Hospital

This is becoming more of a personal diary.
It was never meant to be, I thought I would write only about work, but Life is getting in the picture and taking up a bit more space than was intended.
So, after Henry's visit to the nurse for a dressing turned into a 9 day, and counting, hospital visit, it seems the problem is with the kidneys and the heart.  Dad feels ok, but cannot get up and move around as malfunctioning kids prevent blood going around and he gets dizzy and lightheaded. I do not know how serious all this is, but at 95 I guess you have to be ready for anything.
Meanwhile we have to attend to mother, 93, who has dementia but is quite good, given all this. She misses him like hell, as he does her. That is sad to see.  The family have to be kept informed, so I set up a new mailing group so they can all get the news at once.
Christmas is over, only NY to go, and then back to whatever work we can be getting on with.  I hope to have some pics of SOMETHING before too long.
Cant write a weekly blog with no pics, can we?
Cheers.

Good news and something to show

So it is not all about bad news... it turns out my dad is reacting to medication and that has been sorted and no more dramas and he is coming home. What better news for Christmas.
The other poor so and so's in the ward are all suffering from heart problems far more serious, and though they look like my dad, they are mostly 30 years younger than him. My age.

And finally I managed to complete some paperweights. They have the felt backing, the boxes, and are ready to go!  Yeh. Now I will being using colour, but so far we have made a start.
Happy Christmas, again (ps, I will get proper pics done when I have a larger collection, or try to do myself even.)

Just Glass show in January

At the PM Gallery in Ealing, there will be an exhibition of glasswork from the Just Glass Group of makers. Members have or have had an association with Richmond Adult College.
http://www.wsimagazine.com/uk/browse-by-continent/europe/united-kingdom/just-glass_20131014142042.html#.UrOGuTIgGSM
We have had this publicity, which is very nice.  Here is 1 of 4 items I will be showing.

Mirror with Monsters of the Deep

help, Christmas is here, again

Well, I can't stop it happening, though I would like to.
I am trying to find tenants for our 2 flats, at the same time. Lovely tenants left Augustus Road after 2 years, and we need 1st timers for our new flat.  But is Christmas and very quiet.
Then there are the xmas parties.
Down below pics at the Swimming Pool party.
Very concerned right now as immediately after the party Henry (dad) had an episode that resulted in hospitalization and we wait to see if the good doctors can get on top of an infection that has been going on. Not good.
So, those are my concerns, while still grappling with all the requirements and forms and god knows what for Pure and actually getting some work done....?  not a chance at the mo.

View from living room, no curtains yet,
and windows to be replaced in 2014

Bathroom!

Stef (husband) and Dad. Stef's English is not so
hot and Dad cant see, so between them
reading the joke is not so simple.
But looks like Dad got it.

Serious talk with swimming buddy, Jean

So

Nearly nothing for this week

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/
I have discovered Huff Post and it is great.
Otherwise, sweet nothing to report.
Been doing some engraving, but looks nothing till they are painted, next week, then I will photo (reason is it is hard to see without paint!).
Flat will be finished next week too, and then we will have Christmas.
If anyone is reading this, have a jolly holiday and join me for more action in the New Year. Greetings.

Exhausting week

It has been a bit too much, and none of it work related.
HOWEVER, there is always something, no matter how insignificant, to say.
The Pure London event is cracking on.... loads and loads of admin and build up and stuff to do. Amazing. But good Laura is handling it, beautifully, for me and negotiating her way through the thicket.  I now have my own page, http://www.purelondon.com/page.cfm/Action=Exhib/ExhibID=1867.

Some of the stuff that has taken over this week has been the parents: the odd crisis with father which has repercussions as mother depends totally on him. Today he has his 95th birthday. He is ok, but on strong antibiotics which knock him out a bit.  We dont talk about what we would do if anything happened to him;  doesn't bear thinking about, really. Mother 93 and pretty well out of it with dementia.
Cousins in London, this week only, from Australia, so they need to be seen. not staying with us.
Same week visiting us my old friend on a jaunt to London, WAS staying with us. Somewhat needy as is disabled so not able to do everything and special diet needs...... and she got a cold so did not go out as was the plan.
And Stefan very sniffy with a cold, but bashing on in the flat, trying to get to the end of it. ( is looking better all the time)too  And I have been there to help out with the painting.
And then tenancy of the first flat is ending in a week or so, so that had to be photo'd etc etc and got ready for advertising, and is now posted.
That was this week.  I do not want many more like that. Next week I will get back to work and make some of the paperweights as gifts, perfect.

