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"I
just love the way glass can be melted, molded and
manipulated! ”
Sculptural fish and other
sculptural pieces in glass caught the eye of this month’s featured
artist, Judy Carlson. Being crafty for as long as
she can remember, Judy was involved in everything from watercolors
to faux finishing furniture to making jewelry. Her love for glass
beads sparked the desire and need to understand how they were made.
Judy has taken classes with Deb
Crowley, Leah Fairbanks, Corina Tettinger, Katie O-Meara. She also
watched many demonstrations by Kimberly Affleck, Alethia Donathan
and Margaret Zinser, just to name a few. With anticipation and a
yearning desire for more information, Judy says, “I am signed up for
Pati Walton, Sharon Peters and Kate Fowle later this year.” She
also makes jewelry with her beads which she sells through her
website as well as bead shows.
Along side her husband; Judy is
an avid scuba diver. She says, “It is a huge influence and
inspiration for a lot of my work,” adding, “My husband and I both
take underwater photographs, and I use many of our photos when
making my beads. I see new critters under water and start thinking
of how I can make it into a bead before I hit the surface! I love
creating my sea life critters with glass. I just love the
way glass can be melted, molded and manipulated!" When asked whose
beads inspire her most, Judy replied, “There are really so many, but
I have to say Deb Crowley’s fish were the first to catch my eye.”
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Judy’s signature bead was
made when she was making a hollow fish bead. She said, “I was
making a hollow fish and before closing the hollow, I thought it
looked like an open mouth, but it needed more. So I made a
little fish first, then the big guy and Food Chain was born!”
(Food Chain is the name given to her signature bead by Sharon
Peters).
Using mostly soft glasses,
the majority of Judy’s beads are focals, although when planning
for a jewelry piece, she also creates sets. She creates her
pieces using a Carlisle high oxy mini CC. One of her favorite
tools to use for creating her beads is the lentil press,
introduced by Corina Tettinger, which she uses for many things
including her turtles, shells and even some of her fish.
Judy’s studio is set up in
her garage. “My first garage set up was a 2’ x 3’ table, and my
kiln sat on top of a stack of cinder blocks,” she says; adding,
“Boy have things changed since! We now have a larger garage;
therefore, everything else is on a larger scale.” Her advice to
those starting out is to “do what you can with the space you
have.” Judy believes “You can make anything work if you want it
bad enough.”
Spending about 20 hours
each week creating beads has turned Judy’s “once” hobby into her
exciting and fun business, and she has begun teaching others
this art.
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Please join us in the forum to
congratulate Judy, ask her questions, or just say
hello!
click here to go directly to the thread.
You can see more
of Judy's work at:
www.jujeebeads.com
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