Archived Featured Bead Artists
Ania Karolina Kyte,
Amy Waldman Engel,
Barrie Edwards,
Jodi Lindsey,
Rebecca Voris,
Karen Elmquist,
Allison Turner,
Debbie Dimoff,
Margaret Zinser,
Slava Popov,
Faith Davis Ferris,
Helen Harvest,
Dwyn Tomlinson,
Kristy Naray,
Connie Paul,
Rosemary Tottosy,
Jennifer Gurganux,
Jinx Garza,
Nikki Lynn Carollo,
Cathy Lybarger,
NLM Glass Artists,
Linda James,
Kandice Seeber,
Jocelyn Pappadakis,
Anne Ricketts,
Shari Bellamy ,
Shari Slonski,
Gina M. DeStevens,
Jerri Roey,
Dianna Craig,
Lori Peterson,
Sheryll Hubbard-Anspach and Jim Anspach,
Greg Chase.
Grace Edwards,
Amy Johnson,
Christopher and Jacquelyn
Rice
by: Carolyn Jankovskis
Aimée Kennedy
Toronto, Ontario
Beading Times: How long have you been making beads?
Aimée Kennedy: 4 yrs
What got you started making beads?
The love of Glass. There is something
about the way glass reflects light, I just think it is one of the most beautiful
things. I originally wanted to learn to blow glass but found it difficult to
sign up for a course, and then realized how expensive it would be to have
as a hobby. Then at a craft show I came across Lezlie Winemaker (www.designsbylezlie.com)
and signed up for a class with her.
Were you interested in making beads before that?
It hadn’t occurred to me. I didn’t
realize that I could make my own beads. It seems so silly now but it's the
truth.
Did you have an artistic or craft history before that? How
has that translated into the beadmaking, if at all?
Lets just say that as a
child the only way my mom could get me to keep still for more than 5 minutes
was to put me in front of an easel with some paint. In high school my focus
was in visual arts, theatre and music, then I went to York University to study
Sculpture and Design. Since then I have been taking silversmithing classes
at various institutes. All during that time I was beading everything, and doing
a lot of FIMO, not to mention all the things that don’t
relate to jewelry: knitting, crochet, watercolors, pottery and the list
goes on. I love making things, let’s leave it at that.
What has surprised you most about working with glass?
When the
glass shocks…ha ha. I guess the thing that surprises me most
is that this method of creation has been around for centuries and there is
still so much that hasn’t been explored. It’s a tiny bit
of science wrapped up in a dynamic creative form.
Have you had anyone that you consider to be a mentor? Tell
me about them.
I don’t have a specific mentor, but there are many people who have helped
me along the way. I feel like the community, in Toronto, is growing and there
are so many people helping each other. I’d be lost, or floundering, without
them.
Whose beads inspire you the most?
That question is hard to answer.
Sometimes I surf the web and look around liking the color combination of one
or the shape of another. The beads I am most proud of are the ones I come up
with, without any direct influence. I come from a fine art background, where
imitation is a MAJOR faux pas.
Do you sell your beads?
Generally I sell completed jewelry,
but most of the glass pieces are simply a pendant on a chain.
Did you intend to sell your beads when you first started? What
got you started selling them?
When I FIRST took the course I don’t think I intended to sell the beads,
I was just enjoying myself. It wasn’t until I began to work at a studio,
1 year later, that I really began to make beads which I intended to sell. That
summer I entered my first retail art/craft show selling both my silver work
and my glass work.
What does your spouse/children/family/friends think of your
beadmaking?
I have yet to see an unsupportive reaction. My friends and family
love my work, and sometimes fight over it. Just a year ago I quit my graphic
design career to focus on jewelry as a full time career (40/60 glass/metal)
and I haven’t looked back. Things just keep getting better and better.
What type of glass do you use?
Primarily Moretti but I also
dabble in Lauscha, Bullseye, and Boro.
Do you have a favorite product, i.e. bead release, glass, etc.
I
don’t like to play favorites. Most of the products I use are good
for one thing or another. Sometimes you just have to figure out the best way
to use something… although I do LOVE the bullseye pinks.
Do you have a favorite technique?
My favorite technique, hands
down, is the hot application of glass on sterling silver. I’ve been obsessed
with this almost since the beginning. I had designs in my head that were not
lending themselves to the “bead” format.
With my background in silversmithing it seemed natural to combine the two.
I began exploring this technique figuring out the do’s and don’t,
which I’m still working on at present.
Are you a “set person” or a “focal bead” person?
I
am defiantly a focal bead person but I’ve been known to make a set
or two.
Do you still have the first beads you made? What do you think
of them now?
I have the most hilarious “fish” I tried to make in my first class,
I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it but I wanted to try. I treasure it.
How have your beads changed? Since you started or over the
years?
When I first started the only thing I would make was large organic focal
beads, with many different colors in each, I still make those beads but now
I use a lentil press for many of my designs and I often make bead sets only
using one color. Part of the reason for this is when I started to sell at
shows and to stores I was finding that more conservative pieces were easier
to sell. Now I have a whole line specifically geared towards the first time
glass jewelry buyer. The pieces are smaller and give focus to the beauty
of each color of glass.
Have you had any “glass epiphanies” while working – some
revelation or understanding? What were they?
Finally getting striking colors
not to burn out at the ends, that was making me crazy for a while. Also when
I first started out I was constantly burning colors, now I work in a very
short flame, unless I really need a big one.
Do you have a technique, method or tip to share?
Just some cautions
about applying hot glass to silver. The melting temp of silver is quite low
but if you use a thicker piece you have more leeway with it, the minimum I
use is .8mm wire, but the best is the cast pieces, such as my adjustable rings,
I haven't melted one yet. Afterward, you'll need to remove firescale and polish
the silver after you get it out of the kiln, not fun if you don't have the
right equipment. When you first get
started please be prepared for some waste, keep in mind I've been experimenting
with this for almost three years and I'm still figuring out some of the rules.
Have you “invented” any new tools, or recycled something that
wouldn’t ordinarily be thought of as a tool for lampworking?
You are asking
me for my best kept secret!!! When I first started out I wanted, but couldn’t
afford, a set of “hot hands”.
Somehow I figured out that I could use a short plumber snake with the prongs
at the end as a substitute, which was a fraction of the price. I still use
it today.
How much time do you spend making beads, in, say, hours per
week? Is it enough?
I spend a day or two a week on beads, somewhere between
5-11 hours each day. For me there is never enough time for anything, but I’m
working on catching up.
What about photographing your
beads – what
do you use to get your pictures?
I use a point and shoot digital camera with an excellent
macro setting, and natural light when I can get it.
Do you have a website or auction site that you regularly sell
you beads on? If so, what is the url/id info, etc.
I sell off my website
www.fineandgood.com and I have featured beads up once a month.
Do you sell at shows or in stores or other venues? Do you sell
the beads by themselves, or already made up into jewelry?
I sell wholesale to
stores as well as some galleries across Canada. I also do craft shows in
Ontario, mostly the Toronto area.
Is this a job, or a passion? Or both? How much of making beads/playing
with hot glass is about just making them, vs making a living?
It’s an
obsession first, job second, and I hope it stays that way.
Where do you see yourself going with lampworking/glassworking
in the future? Or, where do you see it taking you?
Whether it remains a significant
part of my sales or whether I do it just to escape, I can see lampworking remaining
an important part of my life. I love it and I can create beautiful object.
Do you have a favorite bead, a “best bead.” Can
you share a photograph with us?
I don’t have a favorite bead. But my favorite
set to make and for the look are my little pod/nest which I create by blowing
the glass.
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