Clarification

Waiting to be painted and backed with leaf.

I realize the last blog may not have been very clear. The pics of the paperweights showed them waiting for painting. Without paint all you see is the engraved gold and the cloth they are lying on.

Producing at last

Drawing into the gold

There is nothing quite like getting the bum on the seat.  Getting into the work is not so easy if there are a zillion distractions, BUT, once the ice is broken and you can actually sit down for a while, and produce, it is a great feeling.
So, not only are the pw's beginning to pile up (6!) but they are quite good. By that, I mean I am doing my best to draw them as well as I can.  What more can I do? And I think they will be nice.  Whether they will sell, I will have to trust.

Meanwhile, the building goes on. Stefan has just come back from a week in Poland where the foundations have been laid for our little house (not so little, actually). There will be pics. The chaps will be starting the walls this week, so it is going up! Incredibly exciting.

The renovation on the flat here  had a tiny hiccup with one of the Polish builders (the full time one unfortunately) turning out to be unable to control his drink, (only 1 out of 5 in all, not bad) and Stefan wasn't here to handle it. I could see it when it was obvious, but not when it wasn't, and I had no idea what to do!  No experience running a project like that. I just wanted us all to be happy. The minute Stefan walked in and saw what was happening he took control and now all is better.  It shows what is involved with such a job, and how you need to be completely on top.  So we carry on.
Have a good week!

Close up

Creeping along

As ever progress very slow in the studio but the discipline of the blog is just what I need. How to start?
Well, we should have some pictures, 1, 2, 3 and some text.

1. Blank paperweights ready to be gilded

A series of British animals; I have forgotten what this creature is, but he is nearly done. Having a bit of trouble with the fox, but more about them later.

So, what news.  The renovation of the flat is taking longer than expected, of course, but then the amount of work to do in 62 sq metres is enormous! As our first such project I think it is going very well, with only minor hiccups. As we are not so experienced, things like forgetting to match tile, wall and floor without forgetting the countertop for the bathroom can all be counted in the steep learning curve. And running a cornice along a wall/ceiling that is half tiled along its length, only, presents an 

2. Gilded glasses

3. Furry on a branch, drawn and ready to be painted.
All on the back of the paperweight, so will be reversed.

interesting problem.  Similar to laying out the page of this blog, with pics where I want and text to fit!

Laura and I are preparing for Pure London and in the process have made contact with Julie-Anne Dorff from Harpers Bazaar. She is being most kind and helpful and is going to feature the cufflinks in December and February in the online editions. Cool, or what.  Let us just see what happens next.

No 4 is the back of our house, another ongoing project to keep us occupied, and No 5 shows some front garden. Pics of the finished

4. The house is on  a corner so it tapers.
The front garden is large, the back reduces to a point.
This shows where an extra room is to be added to the back.

back extension will come later.

Back to the studio to grapple with the fox.

More soon, f

5. View of front garden

Getting more regular!

Well, I am getting into the habit of at least writing something each week!
I have some more drawings but there have been too many other demands on my time so the gilding will have to wait. Next week there will be progress and I should have some more pics of the exciting stuff.
I am ready to head off to West Dean for the Gift Day, followed by a nice weekend with visiting son and grandson.
I am thinking constantly about the show, see below. My first grown up Trade Fair and I want it to be a success..... however you care to measure that.
So that is all for now, got to get on.
If you have been, thanks for reading.

