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Summary: New Millenium Collection - a treasure to a new beader
Review: Dalene Kelly has put together a beautiful, informative and helpful book. Upon deciding to take up the art of French Beaded Flowers, it was frustrating to not have current and resonably priced resources available to begin learning to make these beautiful creations. As my intent was to start with full-size flowers rather than miniatures, the publication of her book was greatly appreciated. I have purchased and read Dalene's French-Beaded Flower book and made flowers from three of the patterns. As one new to this craft, I was not sure if this was something that would be beyond my abilities. However, I was able to work through the patterns and come up with very pleasing results. I appreciated the way Dalene used color suggestions and left actual color choices up to the individual. This allows some creativity on the part of the user even though they are following the flower design of the writer. The clear photographs are beautifully done with vivid colors. Dalene has included a good variety of flowers, some more challenging than others, which appears to be designed for a wide range of talents. Although experienced beaders can skip over the well written basic instructions and general information about bead sizes and wire guage, new beaders will find this section extremely helpful. I also appreciated the website references which were included at the end of the book, but will note that people without computer access will not be able to take advantage of this information and including addresses and phone numbers of these resources would have been helpful for them. I consider this book the perfect beginning of my beaded flower resource library.
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Summary: A must-have for all french beaded flower beaders!
Review: Having beaded flowers for over 30 years, I find this new book of Ms. Kelly's most informative, with excellent instructions and presentations of beautiful patterns for flowers. Terminology is easy to follow for even the most novice of beaders. Definitely a must for all french flower beaders ! Reasonably priced as well !
Rating: 
Summary: This is what it was meant to be
Review: I don't know what "ameemeemeemee" had a problem with ... this book is exactly what the author intended it to be. This is a PATTERN BOOK ... it gives patterns (and nicely I might add) for individual types or varieties of beaded flowers. The instructions are clear and the variety of flowers is very nice. Ms. Kelly's work is creative and pleasant to the eye and she does a very good job of representing real flowers with her patterns. This book is not an "introduction to beaded flowers" so it is not expected that she would detail some of the more rudimentary things ... nor is the intent of the book to be a "guide to interior decorating" (i.e. how to use the completed flowers/projects). As far as the extreme cost of glass beads ... "ameemeemeemee" again is obviously not an experienced or avid beader herself or she would be aware that quality beads are actually cheaper than they have been before and more widely available. Ms. Kelly's book is well prepared and exactly what she portrays it to be ... a collection of patterns to guide someone in the creation of beaded flowersand as such is not a "waste of money".
Rating:
Summary: This is what it was meant to be
Review: I don't know what "ameemeemeemee" had a problem with ... this book is exactly what the author intended it to be. This is a PATTERN BOOK ... it gives patterns (and nicely I might add) for individual types or varieties of beaded flowers. The instructions are clear and the variety of flowers is very nice. Ms. Kelly's work is creative and pleasant to the eye and she does a very good job of representing real flowers with her patterns. This book is not an "introduction to beaded flowers" so it is not expected that she would detail some of the more rudimentary things ... nor is the intent of the book to be a "guide to interior decorating" (i.e. how to use the completed flowers/projects). As far as the extreme cost of glass beads ... "ameemeemeemee" again is obviously not an experienced or avid beader herself or she would be aware that quality beads are actually cheaper than they have been before and more widely available. Ms. Kelly's book is well prepared and exactly what she portrays it to be ... a collection of patterns to guide someone in the creation of beaded flowersand as such is not a "waste of money".
