Tacoma's Museum of Glass

I have been wanting to go to the Museum of Glass (MOG) in Tacoma since before it was even open to the public in 2002. The biggest draw is Dale Chihuly's Bridge of Glass, which extends over a highway to provide free-to-the-public access between the three downtown Tacoma museums. The bridge was not quite what I thought it would be (you don't walk on glass), but the incredible array of colors and forms definitely exceeded all my expectations! I took a million pictures, which I hope to post some of later. But first, let's talk about the MOG itself.

The MOG is architecturally intriguing, very modern with lots of chrome and concrete, but something about the space saves it from being cold and boring. Maybe it's the sky? It is on a little waterway with moored boats, and in the background you can see Mt. Rainier, The Tacoma Dome, and an impressive suspension bridge. Personally, I think it is the sun hitting the outdoor glass instillation, illuminating clear glass forms so they appear whitish, reflecting off the shallow pool they are set into.

Inside the MOG are some incredible pieces, most notably an enormous glass triptych entitled Gathering the Light. Painstakingly created in a multitude of stages by Cappy Thompson, the riot of color radiates from within. Add sunlight, and it shines like a creation of the gods. Also not-to-be-missed is the gallery of works designed by children and recreated in glass onsite by the Hot Shop team - there are over 50 whimsical creations to enjoy. The gallery of Preston Singletary is quite impressive as well, recreating Tlingit (Native American) designs into glass sculpture.

Unfortunately, there isn't much more to talk about in the MOG. There are only 2 galleries, a shop, a cafe, a theater, and a children's learning room. For some reason there is a long hallway to the bathrooms entitled "Alley of Art" that has NO art in it, although the glass wall allowing you views of the domed courthouse is impressive - if you manage to overlook the depressing train tracks immediately outside. We definitely enjoyed ourselves, but at the cost of $12 per ticket, we were not impressed.

That is, until we plopped down in the Hot Shop and watched a team of glass makers work for over an hour. Watching the techniques, seeing the transformations through various stages to create a final product, was all riveting. There are some dull moments when the piece is in the furnace and everyone stands around waiting for a minute,  and yet you still can't look away. I'll be posting some pictures here soon that show the progression of one piece - I missed the initial stage and the final product, but it's still fascinating.

In the end, was it worth the $12? Yes, but only because of the Hot Shop. I would have felt better if there were separate admission prices, say $7 for the Hot Shop and $5 for the museum. Even $10 to see the glass making in action would have been worth it, then they could charge an extra $2-$3 to see the museum. Oh well, in the end it was all quite enjoyable, gorgeous, and definitely worth the price of admission.

Reviews: California Bead Stores, Part 1

Last week my husband and I drove the Coast of California from San Francisco to Anaheim. For us, that's a lot of driving, so we made a lot of stops to stretch it out for a full week. I was hoping to hit quite a few bead shops along the way, if only to see something different. Unfortunately, the list of shops I had made (which I had meticulously compiled from the internet and bead magazines) was left behind on the living room coffee table. So things were a little more hit-and-miss than I would have liked, but oh well. Anyway, I thought you guys might like to hear about some of the shops I visited, in case you're planning your own Central California trip!

Day 1: San Francisco
We arrived to our hotel quite late in the afternoon, so we only had time for one destination, and we chose Chinatown. It was beautiful, colorful, smelled amazing, and was busting to the seams with tiny shops selling all sorts of items. Half of which seemed to be jewelry shops selling strands of pearls, turquoise, coral, and occasionally other gemstones right in their doorways. I resisted the temptation to bore my husband to tears, knowing that with the emphasis on pearls I probably wouldn't find anything I liked anyway. But boy was it difficult to stay out of those shops!

Day 2: Monterey
Monterey is a sweet little coastal town with so much to see and do. Cannery Row, a shopping district next to the Monterey Bay Aquarium, was a bit of a tourist trap but still lots of fun to explore!

Let It Bead at 700 Cannery Row, 2nd Floor, Monterey CA
This is a very pretty shop, with faeries, tiny lights, and all sorts of fun and shiny items decorating the entrance area. Unfortunately for me, this shop is meant to cater to tourists who want to make their own jewelry on the spot: lots of glass and plastic beads to choose from, with help behind-the-counter to finish it up for you or just answer questions. While this may be a good business model for a shop in a touristy destination, it is not at all what a beader with any sort of experience is looking for. They had a few interesting pendants behind the counter, pinned to a wall, but in the end it wasn't worth it to interrupt the conversation between the salesperson and the customer she was helping make a bracelet for. As the only bead shop in town (that I could find anyway), it was quite disappointing.

Silver, Sand, and Stone at 700 Cannery Row, 2nd Floor, Monterey CA
Their windows filled with turquoise and coral looked promising, so I stepped inside. What I had thought were strands of turquoise turned out to be necklaces. This is a little shop with a gorgeous selection of handmade Native American jewelry. No real beads on sale, but quite easy to spend too much time and money there anyway!

Rock Your World at 685 Cannery Row, Suite 109, Monterey CA
This is such a cute rock shop! Occasionally while perusing a rock shop, you may make an interesting find between the shelves of crystals, fossils, and jaspers. This was not my lucky day for such a find, but there was plenty to look at, and I had a nice chat with the woman behind the counter about the mysterious Monterey Bay fog.

Day 3: Drive to San Simeon via Carmel
We actually spent much of the day at the Monterey Bay Aquarium, so with so much driving in front of us, we only had time to visit one bead shop in Carmel-by-the-Bay. Unfortunately, A Bead Above was no more - we confirmed with another shop in the building that we did have the right address, but that the shop had closed down. There is a possibility that this is actually Let It Bead's original location, since the only website address I can find re-directs to that shop's "in-progress" website.