Art and Soul Hampton

Enamels for student use during the workshop

We're leaving for Art and Soul Hampton tomorrow, so today is a flurry of activity in the studio.  Of course, David and I drove 14 hours from Florida yesterday, so we're both kind of punch drunk. Chris, who David and I have known for nearly 20 years, is an integral part of our operation.  He's the organizational mind!  David and Chris both work part time in the studio helping to fill orders and this is where the trouble began.

In response to my policy to thank customers by writing a brief note on their invoice, here's how the conversation went ...

David:  I just sign the note "painting with fire."
Me:  No, sign your name. It's okay.
David: I think I should sign another name each time I send an order, that way they'll think we're really big.
Chris: Mrs. Lewis, we might want to consider outsourcing our shipping!

Then the names started to flow! So I just had to take a photo of them at work.
Chris:  Mrs. Lewis, you didn't tell me I had to get dressed up for photos?!
Me:  (I was laughing so hard at this point I couldn't respond).

Chris (aka Bernie, Chuck, Sampson, Pookie)

My son, David (Bubba, Floyd, Orton, Vinnie)

If you get any invoices signed by these guys, I'd be very, very suspicious!

Turquoise Starfish ... Why Not!

I know that Turquoise was Pantone's color of the year for 2011 and Honeysuckle is the color for this year, but who doesn't want to wear turquoise ... especially in the Spring and Summer.  Turquoise and Summer are synonymous in my book!

Glass beads by Blue Heeler glass, starfish by guess who?

"The Conspirator" ... the story of Mary Surratt

Today is the release of "The Conspirator," a Robert Redford movie about Mary Surratt and her involvement in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln.  I'm particularly interested because I used to work at the Surratt House in Clinton, MD for the Park Historian of our county.

Surratt House, Clinton, MD

Do you see the top two windows to the left of the front porch?  About 25 years ago, I used to sit in that room. The Surratt Society (docents) were wonderful ladies who gave tours in period costume. But I have to tell you that I had goosebumps more than once when I'd lock up at dusk on a wintry day.  I had to turn off all of the lights in the house and use the ambient light of the setting sun to set the house alarm. Once the alarm was set, I'd run out of there so fast I'd practically trip on the porch stairs.

Briefly, Mary Surratt owned the home, which was a tavern, post office, and a place for weary travelers to stay overnight. Mary also had a boarding house in downtown Washington, DC not far from Ford's Theater, where the conspirators met.  Her son, John Surratt, John Wilkes Booth, and two others planned the assassination of the President.  Mary was asked by her son to take guns to the Surratt House in Clinton and hide them.  You think, "Surely she must have suspected something?"  But the war was just over, marauders made the countryside unsafe ...

Following the assassination, John Surratt successfully escaped to Canada.  John Wilkes Booth was chased to Clinton and points further south into Virginia ... but not before having Dr. Mudd set his leg ... hence the expression, "Your name will be Mudd."

Fr. Walter, an ancestor of my husband's, who was pastor of St. Patrick's Cathedral in DC, heard Mary's last confession, which he kept secret for 25 years after her hanging.  She confessed her innocence to him.    Mary was the last civilian to be tried by a military tribunal.  She was the sacrificial lamb.  I'm interested to see how her story is portrayed.

Spring is for Easter Eggs and Bead Fest Wire!

by Barbara Martin

We just got back from the whirlwind of Bead Fest Wire ... with all of its serendipities and adventures.  Here are a list of some of the high points, not necessarily in the order of importance:

• I got to meet so many customers, members of the pwf ning, former students, new students and fellow colleagues who took the time to come by my booth and chat!  Thank you ... it was wonderful!
• I met Jen J-V.  OMG!  Is this girl not only talented but she cracks me up!  I love her!  The beads she made in the workshop were over the top.  The yellow orange one that looked like alligator skin is a personal favorite. Her friend, Elizabeth Auld, was equally as lovely.
• Lori (aka Wendy)!  This is how we lovingly refer to Lori Anderson in our family!  On our way home from an Annapolis workshop in October where Lori was an attendee, Jim said to me, "I think I was calling Lori "Wendy."  So when I saw Lori next, I apologized.  She said Jim only did it once.  So, that's the story behind her nickname!  When I say to Jim, "Hey, do you know what Lori told me?"  He says, "You mean "Lori aka Wendy?" and we both crack up!
• Jim and I met the lovely Linda Larsen of Objects and Elements fame.  I know you've had the experience of meeting someone and immediately feeling as though you've known them for years.  That's how it was with Linda.  She's just a really lovely, generous, funny gal.  I can't wait until we can meet up again ... 
• Yvonne of My Elements and JoAnne of Z-Beads were my neighbors and I couldn't resist possessing some of their wonderful work!  Yvonne saved me from a complete disaster by making some suggestions on where to place things on my table.  She probably saved my marriage because I know Jim and I would have been at each other's throats if she had not been so generous with her advice.  Thank you, Yvonne.
• We all benefited from Interweave's wonderful Karen Keegan and her work behind the scenes, and that of her staff, to create the a perfect event!
• Barbara Martin, a fellow Marylander who bought beads from me in Tucson, showed up wearing the most gorgeous necklace (see above).  She's a beautiful model besides!  I had people coming up to me all weekend saying, "I just saw this woman wearing a necklace made of your beads!"  Apparently, she had people stopping her and placing orders for her necklace ... I think they wanted to rip that beauty from her neck ... or maybe that's just projection! LOL But two weeks ago, Barbara took a PWF workshop and will be flying solo from now on!
• I gave two demos where I felt like a rock star!  I loved it. 

