FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

General
  • Do you teach classes in person?
    • I am not currently teaching in person classes.
  • Do you wholesale?
    • At this time, I do not sell with wholesale purchasing options.
  • Do you accept requests for custom work?
    • I no longer accept requests for custom work, however, one-of-a-kind creations will always be made available in my shop. Check back often for new designs!
  • Do you have a book available on wire wrapping, or plan to write one?
    • Not at this time. I prefer to provide individual lessons so each customer can collect the instruction for designs  based on personal preference, verses a bundled package of designs contained in a single book. I find individual lessons best represent my approach to teaching, so conventional publication is highly unlikely.
  • How did you discover wire wrapping?
    • 2006, I was at a local craft fair, selling beaded necklaces I'd collected over a year rampant with crafting obsessions. While taking a break and viewing the work of other sellers, I ran across a lovely display of wire wrapping and thought to myself "This... this is what I want to learn", so I went home, looked up wire wrapping online, bought a spool of wire and wrapped what was the ugliest thing I'd ever seen. But it was a start.
  • How/when/why did you transition to bead embroidery?
    • The challenge of it, most likely, was the biggest motivation for playing with this new medium. I was viewing annual contest winners on the Fire Mountain Gems website and discovered their embroidery category. The intricacy was hypnotizing. I followed some links, watched a video on bezel-setting stones with seed beads and I was hooked. Wire is my first love, but bead embroidery is sometimes a necessary vacation from it.
  • What are your favorite resources for tools, wire and gemstones?
    • Rio Grande and Monster Slayer are my go-to tool, metal and wire resources. A list of resources for gemstone beads and cabs, however, are simply too numerous to link. I search on Etsy or Ebay until I find something I like, which means my business is scattered among a wide variety of suppliers. Beyond Rio Grande and Monster Slayer, I have no businesses to recommend specifically or for specific supplies. However, here is a  small list of my most used resources.
  • What tools do you recommend for beginners?
    • Needle nose pliers and flush cutters. That's it. It's all you need. Most days, even now, that's still all I use.
  • What wire gauges do you recommend for wire wrapping?
    • All of them. I'm not kidding. They all have their place and their use is totally dependent on your aesthetic and style. I use, predominately, 22 and 28 gauge, though also have 10, 12, 14, 16 and 24 on hand at all times.
  • Why a focus on copper?
    • To put it plainly.... it's pretty.
  • Why haven't you released a tutorial on (enter request here) yet?
    • I love teaching. I love sharing designs. But I also love creating one-of-a-kind artistic representations of my techniques. I sell both tutorials and finished work and, as such, it would be impractical to provide instructions on every piece I make. Some things must, by necessity, remain sacred to my brand and line, so customers know they are buying a unique, one-of-a-kind piece.
  • I'd love for you to make a tutorial on (your most popular design), but just for me? Can you do that?
    • Unfortunately, no. Tutorials require a massive investment of time. Though I could, technically, produce a PDF or video tutorial for individual, private use, the cost would be exponentially higher in order to cover the hours invested and the rights to use a signature design tied to my personal line.
  • Can I come to your house for a workshop?
    • My home is small, and I share it with my husband and two college-aged children. I work from a single desk in the corner of my living room (space afforded me through the sacrifice of a kitchen table). So, unfortunately, a private lesson or workshop from my home is not possible.
  • I no longer see a lesson on your website. Is it still available?
    • A few times a year, I retire a handful of lessons at a time to keep the navigation of my site as smooth and user-friendly as possible, and to keep designs as relevant and fresh as possible. However, once a year, retired lessons are offered for a limited time for those who may have missed them when they were active. Sign up for my newsletter for updates on when designs are being retired, when retired lessons are (briefly) re-released, or for special discounts and offers. 
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Creative Process
  • Do you plan or sketch designs?
    • I try not to. I have a blog post regarding Spontaneous Creation, which best describes my method and my reasons for utilizing this method.
  • How do you measure wire lengths needed for a specific project?
    • Since I don't plan designs, I don't measure wire lengths. I cut random lengths of wire and work a project until I think it's done. Sometimes I have scraps, sometimes I add more. Since I rarely repeat a design, projecting lengths is often an exercise in futility.
  • How do you keep your wires from tangling?
    • I never ever work from a spool. I always cut a random length of wire and either allow it to hang over the side of my chair and move freely while I weave, or I wrap the end of it around a lightweight, plastic sewing bobbin, and unwind as needed. Lengths longer than 300cm generally need to be wound around a bobbin, or will inevitably tangle.
  • What do you do when you screw up?
    • There's no such thing. Seriously. There's no such thing as a screw up. There are set-backs, there are unexpected design elements, there are additional steps, but nothing within my control is a screw-up. Breaking a stone may require a re-design, but with wire....? Everything is mutable and possible. My weave is crooked? I'll add another weave to compliment that movement and create a sense of cohesion. Screw-ups are just an opportunity for innovation!
  • How do you (fill in the blank)?
Starting A Business
Check out my resources for starting a business or building a website. These posts are not all-inclusive and are based on my own personal experience building my home business. I am in no way an expert on entrepreneurial endeavors, and continue to stumble my way through this journey. Hopefully, these posts will help you avoid the same stumbles.