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My passion for beading began with
simple stringed necklaces and within
a short timeframe I set up my own
showcase at Craft World in Auckland,
NZ. At first I was using in my
jewelry designs mainly
sterling silver, semiprecious stones
and Swarovski crystals.
That was until I discovered lampwork
beads! I still remember when I
ordered for the first time artisan
lampwork beads through Ebay and they
arrived with the mail. I was hooked
and started to read everything I
could about beads and the ancient
art of lampworking.
I set up my own
lampworking studio in three years
ago after attending
classes at Bellevue Community
College. After much
encouragement from my family and
friends, I am now selling my glass
art beads through Ebay,
Etsy and here on my webpage.
In a nutshell, what
is lampworking?
Each bead is
individually
crafted using a
centuries-old
technique called
lampworking
(also called
flameworking) in
which molten
glass is wrapped
around a
stainless steel
rod to create
glass beads. The
beads are then
cooled in a
digitally-controlled
kiln for
strength and
durability.
My studio
This photo shows
the torching
area of my
studio. On the
left (brown
apparatus with
green hose
attached) there
is the oxygen
generator. On
the desk (red
box with green
door) is my
beloved Chili
Pepper kiln
which cools the
beads down. The
torch is
difficult to
spot, as it's
rather small ...
but follow the
green & red
hose, and you
can spot my
Minor torch
sitting on the
table right in
front of the
chair. The green
hose brings the
oxygen to the
torch and the
red hose brings
Propane (propane
bottle is
located outside
of studio, you
can't see it on
this picture).
The lovely shiny
metal box
hanging from the
ceiling is the
very important
ventilation
system which
takes care that
no dangerous
fumes are
staying in the
working area. On
the right side
you can see part
of my glass
stash.
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