GlassMelts

Glass- What else is there?

2012-09-19T12:48:00.000-07:00

I have been on a super roll with glass. Good thing too. 135 ornaments made so far. With about 50 waiting for me to finish. Finally feel like I'm under control. I said 200 by October 1 and I actually think I'm going to make that goal. Jeff is making a delivery for me this week. I need to get going on some of the other designs, but I keep getting side tracked by other fun stuff. This owl is one of the things I got side tracked on. It came out soooo cute though I couldn't resist doing a second one. I think a third one is on the schedule for today. I have a couple of custom orders I've been working on and hope to wrap those up this afternoon.

It's starting to cool off ever so slightly. I'll probably regret saying that! I went to the park this morning and walked about 2 miles. Felt good to be outside! Still quite warm, but not crazy. I will be glad when it get's just a tad cooler so I don't have to go out so early to walk and can take the dogs with me too.

Hot, hot, hot

2012-08-09T16:07:00.002-07:00

It's that time of year when all we do is complain about the heat. We have been averaging well above 110 most days lately and it just makes things so miserable. No one wants to go anywhere and do anything and anytime you do venture out for a while you come back exhausted!

This has caused me to spend more time than normal on Facebook and online shopping. Not necessarily a good thing, however I have found some great deals lately. I found a couple of groups on Facebook who are either community groups or craft groups. Some of them are dedicated to just resale stuff or business promotion. I had bought a glider for the cabin about 2 weeks ago and Tuesday we went and picked up this couch and a matching love seat. I shampooed them three times (just because they were used) and they look like new. Not something I would pick for the house here, but for the cabin they are perfect. And the $200 price for both (and she threw in matching lamps) couldn't be beat. Now that I cleaned them I feel very comfortable with them. Now we just have to get them up to the cabin. Hopefully this weekend. The nice thing about these groups is they are just local. So I know when I am looking at stuff they are probably no more than 15 minutes away. Better than craigslist where I find things on the other side of town and don't want to drive that far.

I also found a great deal on boots on Amazon. Got two pairs of dressy boots for less than $50. One black and one brown.Was super excited about that one!

I haven't work on glass a whole heck of a lot. Just too hot to get out there. Need to get moving though. I only have about 75 of the 250 ornaments I want to have ready by October 1. I am determined I will not have a stressful holiday season due to Christmas ornaments. Just not going to let it happen!

Glass and Cabin

2012-07-15T17:34:00.002-07:00

I have been having a lot of fun lately. I taught a kids class at the Vision Gallery this past week. The kids are extremely talented. We had about 4 of the 12 that really got into the glass and most had a good time. I taught for 4 hours and I do think that was too long. 2-3 hours is about the max they were truly interested. Some of them were very young and I think it was too much for them to do. I have been playing a lot on my own too. This is the time of year when I try to get stocked up for the holidays and have about 40 Christmas stars ready with another 12 in the kiln right now. These pictures are some of the non Christmas things I did recently. The top business card holder was a special request for a Halloween event someone is doing and they wanted one that looked like blood. The leaves are a new technique I tried where you take actual leaves and coat them with powdered glass. Once fired the leaves burn off and leave the imprint behind. Needs some perfecting but over all kind of cool!

We have been up at the cabin a lot lately too. We started work on the new front deck. Waiting on an inspection now to go finish it. We saw dear in the yard twice this last trip. Very cool. It was a bit warm up there and very dry. We've had some great monsoons down in the valley over the past few days so hopefully we got some up there too. It was so dusty. We finally bought a larger fridge for it too. Now we can make ice and stay more than two days without having to shop. We were using a dorm size fridge and it was less than convenient. I got a bonus at work and decided that's what I was going to do with it. It's still small, only 9.8 cu feet, but it's the perfect cabin size. Hopefully we can get the inspection done this week so we can go up again this weekend and finish off the deck. The past few trips have been less than relaxing.

Mylee Grace

2012-06-21T20:15:00.000-07:00

So very sad to hear this morning that our friends little girl passed away. She was not quite 6 years old and had been battling a mitochondrial disease her whole life. She was beautiful and so very loved. What a precious gift. She has been in hospice care for a bit now and this morning earned her angel wings and flew away. I can't imagine the pain her parents are in right now. Jeff and her Dad worked together at the Fire Dept. and we were at their wedding years ago in Mexico. Although we have not been super close over the years we have stayed in touch and would see them a couple of times a year. She was such a sweet baby and it's so sad to see someone so young struggle so much. Fly high sweet Mylee.

Blogger Changes~!

2012-06-20T09:21:00.001-07:00

Yikes. It has taken me days to figure out how to get back into my blog and make a post. These new changes are confusing and it's going to take me a bit to figure it out again. Keeps me on my toes!

