Making Designer Seed Bead, Stone, and Crystal Jewelry

Book excerpt: Weaving tiny glass seed beads into jewelry is an ancient form of jewelry making dating back to early Native Americans and prehistoric African tribes. Today, "seed beading," also known as "bead weaving" is extremely popular. By combining traditional seed bead techniques with a variety of other jewelry methods, jewelry makers can dramatically expand the type of seed bead jewelry they make. From learning established seed bead stitches to mastering a few simple wire and stringing steps, this book shows beginners through advanced bead weavers how to make seed bead jewelry with a designer flair. Beginners will find enough detailed instructions to help them get started with the craft while more advanced jewelry makers will find it helpful because it will provide new ideas for using stitches in different ways, allowing them to incorporate stone and crystal beads instead of using seed beads alone for their jewelry designs. The author takes the reader on a tour of bead weaving including providing information about the different kinds of seed beads including sizes and types, plus descriptions of the various supplies needed. She doesn't limit her discussion to only two types of stitches, but provides instructions for ten different stitches before delving into the how-to's for ten different breathtaking jewelry projects, including diamond coral and gaspeite earrings, a lacey emerald anklet, radiant zircon earrings, and much more.