A Bit About Me

After yesterday's tentative first post, it occurred to me that it may be appropriate to write an informational post about me.

LOCATION: I live on the east coast of Florida near Jacksonville with my wonderful husband -my best friend, actually - and my three spoiled feline furkids. We moved here nine years ago from the Atlanta area.

OCCUPATION: When I'm not immersed in beadworld, I have a part-time job in a field I thoroughly enjoy. It helps pay the bills and I get to meet some wonderful people.

DEDICATION: I've always been a creative person. Whether it's making baby quilts, gift baskets or jewelry, there's usually some project or other in progress. It's something I have to do.

The baby quilt scene was way back in the day - late 80s. Gift basket biz began in 2000 and ended when my husband was injured and I had to get a "real" job.

I've been beading for years in one form or another but didn't get "serious" about it until May 2008 when I first opened my etsy store.

You can see my progress as a designer by scrolling through my photobucket album.

Did my first craft fair 4th of July last year. Oh, I was so nervous! After that, I did several others,including one at Beadlemania to raise funds for cancer and the Rock Shrimp Fest in St. Marys, GA where I sold over $200 worth of my handcrafted items.

Last November, I learned a valuable lesson about being choosy which small craft fairs to do and which to leave alone. This fair was held at a local church. Things didn't go very well there but I still had fun. The way I look at it, it was still a learning experience. Each fair is a LOT of work, but every one teaches me something new and I absolutely LOVE doing them!

INFORMATION:

To see more of my designs, stop at my MySpace page. I usually try to post pix there of items I've created that don't make it into the etsy store for one reason or another.

EDUCATION:

I graduated college a bit late in life with an Associates' degree in Office Systems Technology from Pellissippi State Technical Community College in Knoxville, Tenn. That degree helps me pay the bills but my ongoing education in jewelry design is what feeds my soul.

I'm registered at several different online learning centers, including this one which has a great article about blogging, by the way. I'm constantly looking to improve my craft any way I can. So far, I'm mostly self taught through books, online video lessons and good old trial and error.

COMMUNICATION:

I love hearing from folks who read my blog so please do leave comments! Tell it like it is, too, please. I believe we learn from our mistakes - and having a good friend to point them out is one of life's treasures in my book.

Well, I hope I haven't bored you too much. Thanks for stopping by and I hope you come back soon.