Fall Catching Up

Time flies by.
August included a trip to visit family on the east coast, then teaching a five day class at Snow Farm in Massachusetts. 

One of my favourite places.  Marblehead, MA.  Low tide.  Couldn't find any hermit crabs this time. 

The lampworking studio is in a wee building - it was a very hot week

We torched and torched

There are dancers in the woods - and a kind of creepy dude too. 

I loved him!  I think  it would be amazing to spend a week playing with soldering hunks of metal

This is for Judy - could not resist

After Snow Farm I was thrilled to be able to attend the opening of Bear Paw Studios  Glass Stock East will be held here in mid October.  The studio is really fantastic.  I wrote a wee article for the ISGB newsletter which gave me a chance to sit down one on one with Brett.  Was amazing to get to know him a little better.

Eight Torch Stations

Sheet Glass!  and frit and rods and more!

The lobby/gallery is a wonderful warm space

Otto-Birdies

I made the first real Otto-Birdie at Snow Farm this summer.  These are a real melding of my work to date.  I am loving making them.  Selling these guys on Facebook for now.  (just in case you might be interested) 

ISGB Gathering

I am back from a trip to Albuquerque, New Mexico for the annual ISGB Gathering.  ISGB stands for the International Society of Glass Beadmakers.  We are a fun loving bunch of glass melting (mostly) girls who gather once a year for education, laughs, glass melting, networking and selling our work.

I took all these guys with me and most of them found new homes.  They have flown the nest.  I must get to work on more. 

I was able to take a trip to the Acoma Pueblo, Sky City.  This pueblo is located on the top of a mesa and many of the people who live there are ceramic artists.  I was able to purchase a couple pieces of pottery and to connect with many of the artists. 

View from Sky City

It is a magical place. 

Old Town, Albuquerque

Words of Wisdom from my friend, Kim Edwards

Hands of the Maker exhibit (this is my work)

me having a good time selling at the Bead Fair

Gathering was amazing - it always is.  I am already looking forward to 2016 in New Orleans.

The Heart Bead Tutorial is finally done

Done.  Really done.  Well, I am sure I could keep on tweaking it.

But it is now available for purchase over on Etsy: 

Heart Bead Tutorial

A beginner’s guide to making beads in general and specifically about making Heart Beads.

I have been teaching introductory lampwork since 2003.  I have had the pleasure of introducing hundreds of women and a few men to the art of lampworking.  Playing with glass for the first time is a stressful and exciting time.  This Heart Bead reinforces many of the introductory techniques that a new beadmaker has just learned.  This Heart Bead Tutorial has grown out of my weekend introductory class.  This is often our first multi step bead and we usually do it on the morning of our second day together.

This tutorial is geared towards the beginning glass artist and contains instructions for many techniques including: pulling a stringer, starting your bead, heat control, dot and stripe application, working with silver wire and silver leaf, squashing, using heat to shape and more. 

This tutorial is a 6.0MB PDF file available for instant download.  

You ever have one of those days?

Weirdness.

Things that just don't add up.

I opened an email the other day.  It said you should send all your class requirements to your ex husband????

Really?  Why would I want to do that?

I look again.  Nope - that is what it says.  Getting ready for your upcoming class.  Send the ex what you need - again ?????  Why would he want to know that?  How does the studio even know his name.  None of this is making any sense to me.  But of course, I am having a small mind fart.  There could, possibly, be more than one man with that name.

Indeed, I was not married to the dreadlocked fellow that works at the Pittsburgh Glass Center. 

You can see all the details for my class on their website (or by clicking right here).  I am very excited to be teaching in Pittsburgh from the 8-12th of June, 2015. 

I guess I will get to meet the dreadlocked dude when I get there :)

Time is flying again - Arizona - January 2015

Goodness my last post was early December of last year.  Where does the time go?

It is a very cold winter in the Toronto area so far.  But I escaped for 10 days to Arizona recently.

Had the great pleasure of teaching four classes at The Melting Point in beautiful Sedona, Arizona.  The weather was perfect, The studio set up is gorgeous.  Wonderful hosts, Erin and Mike McMillen.  Mike took me out really early one morning in his big red jeep to do some off roading in the beautiful red hills.  I think I was pretty brave about the whole thing - it really is beautiful out there in the hills. 

I also had the best students!  We playing with Tiny Beads, Trees and then two days of Raking and Masking. 

Then I headed south for a few days with family and friends and fossils at the Gem Shows in Tucson.
I LOVE those fossils.

I am already looking forward to teaching at The Melting Point again - I will be returning in May of 2016.