Wrapping up 2025 and a Schedule Change for 2026
Dear Glass Family,
If you are reading this, then YOU are one of the reasons I do what I do. Being able to share my tiny works of art with you and chatting about project ideas fills my soul with joy. ❤️ So thank you for stopping by my website, reading my blogs, chatting with me, and supporting my murrini glass art. For this, I'm eternally grateful!
My adjective used to describe 2025 is going to be "amazing". I'm a full year now in my new studio space next to my home. I'm a "second shift" kinda gal, so I'm often out here late in the evenings, when it seems like my creative juices flow the best. Being close to home makes that possible. I’m not going to lie…sometimes I sneak out there in my PJs and slippers, too. It’s a beautifully creative space for sure.
Thanks again for making 2025 an amazing year!
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A New Schedule!
As most of you know, I'm blessed to still have my parents and mother-in-law with me. They are in their late 80s and early 90s. It's a beautiful yet challenging time. 2025 became a bit more bumpy than the year before and I foresee 2026 being the same. Therefore I'm going to take my foot off the gas slightly when it comes to the time spent in my workshop. Starting in 2026, I will only be adding new murrini to my online store once a month, which will be on the first Saturday of each month (sale will still begin at Noon Central Time).
This will free up a week and weekend, each month, that was normally spent blogging, making a project, and having a sale/filling orders. With this extra time I can help my folks more, and God willing, I plan to make just as much murrini as I did last year, I'll just have more designs available on the first Saturday of each month! However, my online store will still be open every day like normal!
For those who have been where I am now, you understand that it's a decision I certainly won't regret. It's a beautiful journey as we travel through this life with our family. So finding ways to keep focused on what is important is my goal for 2026. A new year's resolution of sorts, being able to be tentative in all plans and shift lanes when needed. One day at a time and at peace with all things. 🙏🏼
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Mid-January Excitement!
My online shop will still be open every day, except for the occasional "Family Time" break or vacation. AND...speaking of vacation, I will have a brief closure mid-January as I travel to New York for a week-long class at the Corning Museum of Glass! I'm SO EXCITED! This past fall I submitted my request to be in a flameworking class and I found out in late October that I was selected to be in the class (luck of the draw from a lottery of names submitted). This was on my bucket list of glass experiences, so I'm totally stoked!
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A New Kiln!
In other exciting news, I got a NEW KILN! Yep, my very first FIBER kiln. I'm going to be chatting lots about this amazing kiln as the year goes on. It's still new to me but I continue to be more and more impressed with it every day. It is the Hot Shot 24G. No more bending over to load the kiln...and this huge square shelf...😍 I can get SO MUCH more inside it. Brandon, a friend of mine, is a member of the Hot Shot team. He turned me on to these amazing kilns and got me hooked up with Chris, from their great sales team. We are cooking up some ideas which may include me teaching some classes at the Hot Shot studio in April! I can't wait to scoot up to Wisconsin and play with their vitrigraphs! Stay tuned!
So here he is...my beautiful Hot Shot 24G. I'm working on some Christmas ornaments for my family. It's a rare treat to be able to work on something other than making murrini! These are a reverse enameling technique taught by the amazing Cheryl Chapman. This is the third ornament in a series of "Nativity" ornaments. This year it's the Shepherd. It's a 4 step firing process and this kiln makes it possible for me to work on the next step the very next day. Hot Shot Kilns...where have you been all my life? 😜
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Hints on the Horizon:
Coming January 3rd I'm going to have TINIES! I only do these itty bitty murrini once a year, so get ready for a really beautiful 13 design mix. The January project will be a continuation of my Dragonfly/Jar series, which means I'll have dragonflies in a new color...think "Italian" for this one. It's only in my imagination right now, but I have some fun ideas stirring around in my mind. I'll also have Cardinals, Mountains and one more fun mix that I'm going to keep as a surprise for now. 😉
Wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and have a happy and blessed New Year! I’ll see you in January!
With love,
Beth
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Helpful Links:
If you use COE 90, be sure to shop Lori’s beautiful murrini options found at Wilderness Glass.
Oceanside's recommended Firing Schedules.
If you are looking for COE 96 stringer or pre-fused dots, Joni pulls matching stringer for the items I have each week. Find her beautiful work at Aggie Glass Designs. Joni is also my supplier for the Window Cards that we can use for our artwork.
For beautiful COE 96 Twisties, check out Sherry's lovely work at Love•Peace•Create•Shop.
Kiln shopping? Check out my friends at Hot Shot Oven & Kiln. They'll give you great customer service along with a great product made in Wisconsin!
Looking for a good Chipper Nipper or Leponitt wheeled nippers? I recommend purchasing these two "must-haves" from witsendmosaic.com. They call the Chipper Nipper "Ceramic Scissors". The wheeled nippers I prefer are the Leponitt G30C.
If you are looking for Mike LaChance’s fusible COE 96 handcrafted bails, find his unique work at Mike’s Innovative Glass.
For beautiful COE96 frit blends, check out Val Cox's website.
My favorite flattening technique is from a tutorial by Nancy Sala. It’s worth the $8 for the excellent tips she gives. Once purchased and she sees your order, she will email you the tutorial in a PDF.
I buy my Easy Fire Enamels from Cheryl Chapman's website.
Looking for a pneumatic chopper? Sue and Brad Darte make a great product backed by excellent customer service.
The pretty calendar in this week's blog was a screenshot taken from an online shop called papertraildesigns.com.
For Janice's pre-cut COE 96 ornament blanks, find her at LakeRabbitDesigns.