Staff

Kristina Skillin MSc, Director / Head Curator

Kristina Skillin is the Director and Head Curator at the Museum of Beadwork. She received her first Bachelor’s degree from The Savannah College of Art and Design in 2006 for Metals and Jewelry with a minor in Costume Design. She started her own company, making historic re-creations of clothing and jewelry a few years later. With a desire to conduct research from original documents, Ms. Skillin sought a second Bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern Maine in Classical Languages with a minor in Archaeology which she received in 2015. Directly after this, she attended the University of Aberdeen in Scotland where she received her Master’s degree in Archaeology. Ms. Skillin’s research interests include: Human Ornamentation, development of clothing and adornment, development of metalsmithing technologies, Arctic Archaeology, and human/animal relations in prehistory.

Heather Kahn, Founder

Heather was inspired to found the Museum of Beadwork during a visit to Seattle. As one of the family owners of Caravan Beads, Heather has spent more than 25 years building a comprehensive knowledge of beadweaving, bead-embroidery and other types of beaded artwork. Her designs have been published in Beadwork Magazine, made into kits, and sold as finished jewelry. In 2008 she founded Chrononaut Mercantile, a costume-inspired clothing company, with her partner Jeff Witkavitch. Heather is a graduate of Smith College. Her diverse interests include cooking, ninjutsu, reading and classical violin.

Courtney Levy, Head of Graphic Design

Courtney is a lifelong artist and crafter. She holds a B.A. in Painting and Hispanic Studies from the University of Southern Maine. Over the past nine years she has built up a repertoire of bead weaving techniques while working and teaching classes at Caravan Beads. For five years she has worked as a professional graphic designer illustrating advanced tutorials, exploring brand identity and honing her design sense. Her background in painting, love of crafting, and experience in graphic design have expanded her creative vision and informed her unique perspective.