Diane's lampworking and stuff ....

Beads and Murrini today

2012-01-21T11:39:00.000-08:00

I have pictures of the new murrini I created this week at the torch... I did two. Both uses that great reacting glass Nyx. With stripes of transparent aqua and the other with topaz... Aqua seemed to work better. I think

These 3 pictures are of both sides of one bead, with one close up.. the twisty is used from the left over from making the murrini.. I do like it. one murrini has a nice glob of clear to magnify.. other side just plain..

I know that both of these pictures the murrini look exactly the same.. but the top picture has double white layer which I used topaz .. the bottom only 1 layer of white.. with aqua.. soooooo....

Ok so this murrini was the "topaz" added .. not that thrilled but it was good to try.. and see... the twisty worked pretty well here.. from the left over glass from one of the murrini pulls..

This is a picture of another bead both sides and one close up.. again with the aqua stripes.. love the color reactions..
All the beads above created with Ivory dark with silver foil and raking of transparents and raised dots here and there,medium sized focals about 1 inch tall 3/4 inch wide and about 1/2 inch thick...this is a lot of fun at this point. I do need to improve on technique on murrini creations.. as well as using them.

Please accept apology I am still working on photographing this little glass items.
Have a great week.. and thanks for stopping by.

My First Murrini, It worked!!!!

2012-01-15T16:32:00.000-08:00

I created this murrini using Christina Catherine of WWW.CCGLASSART.COM
This was an interesting process making these. Oh my goodness.. by the end of it I had such a wad of glass on the end of a metal mandrel... about the size of a walnut. My husband comes in the room just to let me know he's home.. I tell him.. hi .. can't talk... I barely give him a glance.. since things can go wrong so quickly. lol.. He did not take it personally.. good thing.

So I learned so much doing this. It's quite amazing to see what you can produce. With layers and layers of glass. Below are pictures of the murrini not cut with some slices ready to be used. Then a picture of the twists made from the left over. Then finally 3 beads this murrini was used on.

Over all I was very happy I find though that the light green you see on the murrini does not show much once put in a bead.... It's all in the learning and doing process. But this was a good start , I was very nervous.. with the start of this project. I now feel more confident after following Christina's instructions. :-)

end and rod of murrini and some cut pieces

just a shot of murrini

twists created with left over glass ends

murrini put in and melted in

This murrini melted in with a glob of clear over it..

Happy New Year 2012 it's gonna be better!

2012-01-13T19:20:00.000-08:00

I'm here still trying to flex my creative muscle. It's been getting weaker due to life just getting in the way. I've decided that we do things that are important to us. This is a new year, a new attitude and I have decided this is very important to me. I'm not me when I do not create, be it melting glass, or pulling out my watercolors. I feel like something is missing like an old friend. That I have not called in a while.

I may not be perfect in my creating. But its the doing that is important being in that zone. The good and the Bad so I hope for those of you who have found me and find the time to pop in from time to time.. that there is something worth while to read, or find a picture or two.. to see what is going on in the studio.. or life.

So what has been going on... what the near future holds.. well let me just say I have a few little plans... on is to learn how to make murrini... I found a wonderful 53 page TUT on ETSY.. can not wait to try it.

It is created by Christina Catherine and the link to this tut is => Making Beautiful Murrini

her etsy site is CCGLASSART.COM I cannot wait to give it a try.. this week for sure and will share the attempts.. I'm really excited. Seems like I have not tried anything new lately.. so this is a start.

I also have set up my watercolor palette and my goal will be to paint weekly.. I will soon enough add the link of my watercolor blog.. once things start up.. very soon.

But until then here are a couple of new beads I finally got cleaned and ready for sale. My typical organic style.. thanks for the stop by. Have a great weekend. Diane

I have some expensive glass.....

2011-11-17T17:57:00.000-08:00

I have some expensive glass just sitting there.. taunting me. On one hand playing with this glass is bad because at 80.00 a pound.. you can't go wild.. but on the other hand It time to pull this glass out and start using it! Why not! Life is short.. so time to live it up at the torch.

Problem is Silver glass has a way of doing its own thing. I know there are tricks and "things " to make it do the pretty things its suppose to do.. So My plan for the next few months.. is to post my journey into the fancy glass extravaganza! What does it take? still not sure.. But I'll share the good the bad and the ugly.. (actually will try to spare you the ugly) lol.

To do this I'll need to take notes and really pay attention to what I am doing. How many times as lampworkers we make a really cool bead.. and afterward wonder HOW DID I DO THAT? the order the glass is added, the colors used... ect ect..

Below are a picture of two beads.. the top one was my very first attempt with sasha's Silver from sundance.. Oh How I love the multicolors it produces. It did not take much, all thing considered..
All I did was heating it up till red hot then pressed them into copper molds... From what I've read we need a reducing flame. ( oxygen is cut back and mostly propane) it didn't seem to do anything for me..... So still working it..

What to do with those round sort of big beads?

2011-10-24T08:38:00.000-07:00

Hi, I've been rather busy these days.. getting all my health testing done. Since I've been a very bad girl and have put off things for several years. I am so happy I stepped it up and forced my self to go. The big one was to colonoscopy, where they found 3 polyps and just 5 years ago I had none. So I feel I have dodged a bullet for now. So Please if you have been putting this life saving test off. Do It. it is really really important.

Ok now I can talk glass.. one of my favorite things.. I have been creating round beads with flowers. Alone you look at them and think what can I do with that one floral bead? HMMM? yup it can be added to a bracelet as an accent piece... because it is not a set it is just one bead.. or even into a necklace.. Most are not tiny beads.. more moderate in size.. So One day I sat down and created this totally fun pendant using a simple round bead! As you can imagine it sold immediately and had many request on it.

At the moment I have several round beads of varying sizes and just wanted to share this idea for using this type of bead.. of course if your interested in me making one for you I would just add 10.00 on the bead price and could mail it to you all wired up.

Have a great day.. to check out my round floral beads just click on my ETsy account and contact me if you would like a pendant wired up.. Diane :-)

Its been way too long.

2011-08-28T08:49:00.000-07:00

Hey there.. I've been missing in action, no excuses will do. So I will just jump back in!

What is going on in the studio these days. I've been creating pendants with my focal beads. I feel sometimes people like my beads, but then feel like well now what do I do if I buy it? Not everyone like creating jewelry, so I've decided to see what can I create with my beads. It may actually give those who buy the beads, ideas what to do with them.. and for those who do not make jewelry they have a finished piece for themselves for a reasonable price.

