A fishy success!!!!!

Here she is:

Thanks goodness, when I got the large diameter murrini cane out of my kiln this morning and then sliced it into nice little bite-sizes (read pulling out smaller sized) I was happy to see that it looked like a fish, indeed much like the fish it was supposed to look like!  It is by no means perfect and the body shape is not quite right and the top yellow fin was too small compared to the large tail fin and I didn't get the stripes quite right and the face..... well you get the picture!  I do still have another face came component and might go back and try again when in the mood, but for just now I will pull some of this cane down to bead sized and cut into slices for Affordable to sell for me if Kerry is happy with that.... or, I will pop them into some containers for the flame-on freebie bags..... hmmm not sure, maybe both!

Last night I decided that whilst I was waiting for the kiln to heat up to component cane temp I might as well throw a couple of boro things in there..... here are the marbles I quickly threw together.  My hubby Leo is rapidly collecting a rather nice line of mibs for on his office window sill at work and he really quite likes them.   He is quite proud of my glass stuff and gets all puffed up when a visiting person asks about them. I love that he is so supportive of my glassy endeavours, but it sounds suspiciously to me like he never grew out of that boys and marble fetish thing lots of young men have, but geeze, I like them too!  Still, if a few marbles keeps him happy and cool with my buying glass, he can have as many as he likes!!!

Murrini-ing on and more sea themes!

Well I am now definitely back in my usual swing.  Which is in actuality a little crazed given that I have just got back from working with the lovely Loren Stump and are on the committee for the first ever International Flame-on Downunder in less than two weeks time (and things are hotting up in more than one way..... LOL) see http://www.flameondownunder.com/ for info .  After the flame on I will also be working as Technical Assistant to Robert Mickelson, boro flamework legend and then driving for 10hrs to attend a wedding where my twins are flower girls.......aaarrrrggh (run away, run away....)

I need to make some murrini to add to the give away bags at the flame on from Affordable Inspiration who sells my murrini for me.  But.....I have been making some absolutely horrible murrini over the last couple of days!  Just lazyness or throwing them together and hoping for the best which is an option that NEVER works out well for me.  I knew there was an issue with my blue striped fish when my kids commented that they looked like the offspring of a budgie and a fish.......hmmmm, could have shaped them better.

And here is the clownfish with the large eye and the weird mouth......doh!

I did knuckle down tonight and popped a little angelfish murrini (large diameter first off) into the kiln and hopefully something nice will come out for once..... cross your fingers and toes for me if you can, I will show the results even if shameful!



My brain is bursting with ideas.....

Well, after returning from working as a tech assist for Loren Stump for two weeks and standing and watching the students all melting glass (well, not just standing there of course, but you get the gist I am sure) I have got home and have gone into a glass melting frenzy!   I have been making murrini and beads like a steamtrain......  Some have come out ok, some NOT!  Its interesting that when you are working and not a student you really do miss out on some of the finer points of how to do things, I am of course wishing I had done the course as a paying student right now, but appreciate Gail at Goglass (www.goglassart.com.au) letting me work with such a great bloke and being exposed to a miriad of new ideas.  I feel frenzied to melt glass and try out new idea's .... always a good thing I am sure!

I made myself some of the 3D clownfish Loren showed the class and boy did I wish I had actually stayed to watch how he did it.  Mine look a bit more like a squirrel fish (those ugly ones with disproportionately large eyes) and then I forgot the mouth and adding it afterwards... well its not recommended lets put it that way!

 One good thing is that I have decided to make more beads using my own murrini.  It seems mental that I tend not to use them myself and yet I see the lovely stuff my customers make with them and drool...... doh!   The frog in the jungle bead above is the first bead I have used this particular leaf cane  on and I am quite happy with it - although the frogs legs are not very well done, it did give the green leafy jungle feel and after all that is what I was going for.

This bead is where I have moved on a little from my frog on a lily pond beads I had started on before going to work with Loren.  This one I applied a bit of yellow rose cane as a waterlily and popped a dragonfly slice on top of that.  I am loving the green growth on the side at the right too (based on ascidians, water filtering animals in the ocean) but I need to do more work on the koi fish on the bottom layer and are thinking I might make some koi murrini for them rather than a swipe of white with some orange and black spots.

I am still trolling my way slowly though the gorgeous work at the Bead Soup Blog Swap and there are some fabulous and inspiring pieces of art to drool over.  I figure it might take me a week or so before I get though, but I will read all of them.  I have tried to comment on them, but either through my own stupidity or the internet systems some use, can't work out how to have a say..... sometimes I make myself wonder I tell you! 

And... the Bead Soup is served!

Yep, thanks to Niky from Silverniknaks ( http://silverniknats.blogspot.com/ ) I recieved the most gorgeous purple-y bead soup and with a fabulous array of beads.
The focal is a wonderful lampwork glass dichro bead made by the talented Barbara Metzger of Basha Beads http://www.etsy.com/shop/bashabeads

The cutest little daisy clasp by Daisy Chain Extra who makes lovely stuff http://www.etsy.com/shop/daisychainextra

Some lovely lampwork beads by Laura Sparling http://www.beadsbylaura.co.uk/BBLBeadsToOrder.htm and http://www.chameleondesigns.co.uk/FocalBeads.html

Niky also included some fabulous seed beads and lovely sparkly crystals along with some striped agate,  gorgeous pearls and sweet little silver lined rocailles.  The colours Niky chose were inspired by Peacock colouring..... rich green, blue and purple.

I simply strung the necklace together on some tiger tail first and then went back through with the needle and thread to add the extra seed beads to soften and give some movement.  I created a drop beneath the focal as a bit of a feature in the front using the lovely rainbow basha bead.

I really hope I did Niky proud.  I am not the best jewellery designer, and yet I really enjoyed making this necklace.  I will use some of the rest of my bead soup for some other projects which I will show on my blog.