Meet  Janice Finn, Dichroic Glass Jeweler

As a dichroic fused glass jeweler I strive to make my jewelry fun, unique and elegant. I want women to feel comfortable wearing my earrings and pendants, hair bling and bracelets with jeans and a tee shirt or a formal gown and anywhere in between. Dichroic fused glass produces colors of unparalleled brilliance and intensity. Creating my jewelry with dichroic glass insures that every piece is a dazzling work of art. I am continuously trying new techniques and glass to keep my jewelry fresh and exciting.

An important goal in creating my jewelry has been to keep it affordable. I try hard to keep costs of supplies low so I can pass savings on to customers in the lowest prices possible. I do not think you should have to spend a lot of money to buy a beautiful piece of jewelry.

I am a native of the southeast having grown up in Georgia. I visited Taos, New Mexico in the 70’s when I stayed at Ghost Ranch with a friend. I fell in love with the big sky, endless horizon and rocky multicolored landscape. I began working with stained glass in 1990 and continued creating my stained glass when I moved to Taos in 2003.  Although I enjoy working with stained glass I was getting restless. In 2010 I took two fused glass jewelry classes and loved it! I now create my dichroic fused glass jewelry and stained glass in my home studio in the Ozarks of Missouri. I draw my inspiration from both of these vastly different environments. Each has its own uniqueness and beauty.

The House That Dave Built

My husband, Dave, also creates but his creations are on a much bigger scale. When we met in 2008 he was preparing to start a house building project. It has progressed slowly because he spent so much time in New Mexico with me. Since I retired and moved to Missouri with Dave things have started moving a lot faster on this unique house. Dave had three objectives in the house design – he wanted an open floor plan with big windows to take in the fabulous view. Second, he wanted to honor his Native American heritage. The eight sided construction is like the Native American hogan. The house orientation would not work to have the entrance facing the east due to the terrain but he does have the bedroom facing the west. There is a cupola on top with eight windows. I will be making 4 stained glass windows – one for each direction – Bear is north/Eagle is east/Deer is south/Wolf is west. Third he wanted it to be able to withstand a direct hit by a tornado. This area is in the tornado belt. If the house took a direct hit it would blow out the windows but the house would remain standing. Dave designed this house himself and is building it himself. No blueprints! He keeps most of the building stats and information in his head. That in itself is remarkable!