I've been playing with a lot of new ideas with my glass. Although it's hotter than all get out I have spent a lot of time in the garage working and getting ready for the holidays. I have 30 ornaments ready to go and about 20 more waiting to be wire wrapped. I want to have at least 200 ready by Oct. 1. It was a mad scramble again last year trying to keep up and I would really like to enjoy the holidays and hopefully get up to the cabin more in the winter. I have been playing with a method to purposefully create bubbles in glass. Made bubbles, but not what I was looking for so will keep trying. I am also trying to get leaf imprints in glass. Leaves burn off but you can coat them in glass powder and it will leave behind the impression. I have a couple of those in the kiln now! I'm waiting for it to cool off so I can see what we got!

Glass

2012-06-03T16:47:00.000-07:00

I have been busy the past few days. Managed to get a run through the kiln, built a retaining wall with Jeff out near the pool, went clothes shopping for Jeff, groceries, yard work and so much more. Have a new design for wind-chimes I am trying out. Should have pictures later tonight or tomorrow. Found some drift wood at the hobby store that I think will look cool. I've always liked the wood and glass combo. One of the stores that carries our stuff is about out of everything so I am on a mission to get them stuff this week. It's always a bit slower in the summer but they can't sell what they don't have. Need to stay on top of it. As always too many ideas and not enough time. Back to work I go!

Summer's Here

2012-05-24T10:01:00.001-07:00

Like it or not summer is upon us. We have had several days of 108 degrees already. I am so not ready for this heat. It just seems to suck the life out of me. I seem so much more motivated in the winter time for the most part. As soon as it starts to get really hot I feel like I need to nap every afternoon. This summer we have the cabin and I am hopeful that we can get out of the heat frequently. We've still got some work to do on it before it's ready for real company but we are getting there. The holiday weekend is here and we are going up to finalize our deck plans. It will be so nice to be away from the valley for a few days.
I finally hired a cleaning lady who is coming every two weeks. It sure has taken a load off my mind if nothing else. We have had a couple of big events in Downtown Chandler over the past few months and I could not have kept up with everything. It's been a big relief.

On the plus side the garden has been doing well. I was able to dry two jars of basil and we had nine eggplants in one week. We made fried eggplant one day and a chicken and eggplant italian type dish another night. Both were very good and the boys all said they would eat it again. The oregano is still going strong and my tomatoes have some on them, let's hope the heat doesn't get to them before they turn ripe.

New ideas

2012-05-06T19:35:00.001-07:00

Well, as always I seem to have more ideas than time. This is one idea I finally got around to trying out. I came up with this one after our trip to Venice and Murano last October. I'm kind of excited about this one. Now you can have a unique piece of glass with you at all times. I have also been working on some special requests and the never ending Christmas stars. I finally am a little ahead on those things and hope to have 200 ready by the end of September at a minimum! Fun stuff!

Cleaning Lady

2012-04-15T18:59:00.001-07:00

Well, I finally did it. I found a cleaning lady. A little more than I had hoped to spend but she is flexible on how often she comes so I think it will be worth it. She starts tomorrow and I have to say I am so excited. It will be so nice to have everything done at once! I feel like I have been behind for the past year now and can't seem to catch up. I am hopeful this will give me more time to work on glass and just relax. Fingers crossed it goes well and I like the job she does. Not sure how I couldn't but you just never know.

Baby kiln is going on a field trip. (maybe)

2012-04-11T16:14:00.004-07:00

I have been asked to teach a kids class at the Vision Gallery in Chandler this summer. I don't have too many details about it, but I must say I am super excited about the idea. I have never taught a class, so it should be interesting! I am trying to decide what would be the best project for a group of kids to do. I'm leaning towards night lights and jewelry. I am waiting to hear back from the guy who asked me about it. Fingers crossed!
http://www.visiongallery.org/index.html

April is here

2012-04-04T19:23:00.003-07:00

April sure snuck up on us. I can't believe how fast time is flying by. I feel like I keep saying that too! We were able to sneak away on Sunday for a nice three days at the cabin. I had the 13th Annual Chandler Jazz festival on Friday and Saturday. Two 13+ hours days made for one tired lady. I had a blast and am so happy to be working with people I love, doing work I enjoy. Most everyone is so nice and appreciative.
We had some projects to do at the cabin. The water main was leaking a bit and it was really bugging Jeff. He took care of that first, then we built a twin size bed for the little room downstairs. It really came out nice and was much cheaper than anything we could buy.
While I was wrapped up in the Jazz Festival I got an e-mail requesting 20 more Christmas stars. In April? Wow. I keep thinking I'm going to get ahead of the game on those, but it's not looking so good!

