April 3, 2011 · 9:04 pm

More walking

Bruce and I try to walk together every afternoon, though he has become such a badminton fanatic that his games often compete with our walk schedule. No badminton on Sundays, so today we walked to the old Coast Guard Station. (Now a private home.) It’s a walk we take quite often and if the tide is low, I like to walk back along the beach where it’s only sandy at the lowest tide. Bruce knows that means I want to look for rocks and beach glass. He wants to get home sooner so he walks back on the road.

I did not find the fascinating little pieces I always hope to pick up, but I did find inspiration in the lines and patterns left by the receding water.

 

 

 

6 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

April 2, 2011 · 10:38 pm

Afternoon walk

Sunny Saturday, low tide.

Yesterday’s snow is still on the mountains of Mount Desert Island, but not on the beaches of Little Cranberry Island.

 

 

2 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,

April 1, 2011 · 10:36 pm

Bench shots

No, it’s not a spring snowstorm drink. Although we did lose power for a few hours this afternoon, convincing me that taking a nap was exactly the way to beat the storm.

With several necklaces in progress, and only one finished,  I took some photos of what’s on my bench.  My process is to string beads, on and off pieces of wire, until I like the combination. No matter how many times I organize the beads  in front of me, I always end up with messy piles to feed my creativity. Out of sight, out of mind, you know.  I like to have everything out where I can see it.  I might sketch a few basic ideas, but my best results come from trial and error. I worked all winter to create and gather lots of components, so I could make a big mess finding ways to put them together.

I really liked making the pod bead, below. I might pair it with the reddish glass beads from SueBeads.

Beginning a beach rock necklace with some PMC beads.

Considering ways to put sea glass together.

6 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

April 1, 2011 · 12:29 pm

Early post…

…only to keep up with my daily blog post record! The power just started to blink a little, and if we lose it, we’ll lose our internet connection.

It’s snowing and raining here on Little Cranberry Island,  a heavy mix for the trees and the wind is picking up. At least the intermittent rain is keeping the snow level down. AND I have my own special aroma therapy for days like this.

2 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

March 31, 2011 · 11:10 pm

4 necklaces

I spent so time in my studio making beads and components this past winter, that I am just now getting around to putting them together. When I look at other people’s beads to buy, I have tons of ideas. Then I sit down to work at my bead bench and feel paralyzed by the myriad of options I’ve provided myself.  After a day or so I get into a rhythm of stringing.

I love the large copper focal bead, below, made by Shannon LeVart of Miss Ficklemedia. Her patinas are gorgeous. I am inspired to give patinas a try on my own. I ordered her e-book and some of her patina colors, but in the meantime I also attended the glass bead making workshop.  I’ll give both of those techniques some time to ramble around in the back of my brain while I work with the supplies I have at hand. Shannon also made the smaller patinated beads and the toggle clasp for this necklace. I made the silver beads (except for the small round ones) from PMC, and I had the bright copper beads in my stash, along with the brass spacer beads, from years ago.  The peach-lined light blue Japanese drop beads were an impulse buy at the Beadin’ Path sometime last fall. I’m happy with how they all came together, though some of the colors (the glass beads) look a little off since I took quick photos late this afternoon.

Each beach rock necklace has its own personality. I started with a simple design to re-familiarize myself with my rock inventory. When it comes to beach rocks, I prefer to make asymmetrical necklaces, but it helps me to get going with one or two that are easily balanced.

The color of the matte glass seed beads in the photo changes with a different background. The color below is more true.

The focal bead in the first necklace, and in the one below, is a hollow drape bead made from precious metal clay.

Tomorrow = more studio time for more necklaces. The latest weather prediction is for 6 to 10″ of snow and gale force winds. I hope the power stays on!

15 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , , ,

March 30, 2011 · 9:14 pm

Wordless Wednesday?

It’s a great idea. But I was busy in the studio today, after several days away, so photographs were  not at the top of my list.  I did take my camera with me when I walked to the post office. Nothing too exciting along the way. Before I headed back into the studio, I looked to see something green and edible coming up in my garden, at last.

Chives! A sure sign of spring, even though 3 to 6″ of snow is forecast for the end of the week.

9 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as ,

March 29, 2011 · 9:21 pm

What do you want for dinner?

It’s a question Bruce and I  ask each other every morning. When you live on an island, with no grocery store, the choices depend on what you have on hand. Any veggies left since the last trip off island?  What’s in the freezer? Since each of us likes to cook, we usually keep a lot of stuff  in the cupboard to work with, but there is no such thing as “fast food” on Little Cranberry Island.

