Flame Kissed Glass

Turn to the left or the right?

2012-01-19T03:03:00.001-08:00

Mama G's Bead Release is in the house!! Yes, we finally took the plunge and started our own bead release. It feels wonderful btw!!!
This bead release is wonderful too. I was a die hard Fusion user. I loved that stuff. There was one drawback however. Getting the beads off the mandrel was a pain in the ______(Insert your own word.) I would always have to use pliers on the mandrel. ALWAYS! Didn't matter what size mandrel I used. Then of course the pressure I would put on the pliers always bent my mandrels. Oh yea, I'd still use the little buggers but of course, then I'd have beads that wouldn't come off the mandrel because of the bent part. I am so bad at throwing mandrels out and so I'd do whatever I had to do to strengthen back up. Yea that worked. Sure it did! Most of the time, I took a hammer to the mandrel to get beads off or to get it straight. No it didn't work!
So off to the trash can they went.
Mandrels aren't expensive. It shouldn't have been a big deal but it was. More frustration than anything.

This new bead release eliminates that. They come of the mandrel with a slight turn of the wrist on the mandrel (without a pair of pliers on the bigger sizes) and they don't even have to soak at all. Cleaning is a breeze too! So forget all the other jars of bead release I have. This is the one that's for me, created by me and hopefully by you too! I never, ever thought I would ever find a release better than fusion. To my surprise, it was my own that somehow worked!

How great is that?

Wanna see the logo?

Isn't it cool?

The Weekend is Done!

2010-12-05T21:09:00.000-08:00

Mom's doing better today! That's the greatest news ever.
I will be working on some new Val Cox Frit's tonight (hopefully) and getting the bulk buy done tonight.
I have some new Bullseye colors coming in this week so I'm excited to see the new color and to play a bit with it.
I'll share pics here when I do.
This is my last week in school. I have only one more final on Thursday and Tuesday is the day we get information for the "National Registry" test.
There's also an opening at the hospital in the ER so I'm about to go apply there as well. I hope everything works out because it would be nice to have something good happen once and awhile
Hope you all had a great weekend!

Life, Work and All Things That Drive Us Crazy

2010-12-05T00:47:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since I've blogged but there's so much going on and thought I'd share today. So much going on in my head about the future. Not only for me but my family life as well.

My mom was admitted into the hospital today for CHF. She's very frail and I'm not sure how this is going to turn out. I will be seeing her tomorrow. I also have finals this week and have been enduring quite a bit of stress from my son's wedding plans and dealing with one of my sister's cancer. It's all becoming a bit overwhelming right now and just holding on to my sanity is going to be hard enough. I can't work, sleep or eat and I don't want the business to suffer.

Being a one person business is wonderful, don't get me wrong but the truth is, my sale prices are not as good as larger distributors. It's like your main grocery store vs. Walmart. So that's got me thinking about the future of our store. I am now offering it for sale for someone that might want to take it over. Of course there will be a selection process as I need to make sure that the person who takes it over will be as dedicated to it as I have been for almost four years. You wouldn't only be gaining a "Name" but the reputation of the store and that means more than anything!
This job is my passion and it's my life but the passion has been dwindling. I'm tired and although it has grown so much, it's not enough to sustain me. This is why I'm in the ER program..just in case. I'll be sad to let it go and who knows, if I can't find a buyer and I do have outside work, I'll have glass to last me a lifetime or when a major earthquake hits. Yea, I still have some humor left! The next few months will hopefully tell me where I need to be. If it's here, I'll gladly stay here. If it's somewhere else, than I'll have to learn to let go. And that's the hardest part!
Contact me if your interested!

Reichenbach again

2009-11-16T22:08:00.001-08:00

Okay. All Products are online. Most of the product prices didn't change. One or two changed more then I wanted to like the Pinks...but everything else was under $1.00
I crunched numbers for 2 hours and I'm happy with how it worked out. Hope you will be too!!!

