The Bead Goes On

September 4, 2006 - 7:00 AM by Sarah

beads-1

Jerusalem resident John Leonard takes us into the studio of a friend of his, bead-maker Ilana Wassertheil:

Today we met up and walked to her studio in Nachlaot, a neighborhood of Jerusalem. Her studio is a great creative workspace with lots of natural light. After catching up, Ilana got to work making beads. You can see her at work here in a picture from her website.

She uses glass rods to make the beads. It’s fascinating to watch. Heating the glass until it’s red hot, she then melts and turns it to make a bead or swirl in color. I really gained an appreciation of the amount of time and work Ilana takes in creating each bead.

Ilana made a bead for me that is similar to the one in this ring.

The finished bead was cooling when I left her studio this afternoon. Ilana said that she’ll be in touch when the necklace is ready later this week. So check back again soon to see the creation!

If you like bead jewelry, there’s nothing like a handcrafted piece. Check out Ilana’s website for ideas. If you’re in Israel, she’s easy to reach and will be having a sale in Tel Aviv before the holidays. I’ll keep you posted. If you’re in the US, you can order from and contact Ilana through her website. If you do, tell her I sent you!