Organic Bead Set

I enjoyed making this set of organic beads the other day. The base glass is Ivory, decorated with enamel, silvered ivory stringer, gold leaf, silver foil and Triton:*click on these images to enlarge them, you get a much better view of the detail*The beads are encased with a layer of clear. The clear magnifies the designs underneath, revealing roots, trees, rocks and streams! Truly 'organic'! This set is available in my Etsy shop.

CiM Heffalump and Triton

A few days ago, I wanted to make a set of beads using CiM Crocus and Triton glass, like the set in my last post. I sat down at the torch to start making the beads. I grabbed a purple glass rod from my CiM shelf, assuming it was Crocus, and began making the set. The color looked a little strange as I was putting the beads into the kiln, but glass sometimes looks different when it's hot, so I didn't give it much thought. The next morning when I opened the kiln to see my cooled-down beads, I knew these beads couldn't be Crocus! Oh no! What the heck glass color is that?! Ooops! Maybe I used Heffalump!Indeed, I had used Heffalump. Here are the beads next to the Heffalump rods. The beads had turned a very different color from the original Heffalump lavender:It's interesting the way the Triton glass fumed the Heffalump, making the beads a tan/cream/purple color with a pearly surface sheen. I think the beads would look good paired with freshwater pearls:
Another interesting aspect to this set: some of the CiM colors have the property of changing color when viewed in florescent lighting. Heffalump is one of these colors, as well as Crocus and Larkspur. Under florescent lights, these colors get a green tint. Here are my Heffalump beads under florescents:
I'll be putting this fascinating set up in my Etsy shop today.
:-)

CiM Crocus and Triton

"Crocus" by Creation is Messy is one of my favorite glass colors, especially for Spring. It's a beautiful translucent pinky-purple glass, similar to an Effetre Alabastro, but easier to work with. Here is a set of Crocus beads decorated with Triton scrolls:This set is in my Etsy shop.

I'm getting back into the CiM colors lately. Next post I'll have a picture of *what happened* when I combined CiM "Heffalump" with Triton!

CiM Sepia with Triton

My most favorite brown glass color is CiM Sepia. Here I've paired it with scrolls of Triton. This set is for sale in my Etsy shop:

Just a post and run for today!

Enjoy your weekend!

Balancing an Egg on the Equinox

Have you ever heard of this phenomenon, that a raw egg can be balanced on its end during the equinox? It's a little tradition of mine to balance an egg each Spring equinox, even if no one else sees it. Well today, kind blog readers, you have the chance to see an actual photo, taken only moments ago. Here it is folks in all its glory, my balanced egg:
Is it all a bunch of hooey that a raw egg can only balance on the equinox? Probably. Though I've tried to balance one at other times of the year and failed. Here is an About.com article about the urban legend of the balanced equinox egg:
http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/errata/a/equinox_eggs.htm

Have a happy Spring or joyous Autumn season, bead buds!

New "Destash" Category in My Etsy Shop

I've created a new category in my Etsy shop: Destash! Time to do a little spring cleaning. At this moment I've got two destash listings, with more to come throughout the next few weeks.

First item up, a focal bead made with CiM Ginger, silver foil, and Pandora encased in clear. The clear/Pandora combo turned yellow, which sometimes happens when I work silver glass or silver foil and clear together for a long time in the flame. Still pretty cool I think:The second destash item is a set of etched beads made with ASK104 Bahia Blue, Violet Nights and Berry Creamy:
My 'destash' category will have everything from beads that are good seconds, to beads that have been hanging around the studio for a long time, beads that are extras from sets, as well as really special sets that I've been hoarding in my personal stash for a very long time because I liked them so much. Stay tuned!

Pale Emerald Green and Triton

I hope you had a nice St. Patrick's Day! I'm recovering from the *evil dentist* visit, taking life nice and easy for a little bit, pampering myself and all that. I have had a very enjoyable week making beads, and tonight I've got a new set up on Etsy. These are transparent Pale Emerald Green with Triton scroll designs:I made a set a few days ago that I really love. These are Triton and Kronos frit beads encased with Double Helix Aether. I shaped them with Zoozi's Crystal press:I love the shiny metallic around the bead holes. They were inspired by a similar set of beads that had a donut shape, like this set (pictured below) that I made recently for a customer's special request. The recipe for the beads is the same, the only difference is the shape:
Happy beading! :-)

More New Sets on Etsy

I've been away from blogging and Etsy for a few days because I had to have some dental work done. I am a true dento-phobe, yet every time I leave the dentist's office after a visit, I feel great and realize it wasn't all that bad. What was I so afraid of? The dentist is such a nice guy! Well, heh heh, lets just say this last visit confirmed every dental fear I've ever dreamed up from the deepest of my twisted imaginings!

Luckily two days have passed, the pain is not so intense, the blood is drying up, I'm feeling better and the horrific experience is beginning to fade from my mind. Back to the beads! :-D

I've just listed these three sets on Etsy. This first set has a base of Terranova2 with 'threads' of Triton:This is a set of spacers made with Double Helix test batch M-232:And this set is a favorite of mine. It has a base of Triton with Kronos frit, encased with Aether. The bead holes have metallic glass around them, which you can see more clearly in the second picture:Hope you all are having a nice week! Don't forget to floss, trust me! :-D

New Sets on Etsy!

Here are three new sets up for sale in my Etsy shop. The first one is a set of Pale Emerald Green and Triton frit crystal beads, another set from my recent crystal frenzy:
This is a set of spiral disk beads, made with M-232 or "pinky purple luster," a Double Helix test batch:

And last but not least, this cool set made with a Triton base and Copper Green scroll designs. I love the reaction between the glasses:

:-)

Crystals

I had an order recently for a set of crystal-shaped beads, and it got me on a crystal bead kick. I used Zoozi's Crystal press for these.

This set is Luna 2, encased with Aether:
These have a Nyx base with a little Triton frit, encased with Aether:
These are original Terra, encased with Aether:Somehow the beads look better in person than they do in these photos. They're very sparkly and colorful in the sunlight! I have another set of Pale Emerald Green and Triton crystals I'm cleaning now. I will post a photo when they're done.
:-)

Psyche Leaves

This is a set of sculptural leaves made with Double Helix Psyche glass. They're available in my Etsy shop:

In Like a Lion?

The lamb has already arrived here in Sedona! We're seeing the first much-anticipated signs of Spring. There are two pairs of Robins that hang out at our bird bath, daffodils and fruit trees are blooming in the yard, and the temperature this week has been around 70. Lovin' it!

I just sent my daughter off to New York City on a trip with her 8th grade class. She's part of the Montessori Model United Nations project, where kids act as Ambassadors from different countries and debate international policy with each other at the U.N. in New York. She's an Ambassador from Australia! How cool! New York is supposed to get a ton of snow tomorrow so that should be fun for them. Oh, yeah, snow is actually a fun event when you're from Arizona!

I have a few beads to show. Here's a set of Pandora and Triton beads:And a set of Triton "Leaves of Lothlorien":
Life's busy-ness has taken me away from blogging lately, but I'll be back more often this month with more metallic bead porn for you :-)