Historical Glass

I read a post on Watch Me Create this morning that included some great links for anyone interested in ancient glass.

My memory was jogged and I remembered I had this image of a bead on my computer that I took from The Museum of Bristol's website some time ago.



I am so in awe of things that were acheived in the past (not just beads), when people had so much less in the way of equipment and past knowledge than we do.  This bead was likely created with the use of a complicated cane, the precision in the dots is just amazing!

Look at this bottle from 9th Century BC Egypt -



taken from the Virtual Egyptian Museum.  Isn't it beautiful!  If you click the link to the museum you'll find that it didn't originally have the wonderful lustre that it does now, that is something that has happened over time.

This rare cup from the same site is even older!!



How wonderful it would be to travel back and see these craftsmen and artists at work!

The interesting thing about the Virtual Egyptian Museum is that they explain the techniques that would have been used to create each of these pieces.  Be sure to take a look at their bead collection!!



Examples like this from the Roman period are making me think I want to revisit dot beads!  I haven't made any for a while and I think it is time.  What fun it would be to try and recreate some of these early beads.

Here is a really interesting link on how Romans would construct their glass canes. romanglassmakers.co.uk , and here is part two

I've just spent over an hour reading and exploring this site and can't say enough about how interesting it is!  Go visit Roman Glass Makers!! You'll learn everything from how the Romans made window glass, to the canes, to blown vessels, blown vessels made with molds and everything in between.  Is it me, or do these guys have the best job in the world?  Combining archaelogy, history and glass all in one place!

There is nothing like admiring other people's work and art to get you inspired to go and create some of your own!

Monkees with freckles!

From time to time something goes awry.  Something unplanned happens, as with this guy



Isn't he good looking?!  I'll call him Murdoch.

Murdoch was born with looks to wow the ladies, and a cowlick that most bovines would jump gates for.  David says he has a Homer Simpson quality to his face, I happen to think he looks far more intelligent ;o)

All was well, until Murdoch was pulled from the kiln and I realised he has a blemish.  Yes, even the best of us can have blemishes.  The back of his head touched a hot mandrel in the kiln and it left a mark -



Barely noticeable right?  There's a small indentation up near the top back of his head, it doesn't feel sharp, it's just there.  Poor Murdoch!  He's got such a lovely face I still wanted to offer him for sale, and didn't want him to think he was somehow a 'lesser' monkee because of it.  So I decided to call it a freckle.  Freckles make me think of happy children, the word somehow doesn't carry the weight of 'FLAW' or 'DEFECT'.  Murdoch certainly doesn't have either of those - he has a FRECKLE!

Monkees with FRECKLES are extremely special, and because of this I've decided that I need to make them even more accessible to people!  In order to do this, I'm offering Murdoch at a special price!  If you think he's dashingly handsom and that his FRECKLE makes him super special, you can purchase him for $10.  He's delighted about the whole thing, because he feels that it lifts him above the crowd where he surely deserves to be.

Visit my Buy Beads page to find out how you can purchase Murdoch, Monkee with a FRECKLE!

Wings in Treasury

I got up this morning to find that Cyn has picked my bead called Wings for her Etsy Treasury.  Thanks Cyn!  I took a look at all the other shops and favourited several items thinking ahead to Christmas, it's fun to see all the amazing things people are creating!  Click the image to visit the Treasury!

Acobox.com has Monkeys!

"Will someone PLEASE tell her that REAL Monkeys don't wear scuba masks??!"

Thanks Rita for the info on acobox!
Acobox.com has all kinds of images that you can use for your blog!

Glub, Glub, and monkees on sticks!

One thing that I really enjoyed about the Ottawa Bead Show was hearing other peoples ideas.  One lady called my cake tester's 'monkees on sticks' and I though how perfect that was.  A nice catchy name that was rather humourous!

Here's an experiment - Scubamonkee!

First Ottawa Bead Show - A HUGE Success!!

