Years ago, on a lark, I bought a kiln and started fusing glass. The idea of melting glass fascinated me. I had no idea what I was doing, but I jumped in, researching and experimenting and having fun with it; learning a lot of lessons along the way.
I started making fused glass Christmas trees – it was fun and creative, and the ideas endless. Of course there were challenges, such as how to make them stand up, but I was hooked. I displayed a few on the piano that year and had orders from friends and family for the next season before the holidays were even over. Since then, I've made dozens of trees, some sports themed, others with skiers, teddy bears, ballet dancers, and cowboy hats. Some traditional and some modern, I even made a Tiki-style Palm, and a cactus "Christmas" tree!
I also enjoy making bowls, plates, ring dishes, and other decorative items.
I still make a handful of custom pieces each year — I love the challenge of creating something unique for someone. But what keeps me at the kiln is the endless creativity of glass itself: the shapes, the layering of color, the way light catches and moves through every piece differently.
