On my to do list for 2011 was to start my first blog to tell the world about me and my glass, so, hello!! 

I am Genevieve, a glass artist based in Halifax in West Yorkshire and this is my make or break year. What started as a hobby nearly 10 years ago is now becoming a realistic life changing event…  I still have a day job, but the end is in sight.  I have given myself a deadline of September 2011 for proving that I can make a living from my glass and I am now doing everything I can to succeed.  We only get one life, and I want to stop playing safe, and actually do something I love doing. 

So far the year has started well with lots of people interested in my stained glass and fused glass courses.  I run these in my workshop at my house and I totally love doing them.  I can’t get over how exciting it is sharing a passion with other people and inspiring them with my enthusiasm.  And the surprising thing is how much inspiration I get back in return - the different interpretations of the same set of instructions sets my mind racing with more ideas which I can now apply to my own work - Brilliant!  If you want to see pictures of work from some of my students, have a look at the photo gallery on my website http://www.wickedgencrafts.co.uk/index_files/Page575.htm

Should you be interested in attending one of my courses please don’t hesitate to get in touch

I should really promote myself as a juggler as that is really what I spend myself doing - too many things I should be doing, too many things I want to be doing and then all the other bits and pieces that need to be fitted in around them all!  Last weekend was mad and I achieved nothing on the glass front - on Friday evening it was off to my running club’s annual dinner (arriving late because the kids didn’t want mum & dad to leave), dinner, speaches, 10 minutes on the dance floor and then rushing home for an early night so that we can get up in the morning to pack and then set off for Wolverhampton to register for Tough Guy.  This was the Christmas present I had requested from my other half and Sunday was the event itself - cold, wet, muddy and painful but great fun. 

Home again on Sunday evening and just time to have a bit of a tidy up of my kiln and workshop before getting the kids to bed, having dinner and then collapsing into bed myself.  No lie in on Monday as it’s off to Busy Bees at the library in Hebdon Bridge with little Zachary and a day of domestic duties.  This frees me up a little for Monday evening to fire up the kiln to slump Amy’s first piece from the fused glass course in January - this is a lovely pink oval dish which came out on Tuesday evening and is beautiful.  Next to be slumped is a square red platter containing lots of coiled copper wire which went in on Wednesday night and looked great when I checked it at the top temperature.  Unfortunately by Thursday evening it had cracked -on close inspection, it seems that the coils of thick copper wire put too much stress into the piece as this is where the glass cracked - a lesson learned there! 

Tuesday evening was interesting as I went to The Arts Factory in Keighley for a Creative Conversation, an evening of wine, food, chat and networking.  They were looking for input into the use fo some new premises in Keighley so I had a really nice evening of writing ideas and suggestions on different pieces of flip chart paper, munching on yummy indian nibbles and talking to other creative people.  I had not previously appreciated that The Arts Factory offered so much in terms of support for local and emerging artists so I am looking forward to be able to get some help and support from them over the coming weeks and months.

Last week I had fired a full kiln of glass components and panels and these came out beautifully so yesterday evening was a session of cleaning them all of fibre paper and sanding the edges ready for their next stages.  I produced a trio of confetti flower panels which will each be framed and are the start of my collection for the British Craft Trade Fair in April and I am really pleased with them - just need to sign them all and mount them and they can be photographed and safely stored until then.  My three wavy hearts of glass came out beautifully and the next step is to tack fuse them onto clear glass and then mount them each in a frame.  I did a batch each of green and purple wavy glass pendants which still need a bit of cold working before heading back in the kiln for a fire polish - some more items for April. 

Tonight should have been spent doing more tidying of my workshop, but piano practice is a must as I am sitting my grade 8 exam next month and my preparation is not what it should be.  I had a piano lesson yesterday and whilst I don’t think I am heading for a total disaster, I really do not want to let myself down so close to finishing a long held goal. 

Pete’s cooking dinner at the moment giving me 10 minutes to write this blog and then I need to dash back downstairs to get the workshop ready for a stained glass course on Saturday.  It wouldn’t be so bad, but I have to fit in a day job on four days a week, which makes everything even more stressful and busy. Anyway, I’m off for a bit more juggling before dinner and bed, so I’ll see you later….

... but there is always just one more thing I could fit in beforehand. 

