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February 28, 2010
February 23, 2010
Prescott's 4th Friday Artwalk This Week - Annie Alexander Reception at Arts Prescott on Whiskey Row
Annie Alexander will be showing this month at Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery and her artist hosted reception will take place during the
4th Friday Artwalk
Feb. 26th from 5:30 to 8PM
Join US....
February 22, 2010
February 20, 2010
Recycled Wine Bottle Beads fit Pandora Bracelet - Prescott, Arizona
Drop by Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery on Historical Whiskey Row in Prescott, Arizona and check out Rowena's Recycled Wine Bottle Beads. Rowena enjoys wearing her Pandora Bracelet with charms from all of her recent and not so recent trips.
Now you can pick up Rowena's Recycled Wine Bottle Beads - Lampwork - Here you see Riesling, Chardonnay and Kahlua. They fit my bracelet and I love to wear them.
Sandy Evans Showing at Prescott Fine Arts Gallery (PFAA) Show "The Mature Eye"
Seed Bead Necklace created and designed by Prescott Bead and Fiber Artist Sandy Evans. Showing at The Prescott Fine Arts Gallery "The Mature Eye"
This exhibit taps into a wonderful resource in the Quad-City area: the rich talent of artists who have refined their work with years of experience. The show will affirm that being over 50 is a time to unleash creativity and artistic freedom and not a time to slow down. Artists will display diverse variety of work that speaks to their years of living. The opening reception for this exhibit will also coincide with Prescott's 4th Friday Art Walk on the 26th. Please stop by and enjoy the refreshments, the live music and the superb art exhibit. For more information, please call (928) 445-3286 or email [email protected].
February 19, 2010
"Abundance" - A Necklace of Beads - Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery - Whiskey Row
This treasure of Lampwork Beads, glass beads from my bead collection adorns a size 11 seed bead braid.
Note that every 1/4th of inch a fringe is added while sewing throughout the beaded braid.
A copious amount of my beads collected from every corner of the world was added to this necklace. Note the 2 large lampwork beads, one on each side of the necklace.
The round flat glass bead hanging at the center to the right was made in Kaufbeuren, Germany. I purchased several of these types of beads during my last trip to Germany.
Kaufbeuren is located not far from Munich.
February 15, 2010
Off Loom Bead Weaving on Kumihimo Braid with Sterling Silver Clasp
I am enjoying the Kumihimo Process. In the past I purchased cords for my Off Loom Bead Weaving. My jewelry looks so much more finished with the hand braided cords finished off with a Sterling Silver Clasp.
The Kumihimo Braid is created using cotton Yarn which I found at A Good Yarn in Prescott.
www.artsprescott.comFebruary 13, 2010
"Miss Kitty" - The Gunsmoke Era - Simply Red
Valentine's Day inspires me to use red seed beads and glass to create jewelry for the season and the heart.
I created this necklace using oxygen tubing. It is covered using right angle weave size 11 seed beads. A sterling silver wire was worked through the tubing and this created a stable hold and a attachment for a sterling silver clasp.
The recycled glass focal pendent is a recycled glass chard from the Pierport Glass Museum. I adorned the chard using Vintage German Glass buttons, Coral beads, and branch stitch size 11 seed beads.
You can find "Miss Kitty" in the front window of Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery through Valentine's Day. The Era of Gunsmoke inspires me to use the powerful color red glass.
February 11, 2010
Glass Heart Brooch - Art on Whiskey Row - Prescott, Arizona
This Brooch/Pendant can be found at:
Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery
134 S. Montezuma Street
Historical Whiskey RowPrescott, Arizona
928-776-7717
Check for current Guest Artist Shows
www.artsprescott.comFebruary 09, 2010
African Wedding Beads
This is just one stand of several in my African Bead Collection. THE WEDDING BEADS! You will find several Brooches created using The Wedding Bead as a focal bead at Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery, 134 South Montezuma Street, Heart of Whiskey Row in Prescott, Arizona. I got mine from an African Bead Trader in Tucson during the Gem Show, but you can find these beads at The Bead Museum in Glendale, Arizona.
Here is some information written on the African Bead site.
Photo by Rowena Tank
The Most Colorful African Beads: Mali Wedding Beads
People often ask me, “What are the most colorful African beads?” The answer
is simple: Mali Wedding Beads. In one strand of these beautiful African wedding
beads, you will find beads varying in up to 40 different colors, shapes, and
designs.
These handmade beads are said to be given to brides on their wedding days. Most were originally Czech-made, and traded in Africa. They can be up to 100 years old, but are often newer.
Mali Wedding beads make great for beading projects on a tight budget. Although one strand can run between $50 and $100.
These beads most commonly come in a light bulb shape, but also come in tear-drop shape, triangle shape, and others.
February 04, 2010
"Simply Red" - Valentine's Day Bead Treat at Arts Prescott
Off Loom Bead Weaving ...of course! Size 11 seed beads on a cotton cord makes a much thicker and sturdier necklace without giving up the soft flexible feel of a beaded necklace. That is one reason I enjoy Right Angle Weave..the feel of the beads in your hand.
"Simply Ruby" is just the looped off loom bead weaving. I added sterling silver end caps where were created in Israel to complete this necklace. The large Hollow Lampwork Beads was created with Moretti Rubino Auro and above that is a hand cute Ruby Bead which I got from Randy Shackleford, AKA Bubba, in Prescott. The ear rings consist of 2 of these Ruby Beads.
"Simple Red" consists of size 11 seed beads braided and strung. Throughout the necklace you will find lampwork red beads created with Morretti Glass Rods, Clay Beads I found at a To Bead True Blue Bead Show in Tucson. The focal beads are Red Skunk Beads. I finished this necklace using Sterling Silver Cones.
