It's Snowing up Extra Savings

I have been getting ready for the etsy showcases I am in this Saturday. I will be in the Jewelry-Necklaces and the Ceramic and Pottery showcases. I have been taking lots of pictures and  currently posting new items in my etsy store. The weather man today said that we have a chance of snow this weekend so I am going to have a "It's Snowing" sale. My entire website and etsy store will be on sale Saturday. Everything will be 20% off. On the website, you will need to use the promo code "Snow" to receive the discount. Everything in my etsy store will already be marked down. I will plan to ship on Monday so that you will have a good chance of receiving your items before Christmas, if you live in the continental states. I will make no guarantees.

Catch up

Since my last blog, I have been very busy with life. Overwhelming at times. Let's back up to Thanksgiving week. It was my birthday, my turn to sing in the praise team at church, my husband's uncle passed away on Sunday the 22nd of November from complications due to tongue cancer, and someone was very interested in our house, which we have been trying to sell. If they were to make us an offer, we were going to have to find a place to live and get out of "Dodge" in two weeks. Needless to say they chose another house. After that week, I went to the big craft festival we have annually the weekend after Thanksgiving, went to a wholesale show and picked up some really neat striped agate beads that will look great as pendants in some new designs and  I spent some time making a few snowflake ornaments for my etsy store and preparing for my last show of the year.

During all this time, I have still had to go to choir rehearsals for our upcoming performance at my church. Each year we have a big production. This year we have around 480 participants in our performance. They include choral, orchestra, and drama. We will have three shows this weekend. In fact, tonight is our dress rehearsal. I understand that it will be video taped this year and may also be available for podcast. I will post a link if that is made available.

Next week I will be preparing for an etsy showcase that I will be in. I am excited that I finally got into a jewelry showcase. They sell out so fast on etsy. I will blog more about it next week. In fact, I think there even might be a sale. Check back with me, I will have new items in my etsy store.

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving to you all. I hope that each and everyone of you have a great feast today and enjoy family and friends. I will certainly be enjoying the turkey and stuffing with gravy.  I must admit that the stuffing is my favorite part of the Thanksgiving feast. My mother has always made stuffing in muffin pans. She uses Pepperidge Farms stuffing with the turkey broth. Oh my is it the best. Maybe this is strange to some of you but that is how I was raised and that is the only way I make my stuffing for my family, in a muffin pan.

Remember tomorrow I will be showcased in the Ceramics and Pottery showcase on etsy. I will have those wonderful porcelain snowflake ornaments available.

Black Friday

I have not blogged for a while. I have been trying to catch my breath after the furniture market,  art shows and custom orders. I have started working on new finished jewelry designs for next year and make porcelain snowflakes for my upcoming Etsy Ceramics and Pottery showcase. I know that alot of us love to shop the day after Thanksgiving but really don't like the crowds, traffic, or long lines. The internet has helped us out greatly. We now can sit back in front of the computer and shop til we drop. In honor of this new tradition, I will be featured in an Etsy showcase on Black Friday. You can look for new items added to my shop as well as the snowflake ornaments. This year they will come in a box ready for gift giving.

Now for a little history lesson..
According to Wikipedia, "Black Friday is a term for the Friday after Thanksgiving in the United States, which is the beginning of the traditional Christmas shopping season. The term dates back to at least January 1966 -- "Black Friday" is the name which the Philadelphia Police Department has given to the Friday following Thanksgiving Day. It is not a term of endearment to them. "Black Friday" officially opens the Christmas shopping season in center city, and it usually brings massive traffic jams and over-crowded sidewalks as the downtown stores are mobbed from opening to closing.
More recently, merchants and the media have used it to refer to the beginning of the period in which retailers go from being in the red (i.e., posting a loss on the books) to being in the black (i.e., turning a profit)."



In North Carolina today, we finally have some much needed sunshine so I am off to take lots of pictures of the new items that I will be adding to my etsy site for Black Friday. I look forward to shipping you all the items that you purchase from me through my etsy site.

