Getting Down and Dirty!

 There's me peeking at myself. I am so glad I remembered to bring along a dust mask!

                This piece may be old but it has "good bones!"

Today was a messy cleaning up kind of day. I washed down the mirrors in an effort to find out was was bad silvering and what was just plain dirt. All the drawers came out and were cleaned (yech!).

Sanding was the major effort today....just getting rid of bumps and heavy stains. Fortunately the Warehouse had a good shop vac so I was able to make short work of all the dust!  Next week....primer!

Pretty Beat Up!

Errand Day! Shopping at my local ABoy Hardware store for sand-paper and primer.

Next week will be devoted to cleaning up the shappy exterior, cleaning up the interior of the drawers, replace a missing drawer stop, and blanketing the whole thing in white primer. 

Ran into Shellinda LeMert, another local artist who has been a devotee to the Chair Affair. She's got a pretty nifty project going as well!

I have a few commissions in progress...need to finish those next.

Check back next week for more pix of my progress!

My Chair Affair Project 2013

I am so pleased to show you this piece of furniture I plan to rehab for the Chair Affair Auction in the spring of 2013.

This will be my 6th year working on a project for this special cause. I have never made a chair and it doesn't look like this year will be any different.

Last year the auction brought this amazing community agency $127,932! If you are unfamiliar with what they do.....check out their website.... Really.....go look!!!!!!

Project #1 was an old ladder-back chair that I converted into a water fountain. #2 was a side table I made from a bar stool. Project #3 was an old stool turned into an outdoor bird bath. My fourth project was a coffee table  and #5 was a small side table.

This year my attention will be focused on this very old and very well-used bedroom dresser.

It's big, it's old, it's beat up and it's heavy! It is currently living at the Community Warehouse, Tualitan Branch. My work space is too cramped to deal with it at home but the folks at the warehouse are sooooo nice- they are letting me work on it there. I am determined to get on it quickly.

Stay tuned. I will be updating my progress frequently!

My booth at Celebration of Art 2012

WEDDING BOWL

This fused glass bowl is the perfect wedding gift .  
I love working on commissions like this because the work is customized to suit the needs of the purchaser and the recipient. This large glass bowl is crafted with unique Bullseye glass. The beautiful rainbow dichroic glass used to form the hebrew letters were  also manufactured here in Portland, Oregon by Spirit Glass.

There are 36 (double chai) dichroic "dots" on this bowl. The dark blue river is actually sparkling aventurine blue glass and the names are cut from rainbow dichroic glass. Photographing glass remains the ultimate challenge for me....but this bowl really "pops!"

No two items are alike. Every piece is handcrafted with care and comes with a written explanation of the symbolism contained within the design.

You can contact me directly if you are interested in ordering a personalized gift :  sparksofspirit@gmail.com

First Plate in a New Series!

This is one of my newest plates....as always, the challenge is in photographing iridizied glass.
The shine in this photo seems to diminish the colorful stripes...but the colors are pronounced and vibrant when you handle the plate. It's 12" x 12"....and it sparkles! The upper right square is silver leaf. 

It is the first of my new Tapestry series, inspired by the famous coat of many colors (Joseph).  It's a wedding gift so it won't be for sale, but I will have it on display.

I will post future plates in the series...but they are on hold until I catch up on my new commissions. Yesterday's art show was  a successful endeavor and in addition to the glass I sold there, I now have 4 commissions to keep me in the studio for a couple of weeks!

COME SEE ME!

October 21 between 10:30am-4:30 pm @ the MJCC

Free admission!   My booth will be filled with new glass designs....and a few favorites from the past.

Live music will entertain you....and if you stop by my booth and tell me you saw this message, I'll have a fun little token of appreciation to give you!

Pictured above are some doves I just cut out....future tallit clips!
(a favorite past design in a new glass!)

I have some new designs too...but I want to hang on to the surprise for now...... Come see them in person!

Zaragosa Hotel Glass!

Each floor of the hotel features a different window of thick rough glass held together with mortar. The colors were rich, deep and inviting.....ahhhhh!

Best Coffee in Barcelona

....And the glass is quite lovely, too!

At the Sagrada Familia

The Sagrada Familia- a magnificent cathedral designed by Antonio Gaudi...and still under construction- has some incredible glass work. 

El Born Bar/Cafe in Barcelona!

A tiny little restaurant with yummy  little sandwiches, beer and wine. We opted for cold water before indulging in anything else. The glass of course beckoned us to come in and enjoy....we did!

I'M BACK!

A contemporary window in a 15th century Barcelona cathedral

Three Weeks in Spain! 

Art, architecture, food, wine....... Inspiration at every turn!
I didn't see much in the way of fused glass. There were the occasional cheap trinkets, poorly made but mostly it was the architectural glass that caught my eye.

I'll be back in the studio after Yom Kippur. My next show is Oct 21st at the MJCC (6651 SW Capitol Hwy) 10:30-4:30. Come see me!

In the meantime....I will post some pix of delicious glass from my trip! This was one of my favorites!

