Bird Party

I have four new, big oil paintings hanging in a coffee shop at the Rochester Public Market.

They are all from photographs I took of the shore birds at Irondequoit Bay in Rochester, New York..
Each canvas is 40" x 60"

Simply Waiting

Simple, simple earrings.

Waiting for winter to loosen up and for a spring rain.

For the snow to become beautiful water.

'Spring Rain' earrings : hammered sterling silver earrings with lampwork glass beads.
The beads have opalino sky blue cores, rolled in Double Helix 'Psyche' frit and encased in pale aqua.

Charms

Messing around making charms.

An acorn charm with glass, stoneware, pearls and brass.

I started by making the glass part of the nut on a 16 gauge brass wire
The little acorn cap I made a friend's ceramic studio.
Lastly an untidy wrap of tiny, tiny rice pearls.

Yes, it looks like something that you would find in the grass on a lucky walk in October.

In The Pink

I went on a button making binge one day last week.

Getting ready for spring.

I got a wee bit too much 2-part epoxy on this one, but this is the way I make shank buttons.
You can make buttons by embedding the metal shank in the molten glass.
The reason I do it this way is that I can use all sort of pretty colors of 18 gauge wire for my shanks.

My favorite was just plain transparent cobalt blue with silver foil.

Working on building up a nice inventory of these for an event in April.
I'm going on vacation with a bunch of quilters - and those ladies love their buttons.

Yellow Moons

Yellow moon earrings.
Big hollow translucent yellow orbs and sterling silver.

I love this glass - it's called 'yellow translucent odd.'
You can see in the close up that you can just about see through it - it's mysterious stuff.

The earrings were inspired by the Neville Brothers song 'Yellow Moon."
A favorite of mine.

Squirrely Snacks

The silly squirrels finally found that old pumpkin.
Yesterday they gnawed it open and completely cleaned it out, there is nothing at all left inside.

Water Garden

A large capped and cored big hole bead.

The glass bead has an opal blue center with iridescent, mirror blue spots that have green highlights. There are trails of fine sterling silver that have blushed gold and trapped air bubbles under a thick encasement of clear glass.

The bead caps are hand decorated copper and the core is sterling silver.

It reminds me of Monet's paintings of his waterlily gardens.

Swamp Witch

A big hole bead with hand decorated brass bead caps and a brass core. The caps have X X Xs hand stamped on one side and O O Os on the other, for hugs and kisses. The glass bead is a murky, watery, swampy thing - all transparent shades of transparent olive and honey with bubbles floating around in it.

Perfect for that swamp witch in your life who cast her bayou spell on you.

Feel the Love

Mr. Big Stuff and I exchanged love tokens this morning - he got a fancy, new, gold plated harmonica and I a big heart shaped box of scrumptious coconut filled chocolates. Seems about right. Happy Valentine's day!

Little Black Birds

Something new, bird charms.
This one is a little, iridescent, blue/black crow. Made on the end of a mandrel, with a pewter bail epoxied in.

He would be perfect on a charm bracelet.
There are all kinds of new beads, and jewelry, up in my Belvedere etsy shop.

This is my little bird, a very glam miniature poodle named Kiki.

Unicorn Lover

Miss Margaret loves her unicorns.

It's a Valentine that I just couldn't wait to give her.

A giant lobster claw clasp, a glass heart charm, some colored jump rings and a brass unicorn charm.

Heart of Stone

What would you call it? A purse charm, a purse fob, purse jewelry?
By any name, you decorate your bag with it, the giant lobster claw goes on your handbag's hardware.

I have been making these charms like mad.
They're fun, quick and use up lots of odd, leftover things in your bead stash.
Besides the glass heart charm, this one has a bit of fancy fringed chain and a hunk of galena.

The heart was made off mandrel and is dark ivory glass and fine silver foil.
It is available in my Belvedere etsy shop.

And yes, it snowed here.

And then it snowed some more.

It's a nasty fairyland out there this morning.

So much shoveling.

This the view down my street and my snowed-in home.

I love this snapshot. One of the patio chairs with a fresh, fluffy upholstery job.

Honey Bunch

A new batch of Pandora style beads.

Including a "Honey" and a "Sweet Dreamer" just in time for Valentine's day.

And my favorite, an Amanita Muscaria (the red and white polka dotted mushroom) themed bead.
I have a crush on these fairytale mushrooms - check out this pinterest board devoted to them... here.