To prevent breakage, Galardy anneals his beads, generally between 45 and 50 minutes, with the kiln temperature set between 950 and 980 degrees, before the slow cooling process begins. Fritter beads, at three inches longer than many of his other beads, generally serve as the focal point of a necklace. These peices are translucent and brighter, combining several purples and blues, or green with earth tones of amber and brown, up to six shades on each bead. Galardy spends up to two hours on each scale bead, placing multiple series of dots in overlapping rows, melting each row in turn to achieve the shimmery fishlike effect. Galardy uses sterling silver nearly exclusively when creating his finished jewelry.
Findings are from Bali, India, Indonesia, and occasionally Thailand.
He also often incorporates a variety of gemstone beads for accent, preferring amber, citrine, smoky quartz, and amethyst. While most of his other beads work best in combinations for necklaces, the fritters, strung vertically as pendants, generally stand alone or with only a few accent and silver beads. Since he and Wertz began making beads three years ago, they have traveled to several shows to make their work available, taking part in at the Best Bead Shows in Tucson and Honolulu, and the Embellishment show. There's a lot to be said for enjoying what you do for a living. If you have news about the industry you'd like to share, please e-mail our editors .