Meet the Teachers

Kim Stathis

Through out my life, I have always needed a creative outlet. I have played with many different types of media’s and loved them all. The media that really captured my heart and inspired my creative soul is seedbeads! There is just something alluring and special about those little bits of colored glass that I cannot resist. I love the challenge of designing with seedbeads using off-loom techniques. So many colors, textures and shapes! So many ways to express yourself with beads.

I been teaching my designs nationally for the past thirteen years. It is my hope that students will be inspired by what they have learned in class and continue to do beadwork and enjoy it as much as I do.

My  designs have been published in the Bead and Button magazine and in Larks Showcase 500 Jewelry Book.

Melissa Grakowsky-Shippee

My life didn’t always involve tiny pieces of colored glass with holes in them. Earlier in life my interests had a broader focus. I always had a fascination with the natural world, and equally with art. In college, when I was finally free to study what I liked, I majored in biology at first but went on to complete a bachelor’s degree in physics, and another bachelor’s degree in fine arts with a painting concentration and art history minor.

I got into bead weaving in my early twenties after I became a parent. I had recently decided to quit grad school to care for my special needs son, who required more help and care than the average baby. I desperately needed a creative hobby that would conform to the new space- and time- (some might say space-time) limitations as I entered a new chapter of life. My former medium of painting was simply not an option while caring for my son in my tiny apartment.

Thankfully, a friend of mine introduced me to his aunt’s bead store, Beads East, formerly located in Manchester, Connecticut, and I quickly fell in love with the art form. I found a new creative outlet in designing beaded jewelry, and the rest is history.

I now travel all over the United States as well as internationally to share my love of beading through project workshops as well as sell beading kits, patterns and supplies.

Barb Talijan

I have been beading for almost 40 years and teaching about 25.  I now own my own brick and mortar bead shop in Bethlehem PA called Owl Be Beading which I have operated for the last 8 years.  I started beading after having foot surgery.  I taught myself from books and have refined my techniques with the help of teachers all over the world.

I have taught many classes over the years and have introduced many people to the wonderful world of beads.  I was approached by Bead & Button magazine and was asked to contribute one of my many Christmas ornament patterns to a special holiday edition of their magazine.  I have won awards for my beadwork at local art shows.

My main reason for opening the store is to teach people this wonderful art form which will keep beading alive.  Being able to share this art form with others and teach it to young and old alike keeps me passionate about the opportunities that are to come.

Mission Statement - to creatively use the gifts that God has given me to bring a smile to someone's face.  To provide a place for people to learn new techniques, purchase supplies and meet up with other people with the same interest while supplying guidance in each of these aspects.  To teach the techniques I have mastered to others to help them creatively enjoy life.  To spark creativity in the people I meet.