I am trying to remember the feeling of the holidays when I was young. It was such a magical time. Glimpses of tinsel, and smell of cookies, frantically unwrapping gifts, staying up past my bedtime and visiting with family. I must remember to provide those special moments for my children.
Life can get so busy...those chance moments can slip by.
The video is a bit dark, but here is a moment that I captured today...
my two little ones dancing in front of our Christmas tree.
'Simply having a wonderful Christmas time.....'
lomo leaf
I've been away from my computer and out in nature. The leaves are falling fast here in Connecticut. Autumn is my favorite time of year until the leaves actually leave the trees completely. The brilliant orange leaves glow against the gray skies of October.
Printing Inspiration
I've had a hard time following my last post with anything. It has been over a month and I am ready to write again.
I have just gotten some new enamel paints that I have been experimenting with. I am able to form more delicate lines and detail. To the point where I can draw an original line illustration directly onto the glass. Once fired in my kiln, the painting becomes a permanent picture in the glass. You cannot fire enamels too hot, or they will bake away. I've been capping my pendants with clear glass to help preserve the hand painted image. This can sometimes lead to a cool bubbling effect with the painted image. Opening the kiln is always an exciting moment.
I've been sincerely trying to take in my surroundings. As always, I gravitate towards nature. Images of trees and flowers are prominent in my work. I've also been searching out and enjoying the works of fellow artists. Printmakers and fabric designers are so inspiring, especially their use of line and colors. I've been playing with pairing like colors together. It can give such a peaceful image. It reminds me of printing on fabrics. A simple illustration created in a rich dye coming to life on colorful cloth. I hope to travel this experimental road a bit further. Keep you posted.
Sebcoe Dog
I am still quite numb from the past 24 hours. I can't get a handle on my feelings, one minute I'm incredibly sad, tearful, dumb founded, heartbroken, nostalgic, tearful again.... All I can say at this time is that I miss my dog. This was a complete shock. He was truly the greatest and brought so much happiness to my family. Once the kids came ol' boy, you got lost in the shuffle, but accepted it with grace. We'll miss your velvety ears, quick running pace, and hearing you sing along to 'Who let the dogs out'. Hope you are up there swimming in a beautiful lake with fellow labs, having a great time. You are free of your cancer now.
Sebcoe
Feb.2001 -June 2008
Silver Posies
I really love the use of wire in my fused glass pieces. But the control of unwanted bubbles has been a challenge. I've tried different temps in the kiln, adjusting heating times, prolonging hold times, you name it. I invite the cute bubbles, but all you need is one big, unwanted bubble to ruin your design completely. I discovered a happy little mistake the other day. I had done my usual set up with the layers of glass- starting with a base piece, my wire design, and a cap layer of clear glass. When I removed the pieces from my kiln, I discovered that my top clear layer of glass had slid to the side during the fusing process on one of my pendants. Well the area that was exposed with my wire sunk a bit into the glass just a bit. Now, I am thinking there might be a way to perfect a topless wire fuse. So I'm off to experiment more with wire as a surface embellishment. I'll keep ya posted.
10 deep breaths
I can't believe we are at the end of May already. My last several weeks have been stolen by the sickies. Two sick children can drain minutes and hours away into thin air, dissolving all hopes to get anything accomplished. Funny how this happens to follow my sweet Mother's Day tribute. I've taken a photo of this great little flip book I received for my Birthday from a wise friend. I pick a new page each day to warn my husband of my mood. It's been a great tool in our communication. At least I'm poignantly getting my point across. That is what's important ,...isn't it? I better get another cup of tea, take 10 deep breaths and begin the day with renewed faith. The coughs have quieted and we may just attempt to visit a greenhouse today to start our veggie garden. The sun is shining- one.....two......three........ I'm feeling better already.
Mother's Day
Every year Mother's Day means more to me than the year before. I know it changed once I became a Mom, but theres more to it than that. More of my fellow girlfriends, sister-in-laws and co-workers are becoming Moms, so the network surrounding me is also becoming bigger. It's like you've finally earned a membership into the club, and you are automatically bonded with fellow Moms for life. You talk about poop and leaky boobs without batting an eye.
My view on my Mom has changed. She is more appreciated with each year that I am mothering my own two children. She's has moved to where the winters are warm and she is deeply missed. My best friend is expecting her first child this fall. She is going through testing and screenings to ensure a safe and healthy term for her baby girl. I know women who have tried, but could not be mothers. I've also seen Mothers that wished they weren't. It is such a demanding and thankless job.
