Arizona 2012

The main theme this year for our Arizona visit was Baseball (after installation of the Vessel Sink!)  So much fun.

Exhibition game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers

Brendt plays for two teams - one, the Tigers, was in a tournament which was being hosted in Arizona.  Very exciting to watch.

In the finals, up against a strong team from Las Vegas, the Tigers made a great second place finish.  

We went to Jo-Jo's to celebrate - amazing pizza and teramisu!

Next,  Brendt's Little League game with the Diamondbacks.  Loving Ron's action shots.

Brendt's cactus garden

Myranda joined us for a vegan meal, and afterwards showed us her gymnastic skills.  She has made the OConner High School Cheer Team.

Ron and Ken  - last stab at the jig-saw puzzle

On the way home, we visited family in White Rock and Vancouver.

Louize, just a week after open heart surgery

Nibbles was self-mutilating and is having to wear a collar!

Two very special cats, belonging to our grandchildren

great visit with Debbie and Dave

Vessel Sink

The vessel sink for Suzanne and Ken was a labour of love - Ron enjoyed every moment of making it and was thrilled with the result.  This is what it was replacing.

Ron managed to salvage the taps and faucet

We found a black granite countertop - the holes are for the faucet and drain

Although vessel sinks have become very popular, we had to order a proper faucet online.  The drain was the biggest challenge.  We bought the drain in 100 Mile and Ron drilled the hole to accommodate it.  However, once at Suzanne's, we realized that not only did we want a brushed nickel finish, the drain we had was not the universal size for vessel sinks.  After searching in vain we ended up at Ferguson's Plumbing Supplies - an amazing place where everyone became involved in finding the right size drain fitting.  No luck.  We were sitting in the car deciding what to do next when a salesman who had observed our conversation came out with a drain fitting he had found in the archives.  We trooped back into the store - and it fit perfectly in the sink.  Wrong finish, but we were given the name of an electroplater and the drain fitting for free.  This was truly the best customer service I have ever experienced.

So, next came the installation of the faucet and sink.  

Very happy!

Pot Melt Experiment and other kiln projects

There are no mistakes when fusing glass.  Ron's most popular dishes are made up of pendants, bracelets, rings, etc. that somehow did not turn out as expected.  So the Pot Melt sounded like an amazing way to utilize not only mistakes but every bit of scrap glass.

The scraps are placed in a clay pot with holes, which is then suspended over a saucer.  This will catch the melted glass as it flows through.

The result was not exactly as planned.  Next time, bigger holes, and a stainless steel bowl.

Now, we will somehow recycle the "recycled" glass

Lots of activity getting ready for the first market in May - the 100 Mile Farmers Market

Pressed flowers on handmade paper - cards and bookmarks

Three dimensional dichroic pendants

brooches

mood pendants and rings

Having fun experimenting with a new display

Less than perfect brooches are used in the design of these soap dishes

Making Paper

Making paper is messy and time consuming - but I love it.  Years ago, I saw a paper making recipe in a recycling newsletter and I was hooked.  The recipe has evolved over the years, but the process remains simple.

I mix cut up cotton linter and corn starch with water in the blender, add plant material and then shredded scrap paper.  The blender is run at high speed with each addition

The pulp is added in small increments to a large tub of water. At this point, other cut up materials can be added, such as wool, plant material, etc......  Deckles are pushed into the tub and brought to the surface with a layer of pulp.  Excess water drains back into the tub, the deckle is covered with a cloth and turned onto the counter.  I use a sponge to remove moisture through the screen, lift up the screen and lay the cloth onto a board.  The cloth is ironed and left on the board to dry.