Living Life Creatively

I'm Baaaaaaaack!!

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Tue, 05 Jan 2021 23:48:00 +0000

Wowzers! Has it really been almost 7 years since I last posted something here? That "Time Flies" adage really applies, because I swear it doesn't feel like it's been that long ago?! One of my New Year's resolutions is to start posting to this blog again, since I have missed being able to share more in-depth stories than what is possible on just my Facebook or Instagram pages.

First of all, here is a brief synopsis of why I suddenly disappeared from the blogging world in 2014...

Soon after I last posted here in February 2014, I woke up one morning, casually reached over to my nightstand to pick up my phone, and suddenly experienced a sharp pain in my shoulder. I thought it was just one of those "old-age-waking-up-twinge" things and tried to shrug it off, but over the course of the next few days the pain got progressively worse, to the point where I had to go see my doctor to find out what was going on. I was first diagnosed with a form of tendonitis, but after about a month with no improvement, I got a second opinion and it was determined that I actually had a Partial Frozen Shoulder. This ailment seems to happen randomly most often in women over 55 years and meant physical therapy several times a week for nearly a year, with no typing on my computer or anything that meant moving my right arm more than in a shallow 90-degree angle to my body (like how those soldiers parade march in front of Buckingham palace). I could barely make beads on the torch or take photos, so those activities were also cut back quite a bit.

I was healthy by the end of the year, but after about 5 months I started experiencing pain again and discovered that I had some stubborn inflammation due to the frozen shoulder. So I ended up having almost another year of therapy to fix that?! *sigh* After 3 years of basically avoiding my computer, I got into the habit of not blog posting and figured I would come back to it later. Last year was supposed to be my reintroduction, but then the Covid-19 virus hit and I was too stressed with everything going on in the world to do it.

So...here I am at the start of 2021, and even though the pandemic is still very much a part of all our lives, I am determined to maintain a more positive and creative attitude this year. I will most likely not post as often as I used to, but I am aiming for at least once or twice a month. A lot of great things have happened to me in the interim, including my two daughters both graduating from college and getting married, as well a fantastic trips to places like Thailand and Tahiti, so I might do a few retroactive posts to share my favorite photos? I am also more active on Instagram these days, so please feel free to "follow" me there @LoriBergmannDesign.

Thanks so much to all my friends and followers for hanging in there with me over the years. Please stay safe and healthy, and I am looking forward to sharing our creative journey together again!

"Clean Up, Fix Up Your Workspace" Blog Hop

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sat, 01 Mar 2014 06:00:00 +0000

Several weeks ago, I stumbled across a notice on my Facebook news feed by Sharyl's Jewelry, asking if any fellow bead ~~hoarders~~ lovers would like to join her in cleaning up and organizing their work spaces, then share the results on a blog hop? This was a providential sighting for me, as I had been going quietly crazy trying to work around the chaotic mess of my studio. So I jumped right on in and signed up—knowing that being held accountable for blogging about it would be just the kick in the pants I needed!

I actually have two separate studios—one in the garage for making my glass beads and firing metal clay, and another one upstairs for making jewelry and all my other creative endeavors. My glass studio is only about 1/20th the size of my other one and is limited to basically the area of my work table and not much else, so it seems that I am constantly fighting to keep it in a decent production mode—no easy task when I am often on the torch for four to six hours a day and then spend a few more hours upstairs cleaning beads, packing up orders, photographing, and marketing too.

But with Sharyl's incentive urging me on, I forced myself to make the time to get things whipped back into shape. This is what my work space looked like BEFORE…

I bet you're wondering how I even managed to get anything done in all this, huh? Several long hours later, this is what it looked like AFTER…

And no, I didn't just throw everything out of sight for the photo! LOL All my loose glass rods and tools were all put back in their places and the table top was scrubbed clean. *whew!* It's amazing how much my spirit of creativity came flooding back when I had a clean, organized slate to start with again!

I already had this studio pretty organized in terms of having places for everything to go—a must when I have such a small space that needs to function at the highest production level. In the upper left corner of my desk, I re-purposed a spinning pen holder from my graphic design days so that it now holds glass rods, mica powders, and various tools. Inexpensive metal pots from the craft store filled with vermiculite hold my mandrels, while others collect the short bits of glass that I can't bear to throw away. A skinny ice cube tray holds a variety of glass stringers in the right corner and most of my brass presses are stored neatly underneath the table on a shelf.

In addition to the tools shown on the far right side that are hanging on magnetic hooks and a rack, I also set up a new place around the corner to organize more tools from my growing collection (although this is still not ALL the ones that I own! shhhhhhh!!). Some strong magnets from Harbor Freight, a couple of long hanging strips, and a metal filing cabinet, and BAM! All my favorites within easy reach of my hand while concentrating on spinning molten glass in the flame—heavenly!

I had really hoped to get both studios reorganized for the blog reveal, but I guess I'll have to be happy that I at least managed to get my glass studio spiffed up in time. And now that I'm on a roll, I am planning to tackle my jewelry studio over the weekend! I did start working on it last year, but it's been a slow project often put on hold while other priorities have cut in…you can see some of the things I did from my previous post by clicking HERE.

