Teague Makes Beads

Quick Post - New Beads for 7/23/09

2009-07-22T23:37:00.001-07:00

Just a quick post with some pic for tomorrow on ebay:

New Beads for Ebay - 7-16-09

2009-07-15T22:21:00.000-07:00

Just a quick post to preview some new beads - check back tomorrow for a free bead giveaway!

Garden Week 14!

2009-06-18T22:04:00.000-07:00

The garden bed is full!

At last count we have 15 tiny tomatoes on six plants, 11 basil plants, two peppers, six squares of spinach, four squares of snap peas, three squares of lettuce, two of kale, four of carrots, one of cilantro, three pole beans and seven strawberry plants. Whew!

Garden - Week 10

2009-05-23T21:59:00.000-07:00

We're just about to allocate the last few spots in our garden - Tomatoes, peppers and planting the basil outside are slated for next weekend.

The basil is doing pretty well, we've been doing the dance of taking it outside during the day and bring them in at night and all 50+ of them have at least six leaves. I've been suggesting to Zac that we might give a couple away but he is unwilling to share.

See that lovely large Strawberry? It disappeared. This would by my third strawberry casualty to date. One that I plucked prematurely, two that I found on the ground next to the pot (maybe it's just people bumping them? I've tried to put the berries back in the pot but they don't want to), and now three, mysterious disappearance.

And last we have the lovely snap peas. You can't see them well in this photo but there are actual several peas already on the vines, I expect we'll be fighting over them next week. We also planted pole beans in the planter behind the snap peas, they've been in there for about a week and are just starting to peak out. They should be interesting, the seeds in the packet were definitely not what we expected.

New Beads for Ebay 5/21 - Ents!

2009-05-20T21:53:00.000-07:00

Watch out! My beads are being overtaken by forest creatures. At first I was calling these Alien Creatures:

And I definitely see a little creature here, sort of a mouse-like thing with a curled tail.

But then I made this next set and focal. And I kept see eyes poking their way out of tree bark. And what trees have eyes? Ents! Maybe they should be Alien Ents, either way you'll find them on ebay tomorrow.

Teague

Garden - Week 9

2009-05-19T22:02:00.000-07:00

So I missed a week in there due to being out of town. This post features photos from May 15th - Our garden is getting more robust by the day:

First we have spinach, lettuce, cilantro and some snap peas. All doing nicely.

Next up is the Spinach and Kale - These are now making a dent in our grocery bill, we're eating them almost daily.

The snap peas are really taking off and need to be trellised. We've got the bamboo in there, just haven't tied the twine yet.
This strawberry is Almost ripe. Not quite.

Basil is just about ready to go into the ground. It's so hard to let go.

New Beads for Ebay - 5/19/09

2009-05-18T23:01:00.000-07:00

Whew! I'm finally getting back into the groove after my little trip to California. I have some lovely beads to show, available on ebay:

Gilded Cove - A lovely piece with just a hint of dichro glowing from within.

Hypnotic Wave - Waves of green and blue zigzag seductively across the bead.

Dust Devil Swirl - Lovely neutral tones set off with a touch of dicro and dark silver plum shards.

Garden Week 7

2009-04-29T21:14:00.000-07:00

Things are really starting to pick up around here.

I have these strawberries that were a gift, they're a bit further along then the ones I planted several weeks ago, show offs! And next I have my basket of strawberries, lots of blooms, but not quite berries yet.

Next I have the snap peas. These really need to be staked, hopefully we'll take care of that this weekend. We had a little scare with something eating their leaves. We sprayed them with BTK and now they're doing great. I also replanted a few peas that never sprouted.

The fourth photo from left to right: A mix of lettuces; cilantro on top, peas on the bottom; finally carrots at the far right.

Fifth Photo: The never ending supply of Kale, we've eaten it three times and it just keeps coming back. The spinach is getting very close to eating size, zac wants to wait.

Sixth and final photo: Basil Town! We replanted as much of the basil as possible. There are over 50 plants, we would need more than 20 more containers to separate them all. Zac counted them, I laughed.

Garden Watch - Week 6

2009-04-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

We consumed our first harvest this week!

Fresh kale! Zac steamed it lightly with sauteed garlic, bacon and onions, yum!

The main bed is now almost half full, we planted two more squares of carrots and the rest is reserved for tomatoes, basil and maybe peppers. Here it is before we harvested the Kale.

I also received some fun new plants for my birthday from lovely friends. We potted them over the weekend and they look great. In fact, this strawberry is farther along than the others I have.

Electronica Beads: A retrospective

2009-04-16T21:15:00.000-07:00

I've been working with this style of beads for a long time. In fact I debuted them in large set in 2006 that you can view here . You can see that the lines are thick and not very detailed. Over time I've found that I can vary to thickness of the lines, the spacing, and the general shape to achieve different effects. I even tried a few different color combos. Here's one in copper green.

But I always come back to dark silver plum for the lines. Nothing else works quite the same way. Recently I've been experimenting with putting complex murrini canes in the centers. You'll see quite a few of these on ebay list:

Dragon Eyes: The one at the top has a transparent purple base with bright blue "dragon eyes" at the centers.

