They admit they are addicted: members of the Upstate New York Glass Bead & Jewelry Guild say they can’t get enough of their craft, which includes beads, jewelry making and more. The Guild currently meets monthly at the Ogden Senior Center and their regular gatherings provide members with an opportunity to socialize, learn new techniques and explore the many facets of their craft.
Guild president Donna Rosenthal says the group currently consists of 50-60 members who come from as far away as Pennsylvania and the Syracuse area, and who have varied interests when it comes to beads and jewelry making. “It ranges from the beads themselves to beaded objects, to jewelry designing,” Rosenthal explains.
Additionally, Guild members are lamp work bead makers, wire workers, micro macrame artists, polymer clay enamelists, and precious metal clay workers, Rosenthal explains. Others have an interest in traditional ethnic stitches and art, or are eagerly awaiting the latest bead shape with which they can work.
The group was founded in the fall of 2002 and originally met in the Buffalo area, Rosenthal says. The Upstate New York Glass Bead & Jewelry Guild was officially organized three years later, in 2005, she explains. The Guild has met at various places in the Rochester area including the Ogden Farmers’ Library, Studio 34 and the Rochester Public Library before finding a home at the Ogden Senior Center.
“Once the (Rochester Public Library) announced they would be closed on Sundays, we looked for a new home,” member Karen Rakoski of Ogden says. “The Ogden Senior Center is proving to be a wonderful venue that allows for year round meetings. People are invited to come as a guest to a meeting to check us out. Those deciding to join can pay a membership fee, which is $25 for the year, and includes benefits like discounts on purchases made at the local bead stores.”
“It’s a lot of fun,” Donna Rosenthal observes. “It’s a nice collaborative group. There is always something to share.” During most monthly meetings, a Guild member will instruct on a given technique. “There’s almost always a member teaching,” Rosenthal says.
Some members have published workbooks in the craft or have been published in beading magazines. Additionally, members will travel “off campus” to learn related crafts like making glass bowls, Rosenthal adds.
Karen Rakoski says so far this year, the Guild has learned how to do chain maille, Viking knit and beaded beads.
The group meets on the last Sunday of the month – unless it is a holiday – and typically skips meeting in November, due to the holidays. For more information contact: Upstatenewyorkbeadguild@Hotmail.com.