Thank you, Sharyl, for giving me such a fun reason to clean up and I can't wait to see how everyone else in the blog hop did too! If you'd like to be inspired by the other participants as well, please click on this link HERE to visit Sharyl's blog (scroll to the end to see the full list)…then maybe tackle your own space and free up those creative juices again?! *Ü*

New Design Series: Verdigris

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sun, 23 Feb 2014 18:09:00 +0000

Well, as my luck would have it, another design series has quickly flown out of my torch as a branch off of my recent "Vetro Antico" series that I introduced in my last post! (Dontcha love it when your Muse is on a creative high?!?)

This new "Verdigris" series is also inspired by ancient artifacts, but more from the natural stone and architectural side. I use a Copper Green glass that has been given an aged surface treatment in the flame—hence the title of this series, as verdigris is the name of the patina that naturally occurs on copper over time.

These beads also have a more organic feeling to them, with natural striations in the glass, curdled reactions in ivory glass from silver, and fine silver metallic accents. And I'm loving the long teardrop shapes, created with my new Beadroller tool I got for my birthday last month. These sold out quickly, but I promise there will definitely be more where these came from! *Ü*

I would love to hear what you think of my two new design series and how you would use any of my beads in your jewelry? And please feel free to "like" and share my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/LoriBDesign), if you'd like to get sneak peeks at my newest work!

New Design Series: Vetro Antico

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Thu, 20 Feb 2014 17:44:00 +0000

As a lifelong admirer of Old World antiquities and travel to Italy (three times so far!), it only makes sense that I would be totally in love with ancient Roman glass artifacts for as long as I can remember. So when I say I am beyond excited to offer this new design series inspired by these loves—that is an understatement! LOL

I'm calling it "Vetro Antico" which roughly translates to "ancient glass" in Italian and it's a series that I've been wanting to create from when I first started lampworking about seven years ago. But as with a lot of my *great* ideas, I often let them sit and percolate in my subconscious and design sketch book while I work on more pressing things, until my Muse jumps up and demands that she is in the mood to tackle it. Well, a few weeks ago she practically screamed in my ear to get started and this is what I've been creating in my studio so far…

A big part of my design influence is ancient Italian glass jewelry, which often had a lot of gold included in the designs. This focal has 23K Italian gold layered on the inside and also "gilded" on top of my variation of the Lotus flower, which was a popular motif in Roman architecture and design. I have also given it a subtle "aged" effect that creates a pitted and matte texture in random areas. It is even prettier in person, where you can really see how it glows in the hand!

Antico Focal No. 1

Antico Gilded Spacers

Antico Gilded Earring Drops

These next sets are more rustic in nature, but still coordinate perfectly with the gilded designs since they are all made with the same glass color, but treated with a stronger aging effect…

*sigh* There's just something about this soft blue-green color and the unexpected surface patina that is so soothing and elegant…it brings to mind a curiosity about ancient peoples who may have worn something similar, or serene beaches for these modern times. I feel that these beads all have so many different possibilities and I can't wait to make some statement jewelry pieces with them!

These all sold almost immediately after I shared them on my Facebook page, but I am busy making more on request and for upcoming local bead shows. And there are still many more shapes and designs knocking around in my head, waiting impatiently to come out—so be sure to come back and visit soon if you're in love with this series as much as I am?! *Ü*

Share the Love Giveaway Winner!

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Wed, 12 Feb 2014 02:08:00 +0000

Time to announce the winner of my Share the Love Giveaway contest! There were over 40 entries, along with even more wonderful comments during this week-long contest and I hope everyone who participated had a lot of fun! I put all the names into an appropriately shaped Heart bowl, squeeze my eyes shut tight, and pulled out one name…

(Drum roll, please…) And here is the lucky winner…

Congratulations, Louise! I just need to know which of these two prizes you would prefer and will mail it out for a sweet Valentine's Day accessory to wear!

I really appreciate everyone who liked and shared my Facebook page, and/or pinned the contest to Pinterest to play along. I just wish I had enough to send something to each and every one of you. But stay tuned, because you never know when I'll do another fun Givewaway (maybe when I hit 2,000 "likes" on Facebook?? hint, hint!) *Ü*

Share the Love Giveaway

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Wed, 05 Feb 2014 23:26:00 +0000

Inspired by the upcoming Valentine's Day holiday, I wanted to do a little Giveaway to show my appreciation for all the love my family, friends and wonderful customers have given me throughout the year!

So I've decided to offer one lucky winner a choice of two different prizes created with my lampwork beads—a Chocolate Heart pendant on an 18" sterling-plated faceted ball chain, or a Chocolate Rose charm bead that has been cored with sterling silver and will fit on a Pandora or any other popular brand of big-hole bracelet.

To enter, you can choose to do any of the following (each qualifies as a separate entry):

1) Click on the photo and "Like" my Facebook page (from the "Like" button in the upper right corner, not the actual photo link). Please make sure to like it from your personal page and not a business one.

2) Share this event on Facebook, with a link to either this blog post or the announcement on my own page.

3) Pin this post to Pinterest.