Africadirect.com writes about the Red Skunk Beads, "Classic red skunk beads with white dots."
"Additional information:
The term "Trade Beads" typically applies to beads made predominately in
Venice and Bohemia and other European countries from the late 1400s through to
the early 1900s and traded in Africa and the Americas. Many of these beads have
been attributed to being made in Germany, France and the Netherlands as well."
"The heyday of this "trade" period was from the mid 1800s through the early 1900s when millions of these beads were produced and traded in Africa. The Venetians dominated this market and produced the majority of the beads sold during this time. The J.F. Sick and Co, based in Germany and Holland was one of the largest bead brokers/importers during this period. Moses Lewin Levin was a bead importer/exporter who operated out of London from 1830 to 1913. You can see 4 of the Levin trade bead sample cards from 1865 in The History of Beads (Dubin)"
"The popularity of these beads was revived in the late 1960s when they began to be exported from Africa into the United States and Europe. The term "Trade Beads" became very popular during this time period and is still used for the same bead reference today. The millefiori beads were also called "Love Beads" and used in necklaces with peace symbols during the Hippie days."
"As the popularity and availability of these old beads grew they started getting "named". We started hearing terms like "Russian Blues", "Dutch Donuts", "King Beads". Although some of these folklore names are totally meaningless...ie...."Lewis and Clarke" beads, they do describe a specific type of bead."
"And today these beads are more popular and collectable than ever. Thousands of these beads are in private collections around the world. The African Traders are having to go deeper and deeper into Africa to find more of these beads and many styles which were readily available just 5 years ago are no longer seen today."
"To learn more about "trade beads" please read, The History of Beads (Dubin), Collectable Beads(Liu), Ornaments From the Past: Bead Studies After Beck (Bead Study Trust), The Bead Is Constant (Wilson), Arizona Highways (July1971), Africa Adorned (Fisher) and the John and Ruth Picard series of books; Volume III - Fancy Beads from the West African Trade, Volume IV - White Hearts, Feather and Eye Beads from the West African Trade, VolumeV - Russian Blues, Faceted and Fancy Beads from the West African Trade, Volume VI - Millefiori Beads from the West African Trade and Volume VII - Chevron and Nueva Cadiz Beads."
"There are exceptional museum collections of trade beads at the Museum of Mankind in London, the Pitt River Museum in Oxford, the Royal Museum of Central Africa in Belgium, the Murano Museum of Glass in Italy, the Tropical Royal Institute of Amsterdam, the Bead Museum in Arizona, US and the Picard Trade Bead Museum in California, US to name a few."
"One of the most intriguing aspects to these beads is how they have survived a hundred or more years of wear and the travel through at least three continents. Another mystery is who wore them before us who will have them next.......after us. Recommended Reading: HISTORY OF BEADS (Dubin)"
This great information came from www.africadirect.com
February 03, 2010
Arts Prescott Cooperative Gallery - Whiskey Row - Prescott, Arizona
Check out our Cooperative Gallery. We have a call to artists for a new member. If it is filled before you read this remember that we do this throughout the year when a space opens.
Also, please check out our Valentine Front Window at the gallery through Valentine's Day. This is an annual display and we try hard to improve it each year. See you at the gallery!
www.artsprescott.comFebruary 01, 2010
Morro Fleece Works - Morro Bay, California - Showing in Phoenix 2010 Vendor Market Free to The Public! - Fibers Through Time
During the last few times I attended the "Spinning at The Winery in Livermore, California I was able to expericence the work presented by Morro Bay Fleece Works. They are located at: 1920 Main Street, Morrow Bay, California (805) 772-9665.
Becky writes, "I am a fiber processor located on the central
coast of California, about halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. I
do washing (scouring),
picking, carding to batts or roving, pin drafting and felt rugs or
felt fabrics.
I do not spin to yarn. However, I can have your fiber hand spun here or can
recommend other processors who are set up for machine
spinning. My pin drafted
roving comes in a beautiful coil similar to a beehive or a nautical rope coil.
It can be pulled for spinning or weaving directly from the box or bag without
tangling or breakage. If you are processing your fiber to sell, this coil will
make a very nice presentation."
"My retail store hours are a minimum of Monday thru Friday 10am to 4pm PST. I encourage people to call ahead (805-772-9665) or email me at [email protected] for an appointment that fits their visit to Morro Bay. You can always ship your fleeces to me via UPS or USPS or any method that is convenient for you. I have various carriers delivering parcels daily from all over the United States. We have a small retail store here where I sell handspun yarns, hand-woven rugs, hand knit items, felting supplies and used spinning/weaving equipment."
"Although we still process alpaca and llama blanket or firsts fiber at 100%, we no longer offer alpaca and llama seconds and thirds shearing’s at 100%. The seconds (neck fiber) and thirds (belly and leg fiber) of Camelid fibers will need blended with at least 10% wool. Either I can provide the wool or you can send your own along with the llama or alpaca. Usually these lesser quality fibers have minimal crimp, are coarse and have a short staple length which makes for a roving that is difficult to create, let alone spin. We are also no longer carding mohair at 100%. Mohair must be blended with at least 20% wool. We have found 100% mohair and unblended Camelid secondary fibers to be too labor intensive and sometimes unsuccessful to process alone."
Morro Bay Fiber Works will be showing at:
Fibers Through Time 2010
April 15-18, 2010
Crowne Plaza Hotel Phoenix North Metro Center
Fibers Through Time 2010 - A Fiber Odyssey
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