Hey remember that time

We're off to see one of my favourite singers, Regina Spektor tomorrow night, still never found the tickets I put in a 'safe place' but have replacements,the originals will probably turn up next week!
Anyway thinking about Regina songs while making beads today I was thinking of the song That Time and the lyrics, "Hey remember that time when my favorite colors were pink and green"
hence...

Unfortunately I burned the pink a little causing the ugly grey spots:(
I've also been trying to recreate the orange colour I had on these beads which I sold already,

and now I want an orange one to wear I can't get it. "Hey remember that month when I only ate boxes of tangerines, So cheap and juicy, tangerines" lol.
I'm pretty sure I used a colour called  Kalypso but all I can get now is pink, pretty pink but not orange
even over bright orange 'clockwork' I still got pink

Ah glass can be so wonderfully, frustratingly unpredictable! It could be the base glass which I've run out of and have on order, or it could just as well be the temperature or the way I'm holding my tongue or the moon phase!
I also have a pair of earrings in a notoriously transient colour, dark lavender, sometimes it's blue, sometimes lavender or purple sometimes a really pretty grey I love but I have to stay in the corner of the shed to maintain.

Enamelling results

Two days playing with wet packing enamel goes by a lot quicker than two days doing other stuff:) I'm happy with what I made and I probably will invest in some supplies to play some more at home.
These two on copper

And day twos work on silver ("Remember to remember me, standing still in your past, floating fast like a hummingbird" - wilco) with a little bit of gold foil

Enamel class tomorrow:) copper tonight

So looking forward to two whole days in Sally Laings lovely workshop learning and playing and being creative!
I've just been sorting through my scrap metal drawers (in their old library catalogue home) to see what bits and pieces might come in handy in addition to what is supplied. I packed a bunch of different sized copper tubing and wire, silver tubing and I FINALLY cut into the old copper toilet cistern which has been sitting under my torch bench for months. I cut out one end of the box shape, the end which has holes for the toilet handle, but I don't know if I can bring myself to cut that peice up any further because I really just love the look of it as it is, kinda makes me want to just put the whole chunk up on the mantel piece and admire the beautiful patina!

I love the green colour on what was the inside even more, the water line from years and years of water and the bits where the holes are,

I just love the thing as a piece of art without doing anything to it, seems a pity to cut it up or put coloured enamels over it, much as I like to recycle I think I'll just use new material instead of ruining this. There are three corner brackets from it which are obviously crying out to be made into something though, only for enamel if it will improve what they are now though

Also got a couple of rainbow stripe beads which didn't really come out as well as I wanted

And lastly a pic of my lazy pretty girls soaking up the sun.

Oh yeah

Happy kiln opening:)

Productivity

I just love when I feel as though I've managed to get a lot of things done in a day.
This day was extra productive... first I made new simplified cards using my current favourite banner pic, my printer made them look kinda dark so I took the jpeg to the print shop and it only cost $10 for 64 cards, larger than business cards but not quite postcards, it would have cost more than that just for ink in our printer! And they came out so good, I love them

Then I mailed off a necklace etsy sale and the 60 big hole beads I've been working on for the Tutukaka gallery summer re-opening

Then Heidi who is the only other lampworker in Taranaki came over to use my torch for a few hours while I worked on my garden landscaping.
When the kiln had cooled and I took her beads out it was about 10pm and there were half a dozen dipped mandrels left so I spent two hours on the torch myself and made 4 beads I was really happy with. Sometimes a session is just meh, sometimes super frustrating, but it's those occasions when it all comes together and you feel like you're on a roll that make bead making so seductively addictive!
Of course you never really know until they come out of the kiln though...
to be continued

Lost

Arrghh, I've lost my Regina Spektor tickets for next month!
This is the second time I lost them, last time when I found them I put them in a very safe place,
but now I can't remember where that was, not where I thought it was, unless someone has broken in and secretly taken nothing but the Regina tickets. I've searched everywhere I could imagine myself putting them, nothing, my brain is a seive!
At least they are seated, third row yay, so replaceable. I already got my Wilco tickets for next April, (Auckland and Wellington consecutive nights), and have put them in an obvious place with most of my other Wilco stuff, they're general admission though, (aka FRONT row hehe), so not replaceable.
I guess I'm going to have to make a call and get the Regina ones reissued.

Beadwise I made a lentil shape for a change, front and back... 

 

 Also an urchin bead I have to rephotograph because I managed to include two dog hairs stuck to the bead, a Paisley and an Angel hair!