Laura McCabe is one of my favorite beading instructors, and I've been eagerly awaiting the publication of her new book, which I pre-ordered a few months ago. Her new book was definitely worth the wait! It has eighteen lovely projects in it, and each one teaches you new skills.
This book differs from her first book in that that first one focused on using Swarovski crystals in all of the projects. This second book of McCabe's doesn't have that "bling bling" factor her first book had, but each piece is truly lovely. The pieces are slightly more subdued since they don't use Swarovski crystals quite as much, and instead focus more on using pearls (especially keshis), magatamas, and seed beads.
The book is broken down into several main sections:
* 1: Beads through History
* 2: Basic Beading Kit (goes over supplies that every beader needs)
* 3: Basic Stitches and Techniques
* 4: A Comprehensive Guide to Embellishments
* 5: Approaching Color and Design
* 6: The Projects
* Gallery of projects (by several other beaders, not just Mc Cabe)
The first five sections total 53 pages, and they do a really nice job of covering background, design principles, and techniques. I was pleasantly surprised to see so much space devoted to these important fundamentals. There is a bit of overlap with her first book in some of the stitches covered (such as Ndebele and basic spiral rope), but the embellishments section is completely new and unique, and it covers many unique embellishments, which is an area that McCabe really excels in.
As another reviewer pointed out, the embellishments section is just wonderful. Almost all of the designs are very natural/organic in nature, with designs like sea forms, berry clusters, and various petals.
The patterns/instructions themselves are also very clear and are broken down quite a bit. There aren't as many illustrations as there are in Rachel Nelson-Smith's new book, but the instructions are so clear that the lack of extensive figures/illustrations shouldn't be a problem. Also, there are plenty of illustrations and photos in the embellishments section, so it should be easy to flip back to that part of the book while working on a piece.
As for the actual projects, I was pleased to see that there were instructions for some of the newer pieces that I'd seen on McCabe's website, such as Keshi Pearl Necklace (the cover piece), Dahlia Necklace, A Well-Kept Secret, and April Showers Necklace.
I also love how this new series by Lark is all in hardback format. It makes beading from a book so much easier if the book lies nice and straight while you're working.
As for the target audience of the book, I would say that it is designed more for intermediate and advanced beaders. There are a few earring and ring projects that an advanced beginner might attempt, but you'd probably want to be pretty comfortable reading patterns.
As of writing this review (5/1/10), Amazon doesn't have the "Look Inside" feature available for this book, but, as with all beading books, I usually recommend trying to look at some of the projects before purchasing to make sure that the style of the projects appeal to you. Hopefully Amazon will enable the "Look Inside" feature soon! If you like the necklace on the cover of the book, you'll most likely find that the projects inside are pretty similar in design aesthetic.
Happy beading!
The projects and detailed explanations are inspiring, if not a bit daunting at times (especially for me when I calculate how many hundreds of dollars worth of beads I will likely need to purchase, despite my huge collection of beads, to make most any one of the elaborate projects). A bracelet with 45 5x16 mm Czech dagger beads PER INCH (and the ones Ms. McCabe used in her project are the elaborate, beautiful high-end ($$$$) daggers). 315 daggers for her 7 inch bracelet. Aren't these fanciest of daggers more than $1 per bead?
The part of this book I find most useful is how to make individual decorative elements, such as a seed bead toggle, and the separate layers of embellishments the author uses to decorate her beadwork. Copying one of her entire necklaces, well, I am not yet that ambitious, nor likely to spend the hundreds of hours (and possibly thousands of hours it would likely take me to copy her Dahlia necklace), and many dollars for a copy of someone else's art. As beautiful as I find most of the projects, I like best having instructions for the decorative elements.
Another wonderful book from the Lark series! This was the last one that I needed to complete my collection and if you are interested in beadweaving, then this entire collection is well worth purchasing. All of this series contains designs that although, may look advanced, with the detailed instructions, most anyone can handle them. This book in particular contains many beautiful designs that can be worn with jeans or a fancy dress. The illustrations are superb, instructions very complete, and with some imagination you yourself can add your own twist to any of them.
