I'm dreaming of a white Christmas

Hi everyone! I wish I could send each and every person who supported me and my art this year a big, juicy, glorious Christmas card, but the task would be insurmountable! So instead, I made a holiday card as my banner for this blog. It features my favorite set of beads, the Mod Baby set that was inspired by my son's pacifier.

I sincerely hope that everyone has a fantastic holiday season. I hope that it is full of all the good things in your life, and none of the bad things. I hope you are surrounded by friends and family (if you want to be!), and I hope that you enjoy each cookie, and bite of turkey (or ham or lasagna, or whatever you eat for Christmas!), and savor the piney smell of the tree and the glow of the lights.

Me? I hope it snows like crazy! I'm in Richmond, so it probably won't, but I can still hope for it. We're getting our tree tomorrow evening, and we'll be celebrating this Saturday -- a little early, but it's our 'family Christmas' and my kids will get to celebrate with their grandparents. My dad lives in Florida, so it's not often that we get to 'do' Christmas with him. I'm so looking forward to it all. This is my week to bake and make sure we have all the food for Saturday, so I'll be busy with that. Not much torch time in there, but that's okay. There's plenty of decorating and baking and wrapping and even a little bit of shopping left to do, so I am happy.

I love Christmas!

Talk to you all soon!

A month!?

Whew, it's been more than a month since I posted to this blog. I know all of you are waiting with baited breath to see/ hear about the latest fun from me (haHA!), so I won't keep you waiting much longer. I did make some changes to the blog layout and design, though, so it's not like I haven't been here. :)

Let's see....my muse took off until the week before Thanksgiving, so getting ready for my show at ArtWorks gallery the day after T-day was a bit of a rush job. However, I did regain my creative mojo in time to develop these designs:


That's the 'Bar Bangle', a design made with silver and colored copper wire. And also beads, duh! Next up is this:

'Orbit' earrings. I'm a sucker for blue (and red!) glass, as you can probably tell. I do use other colors, though....like in this pendant, for example:

Tiger Stripes pendant, strung on a steel cable neckwire.

They're going up on Etsy today, so if you are interested, grab 'em! As always, if you are in Richmond, VA, let me know and you can avoid paying shipping and I will meet you in town somewhere to give you your goodies!

It's going to be cold today, so let's all pray for snow....especially you, Jen, out in Minnesota, where I am sure you already have snow. We'd like some, too, so share, ok? ;)

I don't have any more shows on the agenda, so there will be plenty of time to make beads and jewelry. My goals for the winter include getting on the Etsy shop and listing more items. I'm applying for at least one show this spring that I know of so far, so once my schedule gets firmed up, I'll let you guys know.

Thanks for all your support in 2008, and I'm looking forward to seeing everyone in 2009!

Rain in the forecast

The weather forecast around here is calling for cold and steady rain Saturday morning. I will not be at the South of the James market on Saturday October 26. I am also not at market day on Saturday November 1.

My next market day will be Saturday, November 8th, in time for Christmas shopping to start! Look for Christmas goodies....snowmen and snowwomen pendants and earrings, Christmas trees, mittens, and all kinds of winter and holiday items!

I am working on a line of other beaded products, like napkin rings and wine bottle stoppers, so hopefully I will have some of those, too, on the 8th.

As always, let me know if there is anything you would like before my next market day. I am taking limited custom orders before Christmas. My Etsy shop should be updated by the end of the weekend, too!

New posts and good stuff elsewhere!

I just finished a post on another blog about medieval glass. Some of you may know about my interest in historical glass. I had started a blog called The Medieval Glassworker as a way to keep my research together and communicate with a wider audience, but I have neglected it almost since I started it. Well, I added a post today, and am thinking I am going to be a lot more regular about posting there. Anyway, go check it out!

Another cool thing I found a while back is the Art Bead Scene blog. There's a lot of good information and inspiring design over there.

And have you seen this place? Beaducation is awesome! Online jewelry classes whenever you want to take them. I've taken a couple of the free classes so far, and they have been terrific! The video is excellent quality, and the pacing of the instruction is really good. I recommend them, for sure.

So there you have it, my recommendations for today! I'll see everyone at the market on Saturday!

I'm really excited!!

