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I don't think a post or two would be enough for me to talk about my experience with lampworking. I'll be breaking them into a few parts. How many, I'm not sure but there will definitely be more to come!
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This was the very first video I watched on glass bead making and I was intrigued just as I was enthralled. I came to a somewhat of a finality in decision after watching this. The first thing that sprang to my mind was that I could really JUST do this for the rest of my life! I made up my mind then to devote the rest of my life to jewellery making. It wasn't an easy decision and neither is the journey a bed of roses, a decision that I sometimes still questions when the going gets tough. But all I have to do is to start creating again and all is well again! LOL... XD
I got to know about this class by accident really. Glass bead making is still relatively new in other parts of the world but it's really popular in US. I knew it was something I ultimately wanted to learn. As a jewellery artist, it is only a matter of time that I wanted to make my own beads for my pieces.
I knew there were classes offered in the US but I sure wasn't expecting there to be any in the UK! But by sheer luck, I bumped into Sally Carver. Sally has been making glass beads for almost 10 years now. I was even more excited to learn that she actually offered one-to-one classes and that Leicester (which is where Sally is based) is not too far away from Nottingham! Approximately less than an hour's drive away.
There was one problem though. I can only make it for weekend classes because only then Sa Kor is free to take me there and Sally's one-to-one classes are run on weekdays. Bummer!
But all hope is not lost though! XD Because Sally got together with Diana East for a joint teaching course on weekends at The Old Dairy (Diana's studio), which is also in Leicester, luckily! Phew!
A little bit on Diana East. I have no idea who Diana East was until I was at the class. She turns out to be one of the most prominent glass bead artist in the UK! Diana has been making glass beads for around 15 years now (I think!). She started out as a freelance silversmith/jewellery designer/maker for 20 years before eventually branch out to glass when searching for a new medium of expression. She was featured as one of the artist in Cindy Jenkin's book, and for your info, Cindy Jenkin in glass bead making is like how Eni Oken is in wire jewellery.
So, yeah, wow! What an honour it was to be learning from a THE artist!
And that was how I ended up signing up for the Full Professional Grounding Intrduction Class in glass bead making at The Old Dairy.
I've noticed though that here, they like to use the long terminology; glass bead making whereas in the US and Canada, they just call it as lampworking. LOL......
All I can say for now is that this is a highly technical craft compared to what I have been doing all these while and definitely something VERY expensive to get into!
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