I’ve done stained glass for about 8 years, but I haven’t hauled out the soldering iron since before I lived in Amsterdam. I did some really fun pieces with broken glass I found when I was about nine years old at a logging camp in the woods where I grew up near Skyline, California.
Yesterday, at Baubles and Beads in Berkeley, I started a refresher in some basic metal working skills. Unsurprisingly, my first piece is a found object bracelet. I started with an assortment of favorite objects.... My soldering iron was getting too hot, annoying since it was the one recommended - but apparently the Weller 100 with the blue handle is the best for this type of project. Volcanoarts.com has pretty good prices and awesome selection for stained glass, metalworking, and book binding!
Some of the objects you will recognize from other Compass Rose Design series, but there are some wonderful new pieces as well. I used old game pieces, rulers, postage stamps, a 1919 accounting register, wrist watch, key, escutcheon, and an optician’s lens – and I think it turned out pretty well.
Now I am eager to get to my collection of broken ceramics and stones... 
The garden is definitely shifting with the seasons. The oregano and thyme I collected last week are dry and ready to put in jars for winter seasoning.
My husband, Johnny is brewing beer today, he’s making an Oktoberfest ale. There is no pumpkin involved, in fact if you want pumpkin in your beer, Van Houten Brewing probably won't be able to help you, but it’s Halloween….
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