DEADLINE to Enter: Monday, February 10, 2014

Then leave a comment here to let me know what things you've done and I will throw all the names into a hat and draw the winner on Tuesday, February 11th. That way, I'm hoping you will be able to get your prize in time to wear it on Valentine's Day?

Just liking, sharing or Pinning doesn't give you an automatic contest entry—you need to leave a comment here or on my Facebook post to say what you did so I can include you in the drawing. And please make sure to leave a link to your blog or some other way for me to easily contact you when you leave your comment.

Thank you so much and Good Luck! ♥ ♥ ♥

Please note that this Giveaway is in no way sponsored by or affiliated with Facebook and I am the sole person responsible for this contest and the distribution of prizes.

GOOOOOOO, Hawks!

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sun, 26 Jan 2014 03:05:00 +0000

I am so beyond excited to watch the Super Bowl next weekend, mainly because our beloved Seahawks will be there! In preparation for the epic battle that we're all anticipating, I made a few beads to show my support for our team…

The hearts were made with the same technique as the red Valentine's Day ones I shared in my previous post, and the two big-hole charm beads will go on a bracelet with a few other beads in Seattle colors. I still need to core them with sterling, but I couldn't wait to take a photo and share. The one on the right has hearts going all around the band, while the one on the left also has hearts, but in a different colorway—I even figured out how to sneak in a reference to "the 12th Man" in there!

I had so much fun making these, that I think I will start to offer them for sale through my Facebook page and Etsy shop in any other team colors that faithful fans might want (but the Broncos fans will have to pay double! LOL).

Just hope I don't lose my voice cheering the Hawks on like I did last time! *Ü*

Romance Is In The Air!

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Thu, 23 Jan 2014 22:08:00 +0000

Valentine's Day is right around the corner, and since I'm a total Romantic at Heart, I've been in a frenzy of making new beads and goodies that fit right in with this special holiday theme…

Let's start things off with the heart pendants in the above photo, which I hand-formed into slim puffy hearts with a wire bail embedded into it while the glass is molten so that it creates an instant pendant. I love how I can make the bead with a much finer tip than if it had a hole running through it and you don't even have to be a jewelry designer to use them, as they can be easily slipped onto a key ring, looped onto a thin cord, or a variety of other things. This was a new technique for me and it has quickly become one of my favorites!

My little faux Chocolate Truffles in a Tin are always a big hit this time of year, so I made sure to offer several different design mixes to please every Romantic's palette. They come in a set of four beads, packaged in the cutest little tin with a see-through lid—and make perfect gifts just as they are, or you can make your own jewelry design and then put it back in the tin for a unique presentation.

I also created a few necklaces with my Chocolate Heart beads and a pretty silver-plated snake chain—simple and sweet!

Mini heart-shaped head pins are also a brand new design and these are the very first ones I made—aren't they adorable?! They are much trickier to make than they look, as it takes some finesse and breath holding to shape the molten glass without melting the wire in the process. I can see a lot of potential here and will work on refining my technique so I can offer them in several other colors and a stainless steel wire version soon!

And last, but not least…I've been focusing on big-hole charm beads featuring a wide variety of Chocolates and Heart/Love designs. (Can you see where I used one of my new little Heart head pins?) This batch is going to a special customer, but I am working hard to make more for last minute shoppers (and you know who you are! LOL).

I am pretty pleased with myself—not only for challenging myself to think out of the box and learn some new techniques, but also for actually getting on the ball and offering these well before Valentine's Day, so my customers have plenty of time to work on a gift for the special people in their lives. And the great thing is—Chocolates and Hearts are always perfect to give not only on this one day or anniversaries, but throughout the entire year! ♥ ♥ ♥

P.S.—A lot of these beads were shared on my Facebook page as soon as they came out of the kiln, so that my "fans" could have first dibs to buy them before I listed them in my Etsy shop. If you would like to take advantage of these sneak peeks too, I would love it if you "liked" my page HERE and shared it with all your fellow jewelry loving friends! *Ü*

40 Bead Challenge: Days 5 and 6

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Fri, 17 Jan 2014 22:00:00 +0000

Its a good thing Heather Trimlett's 40 Bead Challenge is one of those "do at your own pace" things, because I had to stop it in its tracks once the Fall season hit, as I just had too much on my plate at the time. You can see how my first four bead making sessions turned out in my last post HERE. I've had my lovely strand of beads sitting on my desk all this time since, teasing my brain and begging me to get started on finishing them up—and I'm so excited that I'm finally able to get back on track with the program again!

While I would have loved to be able to complete the last 20 beads all at one time, the rules of the Challenge are to make no more than 5-6 beads in one day, so that you have time to really focus on the technique at hand, which is using nothing but heat, gravity and dots of glass to create the design. So I reluctantly reined myself in and here are the results of Days 5 and 6, continuing with my strategy of sticking with one design theme per session…

DAY 5: Overlapping Dots

Up to this point, I haven't really attempted using overlapping dots to create patterns and it turned out to be a trickier process with some of the designs than I thought it would be. These beads definitely took more time and thought that most of my others, especially the pair of scale-like designs on the far left. The one on the left was actually my first attempt to achieve the look I eventually got in the second version to its right—but I love how this "happy accident" turned out!

