Kierabel Designs

I'm a jewellery designer from Toronto, Ontario working with various bead types and techniques. Currently, I'm on a pearl kick, but I work with glass beads, metal, swarovski crystal, czech crystal, lampwork, wood, leather and clay as well.

I started designing jewellery after my daughter was born and I couldn't find a Mother's bracelet design I liked. I decided to make my own. My friends really flipped for my bracelet and soon I was making ones for all of them as well! Before too long, we were all on to our second and third babies, and my need to bead was firmly entrenched. After my son was born, the house started feeling pretty crowded, so I decided to start an internet storefront to field some of the requests I'd had to purchase the pieces I'd made, plus to clear out some space for the new pieces coming in!

Kierabel Designs is named after my son Kieran and my daughter Annabel. They are my two most cherished creations and, along with their Dad, the best people to ever come into my life.

Beading also helps me deal with a chronic pain condition caused by nerve damage. With a project to concentrate on and see through to completion, it assists in making things better day-by-day, and provides a sense of accomplishment, as well as a practical daily motivator to look forward to. I talk a lot about my challenges in dealing with chronic pain at my blog; and I welcome you to join me there.

This bracelet is an example of my custom work. It's a bracelet I made for my Grandmother. She wanted something to represent the birthstones of her 4 children and their spouses, her grandchildren and their spouses and her great-grandchildren. Altogether there are 41 of us. I made a three strand bracelet, divided it into the four family sub-groups and used Swarovski Crystals to represent each family member. I finished the bracelet with a large Swarovski Crystal on each end to represent her and my Grandfather - 43 crystals in all. I was able to find a push clasp that I thought she would find simple to operate, since at 88, she has a bit of arthritis. She was so happy! She loves this bracelet, and I was honoured to make it for her!