Aqua Electronica: This one in aqua features multi-colored silver glass rose murrini, they sort of jump out of the bead in blues/greens/golds.

Evil Electronica: This black one features bright red rose murrini. I intended it be romantic but as soon as the dark silver plum started to form, I couldn't shake the idea that it might be a little evil.

I guess I went on a little bit of a rose murrini kick, since the next one in red features pale pink rose buds. This one isn't quite what I pictured, but still interesting.

Next we have another purple base/multi-colored rose murrini.

Dark Portals: A nice black bead. I intended the silvery lines to be discrete, I layered black over the silver glass in hopes of creating two thin lines on either sides.

Electronica Star Portals: This green bead came out exactly how I envisioned it. The stars each sit at the base of their own "portal" magnified by clear glass.

Pale Blue Electronica: This bead features pale pink roses but I'm not sure that they contrast enough with the base.

Blue Electronica: This bead that I gave away last month features alabaster cobalt blue glass and murrini that was intended as a spiral pattern.

And lest you think I might be bored or done with this design...nope, I put a nice little six piece set of kaleras in black in the kiln today. Expect it on ebay the week after next.

Garden Watch - Week 5

2009-04-14T22:50:00.001-07:00

Well things are coming right along this week. We planted additional spinach and some lettuce. I think these greens are about ready to be harvested:

The strawberries are moving along--I even found a couple of tiny flower buds:

I'm excited to see a second set of leaves on this spinach:

But I think the real top producer in our garden will be this:

It was here when we got here so I can't take much credit. Last year there were so many plums that we made copious amounts of jam and ate two or three a day each and still had trouble getting to them all.

Garden Watch - Week 4 - More Sprouts!

2009-04-03T17:17:00.000-07:00

A pretty exciting week, first we have new sprouts:

Snap Peas are just peaking their way out. We'll be planting more of these this weekend, can never have too many snap peas.

The strawberries are coming along, no buds yet but lots of growth in the center.

Then we have the spinach coming in. Exactly 2/3 of the spinach has come up. Weird. We planted more last weekend and we'll probably replant these spotty beds this weekend. We also planted carrots, Cilantro and more spinach in the beds to the left.

Finally, we have my favorite sprouts - the Basil! These are doing lovely, all of them are over an inch tall now and just growing every day. I've been rotating the box nearly every day because they keep leaning towards the sun.

New Beads - 3/2

2009-04-01T23:07:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited about this mini set and focal. The colors are just stunning. A caramel to purple magenta base with bright turquoise/aqua blue scrolls. Just lovely! Look for them on ebay Thursday!

We have a winner!

2009-04-01T12:18:00.000-07:00

A winner has been drawn for my free bead contest. They have been contacted by e-mail. Thanks for playing everyone!

Also, thanks to Hayley of http://envisionsf.blogspot.com for posting a quick tutorial on changing the width of your blog. Thank you, I love it!

Teague

Quick Post - New Beads

2009-03-30T23:14:00.001-07:00

Just a quick drive-by post before I hit the hay: Painted Desert, Avalon River and Space Tornado all slated for the wilds of ebay in the morning.

Garden Week 3 - Sprout Watch!

2009-03-28T21:59:00.000-07:00

We don't have anything new planted this week, though we will be planting carrots, cilantro and more snap peas tomorrow. What we do have are sprouts! I've never tried sprouting seeds inside before and I was hesitant. But we really wanted to plant a lot of basil this year and I'm happy to say we're on the right track:

I planted basil in all of the left over containers from plants already in our garden. I planted I thought three seeds in each of the little compartments and about six in the larger green thing.

At the time It: 1. Didn't realize that basil need 1 sq ft of space per plant. 2. Didn't believe that all of the seeds I planted would sprout. I was wrong on both counts and now have like 50 plants. It appears that my fingers were slippery and I planted even more than three in each compartment, some have 4 or 5. Basil anyone?

I really didn't expect them to sprout at all actually. But they grew rather quickly in Black Gold potting mix with vermiculite on top (thank you lampworking!) I planted them late Tuesday and they sprouted on Sunday!

New Bracelet!

2009-03-26T21:43:00.000-07:00

It's been a productive week for me and I'm proud to show off some of my newest pieces:

Emerald Flower Garden Bracelet: It's been at least a year since I last made one of these. A fun flower garden style bracelet full of lucite flowers, Swarovski crystals and hill tribe fine silver beads. I listed it for sale on etsy.

Then we have a fun little set of rounds. Spring colors, all etched with opaque cores. I don't know what came over me, but I just had to make this little set with fun dot patterns. I tried some new raking techniques and was quite happy with the results.

Then I have a couple more focals, all available on ebay:I'm very excited about a new product I should have ready soon. More on that in the coming weeks. Tomorrow - Garden update! See you all tomorrow at the Last Friday Artwalk.

Free Bead Contest! - And new venue - Artfire

2009-03-21T18:02:00.000-07:00

First, I've set up a new shop, you will find these lovely beadies on Artfire:

All of them are at low introductory prices - A bit more than 30% off. I really hope this new venue works out well for me and that you enjoy it. Let me know what you think of Artfire, feedback is always welcome.

