Glass bead game Stephanie Sersich warms with color BY MAGGIE KNOWLES

First we must reconstruct the image created upon hearing the word "bead." Erase visions of middle-school girls bent over tackle boxes filled with pink and yellow seed beads, their little fingers cramping as they attempt to fit "I Love Trevor Forever" around their wrists. Imagine instead jars filled with glittery rods in candy-cane colors awaiting their turn under the 2100-degree torch; dishes of newly finished beads, sparkling beneath the studio light; and rows of necklaces, bracelets, and earrings each boasting more color and character than the next.

This is Stephanie Sersich’s world. And it is magical.

"I thought you’d be older." The words come out before I can filter. She laughs.

"I thought the same about you."

I sit across from the beautiful almost-30-year-old and though she is only wearing her signature starfish pendant, the aura of all the surrounding jewelry clings to her like Mardi Gras. And, yes, after all the press surrounding the glass-bead queen, surely she should be a 50-year-old hippie with spirally silver hair and hand-dyed muu-muus. While far from 50, you could say Stephanie was a bit of a hippie at super-liberal Carleton College, where she created a glass-bead-making major. She practiced her talent by sewing beads into her dreads and making crazy necklaces. Don’t get me wrong, her stuff is still crazy, but with an elegant edge — perfect for a drama professor who is married to a respected neurosurgeon.

In the bead world, Sersich is revered for her invented technique of "spiny knotting," which came from her quest to fit a lot of stuff onto one strand. With technique similar to macramé, she uses wax linen on the inside, pearl cotton on the outside, and ties knots around each bead. Yeah, it’s a little over my head, too, but the result is a full, fabulous garden of color and matter.

Because she loves Maine’s coast so dearly, many of her pieces reflect the sea and surf. Small natural shells are tucked between zesty red glass flowers and polka-dotted discs. Multi-layered hearts hang betwixt dark teardrops and pink berries. With each turn and twist, a completely different piece is revealed.

Enough of that. Let’s get back to basics. How does she make the beads? Well, I had the opportunity to actually make one. Yes, just one — I think I could feel the addiction forming beneath my goggles. You wouldn’t think it would be hard. I mean, glass-making is a very old art form; zillions of years ago Venetian cavemen courted Parisian cavewomen with beads shaped like woolly mammoths. But it isn’t easy. I sit, ergonomically correct, at the spanking new table, protective glasses on, poncho off (flammable Mexican clothes not a good idea here), steel mandrel in left hand, pretty blue rod in my right. Phzzzzzzzzzzzzz, the blue flame shoots in a steady stream under my chin. Stephanie and her partner in bead crime, Lauren, watch as I try to keep the rod and mandrel spinning in the flame so the glass will bubble without the mandrel getting too hot. (Did I mention I am blonde and this multi-tasking thing is not my talent?)

Ahhhhhh!!! Ohh. All of a sudden it works. The rod has birthed a glowing red ball at its tip. Slowly, I twist the mandrel into the glass. The molten glass wraps about like honey on a spoon and smoothes itself into a perfect orb. In a trance, I pick a red rod and melt the end. Then I kiss the red onto the blue leaving a trail of raised dots.

A bead is born.

Of course it has to cook in a kiln so I haven’t seen it since, but I have a feeling it is a perfect cross between Stephanie and myself.

Though there are only three full-time professional bead makers in Portland, there are plenty who want to learn. Stephanie spends much of the year traveling around the world teaching bead classes. The only local place she teaches is at the Beadin’ Path in Freeport. The amazing thing for her is to watch adults rediscover their kid parts as they let textured beads fall through their fingers and select the perfect centerpiece for their creations. All of a sudden, they see all the possibilities they ignore in their day-to-day lives. As human nature dictates, we all want praise and acceptance. But when the students come to Stephanie for that, she becomes Socrates and asks, "What do you think?"

Stephanie Sersich gives the Portland art scene exactly what it needs: a great dose of youth. Not just because she is young, but her sprightly jewelry is the most vibrant, fun thing going in the city right now. And during these months of quick light and wind chills, what is more comforting that wrapping yourself in pretty, American-made, non-flammable jewelry?

Maggie Knowles can be reached at margaretknowles@yahoo.com

Stephanie Sersich’s work can be seen at Foundry Lane, in Portland. Call (207) 773-2722. Also, see www.sssbeads.com, or call (207) 775-0870 to schedule a studio visit.