Friday, March 28, 2008

The Whole Bead Show...

This weekend, the Whole Bead Show is in town. I'm not vending there, but it was nice to drop by and visit with some friends and pick up some much needed beading supplies for some upcoming competition pieces that I'll be working on. This year, the show was much bigger. I have mixed feelings about this. I prefer smaller shows with more artisan vendors and a select number of high quality importers who have reasonable prices. But that's just the way I like it.

Left: A quick snapshot of Malou of J & M Gem 'N' Things in front of her new wooden beads from the Philippines. The new line is GREAT! They are light-weight, durable, and very colorful. Perfect for summer!

Left: Here's a picture of Pam Wynn of Pam and Heather Wynn sporting some sparkling Saratoga water. Not only do I love their polymer beads, but I love this creative and crafty mother and daughter team as well. They're just some of the nicest, most wonderful people ever. "Aunt Sue" was there also, but she refused to get in the picture. She said, "I don't want to break your camera." She's so sassy and fun!

Left: That's Sak of Saki Silver behind his booth. They have some really great clasps and earwires. They also have some really great gems and silks. Speaking of good people, Sak and Liz are really darling!

Here's my yield from the show. It's fairly modest, as I'm on a tight budget, but I'm looking forward to working with all the goodies that I picked up. My favorite finds were the new polymer owl pendants from Heather Wynn and the gunmetal finished earwires from Saki Silver. I also really like the laminated wood beads covered in banana leaves from J & M Gems 'N' Things. They look just like tiger's eye. All in all, I'm pretty happy.

4 comments:

Lorelei Eurto said...

Hi Andrew!
This looked like a great bead show! I am so due for one these!
I'm glad to see you picked up one of Heather's owl pendants! I just ordered one from her too! The one with the 2 owls. Does the single owl pendant have a saying on the back?

Jacki said...

Hi Andrew,
I am so curious I had to leave a note. What are the green beads that look like snake skin? Aren't they gorgeous??

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Lorelei,

It was fun! I keep imagining that I might go down to Philadelphia this weekend for the show there in King of Prussia, but probably won't make it since I have so much stuff to do.

And nope, it's blank on the back except for a texture and Heather's mark.

Andrew Thornton said...

Hey Ruby Rose,

Feel free to comment any time! Aren't they cool? They are wood beads I got from Jerry and Malou of J & M Gems 'N' Things. They look like magical limes or some kind of exotic fruit. I think when they paint them they put them in nets or something. I don't know, but I like them very much.