What I have found out out how much I enjoy working with the little jewelry tools, the beads and the wire wrapping.. Oh boy something else for me to PLAY with.. love it . I guess anything that comes from my creative brain and I can do with my own hands is always a joy for me.. it balances out my life with my full time job which is a lot more serious.

so here are a bunch of pictures of my pendants I just made.. a few are on ebay, easy and art fire.. Eventually all will get posted.. Just posted 4 for now.. more to come.. :-) have a great day!

So what is happening today? Hurricanne Irene.. is coming through.. shocking I still have power! Basically where we are located just heavy rains and winds... but seems to be ok. So far.

Zentangles and Beads... what do they have in common?

2011-02-27T08:51:00.000-08:00

Hi There. Its been a little while since I've posted here. Fun things are going on in the studio. I am still working on getting comfortable with my new torch. I don't get as much sit and torch time as I use to. Due to my day job. When I do though, look out it is hours of playing!

So what are Zentangles? It is a company that is promoting the artistic endeavor of doodles to an art form... it is a great way to put designs on paper, to meditate , to experiment.. Some days the doodles are intricate, or very loose and large. Here are a couple I tried to do on my own to see what I could come up with. Its FUN... i personally like to do this while watching tv. It has the same quality as sitting an knitting or needlepointing.. very relaxing.
So what does this have to do with bead making? WEll... let me tell you scroll on down.
I mentioned it would be cool to do a doodle bead exchange, Tami so kindly offered to hosting this exchange on wet canvas.

A bunch of us have signed up and will do our own doodle beads(zentangles) on glass. :-) Once we come up with half decent beads, we send in our picks to tami who will divide up the beads and send out the same number of beads sent to all the participants.. so what I will recieve is 3-4 doodle beads from other bead artist.. This gives us an opertunity to work with design, stringer control.. which is a thin rod of glass... so drawing on the molten bead...
so below are my first try's at this fun exchange. Still working on that stringer control... I'd like to make the stringer even thinner and try to do more designs... we'll see... i've got till april 1st to perfect...

What to do with ALL those beads?

2011-01-29T11:53:00.001-08:00

What do we do when our passion in creating takes over that proverbial edge? I remember seeing a picture on a forum from a lamp work artist.. of ALL her beads and thought wow.. She has made a lot.. Well I'm here to say, it happens to the best of us. As she was amazed at the number of beads she had accumulated, in her creative endeavor. I find myself in the same position today.. I've seen it coming.. the boxes and boxes of crazy saving.

Now mind you the beads I sell, are my "perfect' what I think the buyer wants out there. I look at my beads with a very stern look , will they be enough for the buyers out there.
I look at all aspects. So as you can imagine.. I have that perfectionist hat on.. unfortunately these are handmade, and sometimes the glass does what the glass does.. when it wants to, not when you want it to! :-)
Some times the design is just perfect except for that little something that is just not perfect.. or the pucker not that awesome.. like we like it.. but darn it. Its a beautiful bead. sigh. At times the color combinations may not be to my liking but sometimes someone else out there will love it..
So I've come to a decision.. I'll be going through my piles.. and putting them on eBay.. to try to send these beadies to new homes.. that can use them.
I probably will be donating a bunch to BOC (beads of courage)... and give away to friends.. Some I may even keep and actually create jewelry from them...
By the way that picture above and below are only from 1 small plastic box I had.. all focals and hearts.. and hollows... Does that give you an idea of the number of beads sitting here? I have several of those plastic divided boxes large ones..... and that was a small one I dove into.
These are all pretty big so not good for BOC . will be selling in batches on eBay, at a reduced rate.. usually each bead goes for 10-20 each.. but will be selling at 2.00-3.00 each..

Just Beads :-)

2011-01-07T11:45:00.000-08:00

The New Torch.. First beads:Feeling like a newbie again!

2010-12-10T20:17:00.000-08:00

Hi , I've been a busy girl... setting up this bad boy.. aka "big girl torch" It is a mini CC for those of you who do not torch , by Carlisle.

From the day I began torching on a Hot head torch.. I have loved this activity of melting glass.. and creating.. I had never had the opportunity to try anything different So with alot of research and asking other lampwork artist, I made a decision. Really not knowing if I would like it.. I LOVE it..

It is so quiet, and easy to use. Faster in melting glass, and the colors are fabulous! I am still working on the control of the glass, I have only had 2 major melt downs and a pile of glass on my desk.

To see my first batch of beads scroll down.. Now i just to find my muse.. and get a creating.

A couple of scenery beads , and dots and dots galore. And a few organic focals with an occasional floral. I'm very happy with my new toy... :-)

Ema Kilroy beads .. wired up.

2010-10-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

Hi As promised.. Here are my wired up Ema K Beads. I just hung them on simple chains, and wired them up using small silver findings and crystals.. Love the shine those bring to a focal.
As I was working with the first one.. I noticed something really cool... Do YOU see it? What does it look like to you? If you don't.. scroll down to the close up.. and you will see..

Not yet.. this is the other side to that pretty bead... next picture

Looks like a Rattle Snake.. with eye and all.. well if you saw something different.. thats ok that is what organic's are like we see what we want to see...

And my little butter fly Focal... already for the wearing... Thanks Ema
Love these beads!

A wonderful Lampwork Artisan Ema K Designs

2010-10-17T12:24:00.000-07:00

I Bought some beautiful Crafted Beads today! I was invited to a really amazing show "Dunstable Artisans" 21st Annual Art show and Sales. I was blown away with the talent in this group. I had to share with you the lampwork art created by Ema Kilroy

I came to her booth and we chatted and caught up a bit. We know each other from karate classes, way back when.. But when I got a chance to look, it was a feast for the eyes. Gorgeous color combinations.. Amazing wire work as well, she is such an inspiration to me.

I love these beads because they spoke to me.. It doesn't matter that I make beads. Every lampwork bead is a treasure, because no matter how hard you try you can never duplicate beads like this. These are works of art and I feel lucky to find them and wear them proudly.

I love purchasing beads from other bead artist, I feel I have a bit of their spirit in the art they have created. I so love it when comments are made on any jewelry I wear created with anothers beads. I let them know who created it.. and guide them to where to find their creations.

