Face to Face: Wendy Ekkerink

Beadingschool is a place where we bead together, share inspiration and celebrate the stories behind every piece of jewelry. We honor both the hands that create and the people who inspire our community.

We came to the last Friday of the month, when we publish new Face to Face interview. We’re excited we can introduce a beader from the Netherlands, regular at NOHTBA and a friendly heart at the Beadingschool Club. Take a moment to slow down and enjoy a personal story, with the beautiful jewels.

Meet the Beadingschool Club member, a talented beader-friend to many in the community,

our Wendy Ekkerink.

 

Please tell us about yourself a bit! When and how did you start to create? How did you learn to bead?  

I am 49 years old and live in a small town in the eastern part of the Netherlands called Wierden. 

Ever since I was a little girl, I loved being creative. A part of that comes from my mother, I think. She is a painter and makes the most beautiful oil paintings and she always encouraged me and my sisters in doing something creative. It was my younger sister who introduced me to beads and jewellery making, when I was in my late twenties. She showed me some jewellery she made with stringing beads, and I remember that I was immediately captivated by it and wanted to try it out myself. Since then, I followed video and book tutorials on beading and bead weaving. 

I discovered the Beadingschool in March 2024 and I have learned so much since than. It is such a beautiful community that Erika created, and it gives such a joy to be a part of it.

 

Is beadwork your hobby or profession? How does your average day look like? When do you have time to create?   

Beadwork is my hobby, but I would love to make it my profession one day. I bead in the evenings and weekends. As my daily work can be very stressful at times, I enjoy sitting down in my spare time to work on a beading project and put on some music or listen to a book.

 

What did beading bring to your life? 

Beading has become a big part of my life now and gives me so much joy. The process of creating something beautiful and sharing it with others. I love to gift a jewellery piece to a loved one and put a smile on their face. As my day to day live is often hectic, beading really helps to calm my mind. 

 

Tell us about the piece of jewelry that is special for you or you are the most proud of! 

Most special to me, is the necklace and earrings that I made for my younger sisters wedding in 2008. She asked me if I could make it for her and I was very honoured she asked me.

 

Where do you like to create? Do you have a designated area in your home where you keep your beads?  

I use a spare room as office / beading room. As my collection of beads, stones and tools has grown over the years, I bought some cabinets and boxes to store everything. I also have some displays now to showcase the jewels. 

 

What is your favorite stitch? Which colors do you like the most? On the other hand, is there any color or color combination you try to avoid? 

I do not have a specific favourite stitch, but the first stitch I learned was peyote and that is the one I still use the most. The colours I lean to the most are purple, blue and pink. If I sorted out colours for a specific jewel in the past, it would be in the same colour range or close to it, but this had changed after joining the Beadingschool Academy. I learned so much in combining, for me unexpected, colours and how they can complement each other. I even love now to use yellow, and this was never a colour I would have picked.

 

Do you follow instructions or do you like to develop your own designs? How would you define your style?  

I mainly follow design instructions from other designers. I try sometimes to design myself, but I need to get more confident in it, I think.

Who are your favorite designers? Why? 

I love all the Beadingschool designers and I have some books from Isabella Lam and Jamie Cloud Eakin. The first book I bought was “Beading with Cabochons” from Jamie.

 

Do you have a favorite design by Erika? Tell us about it!   

There are so many, but if I must name one it would be the “Columbine” necklace from the “Bavarian Princess” Academy box. One of my favourite boxes so far. I grew up watching the “Sisi” movies when I was younger. I love romantic timeless styles of jewellery that could have been worn by past generations.

 

Which is the bead / component in your stash which you treasure the most? Do you already have plans on how to use it?

I have some beautiful gemstone cabochons that I would love to use for bead embroidery. Gemstones have always fascinated me, and I would love to create jewellery with it.

 

If you could design something for a well-known person or maybe a fictional character from a film or book, who would it be, and why? 

I would love to design a jewel for “Arwen”, fictional character from “The Lord of the Rings” story. A beautiful elven princess. I am a huge fan of the books and the world J.R.R. Tolkien created with his stories.

What are your plans for the future as a beader? Is there something you would really like to learn? 

I would love to design myself and learn to improve my CRAW skills. 

 

 

Where can we see and/or buy your designs?

I display my jewellery at home in my beading room and do not sell it now. I mainly gift my jewels to family and friends. It is a wish, though, to take it a step further and sell my jewels at a fair or online. 

 

 

 

Thank you for answering our questions and sharing more from your beading life and journey. We are so happy we could know you better, Wendy!

It’s a joy to see your jewels in the Beadingschool Club. We wish you just the best, mastering new skills with ease and beading even more treasures.

 

Dear beading-friends and beadwork admirers, please, use the comment section if you have more questions you would like to ask, or greet our Wendy.

Stay tuned for more interviews for Beadingschool.com by Erika Sándor.