Six Things

A fellow blogger and friend, Shay Stone, posted this on her blog and I thought I would share here.

How it works: I will answer the below very random questions - then you can answer the questions as a comment. Feel free to post to your blog and carry it on.

1. Today I feel... Happy. It's Friday & I'm looking forward to the weekend. Dan & I will be heading to Coyote Creek in Fairplay for a fun Holiday Event tomorrow!

2. This week... I had a lesson with Lexi and learned the "marriage of metals" technique. The project isn't finished; I'm hoping it will turn out as the idea is really cool.

3. Last night...I worked on earrings and web design revisions for a client.

4. Lately the song stuck in my head is... one of Paul Taylor's from his current CD; it's jazz so it's all good.

5. My favorite pet memory is ...my German Shorthair, Taylor, looking out the window, waiting for me to come home from work and recognizing the car as I drove past...he knew it was me & I was home. One smart boy.

6. What is currently at the top of your Christmas wish list?...Fretz mini forming stakes.

Teaching My First Class

Last month, Lexi and Pat asked me to teach a class at Coyote Creek. They love my wire wrapping and wanted to offer an advanced wire wrapping class to those students who had taken the beginning wire wrapping class that Pat teaches. I agreed and this past weekend I had 5 students at the studio in Coyote Creek located in Fairplay, Colorado.

This was the first time I've ever taught a class and I wanted to provide some tips and tricks that you generally receive when you attend a class. For me, that is one of the real benefits of a class when the teacher shares things that you can't find in books or online. I believe I was able to accomplish that for this class. Some of what I shared were those lessons we learn when we make mistakes...hoping to help them avoid those!

The drive from Colorado Springs to Fairplay is a pretty one and one of my favorite parts was the crossing over Wilkerson Pass. The panorama of the mountains covered with snow as you come over that pass is stunning. It just takes my breath away. At one point there was a hot air balloon taking off and that made for a lovely scene. I only had my little digital camera with me and I just couldn't do justice to what I was seeing, so no pictures to post here.

We completed one pendant and there were a number of "Ah Ha" moments throughout the class. It ran longer than I anticipated and I feel bad about that. I underestimated a few things and if/when I teach another class, I know what I can do to prevent some of the "time eating" exercises. I guess that's somewhat normal, you learn what to do for class preparation and planning from each class you teach. The setting is dynamic and with this being my first time to teach, I didn't anticipate some of the situations that arose.

I put together my first step by step tutorial for them to follow as we completed the lesson. Dan took pictures of me putting together a piece and I wanted them to have something to refer back to after the class. Each pendant had the spin of the person completing it and they were a fun group.

While my focus isn't on wire wrapping as much any more, I am more than happy to share with others who want to learn. As I was leaving, one of them asked me to teach another class and I've heard some rumblings that others are interested too. We shall see. Given the approach of winter, I think a safer bet will be a class later in the spring months.

I learned something from them too and it was a worth while experience for me.

Until next time, aspire to be more as an artist and a person.

Salida Riverside Arts Festival

Yesterday Dan & I traveled to Salida, Colorado for the first Riverside Arts Festival. It was a nice day, even though a few rain showers visited. There were 100 artists admitted to this juried show. My friend, mentor, and teacher, Lexi Erickson was there. It's the first of three shows she will be doing in the next 6 weeks. The following is a picture of Lexi talking with a customer in her booth. She's wearing one of her pieces, of course!

I saw some beautiful work and had an opportunity to meet some of the artists. Pam Caidin was there. Her metalwork jewelry designs/creations are just phenomenal. She's featured in the current issue of Lapidary Journal. We had a chance to visit and I discovered she was a member of Colorado Metalsmiths Association (CoMa) too. We discussed getting to know each other better at the upcoming meetings, which would be great.

Lexi introduced me to Harold O'Connor, her friend & mentor. Harold is an internationally known goldsmith and an extraordinarily gifted artist. It was great fun to finally meet him and I hope someday to take one of his workshops.

Fellow Coyote Creek Artist Cat Roberts was there with her beautiful watercolor paintings. We had a chance to talk and discussed the possibility of doing a trade of our respective works. I really enjoy doing that with other artists.

Salida is known for its artists and there is a definite charm to the city as reflected in the next couple of pictures that Dan took.



