Welcome! All the beads on this website are fine quality glass, made one at a time by melting glass rods in the flame of a torch. I carefully add detail by applying hair thin "stringers" of glass and shaping or sculpting the glass into it's final shape. It's a little like painting with light and fire, a very satisfying endeavor! I hope you enjoy browsing the pictures and if you find something you'd like, please let me know. You'll find the latest beads for sale on the auctions or sales pages and pictures of beads that have already been purchased (but are fun to look at) on the gallery and archive pages. eBay Auctions Auction ends Aug-31 Auction ends Aug-31 or sooner with "Buy it Now" option Auction ends Aug-29 Auction ends Aug-29 Auction ends Aug-29 Auction ends Aug-25 Auction ends Aug-24 Auction ends Aug-23 Auction ends Aug-22 Auction ends Aug-21 Auction ends Aug-18 Auction ends Aug-17 Auction ends Aug-12 Auction ends Aug-11 Auction ends Aug-11 Auction ends Aug-08 Auction ends Aug-04 Auction ends Aug-01 Auction ends 8/01 Auction ends 7/30 The beads below are available for purchase right now Aug 26, Day 2 after my first chemo, still feeling great, a little odd, but not bad. Finding that taking a nap is an easy thing to do now, not like me but it's necessary. Got up early and got all my shipping out!!! Hurray!!! Then napped and almost overslept..made it downtown just in the nick of time for a shot to put my bone marrow into overdrive to make lots of new blood cells so my counts will boost back up in time for the next treatment. Lovely huh? Then I went to Wall Mart to stock up on hand sanitizer (or Hanitizer, as the kids have nicknamed it) a necessary thing for anyone entering the house as my immune system will be depressed. Dad built a nice little Hanitizer station right by the door at the suggestion of my daughter, who is an experience germ watchdog after having to be so careful when Noah was little and so fragile) I also got a long cable to run an extension so I'll have TV reception in my room, and found a tiny DVD player to hook up for just $29.00. Not that I watch many DVDs but the grandkids do when they spend the night and , who knows, I may finally pop in a boro glass DVD I got a few years ago and never got around to watching. Could bring on a new phase of experimenting in boro glass, though I love my "soft, or soda lime glass like Moretti, Lausha, Bullseye and the assorted specialty glasses that I usually use . I have a set of harvest gourds and veggies and a set of Gaffer Glass Hollows that came out soooo pretty! I found a huge chunk of rough glass that My Mom and I found when we were in Virginia, years ago and decided to try it as a backdrop to drape the beads on for photos. It looks really great in the pictures I think,...lets the light show through but doesn't take away from the beads. That's just my opinion and , as always, I'm open to comments or suggestions. Keeping my fingers crossed for more excellent days in this crazy journey!! Aug 25, Today was my son's birthday (Happy Birthday Zeph!!!) and my first day of chemo. What a good omen to start on such a lucky day. It went super well and so far I'm feeling fine. Mum came to pick me up wondering if she needed to bring the car right up to the door and I said no, in fact if there was time, I'd like to stop by Khol's on the way home and pick up a memory foam mattress pad that they had on a 55 % off sale. Figure if I'm supposed to be getting more rest, having a really soft comfy bed to lure me to nap will be a good thing to have. I'm not really very good at taking breaks. I got a couple packages out in the mail before I left for the hospital and packed up a couple more tonight. I should be able to finish all the shipping by tomorrow, or Wednesday at the latest. I have a few more beads nearly ready to photograph, some Gaffer Glass hollows and disks, and .....gosh, can't think of the others...time to head to bed early I think. Thanks so much for the emails sending good wishes, prayers and positive healing thoughts. I appreciate them more than I can express! I have a really full week of more Cat Scans, bone scans, pet scans and all that fun stuff so I'm not sure just how soon I'll be able to catch up with email. I love to read it and check it often, but getting out timely replies is sometimes a challenge. Hope you'll bear with me and keep the emails coming! Aug 20, I found out today that I'll be starting chemo on Monday. Looks like they need to do three or four rounds of chemo before the surgery for a few good reasons. I have a round of tests and fun stuff to do the next two days and then I'll have the weekend to relax (and torch a little, hopefully). Then on Monday we pull out the big guns and get down to business! I'm not exactly looking forward to it but knowing that I'm doing everything possible to beat this (with tons of help from excellent doctors and their nurses and technicians... and lots of family support) sure makes me feel like I'm the one in control . Also, it's much more comfortable to have a health care team of all women this time.I've been so impressed with the communication and coordination between offices. Nothing at all like when I experienced in New Hampshire a few years back. The kids are all off on camping trips so it's going to be really quiet here , and then next week school starts! I can't believe it's that time of year already! Where did the summer go? Last week Mum had my nephews over for sleepovers, one at a time, so they'd be the only kid here...and then I had my grandsons here, one at a time. Good thing we don't have more grandkids than days of the week! They each love being the only one (king of the house!), and we all need a little undivided attention now and then. I can use some more book recommendations. since it looks like I'm going to have some time waiting around in offices and resting. I love Tv, don't get me wrong, but I was always a voracious reader till I started spending so much time at the torch. By the end of the day my eyes are too tired to enjoy reading as much as I used to, but I missed the books. Now that I've discovered audio books I'm plugged in to a book whenever I have a quiet moment (and nearly always when I'm at