Learn French Beading: Beginner Course

French Beading is a bead-and-wire art from the Renaissance used primarily to make flowers. Learn the art from professional designer Lauren Harpster in this new publication. While it is made specifically for beginners who've never touched beads or wire, it is also an excellent resource for experienced French Beading artists.

This title is an instruction manual that goes along with my Learn French Beading: Beginner Course video series on my website. Instructions for accessing the course videos are included inside the book. It contains instructions for beginner-level techniques and four practice flower patterns (Lavender, Dame's Rocket, Wild Clematis, and Black-Eyed Susan).

-Part 1 is the "Getting Started" guide. This section explores tools, beads, wire, and other supplies in detail, though not all of them will be necessary for this course.

-Part 2 is the "Technique Guide", which contains six lessons that teach the basic techniques: Continuous Loops, Continuous Crossover Loops, Continuous Wraparound Loops, Fringe, Basic Frame, and Lacing. These lessons are important for learning French Beading terms and abbreviations, and how to read French Beading patterns. There are also some variations of the techniques that are not used in the practice patterns, but are included for education and reference. This section is also intended to be a one-stop technique reference so you can quickly look up specific techniques while working with other flower patterns.

-Part 3 contains four wildflower patterns that I've developed specifically for helping you practice the base techniques learned in Part 2 - Lavender, Dame's Rocket, Wild Clematis, and Black-Eyed Susan. The patterns have been written with beginners in mind and contain a high level of detail, so they're a great way to dip your toes into the art. This section is important for seeing practical application of the techniques, reinforcing the ability to read patterns, and learning how to assemble and shape a variety of flowers.

-Part 4 will demonstrate how to arrange the flowers from Part 3 to make a wildflower arrangement. I am not a professional florist, but I'd like to share what I've learned about arranging beaded flowers. This section is included only in the book version of the course.