Top 3 Lampworkers/Glass bead makers in the United States?

Answer 1

Kimberly Affleck
Amber Van Meter (Naos Glass)
Brad Pearson

You can spot a Kimberly Affleck sea horse anywhere. And no matter how many people try to copy her style, hers go above and beyond.

Amber Van Meter is the etching queen! Probably 75% of her beads are etched for a soft and ancient feel. She makes simple so elegant!

Brad Pearson is the master of dots, even co-authoring a book on using dots as design elements. Making dotted beads is one of the first things you learn as a beadmaker, but his layering and placement ascends all others.

And another thing about these 3 bead makers is their open-ness and willingness to share their techniques and to teach others. In the art bead world where there are so many worries about finding your "signature style" and copying, we learn that almost everything has been done before. All these techniques have been around for centuries. But these artists share new ways to use them. I commend them for it.

Answer 2

Well of course thats in the eye of the Beholder. For me, I like Loren Stump http://www.stumpchuck.com/, Patti Walton http://www.patiwalton.com and Karen Leonardo at http://www.leonardolampwork.com And many others on Ebay.