Eclipse of the Century

The Total Solar Eclipse happened on August 21st, and we witnessed it in Idaho.

I don't know if I can use enough superlatives to describe what we just had the pleasure of witnessing this past month on August 21st. So I won't even try, because there are many NASA videos you can look up to see what my words can't describe. We stood in awe and wonder of this total Solar Eclipse.  I can guarantee we won't be around to witness this celestial event when it comes around in another 100 years. So I can say that I am one of the lucky ones to have bore witness to a total Solar Eclipse in my lifetime. Our little town of Idaho Falls was right in the path of totality and even experts from NASA were based here for the duration, it was THAT big of a deal. It was eerily beautiful for it's short duration of a little over 2 minutes as a total eclipse, with the whole event lasting close to 3 hours.  I remember envisioning I was in some kind of Sci-Fi thriller. It was so surreal to look up at the heavens and for a brief moment, see the stars in the middle of the day. And the sun's corona cast an amazing light display around the moon. This event measured up to (in my view) and surpassed everyone's expectations. The weather couldn't have been better. We had a beautiful sunny day with light breezes blowing. Our neighborhood is up in the foothills, so we had a perfect view of the Moon's shadow as it made it's way along our valley's floor. As the Moon reached the path of Totality with the Sun, I could hear screams of delight all throughout our desert valley, myself included. The spectacular experience will be ingrained in my mind for many years to come. 

So, of course, knowing the magnitude of this stellar event beforehand, we had to add to the Eclipse "craze" with some glass art works created in the Studio to commemorate the beauty of it all. This month's blog features various slumped and fused pieces Russ created for friends and family to remember it by.

Slumped and Fused "Spacey" Idaho with Total Eclipse in the center of the State.

 Above is an Idaho silhouette cut out with the glass saw and made to look like outer space, and the Eclipse right in the middle of our State. Below is a glass coaster set with an Eclipse theme. 

Eclipse themed Coaster Set

Eclipse pendants were handed out to family members that day too.

Eclipse Glass Pendant

One of our friends just happened to be celebrating her birthday on the 21st, and Russ made a special decorative plate with the Total Eclipse highlighted with gold, which was fired on in the kiln. (She and her husband just happen to be huge fans of all things to do with outer Space, and we think it couldn't have been a better present for her.)

Slumped and Fused Decorative Glass Eclipse Plate

The timing of this celestial event was much needed, as Russ just lost his beautiful Mom last month on July 30th, after a valiant battle with Alzheimer's. She always believed in and spoke about the power of the Universe. We all felt her that day, as her spirit soared through the vastness of the experience. She continues to be a shining star for all who have had the pleasure of knowing this great and inspirational woman. Many of her artistic talents still live on in her son, and we are grateful for the wisdom of her written words , and the beauty in her paintings. To say the least, she is a most heavenly being of light, and is greatly missed, but also ever present in our surroundings.

Russ and his dear Mom, Nita

The past month has been a very emotional one, and we will continue to deal with the loss of this lovely woman we have had the pleasure of calling Mom. The celestial event of the Eclipse took on a whole new meaning for us as we thought about her that day. But, eventually those of us still dealing with life on earth, have to come back to reality and carry on as best as we can.  It's hard to do, and every day presents new challenges. But there are many orders to get to in the Studio that need our attention and just won't wait, and the busy season is just about here. I suppose staying busy helps to deal with a loss of this magnitude. And busy we are! While Russ works the torch flames,  I am currently working on hundreds of fused wreaths that need to be shipped off next month to a client. I'm afraid it's just the beginning.... 

In the process of working on hundreds of glass wreaths.

Autumn Works

Slumped and Fused Artwork titled "The Seasons"

It's that time of year again, as my most favorite of all the seasons has descended on us in what seems like the blink of an eye. I can't believe it is already time for crisp Fall walks! There is nothing that can compare to the sights and smells of an Autumn morning. Not much can tantalize our senses quite like a September morning can. Although, I have noticed this September has been much warmer than usual, and our Morning Glories continue to welcome us at the garden every morning in all their glory. Colors are more vibrant this time of year, and our animals are also more alert on their morning walks. The picture above shows our latest creation celebrating the seasons in a unique way. We slumped and fused glass Aspen scenes to depict the 4 seasons, inserted them in a tree branch, and added blown glass Aspen leaves as accents.