Rating:
Summary: A book made for beginners and also advanced flower beaders
Review: I have many books on beaded flowers in many languages and have to say that one can follow patterns that are clear in diagram as well as those clear in verbiage. Dalene's book is unpretentious and accessible to any enthusiast or beginner. The method is clearly shown and applies to all flowers alike with some minor variations. Her photos are beautiful and one can clearly see what to aim for when making the flower. I don't expect to be shown or told how to display the flowers nor what beads to use, nor where to buy them as these issues are for the beader to experiment with. I have been beading for about a year and love it. I have used a Russian and a French book extensively and never had difficulty finding and trying various types of beads as well as sizes--thus that Dalene leaves this as a choice to the beader is to permit creative license and experiment by the beader. I personally prefer the Russian, or Danish method as many call it, but that doesn't mean that I never make use of the French method and Dalene's book certainly gives the beader many opportunities and flowers to try and to strive for in regards to her perfect bending and tight wiring method. I am delighted that one more source of beaded flowers has been made available to us, especially as many of the "Bibles" of the likes of Nathanson and others of 30 years ago, are now out of print. I would recommend this book for it's patterns, for it's photos of finished items, and also simply as a source of ideas for one's own work or patterns. I commend Dalene for commiting to publishing when she sells her patterns on line for a reasonable price and also her booklets of patterns and I feel sure that she made more money for herself that way than this--but we her audience of beaders will be forever grateful for her most generous act--that of sharing her own intellectual property and for under $20!! The book is also very pleasing to the eye and worth looking at to see how varied beaded flowers can be--look at the picture for e.g. of the bleeding heart flower.
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Summary: a delight to own
Review: I have the honor of being able to take classes taught by Dalene making the flowers that are shown in this book. I have found the book to be easy to read and very helpful.
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Summary: Wonderful! Excellent Resource for the flower beader.
Review: I love Dalene's book, it is a great resource for the flower beader, whether you are new at it or experienced. Her instructions are clear and her diagrams are great. She is such a talented artist, her work is beautiful and her willingness to share her skills is apparent in her book. (I also love the personal comments she has included with the patterns!) This book will not only help you through some tight spots when practicing flower beading but it will inspire you to be creative with this lovely art form.
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Summary: Realistic Flowers, Quality Beading
Review: I really like Ms. Kelley's book. The flowers look like real flowers unlike some other books where the readers finished product can leave much to be desired. Sometimes your results are only as good as the pattern you are woking with and Ms. Kelley's patterns are excellent. I was happy with my results and the shading chart for the pansey turned out great. It did take me a bit to figure out some things in the book but then, I am a beginner. I recomend this book. It is a definate must to add to a French Flower beaders collection.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't waste your money!
Review: This book stinks! When I first saw it, I was impressed w/ all the diagrams - until I realized that the same diagram was repeated on each page to pad out the book. It omitted essential information (such as which size/cut beads are best for different areas of the flowers/leaves)and seems solely designed to make a buck. Don't waste your money; instead, buy Virginia Nathanson's recently reprinted masterpiece, Helen McCall's paperback, the forthcoming Beads in Bloom, the gorgeous Italian book translated into English, etc. They'll provide much better directions (to say the least), much more variety (and ways to display them), essential info Ms. Kelly omits, etc. I was on Dalene Kelly's beaded flower mailing list when someone posted that there was a negative review here on Amazon, and said that, although she hadn't seen the book, Dalene was her friend, so she was going to post that that review wasn't helpful, and post her own glowing review of the book she'd never seen, and recommended that everyone else do the same. I see that they have. That sort of garbage taints Amazon's reviews; people should be able to post sincere reviews based on actually seeing the book, not post something glowing just because the author is a friend. I use Amazon reviews to decide whether or not I'd be interested in a book (which I may want even if the review is negative, if the complaint is clear, and doesn't involve something I care about), so making up things just to help the author hurts everyone, since people like me will stop buying books by unknown authors if we think the reviews are tainted by friends/family who haven't even seen the books they're raving about. I honestly believe that this book stinks, and that you'd be much wiser to buy one of the growing number of outstanding books on this subject. This author seems to just want to make a buck, period, and is more interested in selling books and getting new students to join her classes than in teaching people to make beaded flowers. At best, this is the paint-by-number version of flower beading, leaving you dependent on the author for everything you do. The other authors provide tools with which to adapt or even create your own designs. Don't waste your money on this one!
Rating:
Summary: A Clear Guide to an Old Craft
Review: Those who have ever admired the tradional Victorian beaded flowers under glass domes - or who have seen on the net how new techniques have added to this fascinating craft - will welcome the chance to acquire a clearly written, well illustrated beginers instruction manual. Many species of flowers are included from exotic orchids to native favourites; hints on arrangement and display help newcomers make the most of their work. I really got enthused by the photos and followed up with a search on the net to locate clubs and suppliers. I recommend this book to anyone looking to make antiques of the future, or to begin a profitable new hobby.
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