Lauscha Color of the Month Help

[VivianLampwork]

Carol Anne, thank you for sharing this with us. I am so sorry that this happened to you. This is just another reason I'm glad I dropped out of "The Club". I was hoping that some of the suggestions would be taken & the club make a postive turn so I could join again. Now I would not join again under any circumstance.

[Lizabeads]

How many of you out there have a rod or two of blutonium you can spare? CarolAnne loves it and has orders for beads but no blutonium. I'm sending her about 3 rods to fill her orders with. What can YOU do ?? Post it here maybe we can send it to one place and forward all of it to her. I will be glad to handle that if anyone is interested. OR we could all send several separate packages... up to ya'll !

gotta go get hair cut be back soon !!

[jhana]

Carol Anne, thank you for a heartfelt and vulnerable post!
I wish you well in your new life there and all of your endeavors.
I'm glad you are on the other side of all of that,
and know that it was worth traveling down that road.
It is inspiring and encouraging and I appreciate you taking the time.

[PaulaD]

Originally Posted by carolanne

My opinion was that it was a business from the beginning, only because I had my business plan to refer to, and I could calculate the dollars involved, based on a conservative estimate of 150 customers. I had planned to charge standard prices in line with the vendors and cooperate fully with established vendors.

The "club" was originally my idea, but the "custom colour club and it wasn't a club, it was meant to be a business - I was selling my house in Canada to pre-purchase 12 new glass colours, land them in Canada and the US and then to offer them to the public hopefully through established dealers (I had only talked to one dealer when Marcie announced her club).
I am very happy that you have shared this with us. I am so sorry for the hurt that someone scooping your idea has caused. I know how much you LOVE Lauscha and how kind and sweet and dedicated you are!!!

I personally feel that Marcie did publically blame Lauscha a lot for things that in my opinion were within her control.
Which was why I had to get involved in the thread folks. Because Lauscha the glass company was getting blamed and IMO they shouldn't have been..I knew from importing my own glass...
So, COTM has worked out to be a great thing for me personally. It has caused me to question every aspect of my life and to challenge myself to move to a new country, start a new life, face my fears, overcome anxiety, make new friends, forge new partnerships, learn new languages, and given me endless amounts of joy, and happiness, and satisfaction in my life. It has also taught me to consider people more carefully, to not trust every single person I meet. But that's only healthy.

And it has given me so many wonderful friends on LE. And I never would have joined if it hadn't been for COTM.

Carol Anne You Rock! I hope your trips sell out!!
Hmmmm and maybe someday that you will get to run your own COTM !!
I mean who would be better since you already are there??? And are fluent in both languages!

Paula

[carolanne]

Originally Posted by Reenie

CarolAnne,
If you ever decide to do any other kind of business with Lauscha glass....You let me know. I'd be a dealer that would carry your ideas! You have many and it would be nice to see you have success with them
Irene

Nah, I give 'em to Rene for free in return for having my torch in the sunniest window, looking out at the forest where I can sometimes see rabbits, and lots of birds. It's a good deal for me, trust me. There are worse places to have a big beautiful workstation and all the glass you can use... But that is very kind for you to say.

We're hopefully having dinner together tomorrow, if we can coordinate our schedules - we have our birthdays within a couple of weeks together, and we have stuff that we are working on - getting the teaching room ready... I still didn't decide on a birthday present... guy friends are so hard to buy for...

Everyone is being so sweet - please don't feel sorry for me - I love how my life is turning out, really. I am meant to be here, really. It was meant to happen.

You all are so wonderful. I can buy Bluetonium pretty much anytime from Grace. I am not sure, but there are many people out there who would do unspeakable things for German chocolate...

Liza - because you are the first person who offered, I would be happy to trade you anything you like for some - but I can wait for a larger amount and buy it myself - you should let me tell you stuff that you can do with it and enjoy it yourself! I was just crabby about the people dropping out, and crabby about the Bluetonium, because people kept on asking about the big hollow I normally wear. I got a pendant for my birthday, so I took the hollow off, and well, end of problem...

And that is the end of the mystery of how I came to Lauscha. I love it in Lauscha, I love living in Germany, and I love working with glass.

Now if anyone wants to buy a million dollars worth of Christmas ornaments from my OTHER job, please pm me.

Hugs,
CA

[Just Nancy]

Carol Anne,
I didn't mean to make it sound like I was feeling sorry for you. I think your posts have been upbeat and positive. I can't help but think it probably hurt in the past, but am glad you have moved on. I have a great admiration for your attitude and aspire to be so positive about my own place in life.

