Moving On.....and Up

This past week, Rhode Island suffered it's worst flooding in over 100 years.

When I awoke early Tuesday morning to see that my sump pump had not worked properly, I was facing an inch of water in my basement, and it was rising quickly. By 6 am, it was clear that anything I did that day would be to maintain the water level. 2 sump pumps and a shop vac (and 3 people), worked all day. And we won that battle! Very little was lost.

(Some of my neighbors were not as fortunate. 3 blocks from me, residents were evacuated by Emergency crews on rafts).

However, the Studio resides about 100 yards from the Pawtuxet River in Cranston, and was one of the areas that was hardest hit by the floods

This is the Studio. The water is over 5 feet deep (inside and outside). My heart sank, and my knees buckled when I stood there.

It took the River 2 days to recede enough for us to enter the building. I did not know what to expect......I knew it would be devastating, and very mucky, but it was worse.

Very little was where it *should* have been. Tables were taken clear across the studio. In 3000 square feet, you could not walk 2 feet without running into something large.

This is my studio space, in the back of the building. Notice my *safe* shelf, that floated down to safety as the waters receded.

I am still heartbroken, but I am moving on (and UP, to higher ground). Amazingly, I was able to salvage about 70% of my inventory. But that's it. All my display, packaging and supplies were destroyed. And my beloved glass tools? They were the first thing I looked for, and I found them (hooray!).

Tanner Glass will continue.....it just make take me a little while to get settled. I will find a glass studio to rent, so I can continue to make all the things I love to make. But for the short term, I am consumed with salvaging what is left.

For all the well wishes, I am eternally grateful. Thank you all for your support.

Back in Business

There has been much concern expressed about the state of the furnace (thank you!)

The furnace (the source of all the glass) at the studio had to be shut down for maintenance.

In November? Yes. The worst possible time of year to have it turned off. This was unscheduled maintenance.

(Unfortunately, turning it off, and back on is not so simple. As you might recall from this blog post, it operates at 2100. So, it takes about 4 days for it to cool down. And another 4 days for it to get hot. All total, including the maintenance days, it will have been unuseable for about 12 days.)

As of now, the furnace is just about Hot, and we will resume working on Tuesday.

The most obvious question I was asked was:

What will you do? Two weeks with no glass?

And here is my answer.......

A lot!

Just about everything I make involves some type of Cold Work. Which means, it has to have additional thing(s) done to it when it is cold.

Bottlestoppers, Sea Stones and Oil Lights have to be ground (a process used to make things level or flat). Sea Stones and (some) vases have to be sandblasted (a process that gives the glass an etched appearance).

Bottlestoppers have to be glued (to cork or chrome plated stoppers)

And then there are the finishing touches.......

Ornaments have to be strung with ribbon, Chrome Bottlestoppers are packaged, gift boxes are stamped, Pocket Coins are packaged. There's a lot to do.

And then, of course, there are the Magnets and Hooks. Last Xmas season I sold over 400 sets (that's SETS, not individual) Magnets/Push Pins. I'm certain I would have sold more if I had the inventory. And this year alone, I have sold over 200 Hooks.

So, I've been busy. And in reality, have enjoyed this "cold" time. For, soon enough (10 days to be exact), I will begin my run of Holiday Craft Shows.......and will be grateful for all the Hot, and Cold time I've had at the studio.

Tick Tock Tick Tock

Time is running out.......

I am so, so, so, so close to 500 sales on Etsy! That means there is one, yes, one more chance to win a $30 gift certificate to my Etsy shop. See this post for details.

And......

Tomorrow (Saturday October 12th) is your last chance to visit me (and some of my friends) at the Providence Open Market. So, get out there!

www.providenceopenmarket.com

Lastly.....

I am sponsoring a giveaway. Kelsey contacted me, and asked if I would take part. One look at her blog and I said "yes"! Head on over to her blog to see how you can win something from me!

...............
Those clocks in the picture? Someday soon, one of them will be mine. Made by Uncommon, and I found them.......where else? On Etsy.

Enjoy!

Beat the Heat

The summer is not my favorite time to be a glassblower. The winter......ah, yes. But, the summer, not so much.

We can't air condition most of the studio.......it's inefficient due to the space (big old mill building), and the fact that glass can't cool too quickly (and blasting cold air in there would cool it too quickly).

For those of you that have spent this summer in New England, you know that we have barely had a summer.......until now. All of a sudden, it's extremely humid and temps are averaging around 88 degrees.

So what does that mean for the studio? 100+ degrees. And remember, the furnace and reheating chamber are working at 2100 degrees, and the ovens we use are at 900.

It's hot. So hot.

And it kicked my butt.

My diagnosis was heat exhaustion (thank you, WebMD). After 2 days of working in those conditions, my body just said "no more, please", and shut down. Normally, by August I have acclimated to these conditions, and 2-3 days of working in the "oppressive" weather is manageable (barely, but it is). But not this year.

A day later, I feel better, and was back to glassblowing......but only a half day for me today.

(and lots of time in my air conditioned office).

Stay cool.

Mythbuster.....

Myth: You have to have Mega Lungs to be a glassblower

Not true. One's lung capacity has little to do with their ability to be a glassblower. Working "hotter" has everything to do with one's ability to be a glassblower.

I find myself contanstly telling a newcomer to "get it hotter, get it hotter, get it hotter", as I watch them struggle to get a bubble in an ice cold gather of glass.

In it's molten state (in the the furnace), it's about 2100 degrees, and is the consistency of honey. As soon as you "gather" glass from the furnace, and begin to work with it at room temperature, it begins to cool. And it cools quickly. The colder it gets, the harder it is to work with.

Think of bubblegum for a moment.......

We all know it's much easier to blow a bubble when the gum is "new"..........chew it for a while, and it becomes harder to blow a bubble, right?

So, apply that to glass. New gum=hot glass. Old gum=cold glass.

Understanding heat, and being able to work "hotter" is just one of the challenges one has to face as they learn to blow glass. And increasing lung capacity? Save that skill for a marathon.

Save A Lot

I try to be green........and save some green, whenever possible.

As a glassblower, packing materials are an essential, important part of shipping. I need to be certain that my wares will make it to their destination safely. Until recently, I used bubble wrap (kids love me for it), packing peanuts and new boxes. And sometimes I still do.

But, I have found some money and earth saving tips that have proven to be as good as the old standby products. And I thought I'd share them, as well as some of the "don'ts" I've learned along the way, too.

DO

~visit http://www.freecycle.org/ (Free Cycle) to find bubble wrap, boxes and packing peanuts

~use paper shred instead of packing peanuts (to keep it tidier, I put the shred in plastic shopping bags, and tie them shut). Works like a charm

~use newspaper circulars as packing material/fill

~liquor stores are great for boxes.....sometimes I have to double-box my work, and these are perfect as the "inside" box

~talk to owners of local gift/craft shops.....many times they have work shipped to them (from artists, like me), and end up with a surplus of packing material

DON'T

~use boxes that have been shipped more than twice. They tend to have been "beaten up" along the way and are much less effective

~use paper shred that is just loose in the box. Well, you can, but after receiving many boxes packed this way, I began to resent the sender(s). The clean up is ridiculous. And, they tend to settle A LOT during shipping.

AN EXTRA TIP (for those that sell at retail shows):

Save time, money and resources by using a Stamp instead of labels or "hot stamping" your gift boxes and boxes.

I ordered mine from Tearbearco (http://tearbearco.etsy.com) Custom made, with my business name and Etsy address. It has more than paid for itself! (and takes me less time and effort than sticking labels!)

I welcome your tips for re-using packing materials......or sources for them, too.