Yesterday, I met with Ellie Coyne, the volunteer coordinator for the Thomas Palliative Care Unit at the VCU Medical Center here in Richmond. She had seen my work on a friend of mine (hi Cosette!) and liked it. Ellie asked Cosette if I could make glass butterflies for a fundraiser for the unit. I sent her some samples, which she liked, and yesterday, I took some more to show her. We refined the design and colors some more, and now I will make five pendants for the unit to sell at their next fundraiser in November. Ellie plans for these to be sort of iconic and representative of the unit, so we are sticking to a small palette of pinks and purples and some yellow, so that they will all look similar. Ellie's plan is to have me make the pendants periodically throughout the year, and eventually have a display set up on the unit so that families and loved ones of patients can purchase them to support the unit and have a remembrance of their loved one who passed on.

I'm working on a design for glass butterfly cabochons that can be turned into tie tacs or lapel pins for the gentlemen, as well. Can't let the ladies have all the glass goodies! ;)

I'm really excited about doing this, partially because hospice services are close to my heart (my mom and aunt are hospice nurses), but also because I am happy to be supporting a great group of people who make this stage of life easier on all involved. And hey, it doesn't hurt to have my work associated with such a prestigious hospital system, either.

I'll post some pictures of the butterflies as I complete them, so you all can see what I'm up to. I'll also let you know how you can purchase a butterfly to support the care unit, too, if you like, once we get going on the project.

Now, I'm off to order large amounts of pink and purple glass!

Update!

I know I've been slack about updating this blog....I've been busy making beads! Well, more or less. I did write a post for Watch Me Create, which is online here for the next little while, so go check that out if you haven't already.

It's difficult for me to start thinking about Christmas, what with Halloween and Thanksgiving not even over and done with yet, but such is the way of things in retail sales. I've been slooooowly starting in on Christmas stuff....random candy canes here, Christmas trees there, stuff like that. I still can't wrap my head around it yet, so it's been slow going. I'll get holiday goodies done in plenty of time for Santa's visit, though, so no worries.

My market schedule is getting firmed up for the next couple of months, though. Not getting into a holiday show bummed me out in a major way, but another jewelrymaker who has gorgeous stuff didn't get in either, so now I don't feel so bad about it. Here are my plans for those who want to know...

South of the James Market (Saturdays 8am to noon, Forest Hill Park)
October 11 (this date is tentative as of today), 18, 25
November 8 and 22
December 6

ArtWorks Gallery
Day After Thanksgiving Art Affair
November 28, 10am to 10pm

After all that, I'm planning on taking a break through at least February! Seriously, though, my work will be available through my Etsy shop pretty much from now til forever.

ANyway, that's the update from my end. Hope to see you out at the markets soon!

Rejected

Ok, so I won't be doing the Handmade Holiday show in Richmond this year. I guess there were 50 applicants for 23 spots, and 28 of the 50 were from jewelry people. Jewelry is tough -- it's competitive, as a lot of people make jewelry, and it's hard to stand out in a crowd. I'm sure my pictures were not that great, either, so that didn't help. It's hard to represent yourself in only three photographs. I'm sad that my lampwork was considered but not desired, but maybe some other opportunity will open up. I still have the South of the James market until at least the beginning of December, so that's something. I also could put a lot more time into the Etsy shop, so I guess that's what I'll do.

At the torch the other night, I made some more Halloween goodies....some dotty earrings, some bones, a cauldron bubbling with potion...and I also made some leaf beads which I may turn into a necklace, or I may just sell individually as pendants. I can't decide.

Barring terrible weather, I will be at the market this upcoming Saturday, so look for me and all my fun stuff this weekend!

Monsters, oh my!

Yep, Halloween is coming. I have seen the candy and costume displays in the stores, and I have avoided buying any of it in the hopes of staving off my addiction to dark chocolate. And mass-produced cheap costumes. I'm trying to get my oldest daughter to tell me what she wants to be for Halloween so I can start making the costume, but she is undecided. My middle daughter will probably wear her older sister's Cinderella gown (with some hemming), and my son might get a teeny Viking (not the football team) costume or a knight's costume. I can already see Cinderella and her knight strapped into the wagon for trick or treating. If we go with a knight's costume, I might have to them outfit the wagon as Cinderella's coach, somehow. Would that be too over the top? Nope. Crazy, yes, but awesome, too. Heh.

I'll probably have to make some Cinderella beads for Wren to wear, and some scary spider necklace or bats or something for Kira. Noah will not get beads.

