Alison Schmidt
Ava Motherwell:
A Life Committed to Beads

By Alice Korach
Merchant Spotlight:

San Francisco Arts & Crafts

By Alison Schmidt
The Whole Bead Show
Tucson 2007
List of Merchants and Floorplan
A Stroll Through Vancouver, BC


By Alexa Wondergem
Bold and Sweet Button Earrings:
A How-To

By Renee Renoir
Artisan Spotlight:
Pam and Heather Wynn

By Carrie Hawthorne
The Whole Bead Show
New York Spring 2007
List of Merchants and Floorplan
The Whole Bead Show
2007 Schedule
3-4
5-7
8-9
10-11
12-13
14-15
16-17
19-21
Publisher
The Whole Bead Show Inc
and Ava Motherwell
Editor
Alison Schmidt
Art Director/Designer
Carrie Hawthorne
Photographer
Alison Schmidt
Additional photos contributed by
Benjamin Vierling, Gwendolyn Lyons,
Ava Motherwell,
San Francisco Arts and Crafts, and
Pam & Heather Wynn.
The
Ruby
PO BOX 1100, Nevada City, CA 95959
(800) 292-2577 Fax (530) 265-2776
WHOLEBEAD.COM
Photo by Alison
Schmidt. Photo
concept and art
direction
by Carrie
Hawthorne.
The cover photo
expresses the
current trend in
beaded jewelry
and the rebirth
of the 1960s.
About the Cover
For advertising opportunities please contact
carrie@wholebead.com
Table of Contents

Daily 10am - 6pm Friday 10am- 9pm
The Windmill Inn
Ballroom, 1st & 2nd Floor Suites
4250 North Campbell Ave.
WHOLEBEAD.COM
TUCSON 2008
January 30 - February 4
®
22-23 Why
Plastic
By
Alison
Schmidt
?

T
hroughout my years working with The Whole Bead
Show, I have noticed that plastic has such a bad rap. I al-
ways giggle to myself when a customer turns her nose up
at plastic beads because she thinks they are not classy
enough for real jewelry. Okay, Ill be truthful. Even I am a
snob when it comes to plastic beads. I prefer the vintage
stuff because of the great colors and shapes, and the old-
er plastic beads seem less likely to have been spit out of
a machine without a determinate function. Vintage plastic
beadsof all varietieswere mostly manufactured spe-
cifically for lines of fantastic costume jewelry, while con-
temporary plastic beads mainly go on the racks at chain
craft stores. However, whatever their purpose, plastic
beads definitely have a history unlike other beads.
Man-made plastic began in 1862 with the invention of
semi-synthetic Parkesine, but it wasnt until 1909 that the
first truly synthetic plastic was made: Bakelite. This in-
vention by Leo Hendrik Baekeland changed the world of
industry because it was the most effective material of its
kind. Bakelite became the main ingredient of many World
War II weapons because of its lightweight quality, chemi-
cal stability, and indefatigable shape once set. Beyond
weaponry, Bakelite was used in other industrial and do-
mestic products for the same reasons, and is even used
today because it is still considered one of the most effec-
tive plastics for those purposes.
Several other types of man-made (and partially man-
made) plastic were invented to replace commonly used
material that had become expensive, rare, or difficult to
obtain. Rayon was developed to replace silk, and Nylon
was an even closer substitute that had other uses, such
as taking the place of animal hair in hairbrushes and tooth-
brushes. Celluloid was an inexpensive and close repre-
sentation of ivory, bone, and tortoiseshell. These plastics
not only successfully replaced waning natural materials,
but also allowed products that used them to be manufac-
tured quickly, cheaply, and in higher numbers. Plastics
had infiltrated the jewelry market; beautiful ivory trinkets
and jeweled combs were no longer only for the rich.
1

