"Pathways" Lake of the Pines Clubhouse

We are happy to be a part of the Lake of the Pines Clubhouse Grand Opening! "Pathways' lives at the front entry as you enter the lodge.

View from the Clubhouse

Newly remodeled Clubhouse

Installation Day - David Redmond up the ladder!

Pathways Installed!

Grand Opening

The Theater Gallery

Thursday September 5, 2013 we celebrated Twilight Thursdays in the Plumas District of Yuba City with our artist reception at the The Theater Gallery. We met the movers and shakers of downtown Yuba City that are making the district come alive. Unbelievably, I won the incredible flowers complimenting our glass donated by Yuba City Florist. We appreciated the warm welcome from the community. It is an honor to show our glass there through September.

Restoration of the Theater is underway

Yuba City Florist compliments our Autumn Wall

Rick and Janet Nicholson out on the town

Charcoal portrait by Roberto Valdez Sanchez

Shorebirds catching the twilight sun

The Buttes on the drive home

ARTWALK a success

Michael Murphy with Rick Nicholson

Commemorative Artwalk at OLAS

Emerging Artists and friends

Fawnridge Wine

Chris Stenzel

Hannah Nicholson and paintings with Nicholson Blown Glass

We were so excited to see the huge community support out on the Commemorative Artwalk. We were extra blessed with the presence of friends, families and long time collectors. Fawnridge poured wine and featured the artists label, Primitivo, with our Shorebirds on it. Our daughter, Hannah, recently returned from South America and showed three new large paintings inspired by her travels. Our current assistant, Chris Stenzel, showed a variety of his sculptural glass and our assistant, Matt Eaton, came up from San Jose State with his latest works. The show will be open by appointment until September 1. So if you missed the fun, give me a call and come see the show. We love soaking in the energy of these young, emerging artists!

Commemorative Artwalk

Alana helping install

Chris Stenzel new work

Gerda Francesca clay sculpture

Hannah Nicholson paintings

We are busy setting up for the upcoming Auburn Artwalk Thursday August 8, 6 to 9pm, at OLAS, 175 Almond St, Auburn. Artwalk is celebrating 20 years so "old" artists were invited to feature emerging artists that they have influenced (hopefully in a positive way :). We've been here 32 years even before Placer Arts was in existence! OLAS is the old Carnegie Library, a beautiful and historic building tucked away behind downtown Auburn. It was the first home of Placer Arts and currently houses artist's studios. Gerda Francesca, an artist in residence at OLAS, invited her student, Jeanne Culhane, to show her clay. We are joined by our two assistants, Matthew Eaton and Chris Stenzel, who will be exhibiting blown glass with mixed media. Our daughter, Hannah, is sharing her paintings inspired by her recent trips to South America. Stop by 6 to 9 if you can! OLAS will be open by appointment following the Artwalk. Just give me a call. 530-823-1631

Palo Alto Clay and Glass Festival

Colorful inspiration on the drive home.

Hands down my favorite image from the show!

We are home from the Palo Alto Clay and Glass Festival and recovering!

Red Volo

A striking new red piece is ready to go. This time to Petri's in Sausalito. Red Volo seems a bit Italian to me! Rick and I are enjoying our conversational Italian class this summer in preparation for Rick's adventure at Pilchuck with maestro Pino Signoretto.

Passionate Mary

A new piece completed today for a good friend full of love, kindness and passion.

People's Choice

I never would have imagined this honor - People's Choice at the Placer Arts 30th Jubilee! It is very exciting to be able to finally present new work. We have been developing this work for a year now and it is time to get it out in the world. Inner Drive was created by repurposing our blown glass in the kiln, cutting and creating the metal sculpture. Each piece is one of a kind.

Chandelier Installation

We just finished installing one of our chandeliers custom ordered for a beautifully restored 150 year old farm house from the gold rush days. There is even a round barn on the property as well as many special quiet retreat spots. The owner stared at it long into the evening last night and let us know that she thinks it is "a stunning addition" to her home. We are honored to be part of such an amazing collection of art, glass and antiques.

Pacheco Pass Installation in Maryland

Installed today! I would like to share the process with you....
The email query was one year ago. The presentation was in June with various possibilities of photoshop images on renderings for a new commercial building. Glass samples were sent in October and the decision was made in January. This was a long process but complete!

"The pieces look great. In person the pieces glow and look gorgeous! We were also very impressed by the way all of the pieces were organized and labeled. We have installed hundreds of pieces of art and this was the most organized." Design Consultant

Early concept on rendering

Final decision with layout

Pacheco Pass completed in the studio

Installation complete

Lobby view

Custom Uplift

This piece is off to a corporate office. The custom Uplift is 28"H with a 20" Wave Bowl.

SKY

SKY - just finished and available! Three piece Landscape for the wall. 50"W x 44"H. Each plate is 24"W.

Channel 10 live streaming Shorebird

Rick Nicholson and Chris Stenzel create a Shorebird for Channel 10 live streaming on Sunday morning of the North Auburn Spring Art Studios Tour May 12, 2013. Enjoy!

