"Brilliance is Born" by Scarlett Lanson

Edited by Senay Gokcen | Editor-in-Chief

4/21/2008 - There must be something in the Oak Creek water of Sedona, as the Teen Artists seem to flourish among the beauteous Red Rock scenery & energy vortices. First, Grammy Award winning guitarist / singer Michelle Branch & now 17-year-old Internationally Aclaimed Designer, Scarlett Lanson have emerged.

This February, Lanson was awarded the accolade of being Fourth in the World / Amateur Division, in the Swarovski Crystal "CREATE your STYLE" Competition 2007. It was an event highly regarded, within the design community and was hotly-contested with primarily adult participants....approximately 305, for this 2007 running. It was Lanson's first attempt at a competitive design event.

Lanson's winning piece, "Brilliance is Born", is a melange of 1,100+ crystal & pearls. Shades of Bronze, Copper, & Cream Rose Light twinkled, in keeping with the contests submission parameters, featuring at least 80% CRYSTALLIZED™ Swarovski Elements. Lanson crafted 11 custom bead-woven links, which were complemented by a generous swag of cascading pearls. Upon arriving at the Swarovski Showroom in Tucson, Lanson was delighted to see they placed her encased piece, in their entryway. "Brilliance is Born" is now on a Swarovski World Tour, appearing in Bangkok, Thailand, April 24th-30th. Japan is a tentatively scheduled stop, soon after.

Marlene Blessing, Editorial Director of Beadwork, Stringing, & Step by Step Beads, at Interweave Press of Loveland, CO approached Lanson in the showroom, inquiring about the necklace she (Lanson) was wearing. Introductions revealed that Blessing was a juror for the contest & felt most favorably about Lanson's submission. An impromptu trunk show of Lanson's wares was arranged for Blessing & three affiliated editors.

A resulting career launch is now in the works for Lanson with Interweave, a multi-platform craft media company. Lanson is working on her first feature project for their newly revamped "Beadwork" Magazine, released this Autumn. She is slated to have four pages devoted to her introduction, design, photos, & schematics. It is likely to become a recurrent feature & there is a strong possibility of instruction gigs, television, website, & book publication projects, in Lanson's Interweave future.

Click images to enlarge

Lanson's had an artistic presence in Sedona, since her early childhood. She is an Arizona native....born in Scottsdale, but arrived in Sedona, via Coronado, CA, while in the 2nd Grade. In 1999, she produced Angelic Millennium Greeting Cards. For those, she was photographed as an angel upon the Red Rocks. She starred in a television commercial for their promotion & they sold in 15 states and Canada. The Casting Director for L.L.Bean's catalog received the cards, while choosing children for an outdoor layout. Lanson was chosen, as she looked similar to the "Mother figure" model, already hired. It came as a surprise, when it was discovered that Lanson had become their cover girl!

Lanson's current aspirations include gaining more accounts with high end boutiques & galleries, breathe life into the contest submissions she's dreamnt of, apply for further Artist's Grants, and make more improvements to her website. Her education is geared to her burgeoning career path. Lanson and her Mother, Stacy Lanson, have been busy with the day to day operations of Lanson's design company, since the Swarovski Design Distinction, in Feb. Stacy handles the media inquiries & both Lanson's have been amazed at how the story of her win has spread around the globe, in this Information Age.

Swarovski is encouraging the Lanson's to enter their 2008 "CREATE your STYLE" contest. The new theme is "Be Naturally Inspired." The first deadline, for entry photos, is May 16th, 2008. For more information, see their site: www.create-your-style.com. The Lanson's were invited to the Swarovski Spring / Summer 2009 Collection Launch Event in three American cities, recently. Stacy Lanson attended the event at the California Mart, in March. A Trends Presentation was followed by a look at the new components. The Lanson's were given a goodie-bag & a lot of useful information could be gleaned from the opportunity.

Lanson does custom bead work & has expertise in lost-wax casting, precious metal clay, stringing, wire-wrapping, mosaics, and more. Her pieces may be seen on www.thebeadersmuse.com. Her wares, such as earrings, spectacle chains, & necklaces, are featured at the Marchesa Fine Shoe Salon (928/282.3212) at The Shops at Hyatt Pinon Point (101 N. Hwy. 89A) in Sedona, Arizona. Lanson's pieces are one-of-a-kind with high quality beads, stones, & findings. Take a look and you'll see why the design industry is watching her career with great interest!