-Tracy

I have just finished and delivered to wholesale customers the porcelain snowflake ornaments in time for the holiday shopping season.  I love these ornaments.  They are time consuming to make. Each one is hand formed, bisque fired, sanded, glazed, fired for a second time in a clear glaze before applying and firing the mother of pearl lustre. I always have to make extras because I always break several somewhere along their journey.
I have several sizes and styles. Each one is signed, dated, and comes in a gift box with a certificate of authencity.

You can purchase one from Everyday Art Gallery and Southern Spirit Gallery but I betcha can't buy just one.

Let the Holidays Begin

Thank you to everyone who participated in the Fall Open Studio blog event. If was fun to meet and greet everyone and share our studio spaces. This event also taught me a little more about how to use blogger.com so you got love that.

I would just like to declare in the famous words of my pastor's wife after our Candlelight Coffee event.."Let the holidays begin!"

Remember that you can shop with me until midnight tomorrow Oct. 26th in my etsy store or my website.

PS. Look for more information and photos of our Candlelight Coffee after Nov. 14th.

Second Giveaway Winner

Congratulations to Sharon P. on winning the necklace. Sharon please make sure I have your email so that I can get your address and let me know what length you would like your necklace.

Fall Recipe

When I think of fall, I think about Thanksgiving and Christmas a time to praise the Lord. I also think about a favorite dish that we eat during the fall and winter. I am not sure about other parts of the country but in the south we love to make and eat brunswick stew. It is said that this stew originated in Virginia, the state I was born in, around 1828. Churchs and fire depts. around here will have big fundraisers where they make and sell this stew. They are usually made in a huge cast iron pot over an open fire. However, when I make mine I use a 16qt stock pot and a modern stove. The stew is made with a variety of meats with chicken and beef being the most common. I recently sampled a stew with chicken, beef and pork. Typically the stew has potatoes, tomatoes, lima beans, peas and corn. I have my husband's grandmother's recipe that my mother-in-law taught me to make. If anyone is interested in the recipe, I will be glad to email it as I feel it is rather long to put into a blog.

I hope everyone is still enjoying the Open House. Remember you can still shop after the open house is over.
You can shop with me through Monday Oct. 26th at the sale prices on either my etsy site or my website.

Works in Progress

I am currently working on my limited edition porcelain snowflakes for wholesale customers. I have a few in the kiln awaiting a bisque firing, but still don't have the kiln working. I have been waiting since the beginning of Sept. to have it fixed. I will be on the horn tomorrow to my electrician friend to schedule some time hopefully this week. In the mean time, I am busy rolling out the clay and forming them.

Second Giveaway

This is the second giveaway today. It is one of my finished bola cord necklaces. The pendant is porcelain and one of my new colors for this fall. I would describe the color as persimmon. What would you call this color. It is lighter than the picture. I tried to get it as close as I could. All metal components are sterling silver and the bola cord is brown. The lucky winner can choose between 16", 18" or 20" bola cord in brown. It retails for $36.00.  Get your comments in quickly. I will announce the winner at 4:00pm.  Remember that you can shop with me until Midnight Oct. 26th on my etsy site or my website at a 25% discount.

My Studio Space

Here is the picture of my studio. It is the fourth bedroom in our house. It used to be the kids playroom when they were little. After they stopped using the room for a year, I took over the space in July of '07. It all started with the "L" shaped desk that I found at a local office supply warehouse sale. It is really a receptionist desk without the bar height countertop. I also got the table with the same matching top and the two side chairs were in my husband's office until he needed to move his office into the house. (He got my old very small studio space as his office, the chairs didn't fit anymore). I have a walk in closet lined with shelving as well as the open book cases for storage.

I have divided the space up into three work zones. The computer side of the desk is used for office work, entering inventory into Quickbooks, blogging, website, etc. The other side of the desk is used for making finished jewelry. The third zone is the six foot table that is for all clay work. Rolling the clay, forming items, sanding, and glazing.  I store the glazes on the wall in the closet behind the table.

First Giveaway Winner

The winner of my first giveaway is Mellisa of Chinook Jewelry. Congratulations Mellisa.