I try to combine my grocery shopping trips with the days I visit my mother in Bar Harbor, about once a week. When I get back from one of these long days, with several bags of groceries to put away, I really don’t feel like rustling up a meal. “What’s for dinner?”  often comes up as a topic of conversation among passengers on the last boat home because most of us don’t feel like cooking after a day off island.

Yesterday I arrived home on the last boat, after a weekend away, having stopped at the grocery store to pick up some atlantic salmon and a box of rice pilaf. Easy meal. We already had some brussels sprouts at home to go with it. I didn’t pick up extra groceries because I knew that I was headed right back off the island today for a dentist appointment. So what did I bring home for dinner tonight?  Rotisserie chicken. Our default dinner for days when neither of us wants to cook. We already had some (washed!) lettuce and spinach on hand, so I knew a salad would be quick to fix. I figured I would see what jumped out at me, in the store, to go with the chicken. (I used up the easy rice pilaf option last night.)

I couldn’t believe there was actually a package of potatoes called “Baby Boomer.” Cutesy packaging that I would have avoided, even if I am a boomer myself. But, they were only 99¢, a manager’s special, and I had a recipe for tiny potatoes that would cook fast. Into my cart they went.

The recipe, one Bruce served a month ago, is from Cook’s Country magazine. A most delicious lemony garlicky way to cook little red potatoes. (Though in this case the 99¢ Baby Boomers were white.) It only took about 20 minutes, made on top of the stove, which gave me time to whip up the salads and heat the rotisserie chicken. On a night when I really didn’t feel like cooking, I had a tasty dinner ready, with a cleaned up kitchen, in just 30 minutes.

 

 

 

8 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

March 28, 2011 · 8:19 pm

Home sweet home

What a great weekend learning about flame working and soft glass bead making. My mind is spinning with ideas and thoughts about setting up a flame working area of my own. But, let’s face it. It’s March in Maine. Not a time of ready income for those of us who are self employed. If I do get into making my own glass beads at home, it will not be for quite a while. It’s not something to rush into, but I have the bug. Good thing that Ed and Virginia offer Open Torch Time at their studio.

———————————————————————————————-

Open Torch Time — Studio Rental of Flameworking/Lampworking Facilities

Hourly torch and annealer rental… practice your skills with other lampworkers between classes in a friendly and creative space. Get to work with and try different torches. All tools are supplied… of course you may bring and use any of your own favorites too. Do bring your your own glass, or you may purchase glass from us.

Regularly,
Friday evenings 5:30 – 10pm – Call to reserve your space.
Other days/nights are often available as class schedules permit. Please Call! 594-7805

Open Torch Rate: $10/hour
Includes: Selection of torches, tools, didymium glasses, mandrels, digitally controlled annealing.

——————————————————————————————-

Looks like I may be spending a few Friday nights in Rockland. But right now I’m really happy to be home, and I am looking forward to going to bed early.

8 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

March 28, 2011 · 1:02 am

Glass class day 2

The first thing we checked were our beads from day one, fresh out of the kiln. Still on their mandrels.

 

The colored bits of glass, on the end of the mandrels, were how we kept track of our beads after they went into the kiln to anneal. Each one of us had an identifying color.

Holly’s and my beads from day one.

Holly and I also made some head pins. 

I would have loved one more day of class, but real life calls us back after we pick up our last batch of beads in the morning. Holly heads south, I head north. Bye bye Rockland.

 

 

8 Comments

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , ,

March 27, 2011 · 12:26 am

So much fun…

…that we played with fire all day and all night. I can see how people get addicted to this!  I’ve always liked handmade glass beads, but I now have an even greater appreciation for the skill it takes to make them. We learned safety stuff first, then had some great demos by  Ed and Virginia, started making stringers, and finally decided to take a break for lunch at 1:30. No one wanted to stop working. We came back from lunch, more demos, and then we started to make beads. No one wanted to break for dinner, but since the only pizza delivery in town was Domino’s, the four students headed across the street for Mexican food. Which we ate as fast as we could so we could get right back to the studio. Finally deciding to leave by 10….or so.

Ed and Virginia’s studio. Playing With Fire.

Holly lights her oxy/propane torch for the first time. “Don’t take my picture, I’m too scared!”

“Oh, okay. That wasn’t so bad. Now you can take it.”

Virginia demonstrates how to make stringers:

Making my first stringer:

Holly and I learn the hard way, not to pick up stringers too soon!

Leave a comment

Filed under Uncategorized

Tagged as , , , ,