Beads - That's it - Just Beads ! :)

It's been an interesting past week.  Lots happening (as usual), new and old.  Back at the torch a few days and LOVED it !  Want more.  Still waiting for the heavy pollen to stop.  Drove past the lake the other day and it (the pollen) was just floating around, like oil slicks, on top of the water !  ICK ! 

Torch time is limited for me right now so when I do get to "play" I try to make beads worth using.  Sometimes it works, sometimes not.  Last torch session, on Monday, I made 3 decent beads.  When I was done cleaning them I sat them on a towel to dry them off and forgot they were there.  Sigh.  Yep, you guessed it, I picked up the towel and 2 of the beads went flying, hit the tile floor and broke !  UGH !  See that picture below.  that's what happened.  So yes people, drop a large size glass bead on the floor and it'll break.  I've seen smallish round beads drop and bounce on this same floor but bigger beads, especially large pressed beads, don't stand a chance on ceramic tile.  Sad.  Still, the colors were tried and true so I can make more.  :)  

 
This is the one that survived.  Not as big as the others but a good size to add to a bracelet.  This one was a surprise when I got it out of the kiln.  Do you see it ?  Yep, a mushroom !  Not planned at all.  lol !  This can happen alot when making this type of bead.  It's always fun to see what comes out of the kiln !  :) 

Then of course, bell flowers.  :)  Had a bunch of fun making all of these !  These were made over a couple days.  These are always fun to make, use or just admire !  lol !  I now have 3 sizes of the presses so LOTS more flowers are coming.  Look at the white flowers to get a good feel for the sizes.  They are all 6 "petal" flowers too.  My flowers are a bit thicker than some you may see online.  I do that because if the walls of the flowers are too thin, they're going to break very easily - especially when used in jewelry such as bracelets.  Also, I have always used German silver wire that cleans up beautifully.  Copper wire is fine to use as well but I've never used it.  This wire shines up beautifully just like sterling silver.   These are great to use as headpins too ! 

If you would like to purchase some of these flowers, just let me know via a convo from my Etsy shop.  Tell me the colors and sizes you want (just say size small, medium or large) and I'll make a special listing for you.  The flowers are $3.00 each.  If you buy 25 or more, I'll give you a great discount ! 

Time to run.  Thanks so much for coming by !  I hope you come back again soon.