DAY 6: Flowers Revisited

And since I can never get enough of flowers in real life or in my beads, I decided to dedicate another day to seeing what other floral designs I could come up with, using only dots of glass as my medium. The one on the far right is my favorite and was the most intricate to create, of course! I love how it turned out looking like something from a Damask fabric and I would love to explore this pattern in more depth with other color combinations!

And here is what my strand containing all the Days I've done so far looks like…

My goal was to keep all my beads as close in size as possible, but seems like they got a little bigger after the first two days? I might have to go back and re-make those if I decide to put them all into a necklace after I'm done with the Challenge (yeah, I'm a Perfectionist and Glutton-for-Punishment type of person! LOL) But for now, I'm pretty happy with how these all look and already have my design themes for the last two sessions planned out! *Ü*

The Birthday That Shall Not Be Named

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Mon, 13 Jan 2014 18:56:00 +0000

Okay, there is a point in everyone's life when you hit a big age milestone and can't help but say to yourself "It's all downhill from here?!"…and this year, I hit it hard! LOL So I've decided that every year from now on, I'm going to insist that my friends and family refer to my birthday as "The One That Shall Not Be Named," in honor of all the years we had Harry Potter fanatics running around the house (myself included!). We shall celebrate and enjoy it just as much, but without needing to see or discuss the way those pesky numbers keep climbing up and making me feel way older than I do on the inside!

In addition to the table full of lovely and thoughtful gifts that surprised me in the morning, I also enjoyed getting sweet phone calls from both of my daughters who are away at college (I still can't believe they each remembered on their own?!?) and earlier in the week, I received some new Bead Roller tools that I couldn't resist ordering for myself. I'm hoping to play with these soon and perhaps make some jewelry for myself with the beads they make too?

My wonderful hubby, Kraig, also made me a special breakfast and gave me a choice between three different cake mixes and two icing flavors that he offered to make himself for my cake. And as if that wasn't enough—his gift was a surprise trip for just the two of us to Hawaii, all planned by himself!! Now can I pick 'em, or what?!?! He's going to whisk me away this Winter so we can try and see the whales like I've always wanted to do, and I am beyond excited!!

All in all, it was a quiet, but wonderful day and I enjoyed all the birthday wishes I received from my Facebook friends too. I feel extremely blessed and thank you all so much for helping to make this day extra special! *Ü*

Snow Globe Suprise

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Mon, 06 Jan 2014 22:20:00 +0000

One of the things I wanted to do before my daughters headed back to college after Christmas break, was to surprise them with a special gift that could serve as a reminder of how much we love and miss them when they're away from home. And because they love my glass beads, but don't like to wear a lot of jewelry, I decided to try my hand at making some personalized Snow Globes using these cheerful little Snowmen I made using some of their favorite colors…

I think they turned out rather adorable, don't you? I've made Snowmen beads before, but this was the first time I'd made them as sculptural designs instead of having a hole run through them. They were made all at one time on my torch in one piece—even the little glass "branch" arms, which were the trickiest part of the whole process and something I could never be able to include on a bead for jewelry. I also made each one his own little Birdie companion, to make sure he wouldn't get lonely after I put him into the glass dome.

After I mixed in some recycled baby food jars, paint, glitter, and water, I ended up with this fun result:

A gentle shake makes the glitter swirl around in a silvery shower that is so pretty (but very difficult to capture while one hand is holding the camera and the other is shaking it! LOL) I also wrote "You are "snow" special!" on the top in silver Sharpie pen (based on a funny family inside joke)…

As this was the first time I'd ever attempted to make my own snow globe from scratch, I had a few hiccups along the way and it ended up taking longer than I expected to get the job done properly. But I think the effort was well worth it, if judging by the look on my girls' faces when I showed it to them! Now, whenever they get homesick, they can just give the globe a shake and know we're thinking of them too! *Ü*

Ringing in a New Year

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Thu, 02 Jan 2014 19:06:00 +0000

Wishing all of you a Very Happy New Year and I hope you celebrated it in high style! Looking back, I had a wonderful 2013 and feel very fortunate to have the health, success, friendships and family I was blessed with. I'm not one to make a ton of New Year's resolutions, but this year I do have a few things on my list that I'm going to try really hard to stick to:

1) Post at least once a week to my blog.

I admit I have fallen prey to the ease of using Facebook this year and have sadly neglected my blog in the process. It's so much easier to pop in and out of my Facebook page, but I love how a blog allows for more in-depth content and visuals. Plus, I know there are many people who don't participate in Facebook at all—shocking as that may seem! So I promise to post here more often and please bear with me as I may post a few things that aren't in the proper chronological order, as I still need to catch up on some articles that have been sitting around in draft mode because I haven't finished editing my photos. But if you'd also like to see more of my beady sneak peeks, inspirational ideas, and other fun tidbits on a nearly daily basis, please feel free to "like" my page by clicking HERE.

2) Try a new technique and/or artistic medium each week.

