How I got Started Making Jewelry

So here's my story....

It was the summer of 2003, my girls were junior high age and we were looking for an activity to keep us busy during summer break. Neither gal was what you might call an "outdoors" type, they preferred shopping to sports (I know, I know...I'm a miserable failure in the mom dept.) and pooh poohed any suggestion I came up with. Tennis lessons? too hot. Swimming? too cold. Theater? insert eye roll. Band camp? boring....

Sigh....

We finally decided to try something creative and headed over to our local hobby shop where we discovered the bead aisle. Seemed like making our own jewelry could be fun, so we loaded up our cart, headed for home and spread out on the dining room table. I was thrilled that we had stumbled on something we all enjoyed, but I confess, I think I enjoyed it the most. When the gals went back to school that fall, I kept going.

Then I discovered that there were entire shops devoted solely to the sale of beads. What a concept! I began making regular pilgrimages to the 2 bead shops in our area; one was 50 minutes east and the other 50 minutes west. My sweet husband made the fatal mistake of commenting that it might be cheaper if I opened my own shop......

Hmmmm......

By the fall of 2005, I had my own shop. I've moved, expanded, had partners, added a gallery, lost partners, and most recently added a metals studio. We currently have a full service bead shop, a gallery with locally created art, a well equipped studio space and, in my humble opinion, the best jewelry making classes around! Here's my website if you would like to check it out.

And I've been making jewelry ever since. Have I mentioned that I LOVE my job?  :-)

Here's the first piece of jewelry I ever made....can't believe I kept it, but here it is...