----Contest! Free Bead!-----------------

This part is easy, to be entered into the contest all you have to do is sign up for my e-mail list on the right hand side of the page by the end of March. That's it! I send out e-mails no more than once a month, usually less. Once on my list you will also be entered into future contests.

The free bead:

A lovely little alabaster cobalt blue bead from my Electronica series. This bead has lovely little portals that shine purple/silver.

Free Bead Recap:

Sign up for my mailing list on the right side of the page by March 31st to entered in the drawing for the bead above.

Garden - Week 2

2009-03-20T15:31:00.000-07:00

Well we got off to a rocky start, but we're trucking along now. We hit a small (major?) snag when we asked our landlord to till the ground for our garden a few weeks ago and he said that a raised bed would work better. He estimated the cost and offered to pick up the materials. We smiled and tried to imagine where we would get the money for the extra materials.

Then a couple weeks later he showed up with half a yard of organic fertilized soil, lumber, screws and electric driver and said, "It's on me." Wow! So here she is, our raised bed:

Isn't it lovely? And free? We decided to try square foot gardening, so see if we could fit all of our needs into this bed (8ftx4ft) two boxes (1ftx3ft) and six pots (roughly 1ft diameter).

The grid has 32 spaces, so far we've planted four but allocated them all.

In this photo we have two squares of spinach on the left (the flattened roundish looking soil) and kale and Swiss chard on the right.

Next we have our two small boxes in which I originally planted all the snap pea starts spaced too far apart. Now they're all in the bottom box and we have plans to fill two squares of the big plot as well. I was going to plant the other small box with snap peas, but I think I'll wait and plant it with pole beans so they can be easily anchored.

Our plan is to do most of our planting on Sundays, so my updates will be the following Friday. This round of planting was actually done on Tuesday, the 17th. See you next week!

Garden - Week 1

2009-03-18T21:08:00.001-07:00

We have finally started our garden! We've actually planted a few things every year but we're very ineffectual gardeners, we tend to plant and then ignore. This year we have it all planned out, what to plant when, when to water, when to fertilize, etc... so I'm very hopeful. We're staring small:
Two small boxes of snap peas. 1 foot x 3 foot boxes with potting mix, compost and fertilizer. These are Sugar Sprint Peas, should grow fast and be tasty! We're planning to successive plant them at least two more times. Can never have enough snap peas. Or Tomatoes. Or Basil. More on that later.

We have a small basket of strawberries, quinalts, they're everbearing and hardy. I wonder if they'll be hardy enough for me? This is my third time planting strawberries, I've never eaten more than one or two berries from my efforts.

That was our first week, I'll post the results of our second week on Friday and hopefully continue to update on Fridays.

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And now some beads for ebay tomorrow:

New Beads for Ebay - 3/17/09

2009-03-16T21:45:00.000-07:00

Electronica Portals - Stars: I'm hoping to make this a series. This bead features a transparent emerald green base and a bicone shape. The surface is adorned with my "Electronica" style dark silver plum concentric line pattern. At the center of each circle is a murrini star encased in clear, like a little portal.

Invaders: I just couldn't shake the feeling that little murrini in this piece were flying saucers circling a turbulent earth. The base is a mixture of opaque and transparent blues with some red/coral thrown in. Dark silver plum shards across the surface.

Sandy Beaches: A lovely serene bead in pale pink/peach with a gentle wave of green/light turquoise and a dark silver plum mountain in the background. The murrini at the apex of the spiral is just slightly raised.

Knitting: New Socks & Mittens

2009-03-05T18:54:00.000-08:00

My second pair of socks are finished and I'm quite pleased with them:
They fit very well and are not snug around the ankle like the first pair. When I started I thought I would never learn to do ribbing correctly but now I've finished this pair of socks and have it down pat.
If you look closer you might see one of my newbie "I've never seen anyone knit before" mistakes. I was twisting all of of my knit stitches, which made my first pair of socks extra snug and the toes all twisted. A kind and talented glass beadmaker friend let me know they were twisted and now my socks are soft and stretchy.
I had already done all of the cuff/leg and the heel when I found out so I dutifully twisted all the stitches for the cuff of the second sock to match.

My next project is a pair of matching mittens. This was my first attempt at striping (I made up the pattern as I went along) and it turned out mostly fine. You can see one of my mistakes easily in this picture though, hopefully I won't make that one again.

I also made this french press cover for my sweetie for our anniversary. I made up the pattern as I went along and it turned out well. I originally planned to have it fasten under the handle but in the end decided that any fastener would be too fiddly for morning coffee.

Enjoy!

New Beads - 3/3 and 3/5/09

2009-03-04T10:07:00.000-08:00

I have a lovely and fun selection of beads for your enjoyment this week:

Life on Mars: This one is definitely my favorite. So much so that I'm working on a similar set of Kalera Nuggets for next week. I wanted to take the Sarah Hornik ribbon technique and turn it into something more organic. I started with a red base, layered with some complex shards in turquoise, ivory and coral. I swirled the base, then applied the layers of ribbons, clear, dsp shards and then raised dots. I'm sure I originally planned to flatten this bead but I just couldn't do it, the depth was too nice.