Morning glories are filling in nicely at the garden arbor

Ornamental grass in the backyard

Our lab/retriever dog is a little on the shy side

But we can't take too much time to enjoy the outdoors lately, as there is plenty of work to do in the Studio. It's right back to the torches to fill more orders, among them is a large one for 400 of our sandblasted doves, they need to be shipped out by the end of October. Also, our teardrops have been very popular as of late. Can't seem to keep enough in stock. We compare ourselves to the busy squirrels in Autumn, only with us it is our glass inventory. We have found that we can never have too much of an item on hand. Getting ready for the holiday season can be daunting at times, but so far we seem to pull through when the need for more custom requests come our way.

A variety of ornaments are headed out the door today

So, I am off to package and ship a variety of orders, including the stunning glass floral arrangement pictured below, that was a custom request off the internet. **Here's hoping it all arrives in one piece. After that, it's time to tackle 400 doves before the real push of the holidays begins. Hopefully, we will be able to make sure and take time to smell the roses, or more importantly to me anyway, the smells and sights of Idaho's crisp Fall mornings. 

A customized slumped and fused vase with a variety of blown glass flowers and hummingbirds was made for an upcoming wedding

Ornamental by Design

Fused glass snowman

I absolutely love this time of year - cheerful greetings, yuletide gatherings, pretty packaging, bells ringing, assortments of baked goodies, secret Santa's, children's choirs singing, and the list goes on and on. More than any other time of the year, we feel a sense of  "Peace on Earth" and an optimism of "Good Will towards Men," looking forward to what the coming new year will bring. Of course, it may have to do with the area we live in, being as we are so connected with Nature and don't have to deal with the hustle and bustle of a large Metropolis. That in itself brings on a sense of peace. But I have to admit, a green lawn with no snow seems a little off kilter for my personal taste. I'd feel slightly more cheerful with at least a bit of the white flakes falling from the Idaho skies. Yes, a blanket of snow would make for a heavenly night, just like the good old days of past Idaho winters.

But when the cold grey skies of December come calling, snow or not, it's time to cozy up to our warm torch fires and start making our own little cheerful creations out of shimmering glass rod and tubing. Seems to add to the already festive spirit in our small city. It's almost as if we were happy little elves working for the big guy up North!

We seem to come up with a new design every year for our glass ornaments. This year we created happy little snowmen using fusing techniques. We also made an assortment of fused Christmas trees. I'd have to say they really stand out nestled in the tree we put up in our studio, and compliment the blown glass ornaments nicely.

We also just wrapped up our Christmas Open House, which by the way, is a sure bet to become a yearly tradition the first weekend in December. Our choice of profession is certainly validated as patrons frequent the studio all weekend long, usually leaving with several of our own pretty glass creations for gift giving. Many of them choose a new ornament every year to keep up their tradition of ornament gifting. Our assortment makes it easy to keep this type of tradition up.

Glass Ornaments

Yes, I believe there is just the right amount of magic in the air for old and young alike this time of year. And just because the world seems to be spinning faster and faster in this age of technology, doesn't mean we can't take the time to slow down and enjoy the season of giving. Now I'm going to take my own advice and slow down and enjoy. Well, that is after I've made a few more ornaments with my guy, shopped, baked, wrapped, mailed packages, sang some carols alongside some old time crooners, decorated with tinsel, helped out a few less fortunate souls, and watched our first grandson enjoy the magic of Christmas with wonder in his eyes. This year I'm feeling blessed indeed! Personally, this year has been a good one to a couple of old school glassblowers and we are full of thanks. I hope that you, dear reader, will also take time to feel the magic and enjoy your friends and family. Let's all hope for Peace on Earth. Blessings to all and to all a good night.

Glowing basket of Blown glass balls

Blown Christmas Ball Ornament

And the Award goes to....

