Roses and Vineyards is a hand painted glass chandelier that I should have added to my website earlier. At the very end of January last year, I delivered my precious little baby boy and needless to say, life changed in an instant. Don’t get me wrong, I was answering client and gallery emails from my maternity suite the next day, on my iPad while my little one slept. It was four weeks before I got back to painting in my studio—my commission queue was piling up and though my galleries were so patient for new work, each was asking me gingerly, “When will you be back”? so I knew that I had to get to painting and creating again as soon as possible. And luckily, at that time my baby would take naps in a swing by my side while I would paint chandeliers.

The prior fall, I was having on and off difficult times with my pregnancy. There was really nothing to worry about, just that my pregnancy wasn’t comfortable and I felt very faint often. For a few reasons, I didn’t have one of those pregnancies where I felt awesome enough to exercise like lucky women do, let alone walk a lot—I’d nearly pass out so I had to plan where I was going and how far it would be and where I could rest along the way and it was embarrassing. There were days where I was taking it easy due to necessity and then during the days where I felt fine enough and on those days I would work to get ahead as I knew I’d be taking a few weeks off after my baby’s birth. I even completed twelve large 33 inch tropical parrot chandeliers for a new Margarita Casino Resort in Hollywood Beach, Florida at the end of my pregnancy and they were installed in the ballroom area. I normally stand when I paint and do fixture work but during those days, I had to learn to lean on a stool.

Anyway, long story above, I know…but I should have added this gorgeous rose and vineyard themed hand painted glass chandelier to my website sooner. As there is only so much time, I have to choose what I will add to my website. What you see my hand painted glass chandeliers online, the chandeliers you are viewing are just a few of many hand painted glass chandeliers that I am commissioned to create each year.

When this painted glass chandelier lights up, it has the most beautiful glow—the rose bouquet is stunning. I have a special client back east who I’ve created a couple chandeliers for, he’s a rose guy and with this particular piece, I actually created two that were similar (yet each was different, of course) and he chose one because of one of the butterflies. I have a new appreciation for roses in the past couple of years due to this client—they really are a gorgeous flower. My grandfather loved yellow roses so I think of him when I paint yellow roses. Sometimes with 24 inch chandeliers, when they are commissions in themes that I know my collectors in general would love, I might do two pieces and let my commission collector choose. I didn’t send this piece to my gallery in Sedona, Arizona but blues aren’t a color that usually speaks to their clients so I limit the amount of blue hues in their chandelier selection.

My baby’s napping right now in his stroller in my gallery room so I need to double-check to make sure I still have this specific piece…but I’m nearly positive and I’ll bring it to La Quinta Arts Festival if I do. If I don’t take this post down today, it means I have this chandelier…because it could also be up in La Conner, Washington at Stan O’Neil’s gallery. He’s a fantastic glassblower and I’ll see him in a couple weeks at La Quinta Arts Festival.