Speaking of which here are Ema's websites and shops Enjoy..

www.emakdesigns.com

www.emakaye.etsy.com

www.facebook.com/emakdesigns

Thankyou for stopping by.. and by the way I will post the finished necklaces I create..and I think I need to pop my new earings in.. :-)

A Daffodil Bead Tutorial: My first attempt...

2010-10-03T17:33:00.000-07:00

What is going on in the studio this week... ? Learning. I purchased this great tutorial from Corina Tettinger... its Called Daffodils Bead Tutorial ( how to make an encased Daffodil bead and similar 3-D flowers. This is 54 jammed packed pages of pictures and instruction.. and really if you are a lampwork artist who is interested in this. I highly suggest it. You can find it on Corina's web site. Corinabeads

Here are my two really two first attempts, I think I am happy with them.. Considering when I first took them out of the kiln.. I had my "visions" on how they should have looked. WEll on 2nd inspection I am happy with the first go around..

This first bead has a simple flower on one side, and a daffodil on the other side. Its a very wonky bead.. You know hot heads can be a bit tough to shape this much glass in one sitting.. but my goal was just to try and get flowers made.. task accomplished.

Here is the first actual daffodil I made.. its a bit mashed, but it kind of looks like what I was trying to make.. :-)... The next one is twice as big, bead wise... and I did two daffodils. with a bunch of the simple flowers with the bubble dots.. I love the 3D look to these beads.. and the yellow and greens go so well together! One problem I did have was the distortion of some of the flowers.. I plan on working on the "size" of the flowers... there fore the beads should not be so big.. and hopefully I will have less distortion.. since there will not be as much glass to fight with on my hot head. That very last bead.... well I had started to try different colors of "flowers" but was just so exhausted doing these two.. I just plopped it on a white barrel bead and mashed it..

A picture from both sides of the 2nd bead.. it is shaped better..It really was a lot of fun to do.. and oh man, as I was doing this I was getting all kinds of ideas, I can use with this technique. This is why we try new things.. to spark our muse.. and be creative.

Just some beads to share..

2010-09-22T19:07:00.001-07:00

Just sharing some pictures of my back log of beads. I'm catching up and going through the pile..
Doing the photo shoots.. and measuring and getting ready to post this batch.. I have about 16 or so , mostly focals.. Just thought I'd share.
This bead was created with cranberry cim.. what a cool reaction on ivory.

this one reminds me of a spine.. runnning through this bead..

Splish splash.. is all this reminds me of

Some sort of eye... I think...

One of my charm beads.. this one has one hole at the bottom to hang something from it or just leave it alone..

Have a great week.. Diane

I am back, its been a while.

2010-09-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a while.. but hopefully will be organized now.. Summer is over, it was a really nice summer other than it was so dry that my plants went to seed in just a few weeks..

We went camping as usual, usually I share some of those pictures..only one the lovely seen from a hike we took in new hamspshire.

but its been a tough summer.We are still trying to get use to not having my father in law with us. He passed the day after fathers day, such a hard thing to deal with and think about. We miss him, we will never forget..

On a positive note, I have moved to the day shift in my job.. for 21 years I did the 2nd shift. It worked beautifully while my girls where growing up. Now they are both in college, and making me proud! They are doing such a good job, and making life long decisions for their futures. Education is so important to us.

As you know we have a new kitty named oliver.. and oreo is just finally accepting the fact.. gosh it only took 8 months! Maxie is totally thrilled to have a buddy to play with..

My goal, is to get back to the blogging.. seems like life is settling down. With the girls back to school...I'm thinking of updating to a new dual torch.. (i'm making the sound tool man tailor does when he talks about a big tool or machine..) more power! more fire woo hoo.. for making those beads! I have a huge pile to go through.. some to post, some to create with... so much to do..

Have a great week. Diane

Slide Show of Spring Beads 2010

2010-06-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

Personalize your own photo slideshow

Just my most recent beadies... Will be torching soon... very soon...

Murrini Play time...

2010-05-01T09:37:00.000-07:00

Well Hello there, its been such a long time.. life has been busy.. between inviting into our home a new kitty named Oliver, changes in my job situation (more day shifts) and of course just the every day busy busy of a family life.. I will save that for another time.. for today....
I'd like to share my murrini play time! You saw the pictures of the murrini's sent in for my wetcanvas exchange hosted by Maggie.. what a wonderful job she did.. and let me tell you when the package came in the mail.. I was in awe.. seeing all the gorgeous murrini created by these wonderful glass artist! Below I have downloaded pictures using a few murrini from each artist. I have one big bead with 1 of each added as a commerative bead of this exchange.. its a big one! but so much fun to look at.. I also did many small beads for a bracelet. this was as much as a practice learn how to use kind of project.. I plan to continue creating with these little works of art.. but these are just for me... really play time.. so much fun!

Murrini Exchange: a great way to learn.

2010-03-19T18:22:00.001-07:00

Well hello there.. Finally done with my murrini... for the wet canvas exchange hosted by Maggie. For those of you who do not make beads.. murrini are little designs created adding glass insuch a way to create a design, you then pull the gathering of glass into a rod. Then to cut the rods into chips.. These thin slices are added to beads for designing element..

Ok and for those of you who do make glass beads. I just need to say I've got such a long way to go.. oh boy.. as with anything its PPP practice practice practice.

For my very first time trying this technique? I had fun except for when the chunk of glass broke off and landed right in my shirt.. yup.. as I type this I am still healing. Im ok.. really the silly thing landed and got caught in my undergarment.. where it sat burning.. thankfully it cooled off pretty quickly.. but not with out a fair amount of damage.. I need to think over how I must dress to protect myself better.. I'm very lucky it didn't hit me in the face. This little miss hap will not stop me.. I do plan on working on these murrini's again. hopefully create some very cool designs... :-)

Here is a bead with a few of the first ones I created.. I kind of like the homemade variety, and can't wait to see all the beautiful murrini created by my glass artist friends... who also signed up.. each person sends in several batches.. and the person who hosts it.. then redistributes to everyone.. so you get one bag from each person.. I promise I will come back with exchange murrini part 2 when I get all the murrini's from my friends..Oh I've seen a prevue.. they are amazing.. I also will share the beads created with any of these.. how fun..Do you see how this art form has so many levels and aspects to it?

