Rolling pin or wine bottle does it really matter?

What do you get when you ask me for a rolling pin? A wine bottle seemed appropriate. Jackie came over to make apple crumble and needed a rolling pin. She did just fine with the wine bottle and the crumble was super yummy.

All Packed Up

All packed up from my last show of the year. Apart from the name, I don't understand why people think these little mini coppers are so small. I loaded two 6-foot tables (yes they fold in half), table risers, five (1, 2, 3, 4, 5) containers full of fused glass and displays, a laundry basket full of crocheted scarves and a 22" in bowl. All this and I had room to spare.

2015 Workshop Schedule

I am scheduled to facilitate the following workshops at Roadhouse Arts during the first half of 2015. Space is limited so sign up now to lock in your spot. It's gonna be fun!
 

The Power of Powders

A two day workshop during which we will explore a variety of options to create imagery, depth, and drama in your work by incorporating the power of powders to your glass technique toolbox. Students will learn to create color fades, produce patterns and imagery, explore crackle techniques, and use powder wafers. This survey into the world of powders will open a whole new world of possibilities by showing you the power of powders!

 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Saturday and Sunday, January 31 & February 1, 2015

or

Saturday and Sunday, June 13 & 14, 2015

Intermediate Level

Workshop Fee: $169

Materials Fee: $65

Cast Glass Flowers

 

This easy one day class will expose you to the basics of color casting with glass powder and frit. Use this technique to achieve jaw dropping results that rival spring time in the Texas hill country as you learn how to create cast glass flowers in almost any color under the sun. This is a fun 1 day workshop for both new and experienced fusers. No previous glass experience required.

 Students will learn how to select and care for molds. They will mix and measure glass frit or powders based on their color selection and learn how to fill the mold to achieve beautiful results that require little to no additional finishing work.

 9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Sunday, February 15, 2015

Beginners welcome!

Workshop Fee: $99

Materials Fee: $35

Casting Glass - Dimensional Sculpture

In this three-day workshop we'll cast our own three-dimensional art glass sculpture. We will begin by discussing important design considerations as students design and plan for their individual pieces. We will sculpt in clay; use mold making materials and techniques to create refractory molds; and measure, cut and stack glass for our specific molds.

Learn about the special considerations that go into a glass casting firing schedule, including how to heat, cool and anneal thick blocks as well as uneven thicknesses of glass. This class is open to beginning glass students as well as experienced fusers. The instructor will work with each individual student to ensure your project can be executed successfully. Start thinking three dimensionally, get just a little dirty and have a whole lot of fun making your own art glass sculpture

9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Friday March 13th - Sunday March 15th, 2015

Beginners Welcome!

Workshop Fee: $350

     Materials Fee: $75       

Kiln Carving - Mirror Project

In this exciting workshop we will design and create bas relief textures and patterns using fiber paper to form impressions in glass. Students will make art glass frames using this technique which can be attached to a mirror to create a stunning one of kind design element. We'll then learn how to safely and effectively attach your completed glass frame to a mirror, and discuss available hanging options.

9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Saturday April 4, 2015

Beginners welcome!

Workshop Fee: $99

Materials Fee: $50

You can sign up for anyone of these workshops online
or by contacting Roadhouse Arts directly.

In the mail...

 

This week's mail brought some much awaited new tools including a Silberschnitt Circle Cutter, a replacement head for my strip cutter and new molds needed to complete a commissioned piece. I have wanted this circle cutter for a long time but kept telling myself I was doing just fine using my strip cutter with an adaptor to cut circles. Now that I have this beautiful tool, I am wondering what the *!@& I was thinking all this time. This tool is worth every penny. I think I  am going to crochet it a little blanket so I can tuck it in on cold nights. Just kidding, that would be silliness.

Blessed Sacrament CYO Craft Fair

Thank goodness for indoor craft fairs on a rainy fall Saturday like today. All set up the show at Blessed Sacrament. Cross you fingers for me people still come out on this gray day.

Soaking it up

A Sunday morning walk to enjoy the Oregonian weather, flora, fauna and a bit of history was the perfect closure to my time in Portland. Beautiful trees, blue herring, European bicycles, passing trains full of lumber, graffiti and the occasional hipster were all on display.

