Enchanted Adornments begins with a wonderful technique section, where readers are taken step by step through creating mixed-media jewelry with resin, PMC, polymer clay, and wire. You’ll learn Cynthia’s signature techniques for mold-making and stone setting as well.

The projects range in complexity from beginner to advanced. Even the more difficult or time-consuming projects can easily be scaled down to the reader’s ability level. The directions are step by step, and it’s easy to see where substitutions could be made. I definitely recommend this book for anyone who is looking into how to put more meaning into your pieces!

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Chain Style
by Jane Dickerson

There’s nothing like adding chain to your design, or even designing an entire piece around chain, to make the design work up quickly. Chain is an excellent material for both beginners and those with advanced skills, because the complexity of your projects is only limited by experience and imagination.

The techniques and materials section is minimal but sufficient.  Largely this is because the projects are all so accessible.  There are 50 designs to inspire you, many created by designers whose names you will know.  This gives a wide variety of styles, and I’m sure you’ll find some that catch your eye no matter how experienced you are.

Using chain is also a wonderful way to stretch your beading budget.  A few special beads connected together with chain will make a fabulous necklace that won’t break the bank!

Image: InterweaveStore.com

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The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Jewelry Making Techniques
by Vannetta Seecharran

This book covers far more than beading techniques, so look elsewhere if you’d like an introduction to beadwork.  This is a guide for an experimental jewelry who wants to create one-of-a-kind jewelry using modern techniques and materials.  There are instructions and photographs outlining how to work with rubber, resin, glass, leather, paper, plastics, ceramics, textiles, and much more.  But again, each chapter is an introduction, so you should plan to use this book to inspire your search for the next great thing you want to try.

A very beautiful and compelling book.  Now where did I leave my notebook…?

Image: InterweaveStore.com

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Seed Bead Fusion

Rachel Nelson-Smith has decided not to be bound by the usual rules about beading. Instead of starting with one stitch and sticking with it, she invites us to mix them up. The results are 18 projects of stunning beauty. Rachel likes to add bumps, waves, ruffles, and other textures to her work, which takes each of these projects from merely nice to amazing. She also likes to showcase several different color schemes, so that you’ll never feel hemmed in by just one choice.

The highlight of this book for me is that I can heartily recommend it to readers who are only a bit better than beginners. As complicated as the projects appear, they are all based upon a few very basic stitches and wirework, all of which are profiled in the techniques section. Even if you’ve only started beading recently, if you are willing to practice the basics, you’ll be able to follow along with Rachel’s instructions. There are very clear illustrations and photos to take you through each and every step.

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I love Sharilyn Miller’s work. Primarily known as a wire jewelry artist, Sharilyn also works in many other media. She was the original editor of Belle Armoire magazine, which I adore. This new book contains a great techniques section, followed by page after page of Sharilyn’s one-of-a-kind designs. The best feature of this book is the photography. There are a gazillion photos, one for each major step in the process of creating your own wire and metal pieces.

Several other designers have contributed projects to this book. I love many of them, a few I’m not so crazy about, but that’s the way it usually is with a project book like this. A few of the projects didn’t even use copper, which sort of surprised me, but you could certainly make your piece with copper wire instead of steel. Simple metalwork and cold joins are the basis for the projects, so even a determined beginner could do most of these, although over all I think it’s geared more towards folks with some wire experience.

Check out The Bookshop for lots more links to books about jewelry-making in addition to this unique volume!

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Ronna’s style is primitive, organic, and full of joy.   If you’ve been looking for opportunities to shed the rules and just see what happens, this may be the perfect book for you.

Ancient Modern Polymer Clay and Wire Jewelry
by Ronna Sarvas Weltman

The style of this jewelry will not be for everyone, so if you don’t care for the piece on the cover, it is very indicative of the style throughout.  There’s lots of color inside, but it tends to be subdued and natural.   The finished pieces are not pretty, but they are boldly arresting and intriguing.

Check out The Bookshop for lots more links to books about jewelry-making in addition to this helpful guide!

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Denise Peck is the editor of Step by Step Wire Jewelry magazine, and she has written 101 Wire Earrings, Step-by-Step Projects and Techniques.  The first part of the books covers the basics of wire, the tools, and all the techniques you’ll need to make all of the projects in the book.  This section is excellent, with clear photos and well-written instructions.

The main part of the book is devoted to the projects.  Each of the 101 earring designs has a photo, a list of all tools and materials you’ll need, plus step by step instructions.  There are no process photos, which might make it a bit of a challenge for beginners, but most of the earrings are simple enough to figure out from the main photo.

This is not a book for really experienced wireworkers.  There is not enough of a challenge for you unless you need to brush up on your basic skills.  However, the variety of earrings included pretty much assures that everyone will find something they like!  As we often say here, no book can be all things to all people.  The projects are mostly inexpensive and require minimal tools, and that can be a real plus.

Free Stuff Alert***Free Stuff Alert!!

I’ve got a copy of 101 Wire Earrings to give away! Just leave me a comment below and you’ll be automatically entered into the drawing. In a week, I’ll randomly pick a lucky winner.

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Create Jewelry Glass

Create Jewelry Glass is divided into three main sections: classics, special occasion, and fashion forward.  Techniques are explained and build upon each other so that you can create more advanced designs as you work through the book.  None of the techniques are really difficult, so this would be a nice book for beginners who want to challenge themselves to move to the next level.

Check out The Bookshop for lots more links to books about jewelry-making in addition to this fun guide!

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Jewelry & Beading Designs for Dummies
by Heather H Dismore & Tammy Powley

This book is a follow up to the original Jewelry Making and Beading for Dummies, so if you are a complete beginner, you will probably need this book first.  The current book is focused more on designs and creating finished pieces, although they do cover many basic techniques quite thoroughly.

There are hundreds of illustrations and photographs to help you as you stretch your skills and create all different types of beaded accessories using lots of different materials.  Yes, there are projects as well as techniques, and they will help you master skills while you end up with lots of fun new wearables for yourself or for gifts.

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Designing Jewelry with Semiprecious Beads
by Kim Gover

There are so many features that make this a useful book, starting with the bead directory that teaches you about the characteristics and best companions for each stone covered.  A project selector will help you to quickly eyeball the design that you wanted to try next.  Next you move on to the actual projects, with amazing diagrams and more information.  These are each cross-referenced to the techniques used, which are covered in the last section at the end of the book.

I love the organization of this book, and I also love the way London-based author Kim Gover has included projects by many talented designers.  You won’t feel it’s the same old thing over and over with this book.

Check out The Bookshop for lots more links to books about jewelry-making in addition to this helpful guide!

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