Notes on Roman Glass

Remember that roman glass jewelry from a couple posts back? Well, I'm going to have to restring the necklace. One bead broke just from being in my suitcase. That's when it occurred to me that these native made glass beads are not well-tempered glass (as, for instance, Czech glass usually is). They are fragile, primitively created beads. So treat yours gently!

Goodbye, Old Paint

For the last 30 years or so I've been driving big vehicles. My first family car, bought when we had 3 or 4 children, was a Suburban. No AC, no power windows...we moved on to a 15 passenger van for the years that all 7 children were at home. Then when we came back from Hawaii, I got this 4 wheel drive Suburban. This car and I survived hydroplaning off into a field of water in Morrisville. Ran over a deer a couple months ago and didn't flinch. If I had still needed the bigger vehicle I would have fixed it, but we decided to downsize. So we found a dealer who gave us $2500 in trade (quite reasonable; the other dealer had only offered $1000) and we now have a 2007 Equinox. But I felt the old Suburban deserved a goodbye!

Doughnuts on Sunday

Esther wanted to make doughnuts this weekend and so we broke out a new can of Crisco and warmed up the old frying pan.

The result-a big plate of warm doughnuts. Unfortunately, we only ate part of them. The chickens got

the rest. There just aren't enough people around here to eat up big batches!

March, Spring Winds, and Basic Black

The weather has improved tremendously, the snow piles are only small mounds here and there, and my crocuses are blooming. Even early in the morning, when I'm out fetching wood in the chill, the early birds sound different and you can tell the season has turned.
I felt like wearing brighter colors so pulled out a never-worn bright turquoise blue top. (Bought on clearance, Della). I made a necklace set from some water buffalo horn beads that I had bought online and hadn't much liked. But set with some silver spacers that Granma had given me, they turned into a nicer set than I'd imagined.
Beads $4, Spacers $0, Clasp $2. So add a little for the other supplies and the set cost about $6.25

Friday morning

The snow has receded enough that I can turn around in the driveway, instead of going to the next neighbors turn-around and backing up my drive. It's so exciting. Then I backed up a friends iced-over drive, narrowly missing a tree or two. This is not a typical Virginia winter-but in general the driving is becoming routine instead of thrilling, and I am back to the usual routine:driving Della to community college classes, Esther to youth group, Classical Conversations and ortho appointments, and the dozen weekly local errands.
This morning, between trips, I am catching up on paperwork. Have a turkey tortilla casserole all made up in the fridge (very freeing to have dinner done), and so Della and I are going to visit a couple thrift stores on the way to pick up Esther.
No new jewelry to report. I am playing around with coral beads right now. Bright colors are calling to me-all I see outside are brown trees and fences,surrounded by white and grey snow. I did buy The History of Beads (Lois Sherr Dubin)which was $100 in B&N, but I got this copy off Ebay for $27 shipping included. Which shows how bored I was while snowed in-normally I don't have the patience for auctions.
Off to Culpeper!

Valentine's Day Jewelry

This pendant is a (dyed) blister pearl, with some beautifully matched Czech glass and rose quartz beads. And a heart clasp, since I was in a Valentine's Day mood!

Ancient Roman Glass Jewelry

Last anniversary I asked for beads-these are made of Roman Empire era glass. I have been trying to find more info on these beads: supposedly they come from the Nimroz province of Afghanistan, and most if not all are made from the old glass, found as shards, and melted down and remade into beads. However, the strand I found on ebay shows surface oxidation (I think?) and I wonder how that could have survived remelting.
As someone who always enjoyed the Romans and their history I love these beads even if I can't absolutely prove their provenance. I'll let you know if I find out anything more.