Ok what will be coming next? hmmmm oh yes... I'd like to talk about a wonderful little store i stopped into yesterday.. What a GEM! Oh I have a feeling I will be visiting it ALOT! no more acmoore for me or michaels.. that will give you a hint..

Have a wonderful weekend... hugs Diane

New Kitty... Some murrini, and lots of rain this week!

2010-03-14T16:22:00.000-07:00

My goodness, it has been a while.. the biggest news which has NOTHING to do with glass or beads.. Has to do with the little white furry thing in these pictures.. his name is oliver..
He was found wondering the road ways in our town.. effords where made to find his owner. No luck, so we adopted him.. Such a sweet addition to our family! ah heck.. I'll come back next week to share the murrini's I made for a wet canvas exchange.. I think Oliver and max should have front page! lol..

He's such a cutie with his orange tail and ears.. and those electric blue eyes..

His little special pillow.. fluffy dog.....

Whats going on in studio this week?

2010-02-17T13:39:00.000-08:00

I've joined an Murrini exchange.. such fun to try new things. These are created to add to beads as a design element in a glass bead... a huge gather of glass is created with a design in mind... then when you are ready.. or just plan tired (in my case) you pull this gather.. in to a cane of glass.. the goal is to have this "wonderful " design! My efforts where less than expected.. but thats ok.. this is what being creative is all about. The effort and the time spent are for a good cause... and its all about the learning, and creativity.... So here are my first attempts... certainly not my last attempts.. I will at my next torching session I will "test " drive these murrini's to see what they look like... and will post the pictures here... now don't laugh to loud.. ok? I'm still learning.. :-)

Just some pictures of recent beads sold..

2010-02-11T19:44:00.000-08:00

My little Picture shredder/homework chewer!

2010-01-25T10:15:00.000-08:00

I'm uploading a video of Max. Have you heard the excuse.. of my dog ate my homework? Well we can us the excuse my cat chewed up my homework.. Yup.. this little bugger if he finds any pictures, he will commence chewing.. we had important papers on the kitchen desk last week.. and there in the corner where chew marks. and he has attacked my daughters homework..... I guess he likes the feel of pictures better.. but he's trying anything since we have had to hide anything that resembles a picture.. so no he didn't chew because the picture was of a blurry picture of a rat...but just the fact he loves chewing Pictures...... just being silly... ;-)

Kumihimo: Making Braids

2010-01-23T10:30:00.000-08:00

Hi There. I'm back life has been throwing me some curves lately, so I have not been posting as much as I would like.. but I'm here.. that's a good thing.. We make time for what we enjoy doing. :-) I want to share a hobby of mine , that in a round about way fits in with my beading. Making decorative braids, which dates back to the 8th century, when the buddhist religion spread in japan, people used colorful braids in ceremonies.. These where usually made of silk and became an art to decorate clothing, banners , lace samurai armor together and many other uses.. All this info is found in the little book by Kathy King James I received in my kit from WWW.PrimitiveOriginals.com and really it included all needed to get started.. clear instructions to make the braids, history as well as the kumiloom, bobbins to hold the cords .... what is this hobby called.. Kumihimo ! It is a wonderful relaxing hobby that you can carry anywhere.. and easy to do... Ok so why? I'm talking about this... to put beads on of course.. lol. I am still figureing out how to finish the necklace off.. the ends. That will come. What I love with this is the fact you pick colors , special strings.. cords.. to work these braids.. Below you will see examples of what I have done over the months... just experimenting and learning..

Picture one shows the lay out of the colors for this braid I have made... This one is a 12 strand braid.. focus on the two top black strings and the two bottom red strings... Step one. bring the top right black down next to the bottom red .. on the right..

This is what it looks like when that black thread is brought down..

so you have 3 on the bottom... next Bring the red on the left up to the top to the left of the black thread...

ok so now... this is what you have... turn the wheel counter clock wise (turn left) and now you will have two reds on top, and a yellow and black on the bottom... again gram right red, bring down to the right next to the black ,,,, grab the left bottom yellow up next to the red thread left on the left... turn..

pattern is left left... down,,,, right right up.. turn left...

Here is a picture of the loom with the bobbins, keeping all the threads under control, notice I've used sponge curlers.. as bobbins.. I will be ordering more bobbins.. you see the kit comes with 8 which is fine as long as you keep it to 8 threads.. i was trying a 12 thread this time..

close up of the curlers... (all you do is unsnap and let go some more thread) as you use up the thread.. The other bobbins are so easy the thread pulls easily as you work..

This is the back side of the kumiloom there you see the braid forming .. usually as you work the bobbins hang and you look at the loom from the top as you move the threads and move the loom around..

And finally here is that 12 thread cord that is created using these threads.. in that order on the loom... had no idea! Only reason I went with those colors is because I ran out of black and red.. so added yellow in the mix... but I like it...

Now here are a few cords I made since I had started... just playing.. these are all 4 thread cords. i've used different sized threads some with fluffy tuffts.. used crewl thread.. which made for smaller thinner braids. So I the future I will be reporting and showing different cords.. what threads used... what colors.. I will show the design on the kumiloom.. and what the resulting cord that came of it.. So for any of you that would like to use that design... use it.. and enjoy it!

Thank you for stopping by my blog.. send me a message and a picture of your cord.. and what you used it for.. I would love to post the picture on my blog... Have a great Day! Diane :-)

Happy New Year!!!

2009-12-29T17:09:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to all of YOu! This year I'm starting the year doing things I love , that is one of my goals... So one of those things is making beads, selling beads for people to enjoy, and in hopes of making some money to buy more glass to create more beads.. well you get the picture lol.. The pictures I show here are beads I've posted on Ebay today.. Its a beginning of working with ebay.. I had taken some time away from that venue...

Wow.. Christmas is nearly here...

2009-12-18T23:18:00.000-08:00

Hi , It has been a very busy several weeks, and I'm really really looking for things to slow down just a tad. Between the shopping, the working, decorating, quilt making, oh and we must not for get the gift wrapping. I swear every year I vow to make it non stressful.. but it just seems to follow with the time of year. I've had to let some things go this year.. just to keep up.

I am sorting all my beadies.. and have begun selling on ebay again. I revamped my website, for some reason I enjoy doing that.. love adding to it, taking away.. its creative. I love anything creative! I need to make my resolutions for the new year.. to be more creative with my lampworking and watercolors.. and make the time to do it.. no excuses..

Here is my Frosty Heart I created a little while ago.. just getting it posted now.. Its listed on Ebay..

just playing with some of my beads...

