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Personalized Christmas Ornaments

December 13, 2011 by · Comments Off on Personalized Christmas Ornaments 

Personalized Christmas Ornaments, Before the times of cash register’s cha-chinging and change rattling in purses, Christmas gifts had a little more of a personal touch. Some residents of the Walton County still believe in this personal element and have been crafting their hand made items for the Christmas season.

Monroe resident Rozelle Morton-Bush has dedicated the last 20 years of her life to learning and honing her craft of glass blowing.

Bush has her own studio at home but during the day she works in the Stone Mountain Park blowing glass for on lookers.

“I make about 2,500 pieces for Stone Mountain in a year and at least a 1,000 pieces at my own studio,” Bush said.

During the holidays Bush has a special object she likes to blow into shape — Christmas ball ornaments.

This is no easy task said Bush and neither is glass blowing in general.

“The art form has been around before Christ,” she said.

It takes Bush 10 minuets to shape her glass into a Christmas ornament and an additional 24 hours for the glass to cool.

Bush has two furnaces in her studio. One is set to 1,500 degrees to heat the glass and another at 900 for annealing or curing the glass once it has be blown into shape.

She uses a 5-foot pipe to blow the glass and it takes her 12 minutes to make a bulb and only a second to know if it’s going to be a good one or not said Bush.

“Since the ornament is so little you have to go with what you’ve got. Once you start you can’t go back,” she said. “You have to make sure you get it right the first time.”

After the bulb is blow the cooling process begins in another furnace for 24 hours.

Bush’s ornaments on the top half consist of the primary colors and then the chosen centerpiece color.

All of her pieces are unique just the way she wants them she said.

“I have a voice a certain style. By far they are not the best glass blowing.”

Personalized Christmas Ornaments

December 4, 2011 by · Comments Off on Personalized Christmas Ornaments 

Personalized Christmas Ornaments, Though the temperature outside felt more like fall on Saturday, residents of Dalton were celebrating winter and all that goes with it during the 35th annual Holiday Festival.

A parade at 2 p.m. on Saturday was one of the major highlights of the weekend-long event. Crowds lined the sidewalks of downtown Dalton to see the holiday-themed parade, led by this year’s grand marshal Gene Grim and citizen of the year Lloyal Santmyer.

The parade also included last year’s festival queen Natasha Mangle and this year’s festival queen Morgan Waddel, who was named Friday night along with first attendant Courtney Gardner.

The parade ended at Dalton High School where a large craft show was taking place, another big draw of the festival.

“We sold out our crafting space,” said festival committee member Jen Miller, who added that next year, they will utilize a second gymnasium for the festival. “It’s been wonderful.”

Annette Radsick was selling hand-painted personalized Christmas ornaments at the show. She has been participating in the festival for 15 years.

“They have a lot going on. It’s nice to see the girls come in with their dress and tiaras,” said Radsick of the queens involved in the festival.

Radsick paints personalized ornaments for some of the queens who order them ahead of time.

“It’s a nice family show,” she said.

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