Book: The Beader's Guide to Jewelry Design By Margie Deeb

152 pages beautiful color pages explores jewelry design through six essential elements that elevate a piece from a hobbyist's craft project to a professional-looking work of wearable art. These elements—unity, focal point and emphasis, balance, movement, shape, and color—are described in detail, with plenty of examples in different styles, ranging from minimalist wirework to intricate bead weaving to over-the-top statement pieces that incorporate mixed techniques. Deeb also presents a series of challenges for jewelry makers that engage their creativity and encourage them to think carefully about jewelry design. One of the most useful aspects of the book is that her lessons aren't specific to a particular jewelry-making technique, which gives this book a wider audience than most such titles. VERDICT Deeb's passion for design and practical advice, combined with the copious sample pieces, will help jewelry makers refine their design process and create high-quality, marketable pieces.