Teaching and Swapping

Just a short post I should have gotten up before. Here is a photo from the Gathering when we were at the Bead Swap on Sunday night. It was so much fun. I will try and get photos of all of the beads I traded for tomorrow and get them posted. Everyone was so generous with their beads and conversation. I don't think I'll ever miss another one if at all possible. I have a necklace planned with some of the beads I received. I was the lucky recipient of a beautiful fish from Karla Klein. She is seated in the photo. And there is Sharon Peters who was so nice to stay in the photo so I could catch her, Ronit Dagan, and Karla together. Ronit had been taking to Karla about her beads. And, I have some wonderful coral pieces from Marcie Lamberson to add to it too. Do you sense a theme here? I thought they would look great in some free-form peyote and maybe some bead embroidery. I have some others to add in that necklace, including my own but I have to go back through the beads first to know which once this "Seaward" theme started to take form. Oh Poop, I can not recall the name of the wonderful beadmaker who is also in the photo. If you recognize her please remind me.

Saturday I was lucky enough to be a teacher once again at the Bead Weasel. It's my favorite local (about as local as I'm going to get) bead store. Viking Knit is such a joy to do and pass on to others that I just love teaching it. I also love Anne Sturdevant at the Weasel. She's having Sharilyn Miller come in from California for a joyous six classes. Sharilyn is one of the true goddesses of wire working. If you ever get a chance to have a class with her do it! She will change the way you work with wire forever.

Well so much for my short post....catch you on the up side.

My Favorite Poster

There is a story behind this one. When I was taking some college classes at Northwestern Michigan College in Traverse City my printmaking teachers name was Jack. I adored him. It was when I was doing a lot of printmaking. Lithographs, etching, silkscreening. It was all wonderfully new. Anyway, rambling on I am, his wife's brother was the Governor of Kansas (?). I think I'm getting this right. I hope I'm getting this right. so the story goes he was the one who posed for this poster. I have this poster and I think it's great. So far, it's my all time favorite!

Bizarre

Sorry I didn't get a chance to get back to posting the other night but here are a few new photos. It actually felt just a little bizarre to be in Miami and at a bead show. But, it was great fun. Susan Lambert and I shared a table and decided to go for a funky look. Actually for the silly designs on the table came from seeing JC Herrell do a terrifically classy looking table top for Bead and Button. We did anything but! We used colored markers and made a spiral to show off Susan's discs and, of course, my skulls got...a huge skull to sit on. We draped it off the front of the table and put out names there. Last, but not least, were the stick on crystals and sequin crowns we wore. We weren't classy but we sure had a lot of fun and sold some great beads too.

You can see Susan in the corner of a photo waiting on a customer (I think it was Fran from Kentucky - We had a class with her and Bonnie Blincoe about ten years ago in Kentucky) and the lady with the beautiful long hair is none other than Heather Ferman. She is a doll in person and just the same way she is on the phone when you order viking knit end caps. We were next to Annie Made It - she is from Michigan too! And behind us was a lady who was gracious and who's name I forgot (shoot me now!). Kitty corner behind was Trey Cornette - loved, loved, loved, his class - and his beads.

I loved the fact it was a smaller group than usual, although it was difficult for the ISGB to put on the conference for a smaller group. It just it made it easier to meet everyone and talk. Next year it will be Rochester, New York. They sent some representatives from their chamber to the conference who handled out some great literature on the area. It was nice to have some pre-info. The ISGB does a wonderful job of taking care of its members in any way possible and making the conference a blast to attend. If you're a beadmaker (or a designer) you ought to consider belonging.

Contact them and join the FUN! International Society of Glass Beadmakers. There, I made it easy for you to click away!

My Nearly Favorite Week is Baaaack!

That cuts it! I think I better learn to make some shark beads or Murrini! I'll probably do another posting later but I just couldn't help putting this up when I saw it.

Miami - What A Trip

First, there were the sardine planes! I know, I know, it costs a lot of money to fly in a jet plane -but frankly if I were any more claustrophobic I'd flip out. I swear they have added more seats and less room over the years. It couldn't possibly be that I have gotten wider, hahahaha. Every flight we took was packed from stem to stern. Despite that, the three Amigo's ended up in Miami safe and sound. Lillian had already been there for a few days taking a Kim Field's bird class....Susan and I arrived later. And how do you like the views from the hotel suite? Darn, I wish Mallory and Angelina could have joined us. Tomorrow I'll show you photos of the Bead Bazaar, Open Torch, and who knows what! PLUS...I can't wait to show you all of the beads I traded for during the Sunday night bead swap. I'm a lucky girl!

Eat my Heart out Glass Goods

Whoa, what a whirl-wind two weeks....Ann Arbor, a class with Jennifer Geldard, and then the "Gathering". SWIRL GIRL IS BACK!!! I hardly know where to start but I have a few photos to edit so I figure I'll start where I ended. These photos are of a few of the hundreds of great glassworks shown at Ann Arbor. Eat your heart out too.

It's Ann Arbor!

Just a few of the silly selections from our trip to the the Ann Arbor Art Fairs. Most of this might be your usual art fair goofies but I thought I'd post them for everyone to see. Tomorrow, if given a chance with getting ready to leave for Miami I'll post a few more.

The guy is silver gray and he doesn't move much...until a kid walks up and whammy, a change of position. Great fun to watch and since I can't stand still for more than a minute or two I find it just amazing.

Don't you just love people? That was the best shot I could get of Little Bo-Peep was from the back. She's got guts I'll tell you. But I missed the fella in the roller skates dressed up like a drag queen.

Musicians of all kinds were everywhere. Here's the didgeridoo booth and his wonderful free demos and the kids on the corner dancing to music and trying to get everyone to buy their food.

My fave....and I missed the couple coming out the door who were in their late 50's, darn, the SAFE SEX store. Now that's a fun place.

Think of the fun I had.....all of this and more, and then there was the ART!

Counting down

MySpace Countdown Clocks

Children's Aquarium

Today was great fun! Finally, a day off. Went with the DH to the Ann Arbor Art Fairs. He is usually participating but this year it's all about the recovery from surgery so we took a sabbatical from doing the show. Instead it was strickly a bus man's holiday. Lots of things to see and I took photos for show and tell, but not tonight....it's too late. I wore a great piece from Mallory Hoffman and lots of artists admired it. They should, it's a great pendant. I'll add a photo of that to the line-up soon. For now, here is photo (sorry, it's a very poor one) of the "Cat Fish" I made for the Gathering. It will be included in the Aquarium for the Children's Hospital of Miami. You know me and kids!

Put a Tiger in Your Garden

Sorry I haven't been blogging - I've been gardening, making beads for the Gathering, making clay beads (so much fun!), and working on some viking knit pieces for an upcoming class. These Tiger Lilies came up after the first Spring blooms faded.... I think there are at least forty of them in the garden. What wonderful inspiration. I love gardens.