New work for the Tucson Bead Show!

I just looked at the date of my last blog post and can't believe it was January 9!  Well, I should believe it because my time has been spent getting ready for the Tucson Bead Show, February 5 - 10.  Those are the dates of the show but our stay will be more like 10 days.  

It's a major undertaking, but a good exercise in organization and creation!  The thrill will be when we get to Tucson and I have the pleasure of meeting students and customers.

These are some glass head pins in opaque and luscious transparent glass.  They're annealed in a kiln for strength.  Before I was introduced to enameling, I was lampworking so I'm revisiting the joy pulling taffy-like glass from a rod!

These can be used as head pins but also are great woven into a necklace with other enamel beads.

Glass Head Pins

After making a few dozen bellflower shapes, I decided to get a little more sculptural.  The two head pins on the left have a dichroic glass overlay.  I love how these look in intense pink glass. 

Glass Head Pins with a More Sculptural Look!

From there I was led to enamel some links ... Normally I do an annealing process in heated vermiculite for the links and enamel head pins, but I thought, "What the heck, the kiln's on!"   The high-pitched "ting" they make when they touch each other is a delight to the ears!  I wanted these to look as though they'd been dug up from an archaeological site!  The metal that looks "naked" has a thin coat of enamel on top to prevent rust or oxidation from forming.

I can't wait to show you more links in different colors.  If you had a choice, what colors would you make?