Findings & Finishings (Beadwork How-To) [Paperback]

Sharon Bateman (Author)

Book Description

Series: Beadwork How-To | Publication Date: October 1, 2003

Choosing the right findings and finishing techniques can transform an ordinary piece of jewelry from simple to stunning. This guide describes how to use purchased findings, provides techniques for creating unique ones, and shares innovative ways to finish necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and pins. Each finding and finishing technique—whether it's a description of a barrel clasp, instructions on making your own beaded clasp, or methods for attaching a pin back—is presented in detail with colorful illustrations and photographs. Projects are integrated throughout the book to illustrate the techniques presented.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-A great resource for anyone interested in making beaded jewelry. Its focus, to be sure, is exploring the options and techniques for finishing projects, but it goes much further than that. Bateman includes a brief history of jewelry and an excellent overview of the basic tools and materials involved in making beaded jewelry. Beautiful photographs and sketches in color illustrate the detailed explanations and instructions. Suitable for beginners and experienced crafters, the projects range from simple earrings to intricately stitched bracelets. The wealth of information and easy-to-follow layout will appeal to any beadworker.-Christine Jones, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review

"The first publication devoted entirely to all the options for adding finishing touches to your beadwork, Findings & Finishings is the resource guide for every beader and jewelry maker."  —The Bead Bugle

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Interweave Press (October 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1931499403
• ISBN-13: 978-1931499408
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 8.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #739,870 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

184 of 184 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars really useful information, October 26, 2003

By 

E Rice (western ny state) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Findings & Finishings (Beadwork How-To) (Paperback)

this is one of the more satisfying Beadwork publications. there is a good amount of information on the subjects of the title, findings and finishings, enough to really help and inspire the beginning and intermediate beader, and also provide the experienced/expert beader with ideas.

along with commercial findings, the book gives examples of and instructions for custom, beader-made findings for bracelets, necklaces and earrings done with beads and wirework. there are projects that use the techniques and most of these are very good. there are suggestions for some quick and fun projects, too, especcially using earwires.

the finishings section includes a couple of fringe variations i haven't seen before, instructions for adding straps and attaching findings.

while none of the various ideas are presented in depth, there is a lot of useful information. the graphs are very good. the section on basic techniques is pretty basic itself and probably wouldn't help a real beginner, but would be be good at jogging the memory of an intermediate or experienced beader.

the gallery secton is, as usual with Beadwork books, worth the cover price. the examples range from fun and funky to beautiful and elegant. most demonstrate the finishing part of the book, with fringing and embellishments; only about half display original findings. since this book isn't about a single technique, it would have been nice to have the the techniques used in the gallery pieces identified (is that necklace crocheted or african helix? or embellished peyote?).

even with its drawbacks, this book definitely belongs in any beader's library. it has a lot useful information in one place (so much easier to use than going through several years of back issue magazines or all the other bead books in your library) and inspirational ideas and photos.

74 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Add to your jewelry-making know-how, November 1, 2004

By 

S. Brand "sandra807" (United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Findings & Finishings (Beadwork How-To) (Paperback)

For beaders like me, the practical part of jewelry-making... the findings ... doesn't seem that exciting, but this book gives the subject some pizazz. First of all, the book is attractive, with photos and diagrams filling at least half of every page. Next, it's informative, starting with a little section on the history of how clasps and other jewelry parts were created and used since ancient times. A little section describes the different types of seed beads and which ones are best to use in various projects. A few tools are described, along with their uses.

There is a nice section, which to me was the most useful, on how to create your own earwires, bails and clasps, and how to create some basic "squiggles" and other shapes out of wire, using a jig. These wire shapes can be used in earring findings and clasps.

One section describes how different types of clasps work in their inner parts, and then describes how to attach them.

Quite a large part of the book is spent on using seed beads to create loop clasps, do different types of stitching, such as a peyote stitch, and how to finish a project that has been seed-beaded. The photos used as examples show beautiful projects in-process, and the final part, the gallery, also has a selection of gorgeous projects... no directions in the gallery, but intended for inspiration.

Depending on the beader's needs and interests, this book can be somewhat to very helpful, but I would consider it a good addition to the avid beader's library.

28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book to take your beadwork to the next level!, May 11, 2006

By 

AllCrafts Wendy "Arts and Crafts Fun" (NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Findings & Finishings (Beadwork How-To) (Paperback)

The opening chapters give a simple but thorough overview of beads, threads, wires, tools you'll need, and the basics of working with beads and wire.

True to the title, the strength of this book is her chapters on findings and finishings. These ending details can take your bead work from homemade to wow!

The photos and instructions are very comprehensive. This book includes at least 100 different techniques using purchased findings and ones you make yourself. All types of findings are covered:

* Head and Eye Pins
* Spacing Bars and Connectors
* Terminals
* Spacers
* Crimps
* Clasps
* Ear Wires
* Pins

Many of these ideas are very innovative. I was even more fascinated by the finishings chapters. They included some great ideas for edges, fringes and original beadwork on findings.

The photo gallery will inspire you to branch out from her ideas even more. Highly recommended to take your beadwork to a new level of expertise.