The story so far

As I have mentioned, progress is painfully slow on the 'work' front.
'Work' in quotes as I refer to any results from the studio, rather than other activities.  So I get in there when I can, in between other things that have to take precedence, like the aged 'p's who are getting frailer by the day. If they need something, then it has to be done, and other stuff has to wait.
Likewise the flat renovation, which is going great guns, and is going to be splendid, but if we have to go to choose floor tiles, then it has to be done! One day, not too long, tenants will be all settled in and I can get back to life.
Meanwhile, I continue to make drawings for the paperweights...  here are some. The pics are a bit fuzzy.

Getting sorted for West Dean Gift Day with samples and books.

  

update

Horse heads

Badgers

Apologies for especially bad pictures.
These are from a series of first drawings of British animals, from pics. To come, dormice, roe deer, red squirrel etc.  I will redraw them, several times, then draw them into the gold leaf.
It is amazing how long it takes to really know the animals, and I am nowhere near. I need to go to the Nat. History Mus. and draw the skeletons.
I will post more as I do them.

Progress is very slow as we are busy renovating a flat we have bought, near us in London. We will rent it out, and the whole process is very interesting.  I have become accredited as a landlord and am concerned to do the job well.

The bride and the pendant

The bride proudly shows off MY pendant!!!

London and all its offerings

Views of London Bridge from Southwark Bridge

As usual it has been full on.
Happy to say I was in a Charity show recently at the RCA, and one of the pieces sold!  The artist gets what he wants, (in case one should suppose Charity/give away for free!) I wasn't giving anything away! Very cheery.
And am planning to go the whole hog next year with Pure London in Feb (Olympia) and The London Pet Show in May, Earls Ct, 1. So big, grown up shows that mean business. If this doesn't get the stuff launched, nothing will. Laura and I will do a systematic publicity campaign and off we go.

We are up to our eyes renovating a newly bought 2 bed flat, for renting. A big learning curve that I am totally enjoying. Stefan is a builder who knows all aspects. He is Proj Manager and has brought in all sorts of Polish guys to carry out the work and it is, so far, going swimmingly. This turns out to be a satisfying process, demanding the best of us.

I will get back to work quite soon, working on a bunch of paperweights I have been lucky enough to obtain.  It has been a long time since I was at the bench.

Teaching coming up at West Dean, next month... a Gift Day.  Should be lots of fun.

Young man

This is grandson, Grisha, 4. Dressed for the recent wedding of his aunt, in Bavaria. With a new battle scar on nose. A most edible creature.

The bigger picture

Our London garden.

So, the garden alone could be a full time job. It is all vegetables. We inherited it from my mother who grew specialized little plants that to my mind were not only useless, certainly inedible, but didnt even look good.
This is a functioning patch, at the front of our triangular house (where two roads meet), thus overhanging the pavement. I am amazed no-one pinches the beans! And, true to Bauhaus principles, form follows function. It looks fabulous, and we have bought any greens for months.
This is one thing.
Another, is rather heavy family obligations, which eat time.
The purpose of this bulletin is to explain to myself why I am getting so little work done. It preys on my mind and is a constant challenge to overcome. How to live with the fact that my work is now classified (by my husband) as a HOBBY. After all these years. It takes a bit of getting used to.
I continue with it, of course, and as always selling it is the hardest part, by far, but sell it I must. So therefore I have to do the fairs etc etc etc. It simply will not sell itself.
Oh well.....   I am very privileged to have such problems.  Onward and upward.

High class work

This is done by Peter Binnington.
He works in the depths of Dorset, UK and is little known.
The work is done on the back of glass, with a variety of precious leaf and paint.  No CAD here, just damned good drawing. I hope those clients, whoever they are, appreciate what they have got.

caa appl., again

I have just sent off another application to join the Contemporary Applied Arts. I wonder if they will have me this time. http://www.caa.org.uk/
They have just moved to a new, Southwark, address.  Wish me luck, and if not, hey ho.

