Interview - Leslie Fawcett

                                                                                                    by Kelli Pope

I'd like to introduce you to a very good friend of mine and her incredible work.  The funny thing is we've known each other since high school, but the real friendship started about 8 or so years ago. We ran into each other at an art show in Louisville, Ky.  She walked into my jewelry booth, and told me she had her own jewelry booth there.  Who da thunk it??  It's hard to believe now, that we didn't bond in high school! We missed out on a lot of good years.   

Her work is fantastic, and unique just like she is.  I think you'll love it as much as I do!!

LMAJ:   Please tell our readers about yourself.

LF:    Hello! My name's Leslie Fawcett and I'm a jewelry artist ;) At least that's what I aspire to be some day when I grow up!  I'm married to a great guy and my best friend, David Fawcett and we have 2 kids, both girls (8 & 10), both red heads (fiery!).  We also have 2 crazy, yet oddly sweet feral cats that still owe me $1000 for my leather couch!  I've  worked in television production, 26 years and counting and it's been a lot of fun. I'm an avid volleyball player (I usually play in about 3-4 leagues a week). In addition to all of the above, I'm a big fan of super heroes, mutants, sci-fi and action heroes! GEEK!

LMAJ:  I know your jewelry is all about beaded beads using a peyote stitch.  Why do you like that technique? 

LF: I like the peyote stitch because of how everything fits together. On the tubular beads, the lines are very precise and you get a nice striping in the colors, while with the discs and balls, there is more of a blending of the colors.

LMAJ:  Do you use any other techniques in your pieces?  

LF:  I've recently been teaching myself some chain maille patterns. I'm using these as accent pieces. They complement the beaded beads really nicely. Eventually I'd like to make my own findings and components. I have some stuff to work with, I just need to find the time to play.

LMAJ: What was the first piece you ever made, and how wonderful was it ? 

LF:   When I first learned how to make the beads, I bought a bunch of colors and started making a bunch of striped beads. By the time I had combined them in all possible color combinations, I had well over a 1,000 beads. A couple of nights before my wedding, I had some nervous energy and I took about 220 of the beads and made a really long necklace. It will go around the neck 4 times and I think it's pretty cool. It's actually the piece that's on my business card and probably always will be. 

LMAJ:  How did you get started making jewelry, and what was the inspiration?.

LF:  I've always played around with crafts from knitting and embroidery when I was a kid to some basic bead stringing in my 20's, but I never really did anything with it until I tried making my first beaded bead. I saw a "how to" article in the back of an issue of Lapidary Journal written by Valerie Hector, teaching you the basics of making a beaded bead. (If you've never seen her work, it is amazing!) I think I actually had a little bit of a sleepless night after I created my first bead because it was just so cool how it fit together. I kept thinking about what to do with it. I made the piece above and people started asking me where I got it and it just took off from there. I think mostly I'm inspired by color, whether it's the color of a scarf I have or someone's shirt, a scene in a movie or even landscapes. I just love all the colors of the beads and there's so many different color combinations to play around with. 

LMAJ:  With a full time job and the kiddos, how do you find time to create?

LF:  I'm a bit of a night owl. I love to stay up late watching TV and making beads and putting my pieces together. My inspiration usually comes around 1am. Sadly I can't do it as much as I used to. As I'm able to get into bigger shows, I have to really budget my time. However there's nothing like the "threat" of the coming show and the fear of not having enough to really crank it up a notch:)

LMAJ: Where and when is your next show? 

LF:  Art in Speed Park in Sellersburg, IN on August 23 & 24.

LMAJ: Do you only sell at art shows?   If not, where can our readers find your pieces for sale?   

LF:  I mostly sell at art fairs, but I do have some of my work in the Art & Invention Gallery in Nashville, TN and I just got some of my pieces into The Shop at Walnut Grove in Louisville, KY

 As always, thank you Readers, for supporting handmade with handmade!!!!!!!