This is something I try to do as often as I can anyway, since I think it keeps my creative juices flowing better, but I would like to do it on a more consistent basis. Some will have to do with lampworking and jewelry making, but other times I'll explore new things that have been accumulating on my "I wanna try that!" list over the years. I will share my results—both positive and failures—and hope you will be inspired to try your hand at it too!

3) Create my own online website and store.

While I still love my Etsy store and will continue to keep it well-stocked, I have been dreaming of opening my own site for over a year now. And it's high time I kicked myself in the rear and made it happen! I already have my domain name taken care of and have been looking into a few host sites like Indiemade that look really promising, but if you have any suggestions on ones you've tried and have any info on the pros and cons of it, I would love to hear it!

4) Get in better shape.

I admit, my body has definitely taken a turn for the worse once I hit 45 years old and it saddens me to realize that I can't eat like I used to and maintain a killer bikini body (not that I ever really had one?! LOL). And running up and down the stairs 30 times a day because I keep forgetting things between my two studios isn't really cutting it for my physical activity requirement (another sad side effect of getting older!). So I'm going to try hard to do something fun like Pilates or Zumba at least 2-3 times a week and see if I can't whip my metabolism back into shape—along with the rest of me. Plus, I think when you're feeling and looking good, you're in a much better space to think creatively and produce better quality work!

So there you have it—all my big dreams and goals for the coming year, added to my mainstay prayers for good health, happiness and safety for my family. I wish the same for you this year and hope that all your dreams come true! *Ü*

A Disney Holiday

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sat, 21 Dec 2013 22:35:00 +0000

To celebrate our girls finishing up a great first semester of college, Kraig and I whisked them off for a surprise trip to Disneyland and Universal Studios for Winter Break. With barely a day to catch up on all the sleep they missed during finals week, we left behind cold, dreary WA and jumped on a plane to Anaheim, CA for four days of fun in the sun!

Golden Horseshoe Revue: The girls got a table in the front, hoping Kraig would get picked to participate on stage…and it worked! He was "lucky" Bachelor #1 out of 3 vying for the hand of the *lovely lady* behind him. LOL

We also enjoyed visiting Universal Studios for the first time—especially the Transformers and Mummy rides and the backlot studio tour where we got to see movie sets and experienced a 3D King Kong wrestling with a dinosaur all around our tour bus that felt very realistic!

After all the excitement of constant walking, wild rides, too much fast food, and long, action-packed days, we reluctantly headed back for some much needed rest and the first snowfall over our home. I'm so glad we were able to spend this quality family time together, celebrating the joy of the holiday season! *Ü*

Styluses with Style

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Thu, 12 Dec 2013 23:53:00 +0000

It's no secret to my family and friends that I am a total Geek when it comes to the love of my Apple Mac computers and four—count 'em!—four assorted versions of iPads, iPods, and iTouch gizmos. I especially love the ones that have touch screens and drive my girls crazy whenever I use their laptops, touch the screen, and complain that it's not working properly. LOL But I don't love how messy they get with fingerprint smears that I have to constantly clean off. So imagine my delight when I discovered I could make my own styluses with my glass beads! Oooooh, the ideas were tumbling over themselves at all the possibilities!

It took a bit of experimenting with the bead size and shape that I thought fit best in the hand, but I finally figured it out after making a few duds in the process. These are the first successful ones I made in a mini stylus version:

Aren't they darling?! They fit perfectly between your fingers and come with an attachment that connects into the headphone jack when you're not using it, so you don't have to worry about misplacing it. Now, how cool is that?! I also have the hardware to make regular size styluses that I will share later on, but these little guys are so unique and cute to use, that they have completely stolen my heart.

I definitely have plans for a bunch of other design ideas, but it will probably have to wait until after the holidays to try them out. In the meantime, I would love to hear your input and any suggestions you might have for a design you'd like to see? *Ü*

A Bevy of Bronzed Beauties

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 01:25:00 +0000

I've got a big show coming up Thanksgiving weekend, so I've been doing my best to hunker down in my studio to make more goodies to sell. In between long bead making sessions on the torch and quick snack runs for McD fries and chocolate chip frappes (hey, gotta keep the energy up, right?!), I've been having fun creating metal components that I will include in some of my jewelry designs.

I love to use Bronze Clay that I form into unique findings using a variety of shape cutters, rubber stamps, clay tools, texture plates, and molds I made with found objects—anything that has an interesting texture is fair game for me! Here is what they look like in their unfinished state, where they need to dry thoroughly before I can fire them in my kiln to burn away the binders and turn them into nice, shiny metal…

…and here is what my fingers look like after I've sanded and refined the shapes so the edges are nice and smooth…

This is actually a much *cleaner* version than what they looked like after I finished the entire batch—but I was afraid to use my camera then in case all that metal dust would get into it. Trust me, a coal miner might have better hands than mine at that point?! LOL As is often the case when I go into "panic production mode" the week before a show, my hands suffer all manner of chipped nails and a variety of stains from the paints, patinas, and other materials I use—so a nice manicure the day before the show is definitely on order to make sure I don't scare off my customers!