2012-03-25T20:46:00.005-07:00

I have been so busy it's not funny. It's all so much fun though I can't complain. Got the kiln running this morning. Woke up very inspired and spent a very relaxing morning playing with glass. I am going to need to make a run to the glass warehouse soon. Running low on a few key supplies. This weekend we participated in the Great American BBQ and Beer festival in downtown Chandler. Not with GlassMelts but with the DCCP. I had a really good time. Next weekend is the Chandler Jazz Festival and the DCCP will have a booth there too! After that things should slow down a bit and Jeff and I are hoping to escape to the cabin for a few quiet days. We missed every snow fall they had up there and are now looking forward to some cool spring and summer evenings sitting on the deck gazing at the stars. Life is good, I'm grateful and happy to be sharing this time of my life with such an amazing man. Our 26th wedding anniversary is just around the corner and it always makes me think, and be so amazed at how the time has flown by and how happy I am. I pray it continues for a very, very long time!

2012-03-25T20:46:00.004-07:00

2012-03-25T20:46:00.003-07:00

Interesting Reading

2012-03-08T08:13:00.003-08:00

Very interesting article I read today. Love it. Who cares if you are a women in business. Can you do the job? That's what really counts.

http://www.inc.com/vanessa-nornberg/were-a-women-owned-business-so-what.html

Spring

2012-03-07T07:13:00.004-08:00

So for the valley of the sun this is the busy event time of year. The weather has been absolutely beautiful the past few weeks. I have been working quite a bit, but it's been fun for the most part. Still trying to find a cleaning lady. Made a couple of calls but believe it or not I'm not getting a response back. It's weird. Going to try a different approach today and make a Facebook post. We have events almost every weekend this month and Jeff's band is playing St. Patrick's Day at a new place. That should be so much fun! Once April hits it will slow down significantly so I'm not stressing over it. Just going to try to go with the flow.
I figured out two days ago that I had been filling my pill case (yes I'm old and need a pill case) with an old dosage of my Synthroid. I have been under-medicating myself for weeks it seems. Might explain a lot of the cranky, tired, overwhelming feelings I have been having. Back on track now and hoping the moods improve. I have also distanced myself from a friend who has a very negative personality. She has a good life and is never happy. Constantly finding faults with everything and everyone. Although I love her dearly, I am finding I just can't be around the negativity so much. Life is good, for her and me and I don't want to get sucked into that.

Event Planner Paradox

2012-02-27T19:48:00.005-08:00

As an event planner, I am often overwhelmed by the to do list and wish for competent help. A fellow planner wrote a recent blog post that struck me as funny and so very true.
We want to do a good job which usually involves other people and yet at the same time we want to do it all and know we are needed. It's something I had never really thought about. The job is sometimes frustrating and crazy, but when it goes well, there is no better feeling!

http://katiecharland.com/event-planner-paradox/

Overwhelmed

2012-02-07T07:06:00.000-08:00

I am feeling very overwhelmed at the moment. Had a bit of a meltdown last night and not even sure why. It's not like life is bad. It's great right now. I am just feeling very frustrated by my kids. Not sure how they got to the point that they feel they do not need to do basic things around the house. They have stopped putting dishes in the dishwasher, won't empty it without being told, I am finding their junk all over the house, no respect for anyone else's stuff. It's crazy. I can't keep up. I did not raise them this way and I am not sure how to fix it. When I try to talk to them about it they look at me like I've lost my mind, tell me they will do better and then do absolutely nothing different. I have a busy couple of month's coming up, we are refinancing the house which means tons of paperwork and I feel like I am living in a disaster zone. No, I have not called a cleaning lady yet, although I think today may be the day! I am tired of feeling like this all the time.

Not enough time in a day

2012-01-31T15:10:00.000-08:00

It sure seems like lately there is just not enough time or energy in a day to get everything I want to done. Work has been busy and it's fun so I do enjoy it most of the time. We are looking at refinancing the house to get a better interest rate and the paper work involved is crazy. 36 pages later, I still have to scan it in and send it back. I still have a couple of custom orders I need to get to. One of those I'm planning on working on tonight. I finally took a time out last night and went for a decent walk with Randy. It felt so good to be out in the cool air and not worry about anything but spending time with the kiddo. We have the best talks when we walk like that.