Fist Giveaway

These colored porcelain pillow beads are the first giveaway of the day. They were featured in "Beads 2009" editors' pick. I start with white porcelain and  color the clay with mason stains before individually hand forming each side of the bead. They are approx. 3/4" square and are hollow to make them lighter in weight. The lucky winner will receive all seven beads pictured.
Get you comments in quickly. I will announce the winner at 2pm.

OPEN HOUSE STUDIO BLOG EVENT INTRODUCTION

Hello and welcome to TGL Designs's first Open House.

My name is Tracy Isley, a self-taught artist, who has been involved in many mediums over the years. In the fall of 2004, I designed my first piece of jewelry for the employees of a local museum for a fundraiser and was later asked to put items in their gift shop. When asked to teach a summer camp on jewelry making to middle school aged children, I decided to teach the class how to make their own ceramic beads and pendants to use in their jewelry.

After learning the basics of ceramic bead making, through the beads-of-clay yahoo group and trial and error I feel in love with this medium and continue to work with it.

Today my designs use my own handmade exclusive beads, my own handmade stained glass pendants, semi-precious stones, fibers, sterling silver and 14kt. gold filled beads. I am continuing to expand my line of jewelry, ceramic beads and pendants, as well as refine my skills as a designer.

I am excited to participate in this Fall Open House Studio Blog Event with so many wonderful artists. Make sure you surf back and forth among the studio tours and chat Live with each and everyone of us. You can find a list of participating artists at Beads of Clay Blog. Each of us will have special giveaways during the event. To be eligible you must comment on the giveaway's post.

Shop with me all day today and tomorrow on my etsy site and my website TGL Designs.com where everything is 25% off. On my website you must use the promotion code Fall to receive your discount.

Here is the giveaways I have planned for the Open House tomorrow. All pieces are porcelain. The individual beads were featured in "Beads 2009" editors picks published by Interweave Press. The necklace is one of the new fall colors that came from the mis-firing of the kiln. Make sure you comment on the giveaways tomorrow during the Open House to be eligible for them. I look forward to meeting you all tomorrow starting at 1pm.

Fall Studio Open House

Join a number of Earth Clay Artists as we open up our creative studio spaces through our blogs on Sunday, October 25, 2009 from 1-4pm EST. Updates on the event schedule and list of participating artists will be listed on Beads-of-Clay.Blogspot.com


TGL Designs will have great giveaways. I will post pictures of these giveaways at the end of next week before the open house. To be eligible for the giveaways you must be a commenter on the post describing the giveaway during the open house.


I am currently working the International Furniture Market in High Point NC until next Thursday but have been keeping things moving in production during this time. I am currently working on porcelain snowflake ornaments for my wholesale accounts. Maybe one can slip into the giveaways for the Open House. We shall see.


I look forward to meeting everyone at the Open House.


Plan To Hang Out on Sunday, October 25, 2009 from 1-4pm EST

Update on Kiln

I had an electrician come out to access the damage to the kiln and determine what actually happened the night the main 200amp breaker was tripped. As you can see by the picture of the burnt wiring inside the wall socket, we had an arc of electricity. Apparently, the screws that hold the wiring in place will over time be vibrated loose by the electricity running through. As you can see in the picture, the screw that is attached to the burnt area of wiring is out much farther that the other two screws, this caused the arc and power surge. I now have to have the wall socket , the power supply cord to my kiln, the wiring running from the socket to the breaker box, and the 60 amp breaker inside the breaker box replaced. I am waiting on the shipment of the power supply cord to arrive before having the electrician come back out. Once the replacements have been made, I hope to have a working kiln again. I am however unsure if the elements were damage. A resistance test can determine if any are bad or will need replacing sooner than later.

Fall Show Schedule

Since my kiln tripped out a couple of weeks ago with some important pieces in it, I have successfully gotten them refired by other fellow potters. I needed all those pieces to make into jewelry for my fall show schedule and a wholesale account.

On Sept. 26th, I will be in Winston Salem NC at the Historic West End 4th biennial juried ArtsFest 2009 from 10am til 5pm. This years event promises to be an artistic experience like none other. Come enjoy an afternoon of the highest quality art, food, music and fun available in the state.

