Welcome to our shop!

When Lane had a major surgery that required a long recovery, Cara suggested that they take a jewelry making class together at their local bead store. Cara immediately fell in love with the beautiful beads and creative process and was soon hired by the store. It didn’t take long for Cara to discover her passion and knack for teaching and designing jewelry. When the economy, the family’s technology business, and Lane’s husband’s health all took a serious downturn, Cara and Lane teamed up and started their first business together to earn extra money. On the weekdays, the local bead shop was kind enough to let them teach after school beading and art classes in one of the store’s classrooms, and on the weekends they were hired to throw artistic beading parties for eager beaders of all ages! To everyone’s great disappointment, the local bead store was not able to make it through the difficult recession and was eventually forced to close its doors. While Lane faced the imminent threat of losing her own business (as well as their family home), she was forced to take a second job while Cara took over running the family business. Despite the desperate circumstances, she never gave up on her passion for beading or of having a small business of her own (or preferably with her mom).One day, while thumbing through old issues of beading magazines, Cara had the light bulb moment and realized exactly what she wanted to do. She was going to continue to teach jewelry making, but from an online storefront! And, she was going to do it in a way that “left no beader behind,” ensuring success regardless of skill level! That’s how Simple Bead Patterns was started! When Cara and Lane realized that her fledgling business could be the opportunity they had always dreamed of, they decided to team up once again.Today…We’re glad to say that the business is doing well and we continue to grow (which, blessedly, has allowed our family to hang onto our home)! We have created hundreds of beading tutorials and have become regular contributors to Bead & Button Magazine. We’re having fun together and loving what we do, and we enjoy sharing our passion with you! ~ Cara & Lane
Contact Us

Lane's watercolor painting of Gig Harbor, WA.
Have questions? We're here to help. Here's how to contact us . . .
Contact Us
Use the easy form on our Contact Us page to send us a message. We typically respond to folks within an hour or two (often sooner). Please allow extra time if you contact us between 7 p.m. - 7 a.m. P.S.T.
Email Us
Feel free to send us an email. We typically respond to folks within an hour or two (often sooner). Please allow extra time if you contact us between 7 p.m. - 7 a.m. P.S.T.
Beading Hours
We're usually available to help 7 days/week, 365 days/year and typically respond to customers within hours (if not minutes). Please allow extra time if you contact us between the hours of 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. P.S.T. (that's when we rest and get our "beady sleep").
Bead & Button Designers!
Cara and I have been fortunate to have several of our original designs published in Bead & Button Magazines. We've also had designs published in their last two hardcover Creative Beading books (volumes 12 & 13).
Please note: Due to space constraints, Bead & Button doesn't publish our detailed instructions - so, they rewrite (and greatly condense) them for the magazine. If you have any trouble following the abbreviated instructions for one of our designs published in Bead & Button, we recommend you purchase the detailed beading pattern from us - which will step you through the project in great detail.






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Testimonial
“This pattern is extremely well written. I have made several different patterns from Simple Bead Patterns and they have all been terrific. Sometimes patterns seem to be written by experienced beaders who take for granted a certain amount of knowledge and expertise. Not so with these patterns. Possible mistakes are anticipated and corrected, steps that might seem obvious are delineated anyway. Helpful reminders are included throughout. These earrings, in particular, are pretty and festive and easy to make.” – Emmellbee
About our beading tutorials & service
Great jewelry making instructions & awesome customer service!
Our tutorials are like taking a one-on-one jewelry making class from a great instructor - only our patterns are typically more affordable, more convenient, and you can use the instructions to make the project again and again! Below are some of our beading tutorials key features.

Detailed written instructions
We write all of our beading patterns with absolute beginners in mind - every step in explained and no previous beading experience or knowledge is ever required. Each and every step of a project is carefully explained in clear and concise language - written in a relaxed and conversational style.
Close-up photo of every step
Each close-up, high-resolution, full-color photo is carefully taken to show exactly what’s happening in the step. We edit each and every photo to ensure they're as bright and clear as possible and often add special annotations for further clarity.
Detailed materials page
Every beading tutorial includes a detailed Materials Page that tells you everything you'll need to make the project, including; bead types, sizes, and quantities of all recommended beading materials and tools. Check out our next section for helpful tips on how to successfully customize your jewelry.
Bead legend
Beading tutorials show you where each type of bead is located in the design so you know how and where it's used. Please note that all of our newer patterns also include detailed bead color information, in case you want to duplicate one of our color samples.
Secure shopping & payment
Our website has an SSL certificate, which means that your personal information is always safe and secure when you browse and shop from this site. Additionally, all credit card transactions are securely handled through PayPal for your protection. That means we do not capture or store any of your credit card information on our website.
Fast delivery & easy accessibility
Instantly download and view PDF beading pattern(s) on your PC or handheld device, and get started working on your project right away! You can also print your tutorial if you want a paper copy. If you log into your account when you place an order, all of your beading tutorials will also be easily accessible from your "My Downloads" page.
Amazing customer support
If you're struggling with any part of a pattern, please reach out to us - we're always to help! That goes for any other questions or concerns you might have about using our website or purchasing and downloading new beading patterns. Never hesitate to contact us.
Unconditional money back guarantee!
We want you to "bead happy". If you're less than thrilled with a pattern, for any reason, please contact us. At your preference, we'll either do our best to address your concern or issue you a full refund - no questions asked. That's our Bead Happy Guarantee!
Testimonial
“O U T S T A N D I N G !!!!!!!! Adorable design with very easily found beads. (Info listed on where to buy the rings which are very, very economical.) This is a super stash-buster pattern and the pattern is very, very detailed even going as far as showing all the beads used. While these patterns from this shop are a little more than average, the work put into them are stellar! THANK YOU!” – Kathleen
How we price our patterns
Our beading patterns are widely regarded around the world as the best written and photographed beading patterns available, and hands down the easiest to follow. We put a lot of time and effort into making our beading tutorials, which involve; working out the design, creating numerous color samples, photographing and writing instructions for each and every step, editing all the photos, creating a detailed Materials page and Bead Color Legend, and proofreading the pattern.
We price our tutorials based upon the total number of steps in the pattern, which can range anywhere from 10 - 20 steps (for the simplest patterns) to 140 steps or more (for our more complicated designs). With that said, even our longest and most involved patterns are still less expensive than most beading classes!