Reichenbach Price Increase

2009-11-16T15:33:00.000-08:00

It had to happen but I'm going to try and do what I can to keep the prices down. This is why I took Reichenbach off site for a little time.
I've been selling the Reichbach 104 line and the 96 COE line for exactly what you'd pay if you went to the main distributor of this glass which is Olympic Color Rods.
I've just taken the prices from their site and then divided it into pounds instead of Kg.
1 Kg of glass is equal to 2.2 lbs. So if glass costs (for example) $15 per bundle and I bought 4 bundles that would cost me $60.00. Divide that by 2.2 lbs which is 27.27 and then by pound and then by 4 for each quarter pound which ends up to be around $6.80.
I've been told by a few people that I am undercutting other vendors. Some are charging about $8.00 for only 2 oz which of course is half of the 1/4 lb while others are charging $3-$4.50 per rod which when added to a 1/4 lb is somewhere between $20-$22 per 1/4 lb. That would make the glass almost as expensive as silver glass!
So my job is to consider their prices and try and keep mine low without really hurting them as well. They have their reasons for pricing their glass the way they do and I do too. I wasn't really making money selling it for what I was and so I need to raise the prices a bit to make it okay for you guys but also to not undercut other vendors. My prices will not be much more then what Olympic sells it for but I have to add in shipping (which I've never done before) and keep myself out of the red when selling this particular glass. YOU MIGHT NOT EVEN SEE A CHANGE IN SOME COLORS AND A SLIGHT CHANGE IN THE REST. TRUST ME, IT'S NOT GOING TO BE A HUGE HIKE. I JUST NEED TO RUN SOME FIGURES AND THEN GO FROM THERE. IT WON'T BE PAINFUL...I PROMISE!
The popularity of these colors are also adding to the price on the distributor end so I have to go with how they go as well.
So anyways, that's the scoop and hope to have this done tonite. I will have the glass listed tonite as well. It's already up there but now I just need to add inventory that is arriving sometime tomorrow.
Thank you all for your continued support and just being great customers all around!

Longest Week Of My Life!

2009-11-09T00:26:00.000-08:00

I wanted to journal what I felt was one of the longest weeks of my life but there was little energy to do so. Now that the crisis is semi over, I felt it was time to put it out there. Isn't that what a blog is for?

My daughter who is 17 has been riding motorcycles since she was about 6 years old. As a family, we would camp and go motorcycle riding all the time. When our local track opened up for motocross racing, we entered the kids in them. I have 3 kids. I'd go and watch every time they raced. I remember Taylor's first crash where she pretty much flew over the handlebars. She cried, but then got back up and rode again. My oldest son Anthony had a good crash as well weeks later. That one required a hospital ride. No broken bones but a sprained foot. From that point on I couldn't seem to bring myself back to the track. The not knowing at that moment of impact was more than I could bare. Seeing them crashing, dropping everything and running to them was always what I did and the anxiety it caused each and every time just killed me inside. They stopped racing for a long time but have started back up these past few years.

On Mother's day this year, my middle son, Kevin crashed and landed on his head. He was airlifted to a trauma center about 45 minutes away (driving) only 10 minutes in the air. He had repetitive speech, threw up and was pretty incoherent for awhile. Thank God it was a concussion and no bleeding on the brain. It was not the greatest Mother's day this year.

A month or so ago, my oldest Anthony crashed. Same thing, "head injury," His wasn't as severe as his brother but again, it took a little away from me.