On Oct. 4th, I will be in Greensboro NC at the 7th annual Art in the Arboretum in Lindley park from 1pm-6pm. Fifty regional artists have been gathered in an outdoor art gallery selling jewelry, pottery, metal sculpture, glass, paintings, and mixed media just to name a few. Come by and say Hi.

Tripping Kiln

This past weekend my Duncan kiln was running a cone 6 glaze firing. About 5 1/2 hours into it the main breaker of my house was tripped. Now by this time it was dark outside..real fun trying to find the battery lanterns in the house using the light from our cell phone. After we got the power back on, I went to the kiln and noticed that the kiln sitter had not shut off the kiln. After unplugging the kiln, I noticed that the wall socket and the plug was melted. I decided it would be a good idea to have the fire dept come and test for any hot wiring in the house after my daughter said her TV was going out everytime I shut the breaker off for the kiln..which by the way is wired to it's own breaker. Everything was safe in the main breaker box so we could go to bed. It was a restless night for me because all I could think about was the 200 pieces I had in the kiln. Many were to be made into jewelry for a wholesale customer appt. later this week. Daybreak finally came..time to see the damage in the kiln. Those items closest to the top of the kiln were almost done. They have shinyness to them but most are the wrong color the items on the floor of the kiln were ornaments for christmas and had a clear glaze on them..the glaze was not even melted.. I am now left with a few salvageable pieces and a kiln that will not come on..I don't have to tell you how important a kiln is to our art and livelihood.

Missing in Action

Whew..what a summer. I have not posted for a long time now. No excuses will be given here except Life happens. Since my last post we have gotten a new puppy, our other dog had surgery for bladder stones, took the kids to Seaworld in Florida, learned about the sport of paintball, prepared our home and put it up for sale, celebrated our 20Th wedding anniversary, lost my uncle to Post Supra nuclear palsy, celebrated our son's birthday and created some new designs in jewelry and porcelain snowflake ornaments. In fact, I will be running the kiln later today with approx. 200 pieces in a cone 6 glaze firing.

Our family's new puppy is a black and silver miniature schnauzer. His name is Phantom. He is thirteen weeks old. Housebreaking is going good. I have to watch him 24/7. Its like having a two year old in the house again. He has learned to do his business with a command phrase but has not figured out how to let us know that he needs to go outside. Our other schnauzer is adjusting well to having a little one around. Samson is nine years old, so just picture a two year old constantly nipping you, smelling you, and pulling your beard every waking moment. It is exhausting. Samson will play and rough house with Phantom sometimes. I know that they will eventually be great pals.

Houses in our neighborhood started selling quickly, so my husband and I decided to revisit the issue of selling our house. We had attempted to sell from Dec. '07 to Oct, '08 with not the slightest interest from buyers. We had alot of showings, no negative feedback but no offers. So far, we have had more views on the MLS, a few showings and at least one buyer who has put our house on their short list. Hey..if that is progress..I will take it for now.

My husband and I celebrated our 20Th wedding anniversary this summer. I finally will be getting the diamond ring I have been wanting. My wedding ring is three oval saphires surrounded by diamonds. My husband purchased it six years before he met me at an estate auction. So I have been wanting a big diamond ring for my right hand. I had told him on our thirteenth anniversary that I wanted it on our fifteenth, well life happens..finally after seven years I only have to wait alittle while for it to be sized. God certainly blessed me with this ring. My husband had saved only a small amount of money for the ring and didn't know how he was going to give me this gift. We tried to get a diamond from a family member that had one sitting in a drawer collecting dust. I thought this was a perfect way to help keep cost down. Well, they said no when they found out I was wanting to take the diamond out of the mounting and design my own ring with some smaller diamonds that I have. I was heartbroken. Shame on me to give up so quickly. God had other plans. Two days before our anniversary, I went to a wholesale show where I buy semi-precious stones for my jewelry designs. I stopped by one of the wholesale fine jewelry booths. I asked them how much it would be to put a .2 diamond back into a ring that I had missing a stone. $10.00 for the diamond. What? I couldn't believe it. I bought the diamond. I figured if I wasn't going to get the larger diamond ring I wanted I would at least have the missing diamond replaced in another ring I own. I went home and told my husband what had happened. We rushed back to the show, 2hours before closing time and spoke with this jeweler again. We set up an appointment with him on our actual anniversary to discuss a ring he had with rubies in it. Our plan was to switch the rubies for diamonds. We also planned on taking him our broken and unused gold jewelry to sale. To make a long story short, we arrived, sold him our gold and paid him a little of the money my husband had saved up. I will be the proud owner of a 20Th anniversary ring. 20 diamonds for 20 years along with a large center diamond for as my husband said "eternity". He will love me for eternity.

