Thank you Honolulu!

Kimmie here:

I didn't get any pictures taken in Honolulu, so here's a nice kitty we saw hanging out by the canal in Kapaa.




We had a great time at the show in Honolulu last weekend, and especially visiting with friends Daniel and Karen Howell, of Dee Howl Beads. Karen grew up there, and they drove me and Morgan around a bit. We went up on top of Tantalus mountain and caught the view of the city just after sunset, before hitting a classic local burger spot. I was especially excited to go up Tantalus, since Karen told me she and her friends used to skateboard down that road back in the day. YIKES! She said they would grab the vines to slow down going around the turns. YIKES! Back when skateboards had metal wheels and if you hit a rock you are toast. YIKES!





Sounds fun.





I also got to meet Sara Sally LaGrand, whose work, face, and name were all familiar to me from past shows, but we had never actually talked. She is so talented and interesting. Her work is wonderfully expressive!





The show was great, so now I am pretty officially cleaned out of beads. At the show while visiting with other beadmakers it was hard not to get excited and start making plans for other shows, especially the next Softflex show in Honolulu. I kept having to remind myself that I don't have a torch here, much less someplace to put it and work. We are, of course, looking for an apartment, and working outside in this environment will be a pleasure. After we find a place, we will have to make a trip to San Diego for a major garage sale/packing/shipping vacation. Whee.





This Friday is the deadline to apply for a scholarship to the Gathering, the annual conference held by the International Society of Glass Beadmakers. I am planning to apply, if only for the practice at writing an artist's statement and putting down some goals on paper. I have never really done that before, and it seems like there are a lot of opportunities out there for artists who know how to do stuff like writing grants and proposals. Also, I am self-taught and would really value the opportunity to take a class there. I think I would take a class that seems totally contrary to the kind of work I do myself. I'd also like to pick the teachers' brains about how to get started teaching. I have done lots of demos and enjoy that; teaching seems like a natural extension of demonstrating.





If any readers have some experience with writing statements, teaching, or the Gathering, I would love to hear about it!

Finally Felted

Kimmie here:


At long last, I give you FELTZILLA, in all his glory!!!


(no photo could do him justice)

I'm really happy with how tight and smooth he is; the details really pop! I have been wearing the ring and it is so comfortable, thanks to Kate's terrific shank design. After my show this weekend, the Honolulu Glass Bead and Art Festival, I will send the ring to be moulded, so that I can have it cast in sterling silver. I want to sell FZ's but I'd like to keep this original for myself. Every ring will have its own, original, handmade felt Zilla inside. Of course, if somebody has a particular building in mind that they would like to see him wrecking, I will work with you on a custom ring!


I have a bit of clay left and a fresh idea for felt + PMC that I'm excited to get started on. This will be a bracelet, and will not have a monster-movie theme...

The laptop I have been using for over ten years decided last week that it was done, so I'm working on a new machine right now. I'm enjoying its speed, but not in love with the keyboard layout. Hope it won't take too long to get used to. We are trying wireless internet, too. The network seems to work fine, but the idea of pay-as-you-go seems to be a joke. One month or 1G, whichever comes first...Ha, that gigabyte is going to last us maybe one week. So here I am at the Duck again for the data-heavy communications...(I'm not sure why we call McDonald's the Duck; you'll have to ask Penny.)

The Duck here at WalMart is a real gathering place for the locals, it is funny to sit here for an hour and observe. Kauai is more like East Texas than I ever would have imagined, complete with monster trucks and rednecks (I use the term redneck not as an insult, but as an adjective). Not to mention the chickens everywhere.


Unfortunately, we are not free from mainland-style troubles here. There have been four bomb scares in the last two weeks at a local school. Some idiot, no doubt. A kid at my high school tried to call in a threat, but did it using the payphone in the courtyard, twenty yards from the principal's office. The principal saw him using the phone and put two and two together. I repeat, IDIOT!

In happier island news, we are now ready to hit the surf. Morgan's surfboard trailer is a complete success! Made of a thrifted golf cart and some bamboo, it looks great, too, like something the Professor from Gilligan's Island would have come up with.