Today, I'm quietly examining the dynamics of my family. My 4 year old son has appeared to grow another inch over night officially making all but one pair of pants into highwaters, and my 2 year old daughter was groovin' to Lily Allen on the radio with such spunk I was almost jealous.
I can see how important a Mother really is, and I see how important children are as well.
Thanks everyone for coming!
What an excellent day today- My free mosaic demo went great. A lot of fabulous people came to learn about the mosaic process, sign up for my May workshop, and give me support. A sincere thanks for coming and I'll see you in a couple of weeks at Meiklem Kilnworks for a hands on garden mosaic class. The class is the last 3 Thursdays in May. Everyone will mosaic their very own garden bowl. Gotta love original artwork. Can't wait!
Big Thanks also go out to Hart's Greenhouse & Florist for hosting such a fun day.
Big Thanks also go out to Hart's Greenhouse & Florist for hosting such a fun day.
Free Mosaic Demo
Anyone in the area this Saturday, please stop by between 11 am and 1 pm on
April 26th I'll be at
Hart's Greenhouse
43 Clinton Ave.
Norwich, CT 06360
(860) 886- ROSE
I'll be in action working on an original garden bowl design. We'll see how much room I have, but I also plan on grouting, cleaning and polishing the garden bowl. I'll be getting my hands dirty as usual. I plan on having as much fun as possible without a glass of wine.
Grout time
I've actually been a way from the computer a bit. I've had my hands in concrete, glass shards and grout. That would really gum up my keyboard if I were to type. I'm getting ready for my mosaic demonstration at the greenhouse in a week and a half. I just grouted the 2 garden bowls I had covered with glass and pottery pieces. I'm happy with the charcoal black colored grout against the vibrant stained glass in the Disco Road Garden Bowl.
The Circles Garden Bowl looks softer with grayish blue grout. The immediate center is lost a little, but I really like how the outer circles fade into the edge. It reminds me of a geode- a plain looking rock on the outside, then crack it open to find a colorful treasure. I'd like to experiment with more color combinations. The average size of these garden bowls have been approximately 15 inches to 18 inches across. I hope to make some larger bowls as well. This will give more surface area to actually create a pictorial design. The larger bowls will definitely be heavier, but they would be perfect for a birdbath perched on a rock in a garden.
My treasury
I got to pick a treasury today of all the beautiful artists I've recently seen. I've been exploring other's blogs and decided to send out some props to my fellow Etsy artists. I am amazed everyday by their talent.
EJ at Beach 2007
I was checking out my fabulous friends at FLickr, and noticed a few people mentioning words like LOMO and DUMPR. Well, I wasn't at all familiar with these terms, so I set out to explore a bit further. I immediately found the coolest website, Dumpr.net, and 2 hours and 50 photographs later, I've found another addiction to chip away at my "free" time. What a blast! So, here is the Lomo effect on a picture of my son taken this past summer. "Lomography deals with photoshooting using LOMO cameras. These are russian camera makes who make a color-intensive and blurry lenses. Nowadays, lomography is art and you are welcome to participate!" as stated in their website. It's really cool... Yeah- Dumpr.net, everybody's doing it....
Branches & Blossoms
A new batch of my hand painted fused glass pendants just came out of the kiln. I am excited to share them. I've been looking through all those home decor catalogs I've been receiving in the mail. Scouring through the pages of all the gorgeous things I don't have. Wondering...who really gets to live in those houses with all those things... maybe someday. Ya know what? I can create beautiful things myself. So why not rejoice in the trendy spring colors that they call Melon and Crisp Blue...
I have focused on spring flowering branches. White blooms dancing along stark brown, twisting branches. I hand painted the flowers on melon green, crisp blue and the palest pink glass I could find. * smile to myself * Let me know what you think.
Leaf Castings
I'm really hoping to be able to work with concrete more this spring. I've really enjoyed making leaf casting over the past 2 years. I'm from New England, and have only a window of time to use leaves in our area. Not too many tropical plants with giant leaves grow in my yard. I try to grab all my large leaves before the bugs eat their way through them, making their own designs that never seem to coincide with what I'm trying to create. I've found that rhubarb is one of my favorites. It's got decent surface space and raised and textured veins that show up great in the cement. Hosta leaves, cabbage, arrowleaf ferns all are fun too. I prefer a more dimensional look to my castings, but you can also try banana leaves and large elephant ears. I am also experimenting with coloring the leaves. I've tinted the cement, and I've also painted the leaves after they've cured. Some of the most brilliant leaves I've seen in art books are colored with pure pigments. I haven't tried that just yet. It's on the list. And that list is long...
