My name is Svetlana Gaponenko; on bead forums I'm known as "Needle." I was born in Siberia in a small town near Krasnoyarsk, now I live in a wonderful, beautiful and my beloved city of Nizhniy Novgorod. Since my childhood I loved to paint, sew and decorate my dolls, so there is nothing surprising in the fact that I chose the profession of a school teacher of Design and Technology, other words, a sewing teacher.
I still remember some significant moments of my young age: a trip to Leningrad, the city which is impossible not to admire. I remember how I was excited by my mother's brooches made from the beads produced in Czechoslovakia, such bright and elegant. We visited lots of museums and exhibits where my attention was usually attracted by fans, shoes and other amazing, delicate and beautiful feminine "things"; they have always been nice to my heart.
As time went on, I get new hobbies, they changed, but creativity has always been with me. My restless nature demanded to try everything: cross-stitching and embroidery, different types of knitting, sewing by hands and on a sewing machine, paintings and decorating vases, jugs and photo frames.
My character is like that: if I knit - I need to knit a lot and different designs, if I sew - I have to create clothes I could wear something new in summer every day. I remember, once during the Holiday Season shopping fever I sewed a luxurious evening dress with gloves and embroidered it with beads. Yes, that was when I had my first bead experience! Soon after I got married and a year later gave birth to my first daughter.
At Easter, a friend of mine gifted me a beaded Easter egg. What a delight! I still don't understand how these itty-bitty beads could delight me so much! And, of course, I fell in love with them... I found an issue of the Wonderful Moments Magazine with an eggs embroidery patterns. Long and hard, I looked into it understanding nothing neither in terms nor in description. Twice I've dissolved almost finished beadwork, but won! It was like a miracle!
I began search for new patterns and thanks to that I have developed my computer skills. Quite by accident, as it often happens, I found one of the most popular Russian forums at that time. My dear friends and teachers, thank you for your support and knowledge you share, I've been learning and "growing" with you for six years! I've tried to bead lots of things - decorations and accessories, flowers and trees. All that my new friends have picked up and made! Wonderful work and wonderful people - delight, delight!
I remember a beautiful necklace "Poppy Field" by Zoya Gutina, beadworks by Julia Turova with flowers and beetles, amazing decorations and beaded purses by Olga Orlova, understandable workshops and unexpected ideas of other artists. Many thanks to all who so generously share their knowledge and friendly tips!
In parallel, I studied at another forum where I've taken classes taught by Elena Bashkatova. She has a delicate taste and "golden" hands, her flowers from beads and wire in French bead weaving technique are beautiful and very lifelike. Elena published a clear and very beautiful book, "Magic Beads", and on the last page among photographs of her students' beadworks there is a picture of my rose too! So I can say that Elena is my teacher.
Now I'm already a mother of two. What a pity! - I've got less and less time for creativity. All that remains, I dedicate to beaded purses, creation of which I was fascinated, and other "cute female things." Why I chose accessories? The fact is that I have always loved vintage beaded handbags, cords, tassels, purses, embroidered naive cute scenes and flowers. Looking in museum at that stuff, I always wanted to become an owner of at least one of such treasures!
Eventually, I began to search for books and workshops, learn techniques of making bead-knitted purses since I already knew how to embroider them. There was a lack of educational material, except for old books in English with floral romantic images. I really enjoyed the lessons by Natalia Schutz, they were very useful for me. Natalia perfectly mastered different techniques and told us about some specific "secrets"; Olga Orlova taught a very difficult "science" of attaching purse frames.
To get started, I need a push, a kind of impulse inspiration. As I say, I need to be impressed! Thanks to the Internet, you can find a very interesting old drawings, and patterns. I usually use the program "to paint" a picture for embroidery and after that I begin picking up materials. This does not always happen quickly, everything must coincide - colors and shapes - and many more of everything! Romantic themes dominate in my early works: roses, birds. Recently I was fascinated with ornaments; I don't know what is going to be next yet.
I like knitting as well as crocheting. I divide a picture into parts and make each part from the top down; cross-stitching patterns perfectly work for that. There are different ways of knitting with beads, each one has its pros and cons, detailed information about them with pictures can be found on the Internet; I learned them from Natalia Schutz. My purses are not only knitted or crocheted, but also embroidered; they also turn out very beautiful, and to make them is exciting craft, too.
Now I try different forms and techniques and add textile and leather. I'd like my purses to be not only for theater, but can be worn also every day. I'm always glad to see women taking in hands such beaded items. Their eyes light up, the back straightens, and I immediately imagine a beautiful lady from a poem by a Russian writer Alexander Blok, "Wafting a breath of perfume and mist, she takes a table by the window..."
My dream is to write and publish a book in which I would like to tell in detail about everything I have learned in this exciting business - creating beauty of beads. And the first place of honor in it will be about design and creation of my favorite beaded purses!
My gallery on MyLovelyBeads.com
About author:
| Svetlana Gaponenko, Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia | |
| Email: | igolkinasveta08@rambler.ru |
| Facebook: | facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002815292027 |
| Online Shop: | livemaster.ru/sveta08?view=profile |
