Thursday, May 26, 2011

Heidi Sever: :Jewelry

Today we are visiting the studio of Heidi Sever, jewelry designer.
Heidi's studio is perfectly perched on the 3rd floor of her North City home.
She's up here most days with her dogs Minnie and Harry.
The space is bright and airy and inspirational. Heidi has three work stations - one for creating with glass,
one for beading,
and one for precious metal clay and metal work.
These cabinets house Heidi's beading station. She found these cabinets at the ReStore. In addition to her beading, the cabinet on the left houses her business paperwork and the top cabinet above her work space houses all of her shipping supplies. (The table to the left is where she creates with precious metal clay.)
Heidi began making jewelry about six year ago. She started with stringing beads and eventually her husband gave her a starter kit for glass blowing as a birthday present. Heidi said, "I told my husband, 'If you think beading is expensive, do not give me a glass blowing kit." 
Birthday. Kit. Class at Glasshopper. Sold. Heidi was hooked. She then took classes in precious metal clay and seed weaving and began selling her work. You can find her lampwork beads at Lady Bug Beads in Webster.
Heidi has one closet in her studio, and it is packed full (and organized) with her light box, her inventory and her tools. She uses the organizer below to hold her instruments and takes drawers to her work space as she needs them.
Heidi's husband Ben built this light box.
Heidi's glass work station is just beautiful. 
She keeps her small blue kiln right where she works.
Her work has evolved in her six years, and right now she is really enjoying creating with "droplets" of colored glass on wire. 
She can string them, weave them and coil them into all kinds of organic shapes.
With a background in sales and finance, Heidi also teaches a business class to new jewelry artists. "I see a lot of new artists pricing themselves so low that they price themselves out of business," Heidi said. "I tell new artists, 'If you're not uncomfortable, your price is too low." 
Heidi participates in approximately 20 art shows each year. This year she'll be traveling for the first time to venues in Illinois, Oklahoma and Indiana.

Heidi's next few shows:
Paseo Arts Festival in Oklahoma City, May 28-30
Art & Air in Webster Groves, June 3-5
Wells Street Arts Festival in Chicago, June 11 & 12
Thank you Heidi!

No comments: