How it began...

I get asked often enough how I got started in jewelry to finally write it out. So now I'm going to post it!
One Christmas (about 6 years ago - 2001) we decided to make inexpensive gifts for friends and family rather than shopping for other stuff. It went really well, and I tapped into a creative streak I didn't know was there. I took some of the left over stuff back to the store, and exchanged it for beading stuff. The addiction begins. I can honestly say I have most of the entire store of "Michaels" in the basement. (At least from a couple years ago - I haven't shopped there in some time).
The following Christmas (2002), we decided to do the same thing, and it got a bit more involved. While trying to figure out how to NOT get hot glue all over my wreathes and trees, I discovered floral wire. The addiction exploded.
The same fall of that year, my husband began school full time, along with working full time, so in the evenings I had nothing to do and no one to entertain me. That's when I REALLY dug into the jewelry making and added wire to the mix. Things have never been the same. A couple of friends hosted jewelry parties for me and then I started doing some crap (oops, I mean CRAFT) shows (and some other unconventional shows like at bars when my friends band was playing). Some were great, some were terrible, but I did meet some great people along the way, so they were definitely worth it.
I taught myself how to make a website so I could show and post pictures of my work (and sell of course)...joined a couple of forums and challenges, met more great people.
Time flys by, my skills improve and now we're at August 11th, 2007. I had donated a set of jewelry to the manager of my favorite bar here for their Golf Tourney/Breast Cancer Fundraiser, and the manager asked if I'd like to set up at the bar for after the tourney - you betcha!!!
While I was setting up, I was approached by a burly looking biker guy with a LOT of very specific questions. Turns out he is a Master Jeweler at Borsheim's. He paid me many nice compliments, and before the end of the day, we were discussing my possible employment at Borsheim's. Due to a "conflict of interest", to accept a position there, I had to give up the commercial side of my jewelry (remove the "Buy It Now" buttons, stop doing shows and selling my stuff at shops). It was a tough decision, and I'd be going to work full time, when I had been working part time for the last 8 years...but how could I pass up the opportunity to work for one of the best and most respected jewelry company's? I took the job, and it has been wonderful! Like everything was leading up to it, essentially.