2009-11-14T15:52:00.000-08:00

Well, anyone who knows me .. knows I'm jewelry challenged! But I keep trying and working on that skill. I seem to have aquired enough elements to get a bit creative and when they are on sale I pick up a few things here and there. This bracelet was a challenge to me.. It took about 4 tries, but finally got it all together.. for me to wear... Below are a few close up views...

As far as beads being made right now? yes I have a few sets that need to be cleaned and pictures taken.. and posted.. trying to stock up.. for the holiday season coming up.. :-) Can't believe thanksgiving is next week.! have a wonderful week.. Diane

Beads of courage

2009-11-11T07:55:00.001-08:00

Just a few pictures of the goodies heading to the Beads Of Courage program.. What it is this program? Well it is a program designed to support and help children coping with serious illness. The children use beads to tell their story, each bead has meaning to them and the milestones they have achieved in their journey of treatment. If you would like to read more about this wonderful program please check out their website here Beads Of Courage

Sorry for not the greatest pictures , I had already counted out and divided them up according to size and are all in their bags to be packaged up.....but it gives you an idea. Have a wonderful day.. Diane :-)

A little slide show of recent beads. Happy Fall...:-)

2009-11-10T08:07:00.000-08:00

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Taking Pictures of beads(helpful links) Part 2

2009-10-30T08:01:00.000-07:00

Taking Pictures of beads and jewelry great links to check out : part 2

I've been working at this and researching for several weeks now. I've finally come up with a system that works for me… I won't bore you with all the details of my trials and tribulations… I do want to share with you some wonderful links of information out there for you to visit. I found these links to be very helpful in learning and trying different things to photograph my beads. So if you are having difficulties or would just like to improve your photos of beads.. This is a great place to start… Part 3 will show my set up and what I do and I wouldn't have gotten there if it weren't for all these wonderful people who shared their information and tips before me.
Create a Pendant..
http://www.createapendant.com/photobox.htm

The Beading Gem journal...
http://www.beadinggem.com/2008/01/13-things-i-learnt-about-jewelry.html

For jewelry photography tips… check out Cindy Lietz web site..
http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/jewelry-photography-tips-etsy-cheap-homemade-lightbox-tutorial/187/

The Strobist blog.. For a 10.00 light box…
http://strobist.blogspot.com/2006/07/how-to-diy-10-macro-photo-studio.html

Table top Studio …
http://www.tabletopstudio.com/documents/glass_photography.htm

About .com
http://desktoppub.about.com/od/scanninggraphics/ss/lightbox.htm

And to purchase a light box kit from sportsman guide.. Check this out..
http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/cb.aspx?a=380974

Lori Green on wet canvas…
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Articles2/16432/483/page2.php

Improve your Glass, Bead & Jewelry Photographs by dale lynn on wet canvas
http://www.wetcanvas.com/Articles2/10237/214/

Beads by Baby
http://www.beadsbybabe.com/phototut.htm
http://www.beadsbybabe.com/photoedit1.htm

The Kiln fairies.. were very nice today..

2009-10-26T10:03:00.000-07:00

Here is a group shot of all my glassy baubles..
Sweet pinky dots...
upside down black and white....
Transparent dicroic heart and chunky spacers...
Red and black hollow bead
Dicroic barrels with black base Organice monster focal side one...
Side two organic focal... measures approx 40mm x 25mm x 8mm... big one...

My scary house of beads..

2009-10-24T14:09:00.000-07:00

I was just having fun with this smilebox.com program.. just playing.. Oh yes I got to torch for 3 hours or so today.. looking forward for the kiln to cool down.. will post pictures soon.. Diane

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Kitty Kat Exchange on LE(lampworkers Ect)

2009-10-22T11:52:00.000-07:00

I just realized. I haven't posted pictures from a previous exchange. This one was on LE , I posted my kitties I had made and mailed out on a previous blogging.. But here are my lovelys from some of the ladies involved.. Thank you to Sue for her gorgeous kitties and for hosting this exchange.. and to Debra, Maggie, Susan, Debbie, and Karen. I will have fun creating some fun jewelry just for me.. with your beautiful creations! So here are close ups.. and a group shot of these pretties... First up is a plant stick with sue's kitty.. wow I love the color and the shape, how does she do those whiskers?
Group shot.. woo hoo...

Sue's cell phone buddy... so cute!

Debra's glittery with the cutiest face

Debbie from Back river designs has quite the design and look at those toes? adorable! Karen's pretty transparent green kitty.. and a twisty tail!

Maggie's cute kitty.. love the deep colors in his belly...

Susan's round cute kitty cat.. organic look with frits and pretty blue flower..

So I hope you have enjoyed seeing these beautiful creative kitty cats.. I love each of them , and knowing they came from my friends on line. Thank you again! Happy torching...

Taking pictures of Beads(introduction and goals)

2009-10-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

Taking pictures for posting beads on websites selling venues…
I have been involved in bead making for about 3 years now and have muddled through the "picture" taking of my beads. I want to improve my ability in showing my beads in a better light.
I've had people say, my beads look better in person.. I've taken the beads out side… in the sun, in the shade..I've done them in regular lighting.. Tried some ideas like using plastic shoe boxes.. And have the light shine through it. Has not worked for me.. So systematically I would like to go through the info out there and sort through and try again.. Sigh.. To get it right.

There are wonderful glass bead artist out there who know how to do it.. And I drool over their lovely beads.. And of course the wonderful pictures they take.. I'm sure they have had to walk this walk too! Research, ask.. Or beg.. Lol.. I can ask too.. But I'm one of those hard heads.. Who likes to figure it out.. Keep the brain engaged , and learn and read and do… Even though over the years.. I've kind of done this off and on… and have come to a point where the pictures are Ok… not perfect not great…they do the job.. But now I would like to step it up..

I will start out by showing past set ups.. I've had… and what I'm doing now… I am going to use some of those on line descriptions on how to make a light box… and use it. What I want to do is take pictures out side.. In different settings.. Take pictures in different set ups in the house as well.. to compare .

