Linda and I “met” through Etsy – she ordered some shard faces and then did wonderful things with them. Check out her shop, NeeNee and CheeChee’s Beaded Things (and I found out over a face-to-face lunch where that name came from). She came with her husband to San Antonio for a business trip. He usually flies, but this time they drove just so she and I could meet in person – it was fun.
Linda wore a piece I’d featured on my blog before – it’s even more stunning in person:

Here we are at Milano’s (she’s wearing that necklace) – Linda was the guest and I was the driver, but she did a fine job of picking a lunch spot when I got lost – in my own home town! Thanks, Linda, for a great visit and I look forward to seeing you and Cindy in December.

Ann Pearce emailed me and said that she needed more shard faces for her shop. I had just finished a firing for the Art Sale and Open Studio yesterday, and had some nice ones ready to be finished that I hadn’t taken to the show. Here they are, finished with some different media (wax and polish and metallic powders) – I’m delighted that so many of Ann’s customers likes these and ask for them:

Thanks to my fellow artists and all the friends who came to the art show this afternoon – I don’t think I’ve ever been so busy or so pleased with the response. You guys are the best.
Short Video of all our artwork in Jan Longfellow’s lovely home

I celebrated the 4th by having a long day in the studio working on things for the upcoming Open Studio sale at Jan Longfellow’s house. Mostly, I worked on face shard magnetic pins in frames, and here they are. They are such fun to make. I have a couple of real favorites – will be hard to sell them.

Information on my first three fall workshops is now available on my website. I just finished uploading it and the descriptions are complete (except for the book workshop which will be described in greater detail later.)
Sign up now!

I took a trip to old San Fernando Cemetery yesterday morning to visit faces from the past. Besides the wonderful sculptures, there are always families, mostly in pickup trucks, driving slowly along the narrow paths in the cemetery, stopping at ancestors’ graves and getting out for a few minutes to look, talk and sometimes put fresh (plastic) flowers near the headstones. Here is one of yesterday’s favorite faces:

Yesterday was pickup day at La Vida Gallery – I brought home a couple of large pieces that were not sold at my show and six pieces that were. Friends had asked if I would pick up their purchases. They’re wrapped and ready to go – sigh, it’s harder than I thought now that they are back in my hands. But at least I can visit them!

I went by Ann’s shop today and saw some of the new work she’s done with the faces – she just keeps getting better and better. Here are a few of the new ones – they look spectacular “in person.”

This should be fun and different – I’ve never had an open studio somewhere else, but I’m looking forward to it. I’m planning to offer a free gift! Stay tuned.

That’s the name and theme I’ve decided on for a workshop I’m giving to a group of teachers in August – we will uses transparent media and discuss transcendent ideas take the ordinary object to the extraordinary by juxtaposing it with the creative and unexpected.
Included in this would be

• Transparency and layers
• Time travel combinations
• Juxtaposed metaphors
• Transformations
• Morphs

“I feel transcendant and splendid. I feel transplendant.”
from the akaruihito blog, 2006