Color gradation has been big on the runway for the past couple of seasons. This summer I learned from Patricia Kimle how to make a Skinner blend with polymer clay at the 2008 Bead&Button Show.

From time to time I’ll see a striking example of color gradation in beadwork, such as Diane Hyde’s Bead Dreams 2006 piece, Into the Blue, or Dina Krieg’s Tiger gradation necklace.

If, like me, you’ve ever wondered how to gradually blend seed beads so the color seems to melt from one into the next, watch Associate Editor Anna Elizabeth Draeger explain some of the basics in “Blend colors in a modified herringbone bracelet.” As an added bonus, she’ll show you a new take on herringbone stitch. This video, from the Public Television program Beads, Baubles and Jewels, is one of nine in the Watch & Stitch section of BeadAndButton.com.