Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, known as "Annie" to her friends, is a long time beader and designer. Her style is very distinctive. Her signature is bright colors, and a delightful sense of whimsy. Colorful cats, mermaid, and other animals grace her designs often have a play on words that makes her patterns even more endearing.

   

Annie was born and raised in Kansas City, Kansas. She graduated from Bethany School of Nursing after which she joined the Army Nurse Corps. Serving as an Army Nurse for five years, she found herself in Vietnam and Alaska. Annie's nursing career continued in Gallup, New Mexico where she worked as a nurse at the Indian Health Hospital.

Annie missed Alaska. She decided to move back to Alaska. There, she got married, lived in a cabin in the woods that much of the time had no power or running water. After a split from her husband, Annie moved to Fairbanks and where she eventually earned her BA in history.

Port Townsend, Washington is now Annie's home. Here, she shares her home with three black cats and one gold Maine Coon tiger cat. She has a "studio" but admits that this converted sun porch is more of storage and sorting area. Her favorite place to bead is still in the living room, in front of the TV. Annie is no longer a nurse. She supports herself by being a science fiction/fantasy writer. She has written several books, and co-authored others. If you have never read any of her books, you should. She is a wonderful writer! Kudos to Annie for having won the 1989 Nebula Award for the best science fiction novel of the year. The title of the book that won this great distinction was "The Healer's War". This was a fantasy novel loosely based on Annie's experiences in Vietnam. It is out of print except for a recent limited leather bound collector's edition. Perhaps you might be lucky enough to find it in a used bookstore.

    The Healer's War      

Annie's love of beading started when she was young. Annie tells her experiences with beading better than I can, so here are Annie's recollections of her beading history:

"I've actually been beading since I was a little girl. My grandmother had a business making and selling leather purses and moccasins before I was born. She was in business with my Aunt Virginia, who bought her out and moved the business to Albuquerque. But when I was little, my grandma still had lots of beads--mostly I would just string them but then I got my little wire Scout loom and learned to use it for bracelets and barrettes and such. When I moved to Alaska, I found a larger bead loom in a hardware store and used that to make larger items, belts and chokers and so forth. I sold quite a few pieces back then but used patterns out of the few bead books that had graphed Indian designs in them. When I moved to Gallup, I learned my first off-loom technique when the Indian ladies I worked with at the hospital showed me how to make barrel style tubular peyote earrings. I showed them how to make the loomed barrettes. None were around back then but when I returned a few years ago, there were lots of loomed barrettes there so I must have had some impact. Later on a friend showed me how to make brick or Cheyenne stitch earrings. I used lazy stitch to make my ex-husband a pipe bag for a wedding present."

"During the time I lived in Fairbanks, I think I got my most valuable experience as an artist when I learned to use a four harness loom. While working in Gallup, I had learned the Navajo methods of spinning, dyeing and weaving rugs. (Not that I ever made anything very wonderful--just enough to make me appreciate their fine weaving). When I started weaving on a treadle loom, I began learning more about color and design. As with anything I get interested in I became pretty absorbed in weaving and had a business called Howling Woof Weavers for awhile in Fairbanks. I also belonged to the Fairbanks Weavers' Guild which was very good about having guest textile artists come up from the lower 48 to teach. So my weaving experience probably taught me more about art than anything, though I've always liked to draw and make things."

   

"I sold my looms when I left Fairbanks and moved into a house too small to hold them. By that time I felt like I had explored weaving to the limits of my interest and ability. For several years I didn't do much of anything creative except write novels but then several people in Port Townsend began bead businesses. At one time we had four bead stores! Now we're down to one really good one and one gallery store owned by lamp work bead maker and glass artist Andrea Guarino. Our very good bead store is Wynwoods Gallery and Bead Studio, owned by Lois Vernarchik, an artist with great taste and business moxy who's made a large comprehensive bead store out of a closet sized space in the back of someone else's store."

   

"Having so many beautiful new supplies available has influenced me a lot. For years the only times I could buy good beads were when I saw a "trading post" sign on an Indian reservation. Otherwise it was from Tandy's, and the quality of those was downright discouraging."

   

Annie credits Suzanne Cooper's books for inspiring her to explore peyote further. Annie was delighted to discover that the stitch Suzanne used was the very same used by Indian ladies who taught her the barrel earrings.

Annie began designing her own beadwork when she wasn't satisfied with the limited patterns that were available. With a lot of encouragement and support, some of her patterns became part of her delightful book "Beadtime Stories". If you don't have this book, you should! The designs are delightfully charming and whimsical. Annie will be happy to mail you a copy!

Now, Annie offers her patterns on Bead-patterns.com. It is an outlet for her creativity, without the cost and hassle of publishing. I don't know about you, but for me, every time I see a new pattern by Annie, it makes me smile to see the humor and bright colors. It makes me smile to know that there is someone who sees joy and magic in the world, and better yet, knows how to share it with all of us.