Little Detour

Among Portland, Oregon's many charms are the bridges. I do love bridges. Lord knows with as many times as I get turned around in this city I cross them all often enough. Just a little detour.

Testing testing 123

Yesterday, I filled a kiln with sample tiles for various techniques and materials. I can't wait to see how they all turned out.

A Visit to Bullseye

Lately it seems impossible to get a day to focus on glass. A full week I truly a gift. I am getting back to basics, picking up a few new skills and refilling the well. Thank you to everyone who his making this possible, specifically my husband who is holding down the home front while I am away.

Learning to "go with the flow" 

I'll be interested to see how this turns out tomorrow

And to think I thought I already knew how to cut circles, silly girl

Keeping Busy

Trying to keep my hands busy as sit and keep shop at Roadhouse Arts for the evening. At this pace I should be just about be done with this scarf before the evening is over.

Untamed Show Opening

Join us for the opening reception of Untamed, a juried glass exhibition sponsored by the San Antonio Glass Art Guild and the Bulverde Area Art Center, this Friday from 5:30-8:00pm. Hope to see you there.

Czech Glass Gift

 

 

This Sunday I had a chance to sit and work on the torch for a few hours over at Dream Fire Glass Studio. I was thrilled when I arrived to find a package of Czech glass rods, left for me as a gift from a friend who focuses on working in borosilicate glass. It was a case of "one man's trash is another man's treasure". Working in borosilicate he had no use for soft glass. I on the other hand was thrilled to receive such a wonderful assortment. This will be a bit of a stretch for me since I generally work in COE 90 and this glass ranges from COE 104-115. I took three transparent rods and made icicles to get an idea of what to expect. The transparent colors are absolutely beautiful, so clear and vibrant. Now I can apply the notes I took about working with Czech glass from Lisa St. Martin's lecture at this year's ISGB Gathering. Perfect timing.

 

 

I immediately took inventory noting the color name, number and COE of each rod. Now I can take notes along the way about what I use and how I like it so I can make educated decisions about if/how to use this material in the future.  What an opportunity. I am as excited as a kid with a new box of crayons. The BIG box, you know the one with 64 colors and the sharpener in the back.

Untamed - Glass Exhinition

Untamed

a juried glass exhibition 

sponsored by the San Antonio Glass  Art Guild

August 15 - September 20, 2014

at the Bulverde Area Art Center 

in downtown Bulverde, Texas

Opening Reception

August 15 from 6-8pm

 I am very excited to exhibit this series, titled Nested, for the first time as part of the San Antonio Glass Art Guild juried exhibition Untamed. These pieces include flameworked and kilnformed glass to form the nest and felted wool for the eggs. The inspiration behind this series came several years ago.

In June of 2009, while at a farmers market in Portland, Oregon I purchased a skein of hand spun wool. The fiber varied in thickness and color. It had character and I purchased it not knowing what it would become, only that I could and would make it into something wonderful. I carried this soft mass back to San Antonio as a prized possession. I would have to give it thought to determine the right use for this material. But before I could take action my nine month old puppy did. When I found her the once nicely wrapped ball of yarn was pulled apart, twisted and contorted, tied in knots and ripped in places. I immediately became angry, irate even. I grabbed the mass of fiber and sat down at the top of the stairs. Slowly I began to work out segments. It took well over an hour for me to unravel the mass of tangled threads, tying the broken ends and rewinding it back into a tight ball. As I did this my fingers worked apart the spider web like fabric. My anger slowed, my eyes and fingers focus and my mind flooded with memories.

It wasn't till 2011 that I finally did something with that ball of wool. And not till this year that the experience has finally come full circle in these glass and wool pieces. I look forward to making more and seeing how they evolve as yet even more time passes.

Nested (4) kilnformed glass and felted wool

Hope 1993 a work in progress

Sewing was one of those things my mom and I fought about. She tried patiently to teach me while I would rush, make mistakes and get frustrated. My mom would rip the seams, hand it back to me and ask me to do it again. I hated sewing. But like most things our mom’s make us do, like eating our vegetables, I was grateful later. Who would have thought I would be putting my basic sewing skills to use to finish one of my pieces for the She’s Got Issues show.

