Very true. This book does not follow your usual how-to format, and this could be a good thing for the slightly experienced jewelry maker who is interested in getting inside tips and design methods from someone like Cains whose company is very well established in the fashion world. Running jewelry boutiques throughout eastern U.S. and having her work displayed in big time publications such as Vogue, Cains obviously has a lot of information to provide to the serious yet less experienced jewelry designer.
Super new jewelry makers, those who have only strung a few beads for example, may not find the basics they need however. While it does cover techniques (and I was very happy to see that both the flattening technique as well as the crimping pliers technique was covered for crimps beads in this section) this book seems more focused on readers with at least a few jewelry pieces under their belts.
Focus, in fact, is something I had a little trouble understanding with this book. Not to say there isn't a lot of great information in here as well as inspirational designs (a few of my favorites include "Girly Pearly Necklace," "Odd-Bead-Out Necklace," and "Back-to-School Charm Bracelet"), but I felt there was maybe a little too much going on in a 119 page book.
Maybe I just didn't "get it." I mean, there were things I really liked in this book other than the projects. For example, I really liked the sections called "Secret Agent Man" followed by "Flea Market Makeover Jewels," where the reader tags along with a jewelry designer and the boyfriend of a client to pick up unique odds and ends from a flea market. Then she transforms these into a one-of-a-kind jewelry set for the boyfriend to give as a gift. This was sort of like a mini-jewelry design session, a glimpse into how a designer designs.
But then there were the other odd areas that seemed to interrupt the flow for me. For example, the section on the bridesmaid jewelry party, complete with sangria recipe. I had trouble connecting this to designing jewelry. It sounds fun, and honestly, the whole book has a fun, up-beat tone to it. But, I couldn't figure out why it was there.
I suspect the fun, fashion, and how-to all mixed up is what the focus is meant to be, and if this is true, then the authors accomplished this goal. Though it may not have the meaty technical aspect of some how-to books, it is nice to finally see someone taking a chance merging crafts with fashion, creating a sort of how-to book with a glossy fashion magazine.