North Auburn Art Studios Tour - Spring 2013

The Mother's Day Tour (must be year 17 by now) was tons of fun with lots of Mom's and families out wandering the foothills. Jim and Rita Forman joined us with Rita's beautifully detailed glass beads. Hannah and Alana were extra helpful and Hannah sold a painting! Exciting because she had it hidden in the office and had just completed it. We are all hoping that she feels encouraged to keep it up. Channel 10 did a live feed Sunday morning. Chris's family stopped by just in time to see him complete a sculpture. Rick and Chris completed a large platter and a Shorebird each day. The weather was a bit hotter than usual and they were exhausted in the end. We have recuperated and are back to blowing. Currently, we are working on a large wall installation for a residence. Save the date for the Fall North Auburn Art Studios Tour September 28 and 29!

Heather's Scholarship Essay

Heather is a finalist (10 out of 500) for a scholarship based on an essay of how small business has impacted your life. It is such a unique peek into Nicholson Blown Glass from her perspective that I thought I should post it. Enjoy!

Manifesting dreams through small business ownership

As you enter the winding driveway that leads to my parent’s small business — and behind it, my home — the idyllic wooden building comes into view. My parents are artists — glass blowers — and when they purchased this patch of land more than 30 years ago, it simply represented a dream. They wanted to turn their creative passion into a business, a way to economically pursue what they loved.

My childhood was filled with twinkling colored glass and glimpses of the molten lava of the glass furnace. My childhood was also filled with the lessons and values that come from being raised within a family business. I grew up in a small business world where the way my parents made a living fundamentally shaped the person I am today.

Wanting to emulate the entrepreneurial and creative spirit of my parents, I started my first business at age five. They would hold open studio days when customers would visit the studio, watch glass blowing demonstrations and make purchases. Being a resourceful child, I made chains of s-shaped packing peanuts by hooking them together. The chains were mostly white with combinations of pale mint greens and peachy pinks. I sold them for one to two cents each, the value depending on the length and number of colored sections.

Growing up in a small business environment fostered an understanding of the value of hard work as well as the ability to fill many roles and take on any job that needs doing. My mother jokes that her “business casual” attire is mud-streaked jeans and a ratty t-shirt. She works hard both physically and mentally to make my parents’ business operate. In one day, she will be in the mud on the side of the driveway planting flowers for the open studio next weekend. Then she will be in the office going over numbers and sending out emails. Next she will be discussing color combinations over the phone with clients and translating that to my dad so he can create the piece from the molten glass. Finally she will shower, dress up, and wear some glass jewelry to an art event in town in order to connect with the community and ever-promote their business.

Small business both creates and thrives upon the presence of a community. Growing up around the glass studio, I had a built-in family. Jean and Leslie, who worked in the office and did the accounting, were — and continue to be — like aunts. Jerry, Calif and Matt, who consecutively assisted my dad in the daily labors of blowing glass, were each like big brothers. If I had a bad day at school, I could hang out in the glass studio. I would inevitably be put to work, but I enjoyed it because I was contributing to the success of my family.

There was also a community outside of the one operating the small artistic business. My parents have patrons who have collected their glass from the beginning – and 30 years later continue to be avid supporters of their creative works. They founded — and rely upon — this community of art lovers and art supporters — people who believe in supporting local artists and small businesses.

As a child, I watched both my parents work hard and accomplish a wide range of tasks. In order to achieve a successful day, their teamwork and flexibility with each other was paramount. Effective communication and the ability to manage a million things at once are skills I pride in both my parents – skills that have allowed them to live off of their passion. Yet despite all the strength of spirit, creativity, flexibility, hard work and community, there were setbacks. From the beginning when they first purchased an empty plot of land, my parents could have given up.

Their parents did not want their children to attempt a life of creative pursuits. Indeed, it is difficult to be successful and a challenge to be able to support oneself, much less a family. With limited funds, my parents built the glass studio first and lived by the warmth of the glass furnace. I lived in the studio the first year of my life, my first Christmas stocking hanging above the 2500 degree Fahrenheit furnace. Yet my parents persevered to establish their dream.

Once, when the power went out and a week’s worth of glass was lost – thousands of dollars lost in the thirty minutes of darkness – I saw my father cry. In recent years, when the economy changed and people spent less money on art, my parents could have closed up shop. Yet, they persevered and relied upon their creativity to come up with new ways to be relevant in a new economy.

I have been blessed to belong to an incredibly supportive family that encourages me to pursue my dreams and gain an education in something I find truly inspiring. Through my parents’ example of pursing their passion as artists, the lesson was instilled in me to follow my own passion. My parents’ small business has influenced every aspect of my life and has not only shaped me as a person but also thoroughly informed my decision to pursue a career in nursing. My small business upbringing that inspired me to follow my heart has brought me to this very application, and it would be an honor to receive financial assistance from a company that understands and values the influence of my parents’ lifelong passion.

This essay was written by Heather Nicholson, one of 10 finalists for the SuretyBonds.com Small Business Success Student Scholarship Program. Heather and the other finalists were selected from more than 500 applications reviewed by the SuretyBonds.com Scholarship Committee. Three of the finalists will win a $1,500 scholarship to be used toward furthering their education. To vote for Heather or any of the other finalists, visit the SuretyBonds.com Small Business Success Student Scholarship voting app on Facebook.

Shorebird Preview Party

Our "Friends of the Studio" email list and Fawnridge Wine Club Members attended our Shorebird Preview Party and release of the new Fawnridge Primitivo Artist label last night. It was a beautiful Spring evening! Guests were fascinated as they watched the creation of a Shorebird. We put the extra heat to work and made smores by the glory hole. We were especially happy to have both of our daughters home. A rare occasion. Fun for all!