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HOT SPRINGS – Seventeen years ago, Margaret Ikonen started stringing beads and hasn't stopped. Ikonen creates eye-catching, colorful beaded creations using round beads, square beads, seed beads, bugle beads, and faceted beads, as well as semi-precious stones like rubies and sapphires. She also strings and hand-knots pearls, mostly the fresh water pearl variety, which looks like a rough version of the perfectly round oyster pearls commonly used in high fashion jewelry designs.

She calls her business, "Judea Beads." Judea is a biblical reference to the town where Jesus was born in Bethlehem. "I just remember reading about that when I was young and always liked the name, Judea," she said.

Ikonen said she became hooked at a party where a woman taught her how to make her first pair of earrings. She gets her inspiration from bead design books, and often embellishes the finished pieces with her own flair. She recently finished a bracelet that was created by the Zulu tribes of Africa. "It feels like a snake," she said of the serpentine design that shimmered in shades of turquoise and lavender, with an amethyst stone clasp.

Most of her semi-precious stones originate in the Middle East, in countries such as Pakistan, Arabia and India. "They are mine-cut, or European cut stones," she said. One set of necklace, bracelet and earrings sports Brazilian opals the color of blue coral. There's a pearl bracelet that looks like a skirt, and an "Oglala lace" bracelet that is slinky and ruffly with pink pearls and purple and green seed beads.

Ikonen said the Oglala lace piece took her approximately five hours to complete. "Once I figure out the pattern, though, the process goes more smoothly," she said, estimating future pieces of this design will be done in about three hours.

When Ikonen sits down to start a new piece, she organizes the beads to be used on a project. "Always buy enough materials to finish your project," she cautioned, speaking from experience. She flips on her OTT light, a 13-watt magnifier lamp used for detail work such as beading. She arranges her beads on a fabric mat. "The beads don't roll around and get lost on it," she said.

A particular eye-catching pair of dangling earrings is made with a herringbone stitch using black hematite beads and a colorful combination of pink, green and yellow "Delica" beads, which come from Japan. A pendant necklace of red and black delicas with a howling coyote in the center is a showpiece new to Ikonen's collection. She is also experimenting with cabochons, gemstones that have been shaped and polished instead of facetted. They usually have a convex top and flat bottom and can be used as broaches or pendants.

Ikonen said, "Sometimes I get bead block and have to set a piece aside until I'm inspired to finish it. But, it's fun and it keeps me out of trouble. It's pleasing to people and it makes them happy. That's my goal."

Ikonen plans to teach beginning beading classes this fall. A $25 fee will net you four hours of instruction, a beginning beader's kit, and a finished piece of custom jewelry. She also repairs jewelry, and can re-knot pearl strands. For more information about classes or jewelry repair, contact Ikonen at 535-2110. She also sells beads at Black Hills Books & Treasures.