Bead Weavers
Three bead artists share their off-loom beading techniques
By Sharon Elaine Thompson
During excavations in Morocco between 2014 and 2018, archeologists discovered what is regarded as the world’s oldest jewelry: a set of 33 shell beads that date back around 150,000 years. In the tens of thousands of years since then, beads have held on to their place in jewelry, taking on countless forms and being made in an endless variety of materials. The fascination with beads continues today, as does the infinite number of ways that artists put them together to create jewelry.