A Glass Blower's Companion with Jason Michael -Helping Today's Glass Artist Think Like an Artistic Entrepreneur

This week I sit down in the virtual studio and chat with Financial Life Planner and CPA Ginger Ames about the importance of saving for the future. You can contact Ginger at https://whisperfinancial.sh and sign up for a free one on one chat that she offers on Thursdays. Don't miss out on this great opportunity to get your financial house in order. My name is Ginger and I have sampled a variety of professions. From glassblower to property manager, I have lived as both an artist as well as a business professional. My work has evolved, becoming truer to my purpose: to stoke people's creativity and to help them live into their meaning and values.  Bio:   I have worked in wealth management for several years. I am an Enrolled agent and have passed the CFP® exam. A CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® is a fiduciary that serves your best interest over theirs.

Welcome to a Glass Blowers Companion Episode 27! It is finally time to kick off Season 6!  Thank you to everyone that has tuned in to the show, shared it with your friends and family, reached out to me with a comment and to all of the artists and guests who have taken time from their day to share their glass journey's.   Season 6 kicks off with one of my favorite artists and humans in the glass community SALT. For the last 20-years SALT has pushed the boundaries of borosilicate glass and shown true innovation when it comes to creating functional, smokable works of art.  In 2017 representing the pipe culture, the coning museum of glass invited Salt to demonstrate his craft on a streamed presentation and  eventually added the first pipe to its permanent  museum collection.  It was an honor to have SALT join me in the virtual studio and truly hope you enjoy this conversation.  Find SALT on Instagram @saltglass @salteyelens @glassgrabapp Wanna join our growing community, gain access to video tutorials, and One-on-One Coaching calls with me all while supporting the podcast??? Use this link to become a WyzA$$ and continue to grow as an artist! SUPPORT Follow WYZGUY MEDIA on Instagram @jmichaelglass @glassblowerscompanion @fyeah_disney @one_little_spice

A Glass Blowers Companion Ep.26-Kyle Geise With less than 6-years behind the torch Kyle has managed to diversify his lines of work allowing him to make a living and find success within his business. The 2021 Glass Vegas trade show was his first time vending outside of the typical craft fair scene and was able to find success with a little bit of organization and a ton of determination to make sure he prepared. He shares the lessons learned and how he could make next years show that much better. Find Kyle on Instagram @easy.g.glass ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Help Support the show by joining our community on Patreon. For as little as $1.00 a month you'll gain access to our community and grow as an artist. Stop in for a visit and see what it's all about! www.patreon.com/wyguyradio 

Wesley and I sit down in the Virtual Studio to chat about his journey as a glass artist and how bugs became his main focus. The details achieved in a realistic scale give Wesley's creations a realism that could be compared to the Blaschka family's creations of glass specimens made for study at the Harvard Botatincal exhibit. "One of Harvard University's most famous treasures is the internationally acclaimed Ware Collection of Blaschka Glass Models of Plants, better known as the "Glass Flowers." This unique collection was made by Leopold (1822-1895) and Rudolf Blaschka (1857-1939), a father and son team of Czech glass artists. Over fifty years, from 1886 through 1936, the Blaschkas produced 4,300 glass models that represent 780 plant species." https://hmnh.harvard.edu/glass-flowers Join our Community and help support the show for as little as $1.00 a month!!! Www.Patreon.com/wyzguyradio  

GBC Ep. 24: MTP- Cat Butts, Monkey Poop, and Getting Fit         In this episode I sat down in the virtual studio at WyzGuy Media with Ben Barocas aka MTP and have a great conversation covering everything from his humble beginnings as a glass blower, where the inspiration for his Cat Butt series came from and the origins of his Artists tag MTP. You can find Ben on Instagram @mtpglass   If you would like to help support this podcast you can by joining our Patreon community for as little as $1.00 a month. If you would like to become one of the early founders you can do so for only $10.00 a month and gain access to exclusive video tutorials and a monthly coaching call with me. For more information check out or growing community at www.patreon.com/wyzguyradio _____________________________________________________________________________________   LEAVE A WRITTEN REVIEW ON ITUNES AND I'LL SEND YOU A "THANK YOU STICKER PACK" and give you a shoutout on the show!!!!   Here's How: Open up the iTunes Store. In the search box, type in the name of the podcast, show, movie, TV show, book, or app you'd like to review. Click on the correct item in the search results to be taken to its iTunes page. On the item's iTunes page, choose "Ratings and Reviews" from the top navigation. Click the button, "Write a Review." Write your review. Hit "Submit." Take a screen shot and send me an email wyzguymedia@gmail.com Please include your full name and address and ill send your Thank You gift on its way plus Ill give you a shoutout on an upcoming episode. :))       Upcoming Glass Events     Glass Vegas Expo- www.Glass.vegas  May 13-15th      