I also appreciate you telling your piece of the story. Kind of sheds some more light on things for those interested in a bigger picture or history lesson.

[PaulaD]

I have a great idea!! Let's have Carol Anne run a LE tour to the Lauscha Christmas Markets!!

Paula

[beadstillmyheart]

Originally Posted by PaulaD

I have a great idea!! Let's have Carol Anne run a LE tour to the Lauscha Christmas Markets!!

Paula

Do you mean like let's really go there...or a virtual tour?

I know I can't go....but I would love to see pictures.

[PaulaD]

I meant a real tour!! ya know. Big airplane, etc!!

Paula

[Lizabeads]

CarolAnne, I've still got something to send you! I would love to hear your ideas for the blutonium.. PM if you want...
Also, someone has graciously stepped up and is going to supply your blutonium wish. If by some odd chance that doesn't work out let me know. I know you are happy now and I am glad. I'm glad it's out in the open now.

[Wiley]

...

[Kalera]

Carol Anne, you are an asset to the international glass community... I am glad you have landed in such a wonderful place, and I hope to get to meet you someday!

[Kirima]

Hi Carol Anne

I'm living in Switzerland - not too far away from Lauscha - I'd love to come over and see you and visit and just participate! I think it's just wonderful how your life turned out to be such a gift.

Best regards
Kirima

[nklt0]

Hi Carolanne,

Thank you very much for your candid and very informative response. I admit that my opinion of Lauscha was negatively affected by my experience with CotM. I see Lauscha been blamed for delayed glass delivery. When the fact is Marcie raised buyer expectation by making promises that you stated was unachievable. When the promises were broken, I was told it was Lauscha that failed to deliver. Therefore my feeling about Lauscha is affected. If I had known what you said, my expectation of the "club" will be different and the way I pay will be different as well.

Thanks again for speaking out with the fact and I'm very glad that fate reworded you in life.

Originally Posted by carolanne

4. I told Marcie at the very beginning, when she started her "CLUB" that it would take Lauscha a minimum of 5 months to deliver the first glass because that is how long it took me to import the first 300 kilos of Lauscha clear into Canada.

still 4. I told her very seriously, and I told her it would be the same. She chose not to believe me.

Originally Posted by carolanne

I personally feel that Marcie did publicly blame Lauscha a lot for things that in my opinion were within her control. And that is when I stopped testing glass for her and stopped contributing to development of new colors for her club. And Marcie is aware of how I feel about that matter.

Cheers
Nancy

[Reenie]

Carolanne, I didn't post what I did because I felt sorry for you but even though you love how things turned out in the end, what happened with the club still had to have hurt!
That was just wrong. You should have been at least acknowledged for it either way.
I had no idea and I'm sorry. I doubt I would have had any part in the club knowing that first hand. But like you said, Live and learn, move on.
I know things will work out great for you because you are you!
I also have a pound of blutonium from the club that I've never used. It's on it's way to the factory so make sure you tell Rene to look out for it!
The rest of the stuff is in there too! I knew there was a reason why I was holding on to your package Beats tomato soup lol (sorry guys...inside joke)
Oh and if you guys do make it to dinner. Please take pics. I wanna see finally!

Irene

[PaulaD]

Many of you have posted nice photos of your Lauscha beads in this thread.
I'd like to ask that you also post them in the thread called "Another Lauscha Thread" also in the Techniques Forum. I'm trying to get something going that really will be a Lauscha Showcase thread with tips and techniques all in one place.That may not be possible to do but if we can do it together it will be a nice thread and then maybe we can get a stickie on it. The glass IS beautiful and there are already some nice photos in the thread.
Thanks so much!!
Paula

[Renee]

Food for thought:

For Marcie to have "stolen" the idea of the COTM from Carol Anne, the idea must have been relayed from Carol Anne to Marcie. Who did that? How did it happen? I want to know; in fact, I need to know before I can believe this as the truth. I am not saying Carol Anne is lying; however, before I etch that statement in stone, more information is needed. If I knew these things, then it may (or may not) answer the questions of why Carol Anne waited over 1 1/2 years to mention this, and why she even mentioned it at all, particularly since she says she's moved on. Does this serve any useful purpose?

If, in fact, 45% of the people who signed up for a tour cancelled because they thought Carol Anne was Marcie, then I'm puzzled. Where did these folks sign up for the trip? What information was presented that led them to that conclusion? Marcie is not the only vendor of Lauscha glass, nor is she the only one who organizes trips to Lauscha.

