Our Own Local Bead Store

I finally got over to Wildfire Beads in Hurricane, Utah yesterday and met with owner and lampworker extraordinaire Lora McLaughlin. Of course I forgot to take pictures, but her store is cute and stocked with lots of goodies that you can actually touch, play with, co-ordinate and she aims to keep her prices competitive with the online stores. We sat in the classroom and chatted, getting to know each other as before this we'd only met for a few minutes at the travelling bead show when it was in town. She didn't even remember me, lol, thought I was from the Yellow Pages. Too funny. I jogged her memory with two words "Bead Society" and it all came back to her.
Lora says business has been great but with five kids and starting the store she has had no time to flame up her torch so she had hardly any of her lampwork to show me. She actually went online to her empty Etsy store to show me pictures of work she has sold. She does great work! I especially like the beads that she antiques, they look so rustic.
She asked if I would teach some classes at the store and, of course, I said yes. Lora is also going to carry my project booklets, the ones I create for my classes. I'm thrilled about this as it allows people who maybe can't afford to take a class still able to learn the techniques to make their own creations.
Lora and I are both excited to collaborate on some projects too. I've wanted to find a lampworker I could design with and some of my ideas had Lora excited to get back to her torch.

The details: Wildfire Beads is at 134 South Main Street, Hurricane, UT 84737 and is open Tuesday thru Saturday 10am to 6pm. She also has one of those great frequent buyer cards that we bead addicts love. So, people, get out there and support your local bead store.

Lora will also be our guest speaker at the next Dixie Bead Society meeting which will be Tuesday, November 17th at 6pm in the St George Library.

After all the excitement of the day I finally sat down to bead after dinner. I finished a quarter of the top netting on my collar (my daily allotment) and then picked up my little packages. I love the colors of this one, they are very different for me but I fell in love with these little shell beads and they told me what colors they needed around them (yes, the beads speak to me and I can see a padded cell in my future). They whispered in my ear that if I looked in my pearl box I'd find some tiny freshwater pearls that matched them perfectly....and they were right. Now if they'd just tell me how they'd like them incorporated we'd be onto something....oh, Morganna, where art thou?

Lora and I talked about my little packages designs and I told her some things I'd like to see in them....she got quite excited and is going to make me some lampwork beads so I can create some very 'off-the-wall' pieces.....hey, I won Beading Daily's pattern play challenge in the 'Off-the-Wall' category, I may as well run with it. My 'off-the-wall' designs are inspired by Picasso but I needed help from a lampworker....and I'm so happy to be collaborating with a fabulous one.

Lisa Crone thinks I'm at one with the Universe right now....maybe she's right, because no sooner than I voice a wish along comes the fulfillment. Hmm.....I could use the makeover they're giving away on local radio......