Beading with Charms: Beautiful Jewelry, Simple Techniques by Katherine Duncan Aimone

From the Publisher

From a reconstructed vintage necklace that incorporates family heirlooms to a locket collar with trinkets and ribbon, these projects are literally charm-filled. This latest entry in the popular Beading with series goes way beyond the familiar charm bracelet; it features unique pieces that are fresh, fashionable, fabulous, and fun. And you’ll be amazed at the found, fabricated, and repurposed objects the talented artists have dangling from their jewelry: Swarovski hearts, salvaged keys, board game bits, travel mementoes, and more. Some of the creations—including earrings made from Cracker Jack prizes—strike a nostalgic chord; others, like the Rustic Charms design with silvery discs and clusters of freshwater pearls, have a touch of elegance. Every crafter will find one to make her own.

Constance Ashmore Fairchild <P>Copyright &copy; Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. - School Library Journal

These three titles have lots of ideas for making lovely jewelry pieces. Aristides, a London fashion jewelry designer, provides the greatest selection of materials, including beads of semiprecious stones, pearls, glass, and other materials. Her well-illustrated introductory section on bead types and jewelry components is excellent.

The books by Aimone (The Beaded Home) and Blessing and Hogsett (Stringing Style) concentrate on two of these types, charms and crystals. Aimone's charms are extremely creative, some involving found objects fashioned into charms for the project. Blessing and Hogsett's projects include beadwork stitching and interesting crystal lore. The projects in all three books are sophisticated and certain to appeal to users of public library craft collections.

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