Many people are very quick to unconditionally believe whom they want if something is said against Marcie or the COTM. If anyone presents contradictory information, I'll believe it when there are facts to support it. It's sad, but that is the level to which this thread has been reduced. JMHO

Does no one else wonder about these things? (That's a rhetorical question, but I'm sure someone will feel the need to respond. )

[beadstillmyheart]

Why don't you send them an email and ask.

[Just Nancy]

Originally Posted by Renee

Food for thought:

For Marcie to have "stolen" the idea of the COTM from Carol Anne, the idea must have been relayed from Carol Anne to Marcie. Who did that? How did it happen? I want to know; in fact, I need to know before I can believe this as the truth. I am not saying Carol Anne is lying; however, before I etch that statement in stone, more information is needed. If I knew these things, then it may (or may not) answer the questions of why Carol Anne waited over 1 1/2 years to mention this, and why she even mentioned it at all, particularly since she says she's moved on. Does this serve any useful purpose?

Really? This is the first you've heard that a color club wasn't Marcie's idea? I heard (ETA: rumors of) it last year. Kendra is more polite than I am. If you have more answers you are looking for write Marcie, she won't answer here and you have Carol Anne's response.

[carolanne]

Originally Posted by Renee

Food for thought:

For Marcie to have "stolen" the idea of the COTM from Carol Anne, the idea must have been relayed from Carol Anne to Marcie. Who did that? How did it happen? I want to know; in fact, I need to know before I can believe this as the truth. I am not saying Carol Anne is lying; however, before I etch that statement in stone, more information is needed. If I knew these things, then it may (or may not) answer the questions of why Carol Anne waited over 1 1/2 years to mention this, and why she even mentioned it at all, particularly since she says she's moved on. Does this serve any useful purpose?

If, in fact, 45% of the people who signed up for a tour cancelled because they thought Carol Anne was Marcie, then I'm puzzled. Where did these folks sign up for the trip? What information was presented that led them to that conclusion? Marcie is not the only vendor of Lauscha glass, nor is she the only one who organizes trips to Lauscha.

Many people are very quick to unconditionally believe whom they want if something is said against Marcie or the COTM. If anyone presents contradictory information, I'll believe it when there are facts to support it. It's sad, but that is the level to which this thread has been reduced. JMHO

Does no one else wonder about these things? (That's a rhetorical question, but I'm sure someone will feel the need to respond. )

Wow, adding the wink makes your post seem so so friendly...

Importing Lauscha glass can be a long and complicated process as any vendor will tell you. If their order is placed when production has allowed glass rods to be made, then it's not as long. But the factory does not only make glass rods. They make all kinds of other products in their hot shop, from the very same furnace, the same crucible, that all the glass is melted in. The hutte has other customers, not just one person. Not just one country. Hey, there is all of Europe to consider, and other countries have been doing business with the hutte for a long time too, longer than the USA and Canada. And not just for glass rods.

I NEVER said that people were cancelling because they thought I was Marcie. I said that people backed out citing ill will about glass from Lauscha glass in the COTM not being shipped on time, and people not receiving their refunds. Period. I said that people had read things on the forums in isolation, and were blaming Lauscha and therefore less interested in coming to Lauscha than they formerly were.

I said that she Marcie went to the hutte first with a very similar idea to mine but with a different way of offering the glass. So similar, that it made my idea pointless to try to execute.

I have bitten my tongue constantly when I have read things that were um, well, not entirely accurate. Do I need to say that they were patently untrue? By pushing this, are you really helping things?

Could it be possible that you are actually harming Marcie more than my absolutely sincere thank you to her did? Because I am really thankful that I live here and work where I do and get to love the friends that I have made here.

It is true that Marcie made some errors in customer service and business planning. But she is a really execellent promoter. Period. Look at how many people signed up!

Marcie did give a ton of people the idea to try Lauscha glass, which is really positive, and hopefully, people will have the confidence to try Lauscha glass who were hesitating because of what they read.

Fate's actions gave me the gift of a new life in Lauscha. Honestly, I can never express my gratitude enough.

It is true that I was very sick of Lauscha being blamed when I predicted how it would be from the beginning based on my real life experience. Do you know how many people emailed me to ask me if everything about Lauscha was true? How difficult it was to keep on writing, I am sorry, I cannot comment on that? When people do not listen to real life experience, and blindly continue down a path that appears to be perilous to me, yeah, I take notice.

If you want to know who told Marcie about my custom color idea, why don't you ask her? Ask her and leave me alone, and stop writing things that I have supposedly said. Stir it up, stir it up - it's sure helping.

