Getting to know...Heather Bell Denison

Heather Bell Denison

Heather Bell Denison is a long-time instructor at BeadFX, specializing in Art Clay. As a Senior Certified Art Clay Instructor, Heather loves to help her students find their creative spirit and make something beautiful.

Heather has always loved creating artful things and started off with painting, pottery, sewing, knitting and other crafty projects around the home. "I always liked trying to take a project or creation and 'make it my own'", says Heather.
 




Then Heather discovered Art Clay and the rest, as they say, is history. "I have always loved creating things and always wanted try traditional silverwork but had been intimidated by the tools and complexity of it all. I discovered Art Clay when I searching information on kilns related to my love of pottery.  I thought 'huh, this sounds awesome'.  I found a course at BeadFX and I was hooked", says Heather.

"I started with taking books out of the library, then an introductory course at BeadFX. The class was the best thing as I had all the supplies. I was a bit intimidated by the silver clay, afraid I would mess up horribly. I think the cost of the silver, even though it was much lower then than it is now, had me a bit concerned. After the class, I was off and running. I have continued to take many other courses and searched for information on the web and books."

When asked about inspiration, Heather replied, "Everything! Many things can catch my attention and inspire me. I love nature; this can be an inspiration.  I also love the idea of making moving parts so, when I am really ambitious, this can be a key to my inspiration. My kids, my pets, textures all can inspire me too."

Heather continues, "I don’t always have a set way to approach my projects. Sometimes I just sit down with clay and start playing. I learned early on that you can mess up a lot of clay by rolling and rerolling (I am an expert at reclaiming clay thanks to that); but I have gotten wise now and I will use other types of clay (often cheap old Playdoh to get my creative juices flowing). Other times I will have a definite idea in my head and I will sketch and make patterns, then cut out all my pieces and starting assembling.

"I often try to store it all in my brain…but that doesn’t really work.  I have a sketch book which I will add sketches of my ideas or write down thoughts. There are may things in that book that I have yet to do," she adds.

Heather's 'other' life? "For other work, I am a mother, occupational therapist and certified life care planner. I love parenting my two boys who are tons of fun. My other paid work,  I spend most of my work time assessing client and writing expert legal reports. It is interesting, challenging and after a long day writing on a computer I love my metal clay creative outlet. My boys love to join in and create with me," says Heather. "I have many other interests: camping, pottery, gardening, walking my dog…."

Her advice to others who love to create? "Don't be afraid to experiment," advises Heather.

Heather's upcoming classes:
Charmed I'm Sure 
Saturday, October 26; 10:00am - 5:00pm

Charmed I'm Sure
Sunday, December 8; 10:00am - 5:00pm