the Story behind the Little Yoga Ladies

I do live demonstrations at the Portland Saturday Market with my glass torchworking. With no kiln present, I use borosilicate glass and create little bitty things so that thermal shock won't make them fall apart on the spot. Later I anneal them at home in my kiln.

I have made all sorts of things over the years in my demonstration booth... everything from frogs and teddy-bears to a whole baseball team (each player was less than half an inch tall and I also made fans sitting on chairs, kids sitting on benches, a water cooler, etc - sorry I have no pictures of this scene... the whole set could be arranged on a square napkin).

Well one day while making little fairies, I simply did not put the wings on the fairy and I made her meditating like a little yoga lady. Usually in the morning I would prefer to be doing yoga, not sitting outside in front of a bunch of gawking tourists, performing torchworking demonstrations. So I starting making these little ladies, living vicariously thru them. And it was fun to put them in various different yoga positions. Only a matter of time before I put one in the "downward dog" pose. Soo funny, and so incredibly small. I've done yoga nearly all my life and it has taken things to a new level of smiles to make these little ladies. A while ago I had to break out my old book of crazy yoga poses, thats where the pose from the picture above came from :)

Then my friend Danielle taught me how to make little bitty boxes out of old photographs, and the whole thing came together. Now when you purchase one of these little treasures, it comes delicately held in a bitty handmade box. Many of the boxes are made of old show postcards, as an artist I always seem to have too many of these around and I feel bad throwing them out. So now they become packaging boxes.

So anyhow... these ladies are for sale here in Oregon at the Portland Saturday Market in my booth (#421) as well as in my Etsy shop online.