Holly's Folly

Wow! When I first started out looking for items to feature that would tell the story of Holly Dare, I had no idea of all the spots I would find. Holly is on Etsy, 1000Markets, Blogger, and she has her own website. Whew! That's a lot of work for anyone!










Look at this beautiful shell! As you can guess, Holly makes lampwork beads.















Look at this shot of Holly's blown shells. This blown shell is to die for! Amazing!

Here's what Holly has to say about herself: "Old fashioned Southern Belle (yeah, we still exist) whose greatest joy is the daily hikes with my dog. I make food safe rubber stamps (combining the love of baking and stamping) and also make lampwork beads and sell jewelry. In my spare time, I write for tv and other clients and dabble in web development. "

Wow! I'm tired already! I don't think I could keep up with her. Be sure to visit Holly in the places I listed! I think you'll see some wonderful beads, and learn more about this very interesting artisan!

Adobe Sol on 1000Markets

When I think of my home in the southwest, I think of AdobeSol Desgins of 1000Markets! Located in Corrales, New Mexico, which I think is now considered a suburb of my hometown, Albuquerque, Rebecca has shown herself to be a fantastic metal artist and designer, not only using the southwestern theme, but the soul of metal that she captures in her art. I don't think that many more words will be necessary to show her fabulous gift with metal and jewelry design.


This piece is stunning! She captures the beauty and romance of the southwest, and she lets the inner beauty of the metal she works with highlight the design of this necklace. Wow! This amazing work of art is called "Caged Turquoise."













This piece is aptly named "Desert Sunset Pin Brooch." Isn't this jaw dropping gorgeous! What a fabulous work of wearable art.













This work of art is called "Twigs n Reeds." I don't think I need to say more. You can just admire this work of art.














As always, my favorite is saved for last. This amazing work of art is aptly called Silver Swirls Egyptian Coil Bracelet. Amazing!

Remember to check out Adobe Sol Designs on 1000Markets. You won't be disappointed.

1000 Markets A New Place to Visit

Yesterday, we visited some Artfire stores.
Today, our shopping trip will take us to 1000Markets and two stores in that selling venue.

The first store we will visit today is Island Top Glass Art.
Paula is the curator, artist, and owner of this fun shop!
(I'm only going to show you a couple of items from each of these stores, so when you finish reading this, do a bit of island hopping and visit 1000Markets to see some fabulous work from Paula and Sue.)

This beautiful necklace, and the beads in it, were made by Paula. Isn't it stunning! when I first saw this necklace, I thought of the ocean. I see the white sands and the soft, blue water of the sea!
Wow!
This necklace and earrings set is called Pretty and Pink. Paula has so many wonderful pieces of wearable art in her shop, that I really had a difficult time deciding which pieces to choose. My philosophy then is, when in doubt choose pink!
Beautiful!

Now, in this whirlwind tour of the two shops on 1000Markets that I like the best, we need to move on to Nine Dragons Sculpture Art owned, operated, and curated by Sue who is a multi talented artist.
Take a look at these two works of art.

This fabulous necklace is called Shimmer. Isn't it wonderful? You can see the shimmer of the beads in the necklace. Oh, my, it's right up my alley.
This is The Kiss.
Do I need to say more? I am struck by the beauty and the simplicity of this piece.
Wow!

So, it was a short and quick tour of these two stores. Be sure to head over to 1000Markets for a more complete show of what Paula and Sue have to offer.
I'll sneak this in.
When you are there,
You can visit my store, too!
You know me, random and eclectic to the end!
I hope you enjoyed your tour!

Christmas is Over. The Kids have gone Home.

So, it's back to work! I just listed these items in my Etsy Store, my 1000Markets Store, and my Artfire Store.

As much as I enjoyed Christmas and having the kids home, it's time to get back on track! Darn it!
Here's what I listed in my Etsy store.

I call these discs "Ivory Snow." I used a base of ivory, then in between the layers of ivory I used different transparent colors. I love these beads.







I'd like to present to you, "Boomer, the Angel Fish Button!"
















Yes, Boomer is a button and a fish. He's in my 1000 Markets store.



Last, but not least, is Brother Bear. He was fun to make.















I used my handblown shards and fine silver wire. I twisted and turned the molten glass. I just had fun with this creature.

Well, only one more major holiday, and that's the New Year! I can't believe it's going to be 2009! It will still be time for work.

Button, Button, Who's Got the Button?

I do! These are fun to make. I have this one in my 1000Markets store. I love the colors, and the brightness of the button!














These buttons are in my Etsy store.


















I call them Bahama Mama's Buttons because they remind me of an island in the tropics.


















I don't have a home for this button yet, but I am thinking, maybe my 1000Markets store?




















I love the colors in this button. It's the opposite of the first button. We'll see where I list this.



















I call this button, "Grape Sherbert." I'm getting hungry. Later there will be more buttons, and then, maybe we can play the game.
Button, button, who's got the button.

Making the Beads

This post is taken from my blog on 1000Markets. I have just opened a new store in that market. Of course, this new store is called Rosebud's Lampwork Beads. My goal in writing this blog was to introduce the reader to the making of lampwork beads. The lampworkers on this site are few right now. I am hoping that more will join and we will be able to educate the non glass person about melting glass.

Without a doubt, melting glass is my passion! Almost every morning, you can find me down in my "studio" with my kiln turned on and my torch brightly lit. My work table is full of glass rods of different colors, frit (crushed glass), stringers (melted glass that has been pulled into long, thin pieces of glass), shards (blown pieces of glass that have been broken), and bits and pieces of glass that have popped off the rods of glass as I heated them up. I also have mandrels (rods of steel) that have been dipped in bead release ( a gooey, clay like substance that must be dried and without which you would never be able to get a bead get off the mandrel). Next to my work table is a hands free phone that I use to talk with friends who call while I am working. That's a lot of stuff! However, I manage it, and I am able to produce beads using these tools. Here are some samples of beads that I made in this arena of organized chaos. The earrings were made with stringers.



















The vessel was blown with transparent glass rods and special mandrels.





















The bracelet was made with colorful rods of glass. The bead on leather is made with gray glass and fine silver wire. Nummy!


















The bracelet was made with colorful rods of glass.













The bead on leather is made with gray glass and fine silver wire. Nummy!




Visit my new store and let me know what you think.