I have always loved beads and jewelry!
I remember going to a lapidary show with my parents whenI was pretty young and stringing a Turquoise necklace right there at the show!
The bead seller attached the clasp for me and I left the show wearing my new necklace!
I also remember making necklaces and selling them to the other girls when I was in elementary school.
When I was older I made really pretty pins out of all kinds of feathers- I sold these too!
After that I sidetracked into gardening and plants which I have always loved as well.
Right after I turned 13 (a zillion years ago!), I started working at a retail store in my hometown of Morro Bay, CA.
It was called the Garden Gallery. They specialized in cactus and succulents and also sold many great gift items including jewelry.
It was the perfect job for me and I loved it! I worked there for over 5 years.
The people that owned the Garden Gallery gave me a wonderful education about design, color, textures, merchandising and customer service.
I learned to create beautiful displays that showcased the plants, pottery, jewelry and gift items that they were selling.
I absolutely believe that this exposure helped to shape me into the creative person that I am!
It is ironic that I started out selling cactus and succulents and now here I am in AZ! I love it here- I finally got warm because it was always cold and foggy in Morro Bay!
I wandered into a bead store in 1995 and was instantly hooked!
I have added a lot of semi precious stone beads to my stash since moving here to AZ in 2003.
I also discovered that I could buy beads and pendants online directly from the artists who made them!
I have purchased from artists in about 30 states- I was trying to hit all 50 states but then the economy tanked and I had to slow down.
There are so many incredible artists and their work goes so many different directions with a wide variety of materials!
I started this blog as a way to showcase my fabulous artists and their work as well as featuring designs made with different semi precious gemstones that you might not have seen.
My other love is cooking.
I was diagnosed several years ago as having an intolerance to gluten and dairy among other things.
I am always trying out new recipe ideas or converting old recipes to gluten and dairy free.
I hope to inspire people to cook my recipes by making them easy to prepare and great tasting.
I have another blog where I post my recipes: www.andreaskitchen.net
You can see the two most recent recipe posts highlighted in the box to the right.
I am very lucky to be able to spend time doing the things that I love.
I hope you enjoy what I do too!