September, summer over

At last, back to the blog.
I have no pics yet, but we have been to a 2-day family wedding in  Garmisch Partenkirchen, in Bavaria. My son, Laurie, lives there with his family. It was one of those occasions that went like clockwork, where most got, if not drunk at least very jolly, let their hair down and completely relaxed. We will have very happy memories.
Back to London and the stress of having rather too much to deal with kicked in straightaway, only to ease up after a few days of gradually, slowly getting on top.
To Garmisch yet again in a couple of weeks to participate in a conference: 8 Tagung zur Hinterglaskunst,  (8th Annual Conference of Reverse glass Painting) 4/5 October.
It will be held at the Schlossmuseum at Murnau, where so much traditional glass painting was done.
I am to do a practical demo, struggling along with my horrible German (my head is full of Polish, which goodness knows is only elementary, and at my age switching is like turning a blooming liner).
My chum Erik Winkler will be giving a talk on the whole history.

He is Dutch, so German is no problem.
Last year I had prepared a paper so I could read it. The audience broke up when I tripped over one of those schwippesterer words (I made that up) and burst into giggles. At least that broke the tension. Heaven knows it had been pretty dry and German until then.

The other thing is I am going to be taking a stand at Pure, London, in February, 2014. www.purelondon.com It will be at Olympia. It is fashion and accessories.
I am a bit nervous, it is a big investment, but I have to do it as all the buyers come, looking for the next new thing, or for anything, frankly, that will turn a profit, I guess.
It will save me a lot of nerves and footwear to be where they will come me, rather than me trying to find them. I will have the jewellery and also some new paperweights which I think will be very exciting. All sorts of possibilities there!
I visited it recently and met the charming Jennifer Chuks.
She is young and just starting out, and asked me to help publicize her work.
Her site is cheekypoppins.co.uk, and she make accessories for shoes etc.  I found the goldiest one I could for the blog.  If you are reading this, take a look at the site!
Thats it for now, more soon!  Take care.

 

See the button?

Buttons for a waistcoat

Detail

Detail

These buttons are done as offerings to potential clients. We will see what happens. I have used moon gold to match the embroidery and paint glazes to try to match, in paint, the changing colours of the leaf. Not easy, but is doable. I am pretty excited by the possibilities.

Slack, simply slack

So when was the last post? June I think.
That is simply unacceptable. (ha)
From here on I will aim to get a note, however short, on every week or two.
Life is complex, a lot going on. Which is NO excuse.
To explain these pics:
Stefan and I are rebuilding on the site of his childhood home, in Stopnica, Poland, 100km NE of Krakow. We spent a few weeks in the summer, getting it ready for the builders who will come in soon and lay the foundations. The plan is to do a lot of work ourselves, and we expect it to take up to a couple of years. Maybe it will be quicker.   We want to live there. When we can actually make the move is predicated on the fact that we are living with and caring for my elderly parents, each mid 90's.
To me it is beautiful. Very lush in a good summer, like this one. I am crazy about the easily availability of fresh, seasonal fruit and veg. The weather is extreme and the winters long and hard.
But, you have to live somewhere, and the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. We will have a super duper little house, very warm, and surrounded by extended family who live from next door to all over Poland.
My own family is tiny: my son and his family live right now in Germany, and who knows where they will live next. So why stay in London? We can choose; what a privilege.
The language:  It has its horrors, but although of course I will never be able to speak well (I assume; who at 67 learns Polish for heavens sake?) I think it will be ok.  I am getting a bit of a handle on it. It is certainly better every time I visit, so there is hope!

Me clearing rubble and shoving it outside

The picture is taken standing further over to the left, with the tree on the right. The end wall, on the right, will also come down, so the builders have access to lower the floor to the level of the garden, thereby gaining height for a 2nd floor.

So, meanwhile I am working on the business and building new clients.  So far I have had custom from a couple of clients in Savile Row and Burlington and Piccadilly Arcades, and am working on samples for more clients. It seems they all like the idea of painted glass cufflinks and buttons done to match fabric. It is a bit fiddly and not cheap, but for those who want something very special, it is a good thing.

Meanwhile I have been included in Who's Who in Gold and Silver, a great honour.
http://www.thegoldsmiths.co.uk/exhibitions-promotions/who's-who-in-gold-silver/

Also work continues on samples for clients with my friend Lucy Batt, lucyalexandrabatt.com. She engraves glass and together we can decorate glass, front and back, and as usual, possibilities are endless. She has some excellent clients who want exclusive designs; just the thing.