Presidential Visit

2012-01-26T08:00:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was an interesting day. I headed out for a much needed massage appointment in the afternoon. The President of the United States came to town at about the same time I headed out. Needless to say they were all roads closed off and I could not cross the one intersection closest to the salon. I sat in traffic for just a few minutes and there went the Presidential motorcade. About a block in front of me. I thought that was pretty cool but inconvenient. So I get to my appointment about 5 minutes late, not a big deal since my massage therapist, Denise knew what was going on. Great massage. But now the parking lot is closed again, I can't get out. So Denise and I walked out to the corner and watched the proceedings. Took them about 15-20 minutes to go by, again very cool. Unfortunately all I could think about were how many people had been inconvenienced, the amount of money it cost to put on the visit and all of the work and trouble for something that just didn't seem that important to me. People on our side of the street were not allowed to cross over to get their kids from the daycare, contract workers at the plant the President visited had to take the day off without pay, many of the hair dressers at the salon had cancelled their afternoon appointments, streets were closed, air traffic was delayed and rerouted and there had to have been several hundred police officers involved in the procession alone! And the thing I noticed the most was that as he drove by only a small group of about 4 or 5 clapped and cheered, everyone else was very quiet. There were very few flags, no posters or signs, I think it was more people like me who kind of got stuck in the mess and decided to watch. All for a 45 minute speech. My boss was invited along with our council members and Mayor. The top photo was her view. She was not sure she would go since she is also not a huge fan, but we talked about it and decided it was a once in a lifetime opportunity if nothing else.My brother in law was called in to help guard Air Force One, which is cool, but again, was it really necessary or worth it. Not in my book.

The creativity is flowing!

2012-01-15T17:47:00.000-08:00

I have been in a very creative mood lately. The list of things I want to do keeps getting longer and longer. The kiln is running for the third day in a row. I had a few custom requests and I hate having those hanging over my head, so I try to get those done first. Right now there are two picture frames, two bottles, a cross and 12 night lights melting away. Can't wait to see how they come out tomorrow! These photos are from the last go around.

New Year, New Ideas.

2012-01-12T07:52:00.000-08:00

I am amazed at how quickly time flies by. We are already 12 days into the new year and I feel like I am behind already! I had thought January would be a little slow for the glass business. After all, the holidays are over and people tend to minimize their shopping to make up for what they did in December. Evidently this is not going to be the case this year. My main gallery and main store both put in requests for items. It is a great way to start of the new year. It did start me thinking though. If this is the way things are going to be for a while, then I need to rethink my day to day routine. I just don't have time to accomplish everything I need to and be happy, healthy and sane. I work at the DCCP about 25 hours a week and I am putting in about that many hours at home on glass a lot of the time. That's a 50 hour work week not counting laundry, vacuuming, bathrooms, dusting, yard work, etc. It's just not working for me and the family doesn't seem to understand I can't do it all. So I have decided to find a cleaning lady to come in at least once a month to help me from getting so far behind. I did not want to spend the money since I do try to live frugally as much as I can and it seems like a silly expense, but I'm going crazy trying to keep up. So that's my new idea. Not sure how it will work out, but I am going to give it a shot.

Trying Something New

2011-12-27T19:47:00.001-08:00

I have decided to try something new with the business. I have opened an Etsy shop. It will have a limited stock of unique items. I plan to start with just the night lights and see how it goes. I may move on to some larger items shortly. Although business has been very good, I don't like having all of my work in one or two places. If something happens to any of them it would take a big chunk out of my business. So, I decided to try Etsy. Friends have had good luck with it and the investment is pretty minimal. Over time I would like to expand into new areas and this could be a great option for doing that.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/GlassMelts

I am also anxious to get started on some new things for the new year. First things first though. A major clean up of my studio area is in order. With as crazy as things get in December, only the bare minimum of organization and cleaning up went on. That's my goal for tomorrow. Clean the studio!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-24T14:44:00.000-08:00

Tonight we are heading over to my mom and dad's for Christmas Eve dinner. Ricky worked today so we are waiting for him to come home first. I am really looking forward to getting together. It's usually so much fun. Dad will have a fire lit in the fireplace which is so special. We have a gas fireplace and although very convenient and easy is just not the same as a real, log fire. It is kind of weird not cooking anymore. We do Christmas Eve at Mom and Dad's and Christmas Day at Shenta and Scott's. Scott makes the best prime rib dinner. It makes for a very relaxing couple of days and I still get left overs! I even managed to get a nap in today. The neighbor brought over a great plate of cookies so we have sweets to share and I bought a maple, walnut, cinnamon pull apart for breakfast. I am feeling very well taken care of and blessed this year again. It's been a good one.

Happy 20th Anniversary!

2011-12-22T07:53:00.000-08:00

Shenta and Scott celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary today. A lot has happened in the last 20 years. We celebrated Max's adoption anniversary on Monday. Miss hurricane Tola arrived almost two years ago now and I think they are pretty grateful for everything. Congratulations are in order.