Friday, May 30, 2008

Wind Chime, Coast Chimes, Featured Sale

Coast Chimes, sale wind chime, week of May 30, kaleidoscope beach glass styleKaleidoscope Beach Glass Inspired Wind Chime
Five Copper Chimes
Beach Stone Clapper

This weeks featured sale item on Coast Chimes

Each week I feature one wind chime on my featured sale item page. This one is usually $177.50, on sale now for $137.50. Why not take advantage and add something special to your home, garden or yard this Spring?

Last week, the sale wind chime sold in hours. So don't wait too long!

Thursday, May 29, 2008

New Designs?

(FYI, the new featured sale has started on my website: one week only or until sold: Sale Page )

windchime, copper, beach sea glass, modernClick on the image to see it larger.
Click Here to visit my website, and read about this wind chime, or to buy it.

After all these years (twelve) of making wind chimes from copper, stone, driftwood and other interesting materials, sometimes I wonder if I will ever come up with a new design. I always do, so far.

I have no idea where the inspiration comes from. While all my works are each unique, many are built on a theme that does not vary all that much. But every once in a while I will go out to my shop with the intention of putting together some kaleidoscope wind chimes, or maybe a driftwood or beach stone piece, and will suddenly just feel the urge to do something really different.

That happened yesterday. The result was a large, cold forged copper spiral. It adds some pizazz. It's cool. And my wife noticed it and commented very favorably, and that is always a good sign. When my teenage son also noticed and gave some indication of appreciation, I really knew it must be good!

It's always a nice to come up with something new and exciting. I like that.

Monday, May 26, 2008

Bears and Sale

A local Big Guy ~ Photo courtesy of Tella
See more of her images at her website, and also
see her husband's amazing artwork there.

For the past year I have gone on a daily hike with my pup, Yukon. Rain or Shine, or Bear(!), we go. Almost daily for the past couple of weeks, we have run into at least one, and sometimes two, bears. Or the bears have run into us!

My theory is that there are not more bears, but that the bears are less afraid. In past years they would hear us coming, or smell us, and take off. Now they just stand there, curious and clearly not afraid at all. That makes me (a little) afraid.

My dog, the most non-aggressive animal imaginable (typically flopping on his back in total submission at the approach of even the smallest toy dog), for some reason goes nuts when it comes to bears, and chases after them like they are chipmunks. When the bear and the dog get in the heavy rain forest where I can't see them, and I only hear a tremendous amount of crashing around, it's pretty freaky.

I'd be more alarmed but a week ago my dog starting charging towards one of these creatures, and the bear didn't feel like moving. The dog stopped quite a distance away, and they had a staring match. The bear somehow got through the dog's thick head that he didn't feel like being chased, and the dog backed off. That was a good thing to see-- that the dog is not totally crazy.

Many days I have kicked myself for not having my camera along. So when my friend Tella showed me her bear pictures from her property, I asked if I could use one. Now you can see what we see everyday.

The introduction of my weekly featured sale wind chime is a success! This week, the wind chime was snatched up within hours. The next sale wind chime will be posted to my website sale page on Thursday late afternoon or early evening (depending on you time zone). Thank you to all those who are visiting my website-- and for all the lovely, positive comments. I'm very happy to see so much activity!

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Wind Chime, on Sale, a Really Good Deal!

windchime, mixed media, marbles, beach glass, copperKaleidoscope Mixed Media
Beach Glass Inspired
Copper Wind Chime
Sale #2
Click on the image to see it larger.
Click Here to visit my Sale Page.

The stunningly beautiful art wind chime pictured above is featured this week on my website sale page.

As promised, each week I will be rotating one of my works onto the sale page, where it will be featured either until it sells, or until the week is over. Even better, this week I lowered the price significantly more than last week: $137.50 marked down from $177.50.

A really good deal! Enjoy~

Friday, May 16, 2008

Coast Chimes Sale Page, Introducing

windchime, copper, handcrafted, artThis Weeks Featured Sale Item
a beach glass inspired kaleidoscope wind chime
five copper chimes with a beach stone clapper
Coast Chimes Sale Page ~ Click Here

I've decided to add a sale page to my website.