The next batch of leaves I cast, I'll try to take some photos of the actual process. It's a down and dirty one indeed. I always seem to gravitate toward the messy projects.
Where's the warmth?
Spring Gods.
I really need to get out there and pour some concrete and make some more cement castings. It's no fun slapping concrete when it's just about 40 degrees out.
Come on...I'll even pick out the sticky ones!
Visiting Artist Series
I'm very excited to be working on a few mosaics for the spring. I'm also getting ready for my new Visiting Artist Series which includes a few demonstrations and workshops at some local venues. My first outing is a FREE demonstration the last week in April at Hart's Greenhouse & Florist in Norwich, CT. I actually worked there for many years and they sincerely have the best flowers and plants around. On Saturday April 26th, 2007 between 11 am and 1 pm I'll be demonstrating mosaic techniques such as cutting tile and glass, adhesives, applying grout, sealing and polishing an original piece of my garden art. What fun! I'll also have my artwork on display for that weekend only. I plan to bring my mosaic garden art, birdbath bowls, cast concrete leaves and my fused glass jewelry. I'm hoping for some nice weather and a great crowd.
If your in the area stop by Hart's greenhouse & Florist
43 Clinton Ave. Norwich, CT 06330 (860) 886-4278
or if you're interested in a workshop or demo,
contact me at artsaladstudio@yahoo.com
My cat's boyfriend
My cat Sophie absolutely loves our
dog Sebbie. I just get a kick out of her.
She doesn't like our other cat...
noooo,
she perfers the tall, dark, and handsome
type I guess.
Actually,
so do I.
Get your smile back
Today was a day to attempt to finish up my loose ends. I did my best by following up on emails, re-photographing my fused glass pendants for my shop ( and didn't end up with anything better after all that work), pleaded with friends to give me feedback on my shop and artwork, started thank you notes from my daughter's party, found my lost dog, pumped out my flooded basement...ya know, anything and everything that kept me away from something fun and creative! Through out all that dawdling I revisited one of my favorite shops on Etsy, Shoozles, and I got my smile back. I consider her a fabulous artist, an inspiration, and a friend. You can get lost in her fused glass pendants. The layers, swirls, and color combinations will have you singing a high tune of delight. I have asked her how she does it, and to teach me. I think she thinks I was kidding, but I wasn't. I'm in awe.
My Birthday Girl
Our family gathered to celebrate my daughter's second birthday on Friday. We had a lovely evening of good food, drink and conversation. I personally had a lot of fun decorating the cake. It's a bit Eastery looking, but we were going with the chick theme anyways. It was a hit.
Mosaics on my mind
On the doorstep of spring is when I really start getting the garden itch. Along with the dreams of gardening, come the thoughts and ideas for a new line of outdoor mosaics. Working mainly with fused glass these past 8 months has spoiled me with brilliant color. I still want more. I have sketched some ideas for some new garden bowls. I'm still my organic self, but I vision more use of color. Here are a few of my past garden bowls to keep the inspiration flowing. I'm excited to be teaching more this spring as well. Lyndsay of Meiklem Kilnworks will add me on board to her late spring and summer class schedule. I'm ready to break some glass!
Call her Jake...
...and she is my Best Friend and today is her Birthday. She is one of the strongest and most loyal people I know. Her dedication to her career is unmatched, she strives and achieves the BEST. She met her soulmate last year and is happily married to a wonderful man who thinks she is wonderful. I am so happy for her. Her dependability and support as a friend has been amazing over the many years I've known her. She is someone you want to be - Proud to have as a daughter - Lucky to have as a wife - Fortunate to be on the same team- Honored to have as a friend. This is an ode to my Best Friend on her Birthday. Can't wait to celebrate with you! All my love to you!
A Wedding Bouquet
My dear friend Matt asked me to help out with his sister's wedding flowers this past Friday. I was thrilled. He knows how much I love to design with flowers. He had full creative control which was even better. We took a trip to the flower wholesaler and picked fresh from their coolers. We chose beautiful white hydrangea, unique Hypnose roses, green hypericum, white lisianthus, Queen Anne's lace, peach stock, sunset leptos, bells of Ireland, hybrid waxflower and seeded eucalyptus. What a romantic, yet modern collection of blooms. Everything turned out beautiful. Congratulations to Angela & Tim!
Aspiration for Spring
The start of my blog
Today I woke up and thought- today is the day I will enter the social media world. So far I've been trying to read up on code, tags, widgets...you name it. I am trying to learn as I go. Right now I would just be happy if my layout didn't consist of a giant photograph. Hopefully I will soon figure it out. Off to have PB&J with the kids.
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