HOW IT ALL BEGAN

In Another Other Life. . . .

I’ve spent countless hours over the past fifteen years with a threaded needle in my right hand and a jumble of beads, crystals, stones, and pearls in my left.

I’m fairly certain I have a touch of OCD. How else do you explain willingly sitting for hours on end, weaving tiny glass beads together in intricate patterns, just for the joy (and occasional frustration) of it?

My jewelry-making began around 2010, entirely by accident. I admired a pair of earrings my friend Mary was wearing, asked where she got them, and she pointed me toward a local beading class. I signed up on a whim, and the rest, as they say, is history.

When I first walked into the quilting/beading store, I was instantly smitten; no other word can describe my feelings. Rows upon rows of tubes filled with gorgeously colorful beads grabbed my heart and didn’t let go. In that moment, I realized I could make any piece of jewelry I wanted, in any color I desired. I was a goner.

Learning to read a beading pattern, however, was another story. Left alone with a needle, thread, beads, and a printed pattern, I was a lost soul. Fortunately, I had extraordinary (to put it mildly) and extraordinarily kind instructors. That alone was something special in our small desert community.

Once I got the hang of the basic stitches, peyote, ladder, square, and brick, I was eager to level up. I tackled herringbone stitch, spiral stitch, right-angle weave, and more. But still, those darn patterns tripped me up.

I eventually discovered I’m a kinesthetic learner, hands-on, tactile. I need to do in order to understand. Once that clicked, and I stopped fearing the patterns, I was off to the races.

Bead embroidery, though, is a whole different animal. If you’ve ever done thread embroidery, you’ll know what I mean. Here are two examples of bead embroidery, where each bead is sewn onto a backing, and the finished piece becomes the foundation for jewelry.

What began as a hobby slowly morphed into a small business. For several years, I showcased and sold my work at juried art shows and occasionally held private sales. Setting up and breaking down a tent and its fixtures is no small feat, especially under a blazing desert sun. Eventually, I stepped away from that part of the journey to focus on other ventures.

The life of an art show artist is demanding, and it takes a toll physically. I deeply admire the men and women I met who are still living that life and doing it with grit, grace, and passion.

These days, I still bead, just for myself. I give away more than I keep. I can’t fully explain the joy I feel when someone genuinely admires a piece and I get to say, “It’s yours.”