Working Large Can Inspire New Ideas

Linda Morrison’s post about “working big” was quite inspiring to me to because it served as a reminder of how I began to evolve my skill as a bead artist. Last year I started making wine stoppers for several of the wine festivals in which I had scheduled to be a vendor. Making those large scale beads not only opened my mind to new ideas, but it served as a much large canvas for me to work on. I was able to achieve techniques that frustrated me when trying to apply them to small bead bases.

Not long after I made the wine stoppers, I began making focals beads. Again, another large canvas, but a bit smaller and easier to manage than a wine stopper sized bead. After months of making focals, I was finally able to apply what I had learned to much smaller beads without the level of frustration that I was experiencing before.

This year, I won’t be vending at any of the wine related events. . .Wine stoppers are not a great seller on my site either and lord knows I have no time to try and market anything other than loose beads. Still yet, I wanted to explore the idea of the super sized bead all over again. I needed the creative stimulation as I feel that I have been stuck in a rut lately.

I was more than ready for a fresh, new concept and I think that my idea served me well because it provided me with other things to think about. I had been hording a bunch of brass hardware that my husband picked up for me a year ago at a trade show. My intention was to use them to dress up my wine stoppers and maybe make a few drawer knobs, but to my surprise I was able to put together an unique assembly that would serve as a fan pull, once a large bead was added. In the end, it also gave me a gentle nudge towards the design evolution that I was so wishing for.

The fan pull in the first picture has a Moroccan flare. When I was assembling it, I remembered how much I love Moroccan design. There is something magical and even, sensual about the style. When I made smaller beads this past Sunday, the inspiration from the Moroccan fan pull was still with me as I explored the design concept further. I made a bead trio, a vessel and large tube bead.

Thank Linda for the inspirational post!!

Lydia Muell is a glass bead maker who blogs in her studio from Lexington, NC. For more information please visit here website at ashtonjewels.com.