I am a born native of the Pacific Northwest. My Mother, Thelma and Aunt Polly were very creative and had a lot of talent in painting and sewing. I searched high and low for my niche in this area. I tried to sew and paint and cake decorate and I was a failure. One day in the summer, I went to the Bellevue Art Fair, a yearly tradition and I fell in love with a pair of earrings, but they were much more than I could afford. I couldn't stop thinking about them - the color combination and texture development - and so I finally went to Michaels and tried to get the materials to make. I made something similar and was thrilled. I got lots of comments at the office and tried more designs. At the time, there were no classes or bead shops around. I kept getting compliments and finally decided to apply for a booth at VASA Park - a show I had attended for many years as a consumer. I was thrilled when I was accepted and had a booth and jewelry and was pleasantly surprised when I sold most of my inventory. Since I have taken classes, picked up many techniques and it's my creative outlet and I love it =- couldn't live without it -- I regularly participate in home parties and shows and am always looking to learn new techniques and experiment with different shapes/ textures and colors. I hope you will find my work inspiring and fit your wardrobe from casual to elegant and everything in between. Mary Elizabeth Gage