New Beads

SPRING & SUMMER CLASSES

TANK fire + metal
Spring & Summer Classes - Flameworked Glass Beadmaking

NEW Play with Fire + Colour $40 per 40 Minute Lesson
Most Saturdays between 2pm and 5pm

Experience the magic of molten glass in this fast paced lesson. Expert teachers will walk you through the basics of using a torch to wind molten glass around a mandrel into simple beads. This class is all about the experience, a taste of working with fire, or simply something fun to do while visiting the Distillery District. Students choose a bead they like and we help them create it! Expect to make several beads that will be kiln annealed overnight for strength and ready the following day, or sent by post along with your sample bead from us. Runs most Saturdays starting June 14th through the summer. Reservations are possible.

Beginner Bead Making $285
4 Weeks - Wednesday evenings 6:30pm to 9:30 pm
June 25th to July 16th or
Aug 20th to Sept 10th

In this class Amy will teach the basics of shaping mandrel wound glass into beads using an oxygen propane torch. In this fun class learn to make traditional patterns and designs on beads based on ancient glass techniques (from Europe and Asia.) This class is geared to students with no experience or those looking to review fundamental flameworking techniques or to crafty folks looking to try something new and different. It is important to have a solid foundation and that's what this class is about. Each student can expect to finish with a collection of their own beads and a general knowledge of glass beadmaking, aka flameworking.

Hollow Beads $95
Sunday June 15th, 10am to 2pm + 2hrs Free torch time

Learn to make structurally sound great hollow beads! In this fun focused class Jill will walk students through the process leading you to satisfying results! Make both small and large hollows with thin even walls. You'll try several styles of hollows including some with colourful tube cores, small trapped "baby" beads inside and simple exterior decorations adding extra flair to these weightless pieces. Hollow beads can be very useful when designing jewelry in particular because they provide plenty of volume without the weight! This class includes a bonus two hours free torch time!

Focal Beads $95
Sunday June 22nd or July 20th, 10am to 2pm + 2hrs Free torch time

In this class Amy will teach students more advanced techniques showing how to execute more elaborate, detailed and funky designs in glass. Amy will focus on techniques such as stacked dots, encasing, using silver and palladium leaf, feathering, furrowing, stringer decoration and sculpted forms. Emphasis will be on learning a variety of techniques so that each student may take away something different and create something uniquely theirs. These beads are ideal as the "focal piece" in other jewelry projects. Some previous experience required. This class includes a bonus two hours free torch time!

Encasing $95
Sunday June 29th , 10am to 2pm + 2hr Free torch time

Learn how to encase your beads in layers of clear or coloured transparent glass. Find out how artists trap designs under the glass creating an appearance of floating patterns or images. Encasing adds an extra slick look to all your beads, playing on the wonderful optical quality of glass. You will learn thick layer encasing techniques in this workshop, making designs on a core bead, then magnifying them with a thick even layer of clear over top. From tiny dots, stripes and triangles to fun free flowing designs, the sky's the limit! Some experience required. This class includes a bonus two hours free torch time!

Studio Time Rental for Glass or Silversmithing
$15/hour or $120/10 hours (all TANK students automatically pay $10/hour)
Hours : Wed to Sun Noon to 5pm, Thursday evenings 6 to 10pm (or by appointment)

Tank fire + metal is equipped with 8 flameworking torches and 5 silversmithing stations. Studio time rental includes use of torches, kilns, mandrels and tools for beadmaking. Bench rental for metalsmithing includes use of basic hand tools, foredom, grinders, polishers, and bench pin. Renters must supply their own glass and or metal for projects. Call for details about where to purchase supplies. Pre-booking is required for all studio time.

Private Lessons with Amy Johnson
$40/hr (min 3 hr) or $225/day

Private lessons are a real benefit to students offering advantages such as one on one learning and the ability to create your own curriculum based on what interests you most. With Amy's vast skill set she is able to work with students helping them gain confidence in their own abilities in a fun, safe environment.
Amy graduated from the Sheridan College Crafts and Design Program and has taught throughout North America at schools and studios including Sheridan College, The Living Arts Centre, Algonquin College, The Bead & Button Show, The International Society of Glass Beadmakers Conference, Fusion Conference, and many other private studios including TANK fire + metal. It has been over 11 years since Amy started working with glass, and even longer since she has been making and selling her own jewelry. Her work has been published and shown widely throughout North America and Europe.

