Cold Connections

I am steadfast keeping my exploits in chronological order. Although, in betweeen classes, I am making beads and jewelry. I will get to posting them soon. Apparently, my previous post about the great classes at Brighton Beads brought Jiro Masuda a tad bit of teasing. Luckily he is a good sport and took it well from his colleagues. I suspect a small tingling of jealousy on their part (hee,hee, hee) as he is a mechanically minded problem solver. For me that is wonderful.

I'm a girl who grew up around auto and aero industry types. My father was forever showing me his micrometers and calipers and since one Uncle was "tool and die" and the other worked for the aerospace industry (eventually in California) you can just imagine the conversations. Even the neighbors were involved because it was a "factory rat/ air force brat" neighborhood. If they weren't designing cars they were flying jets. Ah, I'm getting nostalgic. Anyway, set your fantasy meter on a post war fifties neighborhood, every house with kids, every family involved with manufacturing of some sort. Mothers in dresses trying to work out the freedom, bra burning, generational thing.

It was a blast growing up in that era. I feel like a pioneer. No more half court baseketball for girls! I'd burn my bra but gheeez at this age I find I need that thing. Whoa, TMI!

Back to these classes that Nancy Garber has a Brighton Beads taught by JJ. This last one was good too. Sometimes a torch just will not do and you need to be prepared to connect something to work via a cold connection. This wasn't your normal just wack a rivet in it class you get. Like I said "mechanical"! You get the why, the how, and the clean results. And, everyone knows, you don't always get that.

Check out the photos...there is even one of me. I kept wearing the sample for a necklace and finally JJ added a bail.

Colour Lovers

No one can work in art without dealing with color. It doesn't even matter what kind of art (quilting, bead making, beading, painting, and so on). At some point you have got to learn a little color theory or haul out an old color wheel. You can turn a pure color into a tint or a shade but somehow those old lessons from school define the basic rules for today's projects.

Somwhere I stumbled on this site that's for all of us great lovers of color. I know everyone is going to enjoy the heck out of it. It called Colour Lovers

Here's what they they have to say about it: "COLOURlovers™ is a resource that monitors and influences colortrends. COLOURlovers gives the people who use color - whether for ad campaigns, product design, or in architectural specification -a place to check out a world of color, compare color palettes, submit news and comments, and read color related articles and interviews."

Not bad, huh? Try it, you'll like it. And who couldn't use a little extra color inspiration.

Bead and Button Classes

I can’t say enough good things about Bead and Button and the wonderful classes they teach there.

This year I was lucky enough to attend two of Jack Berry’s classes sponsored by Rio Grande’s Catalog in Motion. When you walk into a Rio class you have no need to worry about having adequate tools to do the work. Rio equips you with a bench and all the tools and materials you need to complete the course.

It’s not that all of the teachers don’t do a wonderful job of making sure you bring the correct tools. It’s just that it’s nice to have everything ready to go and all you have to do is show up.

It’s a spoiling experience. I felt pampered. Only twelve students, and all that equipment, including two Microfold brakes and three hydraulic presses.

The first class on my agenda was on Microfolding metal and the second on using the forms in the Hydraulic press. There are some great possibilities to creating with these methods. Between this and the previous class on using the hydraulic press my mind is working overtime on ideas. Now, if I can only find the time. And then there is always the need to purchase some additional equipment. Isn’t there always!

The photos are of a pair of earrings I made in class and some of the metal patterns I made microfolding. There is also a set of hydraulically formed teardrop shapes that will be made into earrings and some photos from the class. I can’t wait to work on mixing some glass with this.

Milwaukee Wonders

These are a few of my favorite works from the museum. As you can tell I have some pretty varied tastes. I think what moves me most is a piece that is well done regardless of the subject. I can find eye candy just about anywhere, but museums really trip a creative trigger.

If I could have a dream vacation it would be to visit all of the great museums of the world. Hmmm, wonder how long that would take and if I could take that much vacation time from my "day job"?

Traveling is expensive...but dreaming isn't!

Milwaukee Art Museum

Here is the first installment of the Bead and Button Show trip to Wisconsin.
I had a day off before the classes started and took a trip with a new friend to the museum. What a beautiful place. I grew up roaming the halls of the Detroit Institute of Arts. It's a grand place designed in what I would refer to as typical museum style. Square, huge, old-fashioned...everything you'd think of when stereotyping a museum you've seen in a movie. And, then there are places like the Milwaukee Art Museum with blow your socks off architecture. I could have sat in Windover Hall for the entire afternoon. Tomorrow I'll add a few pictures of my choices in artwork. I love museums....

This is a photo of the Chilhuly in the main entrance and a view down a hallway leading to one of the galleries! And if this is a hallway you can just imagine what the rest of the building was like.

Bead and Button

ACK! I went and returned. Lighter in the wallet and heavier in the suitcases. I also took two great classes in metals with Jack Berry. Microfolding metal and Hydraulic pressing. My friends at the SMBG (Southeastern Michigan Glass Beadmakers Guild) generously allowed this member participation in their Glass Act booth again this year and I can not wait to hear how the sales went. Tomorrow I will get busy and get some pictures posted from the show and classes so everyone can check out what's new. Until then...