Meet Pilisa and the AMusinGlass studio experience

Hello and thank you for visiting our AMusinGlass website!

Our art is designed to be held, loved and integrated into your daily life, with colorful bowls and plates, wall art and light sconces to brighten your home or work space and unique jewelry to bring a creative statement to your style.

Why glass?

Fused glass is our passion and despite the occasional kiln disaster – and we have all had our share – we all love the challenges and potential of working in glass.

Creating this kind of artwork is different than blowing glass or working with a torch. Using this process, you can’t see the piece as it is being created, since the magic happens within the kiln as the glass comes up to firing temperature and then cools. The heat changes the glass and creates a unique piece every time.

Seeing the smiles on people’s faces when they see the finished pieces and bring the magic of glass into their homes is an incredible feeling, and one we never get tired of.

Pilisa Rainbow Lady

I’ve been an artist all my life, in mediums including sewing, needlework, macrame, painting, pottery, card, paper and jewelry making. Once I discovered the process of glass fusing, I knew I’d found my passion, and that passion is poured into every piece I create.

My journey into glass began when I was running a craft supply store (S.A.G.E. Crafts) in Sedona. I was working with and teaching classes on using Precious Metal Clay (PMC) when I came across fused dichroic glass cabochons, which many artists were incorporating into their PMC pieces. When I realized I could use the same kiln I fired my PMC work in to create my own glass cabochons, I was hooked. Swiftly, fused glass became the medium I worked in.

Before all of this, I had the good fortune to start a business with a few friends, providing PC-based networking software back in 1986. Seven years later, it went public and I was able to retire from the business age 33 with the freedom to discover my true calling. After leaving the software business, I founded and was the Board Chair of Ringing Rocks Foundation, a non-profit foundation working with indigenous healers around the world, from 1995 to 2009. In addition, I have been a life and business coach for seven years and a psychic and healer since I was ten. I am also the founder of Creative Gateways, with 5 artist studios and shared gallery space here in Sedona, where our studio is based.

How we make art

We generally start with layers of transparent or opaque sheet glass, powdered glass (called frit), and thin threads of glass (called stringers). We create layers from these different types of glass and decorate them or incorporate ‘inclusions’ from different materials to add texture and excitement. These inclusions might consist of pieces of glass pre-cut into shapes, slices of millefiori (an Italian word for “thousand flowers”) canes , copper washers, or pieces of copper mesh cut into shapes.

After creating the effect we want, we usually end with a layer of clear glass on top that adds depth to the piece. The heat of the kiln melts all the glass together with the inclusions to make a new, thick piece of glass, called a blank.

These blanks are then laid over a mold and fired in the kiln once more. Now the glass slowly conforms to the shape of the mold during a process called slumping and holds its new shape as it cools in the kiln. The end result is a shaped piece that has depth, instead of being flat like a tile.

We use molds to shape the glass into all kinds of items, from bowls and plates to business card holders and kitchenware to light sconces.

How to find our work + keep in touch

In addition to the artwork available to buy on this site, we love creating custom pieces to order, with color and inclusion combinations of your choosing.  You can place an order for custom glass by visiting our CustomMade.com portfolio.

You can see what’s going on in the studio here on the blog or visit us in our studio at Creative Gateways, and if you have questions you can send us a note through the Contact page.

You can also connect with AMusinGlass on social media: Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

If you want to send fan mail, write to us at 45 Birch Boulevard, Sedona, AZ, 86336.