Episode 23-Steven Randolph: Helping High Risk Companies Succeed     In this episode I sit down in the virtual studio at WyzGuy Media with CEO of Aqua Payments, Steven Randolph. We discuss the issues a high risk business, like a Smoke Shop or Dispensary may face when it comes to receiving electronic payments. For many, loss of revenue and funds being confiscated by payment processing companies is a real issue. Whether you're a brick and mortar or an online business, being able to accept credit and debit cards as well as pay vendors is key to running a successful business.      Steven shares his insights and experience within this niche of high risk business plus he talks about why being honest about the type of  business that you run will save you from long term headaches.  If you are looking for a company to process your payments contact Steven and his team at Aqua Payments.* (Aqua payments is not affiliated or a sponsor of this podcast) www.aquapayments.com GoFund ME links to help out @saritaglass and @blazingheartproductions who both lost their homes in separate incidences to fire. TOGETHER WE CAN HELP. Go give them a follow on Instagram and donate what you can afford. Even just  $1.00 helps. -Sarah "Sarita" Hancock  DONATE  -Joaquin Herrara: Blazing Heart Productions DONATE ______________________________________________________________________ LEAVE A WRITTEN REVIEW ON ITUNES AND I'LL SEND YOU A "THANK YOU STICKER PACK" Here's How: Open up the iTunes Store. In the search box, type in the name of the podcast, show, movie, TV show, book, or app you'd like to review. Click on the correct item in the search results to be taken to its iTunes page. On the item's iTunes page, choose "Ratings and Reviews" from the top navigation. Click the button, "Write a Review." Write your review. Hit "Submit." Take a screen shot and send me an email wyzguymedia@gmail.com Please include your full name and address and ill send your Thank You gift on its way plus Ill give you a shoutout on an upcoming episode. :)) Upcoming Glass Events Glass Vegas Expo- www.Glass.vegas  May 13-15th      

Glass Blowers Companion Ep.22- Gina "BoOts" Gaffner: Finding Narrative Through Your Customers Bio: BoOTs was born on October 13th  in Green Bay, Wisconsin and started her glass career in Austin Texas in the fall of 2007. She has been refining her craft through experience and experimentations ever since. She finds inspiration in nature and daily life, with a heavy emphasis on clean fuel for our bodies. A person of dualities herself, Boots enjoys skirting the line between realism and stylized art with her work. She has enjoyed dedicating her time to teaching and fundraising with yearly events such as the Michigan Glass Project and Armadillo Art Glass Initiative, among others.  FInd BoOts on Instagram glassbyboots FInd me and the podcast on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook Other Instagram's @jmichaelglass, @jmichael_functionals JOIN THE PATREON COMMUNITYCome join the fun over at Patreon and Help Support the Show.By becoming a member you'll receive access to exclusive video tutorials, plus Monthly one on one coaching opportunities and virtual lessons with me. 

A Glass Blowers Companion Ep.21- Peter McPhillips: Pros and Cons of Social Media Groups Happy Fn New Year!!! For starters Welcome to the show if you are new to the show Hello and Welcome. 2020 was one hell of a year and I am excited for what 2021 has to bring. I hope you have evolved with the world as far as selling and marketing your work has gone. Current news • Mike Shelbo joins the collection of artists chosen for Season 2 of Blown Away airing now on Netflix. • Trade shows are going to be a thing again this year..hopefully…for now The first half of the year will feature: • CHAMPS kicks off 2021 with their first tradeshow being held in Orlando at the Gaylord Palms resort from March 9-11 The FAM (Functional Art Movement) will be co-hosting this years Glass Games which is themed GAME ON.. • Glass Vegas is back May 13-15th being help]d this year at Bally's Hotel and Casino. • Also check out mountain glass for updates on new product releases including new color and tools. Wholesalecentral.com click on the smoking products tab for dates and times for upcoming shows Stay tuned for further updates as the pipe community navigates the sea of tradeshows during this crazy pandemic

GBC Ep. 20- Quinn: Create, Hustle, and Save for the Future "Quinn is a glassblower from Asheville, NC.  He has worked in nearly every aspect of the industry, from collector, to distribution, to managing a retail store.  Quinn works mainly with frit, using it as a basis for both production work and the occasional heady. " Find Quinn on Instagram @TLKQ Have any questions or just wanna say HELLO? find me on Instagram @jmichaelglass or @Glassblowerscompanion or EMAIL WANNA JOIN A DRAMA FREE GROUP OF GLASS ARTISTS AND GAIN ACCESS TO EXCLUSIVE CONTENT PLUS ONE-ON-ONE COACHING AND LESSONS????  COME JOIN THE FUN ON PATREON... JOIN TODAY

