Win a Signed Copy of the Bead-Making Lab

I'm so excited about the release of my 3rd book, the Bead-Making Lab. I had such a blast creating projects using everything from polymer clay to paper mache, from rope to wire, to shrink plastic, felt, resin, stones and wood and so much more! 

I created 52 projects - you could do one a week if you felt ambitious! The projects are geared toward beginners and all with materials found in your local craft store.

Along with the projects there are interviews sprinkled throughout the book with professional beadmakers.

If you have ever wanted to try your hand at making your own beads, this book is filled with inspiration and ideas! 

You can win a sign copy in two places:

My Blog

My Instagram 

Book Review -- The Earring Style Book

I was fortunate enough to get an advance copy of "The Earring Style Book" by Stephanie Wells, published by Crown Publishing/Potter Craft. From the first flip of the page, I was enthralled.

This is definitely NOT your ordinary earring book.

The premise of the book is to create trend-setting earrings -- earrings that you'd see on the stars. Stephanie's award-winning styles have been seen on the likes of Oprah and Rachael Ray, and now she's graciously showing US how to make 40 different pairs of these signature earrings styles.

(Do I hear you jumping up and down yet????)

Made with a mix of metal and chain, embellished with beads, gemstones, and even fabric, Stephanie leads you through easily understandable instructions. The photos are crisp and clear and (need I say) drool-worthy.

The book will be out on Amazon.com August 17th is available now for preorder. It's a fabulous, unique book to add to your jewelry library, and it will certainly open up new avenues of design to you.


Lori Anderson designs jewelry for Lori Anderson Designs and writes for the blogs Pretty Things and An Artists Year Off.

Designer Interview with Rosemary Hill

The Art Bead Scene would like to welcome designer and author Rosemary Hill for the blog tour for her new book Elements of Style: Knit & Crochet Jewelry with Wire, Fiber, Felt & Beads.

1. What inspired you to write Elements of Style?

I love jewelry making and needle crafts, and I had just started writing patterns for knitted jewelry pieces when a couple of friends of mine said they were talking to publishers about writing knitting books. I thought to myself "I'd like to do that!" And then I wrote to Interweave really quickly before I could chicken out! I had first thought of doing a wire knitting book, but they wanted it expanded to include fiber and felt. And I am so glad they did, because the fiber section has turned out to be my favorite part of the book!

2. Looking over your website, your business is mainly accessories for scarves. For the book were the jewelry designs ones you've created over the years and variations of those? Or was the creation of the book a great exploration in what kind of jewelry could be created from knitting and crocheting a wide range of materials?

Yes - I started making shawl and scarf pins because I couldn't keep my knitted shawls on! Then I really caught the designing bug, and had some some knitted jewelry patterns published. The book idea came out of my first couple of patterns, when I realized that my aesthetic was different from the other knitted and crocheted jewelry I was seeing. When I design, I imagine wearing the project in many situations. Would I wear it to a business meeting? Would I wear it to a party? With jeans? With a cocktail dress? I wanted to create a body of patterns for pieces that people wouldn't necessarily realize were needlework. I wanted the first impression to be "Wow! That's a cool piece of jewelry!" So with that in mind, I set off on a real exploration of different materials and techniques, and all of the designs were created specifically for the book.

3. You've introduced the bead world to a new material: stainless steel silk yarn. Can you describe this material for my readers and the possibilities it has opened to you as a jewelry designer.

My favorite topic! I love love love the silk/stainless steel! It is amazing stuff: very easy to knit or crochet because it is so fine, but with this amazing sculptural quality. Knitted and crocheted fabric has certain properties: the way the stitches lay and curl, the spaces between stitches.... The Habu yarn is wonderful because of its delicacy and its ability to hold a shape when you pull it into place. The wire portion of the yarn is angel hair gauge, but with the silk to strengthen it, the knitted or crocheted fabric is capable of holding lovely organic waves and ruffles. The Sail Earrings are a great example. They are very simple knitted triangles, but the project takes advantage of the natural curl of knitted material and the ability of the silk/stainless steel to hold a shape. The possibilities are infinite! I have so much of this yarn in my stash that I'm not sure I will ever live long enough to use it all!

4. What advice would you give to beaders who want to include fibers into their jewelry?

First and foremost: be true to your own design aesthetic. Second: don't let what people have done in the past stop you from doing something totally different. Think of creating different textures. Experiment with different types of fiber: silk, linen, hemp, wool, synthetics.... Think of color as it interacts with texture. Then get what catches your eye and experiment!

5. In your jewelry what comes first: the material or the design? Does your jewelry come from sketches or from playing and experimenting with the materials?

Both! My designs with the silk/stainless steel came from playing with the material and asking myself "what would happen if....?" Mostly, though, I'm not a linear designer. Everything tumbles around in my head! When I went about designing the projects in the book, I decided what materials I wanted to use, and then with a set of parameters in mind, I threw everything together in my mind and came up with mental images of the pieces I wanted to do. Then I put them down on paper as quickly as I could! Once in awhile, the materials would behave differently, but mostly, the finished pieces were what I had visualized.

6. What are your influences and inspirations for your jewelry designs?

I've always found this to be the most difficult question to answer! I guess I mostly find inspiration outdoors, but not really directly. I love being outside walking or biking, and when I am, I invariably come back with all sorts of ideas. Other than that, I have always soaked up every sort of visual around me: yarns, beads, metals, stones, shapes, colors, architecture, photography, organic forms, clothing design, cars, bicycles, appliances, you name it! I just love looking at it all.

