Enjoying what we have in times of uncertainty

 Reflecting back on what went on this month, other than our steady stream of Etsy orders, we were able to collect our thoughts and take a breather of sorts from the Studio and enjoy the great outdoors. I appreciated the chance we had to get away to one of our favorite places on the planet, which just so happens to be a short drive from our town. Earlier this month we delivered some new blown glass wildlife pieces to the store that carries our glass in Jackson Hole. We decided to make the best of it while there, and enjoyed a weekend of camping. The Tetons did not disappoint. Also, a short day trip and hike into Yellowstone proved challenging for someone with arthritic knees, but the beauty taken in was worth it. 

A picture perfect view of Mount Moran.

The Grand Canyon of Yellowstone.

Water so clear, the rocks were perfectly visible. 

Peace and solitude at our campsite. 

Artistic wildlife that was delivered to Jackson Hole earlier this month. 

I was also so fortunate to welcome grandchild number 7 at the very end of last month. With the threat of Corona virus looming over the world, I felt so lucky to have quarantined enough to help  my son and his family out when precious baby was born. She has brought light and joy into the world, and I was happy to spend precious time with her recently. My hope is that she grows up in a world free from this pandemic. We are all waiting on edge, hoping for a medical miracle that will put an end to the Corona virus. My hope is that all the grand kids will soon live in a world without this fear. We are so happy to be the proud grandparents of 7 wonderful grand children, makes life worth living. 💖

Our newborn Granddaughter

I've also had time to enjoy our backyard pond this month along with all the bounty coming out of our high tunnel and garden this year. I have already started canning, in between trips to the Post Office, delivering packages of glass gifts to customers. Trying to create normalcy in these very abnormal times. It pays to look at the glass 1/2 full instead of 1/2 empty. Until next entry, I hope this blog gives someone out there joy, in what seems to be an increasingly dark world. Here's hoping our Studio can continue to produce glass art as an inspiration of beauty for all who happen to come across it.

Enjoying our backyard pond on a hot summer day.

The new high tunnel is not disappointing us with the seeds we planted earlier in the year.

A sample of some of the goodness of the garden this year.

A New Look

A new look for our website!

This last month has been rather eventful for us, with many projects going on around the home front as well as the Studio. We have been collaborating with our Graphic Designer (who just happens to be our son) on a new look for our website. We rolled it out earlier this month and couldn't be happier with it's new design and user friendly application. If you haven't already taken a look you can find it at www.glass4gifts.com There is also an active link to shop on our Etsy page. Countless hours of tedious work have paid off, and that is one more thing we can check off our list of "to do's". I'm sure our son is breathing a sigh of relief too. 😊 He went beyond our expectations with the new look.

I also wanted to share a photo of a slumped and fused abstract piece Russ created for one of his sisters. She and her husband had just finished building a beautiful little home last Fall and he wanted them to have some new art to hang on their walls. A  housewarming gift that went to an appreciative home is pictured below. 

Abstract Fused Glass Art created for a family member

We also spent a lot of time these past few months outdoors on our property. We became aware of a Robin's nest a few months back, in one of our pine trees. I wasn't sure if there were any birds in it for quite some time, so Russ finally snuck in and took a picture and found out that yes indeed, there were newborns in the nest. There are only 2 pictures because we didn't want to disturb Ma and Pa Robin's babies too much. I can now say that they have weathered all the crazy winds, freak snow storms and loud lawn mowers passing by, to finally become independent of their parentals. I still see them fluttering around the yard, learning to feed themselves as their parents taught them. It was a joy witnessing the whole process from newborn to independent, flying around the property. 

Baby Robins on our property. 

Russ got to take some time off on Father's Day and enjoy our newest grand puppy, Moose. He is a beautiful Retriever! 

Russ chilling with Moose in our back yard.

The greenhouse is starting to pay off now. Russ has done a lot of tweaking to it. We never grew broccoli before, this was a first for us. It was delicious! And the tomato plants are coming along nicely. It continues to be a learning experience, as some plants are thriving while others seem to struggle. No matter, a great new hobby for him, since his hobby of glass blowing has turned into a full time business. 

Plants are starting to take off in the greenhouse.

We are still collaborating with an Author for her book series. This glass Gryphon was the latest created. The last one to work on will be a glass Phoenix. I already shared the dragon and unicorn in my previous blogs. We like thinking outside the box when it comes to commissions. 

A Blown Glass Gryphon Commission.

