Odd, uneven time

August rain: the best of the summer gone, the fall not yet born. The odd, uneven time.

Sylvia Plath

I am grateful for cooler weather. 37.2 is the record in my studio. 

I have had to abandon my studio so many times early in the afternoon due to getting too hot, it's severely affected the turnover of my business. I work in a glazed shed (one of those summerhouse style ones for the light) so it acts a bit like a greenhouse. I have all three windows and both doors flung open to their greatest degree but the South facing window is shaded. Add to that I'm hunched over a flame powered by Butane and Oxygen running at over 1000 degrees AND sat next to a kiln programmed to 520C ... well it's no wonder really.

Apologies to all who enjoy the heat but for me, a weather forecast in the early twenties means I can finally work all day again! 

Grapefruits and their pips ... a metaphor

I observed today, after breakfast, that MTM had six pips in his grapefruit at breakfast whilst I had only one. He laughed and said that it was typical of his life, he always had more pips than anyone else. He ruffled Bongo’s ears and said “in the grapefruit of life, YOU are NOT one of the pips”. 
Aw ... :-)

I said “No, that’s me, I am a ruddy great big pip in your life” (I have been  difficult to live with this week, he puts up with a lot from me). He smiled and disagreed. Aw ... again, he’s brilliant isn’t he? 

He’s gone out for a haircut now and whilst he is out, I am cleaning the beads I made yesterday and have been pondering and turning over the pips in my mind which have now become a metaphor for all the crap that life chucks at you ... the proverbial fag-end in your beer can or stone in your left shoe.

When MTM gets pips, he just spits them out, chucks ‘em away and forgets. Whereas I swallow, digest and slowly absorb, therefore allowing them poison me from the inside out. I should learn to spit like MTM.

Flowers, flowers and more flower beads

This is the first set of pink flower lampwork beads I have ever offered for sale in my Etsy shop. There has been much experimentation and recording of what colours I put with what before they were perfect.

I have made green, orange and blue ones in the past

I'm delighted to announce that the range has been expanded, first with the pink ones I kicked off this posting with but purple, aqua and teal are also new.

I'm trying to push the colour range even further and am currently experimenting with red which is tricky to work with but I shall keep trying. Watch this space for news of my success (soon ... or later ... it may very well be later ... I am nothing if not persistent). 

I can imagine these flower beads being absolutely gorgeous as a pair of earrings with matching bracelet teamed with some silver, Czech glass and/or swarovski beads. I'm sure that lovely gardener, Carol Kline - whose earrings often feature flowers - would look fabulous in a pair if some enterprising jeweller sent her some!