Sunday, December 19, 2010

Sunday Show Off for December 19, 2010

Happy Sunday!  Well, today I wanted to show off something I am proud of, because these were made by my current glass student.  She had a part in most of these, and the wreath was what I made for her when she was going to town making all these trees.  We make something different each lesson, and though we were not planning on making Christmas trees that day, our short session, the last one for this year, was well spent making these adorable trees.  We had a few that didn't make it into this shot, but that's OK, these are the best! I am very proud of her, and wanted to share these with you guys. 

Glass trees and wreath from a recent flamework lesson

We have a good time every lesson, and she is a truly kind and pleasant person to be around.  I enjoy teaching her, and am fortunate to know her too.  Thanks for sharing this glass pride with me, and I'll see you later in the week, to stop by and say Merry Christmas!!!

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Sunday Show-Off for December 12, 2010

I know, I've been offline a lot this holiday season so far.  We have a lot of shows during this time of year, and this is the first day I've actually gotten a full night's sleep! :) Yay for sleep!  Anyhow, no show today, so I'll be able to catch up on my blogging, laundry, reading, and of course, more glasswork for this week's shows.  In the midst of our busy show schedule, I had a challenging custom order for a set of green tree frogs. A nice customer sent me a photo of a tree frog and asked if it was possible to represent the little fella in glass.  Well, after some sufficient planning and practice, she was able to pick them up from our booth Friday, and here's my last-minute photo:


Yes, I'm pretty happy with how they turned out, and they are HARD to make!  She was just ecstatic about them, and said they turned out so much better than she'd imagined was possible.  I love that kind of feedback, so I wanted to share it with you guys.  Have a great Sunday, and thanks for stopping in!

Saturday, November 20, 2010

Fire Divas Glass Bead Challenge for November: Christmas/Hanukkah!

The talented group of glass artists I belong to, the Fire Divas, are having their November Bead challenge! This month's theme is Christmas / Hanukkah, and we have many beautiful glass bead entries. You can browse them all below, then vote for your favorite over on the Fire Divas Blog - on the right side of the page!

Entry 1
Entry 2
Entry 3
Entry 4
Entry 5
Entry 6
Entry 7
Entry 8
Entry 9


Make sure you vote for your favorite Hanukkah/Christmas glass bead, then check out the rest of the Fire Divas blog for tons of glass goodies and photos.  Thanks!

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Sunday Show-Off: New Animals!

Last week it was symbols, this week it's all about the new animals popping out of our studio.  First up, we have my fabulous Thanksgiving Turkey, and he's my current favorite glass critter!
Thanksgiving Turkey Sculpture!
Now, my new monkey pendant!
Brown Monkey Pendant
 And lastly, my first panda pendant!
Panda Bear Pendant
Thanks for visiting this week to see my new animals!

Sunday, November 7, 2010

Sunday Show-Off for 11/07/10: New Symbols!

I've been working on developing our Series offerings, and today's showing-off features my newest symbol glass art:
This is a beige-tipped cross pendant in my classic chess-style.  I like to make different colors, but this is my favorite style for making crosses :).

This was a custom request for an Eastern Star, and it came out great!  The bottom is white but this photo doesn't do it justice.

I work with several nurses, so am inspired to make winged Asclepius pendants!  See below for the Asclepius attached to the Star of Life for the EMS Symbol.

Paul made these!  Difficult custom requests pose an interesting challenge.  He did a great job, as this is fine detail work for the laces...

The Star of Life EMS Symbol pendant!  My favorite of the lot here, this is a field near and dear to my heart.  I have loads of respect for the courageous folks who help our sickest, most injured citizens each and every day.  Kudos!

Symbols: Express your messages however you like, but glass is the classiest :)

Saturday, October 30, 2010

Saturday Show Off: Mint Green Red Eyed Tree Frog and Grey Elephant Pendant!

Mint green body, orange feet, blue thighs, yellow and black accents on his sides, and red eyes make him one of my most complex frogs yet. He's a test frog for a custom order I'm working on, and I'm uber-proud of him so far :) Paul suggested I make the feet separately and attach them on after the body is done, so I may try that on the next one.
Also new on the block: this Grey Elephant Pendant

He's a sculpture and a pendant!  I love making pendant animals that can stand on their own, it really helps show them off at our Farmer's Market booth :) 

Friday, October 29, 2010

Fire Divas Quarterly Jewelry Challenge: Holidays! RESULTS!!!

We have a winner!  This quarter's Jewelry Challenge winner: R. Scott Bjorge of Accente.  Congratulations Scott!  Here's his first-place-winning jewelry challenge entry (using the spider he designed that I made!):

Char Black Widow Necklace by R. Scott Bjorge of Accente
From the Fire Divas Challenge entry:
"Sitting in a dark corner we find Char our Black Widow Spider, designed by Patrice of Shepherd Creations. Char awaits her prey perched upon a patina copper web surrounded by aqua colored glow beads, designed by Janel of Janel Dudley Beads.
Our sexy spider loves Halloween but is secured in a manner that she can be removed and another focal piece can be designed for year around wearing."

