Sunday, July 31, 2011

Fire Divas Gossip Column!

Good Morning Glass Lovers!!! I love having a diverse and juicy selection of blogging goodies for you and this Sunday's dose of Diva Gossip is no exception! Everyone here at the Divas has been hard at work and also a little play! I know you are waiting to see what we have all been up to so without further adieu lets dive in to the Diva's lives and take a peek!

Kathleen of Ugly Duckling Beads has found a great little hidden treasure in the form of some new pamper products. I know that I have already taken a look and found my "lost lemonade"! Curious? check out her post and find out!

Sharon Driscoll of Right Turn Artwerks Has a post about balance and life's juggling act but let me assure you her post is both a great read and has a great picture! Lets all stop by and let her know how much we love her!!!

Holly Dare of Holly's Folly Glass is on a whimsy and has shared some great bead eye candy! I know you will love her wonderful, whimiscal, glass art!

Lori Bergmann of Ashlyn Design has a great little reason to get some early Christmas shopping done! Remember Christmas in July is just as fun as Christmas in December!!!

Julie Cannon of Julsbeads is really a girl after my own heart! Her beads just speak volumes about how I feel at the moment! You will surely get your bead and summer fix when you check out her latest goodies!

Amy Sims of Amy Sims Designs is finally back with us and also getting ready to set up her new studio!! I am definitely excited to see this progress and cheering her on her way to torching again! GO AMY!!!

Now for me, Michelle Veizaga of SunDoorBeads I have been battling with some electrical issues beyond my control from storms to our FPL electrical shutting down service at inopportune moments. However, I managed to find a moment to torch and made a great new murrini blend come check it out!

Now that you have had your Diva fix for the day get out there and read those blogs, support our Divas and enjoy a wonderful Sunday!! Have a blast!!

Saturday, July 30, 2011

Fantasy Shopping Saturday


Today is going to be really interesting! I'm working part of the day at the Maker's Faire Booth at the Henry Ford Village in Dearborn, Michigan as part of the Etsy Team.  The Maker's Faire is the premier event for grassroots American innovation celebrating artists, inventors and do-it-yourselfers . It's the world's largest DIY festival, covers 2 whole days, family friendly, and has something for everyone!...It's the best place to see the creativity, resourcefulness, inventions, and finished products of the "Maker". But you have access to something very special right here! An online group of ladies who also have the "Lampwork Maker" mindset. The Fire Divas... and you never have to leave your "comfy" chair and PC. Each of these ladies exhibit their own unique creativity, and innovative techniques in glass! Check 'em out! And if you see something you like... click on that buy button! ...and then become a "Maker" with our beads!  Happy shopping!

Kitty Lampwork
FenGBeads
Beth Knapp Tyner
Lutrick
Ashlyn Design
Aloha Bead
Giapet
Juls Beads
Uvanomos
Holly's Folly Glass
AbbieLynn
Sun Door Beads
Spawn of Flame
Silver River Glass Works
Shepherd Creations
River's Edge Glass
Bab's BeadsandDesigns
Amy SimsDesigns
Ugly Duckling Beads
Right Turn Art Werks


Friday, July 29, 2011

Bead of the Day, July 29, 2011

Maybe it's because I'm longing for cooler weather or...maybe it's because I'm starting think ahead to fall jewelry designs, but this Friday, I find the colors of this stunning glass bead soothing to my soul. Rich fall tone shades of amber and honey flecked with blue and purple remind me of the breezy sunsets that really aren't that far away. You have started thinking about your Christmas jewelry, haven't you???  ;-)


This Autumn inspired Frit Focal can be found in Lara Lutrick's Artfire Shop
The Divas hope your weekend is just peachy and we do hope you'll check out our Fantasy shopping post on Saturday and pop by for a little gossip on Sunday.

Thursday, July 28, 2011

Bead(s) of the Day Thursday 7-28-11


Today's Bead(s) of the day are from Julsbeads on Etsy. These simple striped beads caught my eye. The colors in these Desert Sky beads are ivory, blue, purple, red, and orange and are perfect for your jewelry creations. Check out all of Juls' bead sets and wonderful focal beads.



If you want to see more Fire Divas' beads check out the Etsy and ArtFire threads.

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Lampwork Bead of the Day: Tuesday, July 26

Today I'm filling in for Abbie of AbbieLyn Designs, and was so excited, as I've never done a Bead of the Day (BOD)! Until....I had to choose only one bead to show off today.  That was hard!  Who do I choose ?  What do I choose? How do I decide? Do I eenie, meenie, minee, moe?  And then it all came together, one bead just kept calling my name!  I love the richness of the gold and the bronze watery effect of this bead!  You can see more of Kitty's beads at Kitty Lampwork!


The good thing for you? You're not limited to just one bead to view. You can  see more "beauties made by my fellow Divas in our Artfire and Etsy threads. You can find out what our favorites are in both threads!  Happy viewing!  I'll see you on Saturday....