 

I knew what I wanted the finished pieces to look like, the figure mounted on mirrored glass and surrounded by quilted fabric. The cast glass sculpture was finished, now for the fabric portion of this project. I dusted off my mom’s sewing machine and read the manual to remember how to thread the machine. Using the machine for the quilted protion wasn’t too bad since it was just straight lines. Then I had to figure out how to make room for the glass to come through the quilted fabric. I made a pattern on newsprint, pined it to the quilt and did a simple slip stich straight through the pattern and fabric.  Once sewn I cut out the inner part of the pattern and removed the remaining pieces of paper. With the fabric complete, I mounted the relief sculpture to mirrored glass, apllied the fabric over the casting and framed the entire piece so it would hang from the wall.

 

The finished piece will be one of two pieces (Hope 1993 and Hope 2010) on display as part of She’s Got Issues at HighWire Arts from June 13-20.

Getting Ready to Visit Artisans

 soda lime glass - work in progress

 

With the pieces for the She’s Got Issues show completed and delivered, I have been spending this week getting ready for my June visit to Artisans in Fredericksburg, Texas. Using a layout I have favored in the past, I started cutting transparent glass for plates, platters, draped vessels and ring dishes. I’ve been firing these layouts every night since Monday with the plan to have a new series ready to deliver to Artisans on Saturday. So far so good, I appear to be on track.

She's Got Issues - Show Opening

As honored as I am to have been invited to participate in this show, I was a little nervous to drop-off my pieces. I had worked on them on and off for sometime and to be honest don't think I believed they would ever actually be finished.  The shows curator, Gail Stouffer, may have been wondering the same thing herself since, as is my nature, I procrastinated till the last minute to turn them in. These are not the typical jewelry or plates I leave with galleries to sell. These are pieces where I have something personal to say. There a part of my story, a representation of my own journey. And there lies the seed of my angst. Are they good enough? Will they be well received? Did I pack them well enough so they will be safe? But I still could have done more... These are thoughts that run through my head. I guess those are my own personal issues.

 

If you get a chance, please join me and the other artists for the show opening on Friday, June 13 between 6-10pm at High Wire Arts. The show will run from June 13 through the 20th. If you don't make it out you can see all the pieces in the show catalog.

 

Hope 2010

Soda Lime, Float and Recycled Glass

 

She's Got Issues

OLLU Best of the West 2014

 April 5, 2014 from 4:00-11:00 PM

Our Lady of the Lake University

Best of the West Fiesta Event

The San Antonio Glass Art Guild will be participating in Our Lady of the Lake's Best of the West Fiesta event Saturday, April 5, 2014. Fiesta is such a exciting time of year in San Antonio and this is a real community event that is fun for the whole family. I particularity enjoy the opportunity to return to my alma mater. The OLLU campus is a jewel on the city's west side.  Members of the San Antonio Glass Art guild will be facilitating a craft activity for kids of all ages. Five members, including myself, will have work available for display and sale. Come out eat, drink, enjoy the children's area and live performance. If you do be sure to stop by and say hello.

Glass Craft Expo 2014

Another exciting year at Glass Craft Expo. This year I spent my first day helping Nina "Sam" Hibler with 8 students in Twist and Shout making glass cane. That was right up my alley. Friday I was a TA for Gail Stauffer's Enameling on Metal.  And this morning I am wrapping it up with Gail's Electroforming which I can almost recite in my sleep after years of assisting in. Good times...

 

Student torch firing enamel on copper in Firday's workshop

Weekend Deliveries



Saturday I took an early morning drive through the hill country to spend the day at Artisans of Rocky Hill, in Fredricksburg, Texas. I love these drives; the quite time to myself, the small towns, the flora and fauna. On this morning the fog provided a vial over peach trees still bare of leaves but full of pink blossoms. It was storybook like to see miniature ponies pawing the choral fence, a cottontail rabbit trying to cross the road and newly shaved sheep in the pasture.  As I sipped my coffee I thought a bit of the twenty plus pieces in the box next to all made in shades of browns, vanilla and bronze. Not exactly spring colors I worried but on display in the gallery next to wood turnings and pottery they looked great.

