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Lydia F Borin Lydia Borin, was born in Beaumont, Texas, February 17, 1946. Her family relocated to Albuquerque, New Mexico when she was four. Lydia spent her summers (ages 7 - 15) on Navaho and Hopi reservations in the Southwest while her father built schools. This experience contributed significantly to her early interest in the arts. Lydia studied art history and began oil painting at age 15. During the early 1970's, she added silversmithing and leatherwork to her studies. From the mid 1970's through the early 1980's, Lydia accompanied her husband, Dennis, to Europe and the Far East while he was in the Air Force. She visited museums and art related centers in these countries and exchanged ideas and techniques. She attended art related classes at educational institutions and with individual artists at every opportunity. Lydia has studied color theory and design for over 35 years. Lydia and her husband, Dennis, moved to Tampa, Florida when he retired from the Air Force. They also maintained a residence in Albuquerque, New Mexico. During these visits to New Mexico, beads and fiber became her medium of expression. She joined the New Mexico Bead Society and the Las Aranas Weavers Guild and learned the historical importance beads and fibers contributed to humankind's history. Lydia began a metamorphosis from 25 years as a painter to fiber artist. She mastered hundreds of beading and stitchery techniques and combined them into artforms. In Florida, she joined the Pinellas Weavers Guild and the Tampa Bay Basketmakers and learned more fiber related techniques. She is founder of the Tampa Bay Bead Society and also a member of the Florida Craftsmen, the Handweaver's Guild of America and more recently, The Crochet Guild of America. Lydia taught beading classes in New Mexico and continued teaching in Florida including beading classes at the University of South Florida. She co-founded several bead societies in Florida and other parts of the United States. She is the author of three books: Medicine Pouch Jewelry- A Contemporary Interpretation, and two books in her Hands On Series - Beadwrangler's Hands On Bead Stringing and Beadwrangler's Hands On Crochet with Beads and Fiber. She contributes articles for national bead and fiber related magazines and also contributed as editor of the Tampa Bead Society Newsletter. Her articles are rich with bead and fiber storytelling. Her family roots in the Louisiana area are apparent as her stories unfold. Lydia is currently writing a loom weaving book for her Hands On Series and plans to publish this year. This book integrates a variety of bead and fiber techniques on the loom, bringing bead and fiber people closer together in a crossover of interests. Her Crochet II book is planned for 1999. Lydia is now internationally known as the Beadwrangler. Lydia and Dennis created the Beadwrangler website; he is the Webmaster and she is the Wrangler of bead and fiber information. From this site, Lydia teaches bead and fiber workshops, shares historical and technical information, offers storytelling gems, reviews books and magazines, talks about what is going on and links up with other bead and fiber enthusiasts. The Webmaster provides music, graphics, illustrations and computer wizardry for Lydia's pages at Beadwrangler's. Lydia creates "Wanahme Images" - dolls, totems and fetishes embellished with fiber, beads, wire, polymers, glass and natural materials for display and for fun! She also teaches Wanahme workshops and students create dolls, embellish them and make up their own stories for their dolls. Lydia also prepares other specialty workshops for bead and fiber related organizations. Lydia lectures on the History of Purses--Beaded, Needlework and Mesh and the History of Beading Techniques-Our Heritage. She also offers short humorous stories about bead and fiber sprinkled with historical information. She volunteers speaking at local libraries, teaches beading at community institutions and is a guest lecturer at design institutions and schools. She catalogs antique purses for museums and is very interested in preserving bead and fiber antiquities and their history. Lydia is currently working on a History of Beading sampler book with real samples. She plans to network with bead societies, organizations and individuals to compile historical information and offer step-by-step instructions at Beadwranglers to make these samples. Faber Birren is Lydia's guide to color and Vincent VanGogh is her inspiration to create. Virginia L. Blakelock and Deon DeLange's beading books were the backbone to Lydia's early self-taught beading education. Lydia believes her ability as a bead and fiber artist is greatly enriched from workshops with Helen Banes and Joyce Scott.
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