And now for some quick and dirty pix of my recent torch time. Sorry for the not so fab pictures, I haven't set up the photo studio yet for this week and didn't want to wait.

More monsters....


And FINALLY!! A successful button!


And a question for you all....what do you think of this bead? It's hollow, a transparent glass spiraled with my favorite red. Tell me how you like the color, the size, the shape...should I make more? In what color combinations?


All of these beads will be visiting the kiln later today. Hopefully, most of them will turn up as pendants on Saturday at the market and on Etsy!

Watch Me Create!

Hey there! I have been invited to participate in a great collaborative blog that is all about bead artists and the creative processes we go through to make our work. It's written by a bunch of different folks, myself now included, and it's been really interesting to hear from others about how glass gets turned into beads and jewelry in their workshops. Everyone has a different approach. The site is Watch Me Create, so go and check it out! You can subscribe to it for easier reading, too.

I also just wanted to let everyone know I have a bunch of new Halloween things for next week's market! Ghosts, bats, pumpkins, eyeballs, skulls, bones, and a monster. Earrings *and* pendants. They might get up on Etsy this weekend, and I'll be sure to let you all know when they do!

Scheduling and shows

Hi everyone....just wanted to post quickly and let everyone know I won't be at the South of the James market this Saturday, 9/20. I'm planning a "studio day" to get more jewelry and beads made, and also going to check out a couple of art and craft shows this weekend. On Saturday, at Rockwood Park in Chesterfield county there is the Rainbow of Arts Festival, which looks like it will be a lot of fun. Sunday, I'm thinking I'll go over the the Arts Around the Lake show at the University of Richmond. I've heard that's a really nice show, too, so I'm going to check it out. You should, too!

Speaking of checking things out....look at this bracelet! It's going up on Etsy this morning, and there is only ONE of them, so if you love it, hop over to my Etsy shop!

New things on Etsy!

I have added two new bead sets to my Etsy shop and also a pink rose pendant. Go on over there and check them out! Also, I made a really awesome (well, I think so anyway!) set of beads that I have a terrific jewelry idea in mind for....here's a sneak preview of the beads themselves...


You'll have to wait and see what I turn them into. I'll let you know when it is available on Etsy or at the market!

In a Treasury!

Whohoo! My Monster beads just got featured in a Treasury on Etsy!! Better check it out quick at this link!

They don't stay up long, so RUN! Go see!

Open on the Internet!!

I'd like to announce to everyone that my new Etsy shop is now open!! Visit it by clicking the big orange button at the left side of this page! I just got it started, but I'll be adding new things at least weekly.

Hooray!!

Holy Hurricane!

Well, it looks like we might get at least the remnants of a hurricane this weekend. I probably will not be making it out to the market on Saturday, given the forecast for extremely heavy rain. It's just not that fun to shop outside for jewelry and glass when it's pouring down rain. I will, however, be at the market the next weekend, Saturday the 13th, and I will have a bunch of new beads and jewelry ready then. On tap for the market on the 13th....

A candy corn charm bracelet
a monster charm bracelet
glow in the dark ghost pendants and earrings
hollow vessel pendants -- perfect for a bit of cologne or essential oil
plenty of Halloween pendants -- pumpkins, bats, witch hats, other fun stuff
copper wire bracelets

As always, let me know if there is anything you'd like to see me try to make. I do take limited custom commissions, and I'm always willing to talk with you about your ideas.

Have a safe weekend, don't get too wet, and I will see you all next Saturday!

Gallery opening

Here I am at the ArtWorks gallery opening tonight! It was fun, there was really good music and some snacks, lots of doggies running around and wonderful art. I can't express how much of a thrill it was to walk into a gallery and see my own work displayed on a pedestal with it's own tag and good lighting! Wow.

There were many talented artists and many fine works there. I wasn't among the winners of the show, but I sure do feel pretty darn good about what I accomplished.

WooHoo!!

The jewelry piece I made last week and showed a photo of in my last post has been accepted into ArtWorks August All-Media Show!! I am so excited, I can't even believe it! My work, in an art show!

If you'd like to come and see it, and other fantastic works of art in the show, here is a link to the show page. And here is a link to ArtWorks for directions and other information, in case you are not familiar with the gallery. The opening reception is from 7pm to 10pm this Friday, August 22. I'll be there!

