Important points!

I have started acupuncture treatments in hopes of relieving the discomfort of failing thumbs, what an interesting journey. The couple that run The People's Acupuncture Clinic are delightful, I have another appointment New Years Day. I find it to be a good reminder to consider the whole organism.... body, mind and spirit and the necessary balance.

I have been enjoying time in the studio, doing some preparatory work for upcoming events, teaching at Heritage Glass where I will be teaching two days of Intro to Borosilicate Glass and a day of Sculptural Feltmaking, followed up by traveling down to Baltimore (anyone coming to D.C. for the inaguration???) for the Baltimore Bead Society show.

And then......Tucson bound!!! Anne Mitchell and I will be teaching a wonderful metals workshop on both the 2nd and 11th of February. These classes will be held at her studio in Tucson on either side of The Whole Bead Show which is at the Windmill Inn and will run from Feb. 4-9 (where we will both be exhibiting). I will be debuting some great new kits!

Pods and potential....

I think that this is why I find the pod form so intriguing, it is the absolute potential therein that I can consider.

I hope everyone has a special day.

From my house to yours...let there be love, wisdom and clarity in all of your encounters!

This day....

This pretty much sums it up, this is my house this time of year. It has climbed out of the single digits and is quite beautiful outside...if you like it like this, that is. Sunny, cold, white, insulated, quiet.

more weather!

As I opened my front door this site awaited me, and then I opened this door to find plenty of snow. My husband, Michael, has headed out to try out his new/old plow. He has always used an antique tractor that we have but had to go in reverse the whole time, inevitably harboring a crink in his back. Looks good so far.

I was just checking in with my friend Dustin. He had been working on a flameworking tutorial. It is now finished and so well done, I might add. He offers clear, concise directions with beautiful pictures to accompany each step. Hop on over to his site and order up a copy!

Ornaments~Pendants?

so much fun is being had in my studio!!!!

Who will be in Texas?

Let's start the year off right! Come explore a whole new material.

I will be at Heritage Glass in Texas January 9,10 and 11. The 9th and 10th will be single day classes each will be slightly different, both an introduction to Borosilicate glass. The Saturday class still has open seats. If you have the time and inclination go to Mollys site and sign up! I seldom teach glass classes so if you are in the area or want an introduction to this fine material , come join us!

Sunday will be an overview of the many ways that you can manipulate wool fleece into a sculptural vehicle, we will use several wet felting techniques and then needle felt the surface for maximum control. Results varying according to students motivations!

It was fun for awhile.....

The ice encapsulated my world.

And kept electricity at bay on and off...and the internet up until now was unavailable.

It is amazing what a critical and particular temperature can do. As affected as we were there are so many people that have been affected much more significantly. My friend Louise will be w/o electricity at least until Thursday, she said that 5 utility poles were down on her road. Every tree had lost at least 1 branch.

As I watched the rain come down and freeze all around I knew we were in for trouble but I also knew that if conditions were shifted ever so slightly the ice would have been thicker and more damaging.

now I try to get back 'in the groove'. My email program has gone kaput. frustrating.

Think I'll go to the movies to see 'Slumdog Millionaire"......AGAIN, catch it if you can, really.

The weather will always win.

Weather conditions here in the northeast are less than ideal. Fun though. went to the sweet party next door last night as the storm started to pick up a pattern and awoke to the trees covered in ice, occasionally dropping their load on the house making way for more. A weather day with no power! All bets are off when your day is altered so drastically. Can't tell you how many times I flipped a dead switch or thought about what I was going to do next only to be foiled with the reality of the situation. Michael and I have trundled off to gather up water, grab a Mellita so there is coffee in the morning and log on for a few minutes.

The candles are out and will be accessible upon returning home. It might be awhile before we get power again. There were many trees down and wires across roads, etc.

For today I've thoroughly enjoyed the 'interruption' in my daily, 'take it for granted' world.

I had a lovely time yesterday....

Yesterday I had visitors...out in my studio, not a frequent event. I so enjoyed sharing my space with two fabulous and like minded artists. Soni said to me when I asked her if she had trouble reconciling the 'state of whirlwind' that accompanies a particularly fertile and productive time, she said, 'no, I just use a yardstick and push back the margins so I can keep on working'. This was referring to the mountains and piles that accrue as I (we) ransack my (our) space(s) to pull out more, different, and varied materials!

As different and separate as I sometimes feel it is touching to realize that we as artists face a unique set of challenges, over and over I hear , 'if I can't see it I forget that I have it to work with'. So, The piles get higher, they start to tumble and I need to remind myself to say... "so what"!, and clean up when that need outweighs the need to create.

This picture is one in a series of ornaments or pendants that I am making, what fun. This one will come along this evening as we go to a holiday party and will live on our neighbors tree.

When you can't get what you want.....

I can't stop messing with my images. In trying to do something I have been doing a whole lot of nothing other than gathering pleasure with the alteration of some images. Simple pasttimes...just my speed.

I'm always amazed....

The array of wonder that overtakes me when I get lost in the vastness on the internet. So cool.

When limitations prevail......

Doesn't it seem as though when limitations strike you just want to use what is being limited???? I am speaking of my hands.....
when they are the sorest and I wonder what I am going to do about their limited mobility I am flooded with ideas, the more intricate, the more exciting! Anybody out there with a successful plan, strategy, solution to arthritic thumbs?

On a more hopeful note......and an exciting prospect...these pictures are just one possibility in the realm of infinite possibilities of what you might choose to do in the class that Anne Mitchell and I have cooked up in Tucson, with two dates surrounding the Whole Bead Show. This link will take you right to a full description and a way to sign up for a day of fun and ways to bend and stretch metal into what you might want to say!

I am having a delightful time altering the shape of pre-existing stampings and adding pigments, throwing in some seed beads and sequins, fusing some fine silver and wah-la, a pendant from another world. In these times of creative abundance I must take the time to record my ideas as they happen much faster than my hands can keep up!