the torch) Almost forgot, as for beads....I have a few more Halloween beads, one is a big huge hollow cauldron, bubbling over with a glowing green potion, and made a little frog , a smaller brother of Francois Baptiste who was kidnapped by an evil witch and forced into serving as her reluctant familiar and assistant. You can tell from his expression he's not really into serving evil, even though he's wearing his own tiny witch hat. Now I'd like to make another cauldron bead with a tiny familiar (frog...cat...I'm not sure....) clinging to the side, peering in to see what's brewing. I think that's what I love about making beads so much....one bead leads to another and then (if I'm lucky) the ideas come tumbling in and there's more beads floating around in my head , clamoring to be "born" than I can possibly make! Aug 20, I'm off to pick up some more shipping supplies. I didn't expect to be in Turner as long as I've been here and ran out of my usual shipping boxes and bubble envelopes. I'll get my shipping all out this afternoon after I get home. I have an appointment with the oncologist today. They're talking about starting chemo before any surgery, which took me totally by surprise. I have some questions about that. Seems to me that it might weaken my immune system before surgery and with all the wicked strains of strep and mercer around that you hear about, I'm a little apprehensive about not being at my tip top before surgery.. My brother told me about a friend of his that had a double mastectomy last spring and they made a tummy tuck incision and did all the surgery from there. She ended up with nice new perky "girls" and a tummy tuck too!! She's ecstatic with the results...can I hope for something similar? Wouldn't that be a hoot!! Actually I just want to do whatever will keep me healthy and around to continue doing the things that are important to me, being there for my family and being able to create. The rest is gravy. My self image has very little to do with the physical, as long as things are working as they should. Thanks so much for the positive thoughts and healing wishes that have been sent my way. They mean so much to me, more than I can say. Wish me luck!!! Aug 15, I finally got the web site back up and running, and the new updates and pictures are working again! What a relief! All my shipping is up to date and I have some auctions on EBay and some beads ready for Specials. I really appreciate the book recommendations but if anyone else has read (or heard) anything really good lately, I'm still adding to my book list. I'm stocking up since I may be going in for surgery this coming week and need something to keep me occupied and not going crazy with torch withdrawal while I can't torch. I'm hoping that I'll be back at the torch within days after so there should be more beads once my current "stash" is sold. During my last bought with breast cancer it was the torch and the family and grandkids that kept me going and kept my outlook positive and I'm counting on sailing through this in much the same manner as last time. The kids (and the old people too) keep me laughing. We always have something to chuckle about around here, and lots of love and support. Can't ask for more than that! At least now I know what to expect, though it's not quite the same this time. I must say that so far the care I've received at the Bennett Breast Care Center has been far more compassionate and considerate than I got the last go-round when I was in New Hampshire. I'll update more when I know more myself, (I'll probably be waiting on news till later in the week) and have some volunteers if I need help to get shipping out if I'm in the hospital. Aug 12, I'm still in Turner, waiting on some results from tests and Dr appointments. Hate that stuff!, but really enjoying having the extra time here with the kids and my parents. We had four little boys here this morning, out digging in the brook. They were trying to make a dam and dig down behind it to make a waist deep spot. They came in all wet and muddy and we let them make their own lunches, everything from toasted cheese to tuna to eggs. After lunch I stayed in the workshop and torched and my Mom and aunt and daughter all took them to the pond to swim . Right now there's just one here, the baby...though now he's a big three year old we have to be careful not to call him the baby anymore. I'm having some weird problems with my web site server. Seems they were sold to another bigger company and some of the settings and such were changed ... but I can't seem to get any answer about just what I need to do to upload my pictures and updates. I'm trying to move everything to another server but in the meantime there may be some temporary problems with the web site. I was really not happy when I discovered that the pictures I'd posted with two of my eBay auctions suddenly disappeared, and my website lost about three weeks worth of updates! AKKK! On the bead front, I've been making a bunch of autumn earthy colored beads, lots of big holed disks and some pretty big hollows, and a huge assortment of the small "accent bead" size that are so handy for all kinds of jewelry designs. I'm really tempted to put them all into one huge set so I don't have to split them up I have a couple more sets of Halloween themed beads to put on Etsy and hope to get another witch finished. The baby loves to browse through Halloween costume catalogs and I'm inspired. Aug 11, I have another little witch ready to post on EBay and a set of Autumn leaves and acorns. I have a few new sets in the Halloween theme and will have some simple earthy colored sets in big holed disks and a mix of different shades and patterns in rounds and even a set of earthy colored hollows. I just finished listening to "Innocent Traitor: A Novel of Lady Jane Grey". I love novels based (however loosely) on historical characters. Always makes me a little more grateful for being born in my own generation, especially when it comes to being a woman. Boy we ladies had it pretty rough! Aug 8, I just posted a new batch of special on Etsy. I've been having fun with the Halloween beads and even have one early (very early) snowperson beads set. I've been