Hello Friends, Followers, Customers and other Members,

We have decided to switch blogs at this point to something more different and hopefully more professional as well. You will still be able to follow us just the same on the new blog. The link to the new blog is http://etsybeadembroideryguild.wordpress.com

We hope to see you over there to enjoy the new format, new blog posts and of course, the challenges! An Artisan Interview with Sharon Edelman begins the proceedings and I believe next week we will have the Challenge up!

Artist Interview.

Name:         Meg Thompson

Shop:         abeadedworld

Location:     Australia

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/ABeadedWorld-Designs-by-Meg/161446927268083

Blog: www.abeadedworld.blogspot.com

Please introduce yourself to the readers:  I’m Meg, 20 years old (in June). I’m a University student here in Australia studying science, with dreams to be a medical researcher. I love music (I play flute), reading (I have the makings of a library already!), writing and, of course, beading! I come from a family of 6, 4 children. I love God and thank Him every day for this beading gift.

How long have you been beading?

I’ve always been into beading as a kid. My first project was a memory wire bracelet. But I’ve been doing it seriously, with a passion (obsession?)  for about 5 years now.

  

When did you first try bead embroidery as a technique?

 About April/May 2011. I saw a bead embroidered collar in an issue of Bead and Button magazine and wanted to make one. But I couldn’t work out how to do it (I had ideas about large peyote stitched components, or netting, I never guessed fabric would be involved!). A friend put me onto Etsy, and I searched around for items like the one I’d seen. And found Kinga Nichols’ shop! I asked her about one of her collars and she put me onto a book called “The Art of Bead Embroidery” by Sherri Serafini and Heidi Kummli (so that’s what it’s called… Nothing to do with peyote stitch at all :P) I ordered it from Amazon, read it, and that was it! I was hooked. My first ever bead embroidered project was “Colours of Autumn,” part of my Season’s Collection.

 

Why do you like bead embroidery?

 I like the freedom it gives me to design anything I want and for it to come out how I want it. With bead weaving I feel restricted by not knowing how to manipulate stitches, etc, to design some brand new piece, like I see so many people do. But with bead embroidery, I can! Also, it seems to work up faster than bead weaving, which is great if I ever need something in a hurry (most of the time…).

What are your inspirations and influences?

 Nature is good inspiration, I love flowers; the colour of a cabochon, matched with a few other beads, is enough to sprout a whole design in my head; the shape of a focal bead or cabochon; the patterns in gemstones; a picture you see somewhere; an event in life. I have a soft spot for blues, especially teal-blues. And I love beading for a cause. Themes are great inspirations, like the Bead Fest theme. When making gifts for people, a great inspiration is the person’s personality; making something that totally suits the receiver in every way brings such satisfaction and pleasure.

What are your favorite materials?

 Seed beads!! I love seed beads, always have. Before I got into bead weaving, I remember writing myself craft shopping lists to “buy bigger beads” But I never did.  I also love gemstones (my favourites would have to be Blue-Goldstone and Lapis Lazuli), and polymer clay (a skill in which I am slowly developing).

What defines your style?

 Fun and stylish, I like to try new things, and venture out of the “norm.” I don’t really know how to really describe my style. It’s simply ME. Mostly dainty things, or at least having some dainty component, usually show up in most of my work.  I’m not typically a wild girl. You’ll find a lot of my work is very symmetrical; I find it hard to branch out and do abstract.

What are your future goals with beading?

I want to develop bead embroidery further, and start trying newer techniques such as  negative space and crazy shapes, for example. With bead weaving in general, I’d love to be able to feel totally comfortable with it that I can start designing my own COMPLETE designs, instead of pulling designs for a million different sources.

I’d also like to further develop a skill in polymer clay, as I love the stuff and would love to be able to be competent in it. And I also have desires to learn lamp working; think of all the things I could create then!! And then, once I’m good at all these things, I’d like to be able to use a combination of all these techniques! And I’d love to be able to write a book. J

I have plans of making beaded dolls dresses and houses, more wall hangings, bags, maybe the odd beaded quilt, and of course jewellery, in the future. Recently I went to Venice and I came home with 10 Venetian mask bases, which I plan to make beaded venetian (or other) masks from (I made a mask in August last year and it got me so hooked). I don’t believe that beading, especially bead weaving and bead embroidery, is just restricted to jewellery making. It is that, and so much more…

Artist Interview

Name: Christina Neit (Good Quill Hunting)
Shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop/GoodQuillHunting

Website: http://goodquillhunting.com

Location: Denver, Colorado

Please introduce yourself to the readers: I was born and raised in Maine. I have lived in Florida for 2 years and moved here to Colorado in 2010. This is my permanent home and my dream of a life time! I have 4 kids ranging from 28-12, 2 of each.

How long have you been beading? I have been beading since 2005. I actually used to play with beads when I was young with the cheap loom you can buy for a few dollars. I grew up in a VERY small town on the Canadian Border and was always influenced by the bead work at the local 'Indian Store' (that was the name of it, I am sure it has changed since in lieu of political correctness).

When did you first try bead embroidery as a technique? I was bead embroidering 6 months into teaching myself how to bead. This magazine cover was my inspiration and how I learned: http://www.beaduniquemag.com/issues/issue8.shtml and my piece named Royalty was the result of that.

Why do you like bead embroidery? I love bead embroidery because there really are no rules. All you need is knowledge of a basic stitch and the rest is all you. It is virtually impossible to duplicate and I think that it gives more opportunity to a bead artist to 'think outside the box' and allows more creative freedoms that a patterned weave.

What are your inspirations and influences? When I started beading, I was totally enthralled with the European and Russian bead artists and I still am. They all were very influential in my work. I am inspired by way too many people/place/things to list and don't seem to lack in that department, it actually drives me crazy sometimes.

What are your favorite materials? This is easy--seed beads!!

 

What defines your style? As for a 'style' I honestly couldn't tell you about my 'style'. I like to do all types of bead work and try to please as many customers as possible with as many different types of work as possible. I don't see myself with a specific style, although others may, I cannot see it.

What are your future goals with beading? Always try to 'out do' myself. Keep my work as eclectic as I can and try to 'stay ahead' by doing original and unusual work. I need to do more pattern work. I have ideas all the time, I just really would rather bead than be designing patterns.