NEW STYLE / NEW SHAPE...

I think I mentioned that I got some 1 1/4" lentil tongs last week after seeing Michael Barley use some in his class, right? Well... I really like the lentil shape & how my newer decorative styles are translating into this shape. I'm pretty head over heals w/ them all right now...

What do you think?? (click on image for a detailed view)
Aren't you just dying to see more??? :o)

SHOW & TELL...

Okay... I finally took a break from torching & finishing pieces for this coming weekend to take some pictures of some of my new pieces. I don't have a ton of time to Photoshop them, so I'll be "revealing" them little by little. (oh, the anticipation!!)

I love love LOVE these...

DO YOU BURN YOURSELF?...

My friend Jennifer Ionta says that she never burns herself when she's torching... I, on the other hand, walk away from the torch each session w/ new fingerprints, maybe a new mark on my arm (from glass flying), etc...

When I was @ Michael Barley's class, I was pulling a stringer @ the end of my mandrel as I was in the middle of making a bead & for some reason, the stringer slipped & swung down & touched my arm! I have a 3" long burn "line" on my arm. LOL. As I was showing someone what I did, I burned the back of my hand... I don't remember w/ what!! Michael says it's "user error", LOL. Well, duh. I think being in a class situation is a little distracting... easier for the glass to get away from me.

Tonight I didn't prewarm a thick rod of clear & when I put the tip of it in the flame, it was okay... started heating up & then decided to thermal shock on me, sending hot pieces flying & a piece went down the neckline of my shirt, landing just above my bra. I have a nice 1/4" round mark there now. While I was in the middle of making a bottle stopper, I decided that I needed to look @ the burn, so w/out thinking, I ended up somehow hitting my fingernail (the bed) w/ the hot bead........OUCH. Dang-it. Yes, it hurt... & it stunk, too! I now have a little brown burn mark on my nail. Crazy.

I thought I got over my clumsiness in my teens...

Battle scars... that's what they are. :o)

BUSY BUSY BUSY GIRL...

I'm getting ready for my first home show a week from today. I've been torching nonstop for days... mostly making utinsil sets... which is more "work" than "just making beads", since sets need to coordinate, so your head has to be right there, you know?

I'm loving what I'm doing as far as beads go these days... I'll take a picture for you soon. :o)

I've been thinking about lentil shapes lately... thinking that my new style would look really good in a lentil, so I bought some 1 1/4" lentil tongs on eBay last week after Michael Barley's class & I really like the shape & yes, my beads look FABULOUS as lentils, but I'm thinking that I want to have a lentil press instead of the tongs. I like that I can bring the tongs up to eye level to see what I'm doing, but I'm so used to the handful of Cattwalk presses that I have, I think a lentil press would be a breeze. I just wish that Cattwalk had a lentil trio that had larger sized lentils... like 3/4", 1" & 1 1/4"... I think that would be PERFECT! The lentil trio that they have is TINY, like the smallest lentil is around 1/2" & the largest is 3/4"! I know some people would use the 1/2"... I just don't work that tiny. Plus, a single trio unit would be cheaper than having to get one of each size that I want. MUCH cheaper. Hmmmmmmmmm... wonder if Catt does custom pieces? (yeah, custom = cheaper, huh??)

Time for bed... I'll post pictures soon... someday.

Till then...

~ Julie

I VOTED TODAY...

DID YOU?

I get choked up when I vote.

What an honor...
It's such a huge honor to live in a country where we have the freedom to pick our leaders.

The one who wins may not be who I voted for... or who you voted for... that is out of our hands... but I learned a while ago that I at least have to do my part & vote. You know that when I first moved to Minnesota I knew nothing about the "electorial college" ..I thought that my vote goes towards the COUNTRY's tally, not just the state's. I didn't realize that Minnesota pretty much votes opposite of what I did & felt that in the end my vote didn't matter. I didn't vote in the next election... why bother?? But then this really crazy thing happened in Minnesota... some wacky former WWF wrestler decided to run for governor as an independent. He said that he hated the game of politics & a ton of people got excited about that & went out in droves & voted for him. He beat out both the Democrat & the Republican. THAT crazy election made me realize ONE really important thing... my vote DOES count! It counts if EVERYONE believes this & just goes out & does it. It definitely won't count if you just stay home.

What I tell my kids, (because I've seen some kids who literally made themselves sick w/ worry in 2000 & 2004 when GW was elected, no doubt brought on by their parents' strong negative opinions /reactions) is that for the most part, people have good intentions, whether they're Democrat or Republican & are only trying to do what they think is best for the country...that there are all sorts of safeguards in place to make sure that really bad decisions aren't made, no matter who the president is. So we'll be okay, no matter what.

That's what I tell my kids.

I'd like to believe it myself, LOL.

I just wish that EVERYONE would stop playing games & do what is best for the country.