A Day At The Beach

I'm a beach person from way back...I grew up on the beach and then moved away as a young teen.

So if there is an opportunity to get near the water, I jump at the chance.  Last weekend we went to St. Augustine, FL.  Having never been there before, I was delighted with all the ocean, boats, history and yes, even the tourist kitsch.  ( Easily amused, I must say.)

We visited the Fountain of Youth- and were told that this really wasn't the exact one, because it had dried up a long time ago.  I am not sure what made Ponce de Leon think he'd stay young from it, because it really didn't look that great to begin with.

But we stayed up the road on Vilano Beach.  Being off season, there was plenty of beach to share.  Here are a few of the morning squatters.

And using the camera on my phone, I took this photo to see whether I could capture a bit of the sparkle in this shell...

I believe the answer is "yes".

I'll have some other photos of the area in the near future.  For those of you longing for a warm beach, this wasn't it.  Chilly and windy, but still lovely to my eyes.  It will be quite a while before that water is warm enough to dip your toes in.

See you tomorrow- www.studiomarcy.blogspot.com

Trying Silver Glass

Do you ever make a bead and then it reminds you of a place?

I had been playing with some silver glass from a local glass maker, and I started seeing all these striations in different colors on my bead posted below.  Immediately, it reminded me of the bands of rocks in Colorado, where I used to live.

Oh, I know the colors aren't the same at all.  It was the layered look that got me thinking.

This silver glass doesn't have a name, and I tried to find my friend's Etsy shop where he sells it.  No luck.  I'll find him and then post the information.

He told our Southern Flames group that his best luck for getting color out of it,  is heating and then cooling and repeating for the color....like striking. He also likes an oxidized flame.

Not being a silver glass connoisseur, I'd love to hear from you silver glass users whether that's what you do too?

I had used this same glass and got some purples and pinks out of it.  But I was using a different torch.  Does the torch with oxy versus a concentrator make a difference?  Okay readers.  I know you're out there.  Let me know what you think.  It's your turn to teach me.

Meanwhile, I have found that I like this glass for my frog's lily pad.  Which you can see here.

I have just returned from my week's long trip, so tomorrow I'll be back to my regular postings.