The Blue Brick

I’m on fire!

March 29, 2012

Tito and I were back in the lampworking studio on Monday night for what, I can now safely say, was a far more successful evening.

I worked with only 5 colours all night trying to create beads that, above all, were reasonably round. Yes, that was my only goal. Round, with nice holes. It sounds weird, but I can’t think of any other way to put that. It’s just lousy when the glass grips the mandrel in such a way that you don’t get that nice, doughnut shaped centre.

Not one piece broke in the kiln! I think the trick really was the heat factor, this time I made sure I kept my beads good and hot the entire time. I probably even overdid it – which is why none of my design work really came out well, but I’m ok with that. It’s progress ;)

Then I discovered that the beautiful frosted effect one sees on many lampwork beads is just etching solution that you can pick up at a craft store. Can anyone guess what my next round of beads will be for? Yep, etching is in my future, and I’ve already got ideas for pieces that will look like sea glass when they’re done.

One of the beads was so lovely that I just strung it on a silver chain. It’s about 15mm wide, and it made a great pendant. It’s so satisfying to wear something you made from scratch.

Tito went right over the whole bead business and started creating glass sculpture. I need to share his pieces tomorrow – they included a bee, a turtle and a butterfly! I was seriously impressed. Suddenly my goal of ’round’ didn’t seem quite so lofty. He turned out to be a real natural at this.

I love working with glass, it’s such a different feeling from pottery. I’m hoping to get further in glass blowing this summer. Over Christmas Tito and I finally did something with all those ornaments we made in our intro course last year.

Can’t wait for next Monday night – and can’t wait to get my hands on some etching solution – oh, the possibilities!
Just a shot

March 28, 2012

For the next few nights you can see the crescent moon, Jupiter and Venus in a beautiful triangle – just look to the west, right after sunset :)
MOO cards

March 27, 2012

I just got my new MOO cards in the mail! I totally recommend these guys to anyone who is an artist and needs business cards that are unique, high quality and show off their portfolio. They’re great for photographers, and crafters.

The perk about MOO cards is that you can put a different image on the back of every card if you want to – at no additional cost. I ordered 50 cards, 5 of each image, and it cost me only $30.99 after tax and shipping.

It’s perfect for me because, depending on who I’m giving a card to, I can choose pottery, photography, knitting, jewellery or yarn bowls.

The other side of the card is always the same – you can upload your own design for your contact info or use MOO’s template.

I also picked up one of these guys ;) It’s a fun way to show off your cards when you’re offering somebody one. Check out their website to see other great products, including postcards, mini cards and more!
Better late than never?

March 26, 2012

Remember this guy?

Someone ordered a yarn bell from me, oh, last summer ish. I literally just got it out of the kiln. Murphy ruled this yarn bell; every iteration of it either broke, was damaged in the kiln or had it’s handles fall off. I have never encountered such an ill-fated yarn bell.

Well, guess what fate, it’s done, she likes it, and I’m delivering it soon. Except that she likes it so much she wants a matching bowl…. and for no rational reason this makes me cringe. Of course I’m making it, after all, the bowls have already been thrown and if I can get red glaze I should be a month from completion. Besides, she’s been lovely and demonstrated godlike patience, how could I say no? What could go wrong ? (Crosses fingers).

I also got other goodies from the kiln, which have been delivered to the Purple Purl:

I love this angle, the blue-greens are so delicious!

I’m definitely in fail mode on other fronts, a bunch of tiger lilies, carnations and chrysanthemums that I had preserved for jewellery went bust. It reminds me what a delicate process this is. I’m trying again of course, stay tuned for (what I hope will be) brilliant gerber daisy jewellery!

Speaking of Fail, tonight I’m taking another crack at lampworking, wish me luck, and thanks for all the positive and encouraging comments from folks who saw my broken bead post :)
Photo-Take-Outter Friday #7 – Passion & Patience

March 23, 2012

This tip is simple; the best photos I’ve ever done got taken when it was late, when I was cold, when the weather was bad etc. Sometimes I had to wait a long time for the right shot, or get up at some weird hour. If you want the shots no one else is getting, you’ve got to be passionate enough to put yourself out there, and patient enough to stay the course until you get your shot :)

Long Beach in the Fog, Vancouver Island BC

The day was cold and clammy. Tito and I were burned out because we’d slept in a car the previous night (long story). We took one look at the beach, and it was deserted, not to mention freezing. It was perfect. Shots of beautiful desolation and eerie lighting were our prize for staying the course that day! My favourite were the 2 surfers who took a chance on the waves despite the weather.

