Bead Chat Magazine Spring 2015 | Page 30

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