There are 6 chapters in the book which includes a brief history of beadwork, a guide to a basic beading kit and a chapter on basic stitches such as peyote & herringbone. Chapter 6 is where all the main action is with 18 original projects including earrings, rings, necklaces and bracelets. All the projects are stunning, my personal favourites are the rosebud ring and the april showers necklace, both of which I plan to make in the future. The only downside to the projects for me is that size 15 beads are used extensively and believe it or not I have very few colours in 15's, so I will need to buy some. Oh what a shame ;-)
For the purpose of this review, I concentrated on the instructions in Chapter 4: A Comprehensive Guide To Embellishments. I made the pointed peyote petal and the basic peyote leaf (no pics of these sorry, I have mislaid them!), I did find the instructions a little confusing at one point in each of them, but a quick glance at the excellent diagrams soon put me right, I guess I learn better visually! I then made a bracelet base in right angle weave and used the basic beaded leaf technique as a fringe to finish it off. I like the way it turned out!
I'm not sure whether this book is suitable for complete beginners to seed beading, but it would certainly make a lovely addition to your beading library! Not only is there a great choice of beautiful projects, I found the section on embellishments inspiring and think it will add an extra dimension to simple beadwork like the bracelet above. There are also lots of gorgeous creations in the gallery by artists such as Cynthia Rutledge and Carol Wilcox Wells.Happy Beading!
Sarahx
