where have i been?

GREAT question, I apologize to my three remaining readers.

For starters, I've been working on a mosaic tile installation in the courtyard of a local middle school. The students arranged all of the glass tiles before they were glued to the cylindrical benches which are six feet in circumference, there are 5 benches in total to mosaic. I have a fabulous assistant, Rhonda Spight, she is a recent BFA graduate from the Memphis College of Art.

The first bench we've grouted, after it's been dry for a few

days I will take a steel file to the top and bottom edges.

I have also been learning to cut stones

with my friends Beth and David.

Slabbing a hunk of Australian chrysoprase.

(Slabbed by David Day, I watched.)

Two of the four slabs cut, ranging from 1/2" to over 1" thick.

Roughed out on the trim saw with more help from David

who fixed my undercutting. This piece is close to 3/4" high.

Grinding on the rough wheel with Beth.

Heating for dopping after rough grinding into a cylinder. Dopping is the process of heating both the stone and sealing wax to affix a short dowel to the bottom of the stone that acts as a handle during grinding. You remove the stone by placing it in the freezer for a little while, when you take it out of the freezer you can easily pop the stone off of the dowel.

The finished cab, I'm hooked.

I cut this rhodochrosite a few weeks ago.

At the gem show on Beth and David's equipment.

I love the military issue goggles, very comfortable.

Both cabs and a setting I'm working on, the green

stone is actually a little smaller than the pink.

I have been making new pieces for a two-week artshow.

I've also been teaching a digital photo portraiture program to teens at a local community center, they did some great work - none of these photos have been cropped.