Beading Books and Research
There are many volumes of beading how-to books on the market, finding the right one for you may be a bit of a chore. If you are doing traditional style work on buckskin, then you will want books that cover lazy stitch primarily and other stitches like crow stitch. Trying to decide how to lay out your pattern, how to start a row of beading and tying down your thread. How many beads per stitch? Many will use what fits inside the pattern, and others will try to place the same bead count per stitch.
What color choices do I have and are they correct for the time period piece I am doing? What bead sizes should I use and are they correct for the time period of the piece? Many years of study and writing have gone into answering these important questions. If you have time to visit a good museum and can make an appointment, you may have access to beadwork for study that may not be in the museum rotation or show on the floor. Ask about photography rules and plan ahead for that. The Cody museum in Cody Wyoming has a very large collection and is worth seeing. They also have much more than just plains Indian beadwork. Their collection has to be one of the best and well kept collections I have ever seen of western artifacts.