What inspires you to create?
Everything. Next question!
No, I’m kidding. But really,
it can be literally anything.
The things I see in the world
around me. Frequently it’s
art in other mediums. Ceramics especially. The colors
and shapes of large thrown
vessels really get me going.
I spend a lot of time on Pinterest and although I’m very
inspired by beautiful, imaginative art jewelry, my favorite
board is my color inspiration
board. I’m inspired by the
designers and bead lovers I
work with - they have some really fantastic ideas that lead me in directions I’d
never have gone otherwise. I’m inspired
by possibility. That’s probably the main
thing. Working with glass there’s always
something new to learn. A new skill
to master, a new color to experiment
with, different shapes and surface treatments, a cool new tool. It’s endless. Oh,
and words too! I’m a word person and
I’m very inspired by thoughts and ideas
that resonate with me.
Is there any new medium you would
like to try or are you happy with glass?
I still dabble a little in jewelry making, and that’s something I’d like to do
more of. I think there’s
something really satisfying about being able to
realize a wearable design
from start to finish. It
helps to make jewelry
too if you sell at a local
market, which is something I’d really like to
do some day. I’d love to
get back to working with metal. I did
quite a bit of metalsmithing while I was
in art school. Glass and metal is always
a very happy marriage, and if you have
skill in both areas there is so much you
can do. That said, I’m very passionate
about glass, and glass beads will always
be my first love. There are other things
on the horizon, but I’m in no rush. I feel