Wow! Almost two months has gone by since we last talked. What a busy time in the studio! This time of year, we're lucky to take those pups of ours on their daily walks. And boy, do they let us know it! Well, sorry furry friends, it's only gonna get worse. Or better, depends on the perspective.

It seems lately this year, that one thing has led to another, and we are now so inundated with new projects we can't see straight. Better adjust those rose colored glasses, and get focused on the new venture at hand.

But first, I think our readers (if there are any out there in the blog-o-sphere) would like to see just what it is that's kept us so busy. Since we last talked, besides training for a 1/2 marathon, (a personal goal of mine for turning the big 50 this year. And yes, I ran the whole way and completed it. Just don't ask how I felt the next day. :) ) we had another opportunity to create some unique awards for our local art museum's 10th anniversary celebration. We just wrapped that project up, and then loaded up the rest of our glass for a 3 day Beaux Cadeux event at their lovely facility. We enjoyed packaging up a variety of our ornaments and glass gifts for several art patrons during this show.

Funny how things work, their director had heard we created the VIP gifts for the King Tut exhibit, and asked us to do something along similar lines. This time the task was to create a unique award for all the patrons and volunteers that helped make the museum what it is today. It's had 10 years of success as The Art Museum of Eastern Idaho, thanks in part to the support of many in our community. So a brief description will offer you the inside look at how we came about with another unique glass project, thinking outside the box.

We've attached pictures of the different phases of the award. First, we cut float glass two layers thick, then cleaned them up and came up with 4 different colors of glass frit that we sandwiched between the two layers. Then we fused them in the kiln. The process took 12 hours for two awards. We created a total of 30 awards.

Cutting float glass

Glass frit colors

Fusing glass awards

Fused glass

Next, we used a mold to slump the pieces into a beautiful  curved shape, and again for every two pieces, the slumping process took close to 12 hours. Below is an example of the finished piece. It has an organic feel, as the back of the award has a great texture to it, and we were happy with the end result. A unique award going out to some well deserving folk in our community. We were glad to be a part of this venture.

Unique glass award

And now, another local business has caught wind of our ability to think outside the box, and they want us to create 650 hand sculpted glass rocks! Oh my, looks like the torches will be roaring full time from here on out.  And our Open House is two weeks away. So much to do, so little time! We could use an extra pair of hands about right now. I've learned a great lesson here, "Be careful what you wish for"! 

Fall Reflections

The first week of Autumn, and we can sure feel it in our neck of the woods. It's our favorite time of the year as the Aspen and mountain brush turn to vibrant colors of red, yellow, brown, and orange. There is even an exhilarating "aging" smell that is associated with Fall. We deeply inhale the crisp air and know it's time to get to work, and prepare for the cold months ahead, both in our garden and our hot shop. There always seems to be a sense of urgency as we prepare for the Holiday season each year. But not everything should be rushed. We enjoy taking the time to take a drive in the mountains and enjoy the breathtaking beauty that surrounds us every glorious Fall season. What a sight to behold, and how breath-taking are those brilliant colors!

Russ tried to portray that Fall feeling in the picture above. Another fused and slumped artistic glass picture made for one of our relatives who turned 50 earlier this month.  Turning 50 is a time for reflecting on your "golden" years, as they are also akin to the Fall foliage.  There is a certain nobility and beauty to the aging process in nature. This piece of art coined it quite well I think. Our relative's profession is with the Union Pacific Railroad, so we thought he'd enjoy a depiction of a locomotive slowly winding on a trek through the beautiful Fall  foliage. It gives us great joy creating a new and original piece, especially knowing that it will be appreciated most by those near and dear to our hearts.

As we just "went with the flow" this summer, so now we turn to a faster pace in the studio. There is much to be done to prepare for the winter season and the merry ornaments and gifts we create in the studio to adorn many a tree and home for the holidays.

As we enjoy this busy and colorful season of the senses, whether it's baking in the kitchen (let the crisp apple pies and tasty pumpkin seeds roasting, work their magic on the nostrils of those who stroll on through)  or baking in the studio, Fall is a time to prepare for what's to come.