Angelic Wonder: A white filigrana core swirls under dichro and faint ribbons in white and blue. Raised dots feature tiny millifiori and very thin dsp shards shine on the surface. I love the ethereal feel to this bead, so light and airy.

Aqua Basket: Swirls of aqua race across the surface concealing yellow/orange stars. A hint of dichro adds some sparkle, finished with raised aqua dots and dsp shards. At first I was going to call this bead "Aqua Star Basket" but then I realized you can't see the stars or make out what they are supposed to be. They're complex murrini that I made, but one too many manipulations and they're indiscipherable.

Midnight Carnival: This set will go up in two separate auctions on Thursday. I wanted to created something fun and colorful with lots of contrast. Each of the beads features lime green, turquoise, dark orange, purple and light blue in some form of dots or lines or both.

I knitted Socks!

2009-02-09T23:09:00.000-08:00

I know, I know usually I make beads. What happens when your hobby becomes your business? You find a new hobby to add to the mix. And so I picked socks.

I did make an ill-fitting (too short) hat first, that was sort of a mobius strip for a time, so the road to socks was not without its bumps. I found this pattern online. It was fairly easy to follow and the photos are great. I had a little trouble with the ribbing. First I searched on Ravelry, then I found this video on Youtube and that made all the difference. I wasn't fully switching my yarn to the front and back so my rib stitch was a crazy cross-hatch of madness.

Admittedly, these socks are a little small for me. The foot length is perfect, but the girth is snug, apparently my feet are chubby as well as long. I haven't been able to figure out why my knitting spirals like that. If anyone knows, please tell me. I taught myself so perhaps I knit in a weird way.

I've already started on my next pair:As of this posting I've just finished turning the heel, my favorite part.

New Beads for Ebay 1/29/09!

2009-01-28T19:50:00.000-08:00

Well I promised two more turquoise beads, but I'm short a photo so you'll have to make due with one turquoise, one purple/turquoise and one clear/red. Enjoy!

Turquoise Twilight: I really see another scene in this turquoise bead. Sort of a meeting of two worlds with an icy mountain top on the right and a fiery sunset on the left. On the bottom right might be a mountain pass that the viewer is standing on, or a stream far below the mountain. Cheshire Swirl: This bead was a fun little experiment. It features turquoise and edp twisties with a layer of mottled amethyst glass and then a thick clear encasement. The bead has a nice depth to it and the colors are complimented well by the dark silver plum shards.Fiery Waters: This bead features swirls of red, yellow and white glass under clear encasement with lovely dark silver plum shards.

Teague

New Beads for Ebay - 1/27/09

2009-01-26T21:30:00.000-08:00

Turquoise seems to be my theme this week. I have some lovely focals with interesting reactions for your perusal:
Turquoise Wave: A gentle mixture of turquoise with swirls of mustard yellow and silvered coral. The darker blue portion has a lovely metallic sheen as it shifts from blue to green.

Turquoise Landcape: I see a lovely volcanic mountain on the left with clouds over the top and and fast moving oceanic river dividing the mountain from a second landmass. What do you see?

This bead features a lovely turquoise base with mustard yellow and coral. Some silvered highlights and raised dots with a light luster.Serene Dunes: This ivory one sneaked in, but I have two more turquoises for Thursday. A lovely warm, golden ivory with silvered patches and blue/green dashes with a light luster. The spirals are slightly raised, giving a fun texture to the bead.

Happy Beading!

Teague

Recession Buster!

2009-01-23T23:15:00.001-08:00

A Saturday Sale! I will be posting group lots of beads in etsy store tomorrow. Five focals for $50. Here's a preview:

Intricate group

This set features complex designs and intricate stringer work. Dark silver plum shards on the three of the beads and nice variety of colors to please any collector. Join by mailing list with the link on the right and get all five for $45, plus $3.50 shipping.

Jewel Tone Group

A lovely group in rich jewel tones. Purples, greens, these beads have lovely rich colors throughout. Five for $45 plus $3.50 shipping.

Earthy Group

This group features lots of earthy tone beads and organic designs. Four beads feature ivory bases and two feature dark silver plum shards. 5 for $45, $3.50 shipping.

Happy Saturday!

-Teague

New Beads for Inaugeration Day! 1/20/08

2009-01-19T22:32:00.000-08:00

Sierra Storm: A lovely clay brown and ivory backdrop with waves of blue, green and hints of yellow. Twist and gales and black spirals spin tales.
Red Sea: A deep red transparent bead with layers of blue/green and brackish shards.
Bali Hai: An ivory base with islands in blues, purples and greens. A light luster on the surface.

New Beads for Ebay - 1/8/09

2009-01-07T21:25:00.000-08:00

Undersea Fantasy: A light blue core with ribbons in blues. Dark silver plum shards on the surface. This piece features a swirl of blue frit with a slight sparkle along with the sea of ribbons.