A Glass Blowers Companion: Best of the Worst Studio Injuries VOl 1.  REMASTERED       In celebration of Halloween it's that time of year again to share to highlights of the stories, told by the artists, describing their horrific injuries of blood, burns, and mutilation. We are pleased to share these tales in hopes to remind you to always pay attention. Artists featured in this episode: -Rashan Jones, Lurch,  Boxfan Willy,  Joe Skar,  Lewis Wilson,  Mongo, and Bob Harley Dog Vol.II REMASTERED will be available soon and the the Premier of Vol. III      Stay tuned till next year when we bring you the traumatizing reflections of punctures, burns, and lacerations.      Until then.....HAPPY MELTING  www.wyzguymedia.com/podcast contact wyzguymedia@gmail.com FInd me on social media Instagram twitter facebook Music credit https://youtu.be/73_RJpB4DMQ  

A Glass Blowers Companion Ep.18-Madeline Rile Smith      This episode features the talented Madeline Rile Smithwho's current focus is creating glass musical instruments that push the boundries of human comfortability. Merging the scientific glass blowing with creative instrument making, Madeline's has created a body of work that creates a intimate experience between glass instruments and the musicians who play them.  Find Madeline on Instagram @madhotglass Artist's Bio-Madeline Rile Smith is an American artist working in glass, specializing in flameworking and performance. She earned an MFA in glass at Rochester Institute of Technology, and a BFA in glass from Tyler School of Art. Madeline draws upon her musical background to create glass musical instruments which explore physical connection between players. She utilizes hot glass as a performative medium to consider notions of intimacy and compromise. Madeline started working with glass in 2007 as a high school student. At the time she was a dedicated musician, planning to become a professional violist. But her passion for glass took over and she decided to devote her life to glass art. Madeline's sculptural glass work has been exhibited in venues throughout the US and featured in New Glass Review 41 and 35. She has instructed glassworking in schools and institutions throughout the east coast, including Salem Community College, UrbanGlass, The Crefeld School, and Rochester Institute of Technology. Support the show via Patreon  Follow us on the socials: Instagram Twitter Facebook

GBC Ep17:Robert Mickelsen- From Fine Art to Degenerate Art This is a conversation  that I've wanted to have for years. For myself personally, Robert Mickelsen has been a major influence in my glass work with his refined details and proportions. With 45 years of dedication to this wonderful medium of glass, Mickelsen has a ton of knowledge to share while also understanding he still has a wealth of knowledge to gain.  Hope you enjoy this conversation and if you have any questions for Robert you can reach out to him on Instagram @ramickelsen   Other links referred to in the episode: - Robert's Bio: Born Dec.12, 1951. Grew up in Honolulu, Hawaii and attended high school at Punahou (same school as Barack Obama, just ten years earlier). I went to Humboldt State University in Arcata, Ca for one year but dropped out. Started blowing glass in Greeley, Colorado in 1974. Moved to Florida in 1977 and continued glass selling my wares at street craft shows and flea markets. I made my living on the street exclusively until 1989 when I switched to wholesale craft shows. It was also around this time that I took a class at Penland with Paul Stankard that opened my eyes for the first time to the artistic potential of my craft. My work blossomed after that. I began my teaching career at Pilchuck in 1994 where I was deeply influenced by the artists that I met including Dante Marioni and Bill Morris. I continued doing wholesale craft shows, indoor art shows, and teaching for the next ten years. During that time I had several solo shows at prominent glass art galleries and attended SOFA in Chicago numerous times represented by several different galleries. I stopped doing wholesale shows in 2001 and shifted my focus to selling exclusively through high-end art galleries. This lasted until the great recession of 2008 when I found myself in a crisis when all my galleries closed and shows dried up. I struggled for about four years until 2012 when I was introduced to pipe-making by Salt and Kevin Ivey. I experienced a rebirth and a newfound enthusiasm for glass. The rest you already know.  I am proud to have my work included in some of the most prominent museum collections including Renwick Gallery of American Crafts at the Smithsonian Institution, the Corning Museum of Glass, The Toledo Museum of Art, The Museum of Arts and Design, The Carnegie Museum of Art, The Mint Museum, The Cleveland Museum of Art, and The Museum of American Glass at Wheaton Village. 

