Welcome to my site!  I am Michele Darling Ward, the owner of Darling
Designs.  I live in the small, historical town of Cedarburg, Wisconsin
with my husband, Tommy and my two sons.  Jewelry making has become
so much more to me than a hobby since I first started out a few years ago. 
It's now my passion!  Let me tell you how I got started...

Tommy and I were out East visiting relatives and decided to spend the day
in New York City.  We were in a cab in Midtown Manhattan heading 
uptown when I saw - for the very first time - a bead store.  "Ooh, would you
 look at that?" I said.  Suddenly, Tommy uttered the words that changed my
life forever, "Stop the cab.  We'll get out here."  Three hours later we stepped
back out onto the street.  It was no longer the bright and sunny day it was
when we first stepped into the bead store, and we were both starving (after
 all, we were on our way to a restaurant when I saw the store), but I didn't
care.  I was too delighted and excited with my purchases and the amazing
new world of beads!  Now, all I had to do was figure out what to do with
everything I bought that day!

As soon as we returned home from our trip, I hit the books - and the internet -
 and learned everything I could about jewelry making.  Let me tell you, there's
a lot of information out there, and the possibilities are endless.  It was staggering
 at first, but after a lot of trial and error, I finally developed my own "style", which
 is what you'll see on my website.

Take a look around.  Shoot me an e-mail if you'd like.  This is a HUGE new
endeavor for me (as well as for Tommy, who's with me every step of the way),
so I'd love to hear what you think.

                                                                                                         Sincerely,

                                                                                                                                            Michele