7. What would we most likely find in your hands: knitting needles, crochet hook or pliers?

Right now, I would have to say pliers! If you had asked me two months ago, it would have been knitting needles. That is what I love so much about what I do; it is never boring, always changing, always interesting.

I want to thank Rosemary and Interweave Press for including the Art Bead Scene on this fun virtual book tour. Here is the schedule for the other blogs on the tour, follow along to learn even more about Rosemary and her book:

Dec. 15: Scout J

Dec. 16: Art Bead Scene

Dec. 17: And She Knits Too!

Dec. 18: Sweater Surgery

Dec. 19: Turtlegirl’s Bloggy Thing

Great Bead Books- Old & New

Like most (tell me I'm not the only one!) bead crazed folks, I simply cannot resist a new bead book on the market. To add to the pain of my pocketbook, I usually can't wait for regular Amazon.com shipment and thus purchase full retail price at Barnes and Noble as soon as the book hits the crafts section. Here are some of my past and recent favorites:

Since I love history and primitive bead making cultures, my bookcase is groaning under the weight of Collectible Beads- A Universal Aesthetic, by Robert K. Liu, 1995. This oversize book is a treasure trove of "ancient, ethnographic and contemporary beads, recognizing them as a revealing and inspiring symbol of humanity's cultural and spiritual aspirations," with 300 photos of ancient and modern beadwork.


In that same vein of thought, there is Beadwork- A World Guide by Caroline Crabtree and Pam Stallebrass, published by Rizzoli in 2002. What I love about this book is the incredible diversity of bead cultures featured from around the world from African tribes to Native American Indian tribes and many more, with amazing color photographs. Incredibly detailed and exhaustively researched, I highly recommend it for a bead enthusiast's library.


Five designers teach us how to make glass, metal, polymer clay and fiber beads in the wonderful Making Beautiful Beads, published by Lark books 2003. It has excellent tutorials with color photographs to demonstrate techniques. Each section features a lengthy "introduction to" a certain medium and then variations of techniques that are different, inspiring and concise enough to refer to for years past the introductory stages.


For the polymer bead artist or prospective artist, I highly recommend Making Polymer Clay Beads by Carol Blackburn, published by Interweave Press 2007. It is exactly what is says on the cover, "step by step techniques for creating beautiful ornamental beads." It covers everything from tools and brands of clay, to conditioning, skinner blends, inclusions, varnishes, metallic powders, and on to wonderful techniques of combing and feathering, how to use bead rollers, drilling, sanding and polishing. It is quite comprehensive. I mean, who knew you can make polymer beads that look like leather?


Just to make my life more difficult for those of us who can't resist delving into new projects no matter how many are piled in the corner, Julia S. Pretl wrote Bead Knitted Bags, 10 projects for Beaders & Knitters. Oh, my goodness, what amazingly beautiful bags. I went totally insane over which gorgeous project to begin first. If you are overwhelmed with projects like me, it will be slow going, as the work is quite small and requires intense concentration, but it comes complete with a DVD that includes 10 printable patterns and 20 video tutorials.


Julia Pretl is also a featured artist in another book nestled on my table, Beading for the Soul, by Deborah Cannarella, published again by Interweave Press 2005. This book explores the "personal power of beads" with 26 inspirational projects from 23 designers. From prayer beads to woven Chinese Good Fortune pouches, you can create sacred beaded objects and adornments with the aid of terrific instructional panels and tutorials. Eleanor Wiley's Handheld Prayer Beads section has a particularly powerful resonance.


Decorative Ornament- More Than 2,350 Historical Designs and Patterns by Owen Jones, is an invaluable resource for color reference for the beader and jewelry designer. Get out your post it stickies and get ready for color combination inspiration on almost every page. This 432 page volume, published in 2006 by Tess Press, is a feast for the designer's eyes. It covers design and ornament of Savage Tribes, Egyptian, Assyrian & Persian, Greek, Pompeian, Roman, Byzantine, Arabian, Turkish, Moresque, Indian, Hindu, Chinese, Celtic, Medieval, Renaissance, Elizabethan, Italian and Leaves and Flowers from Nature Ornament. The colorful illustrations will have you at your sketchbooks in a jiffy and if you are blocked for color combination ideas, this book will get you back on track in no time at all.


Last but not least on my list is Beaded Jewelry- The Complete Guide by Susan Ray, published by Krause Publications 2007. This is my most recent bead book acquisition and it is already a treasured volume. Susan begins her book with a history of beads, with recommended reading lists, and moves on to color expressions, supply sources, care of beads, types of beads, tools and their usage. From there she delves into specialized areas of bead making such as lampwork and polymer, then discusses stringing techniques, findings and closures, to name a few. It has many projects, inspiring photographs, and a very user friendly format.


By no means is this list an exhaustive one. There are many more book sources of inspiration and technical prowess. I hope if you don't have these titles you will search them out at your library or bookstore. And always, have fun!

Written by guest editor Jennifer Stumpf. You can read Jennifer's blog www.jenniferstumpf.blogspot.com and see her art beads and jewelry at her website www.jenniferstumpf.com and etsy shop www.jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.