Glass Blowing

I have a real passion for art, and I am so ready to get back to blowing glass. I am jones'n to get behind the torch and dance with the elements of fire, solids, liquid, and gravity. I started blowing glass in 1999, In the mountains of North Carolina just west of Asheville. I was 24. Working in the medium of glass was very addicting to me. I spent 12 hours nearly every night for the first few months of my learning curve. I was fortunate to work with, and be taught by 4 of my friends who were all at different levels of experience. They were willing to teach me the ropes while lending me the supplies I needed to experiment and create with. I am very thankful for those who provided me with the opportunities to blow glass with them.

Being able to spend that much time blowing glass, day in and day out, I soon started to develop the skills that provided for me to run a small yet lucrative glass blowing business. I spent the next five years learning about, and creating with hot glass. I spent a lot of time making production pieces ,that would take between 10-25 minutes; these I would sell at wholesale prices. This was one avenue of bringing in income. I would also make glass pieces that I would spend 6-12 hours on. These pieces would be very intricate, consisting of lots of color patterns and very unique shaping. These were my favorite pieces to make because they would stretch the limits of my knowledge of glass. I always enjoyed pushing my limits to see where I could go with it.

I have only blown glass a few times over the past few years, mainly because I don't have a studio set up currently. I do like to spend time blowing with my friends though from time to time. But the urges to get behind a torch and being creative are really boiling up inside. I am making plans to build a shop and equip it with all new ventilation and glass blowing equipment. I am very much looking forward to making new glass art.

Check out these videos about creating glass art

Milon Townsend



Acroduster

SOC101 Reflective Writings #52

RW #52 – Is it easy to find a job that is in sync with one’s values? What job/career do you aspire to? What factors do you think contribute to job satisfaction? Do you think you will have job satisfaction in your chosen job/career? Do you think you will experience value contradictions in your chosen job/career?

Finding a job that is in sync with my values is not easy but it is possible. The best way I can do this is to be an Entrepreneur and thereby create a job that reflects my core values. The main value that is focused on here, is to not have to work for someone else. That is so important to me. For five years I ran a glass art business. This is where I discovered that I did have career values, and for the most part realized what they were. I also learned that in order to be a much more successful business owner; I should go to school and pursue a business degree. I am looking forward owning and managing a green construction, residential and commercial building company. I really believe that being a part of an environmentally conscious company like this would really contribute to personal job satisfaction. Green construction is not the easiest or cheapest way to build, so I think there will be many value contradictions along the way. But as long as I stick to my core values, the obstacles along the way will only help to make my company stronger and greener.

SOC101 Reflective Writings #36

RW #36 – As the world population continues to grow beyond 6 billion people, what challenges can we expect to face? Consider competition for space and other scarce resources; jobs; pollution; and more. Do you think we as a nation or as a world should strive to control the growth of the human population? If so, how? You can refer to the following website for more information: http://www.populationconnection.org

Striving to control the growth of the human population is not a movement that I would support. For religious and moral reasons, I believe that every child who is conceived should have the chance to come to this earth and work out his or her salvation. As for the population growth and the factors it is playing out in the world society there are quite a few issues that are in need of a solution. There are ways to live more in harmony with the Earth that insures less of an impact to the Earths vital resources. It is only very recently (the last 2 hundred years) that we as humans have been making such a detrimental impact on the Earth. Making drastic changes in manufacturing, mining, refining, and transportation emissions would help pollution levels around the world. (which would be a good start) Some places in the world have begun to literally run out of space. This correlates with the depletion of biological resources. Japan seems to be a wealthy enough country to learn and adapt to soaring population growth. They have utilized residential construction methods that are tall, and incorporate thousands of families. So there are some solutions to the world’s population problems, it will probably take a very long time before the answers are figured out on a global scale.

SOC101 RW #11

RW #11 - What are some of the values you hold most dear? How did you come to have those values? Do any of your values contradict with one another?


