Thursday, June 11, 2009

Great Teacher - Great Blog

Just before I started writing this blog I had attended a class at The Gathering Place in Naperville, Illinois. It is a class junkie's dream to be at Portia and Lee Mandel's Gathering Place. They are gracious, kind, and knowledgeable about Art and the Chicago area. Not withstanding all of that, they are also the best hosts I know.

"Anyhow", as my friend Lillian would say, I took a series of wire working classes there. Next to having a class with the great Lynne Merchant having one with one of her several protegees is just as wonderful. So far I've been able to learn from two of them - Louise Duhamel and the wondrous Sharilyn Miller. Both taught me great techniques I can use with my handmade beads and Sharilyn wrote a great book - Bead on a Wire. Check the photo above - I love this book. It's always close at hand as a reference. I also have several of her DVDs and they are done well and easy to follow. Then, coming just in time for my birthday, YES, will be another wire book from her called Contemporary Copper Jewelry.

I knew a couple of months ago she was doing a blog but forgot to pass it along - busy busy busy. She is as generous as always and you have just got to go and look at the tutorials she has put there. BRAVO! Sharilyn, they're great. Easy click to her tutorial blog titled: Wire Jewelry Lessons. She has two blogs and between those, her teaching (traveling), books, and writing for the magazines I don't know how she keeps up. It's an inspiration.

2 comments:

rosebud101 said...

Sharon, I love that blog! Those books look absolutely appetizing! Anyway, as Lillian would say, when is your birthday?

Right Turn ArtWerks said...

Now what does my birthday have to do with anything????? Sept 9th - I'm a Virgo. But you have to love Lillian's segways.

And, you have to get the Lillianism correct, "Anyhow,..." And get that Texan accent in there too. Don't you just love it! We needed more time for dinner and things so you could have heard more stories.