You know what I hate....

I hate being a Ma'am. I went shopping today - just groceries and kitty food, but I got "Ma'am"ed about 14 times. 6 times just by one guy giving me a refund for an overcharge. I felt like correcting him -- "Miss, thank you" but I didn't. I should have.

Once or twice is easy enough to overlook, but geez... when every third word is "Ma'am", it gets a bit much.

Why do I hate it? well, heck, I don't know... It just makes me feel like I'm 90. Yeah, I'm in my xx's, but I look pretty young for my age. No wrinkles, no grey hairs (ok, a couple, but not really visible....), and I'm in pretty good shape. At what age do you make the transformation from "Miss" to "Ma'am" and if they're going to call you that, they should have to confirm it with ID. It's like reverse carding. Ma'am Carding.

Anyways, back to making beautiful things.

Peace,
Joy

Fire Sale!!!

We're back and we're thankful. To recover and get us back into the Good Swing of Creating Art, there's only one thing to do... Fire Sale! Anything you order through any of our websites will get a 13% discount - and there's tons of new stuff up there!

http://sphericalmagic.com/ and all the sites listed there, and also
http://spaceart.org/ and any of the artists listed there as well.

Here's your special discount code to enter into the cart when you place your order: 451F

I love these bowls....

....says Mo!

I've been working on a new series of glass art. I started out making them to use as sinks, or maybe art bowls, but when I set one down, one of my kittens jumped right in and took over. We figured it was "The New Box" syndrome, where a new cardboard box is the greatest toy every created in the history of the world (next to an empty paper sack...), but they kept using them and liking the new bowls that I made.

I always figured cats would like soft comfy beds, but they really go crazy for these. I even tried to make them more soft by putting a pillow or towel in them, but the kitties would come up, reach in, pull the pillow out and then climb in and take a nap. It was really bizarre to see this happen again and again, but eventually, I got the idea.

So I've now created a website for them:
http://www.mycatscradle.com/

So far, just the testimonials page is up, but it shows a lot of the bowls there, and more will be added soon.

Let me know what you think of them!

Peace,
Joy

A Painting A Day #3

Isn't she beautiful? This is a portrait of my cat Shadow getting sleepy for a nap. You can see the comfort and love in her eyes.

This is a new series of small watercolor paintings I'm working on. With the economic downturn, I'm looking at expanding my horizons and have always wanted to do watercolor paintings. These smaller paintings can be squeezed into little chunks of time I have between the bigger art pieces when they're drying or casting or whatever. I tend to get a half hour here or there - not enough to really get started on another section of the big sculptures, but just right for these, and much better than watching TV or playing a video game (although Oblivion is a lot of fun...).

This new portrait is available:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250299208605
for a really low price, for an original painting from such a famous artist! I'll even personalize it for you!

Would you like a portrait of your own pussycat or puppy?

Peace,
Joy

A Painting A Day

Another little gem for sale.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250298789610

These little paintings are so much fun to make. They're reverse painted on glass, which means that I have to work backwards -- painting the details first, like the stars and clouds and then working my way back to the final background black coat. It's opposite the traditional way of painting on canvas, where the artist puts down the background first and then works toward the details in the forefront.

It's just a different way to do it, but what I really like about painting on glass is that the colors really shine and glow. The glass acts as a nice prism, and since there is no air between the paint and the glass, the colors are able to be as brilliant as possible.

This comes on it's own stand, so it can stand up on your desk or on a shelf. A window into another world.
Peace,
Joy

A new painting for sale!

It's an original miniature painting, reverse painted on glass. It shows a water planet surrounded by dark nebula. It's about 8 3/4" wide by 3" tall and is for sale!
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250298343895

Reverse painting on glass is an extremely old technique, but only a few people practice it anymore. I find that the colors are richer and deeper when reverse painted, making the piece really glow and shine. This one comes with it's own little wooden stand, so it can stand up on a desk or shelf. It is not stained glass, is not transparent to hang in a window. It's a solid painting, like oil or watercolor, just on the backside of glass instead of on canvas.

These little paintings are called "Portals." I'm doing a whole series of different portals into other worlds. It's a beautiful little gem that you would just love to own!!

Peace,
Joy

The supercollider is down for maintenance

And so goes the whole dynamic of the developmental process. You can never say for sure when the thing will be done. You'd think people who are in the business of education and science would understand this concept, but they don't seem to... or at least the ones who hire us don't seem to.

When we first got approached by the group that wanted the orrery, they were looking at one of our mobiles - a free flowing model of the solar system. No motors, no electonics, no precision regarding dates. The planets could swing clockwise or counter, depending on the breeze. You could reach up and bump one and change it's dynamic. They looked at it, loved it and asked "Can you build an orrery?"

We knew we could, so we said "You Bet!", told them it would be developmental and therefore only have an "estimated" delivery date. And how they've complained! Compared us to the contractors that *CAN* set delivery dates - cause they've built however many buildings before, like eight million contractors before them. They are not dealing with developmental. It ain't "off the shelf." You can't go to K-Orrery and pick one up. Wal-morrery is all out of 'em.

The supercollider can't possibly have a "deliver by" date. The first of anything complex can't. It's the nature of it.

Doesn't get any cuter...

I've had a rough summer. First a huge contract got "deferred." We had already bought supplies and equipment in order to make their fast completion date. They say don't count your chickens, but this chicken had been laid, hatched, and had a pretty significant foundation of feathers... The economy hit the client hard, so the client hit us hard. ouch.

Then we had the awful fires. I had never seen anything like that -- fire covering 120 degrees of the horizon. It was frightening, smoky, awful. I hope I never see that again, but the doomsayers around here say it happens every so many years... I hope they're wrong.

What the worst part was, was that the fear, anxiety, smoke level and "preparedness to evacuate" level completely put our studio at a dead stop. I tried to keep the projects going a little every day, but mostly, it was impossible. Having eight fire engine crews driving up and down and visiting while an enormous fire is raging makes it nigh-on impossible to charge up 2000 degree kilns and have hot furnaces running. They just don't like that. Go figure.

My dad has been having heart issues. He's had some minor strokes, but recently went in for what appeared to be a heart attack. He had an angioplasty and they say he's in good shape, but his pulse is erratic. It's very hard to get into an artistic mode when worry sets in and family calls with updates.

So I've been getting lots of snuggletime. Larry is the cutie above. He's a mainecoon kitten and just adorable. Doesn't get any better than having a purring kitten on your lap.

Peace,
Joy