WyzGuy Minute Ep.14- Why and How You Can Stay Hydrated in the Glass Studio Throughout the day as the outside temps rise, so does the temp inside your studio. As this happens your body temperature rises and you may begin to notice that you feel a bit foggy, your focus is lacking, and your eyes are burning from the salty sweat dripping in them.   These are a few physical signs that you need be aware of if you want to have a safe, productive day in the studio during the heat of the summer. If you continue to push yourself without proper rehydration your body can begin experiencing heat exhaustion. This increased heat production can result in an increase in body temperature, which above a certain temperature, can be difficult to control. Therefore, it is important to develop ways to cool down the body to help maintain core temperature and reduce the negative effects of thermal stress. For more info check out the resources in the links below. https://www.livescience.com/38553-staying-hydrated-in-the-heat.html https://www.ehstoday.com/archive/article/21904138/construction-supplement-hydration-keeping-workers-cool-and-comfortable OSHA-NIOSH Infosheet: Protecting Workers from Heat Illness NIOSH Fast Facts: Protecting Yourself from Heat Stress NIOSH Workplace Safety and Health Topic: Heat Stress NIOSH Criteria for a Recommended standard: Occupational Exposure to Heat and Hot Environments  

My apologies for uploading the original file that was unfinished. When Hannah and I recorded I didn't realize the audio levels for my mic were turned down so low. It was quite the challenge to fix the issue and I'm still not 100% satisfied. However I felt the quality of the conversation was too good to redo so I hope you can bare with me and get through the entirety of the episode. Thank you for listening.   This episode features the talented Hannah Gibson who is a glass artist based out of the UK BIO: Whilst studying Geology at the University of Edinburgh Hannah became fascinated by the mineralogy and the reactions between various elements, metals and compounds. This led her towards a passion for the alchemy of glass.  Capturing the nostalgic imagery of childhood, exposing hidden narratives, through cast sculptural glass stands at the core of Hannah's work.  Passionate about sustainability and recycling, using only 100% recycled glass, and found objects. Sweet Nothings are a series of individual, unique Cast Glass figures. Usually found in pairs, whispering 'Sweet Nothings' to one another. What are they whispering?  'Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot. Nothing is going to get better. It's not.' (Dr Seuss, The Lorax).  Hannah Gibson BSc Geology  and MA Glass _____________________________________________________________________ Supported by the Following: Mountain Glass Arts- Use the link and stay up to date by signingup for their newsletter by visiting www.mountainglassarts.com Listeners Like You- Help support the show by becoming a WyzA$$ over at www.patreon.com/wyzguyradio. Becpome a member and gain access to tutorial video series, one on one access to me for any of your glass nedds, pus much more. 

Glass Blowers Companion Ep.15- Rashan Jones: Black Lives Matter, Even in the Glass Industry For starters Happy 5th Anniversary to the show!!! Now to what really matters. This has to be the single most important conversation Ive had on this show. Rashan returns to share his experiences as a black man working within the glass industry. We cover a lot and really hope you take away all the positive for our conversation. Right now we are at a crucial point in our society where we all need to come together and stand up for what is right and stand together against what is wrong. We all see things a little differently and as humans we can come together and have positive, healthy conversations about these topics and how we can work together to bring change to the world. You can find Rashan out there in the social media world on Instagram @jonesofig or Facebook just search for Rashan Jones. you can reach me on instagram @jmichaelglass or @glassblowerscompanion. Lets continue this conversation! Thank you to our sponsors Mountain Glass Arts. For up to date sales and info go online and check them out and also give them a follow on instagram @mountainglass

Welcome to A Glass Blowers Companion episode 14 featuring Blossom Knight whom is the Season 3 Session 1 winner and will go on to compete for the prize of Grand Champion against the winner of session 2 and 3.  You can find Blosom on instagram @blossom_glass and The T.O.F. @tournament_of_fire. Thanks for listening and any questions or comments feel free to contact me at wyzguymedia@gmail.com  or Instagram @glassblowerscompanion and @jmichaelglass  -Jason Michael Thank You to Mountain Glass Arts for their sponsorship. Check them out online for updated sales at www.mountainglass.com or on Instagram @mountainglassarts

A Glass Blowers Companion Ep.13- Scoz This weeks episode features the return of Scott Tribble aka Scoz whom has been a glass artist for the last 20-years. He is best known for his style of functional Dragon sculptures but has recently found a love for painting abstract art. He shares his personal struggles that he felt kept him from reaching his fullest potential with EGO being the culprit. This was a great conversation and hope you enjoy too. You can find Scott on the interwebs via Instagram @scozglass.     Sponsors: Mountain Glass Arts- They are currently running weekly sales instead of monthly so make sure you have signed up for their newsletter for updates. You can also stay up to date with Mountain Glass online or on IG @mountainglassarts  contact Jason : email Links mentioned In the episode:  Follow WyzGuy Media on Youtube My personal IG   My functional art IG Other podcasts produced by WyzGuy Media: Fyeah! Disney IG       

