July 2010
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Lotta Beads at Beadalotta
Mother-daughter team specializes in supplies, ideas Dorothy Bliskey | Special to The Reporter
You just bought that new outfit to wear to your class reunion and have been hunting for just the right beaded necklace to go with it. Look no more! Take the outfit into Beadalotta and they’ll make you one to match. The downtown shop, located at 21 E. Second St. (but with their main entrance and parking lot on First Street), sells beads, beads and more beads. Pat Duebels and Michelle Hein, the motherdaughter team who opened the business after returning to Fond du Lac five years ago, offer an array of beads and beading supplies as well as finished jewelry. They design and handcraft oneof-a-kind jewelry pieces for customers and teach beading classes at Beadalotta. “Mom and I both worked for a bead shop in New Hampshire,” Michelle said. “We loved it. When we moved back to Wisconsin, we decided to open our own shop.” Pat enjoys stringing and crocheting beads and making earrings. “Mom has the design eye and keeps the shop looking its best with decorating and keeping it clean. She also helps customers with their designs and will create custom finished jewelry for others.” Michelle handles the website (www.beadalotta. com), the blog, e-mails and the planning and teaching of classes. She also helps customers with design and creates custom finished jewelry. Both do repairs of costume jewelry. From fresh water pearls and Swarovski crystal beads to semi-precious stones and “miracle beads” that appear to have a smaller bead embedded inside, the selection and ideas for jewelry designs at Beadalotta seem endless. Hundreds of tiny beads and larger stones fill the store, offering mega doses of sparkle, color and glitz. “We also carry a small selection of felting goods,” Michelle said. “It is important for us to offer our customers the best quality, and it makes us very happy that we can offer products that are made in the USA.” All of the finished jewelry sold in the shop is created by Michelle and her mother Pat. They have a basement studio in their Fond du Lac home where they create class samples and work on projects that can’t be completed at the shop. At times, Michelle can be found working on jewelry in a comfy chair in the family room, while Pat strings beads at the dining room table for more natural light. Michelle has also tried making her own ceramic
Beadalotta, 21 E. Second St., in downtown Fond du Lac, offers customers a wide array of beads and beading supplies as well as finished jewelry. The Reporter photo by Patrick Flood
and lampwork beads. Pat has taken many polymer clay classes and likes all the possibilities the material presents for jewelry-making. “We teach classes in our shop so people can make their own beaded creations,” Michelle said, noting they also carry books and magazines for the selfstarter. “We have one-of-a-kind finished jewelry and can create custom pieces for everyday wear and special occasions.” “Most of our customers come from Fond du Lac and surrounding towns,” Michelle said, noting they arrive from as far as Chicago, Stevens Point, Milwaukee and Green Bay. “The other day we had a customer from Missouri.” While the majority of their customers tend to be females, men enjoy beading too – although sometimes for different reasons. “I have several men who come in to get beads and supplies for making their own fishing lures and harnesses,” Michelle said. “Fish like certain colors and they love sparkly beads.” Hours at Beadalotta are 11 to 5 Tuesdays through Fridays and 10 to 3 on Saturdays.
More information is available by calling Michelle or Pat at (920) 322-1885 or by e-mailing michelle@beadalotta.com. Learn more online at www.beadalotta.com.