Happy 2006!!! It's hard to believe another year is here already. I had a very nice week off from work, so now it's back to the usual routine. Classes start tomorrow, but none of mine are meeting til next week so that is cool. Yesterday was my first day back at work.
Did all of you have a good holiday season? I hope so!! I spent a lot of time cooking, cleaning, hanging out with friends and family, and catching up on all the stuff that doesn't get done around the house because school and work get in the way. :) For Christmas Eve, we went over my aunt and uncle's house for lunch, then my dad's for dinner. Then it was off to Midnight Mass, so we didn't get to sleep until about 2am. Up bright and early to go to my mom's on Christmas Day, then over to David's parents' house in the afternoon. Lots of running around!
I got lots of great books for Christmas - Beak of the Finch, the whole Harry Potter series, the Da Vinci code, Five People You Meet in Heaven, Uncle Tom's Cabin, the Diary of Anne Frank, and lots of other classics that I haven't read yet but really want to! My plan for after I graduate in April is to read, read, read!! I'm really looking forward to it. For Christmas, my dad really splurged and bought me a brand new Arrow Springs AF-99 BEAD KILN!!!!!!! Every beadmaker's dream come true!!! I am soooooo excited about it. No more using a crock pot with vermiculite as a "psuedo-kiln"! Now I can make larger beads without worrying about them breaking! I've already been experimenting with heart focals - something I didn't dare try without a real kiln. With larger beads, there is much more potential for tension to build up inside the glass, which means the beads are not as durable and could break pretty easily. The kiln keeps the beads at 940 degrees Fahrenheit for half an hour after I stop working (plus they sit in the kiln at that temperature while I finish making other beads too). Staying at that temperature for such a long time removes the tension in that builds up in the glass. Then when I turn off the kiln it cools the beads very, very slowly so that the tension in the glass does not return. The crock pot with vermiculite does essentially the same thing as the kiln, but there's no way the crock pot gets anywhere near 940 degrees! So the kiln obviously does a much better job keeping the beads at the right temperature so that the tension is released from the beads. Here is an example of some of the hearts I've made so far:
They will soon be listed on Ebay! I also plan on making a lot more sculptural beads now that I have a kiln...maybe some cute bunnies for Easter! :) I may even experiment with more snowmen, and stash them away for next year. We'll see...the possibilities are endless now! I will try to get a picture of the kiln posted in the next few days.