I've learned a valuable tool.. In all of this.. Photo shop elements.. Sometimes a pictures is perfect but the colors are just wrong.. The camera reads the readings.. And just does what it does.. Sometimes there will be a blue cast and just moving the camera a smidge will fix that.. Let me say I have one of those small point and shoot digitals.. With a great macro lens.. Does a great job but there are limitations.. So you need to fix…. What you can…
So enhancing is done sparingly.. If I posted the actual picture.. It would not represent that actual item with its true colors… so here I am.. just sharing, and going through the thought process> I've come to a few conclusions that work for me. Maybe some of what I have done and tried will shed light on this subject. Feel free to contact me with comments or suggestions . Remember I'm no expert, just working thorough the process and gathering information.

The pictures that follow, show you what I use to do. A light.. a table with a plastic white top. I'm showing the set up, and various things I have done and the resulting picture after color adjusting on photo shop..

This was actually pretty fancy set up for me.. my usual set up is the bottom photo.. with the bead just lying there with the light over. I think doing it this way.. I have a sponge with a card stock with a wire poking out so the bead can sit up right... I noticed this way.. not so much glare! just a little bit on the rim on top. The 2nd picture shows the result of this set up.. Its very simple and works pretty good..

This set up I am just using the shells for a back ground and I had to move the shell tray around to avoid so much glare from the light...

Ok here is the overly simple.. the one good thing about this simple set up is you have room to move the bead around to control the glare. Even still, right in the middle of the bead there is the light , So this is a beginning, this is where I have started from.. Hopefully by the end of it.. I will have a better picture quality.. Thanks for stopping by. Diane

Postcard Exchange came today.. so pretty!

2009-10-19T17:04:00.000-07:00

What a treat it was to get my box today in the mail. My Postcard exchange showed up, and could not wait to open it... so exciting it is to see how people work with glass and thier creative energies. It makes me realize how far I have to go in my learning of this glass art. These ladies are just so talented.. Thank you to Trish and all the ladies who sent in beads.. Love em!!! Can't wait to make jewelry with them..

First picture is from new mexico.. by Tami

this beads Trish..

From canada.. Sueze..

santa cruz.. maggie... love your shells!

Last beadie.. from Gladys , north dakota...

Nice group shot of my new beads.. thank you all! they are so lovely!

Working on jewelry.

2009-10-16T09:08:00.000-07:00

Well hello there.. Shame on me for waiting so long. I have many subject ideas to blog about.. as usual just feeling over whelmed.. life can do that to you.

I have pictures of bracelets I created to donate for a wonderful cause.. Jump for the Cure for breast cancer, the wonderful people who love their horses are doing a horse show this weekend.. these bracelets are to hopefully be raffled and money donated. It's a little something I can do to help ,every little bit helps.... I have found small charms that say "hope" ... isn't that what we need to deal with this dreadful disease.

Blogs to follow.. I promise! I won't wait a month! lol... Have pictures from the last LE Exchange... I have all kinds of information and experiments on picture taking for on line posting..I've learn alot.. and I hope to relay this information to who ever could use it. So very soon just need to organize in some sort of order... believe me there is alot!

Oh yes... hubby and I went to Herkimer New York for ...herkimer diamond hunting.. and we did well.. I will be talking about that as well... the tricks of finding these little treasures..and the website of this place.. and I will have pictures of some of my diamonds wrapped in wire.. I have a bunch from previous hunts... time do do something with them.

Lets see did I miss anything? I know I probably am.. but will be back weekly..Take care and have a wonderful week... Diane :-)

Just some beads...

2009-09-11T23:04:00.001-07:00

Just pictures of beads.. today.. enjoy. diane

PostCard Exchange on Wet Canvas

2009-09-09T13:09:00.001-07:00

I have been needing a boost lately to get my creative juices going again. I had signed up for a Exchange on Wet canvas beginning of the summer.. as summers go you know the drill.... Kids are home, vacations.. yard work.. WELL.. almost thought I'd have to drop out, and luckly the due date was extended.. So happy for that.

So what was this about, well you pick out some postcards from your area and create beads from the post card.. either pull colors out, try to do a design , found in the cards..be it focal, or sets..

I'm from the north east, found one for boston.. but actually found some from my town. Doing something like this really helps in getting your mind to work. I find being creative is a process, thinking things through..

Post card from Boston...

Loons are very popular in the NE.

Apple trees blooming in the spring...

Fields of lupines... tall spike like flowers.

A covered bridge.....by the way that covered bridge is one of the landmarks of Pepperell, mass... unfortunately its being rebuilt by the state.. so it may look diffferent by next year.. sad to say.. but at least we have pictures of it before it was taken down.. this is a painting done by an artist in the area.. made into a postcard..

Once I get my "exchange " from my fellow beaders, I will post those as well.. Keep creating..:-) Diane

Back on the Torch this week..

2009-08-31T16:45:00.000-07:00

Fired up the torch today. Grabbed some black rods... and floral frits and just experiemented with sculptural shapes.. just to see what comes up. These little guys where just fun to make.. might have to make a few and make into earrings... just too cute. Will have to come up with a name ...

Here is the whole batch I worked on.. flattened barrel beads... regular barrels with neatened ends.. some disc beads.. one even pushed to the side for a different look.. Just a little design element i'm working on.. love this frits, colors are so vibrant against the black...Over all this was just to get my fingers working and getting the glass to behave for me.. since it had been several weeks... until next time.. :-)

Photo slide show of my flowers and gardens...

2009-08-24T22:48:00.000-07:00

Soon enough September will be here... the summer has slipped away. To quickly, seems year after year it goes by faster.. what's up with that?

Oh well. Girls are getting ready for school, pretty soon routine will rule here.. Torching will start up in earnest, glass creations and watercolor... the garden will be cleaned up and be put to bed for the winter...

I have a fun photo show of just my gardens and flowers.. if you feel up for a little break... there is mellow music in the back ground.. so turn sound off if you don't care for that.. Enjoy... Diane

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Lazy River Vacation

2009-08-19T18:43:00.001-07:00

I'm in shock I haven't updated since aug 5th... but finally we are back from our wonderful time away.. I have done nothing in terms of torching these last few weeks.. But today I did finally get my gas tank filled and will hopefully get some torching time in soon.. For now though here are a few pictures from our vacation.. We are campers and enjoy nature, and our new camper...

This was home for a week! North conway New hampshire... camping...

We are heading off to beach one to hop into the Saco river for a lazy ride down to beach two...

this is a picture of me in my tube... being very very careful with my digital camera. lol. my daughter is up a head in her tube.

A Cute Dragonfly stops for a visit on the way down the river...

