Lori Bergmann Craft Designer

Lori Bergmann

My name is Lori Bergmann and as a lifelong creative spirit, Visual Art major, and former graphic designer, I love to experiment and use a wide variety of artistic mediums and techniques in my work. You name it—and I've probably tried it, or am planning to! Some of my greatest inspirations are nature, music and travel and I am known for my use of color and attention to detail. You may see many different styles in my work—ranging from freeform organics to precise graphic patterns— it all basically depends on what Muse is visiting me at the time!

An avid photographer, I discovered scrapbooking in early 1998 and on a lark, entered the first Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame contest six months later. I was chosen as one of the lucky winners and was blessed to have it quickly turn into a successful career in the crafts and hobby industry. I decided to give up my graphic design work to became a full-time freelance artist and writer for various magazines and companies. This was the perfect way for me to follow my artistic pursuits, and also stay home to be with my two young daughters.

After about eight years of working mainly in the paper crafting business, I decided that I needed a "hobby from my paying hobby" and when I saw someone demonstrating how to make glass beads at a craft show, I knew that was the one for me! I've always been fascinated with watching glass blowing artists at work and appreciated the beauty of how light shimmers through glass like no other medium. So discovering that I could do something similar on a smaller scale was a dream come true. I started collecting glass and other tools, but didn't get serious about it until late 2008. Now I'm completely "obsessed" with lampworking and incorporating my beads and metal clay charms into my own jewelry designs.

I've appeared several times on the DIY Scrapbooking television show and currently have over 395 craft projects, jewelry designs, and articles that have been featured in publications such as Better Homes and Gardens, Creating Keepsakes, Crafts/Paper Crafts, Stamp It!, Michaels Craft Stores, Creative Jewelry, Bead Unique, and Bead Trends magazines. I was an Honorable Mention Winner in the 2009 Bead Star contest in the Glass category and wrote a lampworking tutorial that was featured in The Flow magazine.

I've also written a book on Creative Painting, teach workshops, and offer design and consultation work for companies. Add all the above activities to a full-scale DIY home remodel job and raising two teenagers and two dogs with my wonderful hubby, and I guess you could say I lead a pretty crazy, but creative life!