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closeBeauty of handmade beads draws crowds
Sumner Arts Commission sponsors BeadforLife to raise funds for Ugandan women, raise awareness of poverty worldwide
Roxanne Cooke
Lisa Steudel and her two daughters left the Sumner Pierce County Library with a bag full of vibrantly-colored, handmade jewelry from Uganda.
They had just attended BeadforLife, a jewelry sale hosted by the Sumner Arts Commission. BeadforLife is an organization that aims to eradicate poverty and help support Ugandan women who make the necklaces, bracelets and earrings.
The secret ingredient to the jewelry: Paper. Beads are made from recycled paper that is cut into strips, then rolled up and covered in shellac.
Steudel and her daughters have crafted their own handmade beads, so they can appreciate the time it takes to roll strips of paper into small diamond-shaped balls.
The Edgewood mother was impressed with the quality of the Ugandan-made beads.
“They’re so colorful,” she said.
Within the first hour of the BeadforLife event, the Sumner Arts Commission saw a rush of people and made approximately 30 sales, said Barbara Bitetto, commission chair. The proceeds go to the bead crafters as well as programs that support Ugandan women and children.
Several Arts Commission members sported the colorful jewelry and encouraged visitors to try on necklaces and bracelets.
“Every one is different and beautiful in its own way,” said Arts Commission member Ronda Bishop, who wore a handful of long beaded necklaces.
Edgewood resident Margie Goulden was surprised the beads could even have come from paper.
“This is beyond my imagination,” she said. “It must be a real art to roll them really tight. I’m very impressed with it.”
Goulden planned to buy some of the jewelry as gifts. Nearby, Carolyn Weir, Weir’s daughter and granddaughter admired the beads as well.
“I think they’re very pretty,” Weir said.
BeadforLife was sponsored by the Sumner Arts Commission and was hosted in conjunction with the 2008 Pierce County READS program, which encourages the community to read the same book and participate in programs related to the story. This year’s novel is “The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” by Alexander McCall Smith.