A Breakthrough in an Old Design

In my last post, I talked about going back and working on older, familiar designs. I did this partly because I was at a roadblock working on one of my current designs.

It seems that I have a number of designs that I have been working on that I could not quite get right. One of these is an olive shaped bead that would have the same look as my “signature” donut beads. For some reason, I could never get them to look similar. When I started making my donut beads again, it suddenly struck me what I needed to do!

All I had to do was place the twisted cane onto the bead going from hole to hole instead of wrapping it around the bead. The latter method makes a really interesting bead too, but this is an elusive look that I had been trying to achieve for what? Two years?

It just became so clear when I started to pay attention to the motion that I was using on the donuts to apply the cane. I have made so many of these that it is almost second nature, and it freed me to, well, sort of observe myself. In fact, I was sort of narrating the whole process to myself when, like I said above, it struck me. It was almost hard to finish the bead I was working on so that I could give it a try.

I’m thrilled to figure out the puzzle. Now that I did, it just seems so obvious.

Please tell me that I’m not the only one that talks to myself when I’m working!

Rosemarie Hanus talks to herself and creates artisan lampwork beads at her home studio in Bath Township, Ohio. She has a website, Spawn Of Flame and a blog where you can see more of her work.