From a beaded dress found in an Egyptian tomb to the fringe on a 1920s Parisian flapper's hem, humans throughout history have used beading as a way to express, adorn, and tell a story. Exploring beadwork across the world and through the ages, Marsha Bol shows how beading has taken on many different styles, forms, and purposes for different cultures. Images of artifacts and heirlooms as well as vintage photographs appear throughout the book, and the text surveys how this deeply symbolic art form has been used in children's clothing, puberty ceremonies, burials, and festivals. Bol is an authority on the clothing of the Plains Indians, and these extravagant creations are well represented here.