Fire Dance: A pineapple sparkle core with two layers of ribbons in orange, yellow and hints of red. The two layers swirl in separate directions creating a figure-eight crossing pattern.

Reverberation: This is my favorite piece this week. A clear core with squiggly lines in blues reflecting every color of the rainbow. The dark silver plum shards on the surface have a wonderful array of colors and the squiggle lines create rainbows from beneath.

New Beads for Ebay & Double Sided Cuff Links - 12/30/08

2008-12-29T21:14:00.001-08:00

Atlantis - This is my favorite bead from the past few weeks. It has a lovely green core that glows through the transparent core. A few stripes of goldstone give a lovely accent and the clear encasing really makes this beads sparkle.
Burnt Starlight: A lovely organic bead in red roof tile with lots of silver & enamels. Dark silver plum shards on the surface.
Sapphire Jewels: A fun focal with a periwinkle base, blue "jewels" and goldstone lines. The encasing is thick and pressed into a loose gem cut facets. It's a very neat effect on the bead magnifying it at all angles.Tweed Double-Sided Cuff Links: This is the second pair of double-sided cuff links I've made as a custom order. I'll have to start adding them to my etsy shop. I'm very pleased with the way the turned out. The pieces are connected via a piece of thick silver-plated chain.

Eugene Snow of 2008

2008-12-22T22:45:00.000-08:00

As my friends and family up North still suffer the turmoil of snow, I reflect on our brief winter wonderland. The snow was only here for a few days for us, long enough to enjoy it but short enough to not outstay its welcome.

During that time I enjoyed staying inside and avoiding everyday activities. Go to the gym? Oh no we can't possibly, look at all the snow. Go to the studio? Oh no it's 2 miles away and I can't get there by bike, car or bus in all that snow. By day three we broke down and walked for groceries, to the library and to the studio. I was sore for two days.

On Monday morning Zac lured me outside for a pleasant winter walk.On Monday morning Zac lured me outside for a pleasant winter walk.
"What's that honey you want me to come closer? Of course dear!"
"Wait, why are you reaching down to the grou...Wapt!"
A short snowball fight ensued. Of course I won and sent Zac heading for the hills:

That's right you better run!
Happy Holidays!

New Beads for Ebay! 12/2/08

2008-12-01T22:31:00.000-08:00

Valley Sunset: Dark ivory meets cherry red in this lovely sunset. Hints of yellow and silver.
Green Maypole: A light green base with ribbons swirls of green and blue. This is a technique from Sarah Hornik. Dark silver plum shards on the surface.
Cosmic Scribbles: A rubino oro base with twisties in blues and golds. Finished with dark silver plum shards.

Black Friday to Cyber Monday Sale!

2008-11-27T11:06:00.000-08:00

Hi folks! I will be hosting a quick sale in my etsy shop:

20% off all ornaments!

Just put "Black Friday" in the comments box at check-out and I will send you a revised invoice.

This sale is valid from 12:01am PST Friday, November 28th to 12:01am Tuesday, December 2nd.

Happy Holidays!

Teague

Recycled God/Goddess Beads

2008-11-17T21:22:00.000-08:00

Recycled Couple: Something different from me. A pair of torso beads in light olive green with silver fuming. The silver fuming really sets off the curves and muscles. These beauties were hand sculpted in the flame. Don't you just love how the silver fuming caught the male figure?

The glass comes from a wine bottle, I can make these custom from a special bottle for you. I have a few shades of green in my shop and a light blue from a Japanese soda bottle.

Rainbow Hoops: A black base bead with concentric rings in a rainbow series. Very striking. Dark silver plum shards on the surface, accenting the lines. I'll have a few more in this series up this week, bright colors in concentric rings on different shapes. They were lots of fun to make.
Red with Portal: A bright red bead with a black central portal. Blue concentric lines accented with dark silver plum webs. I think I only have one more Jen G. window bead that will go up on Thursday.

New Window Beads!

2008-11-12T21:27:00.000-08:00

Tsunami Vision: An Amber bead featuring a Jen G. window with a tsunami motif. Dark Silver plum accents.
Oahu Wave: A lime green bead with a beautiful ocean scene. Aqua blue water, sandy beaches and spiral waves. DSP frame and twisted corners are the finishing touches.
Turbulent Planet: A wonderful bead with twists of blue, green and hints of black and yellow. Beautiful dark silver plum shards on the surface with hints of magenta and gold.

New Beads for Ebay - 11/11/08

2008-11-10T20:52:00.000-08:00

Spirals & Shadows: An ivory base bead with silver ivory shards and blue/green spirals. Raised DSP caging finishes the look.

Gaia: Streams of blue and green pulsate under the surface of this complex bead. DSP adorns the surface in a wonderful range of magentas, golds and teals.

Atomic TV: A medium amethyst bead with a window in copper green, cranberry and copper blue raised dots. The cranberry zigzags across the surface of the bead creating a tumultuous scene.

New Beads!

2008-11-05T17:24:00.001-08:00

Thermal Pools : A wonderful golden spotting with beautiful dark silver plum. The DSP really shines here in magenta and teal.