One of the core values which is of the upmost importance in my life is value of family unity. I have been married for 2 ½ years and we have a 6 month old son. They are the most important thing on this earth to me. More important than my career, education, house or any ideal or material thing that I may possess. My family is the reason I work hard, seek an education, and pay for a house so we live more comfortably. This sense of family value was instilled in me in my youth. As important to me that my small family is, my paternal family is equally important; just as my wife’s family is to her and to us. We were raised according to another core value we hold dear which is our religion. Our religion’s main focus is that families are forever, in heaven just as they are on earth. I consider it such a blessing to be part of a family that knows how important it is to stick together throughout the good times as well as the bad. I am a firm believer that this value has molded me into the man I am today.

SOC101 Reflective Writings #3

RW #3 - What are the major theoretical perspectives in sociology today? Which of these theoretical perspectives is most in accordance with your thinking about the social world? Why? How might a person’s economic position impact his or her theoretical perspective?

The three major theoretical perspectives in sociology today consist of Structural functionalism, the conflict theory, and Symbolic Interaction. All three of these theories seem to be in accordance with my perspective in relation to how I view the social world. I definitely see the value in the functionalist view point. It is important to understand the reasons behind why things work well, while understanding all the different parts that work together. My primary point of view would most likely be to identify the conflict. I think that by proving what doesn’t work is a good way to solve social issues. Also I think it is important to know who or what is being negatively affected by a given conflict. The Symbolic Interaction theory would help me to get a clearer picture about how individuals give meanings to words, objects, and symbols. If people are products of their environment, then individuals would probably view the economic world according to where they fit into the social class system. Someone who has never had anything would surely think differently than someone who has never had to worry about their financial situation.

SOC101 Reflective Writings #1

RW #1 - What are some social problems that concern you? How might studying sociology help you in contributing to the resolution of such social problems? How might you incorporate your concern about these social problems into this class?


Right now I am studying Western Civilization in addition to Sociology. Studying history is like learning all about past societies; how they evolved as well as how they fell. So I am really starting to appreciate the value of studying how different cultures exist; of the past as well as in the present. Right now in making a personal choice for choosing a new President of the U.S. is close at hand; we are more in touch, and more aware of the many pressing social problems and concerns currently within our own country. The foremost concern on my mind, and a large number of U.S. citizens as well, is our countries economic stability as it directly relates to my personal financial decisions. I recently was reading about the fall of the great Roman Empire. One of the reasons the author of my history book attributed the fall was the fact that Roman rulers had spent way to much money and resources fighting too many foreign wars, while at home inflation rose swiftly. I attempt to make the comparison of our current foreign war, and current inflation problem to the fall of the Roman Empire as evidence that history really does repeat itself. I don’t know much about the study of sociology, but I do see the educational value it brings to trying to understand social problems. By using scientific approaches data that is collected and reviewed is a good source of insight to social tendencies, and can help create templates for solving social problems. By attempting to share my points of view in class discussions, I might be adding some insight to these subjects and concerns.

I have done a lot of vending over the years, and I wanted to give some input to this topic. This is just some of my experiences with a variety of different shows, craft fairs, and festivals.

Vending for me has always been first and foremost to make money. However the reality of making tons of money by selling every item you take usually is not the reality. I have rarely (relative to the # of events I have attended, & amount of items I brought to sell) come close to selling out.

Vending can get expensive. I have paid up to $400 dollars for a booth, and have driven 13+ hours for an event. Then add the cost of hotels and food, multiplied by the number of days you are away from home, then multiply those days by the fact that you are not at home producing your products, and things can get expensive quick.

Vending is tricky. Just like the location of a storefront is everything, the location of your booth at an event is crucial. So contact the Event staff to find out if you pay for vending, where your spot will be. This will help you to determine whether or not it is worth the vendor fees. Also depending on the size of an event, vending fees may differ depending on there location within the event. High traffic areas may cost more than vendors around the perimeter are paying.

Know what you are getting into. Do some reasearch on the event so you know how many people, and other vendors will be attending. Also know the local laws about vending. Some places don't have any requirements, while other places require fees and vending licences. The best place to get all this information is from the event staff. They should know the local laws and info on attendees and volume of vendors. However they are always trying to promote their event so they may stretch the numbers to make it sound more inticing. Another good place to get info on local vending reulations is that locations chamber of commerce.

