Transparent Red Glass Leaf...Va Va Voom!

I love this transparent red glass leaf pendant with veins.  It is worn vertically and can be seen in my Etsy shop, http://www.StudioMarcy.etsy.com along with other new bead selections.  I made it of mandrel and of course, it's one of a kind. Check out all my new beads. I'm so happy to be listing again.

Glass Pinecones...Collaboration with Mother Nature

Pine cones have always intrigued me. Whether it's picking them up and just admiring their symmetry and form or the cinnamon scented giant ones scattered around the house during the holidays. (I have to admit, I do buy those and like them)

So it was no surprise to me, that I decided it was time to figure out how I wanted to make them. Maureen McRorie from FlameTree Glass asked that I teach a half day "Autumn" class and the subject matter was up to me and pine cones seemed like a natural fit. (By the way, the class still has a few spaces left- here's the info) And of course, I wanted to try my hand at coming up with some slightly different fall leaves. The final item, was up in the air...."pumpkins" seems like the typical choice, but they might be taught in a Halloween class, so I added acorns with a different twist as well. Their little chubby shape always delights me. (oh it is so hard refraining from making them into little faces with the caps as hats).

So here is a sample of my glass pine cone bead. I am now stocking them in my Etsy shop and they come in different sizes and with a slight variation in shapes, colors, etc. They have a 1/16th hole and different configurations for custom orders are always welcome.

Stay tuned for another post on the bails that look like tree branches that I designed for them. Versatile and fun, if I do say so myself!

Sunday Was For The Birds

For those of you who know me, I love birds.  I have bird feeders and bird baths in my back yard.  However, I was not prepared for this experience.

Yesterday morning I was awakened by a very odd sound.  And lots of them.  I laid in bed and listened.  It sounded like turkeys.

It felt like waiting forever until there was some daylight, but finally my husband and I went outside, armed with our little digital cameras.

About 40 feet up in our pine trees, were five very large wild turkeys calling to each other.  I think they were taunting each other over their flying skills, because when they finally took off, it looked like low altitude very large bowling balls with wings barely skimming the roof tops.

They first landed in the field behind our house.  It could throw you off, because I live in the suburbs of a 5 million + sized city, Atlanta, Georgia.  But we're so lucky to have this little pocket of nature behind us.  A very old half blind horse used to live there when we first moved in.  He used to enjoy munching on our pink cherry blossoms that hung over the fence in the Spring.

So these five turkeys enjoyed their bit of nature in the back lot and we watched for a long time as they strutted, fanned their feathers, made lots of noise and did their little turkey "look at me" dances.

I guess after that it was time to go 
check out the rest of the neighborhood, because they hopped the fence and started down the street.

You can see by comparing them to the mailbox, that these were not your Thanksgiving Day sized creatures, but ones who obviously were larger and far noisier than the frozen variety.

So that was my Sunday morning commune with nature.  I promise, tomorrow I'll get back to creativity, inspiration and glass chat.

I don't think that this gang roaming our streets will inspire any beads from me, but I wanted you to see that not all wild turkey comes in a glass bottle.

See you tomorrow!