Happy Thanksgiving!

I feel like I've been remiss for not posting more here, but the bead cottage is pretty much done and things there change so slowly that it's not worth posting every day. I hosted Thanksgiving for my family again this year. We had the same crowd as last year and had even more fun together. I wanted the house to look somewhat festive so we got our wreaths last weekend. It was so cold the day we put them up. Originally I wasn't going to put one on the gable end of the bead cottage but it so needed it that Bob relented and got me one. Charlie put it up for me on Monday. Here's a picture of me with my mom and sisters.

Bead Cottage Pictures

Here are pictures of the inside of the bead cottage. It's freezing out today and I made beads very comfortably. The studio is messy and disorganized right now because I have no storage. Over the next few weeks, I'll be thinking about the best way to store my tools and stuff. I don't want to rush out and get something to find that I don't like it after all. So these pictures are taken in each corner and the last picture is the view from my torch.

Almost done

Kirby came and put in my speakers, so now I can play my iPod, or watch TV or listen to NPR while I make beads. It's like he was reading this very blog and answered the wish I posted just last night. I was going to make beads this afternoon but since the sound guy was here, I couldn't really. Maybe Monday, since I'm busy all weekend.

Plus I still have to move the rest of that glass. That is not fun. Not fun at all.

Beads!

These are beads that have been soaking since mid-September. They were still hard to get off the mandrels, believe it or not. Actually three of them are new beads, made in my bead cottage. The first one I made is the one on the left. The other two are at the top, under a blue flat bead. I made one bead today and moved a little glass. I'd like my sound guy to come and put in my speakers so I can listen to the radio or some music. That's the last creature comfort that is needed in the cottage.

Woot!

Here I am making my first bead in the bead cottage! I haven't moved all the glass yet or all my other stuff but I had to try it. I made three. I'm definitely keeping the first one, and I'm putting it with the first beads from my garage studio. This is so exciting! Bring on the snow!

Brotherly Love

Gary (the cat) just loves Barney (the dog). The other day, I caught Gary several times sidling up to the already sleeping Barney to sneak in some cuddle-time. At last I was able to take a photo. Barney, when he's awake, tolerates Gary's rubbing on him to a certain point, but is likely to lunge when Gary crosses Barney's line.

On the bead cottage front, the dumpster went away the other day. I was just able to catch a photo as the truck pulled out of the driveway. Goodbye, dumpster! Today Artie the plumber came to install the gas lines and regulators. Tomorrow I'll be connecting the torches and testing them out.

Sunday musings

So Robert and I started moving our stuff into the bead cottage. First came the kiln and then the glass storage cabinets and the workbench to put them on. Then Robert brought in his anvil into the forge area. I don't want to move too much stuff in because they still need to get up on ladders to finish the lights, fans and sound system. The less that's around to break, the better.

It's only 5:30 pm and it's dark already -- has been for an hour. I love the extra hour in the day today but I don't like the early sunsets. We've already had our supper because we had no lunch and with the extra hour, we were extra hungry. So we're just going to have a quiet evening at home. We'll probably have a fire in the fireplace and watch the football game.

Martha came over this afternoon and we restrung her fake pearls. It was fun and now I want to start beading with small beads again.

I can't wait to vote on Tuesday. I hope and hope and even pray that the election goes the way I want it to. I don't really want to get political, so I won't say which way I'm leaning. Suffice it to say that this is the most important election that I think I'll ever vote in.

I haven't put up pictures of my dogs here in a long time, so I'm going to find one and post them now.

Hooray for the Phillies!

Congratulations to the Phillies and to MVP Cole Hamels. If you're a Phillies fan, go to www.sportspropaganda.com and check out the most awesome Phillies prints.

A Rebus for Rebecca

Becky,
me so that we can go to the


store!


-Ellen

How to put up a cupola

My old studio and packing glass

I haven't posted this view since the patio was finished. Here's the bead cottage from the back yard.


In case you don't know what my present studio looks like, here it is. It's a mess right now, but this is the little corner of the garage I'm moving from. So you can see why I cannot wait to get into the bead cottage. Plus there's heat there. That's a huge bonus in NH in January. I can't wait until the first day it snows and the cars are tucked into the garage and I go out into the warm studio and make beads all day, while looking out at the birds at their feeders in the snow.



