Bloodless Battle of the BeadSmith

Have you heard about the "Battle of the BeadSmith" tournament on Facebook yet? Steven Weiss at BeadSmith company says, "In an effort to create more awareness of some of the incredible bead artistry being executed by bead masters worldwide, I thought it would be fun to set up a beading 'tournament' where original works can be viewed, shared, and celebrated both by the participants, and the beading public alike."

80 seed bead artists have been invited to participate in an elimination "tournament" to determine which piece of their original beadwork best captures the imagination of 119 of their fellow designers, specialty bead shop owners, and members of various beading magazine editorial staffs.

Artists will then have seven weeks from the announcement of the first round pairings to create, a single piece of original beadwork, and submit four photos best highlighting the works most important elements. The 78 competitors not involved in a particular round one "contest", plus 41 invited judges, will vote for the piece that best captures their imagination. A majority of at least 85 of the possible 119 total voters will be enough to determine a winner. All necklaces, bracelets, earring, brooches, headpieces, belts, handbags, or any other wearable adornments are acceptable for submission. The deadline for all of the submissions, by the artists, is July 10th.

The 40 winners of round one will be randomly paired again in one of 20 new "contests" in round 2 and the voting process will begin again. The 10 winners of round two are again randomly paired in 5 new round 3 "contests" which after judging takes place will leave 5 remaining artists in the competition.

The public will then have a chance to vote for their favorite piece from the remaining 5 artists. The selected artist will receive a pass straight through to the final round of competition. Round 4 will be two "contests" to determine which two artists will compete in round 5 for the right to move to the championship round against the public's favorite piece. The winner of the competition will be decided on by the 119 eligible voters. Stay tuned on Facebook for updates and check out the amazing beadworks of the Battle of the BeadSmith participants!

I was honored to be a juror in this Battle. I know the jurors will need to make hard decisions, but we all are looking forward to the Battle!

Battle of the BeadSmith
 
Battle of the BeadSmith. Participants
 
Battle of the BeadSmith. Jurors
 
Battle of the BeadSmith. First Round Pairs