How did you learn to bead?

Pandi wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

D) All of the above g.

I took an earring class, then a wire-wrapping class, then started
looking for stuff on-line, then subscribing to magazines and buying
books. I will also stop people on the street if they're wearing
something that interests me and ask if they made it.

I hope to take more classes when I've got the time/money for them. In
the meantime, I hang out here sucking up info

Cheers,
Carla

Do you think the class helped a lot with your knotting? I'm interested in
taking a knotting class myself and wanted to know what you guys covered.
How long was the class? What kind of projects did you do?

I'm about to take a knotting class. I know I could get the info somewhere
else, cheaper.....but for me, the benefit to a class is that I don't develop
any bad habits. I start out a new skill the right way (well, hopefully!), and
I don't have to unlearn anything. It's worked great so far.
~~
Sooz
-------
"Those in the cheaper seats clap. The rest of you rattle your jewelry." John
Lennon (1940 - 1980) Royal Varieties Performance
~ Dr. Sooz's Bead Links
http://airandearth.netfirms.com/soozlinkslist.html

Knotting class sure helped me.

Tina


"starlia" wrote in message
...
Do you think the class helped a lot with your knotting? I'm interested in
taking a knotting class myself and wanted to know what you guys covered.
How long was the class? What kind of projects did you do?

"Valerie2" wrote in message
ink.net...
I actually was doing it on my own to begin with...when I was younger,
I'd string my grandmother's beads onto plain string if they broke...but
in August last year I took the beginning beading class at my local bead
store. I've since taken the mini-wire and knotting class. Having
someone show me how to do it right and being able to have help works the
best for me. The knotting class I just took last Wednesday, and I was
doing it backwards...I kept wondering why I was getting tangled. Then
the instructor showed me that I was doing it wrong and showed me exactly
how to do it.

Valerie

Pandi wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

I am still waiting to learn. lol Hopefully by the time Christmas comes around again
I will know how to do some and maybe even make something. LOL

Harry

On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 15:21:38 -0800, "Pandi" wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

In article b356c.7311$Bg.2725@fed1read03, Pandi wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

I have done a few classes, but I tend to forget techniques that are
shown to me in classes. However, I definitely recommend classes for
jewelry making skills that require safety precautions (e.g., glass bead
making).

I do best with printed instructions + diagrams/photos (good diagrams are
best for me - photos tend to have extraneous stuff going on that makes
them harder for me to take in), supplemented by classes, watching people
make jewelry, and examining actual jewelry.

I use books, magazines, and instructions printed from the web.

I've noticed that many magazine articles I've tried to use have had
errors in the instructions, so I think they are to be approached with
caution unless you love figuring out puzzles.

--
Stef ** avid/sensible/sensual/wise/essential/elemental/tangle
** * http://www.cat-and-dragon.com/stef
**
to be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best night and
day to make you like everybody else means to fight the hardest battle
any human being can fight and never stop fighting. --e. e. cummings

On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 15:21:38 -0800, "Pandi" wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

Personally, I can learn well enough with photos and clearly-written
instructions, so I learned everything I know so far from Internet and
magazine tutorials (the Internet has by far been the best source of
learning for me). Books are next on my list of materials to get.

I'd like to take a class, but trying something new around other people
causes me a huge amount of anxiety. There are some techniques that I
will probably only be able to learn by being shown in person, so
eventually I'll probably have to bite the bullet. Some folks have
trouble with written instructions but fly through a class. It all
depends on how your brain is wired.

Magazines can be good for ideas, or for a project for fun, though they
tend to cater to people who already know the fundamentals of making
jewelry. It's interesting to see a project in a magazine and make it
with totally different beads, a variation on the stitch, and different
embellishments - I do that when I'm in a creative slump and need to
practice within a framework.

I'd like to take a class, but trying something new around other people
causes me a huge amount of anxiety.

Me too. But I love classes. Those other people always seem to be having as
much (or more) trouble than me. And no one's watching YOU except the teacher.
I thrive in classes. Try one and see if your fear is well-founded or not.


~~
Sooz
-------
"Those in the cheaper seats clap. The rest of you rattle your jewelry." John
Lennon (1940 - 1980) Royal Varieties Performance
~ Dr. Sooz's Bead Links
http://airandearth.netfirms.com/soozlinkslist.html

I'm having that same problem. This is the main reason I'm probably going to do the
rest of my bachelor's degree online, because of the anxiety that's caused in class.
Part of it for me is that I have this compulsion to be "the best" in the class, and
that takes my focus off of just learning what I'm there to learn and keep grades
secondary. That stubborn competitive streak can sure get me in trouble. Then
there's just the fear of looking stupid to other people...Even just going to the LBS
scares me still, but I'm getting better at that. ((((Hugs))). Just keep trying.
--
Jalynne - Keeper of the Quilt for ME club list
Queen Gypsy (snail mail available upon request)
see what i've been up to at www.100megsfree4.com/jalynne
See what DH is up to at http://www.teamintraining.org/participant/kinney-162652

"scaperchick" wrote in message
...
I'd like to take a class, but trying something new around other people
causes me a huge amount of anxiety. There are some techniques that I
will probably only be able to learn by being shown in person, so
eventually I'll probably have to bite the bullet. Some folks have
trouble with written instructions but fly through a class. It all
depends on how your brain is wired.

In article b356c.7311$Bg.2725@fed1read03, "Pandi" writes:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?

Personally, I prefer published directions with diagrams and minimal text. Like
the Japanese crafts publications (something in-between a magazine and a
book....). I rarely have a schedule that "matches" up with class times, but the
few classes I have taken weren't all that useful as technique learning
experiences-- I "got" what we supposed to be doing within the first 10 min or
so, and any questions were answered by the handouts. As a matter of fact, I
re-wrote the handouts for a couple of the classes, so they made more sense and
so they were easier to read than the hand written versions the teachers passed
out (I gave the typed versions to the teachers later). Most beading classes
seem to have at least 50% of the students there mainly to socialize-- sure,
they hope to have something to show for being there, but not an intense desire
to learn something new. About 25% don't belong there-- they don't know enough
basics or are so insecure that they need 1 to1 attention from the teacher even
to get started, and then "cling" the rest of the time, afraid to make a move
without the teacher's OK; having "pre-requisites" posted doesn't seem to keep
this type of student away. The remaining 25% are there to learn-- they want to
learn, they have basic skills, they try to "get it" on their own, but often
come away frustrated because of the "needies" monopolizing the teacher, and the
chatterers making too much noise to hear the teacher explain things to others
at the next table.....

I think a "semester class" type set up would work better-- like college
classes, where one would go 2 or more times a week for an hour or two, over a
period of 10 to 12 weeks. Something "self paced", with samplers
demonstrated/done in class, then a project using the technique as "homework".
Perhaps using something along the lines of Carolyn Wilcox-Wells "Beadweaving"
as a text....
Kaytee
"Simplexities" on
www.eclecticbeadery.com

What do you mean you are waiting to learn to bead? Beading is exactly what
you did when you made that necklace with Juanita's beads.

We've gotten more elitist here than when I first got here. It a good thing,
because it teaches us to be the best we can. But it's a sad thing too,
because it intimidates new beads and slow developers -- people for whom
beading is an interest not a priority.

Tina


"Harry" wrote in message
...
I am still waiting to learn. lol Hopefully by the time Christmas comes
around again
I will know how to do some and maybe even make something. LOL

Harry

On Wed, 17 Mar 2004 15:21:38 -0800, "Pandi" wrote:

What is the best way to learn to make jewerly? I know it's probably
different for each person but do you prefer magazines, books or actual
hands-on classes?