Morning after the storm: Toronto Harbour

It was a furious snowstorm, a couple feet of snow fell overnight. Normally this sounds like a pizza, a movie rental and a sleep-in. Not so, for me this meant an early morning alarm and a hike through the snow in the hour just before dawn. My reward was clear skies, a frozen lake, smooth, untrodden-upon mounds of snow and a beautiful sunrise!

The Hummingbird’s nest: Monte Verde Costa Rica

This little nest is no bigger than my fist. I could hear the little baby chirping inside and I knew if I could just remain totally motionless with my zoom lens set up the mom would come and feed her baby. I had mixed feelings about doing this – I was so worried that my presence would stop her from coming back, or make her aggressive towards me, but I needn’t have feared. An uncomfortable half hour of crouching and I got this touching shot.

Lava Flow: Mt Kiluea, Hawaii

I went to Hawaii just for this volcano. Of all the gorgeous things we saw, wildlife and landscape and pristine beaches, the lava was the winner for me. Instead of a daytime hike to the flow site we opted for a 3 am boat ride on terrifying, rough ocean. It was dark, bumpy, and hot. Some of the most adverse conditions I’ve ever shot in. I’d do it again in a heartbeat, and the shots were more than worth it.

Aurora Borealis: South Ontario

It was a work night, and it was cold, and we were already tired. On top of that it was raining hard in Toronto, and snowing hard up north. But you just never know when mother nature is going to give you a show. So after checking the forecast on spaceweather.com we decided to drive out in a snowstorm. We headed west to try and escape the storm and not 15 minutes after passing the edge of the cloud we got this shot. Freezing. Tired. Terrible driving conditions. Totally worth it.

Electrical storm: Toronto Ontario

We had one of those great, high summer electrical storms. Go home and keep cameras dry? Nope, get the car and chase that storm around looking for our shot. Now, lightning is the epitome of patient shooting, but when you do get it, there’s a lot of jumping around, pumping your fist in the air and screaming. Even if you are soaking wet because you lovingly draped your raincoat over your camera instead of yourself.

All my favourite shots, the ones closest to my heart, are the shots that took work. So remember, when the tourists go home, when it’s too late, too cold or too wet, that’s when dedicated photographers are just heading out! Approach photography with passion and determination. Always be willing to put yourself out there, when you do get your shot the rewards will be worth it.
Creepy Killer Fog & the Price of Good Weather

March 21, 2012

It’s March 21st and a whopping 23 degrees in Toronto. I kept thinking winter might be lurking around the corner waiting to pounce on us, but no, that really was it. It’s nice out and yet it’s kind of freaky.

One sort of B-movie side effect is a thick and persistent fog that’s been coming in off the lake in the evenings and sticking around until well into the morning. I apologize for the image-heavy post, but this was just too beautiful to short-change you on the shots. Behold, my normal western view:

And, the view yesterday evening:

And again, at 5 am this morning – check out the sharp cutoff line on top of the fog.

Here’s the normal eastern view:

And here it was yesterday evening:

It’s like someone filled Lake Ontario with dry ice. Here it is at 5 am:

And just before dawn:

The detail shots are insane. In this one it looks like the fog looks is wrapping it’s tentacles around this unfortunate condo.

And yet a few minutes earlier, that entire building was gone:

The Canada Malting Co. building faded in and out of existence:

Here’s another western view of those condos. Very Blade Runner. I took this just before dawn as well.

It pays to put yourself out there at weird hours. I didn’t even set an alarm, my body woke up at 5 am and said ‘get your camera!’.

I’m pretty sure it’s a result of the dramatic temperatures, which I think are setting a record for March. Beautiful, but disconcerting.
Lampworking = Fail

March 20, 2012

Last Monday Tito and I got back into the lampworking studio for the first time in almost a year, and woo boy, was I ever out of practice. Of the many pieces I made that night, almost half of them broke in the kiln. The advice I got was that I had let my glass cool down too much in between working periods – sounds like a rookie mistake to me!

