This is where I want to be day and night.  Unless, of course, if I get to go shopping for supplies or more glass!  It took a while before I got settled in my basement studio.  I unofficially claimed stake to the basement when we moved in.  First it was unfinished and I only had the ceramic table which I mainly used for sewing during my sewing phase.  Then, workout equipment moved in.  Haven't quite gotten into the exercise phase permanently.  During one summer, my boyfriend decided to finish one half of the basement which took a little getting used to.  But after a brief stint in an upstairs bedroom, I finally settled into both sides of the basement again.  This is now officially my studio.  Yes, I still share it with some workout gear, a tv we never watch, a foosball table and LOTS of books.  Humble as it may be, it's what I call home and where I find the most inspiration and satisfaction.  In some of the pictures, you will see some of my other art pieces.  I hope you enjoy a quick peek into my world...

Click on the thumbnails to enlarge picture

This is my work bench where all my bead babies are born

It took me a while to jump into bead presses.  There is definately a learning curve.  They are a lot of fun once you practice...a lot!

I love my chili pepper annealing kiln.  My beads go from the torch to the kiln which is digitally controlled.  This allows the bead to cool gradually to ensure structural stability.  One of the benefits of handmade artisan beads.

Yes, that's me.  Smiling from ear to ear because I got to play with two of my favorite color combinations:  Green and orange.  My latest obsession since this picture: frit, frit, frit, frit.

Some would consider this a poor person's glass stash.  A few additions have been made since...

This is my bead cleaning station and additional storage.  I also sometimes play with Polymer Clay and PMC here.

Here's another work surface which sometimes lends itself for drawing, painting and sewing.

The inspiration library

The administration hub of my bead world.

This is the jewelry making area.  Again, it's grown a bit since this picture.