 

Examples of the items delivered to Artisans of Rocky Hill

Made of soda lime glass with twisted canes in brown, black and vanilla

 

Fiesta Bouquet
37x21" mosaic


While at Artisans I made the final payment and picked up a wonderful mosaic called "Fiesta Bouquet" by Patricia Karr & Pamela Studstill. The piece measures 37 x 21" and is made of glass and handmade ceramic components. I can  imagine the hours spent hunched over this piece to add all the components and put in the glass arches in the background. These ladies did a terrific job in executing there idea. Now that I have it safely home, I just need to find that perfect place in my home for it to live.

 

Sunday, I spent the afternoon in the gallery at Roadhouse Arts, in Bulverde Texas, visiting with good friends and dropping off a few pieces for the shop. It is so good to see what the artists behind Roadhouse are doing with this space. They are collecting a small group of really talented local artists in their gallery in addition to their own work produced on property in their personal studio spaces.

Pieces delivered to Roadhouse Arts in Bulverde, Texas

Tonight - SAY Si Silent Auction

Tonight is SAY Si's annual Small Scale Work for a Larger Cause Silent Auction. The event includes artwork from over 200 artists including myself and other local glass artists. You can view the items in the auction at saysi.org . It is quite the event regardless of if you decide to bid on artwork or not. If your looking for something to do in San Antonio tonight and want to support a really good cause you should check it out.

Spring Exhibit Comes to Close

The San Antonio Calligrapher's Guild Spring Exhibit at the Central Library will come to a close on March 28th. If you are in downtown San Antonio this week, pop into the enchilada red main library building. The building it self is quite a site. The Spring Exhibit is on the ground floor in the gallery. Directly above the gallery the Fiesta Tower by Dale Chihuly is installed to commemorate the library systems 100th anniversary. From the gallery space you can look directly up to see it in it's full state.

2014 Say Si Small Scale Works for a Larger Cause

Kilnformed Soda Lime Glass

& Sandblasted Mirrored Glass
 

This piece is being included in the 2014 Small Scale Works for a Larger Cause an exhibit and silent auction benefiting Say Si. Celebrating 20 years of service to San Antonio's youth, Say Si is a premiere youth arts organization. Small Scale Work for a Larger Cause is a fundraiser that benefits the effort this organization makes to reach middle and high school age students in San Antonio. All the money raised goes to Say Si's student programming. The event begins on Thursday, March 6 with a preview  party and concludes on Friday, March 21 with a silent auction. For more information on these events visit http://www.saysi.org/small-scale-2014/.

Red Hot was created in the middle of a hot south Texas summer. It started as a lino block which was cut and printed onto refractory material. That refractory material was also cut and then used to melt the glass into in a kiln reach temperatures of approximately 1500 degrees Fahrenheit. The kilncarved piece was mounted onto a piece of mirrored glass which was sandblasted to add additional commentary (in case it wasn't clear enough) as well as to enhance the luminosity of the piece. After an exceptionally cold winter this piece seems a fitting reminder of what we have ahead of us soon enough.

San Antonio Calligraphers' Guild 2014 Spring Exhibit

San Antonio Calligrapher's Guild (SACG) is having their Spring Exhibit at the San Antonio Main Library. The opening reception is Sunday, March 2 from 12- 4PM. The Exhibit will be on display through March 28. There are 39 works from different artists on display, two of which are mine. Both of my pieces are ink on paper so I'm really stepping outside my comfort zone. Come to think of it, I have been a member of SACG for a decade or so, entered a number of exhibits and these are my first pieces not on/in glass.

Creative Canvas

 I had such a great time at my first workshop at Roadhouse Arts. Lisa Meyer facilitated Creative Canvas, a mixed media adventure using papers, paints inks, stamps, pencils pens and more. I'll be honest, I didn't think I had it in me to make something quite so cute. Lisa made it all very easy and it was fun to see how different every one's pieces were by the end of the night. I can't wait to see what other workshops these ladies have up there sleeves. 

I am so happy to see  the space these three fabulous artist have created not only for themselves but to share with others through workshop and gallery space. Just last weekend I stopped by to leave a few things for the gallery. I was excited to see tonight how it is all coming together. Tonight was the first night their doors have been open to the public. I know there are BIG things ahead from Gail, Lisa and Francesca and I wish them all the very best.