Piedmont Intergalactic Bead Festival Mebane, NC Sept. 20-21, 2003
10AM - 5PM Saturday, Sept. 20 and Sunday, Sept. 21 - Mebane Arts & Community Center - 622 Corrigidor Dr., Mebane, NC 27302 From I-85 Exit 153 east on NC ST RT 119 (5TH St.), north on Holmes Rd., east on Third Street Extension, north on Corrigidor Dr. Follow signs. Vendors with a dazzling array of ancient, antique, vintage, and modern handmade beads for sale. Also bead identification & appraisal, bead making demonstration. Open to the public. Admission $8.00 Saturday $5.00 Sunday. For more information (888) 729-6904 orForty-two vendors from fourteen states with an extraordinary display of ancient, antique, vintage, and modern handmade beads for sale. Also, beadmaking demonstrations, identification and appraisals. Admission: $8.00 Saturday $5.00 Sunday BRING THIS LISTING FOR $1 OFF ADMISSION - 12 years old and under free For Festival Information, 888-729-6904,
If I can provide additional information or answer any questions please do not hesitate to contact me at the below address.
Thanks,
Christopher England
Intergalactic Bead Shows
44 Tusculum Heights Dr Ste BGreeneville, TN 37745
(888) 729-6904
(423) 638-1651 FAX
PRESS RELEASE FOR PIEDMONT INTERGALACTIC BEAD FESTIVAL
Mebane, NC The Piedmont Intergalactic Bead Festival will take place 10AM-5PM Saturday, Sept. 20 and Sunday, Sept. 21. Forty-two vendors from fourteen states will show and sell their wares of ancient to modern beads, bead books, beading supplies, and finished beads, at the Mebane Arts & Community Center - 622 Corrigidor Dr., Mebane, NC 27302 From I-85 Exit 153 east on NC ST RT 119 (5TH St.), north on Holmes Rd., east on Third Street Extension, north on Corrigidor Dr. An interesting mix of history and art, this bead extravaganza will feature over one hundred ten tables representing the country's finest bead vendors. The fascination with beads is not a new one. People have been admiring, wearing, and praying with beads for over forty thousand years. According to Christopher England, the man behind Intergalactic Bead Shows, "Beads are not a passing fancy. In fact, in the many years we have been hosting bead shows, beads have only grown in popularity." When asked why he thought that was, England's reply was noncommittal. "Perhaps it is because of the satisfaction that comes from applying time and concentration to a small vial of beads to create a three-dimensional piece of jewelry or sculpture. Or, it could be the instant gratification found by stringing a collection of beads into something unique that you can wear that evening. Maybe it is the inspiration one gets from seeing other people's creativity come alive. Or, as one who has attended an Intergalactic Bead Show can tell you, it may simply be the experience of seeing so many colors, textures, and patterns together in one arena that lends itself to the bead frenzy. Attending our shows is like entering a room full of potential." Indeed, this weekend's Piedmont Intergalactic Bead Festival will be the premier place to harness the potential of antique and modern beads of every size, description, and material. The festival will also feature bead artists and shops as listed below. Lampwork glass beadmaker Janie Jones, Grammy Glass, Matthews, NC, will demonstrate her craft for show attendees this weekend. Her passion and appreciation for the light reflective qualities of glass combine with her love of vibrant color. This dancing light makes her work a "constant source of joy and discovery" for her and her clients. Jones makes her lampwork beads by using a gas burner (called the lamp), which produces a narrow, steady, and powerful flame. Holding a glass rod in one hand, she holds the tip of the rod in the flame, melting it into a honey-like state. At the same time, she holds a special metal wire in the other hand and winds the molten glass onto the wire by constantly turning it. The bead is then shaped, either free hand using metal tools or by turning it in a metal mold. Attendees at the festival will be mesmerized as Jones demonstrates her expertise and age-old techniques while creating captivating beads in a rainbow of colors. Even after twenty-eight years of doing business, local bead distributor and retailer Catherine Newton, Bearoness of Raleigh, Raleigh, NC, is still enthusiastic about beads, and she doesn't hesitate to share her extensive knowledge of beading with her customers. Catering to all levels of beaders, Newton offers festival attendees a wide selection of items from her 11,000 square-foot warehouse. Her booth is like "one-stop shopping", and customers will find a tremendous selection of beads, tools, and prepackaged wires and findings to help them complete their projects. Newton also carries a complete line of craft kits, offers bead-making classes, and welcomes special orders. And the best part is how knowledgeable and helpful she is. If Bearoness of Raleigh doesn't have what customers need, she is happy to refer them to someone who does. Bead shows are a family affair for Lisa and Tony Blackwell of Zoa Art, Tryon, NC. Although the Blackwells have been making and selling their beads and jewelry for less than two years, their fresh style and organic inspired merchandise already has a following. Tony is the glass beadmaker in the family, working with Italian Moretti glass in a nature-inspired palette of hues. His color combinations are a unique blend of blues and reds with neutrals, and he often adds silver foil to create a subtle sparkle and depth to the beads. Lisa is a self-taught silversmith. She adds her touch to Tony's beads by wire wrapping them into pendants, adding hand riveted silver caps, or fashioning them into custom bracelets and necklaces. Lisa also enhances her jewelry with glazed and unglazed clay beads, handmade silver chains, and Precious Metal Clay beads and embellishments. Ashleigh, the Blackwell's daughter, gets involved in the family business by creating beaded hemp bracelets that are a beautiful compliment to the other pieces. The artists in the Blackwell family blend their individual styles into beads and jewelry that are an amazing combination of natural colors, textures, and inspiration. Glass bead making for the modern artist is the creative melding of Old-World knowledge with the artist's own unique eye for color, theme and design. As with any art form, once the technique is mastered the only limitations are in the mind of the creator. Among the noted participants this weekend will be the 2002 NBS beadmaker of the year Patti Cahill, Dyed in the Fire, Mars Hill, NC. Cahill, a member of the World Beadmakers Guild (WBG), has spent years devoting herself to honing her craft. She utilizes her multitude of skills every time she creates a bead, and this vast experience combines with her modern eye to make her beads individual works of art. Each of her lampwork beads may require the attachment of a hundred dots or threads of molten glass to a core at temperatures exceeding 2,000 degrees. Visitors to this weekend's festival are sure to find something to delight them from the beads ranging from historical to modern, handcrafted to mass produced, natural materials to the newest in synthetic technology. Along with beads and bead-making supplies there will be numerous finished pieces to choose from, including beaded bracelets, pendants, necklaces, and earrings. The various artists, vendors, and collectors brought together by The Piedmont Intergalactic Bead Festival will be bringing Mebane the best selection of beads in the galaxy. Let the creativity begin! ####### End #######
-- "IF IT IS GOOD FOR BEADS, IT IS GOOD FOR THE UNIVERSE" WORLD BEAD DAY September 28, 2003
** The Day To Wear Your Beads ** or join others beaders at an bead event near you.