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TECHNIQUES AND MORE: A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR BEAD LOVERS. BY WENDY SIMPSON CONNER TRADING & PUBLISHING COMPANY LA MESA, CALIFORNIA ISBN 0-9645957-02 Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 95-942 15 SAN: 298 - 5829 EMAIL: Interstlr@aol.com / Visit our Website: www.interstellarpublishing.com Copyright © 1995 Wendy Simpson Conner Published 1995 by Interstellar Publishing Company All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner (mechanical, electronic, or photographic), nor may it be transmitted or stored in any retrieval system; nor copied for public or private use (other than “fair use") without the written permission of the author. Allillustrations by Wendy Simpson Conner Black and white photography by Wendy Simpson Conner Full color photography by Don Brandos Printed in the United States of America FIRST PRINTING: APRIL, 1995 SECOND PRINTING: SEPTEMBER, 1995, THIRD PRINTING: JUNE, 1997 FOURTH PRINTING: OCTOBER, 1997 FIFTH PRINTING: APRIL, 1998 SIXTH PRINTING: FEBRUARY, 1999 SEVENTH PRINTING: JANUARY, 2000 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS: To Jennie, who started it all; To Joni and Paul for putting up with my intensity; And, most of all, to my mother, Priscilla Simpson, whose patience and talent has greatly influenced my life. My heartfelt gratitude goes to my aunt, Perlso Lewis, for taking such good care of my grandmothers beadwork; ‘and to Phyllis Shealy, for her love and goodness. De cece Pecccccececccccece Introduction She could make her own lace (she made her own wedding dress by hand); she beaded flapper dresses, she made shoulder pads. She was truly ahead of her time with the sophistication of her designs (There are photographs of some of her work on the following pages). Her daughter, my mother, carries on the tradition. She sews, needlepoints, does embroidery, and is extremely gifted with all she creates, My father was a very talented artist — he could reproduce almost any illustration he saw. With such a legacy, it seemed natural that |, too, would be artistic. A designer by trade, I've worked in the visual arts for many years. My love affair with beads is a true genetic affliction. One of my earliest memories is Playing with my grandmother's button and bead boxes. In the 1960's. My girlfriends and | would sit at school and string love beads into necklaces and wire bead rings. In the 70's, we graduated to beading leather, macrame, and other similar crafts, By the time the 90's arrived, it was apparent that | would never tire of my love of beads. | am a self-admitted “bead addict” or “bead-a-holic”’. | admit | have absolutely no willpower when it comes to beads — it's very hard for me to walk away from what | know to be a rare and unusual find. If given the choice between lunch or beads, | usually skip the lunch and buy the beads, | worked in the television industry as a designer when | lived in Los Angeles, then, in the early 80's, | started teaching a vocational Jewelry making class for the San Diego Community Colleges (I now teach in several adult education Programs). | opened a bead Store in San Diego, California (The Bead Centre), and | write for several bead-related magazines (If you like my articles in Lapidary Journal, then you'll love this book). My students share my love of beads and bead work — the classes are workshops where wonderful ideas and beautiful things flourish, In large part, this book is for my students, who asked all the right Questions, and Pushed me to write this book. The one comment | hear the most is the fact that many THE BEST LITTLE BEADING BOOK

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