winged heart

i have mentioned this before, the last bead i make almost everytime i am lucky enough to get some torch time is a large heart. in studio glass making these are traditionally called 'end of the day' pieces.



this is my all time favorite.



what's it made of? bits of stringers, the impatiently popped off ends of rods, short shorts and leftover frit. it is about 1 1/2" long. the wings are applied last (yes, it's tricky) and shaped with tweezers.

halloween pumpkin

look at the leaf 'imprint' on this gorgeous pumpkin.

1933 Betty Boop Halloween Cartoon

pairs & pairs & pairs

making pairs of beads for earrings.
you know i have those holiday shows & presents to make.



evil pods - dark silver plum, ivory, edp & silver leaf



lilies - opalino yellow, raku frit with a opaque uranium yellow ruffle



lilies - special dark brown, raku frit & anice white with a transparent red ruffle.



lilies - cobalt blue & edp with a transparent blue ruffle.



alien candy - edp & raku encased in clear.



dark waves - dark silver plum & opalino yellow.
this is a great combination - see the faint like of silver where the colors meet? i can't wait to make a whole set with these two colors.



anice white & intense black - my first attempt at this classic pairing.

solid potato salad

"solid potato salad!" (1944)

watch it all the way... it gets weirder and weirder...

yes, i had a fabulous afternoon at the torch.

since i have nothing new to show, let me show you someone else's beads.

these are just extraordinary!

melanie moertel

coral blossoms

a great shape for earrings.



coral & dark ivory, just that simple.

i adore halloween

i adore halloween.

a pair of pods for earrings.

seed pods with transparent centers of straw yellow & light topaz, with intense black tendrils & dark ivory spots.

topaz stone

a large focal bicone, 2 1/4" long.
a center of dark ivory, sage, coral, some sort of very fine mysterious brown frit & intense black - heavily encased with light topaz and straw yellow. after encasing i used the side of a blade to give this bead dozens of hand facets so that it just sparkles and sparkles.

what am i listening to on this cold, dark and rainy day?
rufus wainwright - "across the universe"

lipstick & smoke

another bead from monday's session at the torch.
this barrel shaped focal bead is 2 3/4" long.

coral, sage, dark ivory & intense black encased in straw yellow.

what am i listening to?

antony & the johnsons - bird guhl

coral whorls

this barrel focal bead is almost 2 1/4" long.



coral, dark ivory, intense black & light topaz



i made 5 monster sized focals monday evening, all over 2" long, more pics tomorrow.

big sigh...

aaahhh, finally, i got to the torch yesterday.
two weeks without flame?
of course i was cranky.

i haven't seen them yet, they're still in the kiln,
but baby, they're huge.
in the meantime, until i get them cleaned and photographed.
here are some autumn entertainment links ...

"the saddest music in the world"
the guild of funerary violinists
the perfect soundtrack for this cold, clammy, gray weather.

and to balance out the somber -
and because the neighborhood squirrels have lost their minds.
photographing squirrels

gratuitous photographs of the family dogs

napoleon p. oodle



kiki p. oodle (named after kiki de montparnasse, not kiki dee)

overly long barrel bead

'vinyard song'

a 2 1/4" long barrel bead.
dark ivory on each end with a line of silvered ivory stringer.
in the middle- raku frit on olive green encased with transparent olive green.

a whole neckace of these would be great...

gray waves

a small set, perfect for a bracelet.
gray waves.



first, make a round bead with dark ivory on one side and opaque dark gray on the other.
then, add a line of silvered ivory stringer around the middle and twist using an ivory stringer.
finally, gently pancake flatten the bead into a lozenge shape and bake.

the color gray is so elegant, more beads should be made with it.

dessert tulips

these are sort of like tulips, if you filled a white tulip up with soft strawberry mousse.



they are made with a center of rose quartz from messy glass and that was wrapped, and shaped, with a coating of plain old moretti white.

twisted hearts

one of my favorite shapes to make is a twisted heart.

the first one was an accident, i merged two spacers i was trying to make on the same mandrel. never one to admit defeat at the flame i smudged on some more glass and gave the thing a little twist at the end...
and viola - my twisted heart.

here's a somewhat pathetic how-to from my bead sketchbook.



1. make bead #1
2. make bead # 2, leaving a small space between them.
3. make a nice ball of glass at the end of your rod and touch it to the far left underside of the left bead.
4. gently paint the glass over to the far right of the right bead, and then back to the left bead and down to a point, then flame cut the rod from the bead.
*remember to keep flashing it all in and out of the flame so it doesn't crack*



5. now the bead should look something like a drippy, lumpen heart.
6. heat the bottom half of the heart until pliable. grasp the tip of the heart with your tweezers, as if you were going to make a twistie, and give the end a couple of turns and release your tweezers.
7. flame polish and flame anneal, then into the kiln.

examples:

carnelian long blossoms

these are made from my favorite color of glass - opalino carnelian.




each bead is 1 1/4" long and has a ruffle of encased adventurine.
they are going to be some beautiful earrings.

thankyou, thankyou

thanks to all my friends who came to the public market today for artist's row and hung with me.

thanks to all the complete strangers who wanted to buy a pair of my earrings, loose beads or some bit of my flameworked glass.

but,
thanks above all to the complete strangers who bought my paintings. there is nothing more incredible than when someone you don't know wants one of your images in their home.

p.s. thanks to 'lady nature' for keeping the rain away, no matter that the forecast called for precipitation all day.

p.p.s thanks to maria friske for, once again, running this marvelous event with the help of the friends of the public market.