The beadwork designs of the Zulu-speaking people of southern Africa have evolved from a craft tradition that developed over many generations. Carefully researched and filled with exciting photographs, 'Speaking with Beads' presents jewelry, ornamental headdresses, capes, aprons, beaded panels and other decorative forms.

Zulu Beadwork: Talk with Beads is a study of Zulu beadwork by perhaps the greatest living expert on the subject. Hlengiwe Dube¿s knowledge is direct and personal, drawn from her own experience and stories passed down by her mother and grandmother. In an unpretentious, conversational style, she explains the unspoken words of traditional beadwork designs. Including chapters on historical and regional trends, Zulu Beadwork: Talk with Beads is a must-read for anyone interested in learning about African art from the people who live it.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “The plot provided by the universe was filled with starvation, war and rape. I would not—could not—live in that tale.” Clemantine Wamariya was six years old when her mother and father began to speak in whispers, when neighbors began to disappear, and when she heard the loud, ugly sounds her brother said were thunder. In 1994, she and her fifteen-year-old sister, Claire, fled the Rwandan massacre and spent the next six years migrating through seven African countries, searching for safety—perpetually hungry, imprisoned and abused, enduring and escaping refugee camps, finding unexpected kindness, witnessing inhuman cruelty. They did not know whether their parents were dead or alive. When Clemantine was twelve, she and her sister were granted refugee status in the United States; there, in Chicago, their lives diverged. Though their bond remained unbreakable, Claire, who had for so long protected and provided for Clemantine, was a single mother struggling to make ends meet, while Clemantine was taken in by a family who raised her as their own. She seemed to live the American dream: attending private school, taking up cheerleading, and, ultimately, graduating from Yale. Yet the years of being treated as less than human, of going hungry and seeing death, could not be erased. She felt at the same time six years old and one hundred years old. In The Girl Who Smiled Beads, Clemantine provokes us to look beyond the label of “victim” and recognize the power of the imagination to transcend even the most profound injuries and aftershocks. Devastating yet beautiful, and bracingly original, it is a powerful testament to her commitment to constructing a life on her own terms.

This uniquely designed book and kit with a detachable plexiglass spine contains nearly 2,000 colorful beads and instructions to make a variety of jewelry items while learning about African culture. 100 illustrations.

Features twenty-four beadwoven jewelry projects that showcase movement from a simple drop that swings from chains to elaborate pieces with intricate components that spin around a core of beads or along a beaded base.

"This beautiful and inspiring book gathers photographs of 500 of the most breathtaking beaded jewelry designs created in recent years. The techniques the beaders employ are as varied as the aesthetic sensibilities they bring to their gorgeous creations and include beadweaving in every stitch imaginable, embroidery, quilling, loom weaving, and kumihimo braiding, as well as basic stringing, simple wirework, and fine metalwork. Sometimes, a bead maker's focal piece simply is set in a straightforward, unpretentious, and beautiful design. Virtually all of the world's most famous beaders who make jewelry have pieces included -- including Carol Wilcox Wells, Diane Fitzgerald, Marcia DeCoster, Jamie Cloud Eakin, Huib Petersen, Paulette Baron, Sabine Lippert, Sherry Serafini, Margie Deeb, Maggie Meister, Melanie Potter, Ann Tevepaugh Mitchell, Laura McCabe, Suzanne Golden, Jean Campbell, Rachel Nelson-Smith, Eva Dobos, and many more -- but we also present work from many artists who have never been published before. All together, this extensive, international, and fabulous survey of 500 pieces includes work from nearly 300 artists from 30 countries and reveals the striking vision and ambition of today's beading community. Every beader, jeweler, and crafter will want Showcase 500 beaded jewelry in their collection"--

A brief introduction to the history of beadwork in KwaZulu Natal, followed bya description of contemporary beadwork made both for the market and forpersonal use. Once the domain of women, distinct regional styles of beadwork have developed, which were passed on fromgeneration to generation.Although these styles continue to be identifiable, particularly in massed dancingat national festivals, Zulu beadwork is increasingly eclectic and much of it isdirected at the fast growing external market which now provides beadworkerswith both a welcome source of personal income and a continuing stimulus topersonal creativity. Zulu Beadwork tells the fascinating and important story of thistransformation, and of the major players who were instrumental in bringing itabout.

Prayer is essential to the Christian life, bonding us to God. Yet we find it difficult in our frenetic world to keep our minds focused for long. All kinds of external noise and inner voices clamor for our attention. How can we slow down and quiet down so as to truly wait on the Lord? Nan Lewis Doerr and Virginia Stem Owens offer a solution that calls on the physical senses to break through to the spiritual -- praying with beads. The use of prayer beads, which has a long history in practical spirituality, is now becoming more widespread among Protestants. Doerr and Owens here show readers how to use what have become known as Anglican or Christian prayer beads. Readers can then use the basic prayer structure provided by the beads to pray their way through each day -- morning, noon, and night -- and through the church year. These prayers -- a thoughtfully chosen combination of quotations from Scripture and gleanings from the Book of Common Prayer -- can be enhanced and enriched by the mindful and meditative practice of using beads. Doerr and Owens encourage readers to use beads as "something to hang onto, a lifeline to the Presence that lies, often hidden or forgotten, at the center of our lives." Praying with beads, as outlined and embodied in this little book, has the potential to transform one's prayer life.

Mastering the Art of Beading will do for jewelry making what Julia Child did for French food. In this definitive guide to all things beads, expert jewelry maker Genevieve A. Sterbenz covers all of the terms, tools, skills, and shortcuts necessary for creating beautiful beaded jewelry. With more than 800 how-to photographs, detailed and illustrated techniques, a photographic glossary, and useful resources, this book is packed to the brim with beading essentials. In addition, Sterbenz presents step-by-step instructions for 50 stunning projects in a range of techniques and styles. An accessible compendium dissecting every aspect of this popular craft, Mastering the Art of Beading will be the resource craftersdabblers and experts alikewill want on their bookshelf for years to come.

Learn to craft one-of-a-kind miniature boxes in a variety of shapes no matter your skill level with this assortment of twelve charming beadwork designs. Julia S. Pretl offers crafters her original method for creating decorative beaded boxes and lids in a wide range of surface designs and shapes. Working only with cylinder and seed beads, needle and thread, crafters can create an impressive array of clever and colorful miniature containers. With step-by-step illustrations and easy-to-follow word graphs and patterns, Pretl leads the reader through the techniques for creating three-sided, five-sided, and six-sided rectangular, square, and stacked boxes. Four-color photographs of each of the 12 designs introduce each set of instructions. Detailed drawings illustrate the beading techniques.