And lastly, we are working up to the last minute on a special commission, an artistic bench. Below is a sneak peek. The rest of this project will be revealed in another blog post.  Speaking of which, it's time to wrap this post up, so I can complete the final details of this huge undertaking. 

A sneak peek of a special artistic commission....

A Quick Tour

 

What's up with A Touch of Glass these days, you may ask? Well, this month I'm keeping the blog short and sweet, as we are preparing for a great adventure. (I'll explain more in July.)  We continue to stay busy with various custom projects requested by some local customers. Meanwhile, I've posted  a video of the latest works in our Studio. We hope this summer you have time to make some lasting memories. Until next time, enjoy!

'Tis the Season

Slumped and Fused Art

Lately I've got a bad habit of waiting 'til the last possible moment to write my monthly blog, through no fault of my own. Hectic doesn't begin to accurately describe what this month has been like for us in the Studio. First we had to prepare new art pieces to participate in a local art show, then create custom commissions for clients, then stock and restock all our ornaments that we are shipping through our Etsy storefront. Not to mention create custom blown ball ornaments for clients both local and across the country. I'm getting that stress knot in my stomach that tends to inflame around this time of the year. I suppose I need to focus on the end results, which is, that we are constantly validated these days both in the art world, and our home grown business. Makes it easier to lose sleep over I suppose. 

Our large Ornament rack holds lots of unique ornaments.

Set up for a local art show in November

We created a fun fused coaster set out of different hues and shades of red.

Red glass fused coasters

Bigger and more unique wildlife pieces were sculpted in the lamp working flames, like the pieces shown below.

Blown glass Owl on Manzanita Burlwood

A crystal clear trout making a glass splash out of the water

Blown glass Moose in Cattails

Sandblasted Mountain Goat on a glass rock ledge

While our Wildlife scenes are always popular, Russ went outside his comfort zone with soft glass, and spent hours and hours creating the Aspen scene below. A nice, thick piece was created by added layer after layer of various colors. The real Aspen log set it off perfectly.  Definitely one of the more intense pieces created to date.

Slumped and Fused Aspen Art Work

A real piece of Aspen bark was also used to help create a mold for the unique slumped and fused piece below. A light adds a soft touch to it.

Another unique glass Aspen piece

Russ was really pushed to his creative limits on the piece below. A client wanted a type of Salvidor Dali inspired piece of art work. This piece really moved me, almost to tears, as he described his inspiration behind it. Hours and hours of intense kiln time and flame working time were spent on it. Both ourselves and our client were extremely pleased with the outcome. 

This piece has many interpretations and levels to it. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Another couple of unique projects are wrapping up this month, as two different clients wanted us to create their logos on the inside of their custom blown balls. Inserting the logo inside the ornament gives it a kind of floating-in-air impression. Lots of time and effort is being spent to get it to look just right. Hoping they are both happy with the outcome. 

Custom made blown ball ornaments

And of course, what would this time of year be like without our trusty source of income, affordable Christmas ornaments. These happy snowmen are just about to be fired in the kiln.

Slumped and Fused Glass Snowman Ornaments

Now if you will excuse me, I've got to rush to the Post Office to ship yet another car load of glass goodies. I need 4 sets of hands to get it all done!

Many packages waiting to be shipped out all across the country.

Have a Heart

Lustered Rose bouquet

Another small bouquet with purple highlights

Valentines Month is also "Healthy Heart" month. From some personal experience, I can say I understand the importance of this focus. Normally February is a very busy time for us, teaching lessons for "Hot Date Night" and shipping out rose bouquets, both of which were accomplished. But this year I'd be lying if I said everything was smooth sailing for us. Production in the Studio kind of came to a screeching halt as we dealt with major health issues on both sides of our families.

If anything has been learned, we can say we have a fresh perspective on just how precious our health and hearts can be. Family is what captures our hearts the most, and we are thankful for having such strong family ties. Life has it's ups and downs, and in reality it's never the bed of roses we wish it could be. But how we deal with the lows is just as important as how we deal with the highs. Have to remember that one.

Teddy Bears with heart shape balloons are new this year.

As far as Valentine gifts, there was still time to get a little creative with some new blown glass creations like the ones pictured above and below (we're dealing with the personal stuff as best as we can.) Bottom line is when life gets tough, it's important to "have a heart" and give of yourself to those around you that might need the comfort of a helping hand. We're appreciative of the fact that our family is good at rallying when the going gets tough. 