NEW CHALLAH PLATE

This plate just pops! The iridized glass shifts colors in the light and the hand cut dichroic letters absolute shimmer.  If you look closely you'll see 6 dichroic beads reaching from the left side top and bottom corners toward shabbat.

 This is the perfect accent to your Shabbat table. Since Shabbat happens once every seven days, you will get a lot of use out of it. Your challah will look gorgeous on it. The glass is food safe and can serve up more than just bread!  If this rainbow of colors doesn't fit with your table decor, order a custom made tray, plate or other
well crafted design. Interested? Questions? Send me an email! sparksofspirit@gmail.com

Apples and Honey

It's still early August, but the High Holidays are just around the corner. Here's a new little dish for apples and honey.....Let's bring on a sweet new year!

Guess What I've Been Doing?

It hasn't been glass.


At heart I am a teacher and it is what I love doing most. I just finished teaching a wonderful group of students who are completing their teacher training at the University of Oregon. 

They are young, idealistic, bright, talented.....yes, I could go on at length about them.
Most of all, they are our future.


In light of recent events in Texas (...a state that believes we ought not teach critical thinking!) and else-where in the country, I still remain optimistic that these folks and other like-minded individuals can turn around the ridiculous legislation that is handicapping our schools. 


I'll post a couple of pictures of my glass work in the next few days ....but nothing very new - until I get back from visiting my son in the Bay area. Vacation is good !

Healing Hands

This is a transparent green plate with two stacked dichroic chamsahs. Chamsah is an arabic word meaning 5. These are typically seen as amulets with healing powers......and also used to ward off the evil eye!


They are also known as "The Hand of Fatimah" by Muslims, "The Hand of Miriam" by Jews, and the Hand of Miriam, by Christians. 


I love that we share something..even if it is an amulet- and the idea that we perhaps if we can extend our hands to each other in peace, perhaps our real healing can begin.  Reach out and hold the hands of others and discover how nourishing that can be!

New Challah Plate

The photo doesn't do justice to the shimmer of the abstract pieces layered onto the white background glass. Iridized glass flashes different colors as the light strikes the plate.


Perfect for you Shabbat Challah!

MEET THE NEW OWNERS OF MY TORAH ADORNMENT

Meet Cantor Harold Orbach and his dear wife Polly Siarto-Orbach!

Polly stopped by my booth early last week at the Cantor's conference. I am quite proud of the colorful booth I shared with fellow artists Diane Fredgant and Sharon Segal . Polly said she was drawn in by the colors!

I was struck by how carefully she took in each piece of art. Those of you who know me, know that I love to share words with my customers - glass words, that is! I offered her a "besheyrt" word (a word 'meant to be'.) She drew the word "delight".  Later she came back to my booth . She was drawn to one of my Torah Adornments and wondered if it could be used as a wall hanging. Of course!

And then her husband literally drove in on his scooter. I didn't know at the time that this man was a well known and highly regarded Cantor and performer.  

Polly stopped by the next day to tell me that she had composed her own list of words...and she promised to share them with me! She is a retired educator but is deeply active , traveling, writing, and publishing! We schmoozed some more. What a personality! 

I then learned that Cantor Orbach just celabrated his 60th anniversary as a Cantor. As I understand it, Cantor Orbach was also president of the American Cantors Group. He is a survivor of the Shoah and readily shared some of his memories with me. I believe he is 90 years old. Despite health  and mobility issues, he and Polly flew from Florida to the west coast. They took an Alaskan cruise before coming down to Portland for the convention. 

I took the liberty of googling his name and discovered a youtube video with a sampling of his voice. 
I don't have words to describe what I heard. I urge my readers to check him out. It is a treat!

On the last day of the conference they returned to our booth and purchased my Bamidbar Adornment.
It contains the Priestly Blessing. I am so honored to have my piece in their collection and so deeply touched by the incredible neshamot (Souls) of this couple. Blessings to you both! You have touched my heart!

NEW CHALLAH TRAY

This is one of my newest designs in my collection of Shabbat/Challah trays. The patterned iridized glass shifts in the light as do the letters which are cut from dichroic glass. 


The glass letters are all cut from the same glass but you can see the color shift in this photo......tilt the plate slightly and the letters all shift color again!


Look closely because the picture doesn't clearly show the six dichro dots of glass that point to Shabbat. 


Like the tray but not wild about the colors? Just contact me and commission what you want!

SUMMER FINALLY CAME!
I love Portland! I love the rain! Sometimes it is really nice to have a little sunshine!
Of course, today is a beautiful sunny day and I am in my studio ! The blessing is the view I have...and I sometimes get to do some of my work outside...like scraping kiln shelves. And did I mention the sweet songs of birds that serenade me? I usually listen to music or chant....but today, the birds are in glorious concert and I can't imagine anything more beautiful!


With a view like this....I don't mind at all. I am making new items for the National Cantor's conference which take place here in Portland in about 10 days!


That conference just happens to coincide with the first of week of classes...and I am contracted to teach at the U of O for a 4 week intensive summer term. The solution? A lot of driving between Portland and Eugene.  


I will post pix of some of my new work next week (along with some of the mezuzot I have already made.