I'm so excited to write this post.  Our Ottawa Glass Bead Artists Show was on Saturday and I am still on a high from it.

I think it's safe to say it was a wonderful success!  Thank you Valentina for all these pictures!

[caption id="attachment_929" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Ottawa Glass Bead Artists First Show!"][/caption]

This was not only the first Bead Show I have attended but also the first Bead Show I have been in, and for me it couldn't have been better on both counts!  The attendance was amazing, I guess the word really got out, and the feedback we were getting from attendees was that this was something that was LONG OVERDUE in the Ottawa area, and also that many of the people visiting had no idea that there were so many talented beadmakers in the area.

[caption id="attachment_933" align="alignnone" width="450" caption="Crowds!!"][/caption]

So we definitely raised the profile of Glass Beads in Ottawa!

From the time the doors opened until mid afternoon there was a steady stream of people coming through, and it seemed to me that things only quietened down in the last couple of hours.  We had wonderful door prizes available and there have to be some excited winners out there somewhere.  I know I would have been thrilled if I'd won any of them.



From a vendors point of view, I feel as though I have learned so much!  It was really good to see other Artist's beads and see the size, quality and price.  That has helped me a lot because I was mostly guessing and hoping I'd got it right.  It was also very helpful to hear people's comments and see which beads got the most attention.  This has given me more of an idea of which direction to head off into next.



I have to say for me, my Monkee beads were the hit!  I had so many wonderful smiles and chuckles from people, and lovely comments.  One young attendee came to the show with her parents for the sole purpose of seeing and buying a Monkee bead!  I was so honoured!  Monkees in Space are also a hit and I sold half of my stock of them, so I will definitely be making more and thinking of ways they can evolve.



There are so many people who need to be thanked!  Grace Edwards, our Lauscha Lady , without her drive and determination this show wouldn't have happened.  Then there are all the members and volunteers who did so much to make sure we had a successful day.  I have to thank also, my good friend Valentina and partner Lou, who shared a table with me, and took lots of pictures!  Valentina's talent seems to be without end, not only can she create beautiful silver chain maille, but also makes glass beads, jewellery, and sings - watch out because she's about to hit Ottawa in a big way!

Of course, we need to thank every single person who showed up to see what it was all about - I do hope you'll all come back next year, and check out all the Artists in the meantime.

Lastly but most definitely not least -- I wouldn't have been at the show myself, without the help and support of my husband David, and best friend Jane.  Jane got up at 5am to be there at my side for setup and stayed all day, helping in many ways.  David lived through all the pre-show stress and jitters as we tried to figure out a display and make sure there was enough content, he stayed throughout the afternoon until the show was over.  It was David who created the postcards for the show, and also a poster that was setup out front on the day.



It really does take a lot of people to bring off such a successful event!

Last Day Before Show!

And as Scooby would say "YIIIIKES!"



Yes, tomorrow is  the Ottawa Glass Bead Artists’ (OGBA) First Annual Bead & Jewellery Show!!!

If you are in the Ottawa area, you should really try to get there, I know for a fact there are some extremely talented Artists displaying and selling their wares.

The show runs from 10am to 5pm at the RA Centre, 2451 Riverside Driv, Ottawa, Ontario - entry is FREE and there will be some wonderful door prizes, including a ready made collection of Artisan Glass Beads, and Free lampworking sessions at the studios of some very generous Glass Artists!

As well as Glass Beads, there will be other beads, beading supplies and lampworking supplies for sale.  It's really shaping up to be an incredible event.

That said, I'm down to the wire, I have a huge list to still wade through and that's today taken care of.  Since this is my first big event I'm feeling nervous but also excited.  I'll have beads, Space Monkees, and a selection of jewellery for sale, much of which is the result of a collaboration between myself and Meghann Gervais, who's work is of wonderful quality and style.

The weather doesn't look good for raking leaves or doing outdoor things tomorrow, so why not get a jump start on your Christmas shopping, and come out and meet the Ottawa Glass Bead Artists group and everyone else who will be there!