When it comes to hammers, there is only one thing better than owning a Fretz Hammer, and that is getting to learn how to use it from Bill Fretz.  I had the privilege of taking a workshop with Bill this week in Maine.  We learned many metal forming techniques using his wide selection of hammers and stakes.

Bill’s workshop is a delightful place.  It is filled with every metal forming tool imaginable.  Bill was so generous with his knowledge, and made us feel so welcome.  I am about to head home with my brain spilling over with new ideas to try.

Top off this workshop with the chance to see a wealth of amazing and inspiring artisan jewelry here in Maine (some of which is coming home with me on my neck and wrist!), and it actually makes me want to head back to the Texas heat so that I can pound a little metal  in my own studio.  This has been a truly great trip, and I hope to come back here to Maine someday.  I will try to post some pictures of my first attempts using the Fretz stakes after I get back home.

In the meantime, be sure to check out our new selection of Fretz Hammers here.  Happy pounding!

Chris Darway is coming back to Texas and Wired Up Beads University and we are so excited to offer two new classes.  Chris will be here April 1 and 2.  The April 1 class on Thursday will focus on a special sterling silver fusing technique and the project will include setting a small stone and making a stainless steel fibula.  On Friday, April 2, Chris will teach a highly demanded class featuring cold connections (rivets) and piercing/sawing techniques.  For more information, please click the pictures and links below or feel free to give us a call.  Space is limited, so be sure to register today!

Fused Sterling Silver Fibula Brooch

Piercing and Riveting Class

Food, fun, great learning, and inspiration were on the menu for Saturday evening at Wired Up Beads. Ginny Hampton Schmidt, internationally known lampwork artist, presented a wonderful program on pulling large, sparkly, encased dichroic stringers for the members of the Grapevine Beadmakers’ Society.  Wired Up Beads hosts meetings for this enthusiastic group of artists on most 3rd Saturday evenings of the month.  Meetings are open to visitors. Please call 817-421-3030 for more information about this friendly group of artists.

If you are a lampworker, be sure to check out Ginny’s upcoming class, Glitter and Shine.   Space is limited, so reserve your spot today!  Below are examples of Ginny’s sparkly, metallic beads made with fine silver mesh and some of the new silver glass by Double Helix.

Everything’s big in Texas, but I didn’t know that applied to snow, particularly here in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.  The picture above was taken with my iPhone as I was just about to pull into the driveway.  The picture below is a shot of our house.  The pictures were taken after about 7 inches of snow had fallen–we got another 5 1/2 inches, making the total 12 1/2 inches–the largest in history for our area.

We weathered the first part of the storm just fine, but then lost our power and was without for 24 hours.  I took my parrot, Pumkin, up to the shop to keep her warm, which she considered quite the adventure.  The other pets were fine, just a little grumpy (or was that me that was grumpy?!).

When the snow started to melt, we lost a lot of limbs off our giant old trees.  Our patio cover caved in from the weight of the snow and will have to be rebuilt this spring.The electric company trucks pulled up in front of our house at 10:00 on Friday night, and it wasn’t long until the power was on and we were all warm again.  The snow is mostly melted now.  The live oak tree in front of Wired Up Beads amazingly popped back up off the ground and only has one broken limb.  Despite the inconveniences, the snow was so beautiful.

Now that we are back from Tucson and the snow is gone, we have tons of fun stuff to do and share.  Stay tuned–we will be posting new tools this week!  There will also be more Tucson goodies coming up soon.  We will add a gorgeous line of designer findings–can’t wait for you to see them. Thanks for stopping by!

Now that we are home and have had time to reflect on our Tucson adventures, we thought that we would share a few things that we learned on our trip:

8.  When you go to the airport to leave for Tucson, be sure to sit at the right gate or else you might miss your flight.

7.  When Patti and Trudy travel, let Trudy have the ONLY credit card.

6.  Do not giggle in your hotel room after 10:00 PM or you might become friends with the manager.

5.  When people ask if you are “twins,” cover Trudy’s mouth before she says, “Yes, I’m the GOOD one!”

4.  Have smelling salts available for Trudy before purchasing a Kimberly Afflect Seahorse lampwork bead.

3.  Use restraint when shopping for new argentium silver findings.  They are so gorgeous that they have the potential to fill up all your suitcase space!

