Happy Mother's Day from BAO!

With Mother's Day approaching, it seemed a fitting time to show off another mosaic of the Bead Art Originals members' creations. As the each of the member shops was browsed for a special Mother's Day item, I was struck by just how many of them played into the "theme" without really trying: hearts, flowers, a necklace called "intuition", a necklace made from a shard of china...

If you're still doing your Mother's Day shopping, check out our members' shops. Each member is represented here, and the images are placed in the same order as the list of shops on the right side of the blog. If you've finished your shopping already, just enjoy this eye candy! And Happy Mother's Day from BAO!

Meet Karen Klomparens (giapet)

Bead Art Originals welcomes Karen Klomparens! Karen creates lampwork beads and glass art (handmade beads, fused and slumped glass art, dichroic and beaded jewelry, and an occasional stained glass piece), and you can find her work in her Etsy shop, Fire-n-Sand.

Karen is a self-representing artist, which means she designs, creates, and markets her glass art. In addition to Bead Art Originals, she's a member of Glass Artists of West Michigan, Etsy Glass Artists, Wet Canvas, and Lampwork, Etc.

Working in glass is Karen's addiction, as no other medium has held her interest for so long. Glass is a wonderful mix of artistic creativity and technical construction, and there is always something new to discover.

Karen works in a country home studio where she, her familyl, and their pets enjoy the nature that surrounds them.

Karen's work can also be found on her Fire-n-Sand Glass website (currently being revamped), on her blog, and in her flickr photostream. Be sure to visit Karen's Etsy shop to see more of her gorgeous lampwork:

Meet Amy Kinsch (AKDlampwork)

Bead Art Originals welcomes Amy Kinsch! Amy is the artist behind AKDlampwork, where you'll find beautiful lampwork beads that Amy says she creates in her "spare" time.

Amy's glass addiction began a few years ago when, after seeing her drool all over the pretty beads and gorgeous colors she found online, her husband Wally bought her a torch so she could make them herself.

A self-described animal lover, Amy lives in California surrounded by cats and lots of other critters. You can read all about Amy, Wally, their critters, and their business(es) on The Chatterbox.

In addition to managing her Etsy shop and making lampworked beads, Amy and Wally own a rubber stamp company called Beeswax.
Visit Amy's Etsy shop, AKDlampwork, to see more of her bead artistry.

After you've finished drooling over Amy's work, stop back here to wish her a happy birthday! It's only a couple of days away, but I'm sure she won't mind receiving an early greeting or two.