One of my favorites is of this building with the large stained glass sun in the circle window at the top.


Dan took this shot of me with some of the festival in the background. Who knows, maybe I'll apply to do the show next year? I'm wearing one of Lexi's pieces, of course!


Oh and I have a finished pendant on my other blog, it has one of my glass cabs as a center. Please stop by and take a look. Thanks!

May all of you have a wonderful week of creativity. Aspire to be more as an artist and person.

Opening Reception

It's going to be a busy Friday. Tomorrow morning, Dan & I head over to Coyote Creek to deliver his photography and some of my glass cabochons. It's exciting for Dan to have his work in a gallery. I'm so proud of him.

Tomorrow evening we have an opening reception at the Co-Art Gallery in Denver for the Glass at the Gardens show. I have three pieces in this show; Meteor Showers, Neptune Embellished and Solar Flares....or is it Flare? We'll enjoy an evening in the Denver Art District and I hope I'll have some good photos to share of this event.

Happy creating all!

Coyote Creek ~ Sneak Preview

Dan took some great pictures at Coyote Creek yesterday. I thought I would share a few here and if you would like to see some more, check out the new group I formed on Facebook for Coyote Creek Studio Arts.

It was a nice day, we had a good turnout of first time patrons. The inside of the gallery has undergone this wonderful transformation of gorgeous works by all the artists.

An added bonus, Dan took in his portfolio of photographs and was immediately accepted! That's my guy. Lexi Erickson, who is the President of Coyote Creek, said he had her vote the minute she saw his photos on our website. Lexi is pictured here, outside the gallery with a large floral sculpture and a few of the artist, including the mayor of Fairplay (Fred on the left).












And yes, here is yours truly inside the gallery. The camera is not always my best friend, but it's a shot where I'm talking to Dan, my personal photographer. :D

By the way, Lexi and I have become fast friends. There are those wonderful, rare occasions when you meet someone and experience an immediate connection. We did that and I cannot tell you how much that means to me. I am enrolled in Lexi's Art Jewelry Workshop in June and we are going to take my jewelry to the next level!

Coyote Creek Studio Arts

Sometimes I feel like I have my own, personal photographer...and I guess I really do. My husband Dan took this photo of me yesterday in front of Coyote Creek Studio Arts, after we completed the delivery of my work.

It was the first time I got to see the gallery, visit Fairplay, and meet Pat Pocius...one of the co-owners. Pat is great; she owns South Park Pottery too. I'm happy to be affiliated with this new gallery.

We hung of two of my stained glass windows and you can barely seem them in this picture, but Tower Falls is hanging to my right (your left) and Euclids Garden is to my left (your right). Nice to see my work in a couple of their front windows.

Coyote Creek is set to open next weekend, with its Sneak Preview. I just love the setting, the gallery, the atmosphere....it is so Colorado, so quaint little mountain town. No, not a tourist trap, just a delightful place in this world with charming, friendly people. And the scenery is breathtaking. Mountains stole my heart eons ago when I first saw them in person. I would LOVE to live in an area like this and I'm happy in the knowledge that I live so close to these places that I can visit frequently.

After next weekend's sneak preview, I'm sure I'll have more photos to share of the interior and exterior of the gallery....along with some scenic views too. The weather was a little too overcast yesterday for good mountain photo opts.

I have new work in the kiln and I'm getting ready to start on another piece this afternoon. The creative juices are flowing!!!

Some of my Favs!

I promised to post more pictures of the jewelry that I'm taking to Coyote Creek tomorrow. And to that end, here are a few of my favorites! Sometimes it's hard to let go of a piece. But I can't keep everything I like. These are more of the crinklized dichroic that I'm just enamored with. The violet pendant and earrings are called Violet Brilliance. The pictures just don't do the glass justice as they really do sparkle.





And I have to thank ALL of you who encouraged me to stretch and make earrings. I have 21 pairs to take to the gallery, along with 49 pendants. Yes, I've been busy.









This last pendant is from a crinklized pattern, called Puzzle. I think it's a "Standout", so that is its name.

Sneak preview at the gallery will be next Saturday, May 9th. I hope there is a great turnout.

Thanks again for all your kind words of support and encouragement. I truly value it.