The All-Media show is a benefit for the Richmond SPCA, so the works shown will all have a cat and/or dog theme, there are a couple of collaborative projects and other artist shows going on, too, so you should come down and visit. I believe the show will be open until September 21, so if you can't make it for the opening, you will still have a chance to see the works.

The weekly wrap-up

Another fantastic day at the South of the James market! Cupcakes were particularly popular today -- all of my earrings and pendants all found new homes! I got to chat with a lot of wonderful people today, explaining the process of lampworking and how the beads are made. Unfortunately, I neglected to bring my extra canister of torch fuel, so I wasn't able to do any demonstration. Next week, I'll remember to stick the spare canister in the car!

Lots of you had special requests and ideas for beads you'd like to see. I'll be working on those this week....some owls, turtles, more sweets, more rings, some mushrooms, and some other cool stuff I have in mind. Every week will bring more new glass goodies, so keep the ideas and suggestions coming!

In other news, I have submitted a piece of work to a local gallery that has monthly all-media art shows. This month's show is themed -- Cats and Dogs -- and I submitted a necklace "Pawprints On My Heart", shown at the top of this post. I'll find out Monday if it was accepted into the show, and then I'll let you all know where you can see it, if you like.

More later.

Market Reflections

First, thank you to all my new friends and clients from this past Saturday at the South of the James Market! It was fantastic to meet you all, and I was glad to see some repeat clients from the previous week! Yay for glass goodness and new fun things to wear!

My sweet husband surprised me by bringing our little kids to the market AND my camera, and he took some nice pictures for me. Here's a shot of the market booth. Yeah, that's me calling him to ask him to bring my vise grip pliers.


I sold a good number of pendants this week, so I will be making more in the workshop! In fact, I've got some in the kiln right now! Plus, I will be working on more food-themed beads for earrings and pendants....more sweets (sundaes, cupcakes, a wedding cake, some sushi), some more veggies (especially peas! So many of you loved my necklace that I will make more!), and some more animals (turtles, owls, penguins, a manatee).

In the works for the coming weeks will be more finished jewelry -- especially bracelets and rings -- and the start of the holiday-themed glass....Halloween isn't that far off, and neither is Christmas.

Several people asked about lampworking classes.....yes! I do teach! I don't have a dedicated teaching studio (yet!), but we can work something out as far as location. I prefer one-on-one lessons, but will teach a maximum of three at one time. The basic beginner's introduction to lampworking class runs about three to four hours, and I supply all tools and equipment. Contact me for more information and to set up your class!

As always, there's more to come in the weeks ahead. You'll want to stay tuned for the updates!

Coming soon....

Ok, so I just finished a mini-torch session, and I am really excited about some new things! I made a bead with a wee froggie clinging to it, and some pink and purple hearts, and a few odd beads, and a glass pumpkin. I hope they all hold up well cooling overnight.

At this Saturday's market (South of the James!!), I will have wineglass charm sets for sale, and a bunch more pendants. It's almost time to start on some seasonal and holiday beads....why don't you post a comment to this entry and tell me what you'd like to see me make? I'll give just about anything a shot, so let me know!

Welcome!

Hi there! You've found the blog home of A Hot Piece of Glass! I'm Christine, and I am a glass artist.

"Hi, Christine!"

I make lampworked beads and small sculpture with my single-fuel torch, and with my kiln, I make fused glass bowls, pendants, earrings, fridge magnets, barrettes....just about anything that will fit on the kiln shelf. This blog is just getting started, so check back often for more fun stories of creative endeavors, groovy glass photos, and yummy jewelry and fun stuff! You know you'll want one of everything!

In fact, you may want to subscribe to this blog, then you can easily read it in a feed. Check the sidebar for subscription information.

Currently, I am working on stocking my Etsy shop. I'll provide a link as soon as I get some gorgeous goodies in there. You can also find me on Saturdays at the South of the James Market in Forest Hill Park. If you live in or near Richmond, VA, come on down to the southside and say hello! It's a great market, and I usually have lots of fun things for sale. I also do some lampworking demonstration, and I love to answer questions and talk to folks.

I'm planning for shows for next spring already, so when I have the details, I will certainly let everyone know. In the meantime, check back here or come see me at the market! I look forward to meeting everyone, and sharing my glass art with you all!