Beading looms, Russian coraling techniques, crocheted beadjewelry, beading incorporated into purses and quilts ... thereare so many ways to create beaded items that it's hard to knowwhere to start. Luckily, the Internet can bring an entire worldof beading information, materials and supplies into your home. Aquick search using the keyword "beading" results in hundreds ofwebsites offering beading materials and supplies, free beadingpatterns, and a wealth of books for students of beading, bothbeginning and advanced.

For the beginner, the book Simply Beautiful Beading: 53 Quickand Easy Projects, by Heidi Boyd, offers a variety of attractivedesigns for jewelry and accessories, as well as projects forhome décor. She teaches thirteen basic beading techniques, alleasy to do and all of which result in beautifully made items forpersonal use. Another book, Bead Fantasies, by Takako Samejima,teaches easy techniques which result in wonderfully delicate andfeminine jewelry and other crafted items.

If you're interested in the intricate designs possible with theuse of a bead weaving loom, explore the Dover Needlework seriesvolume, Big Book of Indian Beadwork Designs, by Kay DohertyBennett. One of many excellent beading books with a NativeAmerican theme, this particular book has a wealth of authenticNative American designs to copy or adapt to your own projects,for jewelry and to add to clothing, bags, and other crafteditems.

You can also find information, both in these books and on theInternet, about the materials and supplies you need to startbeading: bead boards, bead crimping tools, stringing wire,tweezers, a variety of beading looms - and, of course, beads andfindings, thousands of them, from all around the world. From thetiniest seed beads to large, colorful ceramic or glass beads, tointricately designed silverbeads, bells, and pendants, they are available fromvirtually anywhere in the world. If you want to make it easy onyourself, order a beading kit: many are available for all skilllevels, and will get you set up with the basic tools needed forthe craft, in addition to supplying you with the beads necessaryfor the specific project.

Beaders are a passionate lot, and many websites available on theInternet offer galleries of personal work for your inspiration;many also offer free beading patterns, as well as freeinstruction, even free online courses in beading. Pick a projectthat attracts you, and try to copy it using the techniques youknow. Play with it; choose different color combinations,incorporate the design into a different application from the oneshown, explore using beads of different sizes and shapes to seewhat results. Pick up a book on color or basic design andincorporate those principles into your work. You may find thatyou move very quickly from simply copying the designs of otherartists to creating your own designs, and from there you'll veryquickly develop your own personal style.

About the author:Aldene Fredenburg is a freelance writer living in southwesternNew Hampshire and frequently contributes to Tips andTopics. She may be reached at amfredenburg@yahoo.com.

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