But the chaos and bruised vanity is well worth it, when I end up with beauties like these…

This is what they look like after they've been fired overnight in my kiln, polished, patina'd with liver of sulfur, and tumble polished again to a soft glow. I love the old gold color of Bronze, and the rustic elegance I can give it with the use of texture and a selective "aging" process. My favorites are the ammonite pendant and the long sea urchin findings I created with molds I made from the shells. I can't wait to turn them into some cool beachy necklaces!

I'll be sure to share the finished designs soon—or better yet, if you're in the area, you can stop by the EtsyRAIN Holiday show in Seattle to see them in person (click on the logo on the right sidebar for all the details)! And if you have any favorites of your own, please feel free to leave a comment to let me know! *Ü*

Pantone Fall 2013 Color Forecast

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Wed, 30 Oct 2013 19:05:00 +0000

Whew! Judging by the way the leaves had just changed and then the wind blew them all down in the space of about two weeks here, I'd have to say the Autumn season is definitely upon us! I'm a little late to the party sharing Pantone's Fall forecast, but there's still a few more months left to pull together that killer outfit or accessory in some of this year's hottest color trends!

I've already been busy creating some new lampwork glass bead designs that would fit in nicely with this color palette, like these…

Caramello Leaf Headpins

Baroque Delphinium Set

Marrakesh Mixed Bead Set

I love jewel tones and I can see myself wearing any and all of these luscious colors! My favorites are Acai, Samba and Vivacious, paired with one of the softer neutrals like Linden Green or Carafe. And I can't wait to head out to the studio and make more beads with these rich color combinations. What are your favorite shades that you look forward to wearing this Fall? *Ü*

Feeling Lucky? Bead Magazine Giveaway!

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Fri, 25 Oct 2013 14:18:00 +0000

Edited to Add: This Giveaway has ended and CONGRATULATIONS to Kay of KaysKreationz, for being the lucky winner! Her #4 comment was chosen by Random Number Generator and I'll be shipping this great issue out to her soon. I really appreciate everyone who entered and shared some of their favorite Autumn colors—and please check back here often, since I'm sure I'll be doing another fun giveaway before the end of the year too! *Ü*

I'm so pleased to let you know that my "Rivendell" Necklace is featured with step-by-step instructions in the lastest issue of Bead Design Studio! I received two copies of the magazine earlier this month, but admit that I forgot all about it underneath of pile of mail (ack!). But since there's still a week left to the month, I hope it's not too late to offer my extra copy to one lucky reader?

All you have to do to enter is leave a comment to share you favorite Fall jewelry colors by October 28th and I will draw names on the 29th to announce the winner. Please don't forget to include a way for me to contact you and Good Luck! *Ü*

Whitworth Family Weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Mon, 21 Oct 2013 19:20:00 +0000

This past weekend was Family Weekend at Whitworth University, where our two daughters are both attending school. Kraig and I were so excited to see Katie and Ashley for the first time since we helped them move into their dorms in August, and we couldn't have asked for nicer weather so we could all enjoy some fun time together on the beautiful campus and surrounding area. Here are some of the highlights of our visit…

We brought both the girls' beloved pets up with us as a special surprise (where they each proceeded to smuggle them into their rooms for the whole weekend—shhhhhhh! Please don't tell! LOL)

Katie and Lion, her Lion Head mini bunny

Ashley and Romeo

On Saturday morning, we enjoyed a lovely country drive out to one of the great Pumpkin Patches that were in the area…

Gorgeous new barn with a cool "castle tower" that I just loved!

…and while it turned out to be quite a challenge to get a decent family shot, we finally managed to snag a few good ones (after too many outtakes to share here, thanks to a ton of weird spontaneous poses by the girls and the *ahem* unusual compositions taken by Katie's boyfriend, Ian?! LOL)

Then after a delicious lunch at one of their favorite diners, we headed out for some shopping, walked around campus to enjoy the Fall color, and caught part of a soccer match (we won, yay!)…

We couldn't figure out if these white things up in a tree were supposed to be ghostly decorations for Halloween, or underwear…and we were too afraid to ask!!

We managed to cram in a great visit in the short amount of time we had, but all too soon we were saying our goodbyes for the long drive back home, while the girls went back to preparing for their upcoming midterms. I can't wait to do it again soon (and maybe we'll try to see if we can smuggle Max in this time?!!) *Ü*

Friday Find: Spicy Frit Rack

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Fri, 11 Oct 2013 21:05:00 +0000

Always on the look-out for a fun surprise at my local thrift shop, I happened upon this spinning spice rack the other day and thought it would make for a great storage piece! As is often the case whenever I stumble upon something like this, I wasn't quite sure what supplies I wanted to put in it at first—but then the light bulb in my brain went off and I decided it would be perfect to store my favorite frit blends in my glass studio…

I used to have my frit (crushed glass bits) stored in a plastic bin that I would have to sort through whenever I needed to find a certain color I wanted to work with. But now everything is out and easy to see—and makes for a pretty pop of color on my work table too. I forgot to take a "before" photo when I first brought it home, but I don't think it will be too hard to use your imagination for that, right? All I had to do was rinse out the empty bottles, pour in the frit, and transfer the labels from the original bags to the new jar tops (I used my handy-dandy bottle of Un-Du from my scrapbooking days—works like a charm!).