How My Garden Grows

The finishing touches are complete on this piece and it is ready to head to Coyote Creek. I feel like this has been one of those break through pieces for me. I experimented and it has shown me new aspects about what I can create. It has given me more ideas for enhancing this type of construction. I'm ready to try out these ideas on another piece. However, I won't be able to start on the new ideas til Sunday because I am still packing things up, completing the inventory lists, etc. All good stuff!



I also wanted to share one of the edge views. There is just so much going on in the piece and I love the look and feel.

It looks like a bit of an abstract, fantasy garden, so I've called this one "How My Garden Grows"

Rainbow Moon

I just LOVE this new crinklized glass by CBS!

This pendant will be heading to Coyote Creek. I kept the wrap simple so the beauty of the glass would be framed.

The pattern is called balloons, but it reminded me of a Rainbow Moon...hence the title.

Copper Spells

I decided to experiment with copper wire, as I thought it would be a nice accent for some of my turquoise/coppery glass pieces. I was able to find square copper wire at Brandy Wine Jewelry Supply, so here is a set of earrings that will be headed to Coyote Creek this Saturday. I used the copper wire on a couple of pendants too.

I think it creates the nice warm effect I was going for. Right now I don't enjoy wire wrapping with copper as much as I do the Argentium silver wire...it's a feel thing for me. I think I'll continue to use it as the glass dictates and hopefully I'll become more comfortable with the sensation I get using copper wire.

I call this pair, "Copper Spells".

The Creative License

I just started reading this book, "The Creative License" by Danny Gregory. It's hard to make time to read, but I do and this is one of several books I am currently reading. It's fun, inventive, and most of all...helpful for my creative process. I enjoy the way the author makes me laugh and think, yes, that's right!

One of my favorite quotes from the book is: "In the end, you see, you can't really suppress your creative urge. As Jeff Goldblum says in Jurassic Park, Nature Will Find a Way." How true is this!

There are lots of great visuals in this book, plus the text is rather unconventional, which I think is part of what helps keep my interest and enjoy the read even more. I would recommend this book if you are looking for something fun to stimulate your creative thought process.

I had a great weekend of creativity. I'm getting my inventory ready for the delivery to Coyote Creek this coming Saturday. I imagine I'll be busy most of this week completing paper work, packing things up, etc. I plan on posting pictures of some of my new jewelry pieces over the next couple of days.

Here's wishing all of you a great week of creativity. :)

Hues of Nature - Complete

Hues of Nature is finished! I just love how it turned out. Dan made sure to photograph it so the light comes through the transparent glass in the piece and I think that effect is really cool.

It took a while and I definitely feel it was worth the work and the wait.

It will be one of my pieces that will be available at Coyote Creek Art in a couple of weeks.

Wraps Heading to Coyote Creek

It's amazing what you can accomplish when you are snow bound. Here are a few of the pieces that will be heading to Coyote Creek Arts in a couple of weeks. I'm working on getting as many earrings done as I can as they take the longest time to do right now. I finally have a design that works well for the small round globes. And now I have documented the process so I can refer back to it. Nice to have those repeatable patterns. The basics are there, I just add variations with crystals, bead, plain, or swirls. There are a few of the crinklized ones in this group. The set in the upper left is some of the new dichroic I purchased a few weeks ago. Lovely colors.

Dan is using the snow blower as I write this, digging us out. We have plans to go the the Colorado Springs Philharmonic "Old & New"...Mozart, this afternoon, taking Dan's mom as our birthday gift to her. The only problem is, she needs the plow guy to open her driveway...a mere 1/4 mile in length...up hill too. We don't have a way to get her out, so hopefully, all this will come together so we can pick her up.

Happy creating all!

Exciting News!

Last month, I received an invitation to submit my work for review by a new gallery, Coyote Creek Studio Arts Foundation, opening in South Park, Colorado. Yes, there is a South Park! It is a little mountain community that is very popular.

I just received word that I have been accepted as one of their member artists! I am so excited about this opportunity! Their opening will be May 9th and I will be there as part of the Meet the Artists event from 1 - 4 PM that day. Hey... if any of you are in the area, stop by and say Hi! I would love to meet you in person.

I will post more details as I know them. For now, I'm quite elated knowing I'm in the company of some other wonderfully talented Colorado artists in this new gallery.