The Book of Beads: A Practical and Inspirational Guide to Beads and Jewelry Making

I have several books on beads from around the world and from all ages, and each one has a positive quality that continue to inspire me when I get into a jewelry design slump. This book has been useful to me with the information regarding (following the Table of Contents:*Beads - how they are made, origins, types, uses*Catalog - amber, shell, pearls, wood, jet, plastic, ceramic, collectibles, shapes, natural stones, etc.*Design Guidelines - design based on shape/texture/size/weight of beads, color combinations*Themes - love the ethnic approach in several of the sections in this category, also included are wedding/summer/evening and other design foci.*Techniques - primarily focused on tools and findings, also approaches to necklace/bracelet/brooch designs.Each of the above sections are short, to the point and full of images that play along the senses of the reader, particularly due to colorful and abundant images on every page in order to cover a wide range of bead types.I also love the plethora of beads scattered throughout nearly every page and some of the designs that fit the subject page. Some of the beads really can make or break a design and this book gives one ideas to produce the perfect design. So "Inspiration" is a good addition to the title of this book and I recommend getting this book and others focused primarily on beads - not just jewelry designs and techniques. This is the best way to stimulate creativity in this field.

I finally bought this book because I kept taking it out of the library and not wanting to bring it back. It has beautiful, well designed photos. Each type of bead has its own page with each bead labeled. However, it is done with lush artistry. The beads are big enough to notice all the detail. Very informative on the origin and history of the kinds of beads.For instance, it describes what real jet beads are, when they were in vogue and what imitations were made.Sections show you how to use color, how to plan a necklace and how you can use themes like African, Indian, American Indian and children's styles in making jewelry.In the back there is a section on using beads: beading, re-imagining old jewelry, using findings etc. as well as a bead resource page for suppliers.This is a great resource for bead lovers. Also it is a great book for just wallowing in your love of beads!

Most informative book if one enjoy's knowing about beads. There are sections on color size & how it is made. The origin of bead & why we wear them to adorn our self's with our favorite color shape & feel. Also the long held beliefs of parts of the world that beads have a blessing or curse. Very enjoyable.

This is an inspirational book that I first borrowed several times from the public library and then decided that I needed my own copy. The historical part of beading is fascinating. The rest of the book is eye candy.

The book was well-packaged and quickly sent, thank you. The book itself gives good descriptions of various beads and their origins but should not be bought if many designs are being sought. The pictures are clear and colourful and the book will be used for general reference.

Not a bad book and it does give some inspiration.

Great product

This is the first bead book I've seen that has "plastic beads" as a bead classification. In fact "plastic beads" occupies the same amount of space that is alloted to "semi-precious beads" (2 pages), "metal beads" and "novelty beads". If you're looking for photos of different types of semi-precious beads, keep looking elsewhere. The price was cheap, (with good reason) and the cost of return shipping makes it not worth returning it.

In the 1990s I used to be a customer of Janet Coles Beads, and I remember what a visual feast her catalogues were, and how much I looked forward to the next season's edition! So it should come as no surprise that this book is equally gorgeous - this is no doubt due to this book being a collaborative effort with the man who formerly designed her catalogues, Robert Budwig.The book is full of lots of interesting information about various types of beads with examples grouped according to colour, material, and style. These groupings are detailed across beautiful spreads, which anybody who makes their own jewellery will find inspiring.There are then sections on rejuvenating old jewellery and designing your own jewellery, along with a handy section on techniques.All in all it's a wonderful book - it's visually stunning and packed with useful information and design ideas. I bought this book partly for the nostalgia of the Janet Coles Beads days, and partly to inspire me to get back into the hobby of beaded jewellery making. It's certainly done that.My only gripe with this order has nothing to do with the book itself (which is completely deserving of the five stars), but with the packaging of my parcel. It was in some weird vacuum packed plastic bag that offered no real protection. And when I opened it, it was so tight that I ended up putting a small tear in the dust jacket. I don't generally think it's necessary to write about the packaging in the review, but I wanted to warn anyone else who might receive the book in similar packaging.

Really Interesting book - it's is a little dated in style and fashion comes round and round anyway, it's just the materials and sometimes the tools and techniques that change however don't let that put you off, the visual and written information in this book is so valuable from a designers perspective.

Far more information than I could have hoped for...excellent value for money!

arrived quickly, glad to have found an old friend