I love that it can hold so much in a compact area, especially since my table space is limited. (But to be honest, this isn't all the frit I have! LOL) The tops have flip lids so I can choose to sprinkle a little out at a time, or unscrew it to pour a larger amount.

If you don't have a need for frit storage, there are plenty of other supplies you could use this concept for, such as headpins, buttons, sequins, or small beads. The only bummer is that one of the jars was missing when I bought it—so if you happen to have an extra one of these laying around you would like to send me—please feel free! *Ü*

Design Challenge No. 5 Reveal

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Wed, 02 Oct 2013 20:24:00 +0000

Whew! These past two weeks have flown by and time for another Challenge reveal already? To refresh our memories, this is the Inspirational photo I chose for this Challenge:

To be honest, I've been swamped with getting myself prepped for one of the bigger bead shows I do that is coming up in October, so I wasn't able to get too carried away with it. Although I did make more Raspberry beads (an obvious choice, but it also worked in my favor to bring to the show! *Ü*) Two other artists stepped up to the Challenge and submitted their fabulous designs that I'm sure will prove to be much better inspirations to you all…

The first one is a pair of beautiful earrings by Janet Bocciardi of Honey from the Bee. I love all the different shades of pinks and how she combined the textures of the glass beads and the fibers together!

And Janine from Esphera Travel Blog shared this bracelet incorporating floral lampwork beads, antique brass, and the more gorgeous wine-pink pearls I've ever seen.

She also made a coordinating pair of earrings with raspberry colored Swarovski crystals wrapped around the ear wires. I love how just that little touch gives them a unique flair. And I was stunned to read her blog and see that she lives in and travels the world in a Mercedes-Benz truck and creates all her jewelry while on the road?! Now that is traveling in style!

As for my little Giveaway of one of my Berry beads, Janet ended up being the name I drew from the hat. Congratulations, Janet! Thanks so much to both of you talented ladies for entering this Challenge. I am wowed by your inspirational ideas and ingenuity! *Ü*

40 Bead Challenge - The Beginning

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Wed, 25 Sep 2013 17:00:00 +0000

Last month, I heard about an informal event being hosted by one of my favorite glass people, Haley Tsang Sather on the Lampwork Etc. online forum. She was encouraging other bead makers to join her in playing along with the "40 Bead Challenge," originally introduced by another amazing artist, Heather Trimlett.

The premise of this exercise is to work on developing one of the most basic (but also sometimes the most challenging!) of lampworking skills: Dots. It takes steady hands, a careful eye, and thoughtful planning to achieve excellent results. Made even more challenging by these key rules:

Use ONLY dots as the decorative element
No tools of any kind are allowed (ack, a knife to my heart!)
Use only the same two colors
Limit yourself to making 5-6 beads at a time, over a series of days
Make a total of 40 beads, all with unique patterns

As a former graphic designer, I have to admit I take a bit of pride in my ability to almost perfectly measure out things by eye (sometimes I'm off by 1/32", but who's counting?) So I mastered dot placement fairly quickly on my beads, but I have never challenged myself to tackle anything more complex than a few "go to" dotted designs. Something about this challenge spoke to me, and since I'm always up for learning new skills, I just couldn't resist signing up to join in!

I've been swamped with work and family stuff since the beginning of summer, so I didn't want to put too much pressure on myself and thankfully, this challenge is all about doing it in your own time and having fun with it. So I've been squeezing in work sessions as I can, and avoiding any time-wasting indecision by focusing on one type of design style per session, i.e. basic dots, triangles, or rings.

I chose to work with Reichenbach Deep Black and Effetre Light Pink as my two core colors. Here's what I have done so far, over the course of four different days:

Day 1 - Simple Dots

Day 2 - Flowers

Day 3 - Soft Triangles

Day 4 - Rings

The first photo at the top of this post is what they look like all strung together and I am so happy with what I've been able to come up with so far! I started off with the favorite basic designs I often use, but almost everything else shown is a completely new design effort. This exercise is definitely making me look at dots in a completely different light and each work session generates even more ideas I want to try, with 20 beads done and 20 more to go!

If you would like to join us on the LE forum and explore your own dot and design skills (as well as get some wonderful inspiration by the others playing along), just click HERE to sign up.

P.S.—You might want to skip the morning coffee before you start on this one, unless you're going for a "Wild and Crazy Dots" theme?! *Ü*

Inspired Design Challenge No. 5

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sun, 15 Sep 2013 18:17:00 +0000

Ready to be inspired to play again?! Now that I'm back from my summer break and the kids are back in school, it's time to light a fire under our creativity juices again! For this new Challenge, I picked a new photo palette from Design Seeds that really appeals to me, since I've been on a recent berry bead making roll lately (and who doesn't love raspberry red?!). The last days of Summer are upon us and soon we'll be breaking out the sweaters and thick socks—but for now, let's get inspired by the sunshine and fresh produce from the Farmers Market and see what we can create!

* BONUS!! * For this Challenge, I'm also going to give away one of my new Raspberry beads to one lucky particpant! YAY!! I'll pull names from a hat for everyone who comments (one entry per person), and give a second entry for those who submit one of their inspired creations at the end of the challenge, so please be sure to include your email or some way for me to contact you if you're the winner.