And now Taylor, by baby. Crashed a week ago today. I got the dreaded phone call close to noon last Sunday and rushed to the hospital. Her dad said she was okay but was complaining of back pain. Little did I know and when she got her CT results back, all I heard was broken back and that was enough to send me out of the room to totally disintegrate. I found my composure about half and hour later and headed back into the ER. She was still on a back board and neck brace. She spent almost 7 hours in a flat on her back position with those boards still in place until a neurosurgeon could read the xrays. She was finally taken off the boards and admitted to the hospital. We have been in limbo ever since. She broke her back at T-2, T-3 and T-4 which is her thoracic spine. From pretty much her shoulder blade area and downwards. If it had been her cervical spine, she could have lost her life or have been paralysed.
Sunday and Sunday night I spent with her and on Monday I went home to get orders out and then headed back to the hospital. Monday night, her dad spent the night with her so I could get a full night's sleep as Sunday night was pretty hard to do that.
Tuesday through Friday I was with her the whole time with just enough of a break to take care of business and make phone calls to her school and college.
On Friday night, she was allowed to come home. It was so hard for that week when you see your kid in pain. The constant iv pushes of pain meds made her dizzy, and nauseated. No iv fluids were given until the 4th day after me totally bitching to the nurses. She was out of it for about 4 days and then they began the process of weaning her off the IV meds and onto pill form. That was pretty tough on her. She always had a constant flow of visitors which was nice for both of us. At night, when she would be sleeping, I would walk downstairs and find hot water and just walk outside to feel alive. Inside the hospital is so quiet and so depressing. But then of course reality comes back as soon as you head into her room. Friday, we waited all day and through the evening to have a bed set up here in her room. It was nice to be home but in a way very frightening too. I think for both of us. She was worried that she'd be in severe pain and need to be put back on an iv. I knew that we couldn't do that because as long as she's being fed iv drugs, they have to keep her in the hospital and so we dealt with ways to cope with her pain levels to get her through it.
She's been home now for a few days and is showing much improvement. Pain seems to be more in control but this is only the first week. How will she be in a few days or weeks? She misses the outdoors and going to the movies and bowling. Hanging out with friend or trips to the mall. She was supposed to get her braces off and get her driver's license. All of this is now on hold.
My first thought was to sell her dirt bike. Just get rid of all of them. All my kids!
her brother raced today and it was anxiety for me waiting to hear if all went well. It did.
I know that kids don't think about death much and they feel like bad things won't happen to them but it does! As a mom, I can't do this again. She was blessed or lucky or whatever you want to call it but next time might not be as lucky. Is it worth losing your life over? She has plans for her future and my job is to help her get there. I am trying to give her freedom but I am still her mom that also needs to protect her.
We'll see what the future holds but as of right now, her riding in competitions is over. I could just get rid of her bike, End it right now but as a parent that doesn't have full control of the situation....I'll compromise. She can ride desert or just go riding casually but I will demand that the racing stop.
Maybe that's a bit harsh to some but... I want her around! This mom just can't take anymore of this.

And The List Goes On and On and On....The List Goes On..

2009-08-18T20:23:00.000-07:00

To all lampwork artists out there. Be aware that there is someone running rabid across ebay, etsy and your own website and randomly picking people to report. She is filing false information about your business to the IRS and your local government office. She goes to your store and buys something and then promptly asks for a refund giving as many excuses as she can. She then uses your "Personal" information to find out your paypal id# as well as any public records you have. If you live in Texas, she is trying to see if you charge state tax and if not, you'll be reported.

For a list of her "Known" names she uses, please click here.

If you have been targeted, contact me and I will also provide you with all the information about her that you will need to file suit against her. There are many working as a team and the more the merrier!

I just love Sonny and Cher lol.
As you've already read, there is a woman running rampid across the internet for attention. The poor thing. She really needs a hobby as lampworking just isn't her style. You see her beads are so poorly made that no one buys them. Funny thing is, she's claimed to have trained in Italy. Oh poor thing.
So she's gone around and bought beautiful beads from all of YOU wonderful lampwork artists. Then she turns around and puts them in her etsy store and sells them as "Her" Works of art. What a FRAUD! Her name is Ullja and she won't stop for anything......YET! Some of you may have seen your beads for sale by her. Some of you have not had the pleasure yet.
There are a group of lampwork bead artists and businesses that are now involved in a civil lawsuit against her.

