Whimsical Glass Beads

Something I haven’t done in a long time is really let loose and follow my whim while making beads. In recent years I have strived for a lot of precision and intricate detail that requires careful, painstaking application – but I didn’t always make beads that way.

In the beginning, when I was simply exploring the possibilities of glass and experimenting with lots of different colors and techniques to find out what glass was capable of, I made a lot of beads like these.

It’s been refreshing to revisit these classic bead designs and colors. There is such freedom in allowing the glass to take you where it wants to go – instead of the other way around.

Winter Whimsy – lampwork bead collection

Outdoor Fun Lampwork Glass Beads

This week’s beads are inspired from fun in the sun days at the beach or at the fair –

'High Tide' lampwork bead focal
'Carnival' bead pair
'Malibu Pier' round bead

“Waikoloa” Lampwork Bead Collection

Years ago we traveled to the Big Island of Hawaii and visited Waikoloa Village where there’s a large hotel resort.

The resort is just beautiful with sprawling pools, lush tropical gardens, amazing architectural sculptures, and of course it’s right on the beach. They even have dolphins there!

Waikoloa Village is the inspiration for this bead collection. I used colored glass in shades of lavender, blue, aqua and turquoise with bits of bright orange for a pop of color here and there.

'Waikoloa" Lampwork Bead Focal
"Waikoloa" Lampwork Bead Set