Interview: NSA Convention – Illusion Jewelry

NSA Exhibit Area As with many large conventions, the National Speakers Association gathering has an exhibit area where vendors sell everything from self-publishing solutions to, well, handbags and jewelry. Speakers have to look good on stage and off. I took the opportunity to ask a couple of the vendors about the goods they sell and why they come to exhibit at NSA. Illusion Jewlry Patricia Carbeery has been working with glass for over 25 years. She finds working with hot glass is very direct and immediate—the ever changing rainbow of color and light while working with dichroic, metals, powders, as well as the glass, continues to fascinate. She creates her own beads using the ancient technique of lampworking. To make each bead, she melts glass in an oxygen propane flame at temperatures in exces of 2000° F. She then anneal the beads in a kiln for five hours or more. All her designs are unique—incorporting her handmade lampworked beads, Swarovski crystals, silver from Bali, and freshwater pearls. Her work can be found at The Phoenix Art Museum and The Bead Museum in Glendale, as well as several fine stores. To hear what Patricia told me about her jewelry, click on the podcast icon below.