Fortunately, there are also second and third place winners: 


"Bracelet made with olive green bead set by Fire Diva Holly Dare, brushed vermeil heart beads, lampwork red & green dotted bead, 10mm and 6mm green fire polish beads, gold spacers, bead caps, branch drop and gold vermeil filigree clasp.
My inspiration is from The Grinch Who Stole Christmas.
"And what happened then? Well, in Whoville they say that the Grinch's small heart grew three sizes that day."
The bracelet depicts the Grinch's transformation, while the dotted lampwork bead on the clasp represents the Whos. The gold branch is the horn the Grinch tied on his dog Max’s head.
What would the holidays be without watching all those wonderful TV specials we grew up with?"




"This necklace was inspired by the focal bead, "Monstrous Algae" by Melanie of Arensea. The beadwork is netting strung on soft flex wire with brass findings and swarovski crystals."

Great job, jewelry artists!  Enjoy your prizes, and remember to enter your goodies in the next quarter's challenge for another chance to win :)

Monday, October 25, 2010

Fire Divas Quarterly Jewelry Challenge: Holidays!

Ok, so many of you may already be aware that this awesome group of talented glassy ladies I belong to hosts a Jewelry Challenge quarterly... but did you know that voting ends tomorrow?  Go vote please!  Here is a link to the entries so you can see what to vote for: Fire Divas Holiday Jewelry Challenge Entries.  Recognize one of those beads?  I'm not saying you have to vote for that one, but please vote for your favorite holiday-inspired piece of jewelry art and help get the voting participation up.  If elected, that bead will... just be gorgeous.  No promises for tax breaks or anything! 

Here is a preview of the entries, but you have to visit the blog for better photos:




Ok, now that you've caught a glimpse of what's up for voting, go vote!  The winner gets to enjoy a shopping spree in the Fire Divas shops, details over in the Fire Divas blog :)  Thanks for voting! (I know you will :P )

Saturday, October 23, 2010

Saturday Show-Off for October 23rd, 2010

Happy Saturday! We had a very productive day out in the studio, and while those are cooling off, feast your eyes on these new insects! (I know the spider isn't an insect, but we still lump them in for our purposes!)

Yellow Bumblebee Pendant

Amber-Wing Cobalt Dragonfly Pendant

Red and Black Ladybug Pendant

Goofy Skull Spider Pendant
Thanks for visiting, and I'll see you back here for more glassy updates :)

Sunday, October 10, 2010

Show Updates for the Fall of 2010

Wow, so we're slated to do eight (8!) shows this month. That's a lot for us, so expect to see me on here even less :P We're excited to be in that many shows and markets, and we need to bust out some new fresh designs to keep up with sales. I made some lovely new dragonflies recently, and those should be up here soon. Our pumpkins sold out, the vampire bat is still here, but not for long :)

The newest show in our schedule was yesterday, at the Riverside Canyon Crest Towne Centre Art Walk. We were among good company of other local artists with wood work, paintings, ceramics, prints, sculpted flowers, jewelry, and embroidery. Sorry if I missed anyone, Paul's tummy wasn't feeling well and I couldn't leave as often as I'd like to go visiting. It was a nice show day, and we enjoyed the weather, customers, and good lunch. Our glass art also had plenty of sunlight, and that always helps!

I had a few new custom orders that turned out well, including a set of dichroic hearts by Paul for earrings to match his previous pendant, and an Eastern Star from me for a nice young lady. Photos should hit our site soon, as that was rather tough to make a star.

The Riverside Certified Farmer's Market is still doing well, and it's full of vendors this month. Our loyal repeat customers (you know who you are! :) ) keep coming back and perusing our newest wares, oftentimes buying glass I've only just made the day before!

Well, this is only our second year of shows, but we're mighty excited to enter the second Christmas season for our glass, because it is so nice to hear someone say they are giving your handmade animals to someone else as a gift for Christmas. Nice enough to hear it's a birthday gift, but even better for Christmas. Thanks for the compliments, it's always nice to have your work appreciated :o).

Saturday, September 25, 2010

New Art Fire Collection: Fire Divas Summer Colors!

Happy Saturday!  Here's my first collection created on Art Fire, and it's to showcase Fire Divas summer colors and styles.  I love fall and am truly a winter person in many ways, but each season deserves to be celebrated, right?




Thanks for looking at our goodies!

Monday, September 20, 2010

Fire Divas Quarterly Jewelry Challenge: Entries due October 15!

For all you bead connoisseurs out there, the Fire Divas are hosting another Jewelry Challenge! For this challenge, the theme is "The Holiday Season." There are several holidays coming up, and we want to celebrate them! You can see holiday-inspired Fire Diva creations on our Flickr page. By entering this challenge, you have the chance to win:



All submissions must feature Fire Divas' lampwork. We require the name of the Fire Diva who made the beads used in the submitted piece, so if you submit something, please be ready to provide that information.

We will allow one submission per person per contest, and a maximum of two photos per submission. Entries may be submitted here (http://www.flickr.com/groups/firedivachallenge/) for approval, no later than October 15, 2010. No Flickr account? No problem. You can also email your submissions to firedivas @ gmail . com (no spaces). Please include, in the comments section or in your email, the following:
Information about the beads:
Description of the piece:
Inspiration for the piece:
Submissions will not be approved without all of this information.

Fire Divas reserve the right to approve or reject any submissions.
Fire Divas reserve the right to modify or cancel the challenge at any time.
The winners will be determined by an open poll which does not allow multiple votes.

So... If you've been stashing away your lovelies and would like to make a holiday jewelry entry, do it now!  You've got nothing to lose and some fabulous prizes to gain.  Come on, bead people, I want to see what you've been up to with all those beads you're buying from my booth!