So our project for today is packing up my glass, so it can be moved. This is my glass storage for my 104 coe glass. Each triangular section holds 2 lbs or so of glass. I've emptied out the Effetre on the left. Robert worked on the Vetrofond on the right. We'll finish it up tomorrow.


We've filled up one big box and have started on a second. This is the awful part of moving into that fabulous space.

Join the Ranks!

(photos used with permission www.sportspropaganda.com)

Here are a few examples of the prints I was talking about yesterday. The Ellsbury print is going in the bead cottage and the Pedroia and Lowell posters are in the garage. Robert doesn't want as much Red Sox stuff in the house as I do, so we compromise. I just love this art and its propaganda-poster themes.

This one's for Martha

This morning Charlie and John finished up the forge ceiling. Martha has been bugging me to post a picture, so here it is. I absolutely adore this room; it is just gorgeous.


Here is another picture of my workstation, along with the pendant lights and the ventilation system. We're getting close to being finished.


And just in time for the off-season, my copy of Dirty Water: A Red Sox Mystery came today. I can't wait to dig in.

I also want to plug the awesome art of Chris Speakman. I just got another of his silk-screened prints yesterday. He's got Red Sox mainly, but also Phillies (go Phillies!), Mets, Cubs and other players. I have 6 of his prints and they're going to be hung in the bead cottage, above the windows on either side of the room.

I have to admit

I have to admit that when I turned on the ballgame last night I felt an immediate pang, seeing the excitement of the first game of the World Series happening at the Trop. I thought I was totally OK with the Red Sox not making it, and I am, but there was this initial puzzling reaction in me. I think it was jealousy. And because of this feeling, I really really liked it when the Phillies pulled out in front by a 2-run homer in the first inning. I felt "HA! Now you know what it feels like". I think it was a genuine case of schadenfreude. And then when the Phillies won 3-2, I was feeling very satisfied. I was telling Robert this this morning on the way home from the gym and he said "I think you're officially rooting for the Phillies!" So I guess I am. I really felt I could go either way until I actually saw the game being played in Tampa. That really bugged me.

Ventilation

Here's a shot of my ultra-modern 21st century ventilation system. It's pretty cool the way it works. We smoke-tested it last night and it really sucks air. That's a good thing.



The cupola is painted and is in the main room waiting to be installed:

Season Over

I'm not sad. I'm not going to mourn or wallow in pity. The Red Sox gave it their best shot and were plain and simple outplayed by a (slightly) better team. I don't feel like I've been robbed. I felt the losses much worse back in 1978, 1986 and 2003. I am a little ticked that those cowbell-ringing fans get to celebrate, but that's as far as it goes. They irritate me. We are lucky that the Sox were playing ball this long. When they were almost defeated, they made a record-breaking comeback in Game 5. I'm going to concentrate on the positive and all the good things about the 2008 season, rather than the unfortunate ending last night.

So congratulations to the Rays. I haven't decided whom I'll root for in the World Series yet. Probably the Rays, because they're American League. Bloggers are going both ways: for the Rays, because they're American League and for the Phillies so they can see them beat the Rays. May the best team win. Well, second best.

First I have to say how awesome it was to wake up to find out that the Red Sox won last night. I tried to stay awake, honestly I tried. I hope that falling asleep in the 7th inning isn't the same as leaving the park in the 7th because we're losing. I wanted to watch the whole thing, I just could not. I continued to believe and hold faith in them, though. I knew they could do it. And games like that are exactly why I watch baseball. I'm just sorry I missed it.

But what's more exciting than the Red Sox win is that the granite is in on my workstations! It looks fabulous. I've got some pictures.

This is my workstation:


This is a better view of the whole workstation:


Here are my red doors and a view of the patio partially completed:


And another view of the patio in process:

Separated at Birth?

Joe Maddon and Spencer Tracy?


or




Joe Maddon and Spongebob Squarepants?

Kirk the tile guy came and put in the tile. Here's the best picture I could get at the time. It's going to look really nice with the paint color I picked. I want the colors of the studio to give me a great big hug every time I walk in - I know that doesn't make much sense - and these colors do it for me. I need it to feel warm and inviting and not cold and sterile I guess is what I'm trying to say.


Eddie the mason started his work this week, too. Here are the granite steps in the process of being installed.

Happy Birthday Sarah!

Happy Birthday to my awesome sister Sarah! I hope you have many happy returns of the day.