Gone Tubing

Last Summer, I discovered my life's passion...  Tubing. 

Floating down the river without a care in the world.  Fish nibbling at my toes.  Soaking up the sun while slathered in SPF 110 sunscreen.  The adrenaline rush of spotting a snake stick in the water.  Imagine the exhilaration of riding the rapids while friends try to pelt each other with wet jumbo marshmallows.  One hasn't lived life until they have felt the soft mush of a river-soaked mallow bean them upside the head.  I'm currently in the process of finding sponsors to financially back my professional tubing career.... kind of like Nascar, but with sponsorship stickers on my tube, sunhat, sunglasses, and swimsuit.  Wish me luck!

 Mint anyone?

Lucky Goldfish

Atlantic Puffin No.2

Fratercula arctica
 

Full side views to show symmetry.

Ripples Circling

Dazzling Cabochons

 

Whale Watching

 

Poolside

Marcia, a friend and fellow flamworker, shared this lovely recipe with us in class.  Depending on the flamepolish and finishing process, the blues can vary from a soft turquoise to a vibrant transparent teal. 

Dive Into Glass

It is complete and available for instant download on Etsy.  The eBook is a compilation of techniques and recipes to create your own duck themed glass projects – included in this booklet are step by step text and photograph instructions for intermediate to advanced flameworkers, 80 high-quality color photographs and helpful tips. In addition, I include all CiM and Effetre names/numbers used throughout the tutorials. All of the glass referenced in this 47 page book is COE-104.  Here is a sneak-peek for your eyes only: 

Splash

When listing project ideas for the "Day at the Beach" workshop, a mermaid's tail seemed fitting.  What better way to capture the shimmer than with a magenta/blue dichroic glass. 

The World is your Oyster

I have been working on sketches of sea life for an upcoming workshop titled "Day at the Beach".  I kicked around some thoughts on sea shells and taking them to another level of fun.  Our last trip to San Diego, while chasing miniature crabs, the kids found a slew of oyster shells in the sand.  The two seemed like a fun combination. 

After 6 sketches, ranging from silly to life like, I settled on something in between.  The exterior is a silvered ivory so to shimmer in the light, yet dark enough to cast a gray hue.  The oyster's open half is filled with one of my Double Helix favorites, Kronos.  The crab was formed from 1mm, bright red stringers.  Small doesn't begin to accurately describe the little guy.  Leg to leg, he measures 14mm x 15mm.  Total time to torch: 1.5 hours. 
The finished focal would look fabulous paired with a strand of shimmery pearls.  I could imagine him on display, surrounded by sand, beach glass and shells.  Or how cute would it be to incorporate the focal on the handle of an oyster knife!?  No idea where he will end up, but I love the thought of someone flipping over the shell to find the silly little guy!