Sunfire Glass - the heart and soul of me, Bonnie Knapp, living and loving life in central Florida. I have a wonderful, sometimes very lonely (always competing with the torch), but supportive husband and two sweet West Highland White Terriers, Dexter and Piper. After a long career in the corporate world, I am now enjoying my artistic side. I happened upon the wonderful world of handmade lampwork bead creation (lampworking) in a somewhat unfortunate way. While recuperating from a foot injury, a very dear friend introduced me to the art of beading - tedious, fascinating and very fulfilling. I was enthralled. Before long I was drawn to and intrigued by the art of lampworking and the beautiful lampwork glass beads. One class and I was totally hooked. What was to start out as a hobby, has become a consuming passion. With lots of time on the torch and after years of dabbling in other forms of art from oil painting to metals and lapidary, I feel I have finally found the perfect outlet for my creativity. The inspiration for my beads comes from everything from nature to a bowl of beautiful fruit. I believe that each glass bead is a unique art creation. Similar yet different to others in a matching set, all meant to enhance one another. My lampwork beads are made in my home studio (simple, but effective). All of my beads are made from Effetre/Moretti glass and taken from the torch directly into the kiln. There they are properly annealed for strength and years of wear ability. I make all of my beads to reflect my love of art and pride of workmanship. I hope that you enjoy my beads as much as I enjoy making them! A special thanks to Susan for helping me find this rewarding part of my life. |
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