I'M IN THE DOGHOUSE!....again

With this firing, that is......The white shepard was a custom order.  The only thing that I wasn't happy about was that the white glaze was a little more dominant than I had expected.  That's the kind of thing with clay that you have no control over once the decision to turn that kiln on is made.  I thought I knew that glaze and I guess the glaze really had the last say!!   Crooked ear shepard was for a necklace that I made for my good friend Pam!  Don't forget to head over the Bill's April 3rd Post to win a free mug.  He's drawing a name for that tomorrow!

FREE is ALWAYS good!!!!!

Check out my husband Bill's blog......Follow it and comment to win this very cool mug!  It's woodfired and the picture doesn't really even do it justice!  Just think ....  a cup of coffee....  or maybe tea in a very cool mug while you sit back and browse the blogs!!!

NEW PENDANTS

I got this idea from Kelli, who has become a friend (even though we've never met) :O)  I've written about her before.  She lives in Indianna and our online friendship started through etsy.  Anyhow...You can see more of her work at my website.  With that said, I started making beads by tracing beach stones.  My husband is like, "Why don't you just make a ball and press it into shape?"  Never thought of that I guess ;o)  Actually, I'm liking my method because they are imperfect and have an edge to them more than they would if I started with a ball.  Here's a few pics of them incomplete, one that I made for a customer and one that Kelli put into a necklace....  What'd'ya think?

Happy Heat

Another Happy Firing. I'm pretty tired after a marathon glazing on Saturday. I don't usually do that, but had an urge to get them all done and ready to be fired on Sunday. These will be gradually posted in my Etsy shop. Since I work full time besides making beads, my postings aren't done quickly. If you're interested in anything that you see here, feel free to convo me for more pics and or inquiries. Happy Beading!!! Mary Ann

The Results Are In...

Although, the picture really doesn't do these any justice, what I mostly experience are many little lovely's, in many different shapes and sizes. I like to make small sets of a variety of shapes and colors. The beads that are the most time consuming are when I use mulitple glazes. Trying to figure out what might look good together and not clash can sometimes be a challenge. I love challenges so I'm also loving making these little works of art.

Hot Hot Hot

This is my little electric kiln. The other pic is an inside shot of Bill's woodfire kiln. Those were the turquoise beads that were grabbed shortly after listing them on Etsy. They were very cool. I have pics listed in an earlier post. Hopefully, we'll have another bead woodfiring in about a month or so.

For right now though I'm excited to see what this bead firing brings. I'm passing the time away before I can take them out. I'm usually happy.....

My Life Outside of Teaching and Bead Making

Here's a picture of our beautiful granddaughter Lacey. Last weekend she spotted the 2 mounted fish in the laundry room. This fit right in with her current obsession with Nemo. She was estatic!! Her eyes got wide and she exclaimed with shear excitement, "Nonnie, it's NEMO!" She is absolutely precious.

I thought I'd also throw in my latest version of ceramic coin beads. I like the way these came out so I think I'll make some more :O)

They're Glazed....

Here's a few pics of what it looks like once my beads are glazed and then put in the kiln. In this firing, I've added a couple of name signs that my nieces glazed when they were here this weekend. It's Thanksgiving and I'm passing the time away before we go out to eat. Tomorrow I should hopefully, be able to post how exciting it is to open the kiln. I LOVE it!!!