Beautiful beads and the desire to adorn ourselves inspire us to learn how to make beaded bracelets and necklaces. Beads are made from every imaginable material and are distinguished from other ornamentation by the fact that they have a hole in them for stringing. Just about anything that can have a hole drilled through it can be a bead.
In addition to beads, other elements involved in making beaded jewelry include stringing materials, findings, and clasps. This book is designed as an easy reference guide to help you learn a new vocabulary and teach you the basics of stringing beaded jewelry.
Selecting beads that you love is always the best way to begin! Beads come in a nearly endless array of materials, colors, shapes, sizes, and finishes, which can make shopping for beads in a bead shop, at a bead show, or on the Internet a little overwhelming. Shopping in person is always best. You can select beads that are beautiful to look at, feel nice against the skin, and work well together in jewelry designs. Small, independently owned bead shops, unlike big box stores or the Internet, are staffed by knowledgeable jewelry makers who are usually an excellent resource.
Together we bring over 40 years of experience as bead buyers, jewelry makers, and lovers of beads to this book. Over the years we have learned that encouraging the mastery of basic jewelry-making skills has been the key to success for our customers and students. We also believe that being knowledgeable about beads and jewelry-making supplies is very important. We hope you will find this book useful and will keep it as a handy reference for many years to come.
Carson, Rachael, and Kate