GBC Ep. 12- Eli Mazet: The American Shot Glass and the Glass Machine     Jason and Eli start the episode off chatting about the current events(akaCovid-19) going on around the world and ways they are managing their time. They also share some ideas on how you can use Live Streams to your advantage. Then the meat and potatoes of the show Eli shares insights into his new book The American Shot Glass and The Glass Machine which is available through Eli. You can find him on Instagram @elimazet or use this link to purchase. Contact Jason via email wyzguymedia@gmail.com or on instagram @jmichaelglass @glassblowerscompanion  Listen to FYEAH! Disney @fyeah_disney

EPISODE 13- WHY YOU NEED TO HAVE AN EMERGENCY FUND      So far in this series "Getting your Financial House in Order", we've discussed establishing a budget for your business and personal life and how to figure out baseline costs of goods you are producing. Now that you are beginning to create a different mindset when it comes to how you run your business its time to start thinking about putting money aside into an emergency fund for both your business and personal life. DOWNLOADABLE PDF      Small businesses can experience seasonal  down turns that they have to be prepared for  and one way they prepare is by creating a "squirrel fund".  Like the squirrel, a business has to set aside and save up funds in order to survive the slow times of the year. Like the squirrel who stores nuts away for the winter , we need to take on this similar approach and be prepared for the slow periods in our business or worse case we become ill or injured and are unable to work at all.       If the body is injured it is unable to perform at its highest ability hindering the artist from being productive and losing the ability to create their income.  Has this ever happened to you? Have you cut or burnt yourself so badly that you were unable to use your hands for more then a day? I have!! About 10-years ago while working late one night, trying to wrap up an order of inside out hand pipes. Instead of being in bed there I was, groggy, exhausted from the long hot day in the studio and lacking the focus that I had when the day started. As I finished laying the last few lines of stringers inside a section of tubing ,I heard a crack in the glass and before I knew it the section of tubing fell off of the blowpipe in my left hand exposing my naked fingers to 4000 degrees of unforgiving fire. The flame made a direct hit across the three middle fingers on my left hand with pointer and middle finger receiving most of the blow. My nail beds were severely damaged as were the first knuckles just below my nails. The became the most severe burn and injury I had received in the first 10-years of my glass career and still the worse to this day. Fortunately I had just finished a large commission that had allowed me to put a little extra cushion in my bank account and if it wasn't for that I would have been screwed. I spent the next few weeks doing very little work allowing my fingers to rest and heal only because of the  financial luck I had on my side.  I was able to pay bills and survive. After 3-months my fingers were back to about 90% and so was my production speed.       This brings us to the importance of the emergency fund. The emergency fund isn't just there for the business to survive. It is also to help continuing to paying your personal expenses  while out of work..      Ideally you want to have a personal emergency fund of at least 3- months of expenses(food, water, shelter, etc) which by keeping a budget you can then see exactly how much you should have set aside to cover the essentials.  If you currently do not have anything put aside for emergencies then what do you do?   This episode isn't about solving that problem. My goal is to help you get proactive and understand how simple this can be as long as you are managing your finances like the CEO we talked about in the previous episodes. If you know how much it costs to run you studio then you should know how many pipes you need to sell monthly to be able to not only cover your studio costs, but also pay your business back the expenses in material that were spent to manufacture the items , pay yourself a little salary or piece work as well as have some left over that can be allocated towards an emergency fund.      When it comes to paying yourself you would know how much you need to make if you figured out your personal expenses and how much extra you would need to pay yourself so your not just making ends meet but also having leftovers for your emergency fund and living the lifestyle you want to live. Now this isn't just going to happen over night. This will take some time if you haven't started yet but all you have to do is start. Start with the personal budget first. Then once you've figured that out figure out your studio budget. Once you have that done then  figure out your baseline costs to manufacture everything you create and then, only then can you truly be able to start putting funds away for that necessary squirrel fund.  So lets figure out how to do just that. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Contact Wyzguymedia@gmail.comwww.wyzguymedia.com  INSTAGRAM @jmichaelglass @glassblowerscompanion SPONSORS WWW.PATREON.COM/WYZGUYRADIO WWW.MOUNTAINGLASS.COM