Phew it’s almost here! I have been working my tail off getting ready for this one! The Ninth Lakewood Ranch Fine Art Show, March 21st & 22nd 2009 is held at Main Street in Lakewood Ranch Florida, south Manatee County. Hours are 10:00am to 5:00 pm both days. You can go to Google maps or Mapquest on the Internet for more thorough directions. Use “Main Street, Lakewood Ranch” as your search description.

I always look forward to this show. It’s local and a great location with plenty of parking. Main Street, Lakewood Ranch has cute upscale shops, great restaurants, ice cream, plus a cool movie theatre for after the show! At the present time I am not traveling to shows  because of a torn rotator cuff, (getting it fixed, I hope this June!), and of course the economy. Being local my husband James can help me and costs are lower. I do love going and meeting the people and seeing their reactions. That is what I really miss the most not doing the shows.  Here are pics of a couple pieces that will be there. Hope to see you there!

I am the featured artist at the Elizabeth Stevens Gallery in Sarasota, Florida for the month of January.  I will be there in person tonight for the Friday Artist Walk, in Towles Court between 6:00 to 9:00 pm. Towles Court,1945 Morrill St. Sarasota. Bette’s website is www.elizabethstevensgallery.com for more directions. The last two months have been a blur of shopping, cleaning and cooking, and of course bead making! My daughter was in town for Thanksgiving and Christmas and we were so lucky to have 80 degree weather! We spent a lovely day at the beach. It is a bit chilly today but I am not complaining about 39 degree weather, we so rarely get cold it’s nice when you’re at the torch. The picture is a sample of necklaces I am working on. The longer lengths 36′’ allow you to wear doubled or single. This is apricot and amber colors with 23 kt. gold foil.

The other day I was trying to figure out what to do with all the extra lampwork beads I had made. We are talking going back 8 years worth! I thought well I could group and sell in bulk, but maybe I could donate them to someone? Well, I would think about it. I had to go to the gallery that sells my work, Elizabeth Stevens Gallery in Sarasota. While I was waiting for Bette, a couple of customers were getting excited about some beaded bracelets in a basket. I thought, wow they are cute, with great combinations of colors. Turns out they were made by girls from the Bowman Ranch in Sarasota. The Bowman Ranch, operated by the YMCA, is a 20-acre residential group home for young men and women ages 11-18 who are in foster care. They go to school, some work, meet with counselors, behavior coaches, experience the joys of living in the country taking care of horses, basically learning life management skills. Making the jewelry and selling them, the girls are learning to use their creative talents as well as learning the basics of running a small business. The perfect home for all those extra beads! I donated 2 plastic tackle boxes full of beads. They were thrilled and wrote me a nice letter. I had a wonderful glowing feeling that lasted for days, and even when feeling a little depressed I can still call back that feeling. How great is that! I am sure there are in everyone’s community some group, old, young who could benefit from our extra beads and jewelry supplies.

I have been really excited lately about opera length necklaces, 36,37 inches long, using smaller lampwork beads. I was asked to do a longer necklace, where you could wear it long or doubled, for a commission. I just loved it! Of course these take more time, approx. 52 beads in all! But that never seems to deter me, although sometimes I think it should! Here is one I made for the gallery with the wonderful glass by Double Helix,Triton.

Summertime in Florida is hot, humid, with lots of rain. Rainy days make for great reading though! I was contemplating the work out at the YMCA this morning when it starting pouring! Oh well, I guess I will just have to cozy up on the couch with a cup of hot tea and my new favorite book, Verdura, The life and work of a master jeweler, by Patricia Corbett. This book has luscious pictures of jewelry designed by the Duke Fulco di Verdura, born in Sicilian nobility. The book documents his fascinating career, which took him from Paris to Los Angeles and eventually New York, designing for Chanel, (the Maltese Cross cuffs are his designs), opening his own shop in New York patronized by the rich and famous. Cole Porter, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, and the Duchess of Windsor were just a few of his collectors. It is fun to read about the lifestyles and parties of that time, plus the jewelry is gorgeous.

I have been working on a necklace set for my daughter and myself. I rarely spend time making jewelry for myself and realized after all these years of selling to others it would be nice to have my own collection! Here is a picture of one of the necklaces. It can be worn two ways, long 36″ or doubled up with a shortener. I just love the duo purpose. The beads are 15mm lentils (47 of them!) with dichroic and 23 kt. gold foil. Very elegant. Hope everyone is enjoying their summers, thanks for stopping by. Charmaine

The most exciting event that has happened in our lives, is our daughters college graduation! I haven’t blogged in awhile. I  swing from being a mom to an artist and sometimes it’s impossible to do both. The graduation was held outside on the beautiful campus grounds.  We were praying like crazy for the rain to hold off because a cold front was coming through! It held off just in time for the ceremony to be over, and we were gathering for the picnic on front quad, then it let loose! Ashley graduated with a B.A in French & Business, cum laude. There were wonderful parties and get togethers. I always enjoy being with young people, their enthusiasm and energy is so refreshing. We are of course proud parents. I am back working on my art, presently commission work for Elizabeth Stevens Gallery in Sarasota. Here is a sample of one necklace I made for the gallery and pictures of graduation. Thanks for stopping by,  Charmaine

Fused glass with 18kt. gold bezel, 14kt. gold, sterling silver bail. These are pieces I made for the art show.