Fire Mountain Gems and Beads' Jewelry-Making Contest 2009 Crystal Category
Finalist |
|
Meet the Designer-Artist
Where do you live?
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
Describe your artistic style.
Hard to be specific.
What inspires you as a designer-artist?
Color, texture, shape and the profound way nature puts them together. I'm also inspired by cultures and artifacts of antiquity.
What materials do you most enjoy working with?
A wide range really. Currently, I have been working with crystal, seed beads, metals and fiber.
What is the name of the piece you submitted with your success story?
Solome
What inspired this design?
The crystals themselves and an image in my mind of ancient cultures and prized jewels.
How did it come together? For example, did you plan it out or did it define itself once you began working?
It evolved as I went, I knew I wanted to work amethyst and clear crystals with silver in a multi-layered piece, it took its own form.
Share Your Background
When and how did you begin making jewelry/beading?
I began making jewelry when I was a child, as a camp fire girl I never stopped beading.
Who introduced you to beading?
No one individual--I was drawn to it from many directions and with the guidance of many sources.
Do you have an artistic background?
From a young age I have been painting, beading, doing fiber arts and mosaic. I am also a published illustrator and stained glass artist.
How did you discover Fire Mountain Gems and BeadsĀ®?
From a fellow beader. It is sincerely my main source of supply.
What other hobbies do you have?
Painting, fiber arts, sculptures--all arts, really.
Beading Success
What role does jewelry-making play in your life?
Jewelry-making is critical to me and a full-time passion. My living is made as an operations manager of a retail chain.
If you used jewelry-making as a way to bring in income, how are you selling yourself and your jewelry?
I enter contests, but have not yet made the transition to earning income from jewelry.
Do you participate in any charity fundraisers?
I have donated winning pieces to different causes.
Any advice for aspiring jewelry-artists?
Keep doing it and trust yourself.
View all of Cindy's designs in the Gallery of Designs. |