Pickled clouds

Some new beads...I am anxious to make more and make a juciy summer necklace!

Collections...

This is the craziest house, not far from my place... what a collection!

LIVING ATRS CENTRE

I'm off to the burbs for the rest of the day. I'm teaching my second class (which starts tonight) at the Living Arts Centre in Mississauga. This one is a ten week long class for beginner beadmakers.

You can find out more on the LAC website

Working her magic.

Here's Cynthia preparing to solder a section of a fancy candle stick holder, a replica of a turn of the century piece. It has a fleur de lis pattern.

NEW CLASSS SPRING & SUMMER 08

Yay, we've finally got it done. Look over to your right for a brief run down, and find more details on my website.
Look under the "learn" section here

Spring Greens...

A new necklace I'm working on. The beads are smaller than you think!
My first needle point! So much fun. It's nice to have a portable hobby:)

Colour Therapy...

We recently finished painting some areas of the house that needed a new coat or just a change.

My lovely beading nook, showcasing some of my wonderful handmade purse collection, and not my messy table!

And our fun kitchen with new blue walls that I love to experiment in, making yummy things to eat. This morning I made peanut butter bars with chocolate gnache icing from a new chocolate cookbook. They were too hot to ice when I had to go to work so I'm still waiting to taste my handy work. The other wall with the insane garden is a digital image that Trevor created and had printed really large so we could cover the wall with it. It's also on one of the front doors of our home.

Paul Stankard

Last night Jill and I went to the opening at The Sandra Ainsley Gallery for a new PAUL STANKARD exhibition. His work is incredible and if you have time you should go check it out. The show runs until May 29th.

Ch, Ch, Ch, Changes!

Wow.

I'm not sure where to start... so much going on, and I'm sorry for lagging in posts for so long. I am going to be better from now on!
So..

WE'RE MOVING
About 5 years and much love sweat and memories, we're moving to a bigger and better space. It's still within our same building, we will have two full walls that are all windows and a much more primo space! It happens August 1st. So in the mean time we are busy getting all our ducks in a line. Watch for BIG MOVINGS SALES!

NEW STUDIO MEMBER
We're happy to announce that Kyla Viteck has joined TANK. Kyla is a metalsmith who makes beautiful jewelry and is also on staff at OCAD. Later this summer she will be adding some more silver classes to our roster as well! Yay! Welcome kyla :)

NEW CLASSES
I am going to post new classes in the next day or so.

GUEST TEACHERS
Heather Trimlett from California is coming to teach in our new space mid Sept. Sign up today! $400 plus $50 kit fee (tools you keep)

NEW WORK
Yes I've been busy, lots of great new stuff, I'm slowly getting it on line. You can check my etsy page for some of it, and stay tuned for lots more.

BEAD & BUTTON
The best bead show around! We'll be there selling our goodies, and I'll be teaching two classes again this year, woohoo!

NEW SCHOLARSHIPS
We are in the works of announcing some new scholarships and awards for students who want to take our guest artists workshops, and also for graduating students from OCAD, Sheridan and George Brown. Stay tuned for more details.

Personal Spaces

Some new pod beads I've been working on. I have a vision for them, you'll see soon enough!

Lipsticks!

Personal Projects

Finished my bracelet from class... now I'm working on my own custom pendant tops which I'm carving from wax, casting, cleaning up and then recasting.

WE WERE ON CBC TELEVISION!

Recently the show Living in Toronto, hosted by Mary Ito came to our studio and did a segment on the shop. It was pretty fun, and I gave Mary a crash course in making glass beads. She actually did quite well considering she had never done it before and we only had time for two quick demo beads!

Check us out on the CBC link for the show...
(note this clip seems to crash when using safari... try firefox)

TANK on CBC

LARRY BRICKMAN VISITS TANK

YAY! Larry's here...

Our AWESOME host and chef Lucie Weir of Lunacy Beads (she had a gang of us over for a traditional Czech dinner)

Cynthia is freaking out about the roast!