Variety is probably the key to greatest volume of sales. Also having enough of everything is very important. When preparing for a vending trip I plan on taking way more product than I expect to sell. The last thing you want is to sell out of something that is really selling well that day. Having to much of something isn't to much of a problem because you can always store your extra stuff under a table, and restock your tables as nessasary. There is a trick to selling most of the stuff you have left over after the event. I will get to that later.

When you get your booth set up at your event, be sure to take a good look around. Take along a helper or signifigant other who can stay at your booth while you go see what everybody else brought to sell. (A helper comes in very handy when business really picks up:) It is a good idea to know what the comps are in your area. By this I mean it is important to know how much the other vendors are selling their products for. This may help you gauge the best price to sell your items for. You know the value of your craft or art, and you want to get the most money possible for each item. There is a fine line you walk as a vendor. You don't want to under cut all the other vendors prices, so that you are the only one selling anything. Yet you also want to sell as much of what you brought as you possibly can. So what do you do. It is up to you to decide what is best for you. I usually start off asking high prices for my items. Potential customers are going to try to bargain with you anyway so the high price tactic makes them feel like they are getting a deal. If the high price thing isn't working because your not selling much, then drop your prices accordingly. I usally decrease my prices throughout the day ending with sale type pricing by the end of the event.

Why try Vending?

Through the trials and learning processes of running a small artist/crafters business I have recognized the value of hitting the buyers market on all fronts. In fact this is one of the reasons I started my etsy store. The buyers market includes all potential buyers which include your customers, wholesalers, store owners, galleries, and web shoppers. A lot of the work I do vending is actually marketing.
Selling your items at retail prices is the best way to make money. To sell at retail you must have some type of storefront, or vending booth. Craft fairs and festivals are a great way to get your products directly into the hands of your customers. People love buying things at these events because they get to actually meet the person who created the special thing they are spending their hard earned monies on. They see the value in buying something handmade from the artist or crafter. Getting retail or full value for your art or craft gives you the most profit.

Sore Owners and Wholesalers always enjoy visiting craft shows and festivals, because they know these are great places to meet (in person) crafters and artists, they might like to commission for wholesale orders. Store owners and wholesalers are the best people to meet because a good percentage of your potential earnings will come from these two sources. By wholesaling you will be able to transcend your craft or hobbies into a small business. (Most manufacturing businesses primarily utilize wholesaling practices.) You will not make as much money per item, but you will be able to sell in volume, creating long term earnings and job security.
Remember you set the price that the final customer pays when you set up your wholesale pricing list. Store owners will double whatever they pay for your items, insuring them a profit. Keep that in mind while you make up a wholesale pricing list. If you know that your item sells to the final customer best at $10, you should sell those items to wholesalers and shop owners at $5. If you price it to high then the wholesalers and store owners might still buy them, but they won’t be able to sell them as quickly. And, that hurts your potential earnings, because you won’t be selling to them as much as you probably could. Wholesalers are selling to stores also, that they have accounts with so they are marking up your price a little and making their money off of the sheer volume of their sales. You might like to give your wholesalers a better price than store owners making it easier for them to sell your items.

A tribute to BEE-BOP

Creating is my passion. Heavenly Father has blessed me with many talents, as well as the desire to create. For this I am grateful. Art is just part of who I am. It rests somewhere deep within my soul from time to time. There are also times when it boils over, and all I want to do is be creative. Right now I am applying most of this creative energy into painting and networking with other artists; who are passionate about there work also. I have only been painting for a short time. I have always wanted to paint. I took art classes in high school and knew that making art was part of who I am. My grandfather Karl Baumann, was a very well known artist in San Francisco in the last half 0f the 1900's. All he did was paint, teach art, walk through Golden Gate Park, visit the aquarium, and raised his family. He painted a lot. I grew up admiring his art. Everyone in my family has many of his paintings. To us they are priceless. His art is of a style all to its own. I see many different influences in his work. And he has definitely influenced my art. When I was very young he spent time painting with me. during the few times we visited San Francisco. While traveling across country in a Station Wagon.(those trips across this great country from South Carolina to San Francisco and back is a whole blog in itself)
My grandfather taught me how to create organic shapes by drawing many smaller geometric shapes. In a way these lessons have shaped my life. At least my artistic side. Much more I am Sure. I recently read an article in a magazine devoted to California artists where BEE-BOP (what we call our grandfather) shared how he viewed the pictures he painted. He described his work as "his love for nature, and the conflict of mans impact on nature." What a profound statement. What an awesome ideal to attempt through painting. He loved Nature. He took my mother and her siblings on walks through Golden Gate Park countless times. He was very fond of his garden and house plants. He also tended to his room full of fish tanks over fifty of them at one time. Bee-bop was born in Germany between the World Wars. He was able to come to America to live with his father as the onslaught of World War 2 was beginning. He started drawing with colored pencils as a child in Germany. He would draw pictures of landscapes and nature, for his grandparents. He lived with them for some time, up into his youth.
As an artist in San Francisco he painted with mostly oils and water colors. He also did pencil drawings. He painted on many different surfaces. Canvas was expensive so he painted a lot on board. He also would make and paint frames for his paintings, out of an assortment of random types of wood materials. He painted a lot of different things. He mostly painted landscapes, still life's, and abstracts. He used a lot of geometric shapes with heavy dark outlines. His use of vivid color expression is probably what stands out most about his work. His use of color is is amazing, which is something I wish to learn, and attempt to emulate.

