Wire Artist of the Month September 2016: Olena Bugrimenko

I was born in the wonderful city of Kharkov, Ukraine. Like any girl, I loved jewelry- not only wearing it, but even holding jewelry made me happy. (Back then, I had no idea that one day I would make jewelry myself!) I graduated from the Polytechnic University, majoring in chemical engineering, and began working in my field.

In 1999, my life changed a lot! My husband, daughter and I moved to the USA. It was a new start and a new life, so I decided to do something new too. I began making my own jewelry!

Just like many others, I started with a simple bead jewelry scheme I found online. It caught my eye and I started to look for a seed beads to make it. I found all materials I needed in the local Michael's store. Few days later, after three or four unsuccessful attempts I got it right. This is how my obsession started.

I made jewelry using seed beads; beautiful, yes, but it wasn't enough. Then I discovered the art of making Chain Maille, and now it is one of my favorite techniques. I love combining this technique with beads, gems, and wire. Sometimes the result is unexpected and very beautiful, and a unique, new design is created!

A few examples of Olena's Work

Stylish Bracelet

The combination of Silver and Gold creates a very rich look. This piece is also very versatile piece as it goes with just about anything in your wardrobe. Each ring is opened, woven into the bracelet, and closed by me. Length is 7 1/4".

Black Sea

I was born and raised in Ukraine. Almost every summer, my family would vacaation near the Black Sea. Those two weeks were amazing: warm water, hot sand, and stars so close you could almost touch them. Those vacations were some of my favorite childhood memories. These pieces reminded me of that.

In 2009, my piece "Flower Meadow" won 1st Place award in Fire Mountain Gems and Beads contest in Swarovski category and has been used by FMG both as a cover advertisement and inside their catalog.

Flower Meadow

In 2010 I won the Bronze Medal award with my "Wedding Necklace" in FMG's Wirework and Chain category.

Wedding Necklace

I have been published in the "Make Jewellery Magazine", German "Perlen Poesie", Russian "Fashion" magazine, and in a book "Mixed Media Jewelry Techniques". I have also been published in the book, Mixed Media Jewelry Techniques, a collaboration with Lana May, Dale "Cougar" Armstrong, and eight other talented jewelry artists.

Arizona

Flower Fish Necklace

Olena is currently a contributor for WireJewelry.com. You can see all of Olena's latest blog posts by CLICKING HERE. Check out Lena's Etsy site HERE, you can also follow her on Facebook HERE.

About wirejewelry's Wire Artist of the Month Program

Each month, we pick a talented wire jewelry artist and their work to highlight. We know we have some incredibly talented customers, and we seek to encourage and highlight those members of our community by highlighting one wire artist every month.

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