It all started in 2005 when my best friend Kari and I went to San Francisco for a weekend to celebrate her birthday. On our last day there we went to a huge Artisan/Farmers market down by the Ferry Building. I bought a fused glass pendant there that I absolutely loved - it just spoke to me and had a great energy about it. Until that day, I had never even heard of fused glass.
When I received a class catalog 6 months later from a local community college that listed an Introduction to Fused Glass Workshop, I jumped at the chance. A whole new world opened up to me. And just like anything that you experience for the first time, I felt a mixture of excitement and intimidation.
At first it felt awkward - so much glass to choose from; so many colors and forms -noodles, stringers, confetti, powders, sheet, dichroic, iridescent, opaque, transparent; new tools to learn to operate - glass cutters, grinders, breaking pliers, runners, glass drills. It was overwhelming and exhilarating at the same time! I was fascinated by the concept of taking layers of rigid glass to such extreme temperatures that they transformed into a molten state, melting into each other to become one.
[caption id="attachment_562" align="alignnone" width="150" caption="Layers of glass before fusing"][/caption]
[caption id="attachment_561" align="alignnone" width="150" caption="The layers have fused together into one piece"][/caption]
After that workshop, I couldn't stop thinking about the design possibilities in glass. The problem was, the class wouldn't be offered again for 6 months. So I waited. I continued working in Interior Design even though it had lost its hold over me. And then I took the workshop again. I was hooked! I bought a small kiln and started buying glass and tools and all the materials I would need. I set up an area in my garage and started playing. I never dreamed that I would leave the world of Interior Design to enter a different world of design in a medium I had never even contemplated before. It didn't take me long to realize that this was not a passing fancy.
The process of transforming glass became a metaphor for the change and transformation I felt myself going through. I decided to turn my passion into a business and to call my business "COCOON". To me, it symbolizes a very safe and nurturing place that is within all of us. A place for retreat, reflection, rejuvenation, rebirth, and transformation. Every time I go into my studio to create, something new emerges from me, and something within the layers of glass is revealed in a way that it has never been before.
This is why I do what I do. And this is why I love it.
Beautiful story!!! There's nothing that compares to doing what you love.
ReplyDeleteYou are truly talented. I have been enjoying my pieces and continue to receive compliments on how unique and cool they are! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm so excited for you! I felt an instant liking to
ReplyDeleteYou the first day our dogs met - oh so long ago.
Thank you for sharing your passion and beauty so openly.
It is courageous and inspiring. I treasure the pieces I own
Can't wait to shop some more. Much love and happiness to you
and your family as you continue to follow your heart.
Xo, Dawn
You are such a sweetie. Thanks Dawn, and likewise!! I am so glad you are following your passion as well. I took my first anyusara yoga class in Temecula last weekend - loved it! Let me know when you are teaching!!
ReplyDeleteAmen to that!
ReplyDeleteThank you Sandy!! Love to hear that you are enjoying them!
ReplyDelete