The first installment of GlassClass 101 starts this saturday!
This bead is a first try at a custom order. It’s HUGE – approx. 2.5″ – I like it but the colours aren’t working for me. I used three different shades of red frit for some colour gradations in the leaves and they all came out looking exactly the same. WAY annoying.
These are my test beads from last week. They may not remain tests for long though, as their remakes were NOT an improvement. dammit.
On the good side that bead on the far right is my first bead to ever come out exactly the way i wanted (better even!) – i love it and it’s MINE.
Aaah well, back to the torch!
Photo: The Teenager enjoying a boat cruise at a luxury resort (c. 2004)
1. Child-free days off: Gotta love ’em. I’m off work today but The Teenager had to go to school. Significance? I am totally and completely free! I can guiltlessly do whatever i want for the next 8+ hours!!! Plus! no demands, whining, backtalk or moodiness will interfere with my good mood until approx. 430pm today. Could a dedicated mommy ask for more?
2. I often think in glass rod colours: Doesn’t matter where I am, if anything (usually some passerby’s colourful outfit) catches my eye, i’ll start to calculate how i can recreate that design and which colour rods i should use: oooooo… that lovely abstract blouse? Hmmm…i think a clear base, with a Moretti white and Lauscha blue latticino and an assortment of Gaffer pastel frits, perhaps as a focal, in a barrel shape – or should i use a press…?
3. Bad piercings: On friday’s bus ride home, there was a young woman standing directly in front of me with a lip piercing. Now normally i don’t have an issue with piercings (some are quite attractive) but this one just looked painful. It was in the corner of her bottom lip, with the metal weaving three times in and out through her skin. I kept trying not to stare but really? i wanted to lean over and ask her: “Sweetie, would you like me to help you take that out?”
4. Karaoke madness: Saturday night I found myself in a cheesy piano bar with some friends enthusiastically belting out Barry Manilow’s Copacabana to a room full of dancing strangers. Once the adrenalin wore off it occurred to me that a piano player, a mike, a binder full of lyrics and a cheering audience can delude you into thinking (just for a moment) that you can actually sing.
…for Canada’s veterans as well as those from all over the world.
And a very special moment of silence to honour the memory of Canada’s many Black veterans who fought to keep our country safe despite seemingly insurmountable odds.
Photo credit: Canadian World War II veterans, May 31, 1946, Photographer: John Boyd, City of Toronto Archives
American Revolution 1775-1783
Canada developed a reputation as a safe haven for Blacks during the American Revolution. The British promised land, freedom and rights in exchange for services rendered and British Commander-in-Chief Sir Guy Carleton guaranteed that all slaves who formally requested British protection would be freed. Some of the Black Loyalists to reach Nova Scotia belonged to the “Company of Negroes”, who left Boston with British troops.
General Henry Clinton formed a corps of free Blacks, called the Black Pioneers to clear and construct the town of Shelburne and settle the Black Loyalists in Birchtown, Novia Scotia. An estimated 100,000 Blacks fled to the British side during the American Revolution. Ten per cent of the Loyalists coming into the Maritimes were Black.
Maroons of Jamaica 1796
On 22 July 1796, a group of 600 freedom-fighters landed at Halifax. These immigrants, called Maroons, came from the Jamaican community of escaped-slaves, who had guarded their freedom for more than a century and fought off countless attempts to re-enslave them.
War of 1812 (1812-1815)
The Cochrane Proclamation invited refugees to become British citizens through residence in British territory, including Canada. The British promise of freedom and land united many escaped slaves and free Blacks under the British flag. Fearing American conquest (and the return to slavery), many Blacks in Upper Canada served heroically in coloured and mixed race regiments.
In the summer of 1812, Black Loyalist Richard Pierpoint petitioned the government of Upper Canada to raise a company of Black troops to help protect the Niagara frontier. After some debate, the government agreed and a company of Blacks was formed under the command of a White officer, Captain Robert Runchey Sr.
In 1794, based on their military service in the war, 19 free Blacks in the Niagara area petitioned Governor Simcoe for a grant of land to establish an all-Black settlement. The petition was initially rejected, however, in 1815, Lieutenant-Governor Peregrine Maitland of Upper Canada began to offer Black veterans of the War of 1812 grants of land in the Township of Oro near Barrie, Ontario. In 1819 the government officially established the Oro Settlement for black veterans.
Mackenzie Rebellion 1837
In the early 19th century, few Upper Canada militia units included Blacks. When the Mackenzie Rebellion broke out, the government welcomed Black men into the provincial forces. On 11 December 1837, a militia order authorized Captains Thomas Runchey and James Sears to raise a “corps of Negroes”. Four days later, approximately 50 Blacks had joined the corps.
Royal Navy’s Seaman William Hall (b. 1827- d.1904)
In 1857, William Hall of Nova Scotia became the first Canadian Sailor and the first person of African descent to receive the Victoria Cross for bravery and distinguished service.
World War I (1914-1918 )
During the First World War, Black Canadians joined combat units, despite significant racial opposition. In 1916, as Canadian enlistment figures fell from 30,000 to 6,000 per month, while the year-end goal was a force of 500,000, Reverend C.W. Washington of Edmonton offered to raise an all-Black battalion. Military officials authorized the creation of a segregated unit called the Nova Scotia Number 2 Construction Battalion which served in France with the Canadian Forestry Corps.
Black Canadians at home became actively involved in the war effort. Black associations – on their own and in cooperation with their White counterparts – raised funds, worked in factories and volunteered in hospitals and as labourers.
World War II (1939-1945)
Initially, the Canadian military rejected Black volunteers but as the war continued, many Blacks were accepted into the Army and officer corps. While there was still some segregation in the Canadian forces until the end of the war, hundreds of Black Canadians served alongside Whites in Canada and Europe.
Blacks at home assumed the responsibilities of the men and women serving overseas, working alongside Whites, in jobs across the country. During World War II, hundreds of Black workers joined labour unions for the first time. The all-Black Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters was one of the greatest success stories of the war years.
Additional Sources:
This is a quick pic of the results of yesterday’s torch session and the bits and pieces that went into making these two beads.
At the top is my marver with the three types of frit ( tiny glass chips) i used. (you can ignore the red powder, that’s the enamel i used for this morning’s torch session.) Then the two little strips of pure 99.9% fine silver foil – that’s what gives the beads their luscious sparkle.
In front are the two rods used for the base glass. Yup, that light blue rod made that awesome rusty red colour in the back bead as well – cool, huh? It’s called reducing, which means bringing to the surface the metals used to colour the glass. This time i did it kinda by accident but I’m gradually learning how to do it on purpose – it’s really quite a neat effect.
Evelyn Duberry - Glass Artist 
