The class is $40 plus supplies and is from 1:30 to 4:30.  We are offering the class on July 14 and August 11.  A $15 deposit is required to hold your place because class size is limited.  If these dates don’t suit your schedule a private lesson can be made.

We have glass from many places.  Call Imagine to make your reservation at 716-386-2244. We will be serving wine and cheese.  (No wine until after the drilling)

This is an easy beginner class for ages 12 and up. On- on-one instruction includes all the techniques needed to complete a bracelet. This is a one size fits all style. The class meets June 2, 2012 at 10:30 and ends at 12:30.  All tools are provided for in class. Cost is 15.00 plus materials and beads of your choice. Class maximum is 8, so book early. Call 716 386 2244. Non refundable class fee required to secure your place.

Sat. June 16 1:30-3:30

-or-

By Appointment,

Dayle Loutsenheizer

Learn to wire wrap a focal bead (in this case, a piece of sea or lake glass) into a pendant. This is a great beginners course. You can add your piece to a chain or necklace. This technique is versatile and easy once you get the knack. The focal on the left is embellished with Swarovski crystals and the one on the right with a coin pearl.

Class Fee: 20.00

Kit: Varies depending on choices

Reservation and deposit required Call Imagine! 716 386 2244

We have also done a little restructuring. For example Dayle will now be in charge of all the classes. This will free me up to concentrate on other things. And Dayle is excellect at being organized. She has planned a master calendar at the shop and now it is also on line just waiting to be filled. She has contracts designed for our teachers and a great new tracking and feed back system that will help us make your learning experience even more fun. This year, among other classes we are offering a beginner knitting class in June and October. Students will learn all the basics while making a lush, thirsty cotton washcloth. Have you ever used a hand knit one? Spoiler Alert! you will feel sorry for yourself if you have to go back to using a commercial cloth. Dayle is doing a sea glass pendant class in June and October as well and Chris French is coming back to do a wonderful beaded and wire necklace class in May. We are excited to welcome Barb Dunderdale,  who has promised to teach us to make socks and of course, our famous Bead Lady, Kathy Shomo will be back to sign her new book and show us some fun new projects. Fused Glass classes continue with new offerings by Wendy Cohen and we can’t wait to find out what Sandy and Joan have on their knitting needles. We are thrilled that Jackie Thies will join us with a spectacular beaded necklace. We’ll be sending announcements and list them on the site in the next few weeks.

Brooch from Michael Michaud

Yancey and I just recently returned from Philadelphia where we shopped at the Buyers Market of American Crafts. We met with artists like Barb Levy http://www.barbielevyjewelry.com/  and Jill O’Reilley http://jilloreilly.com/artist.html whose jewelry has been featured at our shop. We bought great new pieces from them and other jewelry artists whose jewelry we love to carry. And  we found some artists that will be completely new for this coming season like Starbird http://starbirdjewelry.com/index.html They are a mother/daughter jewelry- making team from Texas. Their work is so unusual because of its textures. We drooled over the work of Megan Auman http://www.etsy.com/shop/meganauman  who designs in clean lines with steel and sterling and Kevin O’Grady who makes bracelets of glass. We put them on our wish list for the near future. In all we visited over 250 jewelry booths. There were so many choices, it took several days of contemplating. We got so excited that we decided to re-do our jewelry displays and are currently working on them. One of the artists that we have been wanting to carry for several years is Michael Michaud who designs for Four Season’s Design Group. He is a nature jeweler. His pallette is the garden, or the woods, anywhere nature is displaying its beauty. His designs are actually cast from real flowers and leaves and they are stunning.http://www.fourseasonsdesigngroup.com/silver-about-us We found necklaces made to look like pussy willows and pink miniature pearls that circle your wrist like lilac stems. We can’t wait untill we open the boxes and show them to you!  By April 4th. we hope to have them start streaming in for you to see and enjoy. In next week’s post, we’ll tell you about what we bought besides jewelry. Can’t wait to share our shopping experience with you.

Create something memorable yourself in a fun and relaxed atmosphere. We sell supplies and offer classes which include knitting, crochet, wire work jewelry, beading, sea glass, fused glass, fine silver clay. We have many teachers with various specialties and sometimes we host international instructors.

Imagine! is a place to linger over coffee with friends or make new ones. Bring your latest project and chat. Not the crafty type,?browse our eclectic mix of surprises. We look forward to welcoming you. We’re open Memorial Day-Labor Day Open 7 Days a week 10-5

Winter Hours Wed.-Sat.10-5 (call for holiday schedule or snow day cancellation)

Closed Jan 1 and re-opening April4th.

The georgeous blown glass hearts from Chicago artist Jeff Price

We are pretty excited, because on Friday, Yancey and I are headed for Philadelphia and the Buyers Market of American Crafts show. This is a wholesale-only event that features the work of hundreds of extraordinary artist from the U.S. and Canada. It is held at the Philadelphia Convention Center. We’ll get an early start because we want to arrive by 4p.m. That is when they will open about 1/3  of the floor, the jewelry exhibitors area. Usually, they greet you with Mimosas. Lovely, you can sip and browse. Everything  is artisan- crafted and it makes you proud to see how ingenious our American artist are. It can be overwhelming, though, Last year there were about 250 jewelers represented. It takes hours to view. The work ranges from diamonds in minimal classic settings to very artsy or whimsical designs. Nothing looks like the jewelry in stores at the mall. These designers are award- winning. And we get to meet them and talk about their work. We are looking for new trends from artists we already carry and hope to add some new ones to our collections. After hours of browsing and taking notes, we head out to find dinner. We usually end up at one of the Thai or Asian Fusion places just down the block. But we know that before we leave Philly, we’ll make our way over to the Italian restaurant that everybody from the show loves.  After dinner, we comb through the catalogues that we have gathered on the show floor and mark booth numbers that we will re- visit. Then we crash. In the a.m.  I’m up and out by 7:30 in order to grab a cup of coffee and attend the seminars offered by national experts on all kinds of topics. Last year I was really inspired by the editor of Gift Ware Magazine who did a slide presentation about store windows. As soon as I got home, I asked Vern Johnson make a platform and had lighting installed in our windows. All year, we had so much fun designing displays, using information that I learned from the speaker.

So then for the next two days, its hour and hours on the floor, checking more than 500 additional booths in aisles divided by categories such as “Glass” “Ceramics” “Apparel” “Mixed Media”etc. Its a little crazy- making because there is so much to see, so many decisions to make. We get sore from walking. Aspirin. We have to take short breaks. Creme Bruelee. We have to keep checking our budgets. Coffee. We have to try not to fall in love with too much. Wine. Every night we go over our work sheets. Tums

So we’ll let you know how our trip went this year. Here’s the most important part, we will be thinking of you when we shop, because that is what it is all about. We want you to come to the store with the same excitement as we feel at the show. We want to find the most wonderfu, fun, interesting, treasures in the country for you. Cheers!