley
Beginners will find enough detailed instructions to get started while more advanced jewelry makers will find it provides new ideas for using stitches in different ways.

Beading With Brick Stitch
By Diane Fitzgerald
Focusing solely on brick stitch, this unique guide presents 10 exciting beading projects-from tassels to necklaces-along with detailed, illustrated instructions.

Beading With Peyote Stitch
By Jeannette Cook, Vicki Star
Here is everything the beader needs to know about using peyote stitch to create both flat and three-dimensional pieces. Thread, beads, graphing techniques, and five projects are thoroughly explained, and a brief history, with photographs.

Beading With Herringbone Stitch
By Vicki Star
The herringbone stitch is a versatile and unique off-loom bead technique. This guide offers a thorough historical and cultural background of the stitch, along with complete instructions for creating beautiful beaded projects.

Beading with Right Angle Weave
By Christine M. Prussing
The right angle weave stitch is demystified in this beading handbook. All projects include easy-to-follow instructions and illustrations for both single- and two-needle techniques.

Bead Embroidery
By Valerie Campbell-Harding, Pamela Watts
Emphasizing how beads add color, texture and beauty to a piece of work, they guide the reader through a variety of traditional and contemporary techniques, including bead weaving; sewing “trapped” beads; stitching beads onto mesh and canvas; and adding them to fringes, edges, cords, chains, and tassels.

Beaded Embellishment
By Amy C Clarke, Robin Atkins
Beaders, quilters, and fiber artists will find this book invaluable for its solid technical information about how to apply beads to cloth, resulting in unique creations that will stand the test of time.

handmade-beaded-jewelry, wearable-art, beads, beading, jewelry, mixed-media