I am originally from Indiana and graduated
from Indiana University with a BS in Elementary Education. My
husband, Jeff, and I moved to Milwaukee over ten years ago and
love everything about the city except for the winters! I
had never considered myself an artist but definitely a person
who loved to dabble in any arts and crafts projects I had time
for. I enrolled in different local art classes here and there
for fun. I had always wanted
to learn how to do stained glass and finally took my first  class
in 2001. I immediately loved working with glass and have
never put it down since. The idea for my business came to
me a couple of months after the birth of my twin boys. I
had been teaching for 7 years, and enjoyed it very much, but I
was not ready to return to my classroom full-time. One night,
over margaritas, (because all great life changing decisions are
made over margaritas!) my friend urged me to give it a go in the “bead
world”.
Lily Studios was officially started in 2004
when I took a leap of faith, and resigned from my teaching position
before I even had my first show. Maybe “leap of faith” is not
the right phrase. It was more like “temporary insanity” due
to lack of sleep from twin babies. Luckily, my first bead
show went well, and I have been making these little glass beauties
ever since. I now participate in shows across the U.S. and
sell my work in other countries including Japan and Australia. Things
have not slowed down at all, especially with the birth of my daughter
in 2006.
I obviously love flowers. I’m always drawn to art
with natural and floral designs. I love working with the
different flower and glass color combinations. I am sometimes
surprised by my patience and the attention to detail that I put
into each piece. I think of each one as a little piece of
art all by itself and I get so excited to see the beautiful jewelry
that is created with my pieces. I hope my pendants inspire
you to create your own amazing designs.
-Theresa Dart
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