This book begins as most beading books begin...with basic stitches and techniques with illustrations and written instructions on how to do it. It shows what you will need for your basic beading kit including beading needles, scissors, no-tangle bobbins, thread burner (THE BEST DEVICE CREATED EVER!), measuring tape, etc. Then the REAL MAGIC begins...the comprehensive guide to embellishments! There are embellishments such as a simple bud, simple flower, flower cluster, berry cluster, beaded leaf, "frond form" (one of my favorites!), and more, all with clearly written directions and illustrations. There are beautiful projects that are clearly illustrated and explained as well. This is a really wonderful book, and I highly recommend it! I think you'll love it.
I am not a novice to the beading genre, and do have many books on the subject, but I have to say, this book is one of the outstanding books. The instructions are well written and illustrated, lots of nice "idea stimulators" inside......and overall great technique guidance to create exactly what you would like. From fringe that is simple, to really elaborate construction. The illustrations, photography and directions are perfect. Even if you are a complete novice, I truly believe this book will greatly assist in understanding how to achieve your artistic dreams......It is really a great addition to any beaders library, and a great reference book to refer to frequently.
Feature Product
- Used Book in Good Condition
Description
Laura McCabe creates elaborate beaded embellishments which she combines into stunning jewelry. Her definitive guide to weaving and embroidering with beads is the third volume in Lark Jewelry & Beading's bestselling Beadweaving Master Class series.
Combining traditional techniques with modern materials, and showcasing a wide variety of bead types, this book presents 18 beautiful jewelry projects incorporating motifs drawn from nature, such as flora and fauna, artistic designs, and geometric forms. With its truly spectacular illustrations, this is a feast of inspiration for beaders and crafters.
First, I must qualify that I'm a true die-hard Laura McCabe fan. As a beginner to low-intermediate beader, I had the incredible good fortune to be able to take her Keshi Pearl Necklace class a year or two ago. I learned so much in that one class that I have been hooked for good on beading, and when I completed that necklace I definitely improved my skills to a higher level. Don't be afraid to try something new and more challenging - that's how we get better.
I think Laura has wonderful talent, skills, and knowledge. She's also very good at writing explanations and training. She inspires me to attempt new things and to 'think out of the box'. If you make one of her designs, you will definitely get notice when others see it!
Even if you don't want to make/wear personally some of the pieces in this book, the skills you learn studying these techniques can be applied to other beading projects you attempt. Besides the techniques and projects, I especially like seeing how she looks at things around her to get ideas and colors. And even though I've already been dabbling at beading for several years and have completed many of her projects, I still learned some new techniques in this book. The instructions for the various components can be generalized to fit your own projects and ideas. And, of course, the gallery of works from other master artists was wonderful!
Like some of the other reviewers, I'd say this is generally intermediate to advanced level. But don't let that scare you - it's a wonderful book.
I find I do use this book as a reference many times and have actually "bookmarked" a couple of pages. Since this is my first purchase of a Laura McCabe book everything was new and fresh to me, unlike some who have purchased her past editions and found the offerings in this book, old hat.
I'll admit that this book is probably not suitable for a beginner as some beadwork experience is necessary, and I am not a fan of the glass eyeballs (I found them rather creepy). Overall though, I found the book informative, useful, inspiring and a delight to simply browse through.
Took a class from Laura and this book does a good job of covering her tips and techniques. Includes wonderful design ideas that are clearly illustrated and thoroughly explained. She combines a wonderful sense of color with ingenious shapes and component combinations. A must for ambitious beaders.
First, I am in the bead business so I am biased. Most of us do not get to walk down the red carpet. Crystals are way too over rated!!! In this book, Laura uses Japanese and Czech seed beads to accent natural materials and frosted(matte) glass, as in her "Nudibranch Bracelet"(page 83). Laura states, "embellish means to decorate, to enhance, to add beauty through ornamentation or fanciful details". The components are not the star, but the artist is. Laura's jewelry can be worn at your local coffee shop or at your most cherished event. Either way, they make you feel unique, not one of the crowd. Thanks Laura.
This is a wonderful book and one of my FAV'S! Laura's designs are lovely. The book is gorgeous with excellent instructions and beautiful photographs. Laura is definitely a master beadwork artist. Her designs are so beautiful! Sometimes she'll include something quite unusual in her designs. You'll do a double-take. She's quite the clever designer. All of the master class books are superb! If you love beadweaving, you'll love anything Laura writes about and designs! A must have!
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