2.  You can reduce the weight in your suitcase if you fill your pockets really full.

1.  Read the street signs.

Now, this last one needs an explanation.  We were really trying to go to the Best Bead Show and we mistakenly turned into this parking lot instead.  It didn’t look quite right, but we kept driving to see if we recognized anything.  The mistake that we made was that we were TALKING about how excited we were and we didn’t notice the tall fences with barbed wire on top or the signs that said, “Enter one car at a time.”  By the time that we reached the back of the facility, we decided that we better turn around and guess what we saw AFTER we turned around?!  A sign that said “Only Emergency and Police Vehicles Allowed.”  OOOOPS!  We had to drive on THAT road to get out of this place.  Well, we made it back around to the front of the “facility” without being stopped, and as we were leaving the parking lot, I looked over my shoulder and saw this sign.  Ignoring good sense, I snapped this picture over my left shoulder with my iPhone.  Well, then we see the sign that says that it was a Detention Center.  Whew!  You just shouldn’t let us loose without a chaperon!

Saving the best for last during our Tucson trip, Trudy and I were able to spend some time visiting with Peter Murphy (left), owner of EuroTool and our favorite sales rep, Scott (right).  It’s always such a delight to see their new products.  As many of you know, EuroTool handles our Wubbers manufacturing and wholesale distribution.  We love EuroTool products and are so proud to be a EuroTool distributor.  Wired Up Beads will be receiving some new EuroTool products within the next week, so stayed tuned.  You won’t want to miss being the first to add them to your tool box!

It’s Day 5 in Tucson, and the feet are sore.  Determined to make it to the Gem Mall with giggles in tow, Trudy and I took a Tucson-style taxi.  What fun we had!

I’m new at posting video on this blog, but be sure to CLICK ON THE PICTURE BELOW to get more flavor of the experience.

Our heartfelt thanks goes to Brandon, the peddler of this hi-tech buggy.  He thought of everything–even bottled water in an iced down cooler and music for the ride.

We went to the Holidome Show yesterday and had so much fun.  When we arrived at the show, we were greeted by Roy from Sun City.  Roy teaches jewelry making and loves working with Wubbers.  He brought us the most fabulous gifts that he made–he is quite the artisan.  He also showed us where to buy rough turquoise for cabbing and beautiful cabochons from a miner out of Arizona.  Thanks so much, Roy!  We WUB you!!!

We are definitely out looking for trouble in Tucson at the Gem and Mineral Show, and in the process, we have made a few new friends!  You can see that Trudy and I have our “serious shopper” roller bags and are all decked out in Wired Up Beads attire, but despite all our wardrobe coordination, our styling just doesn’t hold a candle to our new friend’s, who is ready for the Annual Skeleton’s Ball.

Trudy and I are standing in the Tierra Cast booth and we had so much fun while we were there.  There were “make and take” stations where we got to “play” with some of the latest new products.  We each made a really simple but very cute charm necklace.  Then we learned all about a special resin for coating picture charms, which we plan to add to our inventory.  It’s easy to use, doesn’t smell, doesn’t have to be mixed, and is very resonably priced.  Be watching the calendar for news about a fun-filled Wednesday at Wired Up Beads in the coming weeks where you can join us to make a personalized bracelet or pendant with picture charms.

Well, it is late and Trudy is sound asleep. I am winding down for the night too.  Tomorrow we plan to go the the Best Bead Show to see all our lampworking friends and their newest creations.  We are hoping for sun so that we can also go to the Electric Park or the African Village.  I am really hoping to find a real Diet Coke along the way–I think that I am starting to have a serious case of “Diet Coke Withdrawal” accompanied by a complete state of “Pepsi-Shock.”  Well, it’s off to bed for me.  Funny thing, I think I am sleeping better,… and no, it just couldn’t be having less caffienne–it surely has to be the all the walking!

Not to worry–it’s not your eyes!  We are just beginning a WUBsite makeover, so when you are visiting our site, you may see some changes in progress.  Thank you for your patience and understanding as we work to make visiting Wired Up Beads more fun than ever!

Trudy and I want to share a very exciting event that we hosted at WUB this week.  The Grapevine Beadmakers’ Society (GBS) came together for an Open Torch night.  The entire evening was spent making beads for the Beads of Courage organization, which works very hard to provide encouragement to children who are coping with serious, life-threatening diseases.  For more detailed information, please visit the Beads of Courage website at www.beadsofcourage.com.

Below are some pictures of the GBS members as they enjoy making beads together.  The group made over 80 beads during the evening, many of which were purple hearts that are given at the end of treatment to commemorate the child’s brave journey.  What a privilege it is to be part of this group!

In the center of this picture is Colin Smith, who is on the Board of Directors for Beads of Courage.

Terry Porto is making a purple heart.

Left to right, Angelique, Ginny, and Paul.  Thank you to Paul for suggesting that we have this event!

Just a few of the colorful beads that are waiting to encourage children in the Dallas/Fort Worth area.

Here’s wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving filled with the people you love!