Quick + Easy Beadwork: For Beginners and Beyond

This special Quick + Easy Beadwork collection includes 10 beautiful, beaded jewelry projects to make, wear, and share. Use your favorite stitches or learn a new one with brick stitch, right-angle weave variation, circular peyote stitch variation, square stitch, circular netting, tubular netting, flat peyote stitch variation, and more in the mix.

ABOVE: Bridge to Happiness by Maryann McAlpin

Because this 78-page issue is exclusively digital, you’ll find clickable links to beadwork techniques, artist interviews, resources, and advertisers. More information is right at your fingertips! Here’s a peek at a few projects from the issue.

Stitch It Up

These Jewel Teardrops by Tracy Proctor make great gifts. They stitch up quickly and you can easily change the color to suit the recipient’s style. Learn how to attach the first row and then layer each row to build your beadwork onto the open teardrop component like a little brick wall. Tracy offers tips, including using a tacky bead mat to lay out the pattern before you begin.

If you get on a roll with brick stitching metal frames like this, you can experiment with different bead sizes to change the look and perfect your skills. I made a brick stitch teardrop pendant using small Czech glass beads. It looks great, if I do say so myself!

Mix It Up

Danielle Wickes made this Hopscotch Set using a small collection of beads and kept right on going, combining the shapes in different configurations for two alternate colorways. In addition to this beadwork project, she also shares an inside look at her bead storage and organization, with tips for reusing containers and making your space inspiring.

This project is perfect if you’re getting started beading or just need a project that will work up quickly. The thread path is easy to follow, and the project includes instructions for the bracelet and two different earrings so you can choose to make one piece of jewelry or the entire set.

Level Up

Edgar Lopez’s beadwork projects always bring the fire, and his Rosy Future bracelet is no exception. It’s the most complex project in this collection, mostly due to the beaded clasp. Edgar’s background as a goldsmith turned beader informs this beautiful design.

Edgar’s Inspiration Advice Colors: If you don’t like a color, try to incorporate it into some of your pieces and make it work with other colors that you like. This will force you to use your creativity in looking for solutions.

Materials: You don’t need a lot of supplies to make beautiful designs. Working from your stash will give you the chance to think in new ways and stimulate your creativity.

Inspiration: If you feel that you’ve lost your inspiration, stimulate your creativity by doing other things that you enjoy, such as listening to music, dancing, watching a movie or going for a walk. This will make you relax and inspiration will begin flowing again.

Treat Yourself

The Quick + Easy Beadwork collection is available for purchase now in our store. The 10 beadwork patterns are perfect for beginners or more experienced beadworkers looking for projects that can be completed in an evening or a weekend.

Happy beading,
Katie Hacker, Content Manager, Bead & Jewelry