About seven years ago I fell in love with hot glass! Working the glass is mesmerizing, and the glass beads

are so beautifully tactile, who could resist! Glass is such a magical medium that it seems entirely possible

for it to take on the good intentions of the person working with it, as well as those of the wearer.”  

Because our associations with beads are so strong, my bead work took a natural progression, and I began

making STORYBEADS.

We are surrounded by stories – movies, plays, books, and magazines. True stories and fiction. We love hearing them and we l

love telling them. Our experiences are our stories, and we have powerful stories in our lives. Stories of joys and sorrows;

lessons learned and lesson yet to be experienced. Each story in our lives offers illumination, and we mustn’t lose that

chance to learn about ourselves. Tell each bead one of your stories. Let the designs of mazes, spirals, dots and

eyes call for the specific story you have to tell. “Now I can remind myself of my stories of lessons learned, of the

wisdom and joys I’ve already experienced. I carry them on my wrist.” - a Storybead wearer

Each bead is handmade in the torch using canes of Italian glass, melted onto a steel rod. Layers of glass are

twisted, coaxed; dotted, “painted” and warmed until the shape and design is complete. The bead is then

placed in a kiln to release the stress from the glass and strengthen the bead. Michelle’s STORYBEADS inspired

a workshop of the same name. Tricia Webster creates programs to spark individual and organizational

transformation. Using StORYBEADS the participants learn how to recapture the power of the present and

do deep work on bringing their creative passion and purpose into their daily lives.

To learn more about these workshops visit www.triciawebster.com.

I am a member of the International Society of Glass Beadmakers  as well as the

  Society of Glass Beadmakers - Northern  California Chapter. And the SRA. You can find more about

those organizations on my Favorite Links page.

                  SWEETHAVEN RANCH

 We live in beautiful Grass Valley, California, in the Sierra foothills. Here are some photos of the areas around

  our house and studio. We just expanded this pond and are in love with the results! Two waterfalls, a peninsula

  and a tiny island for the turtle, and plenty of hiding places for the koi.    

         Garden muses                

                             Spring around the studio.

I'm also an editor and writer and was the publisher for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I've written three

 children's books, Ocean Pop & Pull, Penguin Chick and  Jellyfish Inside Out, all of which were

published by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. You can order on Amazon but The aquarium has

discontinued their wholesales program so you may need to call them directly to order a book.

       Ocean Pop & Pull    Penguin Chick   Jellyfish Inside Out

Marianne Ireland and her

grandchildren, Jordan and Evelyn read Jellyfish Inside Out. The Irelands reside in Canada.

   My husband and I are also antiques and collectibles dealers.

   Check out our auctions on Our ID is flyingpig

           And here I am with all that wonderful glass!

So what's up with the picture of mini me on some of these pages? I just like the kid

who was so excited about the world. I want to approach my creative self

through that little girl.