Guidelines to Play:

Your creative inspiration can come from the colors, textures, subject matter, or even the feeling or memory that you received when you first saw the Challenge photo.

Anything goes as far as materials used—it doesn't matter if you like to work in glass like me, or prefer a different medium like clay or paint. I would love to see a variety of items, whether it be a bead, knitted scarf, jewelry, painted canvas, pen doodle—whatever your Muse is itching to make!

If you have a set of coordinating projects like a necklace and earrings, please submit a group photo of them with just one link to share.

Please keep your designs to a decent subject matter (i.e. no provocative artwork) and nothing politically motivated.

Submission Deadline:

Post a comment with a link to your finished project as soon as you can between now and Monday, September 30th.

Throughout the next few weeks I will share my on-going projects, as well as yours, on my Facebook page HERE, my Pinterest board HERE, or on the next Challenge blog post. So if you can add your finished project as soon as you can, that way I hope to be able to spread out my posts over the duration of the Challenge instead of one giant update. And please don't forget to give details on what you used to make it and how the photo inspired you. *Ü*

Bonkers for Berries

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Fri, 13 Sep 2013 18:14:00 +0000

I try participate in local craft shows whenever I can because I love meeting my customers in person and seeing their faces light up when they discover new at my booth. This has been my third summer with the Issaquah Farmers Market and I can't believe it took me so long to think of making Berry beads to sell there?! (Fresh Farm Produce + Glass Beads = Berries…Duh, right?!) I first started out making Strawberries, which are one of my favorite summer fruits…

Then, a little while later I added Blackberries and Raspberries to the menu. These are much time consuming than they look and I can only make about three or four in row before I start to feel a little dizzy from adding all those dots…

People really love them and comment on how realistic they all look. And what can you do with all of these juicy looking beads? Turn them into delicious jewelry and other goodies, of course!

Sterling Berry Earrings and a Big Hole Charm Dangle

By far, the most popular response has been to these sweet stainless steel Jelly Spoons, which is also a new item I started offering this year. The little silver ball at the top unscrews so you can also switch out the beads for something like a Pumpkin for Thanksgiving gravy or a Mistletoe Ball for cranberry sauce at Christmas! If you make your own jellies and jams (or buy from your local market), these are great for putting together as a unique gift to a favorite teacher, housewarming, or "just because" for a special friend.

I haven't listed very many of my Berry items in my Etsy shop since I started making most of them a little late in the season. But if you would like to order my Berry beads or finished designs for yourself, please feel free to email me any time of the year and I would be happy to make something yummy just for you! *Ü*

Design Challenge No. 4 Reveal

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Thu, 01 Aug 2013 01:53:00 +0000

To recap, here is the inspiration photo behind Challenge No. 4…

This Challenge was a fun one, since it has a lot of colors that really appeal to me, as well as a Beachy theme (always near and dear to my heart!). A lot of people seemed to like it too, judging from the great comments on my Facebook page, but sadly, they weren't able to participate after all. I totally understand since this is Summer when all the kids are out of school and vacation season is in full swing.

But designer Dini Bruinsma came through with a stunning necklace design within hours of my posting the Challenge—a world record response! LOL It turns out she had just completed it the day before, but we must have been on the same wavelength, because it goes perfectly with the Challenge colors and natural vibe.

I love how she was able to mix up so many different elements, but the soft colors are what keeps everything in harmony. I would wear this in a heartbeat!

I was inspired to work on some more of my Sea Urchin beads, but tried something new by adding powdered enamels to give the illusion of the subtle shading and texture shown in the photo. Some were more successful than others, but then that's the fun of playing, right? Will definitely be doing some further exploration with enamels from now!

I also created a "statement" necklace using similar shades of the purple and olive green in the photo. All the beads are hollow, so even though they have a bold presence, they are very lightweight (think hollow Urchin shells). The center focal was also inspired by the Urchins, but I went for a more abstract design with the dimensional bumps. I really love how it turned out and will probably keep it for myself!

"Verona" Necklace - featuring my glass hollow beads and sterling silver accents

I hope you enjoy these projects too and if you make something later on because of the Challenge photo, you're more than welcome to share it here in the comments and I will still help share it on my Pinterest for you.

Also, I think I'll take a break for the month of August since I have kiddos to get ready for college (two at the same time—oy!), so the next Challenge will begin again on September 1st. Stay tuned for some more good stuff! *Ü*

Bead Hoarders Blog Hop

noreply@blogger.com (Lori Bergmann) — Sat, 20 Jul 2013 04:45:00 +0000

Well, as my luck would have it, my summer cold turned into a HUGE migraine and nausea that kept me in bed with sunglasses and lasted through the weekend, so I wasn't able to participate in the blog hop as planned after all. (waaaaah!!)

But I hope you will still take some time to visit Lori Anderson's blog and the rest of the Bead Hoarders Blog Hop list HERE to see all the wonderful things my fellow Bead Hoarders have created! I'm going to start hopping as soon as I'm feeling a little better and can't wait to see all the fantastic designs I know will be there! *Ü*