Customer Reviews

The Illustrated Bead Bible: Terms, Tips & Techniques

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

What a pleasure to be able to review this book! This is not a book with patterns to look at and then disgard when you are done with the designs, it is a book that you will keep and refer back to time and time again. The way this book is put together is truly phenomenal. The sections are put together in such a way that it allows you to get to exactly the information you need with ease - and then some. It really is written with the reader and beader in mind. The explanations are clear and precise and leave you with no questions. And if you do happen to have a question, there is a question and answer section that answers every question you could possibly have about beading technique, different types of beads, history, materials, and problems you may run into as a beader. I was able to get every question I have had about beads and beading answered. It just has a wealth of information all in one place.

The photos in this book are abolutely amazing! They are so clear you can see every little tiny detail. The author's explanations are also very clear and written for even a very beginning beader to understand.

I honestly can't imagine beading without this book. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned beader, this is a must have for your library!

Thank you for this book!

Michele

I eagerly looked forward to this book as I have her two others, Native American Beadwork and Creative Native American Beadwork, both of which I love. This one however was a bit disappointing, and could use a little closer layout editing. Sometimes the pictures do not line up with the description, the most blatant example of this is on page 225 where the description of a tube cross done in a peyote stitch. Directly under this image is a definition of "phallic beads". I had quite a struggle understanding this one until I realized that the image actually went with a definition on the first column on that page for "peyote tube". For me, laughable, but probably offensive to some. A bit more care would be considerate to those who take their symbols seriously, and indicated sloppy editing. Some things are left out, such as a definition for "peking glass" beads, SoNo thread, etc. These are merely a first glance take on the book, but a second edition would do well to be more careful.

I seriously considered returning this one, but kept it as it does add to my general reference material on beads but it is far from a complete comprehensive source. One I love is -Beadwork: A World Guide by Caroline Crabtree and Pam Stallebrass. It is a fabulous, wonderful book on historical and ethnic beads and beading.

I've been beading for 16 years and I can't tell you what a pleasure it is to have a resource like the Bead Bible available! The illustrations make the book very user friendly and the background information is not only informative but fascinating. I didn't realize what a rich history was involved in certain kinds of beads.

I highly recommend this book, for beginners and veterans alike. You will not be disappointed!

There is so much work and information packed into this book. It can be likened to a lovely tapestry as Theresa weaves all the many aspects of beadwork together. This includes different stitches, tools, threads and other stringing materials, types of beads, stones, methods, names, definitions, finishings, techniques, tips, terms, history, and more. This is one of those books that you will want to keep forever and refer back to often.

Thank you, Theresa, it really is a work of Art

Theresa Flores Geary openly envisions each person as a potential beader, as an untapped source of limitless creative designs. Her book encourages everyone to enjoy this art.

For centuries, the love of beads has connected people on every continent. The Illustrated Bead Bible draws you into this ongoing adventure. Packed with examples of jewelry, gourds, jars and more, stitched or woven with beads, Theresa's book invites you to discover a wealth of knowledge about historic and modern bead-making and bead-trading worldwide.

As a teacher, her passion to share hands-on knowledge of Native American beadwork styles with people of all ages shines through in each of her books. She inspires you to appreciate and participate, to network with other beaders, and to brighten the world with beautiful designs.

For those who do not live next to a bead store, The Illustrated Bead Bible shows you how to describe, identify, and select exactly what you need to create your projects, including the finishing touches. Explore bead styles and finishes, natural gemstones, tools, findings, and a variety of fabrication techniques. It's all there, the simple basics, diverse designs, and gorgeous photographs.

This delightful expert reference is easy to use and opens the way for a new appreciation of beads!

This book is like a dictionary. It describes all the pieces used in jewelry making and has pictures and tells you what each piece is used for. It even tells you the chemical composition of the gems. This is my go to book.

This book is for beaders of all levels. It is not intended to be full of beautiful pictures of pieces designed by other artists and glorified amongst the pages for others to ooooh and aaaah and try to copy because they don't have their own inspirations. This book is practical. It is a quick reference guide on everything bead. It covers the gamut from supplies, stitches, techniques, history, interesting facts, charts on birthstones, gemstone lore and properties, you name it. It is a book that is awesome for looking up one particular desired piece of information to just sitting and parusing and refreshing one's memory or learning something quick and new. Do not be put off by the short descriptions. This book is packed full of useful information about beading and the pictures are educational and helpful. Afterall, who would want to sit and read pages of a single definition? The Bead Bible, ironically gets down and dirty with all you need to know about beading tips, techiniques, and facts. It will be used over and over and over!

This is not a book you read from cover to cover as most of it is an alphabetical guide. It is a book you dip into and consult for information. I just scanned it on arrival and to my amazement and delight found the very next day that some of the information I had gleaned was extremely useful when selecting material for a project! The material does tend to focus on bead weaving as the author has been taught by Native Americans, but the work does give a good general guide to the wider range of beading.

En este libro pude encontrar informacion importante del origen de las piedras, de tecnicas,materiales, medidas formas colores, muy recomendable.

I had a small hand in getting some of the definitions down, and some of the objects in the book are mine. So if this makes my opinion too partial for some, sorry.

This book has been a long time in coming. Not only the dictionary, but the Q&A section as well. I really wish I had this great book when I was teaching about beads and beadwork, and I could even have put it to good use teaching Cultural Anthropology. It would have helped immensley.

I'd highly recommend to my colleagues that are employed in museums or are curators start working on their Purchase Order now. This book will assist them greatly if they have any type of beadwork in their collections ... it's THAT good. Though it won't tell specific tribal/regional information, it DOES help identify the style of beadwork and how to care for it.

My favorite of the Q&A is if a person with dyslexia can do beadwork. This book really opens the field wide to all individuals. It discusses, too, how bead co-operatives can work to such beautiful and enduring lengths. This is not only a bible of sorts, it represents a social statement in many ways as well.

Another success Theresa! Great work! Break and arm patting yourself on the back ... ok, maybe not that far ........................