"Designer Inspired" Series
New York City - Get Inspired. Create!
with
Marcia DeCoster
October 21 - 26, 2012
This Beadventure is all about learning to translate inspiration into design. Marcia DeCoster, one of the country's top bead artists will lead a workshop on inspiration and design. Maggie Meister, another great seed bead artist, will be the tour leader.
We will visit destinations selected by Marcia in which she will share how they inspire her and how she translates that inspiration into her beadwork. Because Marcia is influenced by costume jewelry, we will visit high-end stores such as Bergdorf and Barney's. The itinerary also will include a visit to the Museum of Art and Design as well as Swarovski's DIY showroom in Soho and Alexis Bittar's store, also in Soho.
During the trip there also will be a workshop during which we learn more about Marcia's design process. This Beadventure is a unique opportunity for beaders that want to take their design process to the next level.
And of course, there will be shopping. We'll visit M&J Trim, to pearl and gem wholesalers, to a vintage warehouse piled to the ceiling with treasures.
Itinerary
Day 1. Sunday, October 21.
Arrive in New York City in time to join us for dinner. Our home for this Beadventure is the Radisson 
Martinique Hotel on Broadway, which is conveniently located in the Garment/Jewelry District. The Martinique is a magnificently restored Beaux Arts Landmark occupying an 1898 building designed in the French Renaissance style. Our Midtown Manhattan hotel is within walking distance of many New York City attractions, landmarks, transportation—and most important, bead and gem wholesalers!
We will gather in early evening at the hotel for group introductions. We then will head out to dinner (on Beadventures).
Days 2 - 5. Monday October 22 - Thursday October 25.
The next four days will include options such as:
- Visiting a museum with special focus on jewelry and textiles and a great button store that has wonderful vintage buttons;
- Shopping at several wholesalers and retail shops to find fabulous materials to translate your design into a work of art--from beautiful pearls and gems at great prices, to trims, buttons, Czech seed beads, buttons from Mood Fabrics, a vintage warehouse packed to the ceiling, and all the glitz you could possible
want; - Visiting boutiques and high-end department stores (after all, this is NEW YORK CITY!); and
- A workshop with Marcia in which we learn about her design process and take all that we brought and all that we bought to design something fabulous. The workshop will be at Beads by Blanche in New Jersey--an absolutely FABULOUS bead store!
Day 6. Friday, October 26.
Depart New York City with your creativity inspired by an incredible bead artist and city!
About Marcia DeCoster and Her Project . . .
Marcia's love for beautiful jewelry and the desire to create her own designs brought Marcia to beads in the early 1990's. Marcia designs colorful and fun to wear jewelry and shares her designs through teaching and writing. Remembering her own early attempts, Marcia recognizes that everyone learns differently and so takes great care to provide clear, concise and comprehensive instructions, graphics and text.
During this Beadventure Marcia will share her particular style of design, which is most often one of component design. She has a new technique, inspired by the iconic Chrysler building. After understanding this "simple-to-do" component, you'll make bead, color and design decisions to bring this component into your very own piece of jewelry--with Marcia there to guide you.
Marcia's work has been published Carol Wilcox Wells’s The Art and Elegance of Bead Weaving and Margie Deeb’s The Beaders Color Pallette.
In 2008 her work was featured in Masters Beadweaving and her urchin lariat graces the cover. The following year her own book Marcia DeCoster's Beaded Opulence was published by Lark. Marcia is one of the featured 'Designers of the Year' in Beadwork magazine. Learn more about Marica and her art at MAD Designs.
Trip Cost
$2,685
Includes: Workshop with Marcia, five nights of hotel accommodations (shared room; single supplement available at $900); welcome and farewell dinners, ground transportation, site visits.
Does not include: airfare, transport to/from hotel, other meals, beading supplies.
Trip Notes
New York City is a walking city so please bring comfortable shoes.
About This Special Workshop
This is the third in our "Designer Inspired" series. These special Beadventures are a unique opportunity to work with leading bead artists to learn about their approach to design--what inspires them and how they translate that inspiration into their work. These workshops are for those that want to take their work to the next level.