Now, enough about me, back to the real business. I am excited to see the new test glazes and designs when I open the kiln tomorrow. I will then be able to take pictures and post the new limited edition snowflake ornament designs. I will also be busy getting an order together for a new wholesale customer and preparing for my upcoming fall shows.

The puppy is out of food now, so off to Petsmart..

Happy Independence Day

Don't overlook the deep meaning of our nation's Independence Day. It's a day to remember our forefather's belief in God and a belief in freedom for every citizen. It's a day to remember those who paved the way for all of us to have freedom, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It's a day to remember the sacrifices made by heroes for this awesome gift of the United States of America.

Happy 4th of July from all of us at TGL Designs.

Photo taken on a recent trip to Florida at the Lowry Park Zoo in Tampa.

This week I am trying to get organized before the kids are home for the summer and we go on vacation. I have sent off an application for a juried show in November, entered all the sales and emails from this past weekend, updated the wholesale catalog with new glaze colors and pendant shapes and worked on ordering more supplies to make more jewerly.

I had a great show this past weekend at the 7 th annual Piedmont Pottery Festival. I do believe that everyone that stopped by my booth was definitely impressed. Most had never seen clay transformed into elegant, classy, modern and sophisticated jewelry designs. I received many compliments and comments on my designs. One of the comments I heard the most was how light the jewelry was. I also believe that I achieved one of my goals and that was to promote ceramic beads and pendants as an art form. I may even pick up a few stores from this show.

The above pictured necklace is one of the new designs that I created for the pottery festival. I made the oval bead to be hollow, greatly reducing the weight of the stoneware clay. I have so many new ideas that I can't wait to get back to making more pottery pieces. I will also be working on new limited edition snowflake designs for the holiday season. I have some already bisque fired and awaiting sanding and glazing. Hopefully, I can get them glazed and fired before vacation.

Ta Ta for now
Tracy

A Rainbow of Animals

It has been a long time since my last post. That day I was firing the kiln with these gorgeous pieces in it. Didn't they come out fantastic? I have been getting ready for the Piedmont Pottery festival which is this Saturday in Eden NC. Everything displayed must be pottery, so I had a lot of finished jewelry to make. This will be my first appearance at this show. It will allow me to introduce porcelain jewelry and promote ceramic beads as an art form.

I have also had my first international sale thru my etsy store. I have been very excited about that. I guess this now makes me an internationally known artist.

Well just a quick post tonight...until we meet again

Tracy

Lions and Tigers and Beads, Oh My!

Remember when Dorothy, the cowardly lion and the scarecrow are walking through the forest in the classic movie Wizard of Oz and they are saying "Lions and Tigers and Bears Oh My!", well I have been working through a forest of beads and pendants.. glazing all the way. I have 151 beads and pendants in the kiln right now. I am getting ready for a pottery festival.

As you can see, I have several new designs and shapes. I can't wait to see the new animal print donuts that you see in the lower right corner of the picture. I have blogged about this new design already but today the new colors are being fired. They will come in blue, turquoise, red, orange, yellow, green and purple. I also have some new glazes and combinations of glazes that are being tested. I can't wait until tomorrow when I get to open the kiln after it has cooled. It is like opening presents on a special holiday.

It is time to turn up the temperature on my old manual Duncan kiln. I got this kiln at an auction a few years ago along with all the kiln furniture and a glass grinder, tools and old glazes. It was truly a blessing to find this at such a great deal. It was a risk buying this at the auction because I had no idea if it worked or not. It does Yea!!

