We are a husband-wife team from Ottawa, Ontario, Canada specializing in a variety of fused glass, wood, and resin products.
A few years ago I was asked to manage our synagogue’s tiny Judaic gift shop. As I reviewed the inventory I was struck that most items were manufactured in distant lands, and the designs of these mass-produced items were tired looking and felt “soul-less”. I envisioned the gift shop featuring beautiful and unique inventory, inventory that was not only beautiful but meaningful and purposeful. To achieve this goal I started purchasing artisan made Judaica, and thus our shul now had a unique boutique for Judaica which I aptly named “Boutique Judaica”.
A year after working with a local fused glass artist, who made lovely menorahs for Boutique Judaica, she informed me she wanted to move on. However, she planted a seed as she suggested: “You can make these menorahs yourself!” So on that dark snowy February day my fused glass menorah making adventure began.
I love the quote by Henry Ward Beecher, “Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures.”
The Festival of Light is all about moving from darkness into light. Each of my Hanukkah Menorahs are handcrafted using fused glass as my palette. Thin pieces of glass are stacked together and placed into a kiln to be fused into one durable finished product.
Reflecting now, the essence of my menorahs lies in vibrant colours. I believe colours penetrate and reverberate what we want our lives to be. We gain strength and hope by seeing colour’s dancing in space. If our souls are illuminated it can then connect to long ago forgotten truths. Ugliness reigns everywhere. I create colourful glass menorahs to counterbalance the darkness I see in the world. Enjoy my colours and reflect upon them and see what truth or beauty you can bring to the world.
~ Marie
Howie joins the team!
After 36 years as a family dentist in Ottawa Canada, working with tools has always been a way of life. Upon retirement in 2019, My wife Marie saw that I had extra time on my hands, and asked me to make her a new kitchen table using live-edge wood and epoxy resin. Before undertaking this task I decided to get used to working with the materials on a smaller scale, and up to now I’ve made dozens of serving platters.
I find it very rewarding to hunt for, and find interesting and unique slabs of wood and then watching my vision come to life. Only nature can create the magnificent beauty found in the colours, grains, and imperfections of natural hardwoods. I have sources for finding unique pieces that have originated from as far away as Australia. I do not add any stains to any wood pieces. Each piece I make is unique, totally “one of a kind”.
Making furniture is just transferring the skills learned from making serving platters onto a larger scale. After spending hours in the creative process, I’m happy to see them find their way into peoples’ homes. While Marie has always been an artist, where being creative is a normal part of her day, this whole world of artistry and creativity has only come to me later in life. (You might think being a dentist requires artistry and creativity, however, I just didn’t really think of it that way).
Marie has often come to me for help with her own artistic visions, or I have physically helped her to create her pieces where wood was involved. I have also taken on the role as head electrician for maintaining her kiln. Now I am taking the time to create my own artistic vision. (And…loving it!!)
~ Howie