Behold! a Blog!!

It was lovely to find that love note from me, wasn’t it?!

First, careers I should have chosen that would have been easier than this!! (Yikes!):

• ·         Fine jeweler
• ·         Trapeze artist
• ·         Gold Digger (giggle!) maybe rock hound!

At the end of 2011 my father incorporated with me and we purchased a facility!  Wait let me say that again, we finally found a freaking building!!!!!!!!!!!!!  My sudden urge to write, I am sure, stems from my AvoiDance and terror that sets it at this point!  EVERYONE wants to know when I will be operational/have glasswork available.  I have a projection, but haven’t a clue really.

Still a long list of things to be in the hot shop alone, including, but not limited to:

• ·         Repair crack in pot furnace, The Princess Kate!
• ·         Finish painting the other half of walls & ceiling
• ·         Mount combustion system to reheat furnace, Her Holy Hottness!!
• ·         Finish bench repairs & reassemble
• ·         Get all the other ovens & such lined out & set up
• ·         Hang stickers on the stripper pole!

Then there is organizing the office side of it, bookkeeping, customer lists, feeding the artiste, etc.  Sheezz, the list goes on and on, can be overwhelming, and then I remember, time is on my side and everything is going to be ok!  Nobody ever dies of not buying art glass—BUT THEY SHOULD!! LOL, no not Really!!

I just love to learn things the hardest way; it insures that I will always remember the lesson. 

Even when I was breaking my heart over not doing glass and forcing things that could not yet happen, I knew it could only happen at the right time and it was going to take longer than I could bear to think!  Now it has been 3 long, and somewhat brutal, years that seem to have flown by!  My mind works on this Business all the time.  It is my primary focus and my best possible future.  Three years is a great amount of time to study art, marketing, regional consumers, national consumers, galleries, museums, welding & metal work, find funding, glass art, everything in between; and not do glass.

At times my only salvation consisted of three parts; An important person taught me we never forget, all we know no matter how we try it is all still in our mind.  To accept that any knowledge I need or want is still readily available soothes the screaming hissy creature who knows glass requires constant attention for growth & precision.  And it makes me feel like I have a Super Power!

Secondly, that short moment the glass was hot at the previous facility (which was never fully operational, just decided we will call that the Death Star from now on!) I had the chance to be alone and set up my way and see how I performed alone.  Turns out, I am a glass worker!! Woot! Woot! Like I didn’t know, but the pain of separation can be dramatic.

The Third powerful motivator in my path to patience has been my great mentor, Ron Hinkle.  He certainly had more challenges than I did and he persevered!  He reminds me that sometimes the business grows easily and then it starts to lose momentum, or you get a bit burned out & it slows way down or even stops, for as much as a few months. 

Time is irrelevant, I spent all that time worried and frenzied, and the building only got itself ready when it did.  It was not in my price range even though it has been for sale the whole time.  But things change, and I was the first person to see it once the price reduction happened.  Additionally, the gas pressure required to operate the glass equipment is not readily available in most areas.  It is particularly hard to find in these remote mountain communities.  This past summer the local gas utility company installed a new medium pressure line all the way from Elkins the 18 miles up the valley to the state prison.  That line is just across the street from this building!  I am still sure there is not another facility in all of Randolph County that meets the minimum criteria.  The Amber’s Glass facility has a two bay garage for the hot shop, and a (bonus!) Retail space that is huge!  Not to mention the location and tourism traffic.

So I keep my cool.  If I don’t keep my cool all that happens is my blood pressure goes up.  It does Not make the gas line install faster or the new medium pressure utility line happen any faster.  Now the gas line is finally complete and just yesterday the meter was installed!!  It is really real! The line tested to the equipment and I got to get my ass in gear!

It is only the end of April and I have been saying I will be operational this Spring, so I am still on track!  Maybe June, because I still have soooo many things to ready, and I want everything done right and set up properly from the onset.  It was about the Business Plan—now it is about the Business License!  Once the ball starts rolling downhill so much happens so quickly!!  When I am in front of the fire I want my only focus to be regaining my skills and creating all these wonderful ideas I have!!  My new sense of security catches me off guard daily, I can predict the future and it is as glowing bright as the glass fire goddess!  I also have genuinely impressed myself so many times lately, it borders on serious bragging!!

Thank you for staying tuned! Much love and gratitude! <3

-Miss Amber