Fab Fibers Giveaway

Hi

I can't believe that it has been so long since my last blog. I was busy with the biannual International Furniture Market in late April and since then I had an out of town show. I will blog about that another time and post pictures. I have been glazing beads and pendants to get ready for my next show. Again I will post pictures and blog about that later.

Today, I wanted to post a picture of some beads that I found on a blog named Fab Fibers. Check them out. She is giving them away. How great is that! They are called Calypso. I think I have new glazes for my porcelain that would coordinate beautifully with these beads.

Enjoy your Saturday!

Tracy

Angel Company Policies

There has been some talk on other art bead blogs recently about copyrights. In the world of clay, an artist will sometimes use objects to texture the clay like a leaf, a feather, lace, or even rubber stamps. In regards to using rubber stamps on clay, the artist can use them free of any copyrights unless they are intending to sell the pottery piece at which time copyrights from the manufacturer of the stamp will come into play. Each manufacturer will have different copyright policies, so you better know what they are before you stamp that clay.

I found a long time ago that some companies are what is termed Angel companies. This means that they have copyright policies which DO allow the artist to sell their artwork using the image from the stamp in their art, so long as the item is not mass produced, but made by the individual hands of the artist. Most that I have found will list their policy on their website. So the next time you find a great rubber stamp image to use in your clay beads, Be safe and make sure you know that it is manufactured by an Angel company

If you don't want to be bothered by copyright infringement, make your own designs. Jennifer at Jangles this morning in her blog, mentioned that she has found a great non-profit company named Ready Stamps that will turn your drawings and doodles into rubber stamps. I think this is fantastic. I can't wait to have the time to start drawing.

Some Angel companies
Inkadinkado
Stampabilities
Stampendous
All Night Media
Inque Boutique


The EXACT Angel policy may vary from company to company.Some companies may limit the quantity of projects stamped.If you have any questions please contact that particular company for the correct answer.

Best Use of a Weed

Good Morning. I am getting ready to go to work at the International Furniture Market, so this is a short blog, but I wanted to show you my best use of those springtime weeds that are growing by leaps and bounds with all the rain we have had in this part of the woods. I am not sure what kind of plant this is but it makes a gorgeous pattern when pressed into porcelain clay. I really enjoy making these pendants. The one I have chosen to picture is in the marine blue glaze.

Beads 2009 Magazine

I am very excited to announce that TGL Designs' beads will be featured in the editor's picks section of Beads 2009 magazine due to hit the newstands later this month. I sent them my colored porcelain animal print pillow beads and my porcelain roses. I am very anxious to get my hands on a copy of this magazine. This will be the first of many more publications, I hope, that will include my designs between it's covers. I must run for now to my bi-annual job at the International Furniture Market in High Point, NC.

Ta Ta for now

Red Envelopes Project

This is something I have just learned about. I think it is a fantastic, awesome, and terrific idea. Send the president a red empty envelope to represent a human life that was aborted. A life stopped short of contributing to our world and showering those it would have touched with blessings. You can go to the Red Envelope Project to learn more.

Color Changes

Today, it is raining like crazy outside. It is hard to get motivated to work. I have been playing around with my blog colors and learning more about the tools inside blogger. com. So my blog may change colors until I find something I like. Hopefully, I can get back to work making new jewelry pieces. I have to get ready for upcoming shows by increasing my inventory.

Fresh out of the Kiln! Wild Things

These great new designs came out terrific. The middle picture shows the pendants before the final glaze firing. The colors are just intensified during the firing process as well as becoming glossy. My daughter was pleased with her designs. She wore the green today to school and received many compliments even from students she didn't know. I just can't wait until I get the opportunity to make more in all the great colors we have planned, turquoise, pink, orange, violet, and a royal blue.

Remembe to check out the websites at www.TGLdesigns.com and www.TGLdesigns.etsy.com for more of our designs.

Spring has Sprung

Spring has sprung here in North Carolina. Look what is blooming at the studio. Several of my orchids are in bloom right now. I love orchids. I have been growing orchids for over a decade. The orchid pictured on the right was bought back in 1996 at the Miami International Orchid show. It is named phalenopsis Plantation Imp 'Forever Orchids'. It is a cross between Phal. Rousserole 'Plantation' and Phal. Gladrose 'Plantation'. The orchid on the left is also a phalenopsis orchid. It is named Phal. Kaleidoscope. This orchid is a cross between Phal. amboinensis and Phal. Red wine.