Another busy week but 2 more bookings on my stained glass course in March has meant that I now have my first full course!  I have been putting details of my courses on as many websites as possible and it is paying off as bookings are coming in every week now which is great news.  Of course every cheque that comes in goes straight back out again on insurance, more glass supplies, magazine promotion and a whole host of other things constantly draining my bank account.  My excitement at a full course however was short lived with a last minute cancellation today for my fused glass starting tomorrow - a birthday present from hubby didn’t go down as well as expected so I’m going to have to give them a refund which I could have done without.  So just the one student this weekend which makes it slightly more relaxed.  The house is tidy, my workshop is tidy and all ready to start and lunch is in the fridge so I am ready. 

Should you be interested in attending one of my courses please don’t hesitate to get in touch

At last I have managed to find some time to put some more of my work up for sale!  It’s all such a race to get things done - trying to make things vs running courses vs sales and marketing for both of these vs all the preparation I should be doing for the British Craft Trade Fair.  So much to do, so little time! 

This weekend’s fused glass course went well.  One of the students dropped out at the last minute which was a shame, but meant that my remaining student had my undivided attention for the two days.  This made it highly intensive for both of us and we were both totally shattered by the end of Sunday but Thad went away with as much knowledge as I could share with him in two days and lots of enthusiasm as well as some very nice fused pieces to take away and some more to follow in the post.

I have found another potential outlet for my work - a local framing shop just outside of Friendly, had lots of original work on display around their walls and on enquiry they are very welcoming to people who want to display their work and they don’t charge anything if they sell anything - wow!!  So, I told them I would be back very soon with some of my work and hopefully they will want to have some of my framed panels on display.  Of course, this means pinching things out of my stock of work for the BCTF, which means making replacements, which means finding more time from somewhere!!

Enough blogging for today - I can hear Zachary crying, I haven’t practised the piano yet today, I skipped my Monday night run, I haven’t eaten dinner yet and it is already gone half past nine.  Help!!

Hooray - I’m giving up the day job at last!!   I applied for voluntary redundancy and last month they said YES!!  I can’t believe the added enthusiasm and momentum it has given me knowing that this really is it.  No more life-line to hold on to - glass is the future!!  And just to make sure I don’t forget it, life has just got busier and busier on the glass front.  Bookings on courses are picking up with this month being my busiest yet and I’ve even got fully booked courses as far ahead as February 2012.  I was at Gibson Mill at the end of October for the 3 day craft fair run by the National Trust.  What a fabulous location at Hardcastle Crags and the mini-bus ride from and to the car park every morning was highly entertaining - a great way of bonding with the other designer-makers.  I’ve just given a 2 day glass fusing course which was great fun but combined with a really horrible cold has left me shattered. 

But I don’t have time to rest as I am at Essence of Christmas at Harewood House in less than two weeks and this is in a different league to the usual fairs that I do.  I’ve got loads of things to make, and lots of final prep for all the bits I need to display everything.  I’ve drawn the layout on paper, but bringing it all to life is going to be challenging in the timescales.  I applied for a mobile payment machine two weeks ago and just hope it all gets processed and arrives in time for the fair. 

My Confetti Flowers  and Hearts of Glass have proven popular in recent months so they are what I will be focusing on displaying on the walls.  I’m also going to have a display of my wave heart pendants and some of my wave trinket dishes.

But otherwise the emphasis will be on my Gift Voucher Boxes for my courses.  For each of my main courses (One Day Stained Glass, Two Day Fused Glass and Fused Glass Taster) I have a gift voucher which is valid until the end of December 2012.  This comes in the form of a small gift box with a sample of either fused glass inside or some some glass and lead as appropriate for the voucher.

Should you be interested in attending one of my courses please don’t hesitate to get in touch

But finding time to get it all done is going to stretch me!  I’ve got 4 days a week at the day job to fit in as well as a stained glass course to run next weekend and an evening class in glass fusing tomorrow night and  I’ve still got work from my students at the weekend to fuse in the kiln!  And I mustn’t forget that I have 2 kids to try and look after and a partner to entertain.  All this and I’m a Celebrity comes on to TV provide a major distraction (very sad I know, but it is one of my not-so-secret guilty pleasures in the run-up to Christmas!)  And as for my running, well that is proving somewhat difficult to fit in and I have too many quite valid excuses!  I’m just going to have to eat less mince pies this Christmas! 

Got to go - Pete’s just got back from shopping, the oven is on and I’ve got salad to make - well past 7pm, it’s a school night and the kids have not yet had dinner….