"Heart of the Ocean" Blown glass Valentine gift

We shipped out a number of these bouquets this month

Upcycled bottles pictured with some of our heart pendants

February is coming to a close and the dark clouds of winter are lessening. A little sun is good for our overall outlook, and helps improve the mood. So as we adjust our attitude, we look forward to a little more sunshine and happiness as we welcome Spring next month. Until next time, remember how important it is to "have a heart", literally and figuratively. 

So Busy It's Scary

Whooooo's ready for Halloween?

You want to know what's scary this month? Besides the local hauntings, little goblins, and creepy crawlies....blinking an eye and realizing it's already over! It seems like a blur, so much done in the Studio, yet so far to go. 

We started out October like we ended September, blowing and sandblasting hundreds of dove ornaments for a non-profit organization that found us on Etsy. Wouldn't seem like a daunting task, except there's just the two of us, with a short time frame to get the work done. That counts for many, many hours of labor, and boy were we happy to ship them out the door this week. I think if there had been one more day of that noisy compressor blasting away, our dogs would've committed some kind of murder upon us for hurting their ears.

A small portion of a very large ornament order

We did manage to get away once in a while, and happened to come upon a scary looking forest one weekend, while looking for firewood. Scary as it looked, it felt really good to breathe in the forest and Autumn air, instead of dealing with the dust that accompanies our sandblast activities in the Studio.

Spooky forest

Also, everything was put to an abrupt halt earlier this month, when we were notified our 3rd grandchild was on his way.  What a beautiful reprieve from the tedious goings-on in the Studio, as I realized grandson #3 would come into the world on what was my very own day of birth, many years ago. He was welcomed into the world with lots of love, a perfect baby boy, and I couldn't believe we were both to share a special bond with this day. What a grand thing for this grandparent. I was gifted the ultimate present on my birthday. A precious day to be treasured for the rest of my years of life.

Our 3rd grandson is having sweet dreams

Once the happiness of welcoming our grandchild into the world had subsided, we headed back down the road home, and right into the Studio to complete lots of unfinished projects. The pieces below were created this month, along with the large order of doves.

Shark, Stingray, Starfish and Coral Scene

The War Cry

Mama Bear and her cubs

And now that Halloween is just about here, I think we'll take the time to spend with family members, and do some fun spooky hauntings before the next holiday orders come rushing at us full speed ahead. So busy it's scary!

Our carved pumpkins 

"May" Be a Disaster, "May" Be Not

As with most professions, there are good days and bad days. And no matter how much preparation and thought are put into our glass works, things cannot possibly run smoothly all of the time. We have experienced highs and lows in the Studio, it's just the nature of the beast when working with glass. Well, this week has had it's share of low spots for us. It's pretty frustrating, but all we can do is pick up the pieces "literally", and chalk it up as another learning curve. Nothing like getting woke up at 4:30 am (on a Monday morning, no less) to the sound of one of your favorite pieces (a glass wall clock) crashing down to the floor with a deafening noise. Not only did the clock meet it's demise, but it took out a large amount of our inventory with it. Glass shards were everywhere, and it took quite a bit of effort to clean up every last piece.

We also had our share of breakage when it came to shipping glass roses this month. Beautiful hand crafted and blown flowers were flawless before the shipment. Beforehand, we meticulously and carefully wrapped and double boxed the flowers as we always do, only to hear they arrived across country broken due to rough shipping and handling. It's not often this happens, but when it does, it's disappointing to both us and the customers. And we have no choice but to start from scratch all over again.

Mother's Day glass floral gifts

Rose broken during shipping

That's one of the reasons for this artistic statement below, it's currently hanging on one of the walls in the Studio. It's a hard glass (borosilicate) hammer smashing a soft glass (Float) window. We titled it "Stressed". For us, it portrays how many times we have been frustrated when projects don't end up the way we'd like, or beautiful pieces end up in shatters. It's devastating, especially after meticulously working for hours to create them.

"Stressed"

However, for every disaster, there are many more successes to counter-balance the losses. I suppose that's why we don't stay stressed too long, as the rewards are outweighing the benefits. We have to take the losses with the profits and realize every day will not "come up roses". Learning from and dealing with mistakes and accidents never ends when one is a glass artist. Of course, learning from successes is what we would much rather focus on in the Studio. Below are some of the successes created this month of May.

Glass Dragonfly with Lilies

Glass Fairy on Glass Lilypad

Blown Glass Lizard on Manzanita Wood

A beautiful slumped and fused glass collection

If we can focus on the overall results of our labor, the disappointments won't be so hard to deal with. And this week, we are focusing extra hard. Patience is indeed a virtue, that much we have learned for sure.