We are finally rounding the bend to beach two at our campground... water was cool and refreshing ... totally enjoyed the quiet and peacefulness here...

Enjoying summer!

2009-08-05T09:15:00.000-07:00

I am in the throws of weeding.. yup! working hard to keep the flowers showing the weeds be gone! Here is a little snipit of my flower garden.. black eyed susans are blooming, various lillies..hope your summer is going well...
No torching or painting since my last postings.. I guess I better enjoy my family while I can before they head of to school again... :-)

A little of this a little of that..

2009-07-24T08:36:00.001-07:00

Hey there , Its be a while... I think summer has gotten the best of me.. Yard work, vacationing.. going to the beach, enjoying having my kids home for the summer! Its all good.. and also working extra hours... at work covering nights so other coworkers can also have their vacations..
So I surely will be posting more..
I sold a bead set pictured below on etsy.. Organic chinese Green is on its way to its new home.

I did get on the torch, and had such hopes and aspirations! Alas, I got a few uninterupted hours on the torch(so I thought).. I knew the gas was getting low and I was struggling.. it was taking a lot longer to produce this cocoon bead(just not hot enough).. so it sat in the flame for a good 45 minutes.. trying to shape it and get looking good! The heat just was not there.. I did the best I could, and finally gave up.. but once I pulled it out of the kiln I was pleasantly surprised. I only could get one more bead and my gas finally ran out.. boo hoo...

So until I get the tank filled and be powered up... with heat. I'll have to play with beads and experiment and work on my jewelry skills.. I love wire wrapping and what have you..

This is just a cobalt blue base, rolled in frits, then covered in clear.. its not a great bead over all but loved the colors that came out of that floral frits..

Ok as you know we went to Maine a few weeks ago, the Arcadia Park.. area Here is the few paintings I did.. it felt amazing to just take my paints and paint outside. If you would like to see these paintings and the descriptions go to my ..watercolor web site...to just look at the pictures... Until next time.. my friends.. have a great weekend, hope the sun is shining where you are.. Diane :-)

Ahhhh Maine...

2009-07-13T22:41:00.000-07:00

We just got back from Maine we were on a well needed vacation.. I love this area, and have visited it a few times already. We never grow tired of Arcadia National Park, and the sweet town of Bar Harbor. We went camping just out side of the island... we were literally right on the water with our camper looking out to the island across the way...

first picture.. is the gorgeous sunset from atop of Cadillac Mountain.. Lots of people up there clicking pictures... alot of ooooing and ahhing...

This was just an example of the rocky shore.. every turn there was a view... love the sound of the waves hitting the rocks.. such fun exploring! Walking paths all along the road way..

Bass Harbor light house.. this was on the other side of the island.. worth the drive..

One day we were treated to a rainbow... Mind you this is the view from our camp site! Seems unbelieveable to wake up to this view all week! It was worth the premium cost for this camp site! All 3 pictures are from our camp site... if you look across you see the island and cadillac mountain...

Sorry to say.. no torching lately... but soon will get back to melting glass.. Have a great week! Diane :-)

Cat Exchange for Lampworkers Ect.

2009-06-19T22:40:00.000-07:00

Here is my group shot of kitties being sent off to the Cat club Exchange On LE.. This was the best of my best.. Of course I wish they where better, and with time I will improve on them.

For now, I'm just having fun trying different thing, and working on the designing of them.. These guys pretty much hang the right way.. I also made a hollow faced kitty.. right hand corner and a oval body kitty opposite corner.

Here is a real experiment.. I'm actually happy with it.. but could not reproduce the efford during that torch session.. So gave up for the day.. after a few hours sometimes you just don't have it in you to do anything.. lol... but this little guy is a hollow kittie , and has been mashed a little bit.. and it hangs perfectly!!! No talking it into hanging its feet where they need to go! Next torch session, will give it another try.

Ok not a kitty.. just something I was happy with. Its on its way with the kitty's to the hostess of the kitty exchange as a little thankyou. She is going to be spending a lot of time sorting all the beads.. and mailing them all out within the next couple of week. Bless her heart. Alot of work for sure... not to mention torching too!

I promise I will post the beads I receive in this exchange as well as the wet canvas "raining cats and dogs"... So much fun! Such a treat to receive beads in return from other wonderful glass artist. Have a great weekend! Sincerely Diane :-)

My second batch of Cats...

2009-06-12T09:16:00.000-07:00

Ok , armed with the information from my last batch of creating cat beads.. I jumped back on the torch.. I received some wonderful advice from friends on Lampwork Ect...

I liked the head being above the body not part of the body.. so had to distribute the glass a little differently.. and go at the making differently. When doing the detail work.. that had to wait till the very very end... Body shape was first and foremost.

All these cats have the glass distributed well enough that they do not just flip over feet up.. yeah! success!

BUT.. they are almost too perfectly distributed.. i'm finding..(when You test on a mandrel they turn evenly and do not have any heavy sides..) so they can flip over so they can end up upside down.. but will hang either way.. happily..

There is one in this bunch here that normally will hang feet down because it is heavy at the feet.. Purffecttt.... lol... now I just need to get that on my future kitties.. So when on a necklace.. they will ONLY hang the right way.. Then I'll be good to go, and hopefully can then concentrate on the designing...of the body and faces..

So for joy of just looking at glass beads.. here is a group shot of my last batch(litter)... I think the one that hangs good is one of the blue cats .

Same kitties... fronts and backs on mandrel...

Hope you enjoyed looking at my kitty cats.. and learning alittle bit of the process.. I think I will continue to work on these little guy's they measure about 40 mm x 20 mm tall... approx..

Backs of these kitties

Have a great weekend... Sincerely diane... :-)

Designing cats in Lampworking...

2009-06-07T08:36:00.000-07:00

This week in the studio, its raining cats.. signed up for an exchange on wet canvas... this is always a great way to try something new.. and who knows start off on a new vein of glass art.
I tried several different kinds of cats.. to the left here is the sculptural affect of having the cat shape.. I am still wanting to perfect that.. I want a slick smooth line. I think if I try to do these again.. I will stick to just one color and just work on the smooth lines of what a cat looks like.. the shape not so much the detail of the face and eyes.. so not very successful but still have the "vision" in my head i'm working towards..which is the essence of cat..

I call these maggie kitties.. lol.. She has perfected this type of sculptural cats.. and there are other lampwork artist who do amazing work.. Just thought I'd give it a try... they are fun and lets face it you can do so much design wise with these kitties... check out Yoda Kitties by Maggie...

