My name is Claudia Cattaneo. I was born in a small city of Legnano not far from Milan, Lombardia, Northern Italy, and now live in the city of San Vittore which even closer to Milan than my hometown.
As a child, I loved to do something and experiment, watch my grandmother knitting a sweater and my mother sewing skirts and blouses. All I have created with my own hands, even if it was not quite beautifully done, gave me some peace of mind and a sense of pride: from sand castles built on the sea coast to the doll, dressed in clothes made from scraps of fabric, and "houses" built of the large and small cardboard boxes.
When I grew up, my passion for "do-it-yourself" has grown into something more serious and began to take an important part of my life and in the end, luckily, became my profession! I remember one time, more than 10 years ago, I was surfing the Internet and I was struck by the masterpieces of Sherry Serafini - it was awesome!
That time in Italy it was not easy to find beads and crystals even for a small bracelet. I started looking for beading stuff the best materials, preferring silver and semi-precious stones, crystal elements and Miyuki beads. Ten years ago, it was the risk of wasting time, but now I am happy that I made this choice then.
I started working on tutorials from the Bead&Button Magazine and tried to repeat what I've seen on the Internet. With great desire, I dedicated every second of my free time to beading, analyzing and studying various techniques to create my own patterns and design unique jewelry pieces already more technically complicated.
My first technique I learned was peyote stitch because it was the most common technique among the artists I knew, later it was the turn of herringbone and brick stitches. And then, when I started working with threads, silk and soutache, and acquired the relevant knowledge, my creative world didn't have boundaries anymore! With new styles, such as frivolite and macrame, I began to create necklaces and bracelets in mixed techniques, and it was for me a great joy.
I recall with pleasure my debut, when I decided to take part in the bead competition in 2010 and my Light and Ice Necklace made the final. Emotions prompted me to improve my knowledge and I had a great desire to develop my skills, and my some more works have been awarded several prizes in different competitions:
It's hard to say which technique I like the most. My latest "discovery" is frivolite, so it is closer to me now. This technique allows me to create perfect and airy jewelry, and I was very surprised and totally charmed when I finished my Opposites Attract Set.
I love to experiment, as a rule, using the colors that are close to me, such as purple and sky blue, but I'm happy if I can meet my customers' expectations and to please them even if their tastes and points of views can be completely different from mine.
I usually take my inspiration in the natural world, there are so many interesting things undiscovered: amazing colors, shapes, textures... I'm sure there is still a lot to learn, and how it's exciting - to try, make mistakes and try again!
My gallery on MyLovelyBeads.com
About author:
| Claudia Cattaneo, San Vittore, Lombardia, Italy | |
| Email: | claudia@happyland.it |
| Website: | www.happyland.it |
| Blog: | happylandblog.blogspot.com |
| Etsy Shop: | etsy.com/shop/Happyland87 |
| Facebook: | facebook.com/claudia.cattaneo.12 |
