A Little Wine, A Little Art

What could be a better combination? Peanut butter and chocolate, maybe, but not much else.

"Desert and Sea" bracelet. Come see it this weekend,
or check it out in my Etsy shop.

It's show time again! Yes, I've had my head down preparing for shows this month, and enjoying some family time. First one is this weekend at Bargetto Winery, a lovely little venue down in beautiful Soquel, California, near the creek.

There will be about 20 artists there with some work that will knock your socks off. I love this venue - it's so lovely on the patio near the creek, and the music, wine, and food puts everyone in a festive mood. One year someone got married right there at the winery, in the middle of the show.

Here's some work I'll be showing this weekend:

"Daisy May I" lampwork and fine silver handmade necklace,
at Bargetto this weekend and also in my Etsy shop.

"Big Meanie" Lampwork and brass ring,
coming to the show this weekend and also in my Etsy shop.

And yes, in case you were wondering, the Meanies will be coming out to play as well. They seem to be multiplying around here!

Finally, here's a peek at some of our recent travels. That's me and Bodie by Bear Creek, where I caught a beautiful trout (no thanks to him). We're trying to teach him that unlike the pheasant he hunts, we don't need him to flush the fish out of the holes as we approach them. Sigh.

Helicopter Lands in My Yard

Well, not exactly, but it was in the field next to it.

There was a little excitement in our neighborhood yesterday. I was out gardening and heard the CAL Fire helicopter flying around, and it made several very low passes over our house. I mean LOW. The "I can see your eyes looking at me" kind of low. There were guys hanging out the door peering down at the ground, and I feared the worst. Either there was a fire nearby or they thought I started one. About 15 minutes earlier I had been using the leaf blower tidying up some walkways near a dry, dirt area, and caused a bit of a dust cloud. I figured someone saw the cloud, thought it was smoke from a fire, and called 911, and now they were out looking for ME. Yikes!

After several low passes they left, but returned in about 5 minutes, hovering over the field next to our house. I walked over to get a closer look unobscured by trees, and found that there was an air-evac kind of stretcher on the ground (with a person in it), a rope hanging from the Huey, and at least one guy with him on the ground. The helicopter then proceeded to land in the field about 50 yards away from the stretcher, and an ambulance and other emergency vehicles arrived to take the patient away.

We never did manage to find out what the story was, but one of my neighbors thought that CDF was paying them a personal visit because of the smoke coming from their barbeque. I'll find out later and let you know. I hope the patient is ok.

Here's some pictures of their departure - I didn't capture their arrival because I was preparing to be handcuffed and carted away for my leaf blowing sins.

Nice to see you again, guys. I'll see you at next year's Fireman's Barbeque!

Perspectives Exhibit

"Beacon" entry accepted into the ISGB's Perspectives Exhibit.
She is the bead I previously wrote about as being "coy" in front of the camera.

I forgot to share some really cool news I got recently. One of my beads was accepted into the Perspectives exhibit:" Traditions and Innovations in Glass Beads! This exhibit is part of the 2009 Glass Art Society conference in Corning, New York, and will be available from June 5 to September 7 at the Radisson Hotel in Corning.

I am humbled to be a part of this 56-artist exhibition, among so many well known and incredible glass artists. There is a great slide show of all of the entries here. You will be blown away by some of this work. Check out Sharon Peters' "Sub Woofer", Deborah Gibson's "Ancient", Ed Slawson's "Armed Beauty #3", and Laurie Salopek's "Metamorphosis" for examples of why I feel honored to be in this inspiring collection. As a group, we are certainly expanding the envelope of this art form.

The future of glass bead making is so bright, I gotta wear shades (Didymium shades). Does that date me? Oh well, who cares.

New Beads on Etsy

"Land of Oz" (SOLD)

"Turbulence" (soon to be listed).

"Burning Down The House", now in my Etsy shop.

I've been busy in the studio, and have lots of fun stuff to share. For some reason (the approaching Solstice, maybe?) many of my beads have had a "fire" theme, with very warm colors. Maybe it's because I'm taking them to spicy hot Miami in July for The Gathering, perhaps.

Others are also in this theme, with a distinct feminine feel (the summer solstice is ruled by feminine energy).

In any event, look for these in my Etsy shop, or if you prefer, drag your butt down to Miami in July (see, Etsy sounds good right about now, doesn't it?) if you must see them in person.






"Yin", now in my Etsy shop.

"Anti-Yin", coming soon.

"Night Fires", now in my Etsy shop.

Mouse Hunt: Not Just a Game Any More

Just wanted to let you know the score on this one -

Patty: 2
Mice: 0

All is well so far.