Free Cracked to Death by Cheryl Hollon Page A

here.” She bent down to the shelves in the podium and brought up a glass flower all in green, made from a plate, a bowl, and a tea light candle holder, then held it up.
    â€œThis is an example of drilling holes through the pieces first. Then you slip a bolt through each piece and a piece of copper tubing. Not only does this method hold them together, but the copper tubing acts as the pole to put in the ground, as well. This is an easy method, and the flower can be finished quickly. The drawback is that the length of the bolt limits how many pieces you can use. Also, some artists don’t like the look of the bolt. The best trick is to cover the bolt by gluing a cover over it, like a button, an earring, or a toy china cup.”
    â€œDo you use glue?” SueAnn poised her pen over her open notebook.
    Savannah handed the green flower to SueAnn and gestured for her to pass it around to the students. “Yes, I use E6000 glue for outdoor use. Another option is to use GE Silicone II clear caulk. You can use either glue or caulk, instead of drilling the pieces.”
    She pulled out another glass flower, created using pale pink Depression-ware dishes. It included a salad plate, a saucer, and a small dessert dish. “This is a flower I stuck together using silicone as the glue. If some of the plates are thin, that’s your best bet, because drilling might shatter them.” Savannah handed the glass flower over to SueAnn for passing.
    Faith held up a timid hand and cleared her throat. “How do you give the flowers stems?”
    Savannah pulled out a completed glass flower from the bottom of the podium. “Here’s a finished flower mounted on a copper pipe. You can use aluminum pipe, rebar rods, wooden dowels, copper pipe, branches, curtain rods, or recycled railing. Basically, anything that strikes your creative fancy.”
    Rachel stood up in the back row. “Do you want these back?”
    â€œYes. Bring them up here. You can come up and look them over while you’re assembling your own.”
    SueAnn gave Savannah a queenly wave. “Darlin’, what about our glass bottles from yesterday’s workshop? Are we going to get to see how they wound up?”
    â€œAbsolutely. I’ll—”
    The hanging bell on the front door shrieked and jangled. It was followed by a huffing and red-faced Amanda running into the classroom. “Sorry, sorry, sorry. I overslept. I didn’t hear the alarm go off. I’m so embarrassed.”
    Although it might be difficult for a stranger to discern, Savannah noticed that Amanda wore a hodgepodge of an outfit. Her makeup was a bit streaky, and her lime earrings didn’t coordinate with the peach top and pale yellow slacks. Even worse, she was wearing one brown shoe and one black shoe, which looked more like Amanda’s mother’s style of comfortable footwear. Amanda had an unusual style, yes, but this was extreme even for her.
    â€œIt’s fine, Amanda. It eventually happens to everyone,” Savannah said, using her best comforting voice. “Because everything was so well organized, I was able to cover the glass flower lecture easily.” Savannah’s voice dropped down to a whisper. “Next time, call or text when something unexpected comes up. It looks like we don’t know what we’re doing, and it’s not good for our reputation.”
    Amanda wiped the stray wisps of hair off her forehead. “Of course. I don’t know why I didn’t. That’s exactly what I should have done. I’m so sorry.” Amanda’s voice mimicked that of a small child. “Do you want to take over the teaching?”
    â€œNo. Of course not. I was about to take the class into the supply room to open the kiln. I’m so glad you’re here. I didn’t want you to miss opening it for your very first class. It’s such great fun.”
    â€œThanks.” Amanda looked around the classroom and