Adventures in Glass Casting - Pt. I

I just got back from a week of glass casting classes and I am pumped! I've been wanting to try my hand at glass casting for quite sometime. While at RISD we did a semester of lost wax casting and it was a blast. The idea of being able to translate the technique into glass has been fascinating me and I'm looking forward to incorporating these new glass elements into my work (after I get a kiln of course).

Gloria Badiner was our instructor and our group of 6 were rapt, I mean apt, students. She taught us a number of mold making techniques.

My Name in Lights. Wait, no...Print

 Sometime back I saw a call for project submissions for a new Lark book - 30 minute bracelets. I thought it sounded like a fun idea and was super impressed with their other 30 minute books (rings and necklaces). So I came up with a few ideas...

...and, Ta Da! I've been published!

Making chainmaille bracelets is super fun!

Oh, hey, look. That's my name up there!

Actually, two of my bracelet proposals were accepted. Wheeee!

Riveted Reversible Bracelet anyone?

 A few months later I received another book in the mail from Lark and couldn't figure out why....

See that tiny photo right above the author's name?

And then I saw my name, 6th from the bottom on the right side. How cool, published twice! If you'd like me to sign your copy so you can say that you knew me when, I'd be happy to.  ;)

Guess who's on TV?!

Iptv came and did a wonderful segment on the studio fuzzishu make & take workshops at the Iowa State Fair. They featured several of my students and their finished projects. Check it out!



We are nearing the end of fair so if you haven't already come out to make something AWESOME, what are you waiting for?! ;)

Winning!...with fuzzishu

Aaaand we have a winner. Fuzzi-dad chose a # at random and the winner of the blog contest is Lisa. Lisa said she would like to have a name pendant so she can keep her boys close to her heart as she heads back into the working world. Thanks to everyone for participating and keep your eyes peeled for more contests (I'm thinking of something for the Fall....hmmmm ;)


Even if you didn't win, I hope you are able to make it out to the Iowa State Fair and come join me for a workshop. Cheers!

ISF 2011....T-minus 6 days?!

NEW WORKSHOPS AT THE IOWA STATE FAIR

In honor of Studio Fuzzishu's 4th year at the Iowa State Fair we are introducing four new metal jewelry projects that you can make and take home with you the same day. Workshops start every half hour or so, daily 9am to 9pm Aug. 11-21 in the Cultural Center.

New Project No.1 - Mixed Metal Stamped Pendant

New Project No.2 - Mini Mantra Bracelet

Projects 3 & 4 Coming Soon!!!

(hint - they are name tag for your pooch and a yearly charm that can be used for a keychain, charm bracelet, pendant etc.!)

New Project No.3 - Pooch Tags

New Project No.4 - Annual Fuzzishu Charm

And, of course, your favorite project and mine, the one that started them all, the silver ring!

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Dear blog readers, I am going to give you the opportunity to win one of the new workshops for FREE at state fair OR, if you are out of state/country, one of the new projects made by yours truly just for you ;)

To enter to win simply leave a comment below telling me which project you would like to make/have and why.

BUT WAIT, we are giving you more chances to rack up entries. If you follow the fuzzi- blog, share the giveaway on Facebook and Twitter and promote this giveaway on your personal blog you'll receive one extra entry for each act of social media. Just come back here and post a SEPARATE entry for each of your postings or followings. Entries will be accepted until Tue. at 9pm Central time.

Update 8.8.2011 - Thank you for the entries so far! However, please make sure you leave me some way of getting a hold of you if you win. You can email me with your screen name or leave a contact on here. I will post a blog announcing the winner but you don't want to miss your opportunity!

Breakfast at Tiffany's pearls

This is MY color! Love it. Lately I've been working with this lovely shade of pale turquoise / robin's egg / 'tiffany's' blue. It seems like I always have a great spontaneous idea for a piece right before a show. These little loops have been sitting on my bench for awhile. I had planned to make them into a large brooch but they wanted to be a necklace.


See? Necklace. And as it happened to be, someone fell in love with this piece first thing Saturday at the Midsummer Festival of the Arts in Sheboygan.


There were earrings to be had as well. Nice long modern earrings.


Amazonite earrings and necklace coming soon...

A special mother's pendant

I am so very proud! Earlier this spring I exhibited in the Believe in Girls conference held by the Girl Scouts and demonstrated a possible career in the arts. A while after the conference one of the girls called me and arranged a ring making workshop for herself, her mother and her grandmother. We had a blast.

Just recently she called again and wanted to make a special necklace for her mother's birthday. She had bought the stones, come up with a design and needed a little help (and the tools!) to bring the piece to life. I helped with the bezels and stone setting but the sawing, filing, stamping, etc. was all her. Yay! She did such a great job and it was awesome to be able to help her make something special. You too can come to the studio to create a one of a kind piece, just give me a buzz.

Beaducation Giveaway!

Want to see more stamps at your next fuzzishu RiNGS workshop? Cross your fingers and hope I win this lovely set of lower case kismet stamps they are giving away here.

....Something Blue

I've been wanting to post about this custom job for awhile...but realized I had no good photos. While going through my old crappy point and shoot camera's cards I ran across at least one, which prompted this post. The rest of the images I've borrowed from the very talented Life Art Photography.


MaCay and Andy were married at Living History Farms last year in Urbandale, Iowa on a beautiful Autumn day. The small chapel was the perfect venue for this small, funky - more on this later, intimate event.


My friend MaCay had approached me about this project last summer. She wanted to do something unique for the bridesmaids' gifts. She had always had a penchant for my a go go 5 loop necklace and wanted to design something similar but different. Something that would work with three different styles of dress and unique personality. Oh yea, and with some small touch of blue.


I sketched a few ideas for her, we played around with some elements on my bench and VOILA! A new necklace was born.


Modern, sleek, but rustic enough to go with the venue. Small touches of lapis lazuli accent the loops of various sizes. Sadly, this is the only photo I have of the piece. Don't worry, I've gotten much better about documenting the things leaving the shop...especially the one of a kinds!

MaCay and Andy are a fun quirky couple - see exhibits A. and B. There were speeches from engineers and the appetizers featured multi-flavor popcorn bowls on the tables and a 'fancy' cheese table by Gateway Market (they also provided dinner, if I recall, OMG the dinner!!!)

[exhibit A.]

Not only does their card drop box look googly-eyed and muppety-y but they walked in to the Muppets' Menomenon song :D Love it! Speaking of...did I mention my dad was their dj?!

[exhibit B.]

Four flavors of delicious cupcakes from the Carefree Patisserie were adorned with bride and groom rubber duckies. Yes, duckies.


I was honored to be a part of their special day and wish them the very best in their new life together.

At Laaaast...

After *cough, cough* months in the making MaryAnn's ring is finally complete. She approached me with her mother's vintage diamond ring, wanting to give them a new life in a fresh contemporary design (SO wish I had remembered to take a photo of it before I took the diamonds out, d'oh!).

I carved the wax and then sent it out to be cast in palladium. MaryAnn wanted a 'white metal' ring and we decided against white gold (too pricey, didn't want rhodium plating). Platinum was waaaay too expensive and silver is a little to casual and tarnishes. Palladium is a tough metal and as part of the platinum family shares a bit of it's prestige. It was a first for me and I look forward to playing around with it more in depth in the future.

I'm very pleased (and so was MaryAnn) with the modern architectural look of the ring. It has a good heft and tapers nicely at the bottom. It ended up highlighting her mother's diamonds and giving them a new life. Mission accomplished!