I have been spending much of my free time helping to strengthen TeamSC. http://scstreetteam.blogspot.com/ TeamSC is the South Carolina Street Team, formed by SC artisans who feature their stores on http://www.etsy.com/ . TeamSC has really grown this week. With the help of promotions and recruiting, accomplished by team members. Our team is buzzing with excitement about uniting local artists to accomplish like minded goals. Our team artisans work represents a wide variety of arts, crafts, clothing, accessories, and jewelry. Our goals are to unite SC artisans, and help each other through promotions, teamwork, mentoring, and networking. We are accepting new members who have an etsy store and reside in South Carolina. If you are interested in joining, feel free to sign up. Of course you can contact me if you want help joining. Please click on the links and visit some of the TeamSC artists web pages.

Life is Good

Life is Good. Life is great. I have so much to be thankful for. And believe me when I say this; I am Eternally grateful to my Heavenly Father for all that he sees fit to bless me with. Why am I so blessed. I am not exactly sure. What I do know is that I am richly blessed. I do know that I must make it my life's work to earn and make good on these blessings. I am indebted to the lord and I will continue to walk in his light and serve others From this time forward.



My son Cory Aidan was born quite recently. His mother (Kelly my wife) has made me the happiest man on the planet. Aidan and Kelly are answers to my life's dreams and many many prayers. For as long as I have known myself, getting married and having a family has always been my most passionate goal. I had always planned on one day getting married. My life took some askew turns and tumbles along the way and I didn't meet my eternal companion until I was almost 30. Perhaps it was by design. I have always wanted to be a father, and after 2 years of marriage we were blessed with a son. Aidan is such an amazing baby boy. He was born 10 pounds 2 ounces. He is a big boy. His mother is a true champion as it was a natural child birth. He was born with a head full of blond hair. Kelly always knew she was carrying a baby boy. My family has been waiting a long time for a grandson that would carry on the Zingmark name. There are very few Zingmark's in the U.S. Out all my fathers brothers and cousins, my father is the only one to have any sons. My brother has 2 daughters (and 3 step children) and they are unable to have more children. So it was up to me to continue the legacy. Well the promise has been fulfilled. Again I give thanks to my heavenly father for this incredible blessing.

Aidan has brought new life (literally) to our family. Kelly's pregnancy and his birth has enlightened my mind, and energized my soul. I am once again rejuvenated and feel like everything is possible. I have waited so long to be a husband and longer to become a father. (Was it worth the wait?) That question isn't even relative. All you need to do for an answer, is to take one look at my family. My family is my life. Everything else fails in comparison. I was raised knowing the incredible importance of family. To always put family first. My wife was raised the same way, I know this because I have spent a lot of time with her extended family. We both want to raise our family according to these powerful gospel truths.

May 27, 2008

So, Here it goes. I have finally decided it is a good time to go blogging. It is my intention to use this blogspot, to reel in viewers and direct them to my Etsy website. Where I can introduce them to my works of art. Etsy is an artists website where everything is handmade; By artists like me. If it all goes well, and I begin to enjoy blogging this page may develop into much, much more.