New treasures!

This past week has been a whirlwind of fun and family and obligation. Last Friday I went (for the first time!!) to the largest bead show on the East Coast....Bead Fest....which was more like a feast than a fest!!!!! It was advertised as the Philadelphia Bead Fest but was in Oaks PA...that's kinda like saying that Fords NJ is NYC.......but other than that is was wondrous!!! I walked in and at first was overwhelmed by the size....which I probably shouldn't have been having gone to numerous Quilt Markets but this was my first major bead market!!! There were so many beautiful displays and works of art done by unbelievably talented bead artists...and there was also a fair share of schlocky imported beads...but there was sparkle everywhere!!! My plan was to walk the entire Fest and then do my shopping on the second round...that plan quickly flew away on the crystal wings of a beaded butterfly....my first purchase was at the booth of Lisa Kang Designs... www.LisaKan.com Lisa creates some of the loveliest botanical themed beads I have ever seen. I purchased two of her "plum blossom" lampwork glass beads and will probably be visiting her website in the not to distant future in order to acquire more!! I then went around and found some stone and ceramic beads that called my name.....a new raku face cab that needed to be mine and various other bits and pieces that spoke to me. I then came upon a booth that just reached out and grabbed me and pulled me right in.... Vintage Meadow Artworks.... www.vintagemeadowartworks.com They specialize in Acrylic Floral art beads and their color palette and aesthetic were all I could ask for!!! I have already incorporated several layers of their beads into the LadyOfInfiniteSparkle that I am currently working on. All in all it was a great experience....but it's a good thing it only comes around once a year...I now know that I must start to save my pennies, nickles and dimes for next August....or maybe the lottery fairy will sprinkle a little of her dust on me!!!