Today, I also received a new shipment of glazes. I now have 33 new glazes to test. Some will go in the kiln this weekend when I fire the animal print beads and pendants that I have been working on over the last several days. The new pendants that my daughter designed will be in that bunch. I think I counted over 110 pieces that will be fired. Keep checking back to read and view pictures of those new designs.

Stepping out on the Wild Side!!

Over the last several days, I have been glazing my animal print beads and pendants. On Monday, my daughter was home from school sick. After she was feeling better and quite bored of being home, she came into the studio and using the pictured bathing suit she found online at one of her favorite stores designed the porcelain extra large donut pendants. These are glazed in spring green(left) and pale yellow(right). We were so excited about this new design that we added more colors to my glaze order from Bracker's. In the future, we hope to have this design in violet, turquoise, orange, chartreuse and pink. I will plan on posting these pendants again, after their final firing.

Good Morning,

I have started the kiln this fine morning. This is a bisque firing of porcelain snowflakes, beads, pendants and a stoneware bird feeder. The kiln is fired to cone 04.
It will take about 4 to 5 hours to complete.

Last week was a crazy week. We started with about 4 inches of snow on Monday, I was sick with a terrible cold and could not even enjoy the largest snow fall in.. like, oh, I don't even remember how many years it has been since we have seen that much snow. The kids were out of school for two days. They loved the snow. Monday night the temperature was hovering around 12 degrees. Now, today, what a fine morning. The sun is shining and the temperature is going to be in the high 70's. Can you believe that. In one week, our temperatures have spanned 60 degrees. We have gone from winter to early summer time temperatures.
I hope to get some gardening done today as well as the kiln firing. My daughter, being the teenager that she is, wants to go shopping today, we have to see about that one...
Well, back to the kiln. I have some great new designs of snowflakes in there, as well as some new oval hollow pillow beads that I have ordered new sterling prong bails for. In the picture, you will notice that just about everything is laying flat. That is ok since no glaze is in the kiln that would cause things to fuse together. One of my bead trees is in there with pendants hanging. I fire these on nicrome rods to ensure that the holes don't shrink. I will have to hang the pendants in the glaze firing and if I allow the holes to shrink during the bisque firing I would never be able to get them back on the rods.
I have so many bisque fired jewelry components that need to be glazed. I have to get busy glazing. The next time I run the kiln it will be a cone 6 glaze firing. I will get some pictures of the before and after. It really is an amazing transformation.

NADE

I am so excited. I have been invited to the annual conference for the National Assoc. of Developmental Educators (N.A.D.E) held this week at the Koury Convention Center in Greensboro NC. They were looking for a few local artists to exhibit during the conference and I was chosen from my etsy website. What a great way to promote my business and sell my finished jewelry to national attendees.

New Flickr set

I have been working hard today adding new items to my website and creating a link at the top header called "Gallery of Sold". This link will take you to my flickr photo set of sold items. This gallery is designed to showcase my designs that may not always be on my website. You can check it out by clicking on this link.

Have a great day

14% off Valentine Day Sale on Etsy

In honor of Valentine's Day, I am having a 14% off selected items in my etsy store this weekend. The sale will run from Friday evening at 10pm thru Sunday evening. Selectied items will reflect sale prices and have Sale in the titles. I hope all will take advantage of the sale.

Remember to check out my website for other great designs from us.

I am continuing to work hard adding new items to etsy and my primary website everyday.

Another Treasury addition on Etsy

It is a great day in the neighborhood,
I have been added to another treasury in etsy.
My moon and stars stained glass necklace. Check it out at the link below.
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=38259

I am having my first Trunk Show at Orchard House in Summerfield, NC. today.

On Monday Feb. 9th, I will be featured in the Just Jewels showcase on etsy and on Valentine's Day as well. Look for some specials on Valentine's Day.