I’m shooting this one from the front so you can’t tell that I had to glue it back together ;) This, and all the other big beads had split in half during the cooling process.

Yep. Also broken. And I was going to make a pendant from this one!

Mucho broken. What would I do without E6000?

All was not lost – I took the ones that looked reasonably similar (and were thankfully intact) and made them into a necklace :)

It’s always nice to work with beads that you made yourself. So even though I was totally peeved I feel nothing but determination to get back into the studio again!
The Art of Total Strangers

March 19, 2012

It’s a pretty amazing feeling to see a photo of something someone else made using your designs. I started designing patterns for Ravelry last year and I wanted to share some of the project photos that other knitters have posted. That someone invested time, skill and yarn to make one of my ideas is both awesome and humbling :)

These knitted boot toppers by Teresa were one of the first projects I saw. Teresa was kind enough to share here photos with me. I love the wooden buttons she used!

This is a version of the Lisa shawl made by Kriss. I love the way she modified the centre column, and the colour she chose. I know the Lisa shawl is labour-intensive, so I was really impressed with her version!

Speaking of labour-intensive, check out this Bay of Fundy scarf by Kathrin. She invested a lot of time and effort to make this huge wrap. The yarn is gorgeous as well :)

My favourite thing about this piece is the fact that Kathrin lives in Germany. Someone in Germany wanted to make a scarf inspired by one of my favourite places in Canada, how wonderful is that?

And last I wanted to show off the first of the Put a Little Love Out cowls that I’ve gotten back. This one is from the talented Yvette, who sent me this lovely photo :) Pink wool accented by an i-cord and pompoms make this an adorable and beautiful cowl.

Speaking of Put a Little Love Out – I’m hoping to share some of the beautiful stories I’ve gotten back very soon, so if you haven’t yet sent me a photo of your cowl please do, so I can share them in the blog post! If you’d like to learn more or participate, it’s not too late, check out the link here!
Photo-take-outter Friday #6 – Get the shot you weren’t looking for.

March 16, 2012

When I go out shooting I often have an idea in my head of the photo I am hoping to take. The danger is that sometimes I can get so caught up in the shot I want that I miss the beautiful shots around me. It’s like photographer’s tunnel vision. So today’s tip is easy: Keep an eye out for the shot you weren’t looking for.

Last night was a perfect example. I went out at dusk to photograph Venus and Jupiter. Wherever you are in the world, you can see these 2 beautiful worlds, only 3 degrees apart, for the next few weeks. It’s a gorgeous sight. Just look to the west, just after sundown.

I decided to head out to a park just west of my place where I knew I’d get a clear view. The park is an interesting space because with the right camera angle you can make the shot look like it was taken in an isolated area, when really, it’s right in the middle of a condo complex.

I got my shot, and I was thrilled with it :) Then I packed up my camera for the short walk home. As soon as I turned around I saw what I had missed – 180 degrees from this beautiful, isolated shot of the sky was a veritable forest of condominiums, one of which is my home, framing the CN tower perfectly. All I had to do was turn around and look.

Of course I had to unpack the camera and set up again, but I’m glad that I did :) Always keep an eye out for the shot you weren’t looking for!
New tulip jewellery and Etsy page updates!

March 15, 2012

Today I polished off more of the tulips I preserved a few weeks ago -and used the left over resin to make something cute for myself :)

Too often I only keep a piece for myself if it’s damaged somehow. Today I decided to treat myself by creating the ultimate Shireen piece! Of course it had to be turquoise, with antique copper and lots of filigree. I ended up cutting a piece of cloth for the background and I adore the results. You can see from my previous attempts to make myself something that I’m very predictable in my personal tastes ;) If you guys like this look, let me know! I’m happy to make more :)

I decided to add in 2 pendants this time, one in silver and one in antique copper with hand-molded filigree for a more romantic feeling.

I also went with a different shape in rings this time. I have very small hands, so the square and round rings look a bit large on me. This design is much more streamlined and suites a wider variety of hand shapes.

Each piece of one of a kind – preserved using a technique that literally took me years and many failed attempts to perfect. You should see the piles of fail that still litter my old jewellery stashes, I keep them to remind myself of how far I’ve come with resin treatments.

If you like what you see here, check out my Etsy page for more!