The website is being redone as I write, by Tony Astley, www.sixtillnine.co.uk. That is exciting; the shop will work and look good and hopefully I will be able to generate business that way too.
Laura, my trusty assistant, is helping me get to grips with Facebook, which is still a struggle for me. Stefan is very good at it, (he does it, and I don't) and he has posted loads of pics of the Polish venture: https://www.facebook.com/stefan.majka.1?fref=ts

More soon and, as the man said, if you have been, thanks for listening. f

In situ by night

By day

Home made pic

another one

I have been rushing around trying to get as much out of London Jewellery week as poss. I missed The Jewelry Show, but you cant do everything.  Talked to lots of people about exhibiting.... learned a lot.
Consensus is I should do Treasure. The J Show is very costly and more for mass produced stuff. Mine is def not that.   Treasure will be good for meeting new people and finding clients.
Then there are the Pet shows. With luck I can find commissions through them, for pet portraits. Also I will do pics of horses!  That is a rich vein of customers, I think.

Work plans and a bit more

From the front with a couple of glazes on.

Stage 3

Stage 4. From the back, scratching through the paint

Now it is backed with foil so the silver leaf is both matt and shiny. I will photo it in situ. It is a devil to photograph, as anyone who has tried will confirm. But once in place it will be easier to read.
This is photographed from the front.
Size, 20" x 28". I used 4mm toughened glass.






Happy to say I am now collaborating with Lucy Batt, www.lucyalexandrabatt.com who is a glass artist working for interior designers. Together we are offering decorated glass that is NOT kiln formed, rather decorated with cold techniques that not only better fit tight(er) budgets (not you and me though, we are talking yachts and planes here) but that are less stressful to produce.
Lucy sandblasts the front,  using stencils and working deep, and then I paint and gild the backs! A perfect combination. These panels will be suitable for items such as table mats and table tops, as well as for wall coverings for bespoke interiors.

I hope in the future to get more work up on the blog.
One slight problem has been the lack of time. I am of an age when I get very tired and need my evenings. I am not a Margaret Thatcher type who can manage on 4 hours!
My husband, Stefan, and I are living with my parents and taking care of them. They are both well over 90 and pretty frail.  So my time at work is limited and very scattered. I am trying really hard not to get frustrated and to accept it all, (ha!) but a bit of a balancing trick is going on.  A lot of shopping, cooking, washing etc.  Anybody reading this know what I mean??

To get the work done, out there and sold is a big job!  I am trying (like LOTS of others) to get the jewellery marketed, without the lovely Laura, my p.a., who has just swanned back to Canada till September.
I did do well on my first visits to town as I said in a recent blog, but it needs more!
This is what I need to find:
1. a group of jewellers who will be happy to have me within their group, in order to share in exhibitions and be part of a community. This is not urgent, but I need gallery exhibition opps.
2.  suitable trade fairs to exhibit, such as the Pet Fairs, where I would push the Pet Portraits as jewellery; meet clients/collectors, gain commissions and even sell! Yeh!
3.  the right retailers to stock the work.
4. More clients like the last lot..... tailors, shirtmakers, fashion people for the buttons (!) etc.

None of this is rocket science, I just have to get on my bike and do it. It takes time but that is ok.

More pics soon once the splashback is in place.  

I do understand some people read this.  (someone I had never met before told me she read it!!) I was thrilled. Please people, if you are reading this, please stop by to say hello (comments?).
Best, f

Splashback, working larger.

Splashback stage 1. 

This is the first stage of a splashback for behind a cooker. Regular, toughened 4mm glass (not low iron, so rather greenish, which is no problem).  Strips of silver leaf laid on the wetted glass, left to dry and distressed.

Splashback stage 2.

First layer of paint, with a variety of colours, laid on in one go. Working in reverse I have to imagine how layers will look all together. The silver leaf is now covered. Further layers will build up the colour. The work will be viewed eventually from the front.