We kind of kept this to ourselves... I definitely wanted to keep the "class" to a bare minimum... they're so cute... they seem to think that if word got out that it could get out of hand or something.... like I'm a superstar or something. LOL. Yeah, uh-huh.
The first evening I was there, Robin pulled out her beads & we had a little consultation. This was really a cool thing... really good for both of us. She started out by saying that she just wasn't feeling like she had found her voice in beadmaking yet & that when she looks @ her beads she sees the styles of those that she's learned from. She wasn't loving her color combinations & just wasn't sure where to go next. We were able to talk about the positives & negatives in certain beads & it was really cool because I really felt like I was able to read her really well & was able to give her some valuable input. It was good & honest & constructive. I gave her some steps that she should take next & I hope it will put her on the right path to finding her beadmaking voice.
We were off to a good start. This was really good... eye opening for myself, really. Gave me a little bit more confidence in what I have to offer.
Problem-solving. It's really what I've done for as long as I can remember. As an interior designer, I problem solved, it was my job. I have an eye for shape & proportion... I definitely know what colors work or don't work when I see them. I can look @ something & see what might or might not be working right & what can be tweaked. Maybe that's something I can offer to others??
The next morning before we started torching, I did the same thing w/ Carol & her beads and then we got to work!
We met @ Boca Loca Beads, a beautiful retail bead shop & lampworking studio owned by Jari Sheese. What a neat lady. We walked in the door & I think it was Robin who says "Jari, this is Julie Nordine, she's famous." LOL. OMG, how funny is that?? I, of course, laughed & balked! They're so funny...THEY know me & think I'm famous because they know me. I don't think very many people know me... & even if they did, they wouldn't think I was famous. :o)
A friend of theirs, Barb Collins, came along for the ride because she had an electric mandrel spinner (EMS) & needed some one-on-one time w/ someone who knew the ins & outs of it. Both Robin & Carol were able to borrow EMS's from friends (Barb has two! I heard she has a thing for tools & glass!!) so I could show them the ins & outs, too. They all picked it up like THAT, which was really cool because there is DEFINITELY a learning curve w/ the EMS. When I started thinking about teaching classes w/ the EMS, someone asked me how long it took me to figure it out & I said about a week & they asked what makes me think I could teach a class how to use one in just a day or two? (& end up w/ something that they produced from it!) Good point!! It made me think... gave me a little doubt, too, ...
But the ladies proved to me that by having me explain throughout my demoing... being able to watch me & ask questions, then having me watch them in action & giving them instant feedback on what to tweak, etc, it really shortens that learning curve immensely. I DO believe, however, that you should have some beadmaking experience under your belt before learning how to use an EMS. You REALLY need to know how to manage molten glass, get the feel of it, know how it moves & how to control that movement before you take this tool on, otherwise you'll really feel like things are just out of control.
I showed them a variety of my bead styles, various techniques & color combos & they just played. They did great. It was really informal... more about showing them techniques & having them play w/ the techniques rather than specific bead styles... completely opposite of what you get w/ a REAL lampwork teacher, LOL.
Obviously it will take more thought & planning for me to put together an actual class, but this was a really great learning experience for all of us.
I CAN TEACH. I can teach... I'm pretty darn sure I can teach.
& I loved it.
Next post...the rest of the weekend. (it was a LONG weekend!)
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