On a loom that's the size of a large book and with beads smaller than drops of water, she creates the perfect night out for a client, one bead at a time.

With her cat, Minout, beside her, Dedra Weiss of Austin spends hours weaving as many as 10,000 seed beads through up to 120 loom strings to make purses for evening wear. Days or weeks later, she finishes a small, elegant handbag, which is both art and accessory.

Many take their Dedra originals to parties for good causes in this city with a big heart. "Most of my customers buy them to carry to fund-raising galas," she says of the creations and business she calls Dedra. "They sometimes ask me to customize purses to coordinate with their gowns." With a one-of-a-kind Dedra, a client can stroll confidently into a ballroom knowing that she won't bump into someone else with the same bag.

One Seed Bead After Another
It's late in the afternoon when Dedra, home from pharmacy school classes at The University of Texas at Austin, settles down to a desk in her spare bedroom. On it she props her loom and beside it her palette--boxes filled with colored beads. "It's my little space," Dedra remarks. "It's not glamorous, but it works." Often her husband, Cord Stone, serenades her from another room where he creates songs for his self-named band. "While I'm working, I get to be entertained by this great music," she says.

With each glass seed bead, Dedra's purses come to life. A pink rose adorns one. A morning glory trumpets dawn on another. Butterflies take flight and peacocks strut across other examples.

Her pretty creations range in size from shoulder bags to wrist wear to "Proposal Purses." Guys buy these, which are just large enough for a ring and inscribed with "I Love You" or "Marry Me." Such gallant gestures, Dedra reports, have evoked more than one "yes."

Her works are reminiscent of the 1920s, when flappers in shimmering gowns and cloche hats clutched similar sparkling purses just large enough to hold their lipstick, Lucky Strikes, and mad money. Into a modern-day Dedra, an owner fits compacts, credit cards, and a cell phone. "I have an appreciation for earlier times, and I love how they dressed," Dedra says. "I try to bring that back a little bit."