Caged Moon: I learned this technique from Jennifer Geldard at Glass Stock and threw my own twist on it. A silvered ivory scene with transparent gray and dark silver plum caging around the sides.

Amber Moon: A lovely amber colored bead with silver ivory shards and thin DSP shards. Very organic in style.

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In other news, my laptop is on the fritz and I may not be able to edit pictures for a little while. I managed to save all my data, but it's still acting funny. So if you don't hear from me right away, I'm working on it.

New Beads on Ebay!

2008-11-03T20:50:00.000-08:00

A sneak preview of Tuesday's offering:

Thermal Fissures: A lovely fall medley of browns and golds with a hint of blue and silver. This bead has a very calm, organic feel.

Aqua Frames: A technique taught by Jennifer Geldard, this bead features a coral picture surround by clear aqua and accented with a dark silver plum frame edging.
Blue Spirals over Coral: A lovely coral bead with bright blue spirals and silver ivory shards. This bead has a nice contrast and simple, coordinated design.

New Product - Cabachons

2008-10-22T22:40:00.000-07:00

A new product for me, I'll start putting this up in etsy shop tomorrow. They're fairly large cabs, most are made from one-half of my regular 1 1/4" straight-sided lentil beads. Here are a few my favorites:

Monet Landscape

2008-10-21T14:04:00.001-07:00

Another one that I fond of, copper green, coral and ocher with swirls.

Circuit Infestation!

2008-10-20T23:24:00.000-07:00

I'm really excited about this set. This is one of my favorite combinations of some of my favorite colors. Copper green with cranberry and dark silver plum shards. I love the extra details the reaction creates. This set is going on ebay tomorrow.

New stuff on ebay!

2008-10-13T22:12:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, I'm especially proud of these beads that will go on ebay Tuesday:

And here's a new ornament on etsy:

Drinking Chocolate - Hot chocolate for die-hards.

2008-10-10T19:33:00.000-07:00

Drinking chocolate is like hot chocolate times ten. Hot chocolate is made from pressed cocoa powder whereas drinking chocolate is generally made from real chocolate, including the cocoa solids that give it richness. I've been a long time connoisseur of hot chocolate and a more recent convert to drinking chocolates. Drinking chocolates should be smooth, rich, almost like a melted chocolate bar. Here are a few of my favorite chocolate beverages:

Schokinag Drinking Chocolates-These were some of the first I sampled. The Triple Chocolate and the Extreme Dark are both very good. The Triple Chocolate would probably appeal to a broader audience, it's decadent with out being overwhelming. The Extreme Dark is just that - extreme, wonderful for someone who really loves dark chocolate but not so great for your average dinner guest. I also tried their Dulce de Leche, which isn't chocolate at all. I found it way too sweet, but I don't have much experience with the drink so it may be authentic. Overall I really enjoyed the Schokinag products but if made to the supplied recipe they're a little thin to be a true drinking chocolate.

Dagoba Hot Cocoa

This one is also a hot chocolate, but mixed correctly, with 4 tablespoons of powder and 11 whisks clockwise and then 11 whisks counter-clockwise(I'm not making this up, it's on the tin), it's delightfully decadent. Dagoba is also available at my local grocery store which gives it high marks for convenience. $8 and change is not a bad price either, I've certainly paid more and been disappointed.

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At the Eugene Celebration I recently sampled Sipping Dreams drinking chocolate. It was rich and authentic. Perfect for a cool evening. Unfortunately they don't have any retail location sand aren't selling online yet. At the Eugene Celebration they were selling it in dixie cups for $3. They also bars to melt and cute demitasse cups.

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A year or so back I discovered Chantico by Starbucks. As a non-coffee drinker and a local business supporter, I don't keep tabs on Starbucks. I knew that they didn't have hot chocolate for me and that's all I needed to know. So I heard about the Chantico after it had been discontinued. Undeterred, I found a bag on ebay and whipped it up at home. I can't vouch for my methods as authentic to theirs. I found it rich but slightly chemically. If you are interested in recreated it, I recently stumbled upon this recipe for it, which may work well to recreate it.

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In closing, I think that someone should buy these for me:

Clearly I need a personal drinking chocolate mixer...Does it also do windows? And maybe dinner?

Also this one, because sometimes I feel like sharing my drinking chocolate with my sweetie (you know after he makes it for me a presents it on a silver platter):

New things on Ebay!

2008-10-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

I've been having a little trouble taking pictures lately, due to inclement weather. But here are some new things on ebay this week:

Caged Bloom -

This piece was fun to make. It's been a while since I worked with the petal designs and I enjoyed combining it with the dark silver plum. Sort of a steampunk meets florals.

Moss Weave-

This one is a lovely medium green achieved by layering transparent blue glass over lime green glass. The effect makes the piece glow from within. The copper green on the surface gives a nice industrial appeal.