Must run off to play at the Trunk Show
Tracy

Aroma of Art Fundraiser

Hi,

I just got back from the post office mailing my donation of the pictured stained glass necklace, matching stained glass earrings, pink animal print porcelain earrings and a royal purple porcelain pair of earrings to the Taste Full Beans Coffehouse in Hickory NC. They are hosting their annual Aroma of Art fundraiser. A wonderful etsian found my storefront on etsy and invited me to participate. The fundraiser is a silent auction that will last the month of February. All proceeds will benefit three charities. Check out the links to read more. If you are in the area, stop by and tell them Tracy at TGL Designs sent you. If you manage to get one of my business cards, you will receive a coupon code on the back that you can use at TGL Designs until the end of March.

Oh by the way, it is snowing here...A great sense of excitement is filling the house tonight. The kids are hoping for no school tomorrow. They were out of school today due to black ice early this morning on the roads.

My First Etsy Treasury Feature

I am so excited to have a piece in an etsy treasury. This is my first. Be sure to check out this treasury by clicking on the link below. It will last through Wednesday Jan. 28th.

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=40895

Have a great day

Tracy

Etsy Showcase Schedule

Hi All,

I have been busy trying to prompt my websites. TGL Designs will be featured in several showcases on the popular website www. etsy.com. Starting Saturday Jan. 24, 2009, I will be featured in the supplies showcase with my handmade porcelain and stoneware components. On Feb. 1, 2009, I will be featured in the Valentine's Day Showcase which will have a special banner on the homepage of etsy and on Feb. 4th in the Main showcase of etsy. Be sure to check them out and buy..buy...buy.

My websites are www.TGLdesigns.com and www.TGLdesigns.etsy.com, be sure to check them out. I am making new valentine designs and will be adding those to each website.

Getting back in the swing of things

Yea!! The kids have been back in school this week. Hubby is away at work and I have the whole house to myself. Time to get back in the swing of things. Don't get me wrong I love my kids but I really needed to get into the studio and work without a lot of interruptions. I have so many ideas and plans for 2009 running through my head. I must keep focused and get to work.

I am planning on getting a jumpstart on the 2009 limited edition snowflakes. My goal is 500 for 2009, at least twice as many as I have done before. So far, 12 down and 488 more to go. Well that is, 12 cut out and drying now, 488 more to cut out. Still 500 to bisque fire, glaze, glaze fire, and lustre fire, and package in neat boxes. Not a tall goal to accomplish but when you factor in LIFE, it will take me the rest of the year to fit them in.

I am planning on adding more ceramic beads, pendants, and jewelry to my websites this month. Today is a beautiful sunny day. A great day to get some photographs shot, so I can add more products. I plan on adding more to etsy in the next few days so, make sure you check them out at www.tgldesigns.etsy.com

One of my goals is to get published in a magazine. I decided in the fall that the only way to accomplish that goal was to start sending in pics of the finished jewelry that I make. In the last two weeks I have sent in a necklace and pair of earrings to one magazine, (at their request..a great first step to accomplishing my goal..yea!!) and colored porcelain beads to another publication. Wish me luck on those. I plan on this year sending in more ideas.

We have decided to use Time Warner Cable for our tv service provider so all those crafty clay shows I have saved on our current DVR will be lost forever, so this week I have been watching them over and over again and taking notes to remember the neat projects and tips. It has really got my wheels spinning. I was inspired to try hand building functionalware. I attempted to make a porcelain hand built bowl, but it cracked during the drying process. I let it dry to fast. I will have to keep trying. Once my stoneware clay is reconstituted, I can attempt to make another bowl. The grog will help in the hand building process. The first bowl inspired a basket idea so, I went yesterday to Lowes and Home Depot in search of a round tube that was inexpensive. PVC at Lowes came in a 6" diameter but a 2' section was $15.00. It would be perfect to use as a drape mold but too expensive. At Home Depot, no 6" diameter pva but a salesman helped me find air duct material. It came in various diameters. I purchases a 2' section that is 7" in diameter for $4.00. It may be too flimsy to use as a drape mold but I think it can be worked with. I will let you know what happens.

These are just a few of my plans for 2009, I also plan on marketing more and doing more shows. For now ....
Hi-Ho Hi-Ho it's off to work I go.
Until next time
Tracy