We can learn to make jewelry in many different ways - from books, website tutorials or in classes. But if the written word doesn't do it for you or if you cannot find a local instructor, then free video tutorials are the next best thing.

The best known video site is You Tube which has all kinds of videos besides the instructional ones. Being able to find the one jewelry making video you want though will depend on how good you are with keywords, a little luck and your patience and time going through a number of possibilities.

5min.com has some practical videos but the jewelry section is sorely lacking - the site only has a few and doesn't even have a Hobbies category. Expert Village is better with a crafts section and but it is not subdivided so searching via keywords is necessary. Su Tree is yet another instructional video aggregator but unlike the others, has a well subdivided arts and crafts category allowing you to zoom in quickly on the growing beading and jewelry making section.

Like the other sites, videos can be uploaded by anyone - great advertising for your business or website if you do. Su Tree as well as Expert Village also lets you suggest videos from other sites such as You Tube which means you'll see a larger collection. But Su Tree does something else unique - it allows users to create "courses" linking appropriate videos together with notes. Anyone can view the videos but registration (free) is required to take any courses.

I first found out about Su Tree when they invited me to be their field expert on jewelry making given my teaching and blogging experience. As a field expert, the Su Tree widget is displayed on my blog where you can spot the changing set of jewelry videos. I have also so far contributed two free basic "courses" on Su Tree - how to make a bracelet (necklace, anklet) and how to make earrings for beginners.

You can learn about a great variety of things in mere minutes on Su Tree. These include "How to make a water bracelet" for a kid's party, "How to make a light saber" for your budding space warrior or even "How to make a lava lamp" for your retro fan. Those are from the section on crafts for kids! So check Su Tree out and have some fun.