The face only.. was fun to do! But I need to do more to add more detail.. I think I will post a link to a couple of lampwork artist who have this down pat! Like Paula at Island top Glass, check out some of her kitty's... so cute..she does great puppies too! check them all out..

Ok this next bunch.. I had a vision in my head.. of what I wanted.. these two where the first
attempts... not what I was thinking.. it was a start..

Each of these had a slightly different design to it... which involved how to add the head, how to create the feet, make that curved look underneat between the feet...
out of all 4 My favorite was the bottom one with the orange spots.. the face... the body tail placement ..

Alas... cute as he maybe he had issues.. see picture below.. when hung on a mandrel... he flips upside down... lol.. so putting such a big head on top, messes up the glass distribution. Its ok maybe I can use that as a design element... make the feet meet and the cat can be hanging on the chain...
The dark brown spots one well that one is a little crooked... the orange kitty upside down.. the blue... stays perfect.. so design wise... the blue one wins out..

The winner is ... blue kitty... Soooo..
next torch visit.. I will add the face /head to the body have
the hole coming out of the side of the head... and yup

the other hole.. :-00 the other end.. but I want to shape the bottom more to have more of a cresent shape... also separating the feet... like the orange kitty... I like that scuptural element.. Plenty of body space for design... colors and themes.. so this is a bit of the thinking process.. you go through in designing.. I'm sure the next litter will be more to my likeing. Well have a great day... Diane :-)

My little Fur Buddy!

2009-06-04T06:49:00.001-07:00

Hi just trying something new..
I took a little video with my digital camera this morning. Max my kitty was just being his cute little self. The reason for doing this besides showing how cute max is.. is to maybe video tape beads in progress... during the process in the flame.. I will probably have to bribe one of my family members to do it.. anyhow until then... this is max .. He is a pound kitty, and when I brought him home.. my husband made the comment you know he's gonna grow into those ears and feet.. and he was oh so right! (turns out he is part maine coon) So here goes.. little video of maxie doing his thing.. and in the process I've learned something new and exciting to do on the web..

ok that took a while but it looks like it worked.. now just need to see if it actually works.. enjoy.. and I am off to the Artfire shop and Etsy shop to post some beads..have a great day! Diane

Ok I just viewed the video... I realized! that my camera was set at a lower setting for detail.. so I've learned something here.. next time it will be a better quality of video.. sorry about the fuzziness of this one.. but it was still fun to do! and thanks for taking a look... ok got to get this day goin..

What's Happening this week?

2009-06-03T18:42:00.000-07:00

I want to share a few pictures of fun stuff this week.. I'm working on a cat and dog exchange.. I've made a bead for a special coworker who has worked hard for many years to get his PHD.. so proud of him! I made a little reminder of how special he is! I also have pictures of one of my bits of glass beads.. oh and that one is quite funky..looking..

Think I'd like to start with the "DR Jeff " Bead.. Mr.. jeff has gotten himself a cool teaching job, so he is starting a new job but will be working here and there to help us out. So he's not gone yet. I wanted to see if I could create a bead for him to maybe hang on his backpack or as a key chain... took me 3 times but finally got this one.. and it survived the kiln Its 42 mm long.. I had to stamp DR On one side and Jeff on the other side.. getting it all on one side was not an option.. it didn't work.. I love using those special scrapbooking letters made of metal . and this was a good chance to practice and try something with them! I hope jeff likes his bead.. I sure had fun making it!

My Little bits o glass bead..Its very sculptural.. this is just playing.. and trying different things.. not sure what to call this. its a bit odd but fun.

Ok stop laughing so loudly.. lol.. these are my "cat and dog" exchange. These are my first attempts, and i've figured out what works what doesn't sort of. I have visions of what I want them to be! But it doesn't always translate to what is pictured.. but this is how we learn and and improve. PPP... practice practice , practice.

I have a bunch of beads to post.. thanks for stopping by today was mostly to just show the "playing " aspect of torching...

what do you do to bump up your creativity?

2009-05-22T23:04:00.000-07:00

Hi there. I think alot of artist sometimes have dry spells, where the creative jag just zigs.. so what to do to get it back on track? Well, For me that usually means trying something new. Thats why I like to sign up for challenges on Wet Canvas or lampwork ect. these are lampwork/artist exchanges or challenges to try something new.

Last year signed up for a hollow exchange and a Dead of winter.. these exchanges involve making a bead that has to do with a theme of sorts, or type of bead.. and you send them to the person who is hosting it... if you mail in 5 you get 5 back from 5 different artist.. its so neat to recieve them in the mail. Honestly its such a thrill to own a bead from some of these wonderful artist..

This picture to the left are the lovely beads I recieved from other artist for the "dead of winter exchange.

The other exchange signed up to do was to create hollow beads... Never ever done those.. woo woo.. It opened a whole new world of playing with glass.. darn can't wait to just go torch and make more hollows..

Here are a couple of pictures as an example of some of the hollows i've done since that exchange.. such a wonderful learning experience .

Lately I have been tinkering with my pile of bits and pieces of glass.. YOu know those left overs, and little bits of glass.. I am a pack rat with alot of things.. and glass is no exception.. lol.. so here was one of my first Bit O pieces focals.. its not great. but its something that helps gets my creative energy going again.. hey maybe doing a hollow and adding my bits and peices. to that..??? hmmm

this a shot from both sides.. kind of weird.. surely one of a kind... who knows what will come out of the playing... Hope you are having a nice memorial day weekend.. ours has been pretty low key.. kids are working hubby is working.. so I thinks I'll go visit friends.. Take care..
Sincerely Diane.. :-)

2009-05-12T19:36:00.000-07:00

My very first blog here, I did have a wordpress blog, but found it difficult to change and edit the layouts, so decided to try out blogger. It seems more flexible. We'll see....

Here is a heart I created, and i'm sending it as a gift to my favorite Auntie in canada... My aunt Marie. She is such a sweet lady, and is so supportive in my lampwork success...

What is it about lampworking that is so much fun? I just know, that when I work at the torch , my troubles just fall away for a little while. Who cares if the house is a bit messy.. or maybe work is a little bit stressful.. life is always perfect while creating. Seems I gravitate to transparents lately and playing with silver foil... such yummy colors... have a hot fire day!