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| Living on the edge of a cliff on the Big Sur coast, Julie and Ollie find inspiration from the natural beauty that surrounds them. |
Julie Coogan and Ollie Appel have been creating handmade glass beads and jewelry for the past 23 years. After studying glass beadmaking with the renowned glass artist Patricia Franz, they set up their studio and began developing their own style incorporating dichroic glass into their designs.
Using the ancient techniques of lampworking, Julie and Ollie design and create their own glass beads in a variety of shapes and colors. Among their most unusual and beautiful beads are those made with precious dichroic glass. These beads provide an optical illusion, appearing to change color with movement or when viewed from different angles.
Julie and Ollie make each bead individually, working the molten glass over an oxygen/propane flame at temperatures in excess of 1800 degrees F. They make their unique dichroic beads beginning with a base of translucent glass to which they apply tiny, hand cut strips of dichroic glass. The glass sometimes has a ribbed or textured surface and is encased in a clear crystal for added depth and clarity of color.
Julie and Ollie are partners in creating the beads and jewelry with each having special skills that complement each other. Their jewelry has been featured in galleries across the United States.