September Last Friday Artwalk

2008-09-30T14:00:00.000-07:00

Cookies! Thumb print cookies made a comeback this month with this recipe from Gourmet magazine. These were actually a little easier and more fool-proof than the ones from July. Although rolling three little balls and pressing each one was very time consuming. I tried to skip pressing them flat before pressing the indentation in them, but the cookies came out too puffy and dumped their jam.

We were disappointed to miss out on Rochelle who was scheduled to play in out studio, perhaps she'll come back another time.

Christmas Ornaments are here!

2008-08-20T21:40:00.001-07:00

These were so popular last year at the holiday sale that I wanted to get a head start on them. They're really fun to make, (except for today when I cracked three and gave up) and I'll be demoing them at Glass Stock. You can find these beauties in my etsy store:

I'm happy to give discounts for multiple orders and can take requests for custom color schemes, stock up early!

Teague

Last Friday Artwalk - July

2008-07-31T15:37:00.000-07:00

I made these delicious thumb print cookies for the last Friday Artwalk in July. They're made with my homemade strawberry preserves:

I used this recipe from Cooks.com

THUMBPRINT COOKIES

1/2 c. shortening - part butter
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 egg, separated
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 c. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 c. chopped nuts
Jelly or tinted confectioners sugar icing

Mix shortening, sugar, egg yolk and vanilla thoroughly. Blend together flour and salt. Stir in. Roll dough into balls, 1 teaspoon per ball. Beat egg white slightly with fork. Dip balls in egg white. Roll in nuts. Place about 1 inch apart on ungreased baking sheet. Press thumb gently in center of each. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until set. Cool. I fill the thumbprint with pink and green (almond flavored and mint flavored) confectioners icing. However, you can use different flavored jellies if you like. These make a pretty Christmas cookie.

I didn't have nuts to roll them in, so the dough was probably a little wet and had trouble holding the jam. But they taste just like little strawberry shortcakes.

I used the Red Red Strawberry jam recipe from Joy of Cooking, very sweet. Recently I've started making jam with low-sugar pectin and will try that next time around.

And here's a beautiful pie my sweetie made for a potluck BBQ meeting of the Eugene Oregon Glass Guild. He's been really getting into presentation lately:

I won't be available for the August Last Friday Artwalk, so I'll just have to cool up something special for September.

Vacation - Camping!

2008-07-10T22:39:00.000-07:00

Zac and I are going camping to Crater Lake nearby campgrounds. We'll be gone from July 11-19th, see you when I get back!

Teague

May Last Friday Artwalk!

2008-06-05T17:17:00.001-07:00

I'm a little behind, but I wanted to post the recipe for the Double Chocolate Cherry Cookies I served. They're delicious:

Double Chocolate Cherry Cookies -

¾ cups all purpose flour
1 ¼ cup unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
¼ teaspoon salt
1 ¼ cups unsalted butter
1 ¼ cups granulated sugar
¾ cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs
¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate coarsely chopped
1 ½ firmly packed cups dried sour cherries (9 ounces)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt.
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugars until fluffy. Add eggs and vanilla. Beat until well combined. Add dry mixture and beat on low speed until just combined. With a wooden spoon fold in chocolate pieces and cherries.
Form balls of dough, each about ¼ cup; place balls on prepared baking sheets about 3 inches apart. Bake until puffed and cracked, 9 to 11 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. DO NOT OVERBAKE!

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I got this recipe from a friend on a the lampworking message board, Lampwork Etc, it comes from the Martha Stewart cookbook.

These are FABULOUS! I think I spent $15 on Bittersweet chocolate and cherries alone, could have spent more.

I had a little trouble getting them to set, they're like molten blobs of chocolate with a cherry bonus. I started making them smaller, like tablespoon small and only baking one sheet at a time in the center of the oven. Worked well, they took about 15 minutes of baking time.

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I threw some of the dough in the freezer. I took it out, let it set for an hour or so and then baked it. The cookies held their shape better and I wasn't compelled to over bake them.

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Teague

The Sampler: Part II

2008-03-21T12:51:00.001-07:00

So last month I slaved over these beauties for the sampler. This week I got my sampler in the mail:

A fun assortment of goodies, including gocco print items, buttons, soap, a candle, a pin, small charm and my favorite:

I'm not sure why, but I just love this ninja cross stitch pattern. I don't even know how to do cross stitch and I have no intention of learning. At the top it says, "Chubby Ninja Fears No Diet."

Front Page!

2008-03-18T13:05:00.000-07:00

I made it on the front page of etsy! My brief moment in the sun yielded me 460 views on this.
If my friends hadn't alerted me, I would have missed it. I grabbed a screen shot, went to edit and then to grab another...it was gone. Wow!

Cufflinks

2008-03-16T23:12:00.001-07:00

I've been having a lot of fun making these lately:

They're silver-plated cuff links with glass cabs affixed to the front. They got a lot of attention during the Last Friday Artwalk . They're a wonderful way to bring a little color and fun to your wardrobe.

I originally designed a pair for Zac. I've been trying desperately to decorate him in some manner and ever since we stopped being 17, he felt comfortable telling me that he had no desire to wear any jewelry. Ever. So I stewed quietly, biding my time. I originally made him another pair, but when I stuck this pair in my etsy shop, he snagged them and I had to make two pairs.

