SPOTLIGHT ON ... DESIGNER
April 2006

Our featured designer for this month is Kate McKinnon.

Hello, Kate here.

What a pleasure it is to pop up on the Soft Flex® web site. Anyone who has been in my classes, or read my books, can attest to my love of Soft Flex® .019 and .024 beading wire. And my Soft Flex® Flush Cutter... Ah. It was love at first sight. When Mike from Soft Flex® Company gave me my first one, I looked at it and almost melted. Even today I am known to wrap it in a little leather cloth and kiss it when I put it away. It changed my life as a technician. Finally I can get into those little spaces, and I can make perfect mitre or butt joints in wire. And I don't pamper it, other than the good night kiss. When we work, we get down to it. Despite the mountains of things that we have cut together, it's as perfect today as it was the day that we first met, in the aisle at the Bead and Button show.

I've really enjoyed my career in the world of jewelry. I started sewing with seed beads, and making bracelets with simple Czech glass and pearls. My friend Pam taught me the square stitch, and I was off. Over time, as I learned more about lampworked glass and clasps, and chain, I became interested in learning how to make my own beads and components. I learned all of the basic techniques of the torch and the bench, and found myself focused on metal clay. Today it's still my favorite material, and I spend most of my studio time making PMC pieces and parts.

When it's time to put them all together, I often choose to string them. I use Soft Flex® .024 Wire and 2mm sterling crimps, with enough of a loop to allow free movement at the crimp, and a protective bead between the crimp and the clasp or ring. Many people think that .024 might be too heavy for fine work, but it isn't- I can string size 11 seed beads on it easily. I choose the heaviest wire that will fit through my components. My Flush Cutter allows me to trim the beading wire neatly at the crimp, leaving the kind of smooth, industrial finish that mixes perfectly with my metalwork.

Kate's work can be seen at her website www.katemckinnon.com, which she updates frequently. Her web journal has thousands of daily readers, tuning in to follow the often hilarious saga of a woman trying to make her way through the world on her own terms.