Innovative Beads Expo

These are some of the brown tone beads and pearl sticks that I bought for using with my peyote bracelets and necklaces. Browns to die for!!

I attended the Innovative Beads Expo when it was in Syracuse, NY last week. It was even better than the last time I went. It has been awhile -- last year there was a blizzard and I couldn't go. The very first time I went I was lucky enough to meet Marsha Neal at her booth. She isn't on the circuit as much now that she has a child. She is such a friendly and fun person. It was wonderful to see her work in person. She had other beads as well and I believe it was the first time I saw Gaea's work in real life and I bought one of her Mermaids.

The show was packed but I had a fabulous time going from table to table. I was mostly interested in the gem stone tables. This show has fantastic prices on stones. Usually I have to buy on the internet so it was a real treat to see these in real life.

These are some of the stones I bought. They are specifically for the Right Angle Weave bracelet class that I will be teaching this summer at The Handweaving Museum in Clayton, NY.

I also had a great time at the Bead Embroidery table and was able to get some ultra suede. I had just heard of it but I had never seen it before. It makes sewing on the bezel for a cab so much easier. I usually use leather and it is very hard on the hands since it is so tough by comparison.

And, since we were in the "city" I went to Brennan Stained Glass and picked out some basic glass for my upcoming Fused Glass Class workshop (Saturday April 4). I already have the cool dirchroic that we are going to use. I get that on the internet at Artisan Dichroic .