Larry at the shop teaching a class (TANK - at the Distillery)

SILVERSMITHING 101 at TANK

We had our first lesson in silversmithing last night and it was so much fun! Cynthia had each of us come up with a bracelet design and then worked with us to make it a feasible project. It was nice to try something different but still feel at home in our own shop. My brain is all a flury with excitement and images of things I want to make.

We each started by cutting out a strip of sheet silver and then worked with it to start creating a pattern or shape.
Close up of my bracelet...

Our bracelets at the end of class 1. Top to Bottom, Alex, Amy, Jill

IT'S ABOUT TIME I DID THIS...

I'm starting a silversmithing class tomorrow. I can't wait, Jill, another friend of ours and I are taking a class from Cynthia Archer, our studio mate & and resident metal worker.

I aready have ideas for things I want to make... and I know that I am going to need to learn wax carving because many of these items are sculptural and will be better suited to casting... I think. But first some basics, lets not too ahead of ourselves. Cynthia is so meticulous and particular about her work I know we are going to learn a lot! I'll post some doodles, and in progress pictures soon.

Hey just in case you haven't seen this website before, the carrot box is one of the most inspirational places to go when you want to oogle what other talented folks are up to. Everyday there are new photos and plenty of links to great artists. I love seeing such diversity!

COMING UP SOON...

Beginner Series with Amy Johnson
$155 each or $520 for all 4 classes

Beginner Flamework Beadmaking with Amy Johnson
Sunday Feb 17th 10am - 5pm $155

Beginner Flamework Buttons with Amy Johnson
Sunday Feb 24th 10am -5pm $155

Beginner Flamework Gold, Silver, Palladium & Copper Leaf with Amy Johnson
Sunday March 9th 10am -5pm $155

Beginner Flamework Focal Beads & Pendants with Amy Johnson
Sunday March 16th 10am -5pm $155

Encasing & Hollow Beads with Jill Cribbin
$260
Two Sundays (10am-5pm)
March 16th & 23rd
or
Four Thursday evenings (7-10pm)
Jan 31st -Feb 21st

INTERNATIONAL INSTRUCTORS

Larry Brickman
Feb 2nd & 3rd 10am -5pm
$550 material inc.

BENCH RENTAL

Glass or Silversmithing Studio Bench Time
$15/hr or $120/10hr + glass or silver
Take advantage of working in a professional studio and feel free to ask for assistance.
Must reserve by phone or email and have beginner level experience

JANUARY LAMPWORKERS DINNER

We are hosting the next toronto lampworkers dinner on Tuesday Jan 29th at 7pm. We will start off with dinner at The Mill St. Brew Pub, and follow up with a torching play time at our shop TANK. Anyone who wants to come is welcome, and you can try making a bead or just watch people demo. Bring stuff for show and tell! This meeting is free, each person pays for their own dinner at the pub.

Please RSVP so I can make a reservation at the restaurant.
amy_johnson@sympatico.ca or 647-430-8589

LOCATION

TANK fire+ metal
103. Bldg #74
55 Mill St. Toronto, ON
Open Wed - Sun Noon - 5pm

AND THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS...

My first beads since christmas... already thinking about spring!

Wow. This past month has just whipped by so quickly, where does the time go!

I wanted to thank eveyone who came down and made our Holiday Shopping Event a great success. We appreciate your support in buying handmade this year for all your family and friends. It's a small part but if we all do it, it really makes a difference!

Over the holidays I was lucky enough to be selected by the staff at Etsy.com to be one of the featured sellers. When you are chosen as a featured seller, you are interviewed about your work, and thoughts on handmade, then a clipping of the feature is posted to the front page of Etsy for a few days, and the whole article is hosted in the Feature section. This made a huge boost to my shop and added to sales as well. It was eciting to see my work on the front page for 5 days, and I received many wonderful comments from other sellers and buyers on etsy.

Here is a snap I took...

To read the whole article... look at the etsy website.

I went back home to Almonte to visit my family over the holidays, and it was a winter wonderland. It poured rain the day my brother and I drove up, and even after that there was still a solida foot and a half of snow, maybe more! I had Sasha, my dog with me so we went for lots of great walks through the forest, and she had plenty of fun chasing deer, and beavers!