I have been beading for about 40 years. I learned my first beading from an Athabaskin Indian woman in Fairbanks, Alaska. A few years later, we lived on the White River Apache Indian Reservation in Arizona. They taught me about their history, beading and what the beads and colors represent. They invited me and my husband to attend some ceremonials where the medicine man requested the dancers to pause when they came by us to take pictures. They made me a ceremonial dress and my husband a ceremonial ribbon shirt. We lived on the reservation for the summer and they taught me cooking, their language and indian beadwork. It was one of the most rewarding summers I have spent.

My husband flies a Neptune aircraft, fighting wildland fires, which has allowed us to travel through the years. I have learned about the various cultures of the area in which we were stationed. When I could no longer travel with him I needed something to occupy my time. My husband suggested a bead and art supply store since I am both an artist and an avid beader. As the beading hobby grew, so did the store. In December 2008, I moved into a building in old town. We later discovered the building was the original Fire House in Alamogordo. We are currently finding out as much as we can about the building and plan to display historical information in the store.

We give classes on a regular basis. Our main instructor is Lenora Stevens and I also instruct. Our classes range from beginner to advanced and prices are $5 for beginners to $15 for advanced, plus the beads purchased through the store. We also have evening and weekend classes also available on request.

In addition to structured classes, we do parties for birthdays, business after hours, brides and bridesmaids. Many businesses will pre-pay for a project as a reward to their employees. We can assist in making jewelry for a special gift, parties, prom, homecoming, or any special occasion. Lenora or I will be happy to help you and are available for consultation.

One thing we would like to do in the future is to come up with a beading club. Anyone interested in participating once a month would get a discount that night. If you are interested just let us know.