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Beadifferent Make Wire Beads
by Lisa Van Herik
The complex appearance of the specialty beads, most of which are formed by a tightly wrapped coil slipped over a loose coil, is thankfully not as tough as it looks
Ah, confession being good for the soul, let me say that I initially flipped through this self-published how-to book with narrowed eyes and eyebrows knitted with skepticism. However, with a relatively simple amount of supplies to start ”thin gauge wire, wood doweling, ruler, wire cutters & needle nose pliers” anyone may immediately form a respectable bead creation with wound wire. There are 44 recipes for Beadifferent beads, a term coined by the author, gently escalating from basic forms to advanced pieces. None of the beads are intensely complicated, requiring only the essential pairing of patience and practice for success.
Van Herik supplies plenty of tips for working with wire and the various tools to complete each bead with a minimum of misfortune. The beads are divided into categories of simple (12 variations), scrunch (9), random wind (10), and specialty beads (13)” the last category was my own instant favorite, with the agreeable lines of the simple beads a close second. The complex appearance of the specialty beads, most of which are formed by a tightly wrapped coil slipped over a loose coil, is thankfully not as tough as it looks. I was particularly intrigued with the basic wrapping of wire around a square or oval dowel as one variation of a simple bead which, once slipped from the form, will naturally twist into a spiral cylinder (very cool effect with little effort!). The scrunch beads will be a sure winner with everyone as the title itself is descriptive of a no-fault technique used to form each textured bead from wound/stretched/rewound/scrunched wire. You truly can’t mess up on this technique! The fourth category, the random wind, looked messy in my opinion, amazingly more so than the textural scrunch” yet I’m certain that there will be many laid-back readers that will be pleased to give these beads a reason to exist. If the structural techniques are not enough to deal with, enhancements include the addition of patinas, bleach (impressive verdigris effect on copper) and acrylic sealants. Application of with variable effects whether you matte the wire before or after creating the bead. It is plain to see that virtually anything goes in the construction of a wire bead: do what you please to the wire before or after forming a bead shape in combination with any weight of wire and colors (! so many to choose from now!) within common sense guidelines for wearing comfort. What I had subjectively viewed in first response as unattractive is now loaded with ``what if” potential, a quick path to another sleepless night full of ``aHA’s!” and congratulatory chuckles.
•  64 pages. Soft cover (spiral bound).
• ISBN 0967572509
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