31 days. 31 stories. 31 beads.
Each one made from glass that might’ve been forgotten, thrown away, or left behind — transformed with flame, patience, and a little bit of magic.
Watch them flash by… and come together in the final necklace.
This is Melted Moments. Thank you for being part of it.
The last day. Today’s beads were made from a broken Christmas tree ornament — one that fell from the tree, snapping off at the hook. I couldn’t bring myself to throw it out, so I tucked it away… and remembered it for this challenge.
The colour faded as soon as it hit the flame, but what remained were soft swirls of cream — delicate and unexpectedly lovely. It now joins the full collection on my very long necklace of Melted Moments.
Thank you so much for following along this month — and a huge thank you to everyone who has ever donated a bottle or glass object for me to melt. Sometimes it takes me a while to get to them, but I remember each one.
If you’ve got something special you’d like me to repurpose into beads or jewellery, please reach out — I’d love to help give it new life.
And stay tuned… I’ll be sharing photos of the finished necklace tomorrow!
Today’s bead comes from one of the quirkiest bottles in my collection — a bright blue glass fish!
This little gem is a reproduction of 19th-century bitters bottles, originally used to store herbal tonics and remedies. The one I had was made in Taiwan, probably in the 1970s.
I’ve been saving it for something special, and this challenge felt like the right moment. The colour melted beautifully, and I love how the little fish bead holds just a hint of the bottle’s eccentric charm!
Almost at the end now — one more day to go!
Moët & Chandon — French champagne and the bottle I keep coming back to whenever I make champagne bottle beads.
I can’t quite remember how I landed on using Moët in the first place… maybe it was the label, maybe I was celebrating something or maybe I just wanted to add a little sparkle to my growing collection of recycled glass beads. Whatever the reason — it stuck.
The colour is gorgeous and it melts like a dream. Today I kept the beads simple to let that beauty shine through. Sometimes glass just wants to be lovely.
Honestly, any excuse to pop champagne and call it “art research,” right?
I think this one started life as a big glass light cover…and when another artist at T’Arts asked if I could use it, I couldn’t say no.
One of my favourite things about doing my shift at the gallery is finding donated glass treasures in my drawer. I love that people think to give them to me instead of throwing them away.
This piece sat in my collection for a while — I wasn’t quite sure how it would behave, and I needed a little courage to break it. It was really big! But I’m so glad I did. The glass melted beautifully, and the I added some gold pixie dust to the beads to keep that soft golden glow that feels like warm afternoon light.
This green jug was given to me by my mum about 16 years ago, when I started experimenting with recycled glass — just after my daughter was born.
She gave it to me to break… but I hadn’t been able to. It was too beautiful. I had seen this jug in my childhood home for so many years, so it sat on my shelf all this time, waiting.
This month’s challenge finally gave me the nudge. I picked up the hammer and cracked it open. Inside were layers of white and green and I was curious to see how they’d melt.
The beads turned out beautifully — and now I can finally say: Mum, I smashed the jug.
This bead comes from a Mr Mick Clare Valley wine bottle — part of my first efforts to make flower sticks from recycled glass.
I’d been using Italian glass for these sticks, but the T’Arts on Tour exhibition in Clare gave me the nudge I needed to try something different — to take the leap into trying recycled glass.
Including these beads in my Melted Moments challenge feels important. It represents the beginning of a new direction, a new idea taking root.
Stay tuned… more recycled glass flower sticks are on the way!
Have you had a chance to visit the T’Arts on Tour exhibition in Clare yet?
These beads began as… another bead. I’ve often been asked if I can remelt my own beads, and I’ve always said no — I didn’t think it would work.
But as part of this creative challenge, I decided to finally try. I found an old flower bead that wasn’t quite right, gently heated it on the hot plate and gave it a second chance in the flame.
The result? These soft, swirly little beads — and I was genuinely delighted when I opened the kiln.
So now, when someone asks, I can say yes — sometimes old beads can become new again.
Tanqueray Gin — another favourite in the Gin and Tonic collection. The green is so vibrant and fresh. And the best part? The bottle melts like a dream. Smooth, reliable and always a pleasure to work with.
Not all recycled glass behaves this nicely, so when it does, I remember to be grateful.
This bright orange jug caught my eye — such a bold, joyful colour. I had to give it a go! But as I’ve learned, sometimes glass loses its colour in the flame… and sometimes, you can coax it back by letting it cool and reheating it again.
I tried a few different ways of working with this one — experimenting, adjusting, trying again. This bead is the most orange I could get. Not quite as vivid as the jug, but still pretty.
You can see the mess glass has made on my bench. It really is temperamental.
