Beading With Kinga

On Sunday I got to take a beading class with Kinga Nichols!  I have known her online for several years, but it was a treat to finally meet her in person!  She is a free-spirit, and many of you are familiar with her fantastical beadwork creations. Well, it turns out, she is a lovely teacher as well.

Kinga taught three workshops for the Portland Bead Society this weekend. I took one of them, entitled Cathedral Windows, Broken.  Kinga's emphasis is always on doing what feels right to YOU, and getting outside the traditional "box."  So we have a pattern to follow as a starting point, but are given the freedom to use it however we want. Here is the sample of this project. All kits were the same, but they won't all look the same when they're finished.

  

The other two workshops were a pendant and her famous Fish bracelet.

Kinga also gave a lovely presentation to the Bead Society at our monthly meeting tonight. She talked about the development of her approach to beadwork, including the evolution of her iconic fishes, and ended with the same message about the importance of being true to yourself. It was wonderful!

Once again, thank you to the Portland Bead Society for helping us to expand our horizons and grow as artists!