Monday, July 25, 2011

Lampwork Bead of the Day: Monday, July 25th

Happy Monday again!  Last Monday Bead of the Day for July, so it must be something summery...colorful...fun... OK I've got a great set that meets those criteria!  Check out these beads from July's Diva of the Month Rosemarie Hanus of Spawn of Flame:


Pink Yellow and Green Glass Lampwork Beads - Spawn of Flame

They remind me of a cool fruity drink outside in the shade, which is just the ticket these days.  They are textured and detailed, and will make an excellent festive and fun pair of earrings.  Of course you can use them for whatever you want if you snap them up for yourself, especially today while they are Beads of the Day and qualify for 15% off (today only)! See what else Rosemarie has made for your jewelry needs and bead lust by visiting her ArtFire shop.  She also has an Etsy shop for your convenience, so feel free to peruse both. :)

Want to know what the Fire Divas are listing this week on ArtFire and Etsy? Check out the weekly threads by clicking here for ArtFire and here for Etsy.  Have a great week!

Tide Pool Challenge Winner!

Congratulations to Lori Bergmann of AshlynDesign for winning this month’s Challenge! Her cool aqua heart with a sandy base and sea creatures really fit the theme of Tide Pool.



Since Lori won the Challenge last month, our prize will go to second place winner (and it was very close!) Kathleen of Ugly Duckling Beads! Congratulations Kathleen, you are the lucky winner of one issue of The Glass Bead Magazine, donated by Creation is Messy.



And, our lucky commenter this month is #6 Sharon of Shazzabeth Creations! Sharon, you’ve won a $20 gift certificate from Patrice at Shepherd Creations. Congratulations!

And now let’s look once again at the rest of the gorgeous entries in this month’s challenge:


Rosemarie Hanus


Sonja of Silver River Glass Works


Patrice Shepherd


Holly’s Folly Glass

Lara Lutrick


Abigail Lyn


Sarah of Aloha Bead


Michelle of SunDoorBeads

Sunday, July 24, 2011

Fire Divas Gossip Column!

Another wonderful summer week has come and gone! I would like to thank Amy Sims of Amy Sims Designs for filling in for me last Sunday! I was enjoying a wonderful surprise visit from my newly retired Dad!

The Divas have been busy in my absence and hard at work! Don't forget to head over and vote for your favorite Tide Pool Challenge Bead and make sure to leave a comment that you voted to be entered to win a $20 Gift Certificate from Patrice of Shepherd's Creations

So let's see what our wonderful Divas have been up to!!!

Julie of Julsbeads has been a busy little bee and I loved oogling over her wonderful eye candy! So many gorgeous beads!

Sonja of Silver River Jewelry was a lucky girl indeed to be able to enjoy some real summer fun with her Hubby at a Jimmy Buffet concert!!! Now that is my idea of summer!

Holly of Holly's Folly has made some "fresh new" beads that are wicked with great organic reaction!

Thank you to Lara of Lutrick Beads and Kathleen of Ugly Duckling Beads for continuing to support the Diva Monthly Challenge! Thank you so much ladies!

Last but not least I, SunDoorBeads have a little post up about my latest tool (handmade by Dad) and even a couple of pictures of some custom work just for a little eye candy!

Thank you all for tuning into this weeks juicy scoops on our talented and lovely Divas!!!

Have a great day and Happy Summer!!!

Saturday, July 23, 2011

Diva of the Month (Part 4): Rosemarie Hanus



Good Evening Everyone. This post is coming a day late - sorry about that! Just the same I know you are all looking forward to seeing the concluding article for Rosemarie Hanus of Spawn of Flame. Rose is such a sweetheart for answering all of our questions...and I hope you've visited her sites often to say hello and maybe left her a little message or two. If you haven't done it yet - please stop by her Blog, Etsy, ArtFire or Twitter and let her how much you enjoyed getting to know her. I'm sure she'll appreciate it.

Which of your secrets do we not know… is there something else you would like us to know about you or your work?
I also like to call myself a musician. I current play Horn (informally known as French Horn even though it is German in origin) in a local brass choir - along with two other family members!

How has your work changed since you began?
Many of my original pieces were large and based on twisted canes with a distinct pattern. Now, more of my work is based on layered colors - more of a focus on color than structure. It is also smaller - much, much smaller!

What is the biggest challenge you want to accomplish in the next few months?
I want to stock up on most of my sets to be prepared for my busy season.
I also want to start offering more larger beads including focals. I have recently been exploring some new techniques to incorporate into my work to freshen my line. I have also challenged myself to say "my line" without feeling like I am being pretentious.

What do you like about being a Fire Diva?
I like watching what everybody is making; I particularly have enjoyed the challenges recently - trying to guess who made what. I like sharing Fire Diva's work with others, in Etsy Treasuries and ArtFire Collections for example. Even though I'm sort of a solitary person, I really like to be a part of a group of people with common interest (glass!) and goals (successful glass business).


Thank You Rosemarie !

Fantasy Shopping Saturday

I haven't written a Fantasy Shopping post for the Divas in ages... but this space used to be my baby. It was fun to look around and shop for my dream beads. I guess I'm feeling all "Earth Mother" this summer, having helped raise 10 ducklings!  With that in mind, I present to you Earth, Air, Water and Fire by the Fire Divas:


Kitty Lampwork
Juls Beads