After pondering this, I decided it would be fun to pull something different each week from my other pages, and have the sale run for just one week. If it sells, no more sale until the next week, and if it does not sell it goes back into my regular stock at the non-sale price, and I replace it with a new piece.

At least for this time of year, when I actually have considerable trouble keeping up with demand at my usual prices, I won't be discounting a very large percentage. But, hey, every little bit helps, right?

And even though it is a sale item, I will still be including a complimentary set of my cold forged copper earrings. People often email how much they love these earrings.

So why not check out this week's sale?

Monday, May 05, 2008

Wind Chime — It's all Art

Click on the image to see it larger
Isn't this a pretty wind chime? I couldn't quite decide what color the glass is: pink or purple? My wife had no trouble at all— it's lilac. For more information on this beach glass inspired all glass and copper wind chime, or to buy it, visit my website.

I hardly throw anything out anymore. Blue glass is a prime example. It is by far the trickiest to work with and back in the old days, when I had a piece with a small fracture, I would throw it away. Now I know how to grind that fracture out. If for some reason that does not work, I can recycle it into one of my kaleidoscope wind chimes. No more garbage.

Often the stuff that a few years ago I would have tossed produces the most exciting results. The stunning lilac wind chime pictured above is a case in point.

I had bought that glass for a completely different purpose. As it turned out, it did not work for the intended purpose. My wife, always striving to keep order around the yard, was about to throw it away as it had been lying around for over a year. But I knew I could find a use for it. And so I did: one of my most beautiful wind chimes ever.

When I started out over ten years ago, I used to feel some guilt at the amount of waste produced by my art. Now, there is virtually no garbage. It's all art.

Friday, May 02, 2008

$200+ Wind Chime at 99 Cents? Crazy.

Cick on the picture to see it largerwind chime, windchime, beach glass inspired, copper, cobalt blueStarting price of 99 cents. No reserve. I must be nuts!
Click here to see the eBay auction

For months I have run one auction a week on eBay— always sticking to my 'kaleidoscope' style wind chime. It's pretty, and pretty popular. But for some strange reason, I decided to list one of my fabulous cobalt blue all glass and copper wind chimes last night. Even stranger, I decided to stick with my 99 cents starting price.

You need to understand that the blue glass (along with frosty white) is by far the most challenging to work with. It is tough achieving nice, large pieces, with a pleasant shape. Even drilling the holes is much riskier (I used to constantly fracture the blue glass). Because of the challenge, I do enjoy making them. But I just never have that much blue glass.

This wind chime is 100% glass and copper. No string. No wood. It should last pretty much forever, and just look better and better as time goes by. I've had three of this style on my deck year round for the past ten years.

Usually I put these on my website and stick firm at between $227 and $275 (depending on the glass and the copper on for the chimes). Sooner or later (often sooner), they always sell.

So to put this at .99 cents is just... nuts. Well, maybe if it doesn't start taking off, I will cancel the auction. Maybe not. We'll see.

Thursday, May 01, 2008

Cool Chimes for Less

Everything is getting more expensive.
Except for my stuff.
Now I am making some less expensive works.
Totally handcrafted and only $47.50?
Click here to go to my under-55-dollars page.

I'm surprised I have any socks left at all. I don't shop a lot, but when I do pretty much each time my socks get knocked off! I mean, the price of stuff!

I just got a little order of supplies I use for making my wind chimes, and the price had almost doubled from the last time I ordered. Grrrrr. It seems that way with everything I use. Each thing on its own is not so horrible, but add it all up and it's a shocker.

So I certainly understand why perhaps more people than ever before are hesitant to spend on something many might consider non-essential: a wind chime: "Let's see, gas for the car, food for the family... or a wind chime? Hmmm... guess I will get the chime!"

Because I am well aware that so many are watching their budgets these days, I decided to make some much less expensive, but still very nice, chimes. From the copper hooks to the glass to the copper chimes, completely handmade. Completely beautiful. And totally under $55.

Enjoy a little beauty in your life without breaking the bank.