Is it a pepper or a beetle? Help me name it!

Now for the other surprise that came out of my studio recently... the little pepper vessel! The surprise on it is that it came with wings. I never thought of attempting to add wings; they just sprouted, as it were. I think it's a sweet little thing.

New glass and stories

I've had some time at the torch this week, and now I have some time to write about it! The first piece I was able to make wit my own lampwork is a colorful necklace that's a bit of a break-out for me. I don't usually use these kinds of color combinations. These beads came about because I was struck by the beauty of a bead I made in a demo for two of my fifth grade students and one of their moms. One boy chose the colors. These beads use almost the same colors, except I realize now that I used gold dichro the first time, not blue, and that would have worked better. But these still turned out nice.

Another cool thing about the necklace is that it uses coral-colored beads that were brought back for me from India from the other boy's family. Thank you, J & S!





Photo of the cool fifth graders in their safety goggles: J (left) and S (right).

The other beads that came out nice include breast cancer survivor beads with pink dichroic sparkles inside. This bead was inspired by S's mother, who just completed the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer Research, wearing the first of these beads. Congratulations, Noni! It's hard to capture the delicate sparkle in these beads, but I hope the photo gives a sense of what it's like. Click on the photo for purchase information.

Save Internet Freedom

Now for a break from our regularly scheduled programming... The freedom of the internet, including the freedom to blog, is being threatened now. You can read more about it and sign a petition here. There is also a video with Moby speaking about this issue here.

Here is a brief summary:
"The nation's largest telephone and cable companies — including AT&T, Verizon, Comcast and Time Warner — want to be Internet gatekeepers, deciding which Web sites go fast or slow and which won't load at all.

They want to tax content providers to guarantee speedy delivery of their data. They want to discriminate in favor of their own search engines, Internet phone services, and streaming video — while slowing down or blocking their competitors.

These companies have a new vision for the Internet. Instead of an even playing field, they want to reserve express lanes for their own content and services — or those from big corporations that can afford the steep tolls — and leave the rest of us on a winding dirt road...

Congress is now considering a major overhaul of the Telecommunications Act. The primary bill in the House is called the "Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement Act of 2006" and is sponsored by Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-Texas), Rep. Fred Upton (R-Mich.), Rep. Charles Pickering (R-Miss.) and Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.)."
(From http://www.savetheinternet.com/=faq.)