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The Beader’s Guide to Color
by Margie Deeb Whether you are excited or intimidated by the prospect of selecting beads for a project, this is the book for you. For those who find color combinations a mystery, this book will start you on the road to mastery by explaining color theory and examining each of the primary and secondary colors in depth. If you already have an intuitive sense of color, the book will add to your ability to combine colors and to use color to its fullest extent to convey the idea that you visualize. Each color has its unique characteristics and emotional associations. Furthermore, this changes with saturation and value. Each discussion of a color includes its emotional impact, how it looks in association with other colors and its properties; i.e. intensity, values and temperature. Vibrant photos illustrate each chapter with pertinent beaded examples. A nice feature is the suggested palettes for each color, including selections of specific delica beads identified by number. The chapter on color and seed beads is of particular interest to beaders. Comparing seed beads to pixels on a computer, Margie offers clear advice on how to combine beads for maximum impact; giving consideration to the surface finishes, bead size and transitions from one color to another. The photo examples in this section are particularly edifying. “Octopus” by Rebecca Brown-Thompson must be seen to be believed. This piece demonstrates mastery of each of the bead characteristics discussed. The author addresses some topics related to color that we have heard of before, but expands upon the concepts and makes them pertinent to working with beads. Her discussion, for example, of colors of the seasons, takes the old, simplistic concept of seasonal color combinations and breaks each season into very exciting subgroups. Combined with a discussion of energy, emotional connotations and surface finishes, the thorough exploration of seasonal combinations is truly inspired. Additionally, she discusses the familiar theory-based color schemes ; such as, analogous, complementary, split-complementary, etc. With each of these, she includes a beading pattern that exemplifies the particular combination. A book about color would not be complete without a discussion of color symbology and emotionalism. This portion is replete with examples of palettes representing western cultures color interpretation, including additional beading patterns. The inspirational photos in the gallery are wonderful. The book concludes with a bonus, beading basics. The reader is encouraged to use the techniques to expand her mastery and to find her voice through color. What a wonderful book! What exciting goals to aspire to! The book successfully meets the author’s goal: to demonstrate that the “history of color is fluid, flexible, and yes, fascinating. Review by Diana Norris |