So, I'm leaving you with a couple of photos.  I need pictures when I visit blogs and I'm thinking you might too!  This reminds me of a basket of Easter eggs. What if I were to hide this in the thicket with the other Easter eggs, could you find it?

More fun with glass crayons ...

That's what it feels like when I'm enameling!  No kidding ...  I definitely like to color outside the lines!

Blue Jay Flower, suede lace and sari silk ribbon

The flower is a bead cap I opened up.  Do you find yourself cannabalizing your jewelry findings so that they find their way into work in just the right spot?

A simple technique

Haven't we all played around with bending and folding wire?  It's the 3-D equivalent of doodling.  Sometimes things accidentally work in your favor and you end up with something that is identifiable. :-)

At the top right you see something I call a "slide."  Another wire doodle.  This handy little thing dispenses with the knot at the back of the neck.  I hate that big bulge resting on my neck.  The slide keeps the ribbons where they're supposed to be and allows you to adjust the length of the necklace.  Just add a bauble to each end of the ribbon to prevent the ends of the ribbons from completely slipping through the slide and you're finished.

One of the great things about having a bunch of ribbons in a basket is that you can get some neat random color combinations.  When I saw these gold and shocking pink ribbons together, I knew it was right!  Their color vibrations practically sent a pulse out into the room! Let me ask you something ... do you find yourself being attracted to off-beat color combinations or do you like more harmonious color pairings?  Inquiring minds want to know ...

Gettin' Ready for Bead Fest Wire!

We're days away from driving to King of Prussia for Bead Fest Wire!  I really hope I'll be meeting a bunch of you there. Even though we only talk in cyberspace, your blogs have invited me into your world ... and I'm so grateful. It would be nice to put a face to a page. :-)

I'll be giving a demo on Friday at 11 a.m. and you can find me at my booth at other times on Friday and Saturday and, of course, at the teachers Meet and Greet on Friday evening.  On Sunday, I'll be teaching 20 of you how to enamel as fastly, cheaply, and safely as is humanly possible!  So, I hope now that you know where I'll be, you can come by and we can have a gigglefest!

Over the past few days I've been making jewelry because I feel a strong need to show some of what's available with torch firing.  But what I really want is for you to give it a whirl.  The paintingwithfire.ning.com can be a great source of support as you continue a home study course in enameling. :-)  I think of it as an extended warranty. LOL  You all, of course, will take the technique in other directions and create outta sight stuff!

I think one of the most obvious attractions about enamel is color.  Metal is a wonderful material, but when you put colored glass on top of it, metal comes alive!  You need not cover every speck of metal with color though. I'm finding that fabric and enamel look great together.  It's also a great solution to costly metal alternatives.  As far as color, it's WOWx2!

I see fabric and my brain says, "I need dat!" But apparently I have a lot of needs ... but we won't go there!  The sari ribbon I use is Fair Trade and recycled.  It helps to support impoverished woman in Nepal and India, many of whom are single-mother head-of-households, which is one of the reasons I decided to carry it at my website.

Here's a new piece I just finished yesterday called, "Dogwood." The saffron ribbon keeps the piece from becoming just toooo sweet!

Dogwood

Dogwood, detail

But, I'm curious ... have you noticed that there's a trend toward using ribbons and other fibers in jewelry design? Do YOU find yourself using more ribbons and other fibers in your work?  Do you have favorites?  I'd love to hear what you're thinking ... :-)

Spring Treasury

I want to thank Gabi at Urban Chic Jewelry for using my Cherry Pink beads in her Spring treasury, which has some really cute items.  Check out her etsy shop ... it will put a smile on your face!