Custom Cool Jewelry

Custom Cool Jewelry: Create 200+ Personalized Pendants, Charms, and Claspsby Melinda Barta (Interweave, US $22.95) takes a very different approach to designing jewelry. Rather than lots of individual, completed pieces, Barta has divided the text into sections of components first, pendants, charms, and clasps. Then she has a section of finished projects that use an assortment of these components. I like this approach. It made a lot of sense to me because I often start with a focal piece, like a charm or pendant, either creating it or purchasing it, so the process is one that I do already and I believe many other jewelry designers do as well.

Another big plus to this book are the large assortment of techniques: bead embroidery, bead weaving, embossing, glass etching, polymer clay, metal work, wire work, resin, and even shrink plastic are thrown into the mix. Many of the techniques work easily with every day materials, from fabric to metal tins, so you really can create items with a personalized touch as claimed by the subtitle.

Experienced crafters and jewelry makers will have no trouble following the instructions provided, though the 150 photographs primarily show finished jewelry items, and I think this book would appeal mainly to those who have made jewelry or at least have other types of crafting skills under their belts. A complete novice who has never even strung a bead or done any type of crafting (if this kind of person even exists!) may struggle a little with the lack of detailed instructions. There is a Beading and Wire Working 101 section in the back of the book that provide illustrations (43 total in the text) and more basic how-to's, but I felt it was more of a review than information that a complete beginner would be able to use successfully. However, since so many jewelry and craft books these days seem to focus primarily on the beginner, it is very refreshing to see a book for those of us with more experience.