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My Story
It is a thrill to add different colors of molten glass to the steel mandrel, to mix and manipulate them to bring my ideas into being. Alone in the studio, with the great morning NPR radio shows keeping me company, I experiment and play. Sometimes what I pull out of the kiln the next morning looks nothing like my vision, but that is part of the fun, and the journey.
All the glass beads and jewelry on this site have been made by me, unless otherwise noted. Each bead and each piece of jewelry is an individually handcrafted work of art; no two will ever be exactly alike. All beads have been properly kiln annealed for strength and durability and should give many years of enjoyment.
Making Flameworked (Lampworked) Beads
A cane of soft glass is melted over the very hot flame of a torch and wound around a stainless steel rod, called a mandrel. The size of the bead hole depends on the width of the mandrel. As layers of glass are applied the rod is slowly turned to keep the bead centered, and it is kept in or near the flame to maintain a constant temperature to prevent cracking. The value, or price, of a bead depends on the difficulty, size and time required in creating the design.
When the bead is finished it is placed into a kiln that is kept at a constant temperature, and eventually they are slowly cooled to room temperature. This process, called annealing, makes the bead strong and durable.
More of My Story
During a very cold summer vacation in 2005 in British Colombia, we landed on Salt Spring Island. It is relatively small, but packed with artists with open studios. We visited Avanti Glass, and Artist and owner Valla Eiriksson inspired my husband and me to take a two-day lampwork workshop with her, which we did a few months later.
A year to the day after we took that workshop I started melting my own glass, in early 2007. And with the help of some excellent lampwork books, plus the wealth of information available on lampworkers’ websites, I was on my way. Further inspired by artists at local bead shows I began to make sterling silver wire-wrapped jewelry, using my beads and silver findings to create earrings, bracelets, pendants and more.
My other artistic endeavor is playing second violin with the Community Women’s Orchestra. This is a wonderful, serious, yet very fun, group. We rehearse and perform at Oakland’s Lake Merritt Methodist Church. You are more than welcome at our performances; we would love to see you there! I also do some work for our own Oakland East Bay Symphony, with its marvelous maestro Michael Morgan. Yes, Oakland has a world class orchestra: you must come and find this out for yourself!
And welcome, once again, to the Ann Moen Designs website! I hope you enjoy what you find here. Cheers, ...Ann <amoen@sonic.net>
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