TECHNIQUES AND MORE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR BEAD LOVERS. BY WENDY SIMPSON CONNERTRADING & PUBLISHING COMPANY LA MESA, CALIFORNIA ISBN 0-9645957-02 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 95-942 15 SAN: 298 - 5829 EMAIL: Interstlr@aol.com / Visit our Website: www.interstellarpublishing.com Copyright © 1995 Wendy Simpson Conner Published 1995 by Interstellar Publishing Company All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner (mechanical, electronic, or photographic), nor may it be transmitted or stored in any retrieval system; nor copied for public or private use (other than “fair use") without the written permission of the author. Allillustrations by Wendy Simpson Conner Black and white photography by Wendy Simpson Conner Full color photography by Don Brandos Printed in the United States of America FIRST PRINTING: APRIL, 1995 SECOND PRINTING: SEPTEMBER, 1995, THIRD PRINTING: JUNE, 1997 FOURTH PRINTING: OCTOBER, 1997 FIFTH PRINTING: APRIL, 1998 SIXTH PRINTING: FEBRUARY, 1999 SEVENTH PRINTING: JANUARY, 2000 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: To Jennie, who started it all; To Joni and Paul for putting up with my intensity; And, most of all, to my mother, Priscilla Simpson, whose patience and talent has greatly influenced my life. My heartfelt gratitude goes to my aunt, Perlso Lewis, for taking such good care of my grandmothers beadwork; ‘and to Phyllis Shealy, for her love and goodness. Decece Pecccccececccccece Introduction She could make her own lace (she made her own wedding dress by hand); she beaded flapper dresses, she made shoulder pads. She was truly ahead of her time with the sophistication of her designs (There are photographs of some of her work on the following pages). Her daughter, my mother, carries on the tradition. She sews, needlepoints, does embroidery, and is extremely gifted with all she creates, My father was a very talented artist — he could reproduce almost any illustration he saw. With such a legacy, it seemed natural that |, too, would be artistic. A designer by trade, I've worked in the visual arts for many years. My love affair with beads is a true genetic affliction. One of my earliest memories is Playing with my grandmother's button and bead boxes. In the 1960's. My girlfriends and | would sit at school and string love beads into necklaces and wire bead rings. In the 70's, we graduated to beading leather, macrame, and other similar crafts, By the time the 90's arrived, it was apparent that | would never tire of my love of beads. | am a self-admitted “bead addict” or “bead-a-holic”’. | admit | have absolutely no willpower when it comes to beads — it's very hard for me to walk away from what | know to be a rare and unusual find. If given the choice between lunch or beads, | usually skip the lunch and buy the beads, | worked in the television industry as a designer when | lived in Los Angeles, then, in the early 80's, | started teaching a vocational Jewelry making class for the San Diego Community Colleges (I now teach in several adult education Programs). | opened a bead Store in San Diego, California (The Bead Centre), and | write for several bead-related magazines (If you like my articles in Lapidary Journal, then you'll love this book). My students share my love of beads and bead work — the classes are workshops where wonderful ideas and beautiful things flourish, In large part, this book is for my students, who asked all the right Questions, and Pushed me to write this book. The one comment | hear the most is the fact that many THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOKbead books only cover one or two techniques, and that to buy every book would cost a small fortune. Also, there’s nothing that teaches my original classroom projects, or my grandmother’s designs. | started out by creating my own handouts and brochures for my students to fill in the gaps. As these grew in number, | received requests to bind them, and include photos. This book is a long time in the making. When | was on maternity leave with my daughter, this was going to be my “‘six-week project”. Twelve years later, it's finally done. I've tried to cover every aspect | can think of. I've included {as a friend noted) everything but the kitchen sink. Some of the projects in this book are adaptations of traditional techniques, some are my interpretations, and some are original ideas. I'm one of those people who looks at something and says, “If it can be done this way, why not also do it that way?” I find it an artistic challenge to create . . . | may tire of a technique after one or two pieces, but for me the fun lies in the conquering. When | make earrings, the first one is a fun adventure. The second one seems like work, because I've tread that road already! This book is designed to be a work book — there are instructions on how to do different techniques, a picture glossary, idea sections, and lots more. It's bound In this manner so that it will lay flat as you work. It is this size so that you can put itin your bead box and carry it along on trips. My goal is to provide you with ideas and examples, and to make them obtainable and within everyone's ability. Anyone can create what is in this book. Because most people learn best from visuals (in addition to descriptions), this book has many diagrams and illustrations. For both beginners and more advanced bead artists, | hope this is helpful. I start with the simplest and work up to the complex. | emphasize that yes, there are standard tools and rules, but also there’s the insights that come when you realize that you must be flexible in your ideas and ways of seeing, and be open to new solutions for creative problems. Everyone has talent. Sometimes we all stop ourselves from being creative because it seems like such a strange new place to go. But there is no greater thrill than when you have made something wonderful, and people stop you on the street to tell you so! Enjoy what you create, and feel that sense of achievement that you've created a true work of art. 4 THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOK00 Jennie’s Beadwork P00vcccccvccccccccccccccccooe ee cce‘Llee|l[e My grandmother, Jennie’s, bead- work was so special and so ahead of its time, that | had to include It in this book. Her patterns were very unique. I've Included the instructions for many of these projects. My grandmother, Jennie ‘Anna Held, first wife of Flo Iridescent gless necklace ‘Cluster necklace made of glass Zesfeld. My grandmother and memory wire bracelet beads. Looks like flowers. designed many costumes and set designed for Anna Held Jewelry for her. __ THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOKBeaded sieeve edging done in the Passementerie Detail of beaded dress style (beeded on a cord). Beaded belt ireular lace earrings This dress was hand-sew and hand-beaded, with a | detachable snap-in lining. | 6 THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOKFragments of a lampshade fringe Purse beaded with steel seedbeads Red and black crystal earrings worn by Ziegfeld Appliques done In Passamenterle technique Follies for production number (beaded on a cord) THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOK 7Beaded picture (my grandmother did this to Shoulder pad tease my grandfather, because he was always busy). Choker with clasp made of beads Same necklace as left, but showing braided effect of front of necklace. THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOKJet and crystal necklaces ‘My grandmother didn’t make this, but this Is a beaded purse from the sixties Sleeve edging done in Passamenterie technique Beaded accents on belt I made a matching changepurse when I was 11. THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOKMeasurements - Millimeters / Inches W. are so used to measuring in inches, that we are completely thrown when someone says “metric system”. Most beads are measured by millimeters (metric), which sends us scurrying for that “other ruler” when confronted with the task of figuring out how many beads we: need, This reference should help. Keep in mind that millimeters and inches don't translate evenly. Usually you have to round up or down to even it out to whole beads. Bead Size Inches _Millimeters | _ 2mm 4mm 6mm | _8mm 10mm kid + 25mm _ | appx. 13 appx. 6 appx. 4 appx. 3 appx. 2% 38" + 203mm | appx. 102 | appx. 51 | appx. 34 | appx. 25 | appx. 20 10” + 254mm | appx. 127 | appx. 64 | appx. 42 appx. 32 | appx. 26 72” | + 305mm |appx.153 | appx. 76 | appx. 51 | appx. 38_| appx. 31 16" + 415mm_ | appx. 208 | appx. 104 | appx. 69 | appx. 52 | appx. 42 20” + 508mm | appx. 254 | appx. 127 | appx. 85 | appx. 64 | appx. 51 4” | + 609mm | appx.305 | appx. 152 | appx. 102 | appx. 76_| appx. 61 Millimeters Inches 10 THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOK