I have not felt very much like writing….
Sorry
In my defense, the main reason that I am not writing is that
I feel I am focusing too much of this blog on glass right now. Quilting is my main love – always will be.
So, why am I not writing about quilting…?
Two reasons: First, I
finished a quilt for my granddaughter Cassidy and I forgot to take a picture of
it… and I keep forgetting to ask her mother – my daughter Elinor – to take a
picture. I feel bad about it, and do not
want to describe the quilt and/or talk about it without the picture
Second: I have a
special project that I am working on; something way out of my comfort zone that
is a present for someone special. That
person probably reads this blog, so I cannot write about it.
Soon, really soon….
I promise
Trip to Phoenix
I went to Phoenix recently to meet my granddaughter and to
see her parents. They all live with the
other grandparents and it is a close-knit Hispanic family (they better speak
Spanish around the little type so she grows up bilingual!!!). I felt it proper (and wanted to) bring
presents to everyone. What is a better
present than handmade items? Nothing.
The quilt that I made for Cassidy was brought. I also picked out a full sized quilt from the
stash for the other Grandma – my counterpart.
For the great Grandma, I brought a table runner, but one that I did with
very intricate quilting. I have gotten
word that the gifts are much appreciated.
My daughter had long admired the glass “leaf” bowls that I
have made. Again, forgot to take a
picture.
Here is a picture of a similar one. The difference is that the glass I used for
the one for my Elinor also had flakes of pink glass in it.
I wrapped the bowl in a towel, and packed the whole bit into
my carry-on.
It survived!!!
(However, I think I left the towel – one of our best –
behind. Do not tell my husband)
I also picked out some glass - a handful of pendants for
gifts for the other females in the family, and an earring and pendant set for
my daughter. However, true to Mary
fashion, they remained on the dining room table while I traveled…. <sad
face>. I managed to finally put them
into the mail a couple of days ago.
Glass
Despite working diligently on my special quilting project, I
am still putting in a few hours each week on glass-work. Honestly, my glass-work is similar to my
quilting – it is all about color!
My Stuff Is In a
Shop!
Hear ye, hear ye!
Mary Schwartz’s glass art is officially represented and for
sale!
I even signed a contract.
Background: The
Studio at Rush Creek, where I take classes and spend Friday nights doing “Studio
Time,” is multi-functional. There is a
studio area for free time or organized classes, a coffee shop and a gift
shop. There is art everywhere, and much
of it is for sale. Karen is the owner
and she is a fan of mine.
Seriously though, not that big a deal. Karen asked me to give her 10-12 of my
millefiori pendants to put on consignment.
I did so last week, and this week I saw them displayed there.
A bit of a rush….
I am proud of myself.
Compare Pieces
While browsing Pinterest, I found this glass piece:
They say that imitation is the most sincere form of flattery…..
So here is my flattery to that artist!
Let me tell you a little about it.
The mauve glass is a very expensive piece of hand rolled
glass that I treated myself to. I made a
leaf bowl out of it (combined with white) and then some jewelry pieces. I was not 100% happy with the leaf bowl and
wanted to make something else that was spectacular. Karen had a wavy mold at the Studio, so I
decided to give it a go.
A slight problem arose with the accent color in the
piece. The hand rolled is 90 COE
glass. I’m trying to divest myself of 90
– except for specialty pieces – and I've never bought any noodles or stringers
(basically pre-made pieces of glass that look like fettuccine (noodles) and
spaghetti (stringers)) in 90 COE. Therefore,
I had to come up with something.
It is hard to cut glass thin. In fact, you cannot cut it narrower than it
is thick, and I wanted these pieces narrow.
I had very few choices. The sea
foam green was my favorite. I had to cut
MANY pieces to get enough narrow strips.
It was arduous, but I did it!!
When I picked up the piece, I was thrilled. It turned out as spectacular as I wanted and I
am now glad I spent the money on the mauve glass that I did. I still have an approximately 8 x 8 piece of
it and I am trying to think of something else.
Not rushing into it though…. Gotta think hard on it.
Coral Bowl
See here for a picture of a style of a glass bowl called “Coral”
Since its Etsy, I am assuming that it is OK to link to it. Not downloading and including here, and not
claiming to be my own.
As I have mentioned quite a few times, I am trying to use up
all my bits and pieces of 90 COE glass and only use 96 from now on. I decided to try making a similar bowl. If it turns out, I will make several more.
Here is the kiln, pre-firing, picture:
As you can see, I am going for less of a coral look, and
more of a unique look. I want gaps and
fun edges, but I also want some color and dimension beyond the simple look.
I will post a post-firing picture of this next week… I
promise!
MarsCon
Besides being an artist, I am also a geek. “Cons” (short for Convention, but Con is the
widely used term), are gatherings for Sci-Fi lovers, Gamers, Anime fans,
etc. There are a variety of activities,
panels, displays, and more at them.
MarsCon is in two weeks, it is local, and it has an art
show/auction. Brandie and I have decided
that we are each going to put some pieces in.
Help me decide….
- One of my large (8 x 24) panels of glass. The ones I do that I call “My Style” – the bits and pieces of all shapes and sized put together.
- A “Coral” bowl. I have to come up with a name for them since they will be a slightly different style than coral. I figure that they will be a good choice because I am trying to add dimension and color in unusual ways – something that would appeal to alternative people more.
- Some of my millefiori jewelry pieces – ones that are more vibrant colors and styles, nothing “soft” or floral. I am not sure if the art show allows jewelry.
- Quilting? What do you think? It is art, but this is a different crowd. I am thinking of going through my smaller.
Miscellaneous
Some glass pictures – all pre-fired in the kiln:
I have been filling the jewelry kiln every Friday lately! It is a small round kiln, and it is $8.00 for
the whole thing versus $0.50 for EACH jewelry piece in the larger kilns. Since I have been working with some TINY
pieces, this is a far better deal. The
pieces in here are larger than the last couple times; one time, I counted
SEVENTY (70) pieces!
Here are some comments
- Upper left, and middle right, the ones that look like solid colors – these are pre-cuts in 90 COE that I got a long time ago. I am making “beads” out of them to use with other more intricate pieces.
- Top middle – pieces that look like rows of circles, and also starting at the lime green/orange piece in the middle, that one, three more down, and one to the left. These are all 90 COE and cut up pieces of 90 COE rods. I am trying to use up ALL my bits and pieces.
- The two to the left of the lime green/orange – random bits put onto more of the pre-cut 90 COE. I used the pre-cuts as a base, and then scraps, including rod circles
- Bottom right section – second firings for some millefiori pieces. Most of them are pieces that had weird edges and I ground them. This is to be a “fire-polishing” to eliminate the grind marks.
A smaller version of the “wave” piece mentioned above.
One of my “My Style”
pieces. This one is far more
intricate. I’m trying to use up little
bits and pices of 90, as well as trying to be creative
Now, this one is creative and
I’m really wondering how it will turn out!
I’m using up pre-cuts and rods.
The lines in here are ¼” wide strips that I got in tubes from the glass
place. Then, I cut up three different
purple rods (LOTS of work and my hand hurts), and arranged them in order.
