Mark Lareau started his wireworking and metalsmithing odyssey in 1998 when he began making simple wire jewelry and basic mobiles. In 1992, Mark and his wife Viki opened The Bead Factory, a full-service retail bead store in Tacoma, Washington, and he has been teaching classes there ever since. Viki and Mark are also the founders of the Puget Sound Bead Festival, the most successful consumer bead event on the West Coast. Mark is the author of All Wired Up (Interweave Press, 2000), with 75,000 copies sold.