The Art of Beadwork: Techniques and Inspirational Projects for Creating Exquisite Pieces

Skill Level: Intermediate or very advanced beginnerI have to confess: I bought this book for the gorgeous necklace on the cover. It's so pretty and colorful, it looks like candy. But as I started delving into the book, I discovered that I was getting some real tutoring in not just the beading stitches and theory, but graphs and explanations on how to do things the _right_ way, not the self-taught way that has served me fairly well for many years. The first seventeen pages are a gallery of gorgeous finished projects to whet your appetite, then the next thirty are the obligatory lesson which goes through the beads, threads and tools. The big, huge difference between this book and so many of the other beading books that I've read is that this intro section is worth reading. It talks about different needles and _why_ you want to you a needle by a specific manufacturer and size.The next hundred or so pages are devoted to techniques and projects. Each stitch and its variations are described in detail, then a project or two is shown with both well written directions as well as pictures and graphs which clarify everything. If you can follow directions, you can do these projects, which range from a nice bracelet made in simple ladder stitch to netting, loomwork and combination stitches. One special project I really liked was a relatively simple strand of toggles. The whole necklace was made of beaded toggles, spread out every four inches or so. The toggles were all black and white hexagons with a colored bar and a strip of matching colored beading separating the toggles. Not really difficult, but a real stunner when it's made correctly.The last section shows projects by visiting bead artists, and the same beautiful directions and pictures necessary to make them. There were so many beautiful projects that I couldn't decide which one to make first. Then the book finishes with a couple of handy tables and definitions, just to make sure you have everything you need. :-)A definite winner and well worth the space necessary on the very crowded beady bookshelf!

I like the layout of this book. Its filled with all the techniques and projects to do in basic stitches like ladder, square, brick, herringbone, peyote, right-angle-weave, and netting and spiral. Plus its filled with a colorful gallery of pictures of beaded jewelry , a chart of the different sizes in beads etc., plus pages of findings and tools to use. I bought this book because for each beaded artwork they have a demonstration of how to do a stitch, step by step photos, yes this is how you really learn a stitch when you don't have a video.

I'm using this book to learn the basic steps in beading. I have not done beadiing before.Thank you, Karen Zeiller

I've been beading about as long as the author so I'm very impressed with her book and patterns, My favorite is the Russian leaf in peyote stitch as I just recently learned it myself. The basics are well presented and very useful. This is one of the few new books with a good section on CRAW. There is a CRAW necklace also. The illustrations are very clear (much better than those in Beadwork magazine). There is also a good section on weaving with a loom. In addition to the author's projects there are 5 guest designers as well. I can recommend this book for beaders of every level.

Great reference book for beaders of ALL levels. This book is very current. Jane's writing is very conversational and I was delighted by all the anecdotal tips sprinkled in the book that show Jane has really 'been there' when she's talking about her beading experiences and sharing her wisdom! This book covers all aspects of beading from supplies to techniques, and has a great selection of projects.I highly recommend this book and feel that it should be in every beader's library!

If you're looking for the ultimate in complex patterns, this book is not for you. If you need reminders for some basic but seldom used techniques, they are well organized and illustrated. The book (unlike many others) includes some really great and clear information for novice beaders, including explanations of beads, threads and needles. I'm glad to have this in my library although I now qualify as an intermediate.

I love eye candy and inspiration books for my own designs. Instruction are secondary to me as I own quite a few technique books and find whatever I need in that respect on the internet. As long as there are talented people creating beautiful books like this, I will buy them.

It has a lot of projects to try out. It has a lot of cool pictures and ideas to add to your own work.

One of my absolute favourite bead weaving books, I was incredibly lucky to buy this direct from Amazon in brand new condition when it was only around £2. However, I would definitely have paid full price for it as it includes everything one needs to know to start bead weaving. In stark contrast to some books, this has very clear and nicely sized colour photos showing every step to learn essential stitches, such as spiral, square, brick stitch, and more.It really is a beautiful, comprehensive and fascinating book full of both basic and advanced patterns and ideas. I'll definitely be buying future books by Jane Lock, although I would advise the need to ensure it isn't simply a re-release with a different cover as I did unwittingly buy a second version of this same book as it was previously released with a different cover. Nevertheless, I look forward to hopefully seeing more of Jane's new publications.

Good read

Technik und mehr zeigt das Buch The Art of Beadwork von Jane Lock. Gut zum verstehen und nach arbeiten -toll-

I like this book, lots of great ideas and instructions seem clear. The only negative is the cover photo. I ordered the book because I was really interested in the necklace on the cover and it is not even in the book.

Diese Buch ist auch ohne Englischkentnisse zu verstehen.Bei der Einleitung wird sehr gut auf die verschiedenen Materiealien eingegenagen sehr gut für Anfänger.Ich habe mir dieses Buch schon wegen dem schönen bunten Einband gekauft und weiss das ich diesen Sommer diese Kette tragen werde :-) .