About Wildflower Beads

Beadwork jewelry is made with tiny seed beads, each added one at a time, done with a very fine needle and strong nylon thread.

I was always fascinated by beadwork jewelry, and one day in the mid 80’s, on a trip to Santa Barbara, CA, I discovered a bead shop. Who knew such a thing existed!! I went in and bought a little booklet about how to make beaded earrings, some beads, needles and thread. I sat outside at the table at the hotel and made my first beadwork earrings. I’ve been beading ever since.

My beadwork career flourished over the next decade or so as I attended many, many Grateful Dead shows and sold my jewelry along the way. I met other beaders and learned new techniques and patterns, and shared what I knew. I also had a lot of fun!

In the late 90’s I discovered folk music festivals and started “officially” vending at such festivals as, Old Songs Festival, Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, New England Folk Festival, and many more from New York to Florida and in between.

In the early 2000’s a friend mentioned to me that someone had opened a bead shop in Saratoga Springs, a nearby town. I went up and met Linda Schrade who had opened Saratoga Beads. I spent the next 10 years working and teaching and learning all things beads at Saratoga Beads. The shop closed in 2013, but not before immeasurable beads, love and music had flowed from that special spot.

As a result, I ended up adding a little traveling bead shop to my festival booth as I learned other simple jewelry making techniques. Some of my shows just allow me to show my hand crafted beadwork, but some of the 4 day folk festivals are great for offering jewelry making, as families with children attend and are looking for fun activities and a creative learning experience.

Today I am taking beadwork as far as I can, my favorite new inspiration is Contemporary Geometric Beadwork, by Kate McKinnon. I’m teaching a little here and there, and always looking for new shows and festivals to sell my work and hear some great music.