Diva of the Month, April: Karen Klomparens (Introduction)

Welcome to our April Diva of the Month feature! This month we are interviewing Karen Klomparens of Fire 'n' Sand Glass. This Diva comes from Hamilton, MI, has a home studio in a beautiful wooded country setting in West Michigan. “I’m very content to stay home working in the shop or around the yard,” Karen tells us. “My friends call me a hermit especially during the winter months.” Karen was born in Holland, MI, which is only 10 miles from where she lives now.



Karen got started with stained glass in the early 90's, shortly after building her home. “Not exactly sure how many years I’ve been lampworking” she says. “What started as a small craft room where I did wearable art for kids soon became a glass studio with layout tables, grinders, fusing kilns, and bead making equipment.”



Karen doesn't especially have a “favorite” bead that she can make over and over, but some of her favorite themes are hearts, flowers, vessels, shells and goddesses.



She doesn't especially have a “signature style” either. “I tend to jump from one type of bead to another,” Karen tells us. “With past creative endeavors once I figured out how something was done I tended to move on to the next project. With glass you are always discovering something new either with reactions or techniques which has keep me interested in the art form for so long.”



Here are Karen's links, we will see you all again next week!

Fire 'n' Sand Glass on Etsy ~

Fire 'n' Sand Glass on Artfire ~

Fire 'n' Sand Glass on Facebook ~

Fire 'n' Sand Glass Blog ~

Fire 'n' Sand Glass on Twitter ~

Fire 'n' Sand Glass on Flickr