 Me, catching up on the latest news |
About
me I'm a biochemist by trade, and have just finished my PhD at the University of Manchester. I spent a fair chunk of this year writing my thesis, but have now passed my viva and got a job at the NCBES at NUI Galway. This means I have finally moved out of my parents house in Nottingham and got my own place in Galway on the west coast of Ireland (my parents view it as not so much losing a daughter, but gaining a holiday home). I recently graduated from Manchester, and if you're looking for a giggle photos of me are available here. But in the evenings and weekends (and whenever I can steal a spare moment) I reveal my secret identity as a bead artist. I've worked my way through many crafts, before becoming interested in beading about 8 years ago. I'm a member of the Beadworkers Guild, and regularly enter their yearly challenge. Over this last year I was contacted by a publisher, and my first book of beadweaving patterns - The Beaders Bible - has just been published. If you'd like more details, or want to ask any other questions, please email me at enquiries@bearlybeaded.co.uk.
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| About BearlyBeaded BearlyBeaded is my part of my mother's (Maria) company C & M's Bearhugs. We're based in Nottinghamshire, just outside Sherwood Forest, at Patchings Art Centre. There you can find a variety of artists in workshops open to the public, along with three galleries, a restaurant, art shop and gardens. We make and sell artist teddy bears, assorted bear related items and a variety of beadwork. Our studio is open Wednesday to Sunday, 10.30 a.m. to 5.30 p.m., and the bears love visitors! If you're interesting in trying your hand at these crafts for yourself, we also run courses in teddy-bear making, beadweaving, pipecleaner bears and card making. These are held in our studio in Nottingham.
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 Maria examining some stitching |
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 John thinks he may have seen a rare woodpecker! |
Also involved you will find my dad (John). He writes the
Bearhugs website, helps me write this site, and takes all our
photos - which have been getting pretty good recently! He
is very interested in bird-watching (the feathered kind), and
visitors to our studio will be familiar with the HUGE number of
bird feeders visible through our window, where we're visited by
most varieties of garden bird. This year he was thrilled to get a webcam/nestbox set-up for Christmas, and we're watching the blue-tits nesting in it with excitement. Check my blog for the latest photos. |
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| As the rest of us are up here I can hardly fail to mention my brother, Rob. He occasionally gets roped into helping out in the studio, but largely helps out by writing and maintaining the Nottingham Bear Fairs website. |
 Rob, after it was suggested he take up bear making to help out. |
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