Wendy Hitchins - Beady Wendy Beads

I make glass beads by melting rods of glass in a flame. It's called lampworking, and I taught myself over 20 years ago. Since then, I've been creating unique, wearable art in the form of earrings, bracelets, necklaces and accessories. I also melt glass in the kiln to create more diverse forms of glass art. As you can imagine, two beads are never exactly alike. I love making glass beads. There's a sense of total immersion when I'm melting glass. The glass often takes me on a journey too. Sometimes I just have to let things happen, and often, the end result is surprising and exciting. I'm also skilled at working with very small seed beads to create beaded pieces. I'm very fortunate that I've won several major art awards for my work. I welcome custom commissions too. It's exciting to know I've realised the customer's vision and know they have a one-of-a-kind piece of jewellery made, especially for them.