Famous Jewelry Collections: THE BEADING GEM'S JOURNAL

Saturday, May 7, 2011

THE BEADING GEM'S JOURNAL

Posted: 07 May 2011 05:05 AM PDT

Most of us cannot afford the kind of jewelry Elizabeth Taylor had (see my past post Elizabeth Taylor : Her Lifelong Love Affair with Jewelry). But sparkle lovers can still achieve that luxury look with Swarovski crystals and beading. Even better, get there as quickly as possible.

Kalmbach Publishing recently sent me a new crystal bead book to me for review. It's just the kind of book time pressed but hard to please crystal bead workers will enjoy.

Aimee Carpenter's wonderful new book, Endless Sparkle: 10 Crystal Components - Unlimited Jewelry Designs is a delight. The designs are simple enough for beginners but yet deliver in terms of elegance and style. Click here to see bigger pictures of the book preview.

There are several great features about this 25-project book. First of all, the author included a number of excellent beaded ring designs. It was the scarcity of good beaded ring designs which first drove Aimee to experiment with her beads.

As a history buff myself, I sure appreciated the historical inspirations! Many of the designs do resemble pieces you see in old portraits and photographs.

"Tudor Romance" was one of my favorite designs from the book. The inspiration came from the television series, "The Tudors".

What's also different about this book is how the author approached her main book sections. The first part of the book covers several component designs including the Butterfly , Victorian, Tudor Romance, Rosette, Bouquet and Enchanted Star. Her butterfly designs are so refreshingly fun! Shown below is another favorite, her combination component earrings :

The second part of the book deals with finished jewelry designs where Aimee gives plenty of ideas and suggestions on how to make use of beaded components. While the most extensive beaded designs are the bracelets, the necklaces are far simpler. Aimee often adds pearl strands to the component pendants but offers alternatives such as using a wire bail on a metal necklace. There are also ways to adjust the size of a component if it was too big or too small for individual tastes.

There are very few books where I can say I liked virtually every design. This is one of them.

Disclosure

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