Beading Across America - Jewelry Inspirations From Coast to Coast sounds like it would be a gallery of beadwork. It is, but it also a book full of projects.
The editors, Paulette Baron, Amy Katz and Sherry Serafini got projects from 30 different artists in 30 states. The projects are in full color with diagrams and text to explain how to make them.
Because of the number of artists, and the fact that this isn't a themed book like all one stitch technique, or type of jewelry means there is a wide range of projects in this book. Assemblage and bead embroidery, helices, herringbone, right angle weave and stringing are all represented, along with more common techniques like brick stitch and peyote stitch. The range of colors, techniques and styles means that most seed beaders will find a project that absolutely love in this book and may very well find a new technique.
It is very inspiring, there are pieces in here that are wearable jewelry for every day, and a lot of pieces that are quite simply wearable art. Impressive and exciting.
My favorite pieces are the Garden Haunt Necklace by Yoli Pastuszak which is a combination of bead embroidery and a richly embellished strap to make a leafy, dramatic necklace, June Huber's Bugle Blocks bracelet which combines ladders to make a geometrically interesting and very wearable bracelet, and Huib Petersen's California Poppy which is a dimensional, fairly realistic looking poppy necklace.
This is a very nice book with a good mix of challenging pieces for the more experienced beaders and simpler pieces for people who are still learning the basics.


You can get this book directly from the publisher, Kalmbach Publishing Co., your local book or bead store or by clicking the Amazon.com affiliate link below.



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Kalmbach Publishing Co. provided this review copy of Beading Across America to me free of charge.
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