Tres jolie!

I've wanted a berry bowl with saucer for a very long time. Recently, I found just what I wanted on etsy at StudioElan http://www.etsy.com/profile.php?user_id=5001632 I opened it up today - beautiful! well made! and well packed for its journey from Ontario to Kodiak Island! And with a personal note! I love excellent customer service! Thank you so much. Eleanor, the potter at StudioElan has a blog, too, with behind-the-scenes pictures of her work. See it at http://eleanorhendriks.blogspot.com

What a great show! We just came back from a local production of Cyrano de Bergerac - complete with cameo performances from our Kodiak feature newspaper reporter, la boulangere de Mill Bay Coffee, and the dancing master. Amazing what a group of people can do to make a difference - there's a Margaret Mead quote about that, but googling around to find the exact citation will have to wait for another time - TTFN

Happy Valentine's Day!

My personal collection of heart jewelry (I live with 2 heart makers!) is rather extensive, so it was a small puzzle this morning to pick out the perfect piece for this special day. In the end, I chose a pair of small red heart earrings and a small black and red heart on a fine silver chain - sentimental pieces, which is exactly what the day is all about!

Check out the Etsy link to see the Gaia heart necklace pictured here.

Hearts and Roses

Look at these beautiful hearts with wire-wrapped roses. Don has been using both silver wire and silicon bronze to decorate his boro glass hearts. You can check our Etsy shop for more information and a chance to make a purchase. While you are over there look at Zora's heart necklaces. She made them all by herself! We are so proud of her work in the studio (and other places too!)

This afternoon, I bundled myself up against the cold and delivered some of Don's ornaments to The Next Page Bookstore - Kodiak's own independent bookseller. In addition to books, one can find lots of local art. The bookstore shares the building with Mill Bay Coffee, a cozy hideout on a blustery day!

If you can't easily get to Kodiak, you can see (and buy) Don's (Fyrsmith) jewelry and ornaments at Half Moon Creek Gallery in Anchorage and The Art Shop Gallery in Homer, Alaska. If you are in Hilliards, PA (a little east of Pittsburgh), check out The Glass Blowing Center run by Elaine and Tom Doner.

fyrsmith.etsy.com

I just posted this lampwork heart in the Fyrsmith Etsy shop. Something bright and cheerful on a grey day!

Simplify!!!

My new year's resolution for 2008 is one word: SIMPLIFY. Many years ago I wrote in one of my journals "Lately my life has been so complex that I have been unable to think simple thoughts. I must simplify my life so I can again think complex thoughts." Over the years I have applied this "simplify" principle when needed. It is again time to apply it.
One of the ways to do this is to journal ( or in this case blog) and watch myself thinking. It is amazing what one can learn about oneself by listening to what comes out of one's mouth, or by examining what one writes.

-Don- aka the fyrsmith