playing with some new glass from Double Helix, Triton. It's a wonderfully reflective glass and very easy to work with. I have a Doctor's appointment...actually a few , tomorrow so I'll be away for the day and possibly a little more. Right now I'm totally caught up with shipping ( a refershing change! LOL!) and will bring the beads that are for sale along with me so I can ship them if they sell before I get back to Rockland. I've been going through audio books like crazy and have a few I can reccomend that are my favorites. I'd love to hear if you've read or listened to anything really good lately. I may be tied up with appointments and boring stuff that'll keep me away for my usual torch time and need something interesting to keep me occupied while waiting or traveling. I loved loved The Glass Castle by Jeanette Walls, Water for Elephants, A thousand Splendid Suns. The Road by Cormac McCarthy , Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides and Time is a River by Mary Alice Monroe were all pretty good too. Of course The Pillars of the Earth and World Without End by Ken Follett were a good read (or listen) Aug 03, I spent the week in Turner and just got back to Rockland last night. The grand kids had soccer camp and since they're different ages the schedule for dropping them off and picking them up was tricky, so having an extra grandmother there to help out was a very good thing! It was really great having lots of time with the boys and being there at my parents for all the usual comings and goings. I get to see so many people when I'm there! My daughter had a wedding cake to make for a Saturday afternoon wedding so she was pretty busy with that toward the end of the week. It was a huge cake with a fresh berry theme and had homemade raspberry filling between the layers....yummy (I had a little bite of the test cake and actually dreamed about it!) It was beyond delicious! I was happy to go along and be there to lend a hand, though I was mostly moral support and an extra pair of eyes. I think moving the van out of the way was probably my biggest contribution! LOL! I did get quite a few beads made in the evenings and between kids, and also went out with some of my cousins and Mum and my Aunt and had Chinese food and went to see Mama Mia at the movies. What a fun movie! The theater was full of women, just women. Not a guy in sight. Definitely a chick flick unless you're into musicals or a die hard Abba fan. This week I'll be back to a more or less normal schedule so there'll be more beads for Specials and auctions and I'll catch up on shipping tomorrow. I have a big stack of packages ready to go out in the mail first thing in the morning, so if you've been waiting for beads, they'll be on their way tomorrow morning. July 23, The "Maine Lobster Chef of the Year" competition was held yesterday at the governor's mansion. My son Chef Zeph came away with second place!! Here's a couple links to websites with articles about it: Maine Food and Lifestyle Hartstone Inn Chef Michael Salmon's Blog Every dish I tasted was quite wonderful and it was a lot of fun to see the other chefs in action, though I thought that Zeph and Dany were the best team. I enjoyed seeing them work together so much. They hardly had to talk at all as they intuitively anticipated what needed to be done, like watching a dance. It took me back to my old event decorating days when I'd drag them out of bed before dawn on the weekends when I had a heavy schedule and was desperate for extra hands to make the weddings or bar Mitzvahs or corporate events happen. We said at the end of the day that we'd make an awesome family catering team! I was happy to go along as an extra hand and emergency gopher with none of the responsibilities or pressure of being the one in charge. Felt a little like passing the baton LOL! Zeph was awesome through the whole thing, appearing relaxed and friendly (as he always is) though I knew his stomach was in knots. As soon as he was sure the assembly of the 80 or more "tasting" sized servings were plated up to his satisfaction, he went out to man his table and answered questions and talk with the press that was there covering the event. He chatted and looked like he'd been doing interviews for years, cool as a cucumber! That part is not like me at all, I would have been a bumbling mess blurting out insensible blather...and shaking in my shoes the whole time. I'm definitely a behind the scenes type. The mansion was interesting, a warren of tiny old fashioned butler's pantries, a little hard to work in, but the staff was wonderful and the First Lady, Karen Baldacci, was gracious as hordes of chefs and helpers took over the entire first floor of her home. I'm so glad I was there to see the whole thing from start to finish, and for Zeph to come in second place in a competition with some of the very best chef's in the state is just so exciting and wonderful!!! Of course I knew he has an amazing talent....but now he has this to add to his credentials! It's also great publicity for the Hartstone Inn. I must add that Chef Micheal was very supportive, but stepped back and let it be Zeph's show entirely. A few of the other chef's had the owner's of the establishments they work in there, and taking charge of the event. It was a great experience for Zeph and he pulled it off beautifully!!! I wish that he and his sister could work together more since they make such a great team. After walking out to take a load of things out to the cars, I was walking behind them as they headed back in to pick up the last of the boxes and supplies ...they were walking side by side in their matching chef's outfits, and I could just see them as they walked the same way together when they were little. It's a moment I'll treasure, my two babies. How did they go from kids walking along and poking each other, or making each other giggle like crazy (or yell ...he's touching me...make her stop....he won't share..) to these two talented, beautiful, mature adults? As I said, I'm bursting with pride today (as always when it comes to the kids) and thankful beyond measure! Now back to the torch to catch up with beads and shipping. More beads soon!! Thanks so much for visiting!