Press

2008-03-09T10:59:00.000-07:00

Check out several Eugene Etsyians, including me (The one in green) in this video:

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1386356947/bclid1387524738/bctid1448202004

Super Easy No-Knead Bread

2008-03-02T16:59:00.001-08:00

Zac and I have been gorging ourselves on fresh bread for about two weeks. This bread:

Mmm...bread.

Doesn't it look delicious? Like it would cost $4 at your local swanky grocery store? It's heavenly. And so easy. And costs us roughly $1 a loaf to make.

No-Knead Miracle Bread

Time Start to Finish: 21 hours
Active Time: 15 minutes.

Ingredients:
3 Cups all-purpose flour
2 1/4 teaspoons rapid rise active yeast
1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Yep. That's all ya need.

Step 1. In a medium to large bowl, combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 and 5/8 cups of water.

mmm...yeasty.

Stir together until blended, dough will be sticky and "shaggy."

mmm...shaggy.

Step 2. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise about 18 hours, in warm room. I little longer or a little less won't hurt it.

Yep. It's sitting on my washing machine, this is what
it looks like after 18 hours. Kind of like a pancake in
the pan, when it's ready to be turned.

Step 3. Lightly flour a working surface, place dough on it, sprinkle it generously with flour. Fold it over once or twice and form it into a ball.

Sprinkle generously with flour.

No those aren't my man hands. Those are my
sweetie's. He does my bidding. Work faster lackey!

Step 4. Place a clean cotton towel on your work surface. Generously coat it with flour. place the dough on top. Then more flour. Then another towel. It's a sandwich.

Towel. Flour. Bread. Then add another towel.

Step 5. Let Rise for 2 hours. When it's ready, the dough will increase in volume and not spring back when poked with a finger.

Step 6. Before dough is done rising, put a heavy 6-8 quart covered pot in the oven and preheat your oven to 450 degrees. We use an old dutch oven. This process can take 30 minutes or more, depending on how long it takes your oven to heat up.

Step 7. Carefully removed pot from oven. Remember it is very hot. Slide your hand under the bottom dough towel and flip the dough over into the pot. You can shake it a bit to even it out, but it will do that as it bakes. It's okay if it looks messy.

Step 8. Cover the pot with a lid and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the lid and bake another 15 minutes, until it's a nice golden brown. Step 9. Remove from oven and try to let it cool on a wire rack before devouring half a loaf.

Here's the bread again.

Here's a close up. Look at that texture and crust!

And here's a more accurate picture, moments after
pulling it out of the oven, it will be gone.

Enjoy!

Promotion

2008-02-23T11:00:00.000-08:00

I've been thinking a lot about self-promotion. It seems that I have a lot of beads and jewelry just waiting to find new homes. Clearly I need new avenues for my work. One thing I did is send in samplers to The Sampler, you can see my tiny card peaking out in the group shot. I sent them 100 goddess cellphone charms, as seen on the left.

I also sent them some wine stoppers and key chains, essentially promoting my goddess line. I've also been working on a wholesale catalog and it has made me realize that I need to par down my offerings to something manageable and promotable. Instead of offering everything under the sun, each item has to fit into a "line" of items with a similar style. I hope it will create some cohesiveness and give me direction. I'll still be making and selling beads in whatever style suits my fancy.

Introduction

2008-02-22T15:49:00.000-08:00

I'll start near the beginning. My name is Teague and I'm a glass artist, living in Eugene Oregon. I love Oregon more than any other place I've been. The weather, the air, the trees, the mountains and the beach cannot be beat.

I've previously wanted to be about a hundred different things. Let's start with the ones that I gave serious consideration throughout my life: Artist, Teacher, Writer, Veterinarian, Attorney, Judge, Activist, Journalist, Editor, Scientist (first a biochemist, then evolutionary biology). I'm sure I also wanted to be an astronaut and a princess, but my parents never sent me to space camp.

I attended Colorado College from 2000-2004, majoring in Biology and English. When I finished school I was certain that I would go on to graduate school and enjoy a long career in academia. I really like being in college and more than that I really enjoyed labs and long research projects. The bigger the better, my favorite part was doing the initial research, finding everything anyone had ever done on your proposed topic. My professors didn't believe that I read all the articles or books that I cited- most of the time, I did.

I researched my intended graduate schools thoroughly, but maybe not enough. I didn't get in. I applied twice to one school and once to another. Many people have said I need to try more schools, but I was trying to make a life here, not just throw out a net and see what I could catch. I haven't really let go of the idea of graduate school. I think I even promised a favorite professor I'd get a PhD before getting married. But the idea seems fainter in my mind. Less of an all-encompassing life purpose and more of an idea among many.

I started making glass beads in April of 2005, I bought the kit as a birthday present for myself. I've been interested in beads for as long as I can remember and making jewelry almost as long. I've tried a lot of other crafts/artistic pursuits in the interim, but nothing has captivated me as much as glass.

As it stands my mother tells me that I can be anything I want to be as long as I decide by age 35. I love her.