3 4
In 1931, chemists at DuPont discovered Lucite
while exploring the high-pressure technology
developed for ammonia production.
2
Its strength
and clarity was far superior to any other plastic
of its kind, and therefore was perfect for all sorts
of industrial uses, but more importantly, it was
perfect for JEWELRY. Although the era of cos-
tume jewelry started in the nineteenth century,
the invention of plastics from the next century
certainly expanded its horizons. As the years
went on, plastic beads were no longer acting as
replacements for more expensive components:
plastic was a triumph for the twentieth century;
it didnt pretend to be anything else but what it
was.
3
Even famous jewelry designers and com-
panies like Coco Chanel, Miriam Haskell, Coro,
and Trifari began to use plastic in their lines. As
the decades progressed, contemporary jewelry
became more popular and easily obtainable
than fine jewelry, so innovative and inexpensive
plastic lent itself to the world of design. It had
become desirable to everyone.
Even today, plastic is still desirableparticularly
since the mod fashions of the 1960s and 1970s,
and the bold, bright styles of the 1980s are back
in style. There is still Bakelite jewelry out there,
and there are plenty of Lucite and other types of
plastic beads availableboth vintage and con-
temporary. Thanks to some industrious business
owners who have discovered sources of au-
thentic mid-century plastic, there is a plethora of
unused vintage beads to be had.
As I mentioned earlier, the vintage pieces have
an interesting quality that contemporary plastic
lacks; they come in colors and shapes that arent
being manufactured any more, and they were
created during the very eras that modern design-
ers are inspired by.
Some of my favorite moments at shows are
when customers see one of our beautiful neck-
laces that feature our own line of vintage Ger-
man plastic. It feels great to hear someone mar-
vel at how fantastic plastic can look, particularly
when it is mixed with other materials. It enhanc-
es the clarity of glass, its creamy appearance
looks amazing with metal, and it adds dimension
without adding much weight. Our line is from the
mid 1960s through the late 1970s, and comes
directly from Germany. Ava Motherwell added
it to her collection in 2003 after discovering the
beads on one of her many trips to Europe. Its
thrilling to see a customer loading up trays with
the stuffI covet it all as I pack it into bags.
Other Whole Bead Show merchants, such as
The Beadin Path and Talisman Associates,
carry lines of lovely vintage Lucite which can
get me into big trouble. Lucite lovers are often
impressed by The Whole Bead Shop vintage
plastic line because of the similar effect the
beads invoke. Unfortunately, we cannot offer
our vintage plastic in our online catalog because
there are simply too many varieties and styles
to keep track of, and they become limited very
quickly. However, it is much better to shop for it
in person so you can touch it and be swept away
by its unique qualities.
1
The historical content in this (and the previous)
paragraph comes from An Introduction to Plas-
tics at vectorsite.net and The History of Plastic at
americanplasticscouncil.org
2
From the overview of Lucite on DuPonts website:
heritage.dupont.com/touchpoints/tp-1931/over-
view.shtml
3
Fenster, Julie M. 2001. Bakelite Jewelry.
American Heritage
, 52(3), 12. 5
In order for the broken jewelry to be sold, Ava, at age 11
began her career by repairing and restringing it. Soon,
she was redesigning and combining parts from vari-
ous pieces.When Ava was 12, she sold her first piece of
self-designed jewelry for $35. The necklace was a mati-
nee-length made of antique Peking glass beads. Within
a year, the family business had changed into a handmade
jewelry business. To hide the fact that Ava was a 13-
year-old jewelry designer, Avas father made up a fictional
name for the jewelry collection. She says, My family
and I drove across the country from California to Maine
every year to market my jewelry designs to gift shops,
boutiques and galleries. As a young teen, Ava enjoyed
going into fancy shops to sell her jewelry. In a market run
by more savvy and experienced buyers and sellers, Ava
acquired tough and sassy skills to develop professional
confidence, and to be taken seriously.
In the mid-1980s it was getting harder to find vintage
items, and the style was changing to big funky jewelry
thanks to stars like Madonna. Because vintage sources
were disappearing, Ava found new resources for her de-
signs; warehouses in New York and Providence, Rhode
Island offered German and Czech glass, Japanese beads,
and Swarovski crystal.
Toward the end of the 1980s, it became increasingly dif-
ficult to find raw material for Avas jewelry. Avas father
decided that he and her brother would learn to make
beads in Europe. While looking for teachers, he found a
rich source of vintage German beads and started import-
ing. Things stepped up to a different level, says Ava. At
17, she went to Europe for the first time to negotiate the
transactions, and to box up the beads in the warehouses.
The business suddenly changed from selling jewelry to
selling loose beads.
I met Ava Motherwell in 1993 at her trunk show hosted
by Beadworks, a local bead shop in Norwalk, Connecti-
cut. The pretty, blonde 22-year-old had already been
traveling throughout the country selling beads for five
years, and was known for the outstanding vintage Ger-
man glass beads she sold. Ava also had the reputation of
being driven to succeed. To me, she seemed to combine
an unusual blend of shyness and confidence. She was a
talented jewelry designer, and at that trunk show I was
able to photograph Ava as she created a striking pair of
earrings. Those photos were published in one of the early
issues of Bead&Button.
Since our first meeting, I continued to run into Ava and
to hear interesting stories about her. I was always drawn
to her and grew to respect her business acumen, grace,
and