But besides seeming to have multiple personality disorder, you'll see that this disorder has crossed over to her buying habits on the internet.
Just look at all the names she's used in what maybe a year or two?
Ready????
YOU SERIOUSLY MIGHT WANT TO SIT DOWN!

email names:
beadsnsupplies@yahoo is the email for her Paypal account
ukuntze31@aol
ullja_31@yahoo
ilovejewelery44@yahoo
ilovetxceltic@yahoo
leadscentreca@yahoo
livinglegallyandu@yahoo
lovepiercing@yahoo
Iamjammingtoday@yahoo
moniska4real@yahoom
caniko.2007@yahoo
seren35_co@yahoo
jade_us2099@yahoo
yakamoz_bodrum@yahoo
gotu200914@yahoo
hande_hatun@yahoo
lovepoboxes@yahoo
concernedc29@yahoo
concernedc58@yahoo

ids:
iloveboro
ilovejewelery
Beads Fouru
celticbusted
iloveleadscentre
ilikebakeries
ilovepiercings
livinlaughinlovinit
ilovesoap4me
copycatbusted1
Texan4u
iaminurbackyard2
bumpThis
hellofromlovelytexas
toolate4u
fishin4gov
concerned
Dawnitis
lovepoboxes
yoohooinurbackyard

HERE IS A LIST OF WHO SHE'S TARGETED SO FAR~:
Targets posted on her blog:
NAOSGLAS
CGBEADS
GLENN MINCEY
SYDNEYSDESIGNS
EVOLVINGBEADS
SISTERSBEADS
ACELTICGIRL2
COVERGIRLBEADS
MOJOGLASS
RUFUSANDROXY
MAMAPAINTER
DESIGNSBYKURATO
LUXBEADS
SUEBEADS
STONEYMARIEDESIGNS
JAVABEAD
KSEEBER
LAFFINGGULL
ICARUSBEADS
JAMNGLASS
NORAH62
LIVELAUGHLOVESOAP
GMDLAMPWORK
BEADGOODIES
SUBEARTHAN COTTAGE
STEPHANIE K NATURALS
TIKIBEADS
JUST PEACHY
MERMAIDGLASS, FRAUD ME...
SLCUNIQUE
AMRGLASSWORKS
TRACIDAWN78
LAKESIDELAMPWORK
LADEDACREATIONS
GINNOVATIONS
LENORASDESIGNS
BETSYBEADS
ASHTON JEWELS
DOUBLEDIPPEDSWEETS
CCTEXAN3
GOATMOUNTAINARTS

Lots Of Out Of Stock....Don't worry!!

2009-08-09T14:16:00.000-07:00

As you might have seen, there are alot of items out of stock on our website. Items have been ordered by the boatload :-)and should be here next week. We are also adding to our store some 96 COE lampwork glass. This way, there is more variety and different glasses to experiment with. Hope you like the changes. They'll be happening all summer long!

It's Coming Along

2009-08-06T14:43:00.000-07:00

Well the website is slowly coming along. Just finished school so am dedicating myself to having the new website up and running before the end of the month. When that happens, A nice sale will be ready to start as well as a few different lines of glass offered. It's exciting and I really like the changes that I'm making.
Hopefully you will too!

Artisans Beware!

2009-08-02T11:06:00.000-07:00

There is someone "U" know on the web right now that has been blogging up a storm. What she does is order from you and then she cancels her order immediately. She's trying to see if she is being charged tax on her item. If not, she begins the process of reporting you to the IRS and to your state officials. She has not succeeded in her mission and won't because she really didn't put much thought into what she created and she has NO idea about the actual laws.
You'll see her blog on my site as well as another blog from actual artists that have been on her hit list. Their names have been cleared and are taking action to stop her. (Legally)
Here's one blog created:
Artisan Truth Report

What's New!

2009-08-02T09:27:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a year since we have added anything new to our blog. Sorry about that. August should bring around many changes to our store. We have a new website being built that should make ordering easier and faster too!

We are also adding a new glass line to the store and may discontinue one as well. I'm researching now with customers of mine to see if what the majority says...Keep or not Keep! That is the question. Sometimes when a product is more of a hassle or inconsistent in many ways, it's time to listen and discontinue.
I'll update when a decision is made.
Stay tuned for some awesome pictures of Double Helix Ekho glass.