I was really angry at first - I WAS SELLING MY HOUSE AND DIVORCING MY HUSBAND TO START A COMPANY THAT I BELIEVED IN WITH ALL MY HEART AND OVERNIGHT, AFTER ALL MY PLANNING, MONTHS AND MONTHS, IT BECAME REDUNDANT. I called both parties and confronted them. blah blah blah. Pointless.

Then I got invited to Lauscha. Well, everything changed for me then.

I love my life here. I am glad that fate sent me in an entirely different direction. I told someone who was practically a stranger and it doesn't matter. That was my mistake. But fate gave me a chance to live here.

Could the club have made someone a huge stinking pile of money if executed in an ideal fashion? Undoubtedly! Does nobody have a calculator?

Has Marcie made a lot of money on the club? God no, absolutely not. Why? Because she did not execute it in an ideal fashion.

But the promotion was wonderfully executed and brilliant and admirable and it got a lot of new people interested in Lauscha glass.

Was my idea ideal? In my opinion, yes it was. For me, it was the only way that I could see it succeeding, based on past experience. Buy the 12 months upfront, land them and then promote.

Do I wish that I had had a chance to make my idea work? Not anymore. Not at all.

Every day is a gift - let's enjoy it. Please.

Carol Anne

[jhana]

Amazing post once again, Carol Anne.

[carolanne]

Originally Posted by Reenie

Carolanne, I didn't post what I did because I felt sorry for you but even though you love how things turned out in the end, what happened with the club still had to have hurt!
That was just wrong. You should have been at least acknowledged for it either way.
I had no idea and I'm sorry. I doubt I would have had any part in the club knowing that first hand. But like you said, Live and learn, move on.
I know things will work out great for you because you are you!
I also have a pound of blutonium from the club that I've never used. It's on it's way to the factory so make sure you tell Rene to look out for it!
The rest of the stuff is in there too! I knew there was a reason why I was holding on to your package Beats tomato soup lol (sorry guys...inside joke)
Oh and if you guys do make it to dinner. Please take pics. I wanna see finally!

Irene

Oh Irene! When it was not executed the way that I knew it needed to be executed to be successful, I was so glad not to be associated with it in any way. The product was the same - the execution was a totally different ball game. It needed to be 12 months of glass prepurchased by a vendor, and landed on North American shores all at the same time in advance.

Don't send me your Bluetonium! Enjoy it - email me and I can send you some tips and tricks. Even on clear and then reduced, it is amazing - like motor oil on a puddle... Really beautiful - When I am motivated enough, I will buy some.

(yes, that is correct - you are witnessing a person who likes Campbell's Tomato Soup more than glass...) Well, I am sorry, it's the only vegetable that I knowingly ate for the first 5 years of my life... (which might explain the tomato allergy that is worsening...) Accutane anyone?

I have heard that there is Campbell's Tomato Soup in our region's capital. And French's mustard! We are getting Thai cooking supplies in the stores here though which is cool, though I sure didn't eat that when I was a kid.

CA

[Firelilly]

Wow, I’m positively gobsmacked. Thank you for the light you’ve shed here, Carol Anne. I’m so happy to hear that in the end you’ve taken lemons and made lemonade out of this mess. Your forgiving and positive nature shines brightly throughout your posts and makes them uplifting, truly.

Peace

Lil

[Gelly]

Originally Posted by beadstillmyheart

Why don't you send them an email and ask.

I'm sorry, I can't help but post... that was funny!

[beadstillmyheart]

Sounds like a gourmet sauce kit might be in order

Thanks for being so open and honest Carolanne. You have shared more than you had to, even so, it's appreciated. Your story reaches beyond the COTM issue and speaks to our hearts. Making a huge life change like that is scary. What a beautiful example of how to keep the faith in the face of disappointment and to be willing to try something new. That's a true inspiration.

[carolanne]

Originally Posted by Firelilly

Wow, I’m positively gobsmacked. Thank you for the light you’ve shed here, Carol Anne. I’m so happy to hear that in the end you’ve taken lemons and made lemonade out of this mess. Your forgiving and positive nature shines brightly throughout your posts and makes them uplifting, truly.

Peace

Lil

Believe me, the forgiving has only taken place in the last few months... Before that, I was very upset and frustrated about everything that had been written.

And I have no idea if I could have done a better job. Honestly. And I would have been bored doing it too. And I would have been mad when people didn't like my colours. Totally.

Okay, now I am going to sleep...

xoxo, CA

[beadstillmyheart]

Originally Posted by Gelly

I'm sorry, I can't help but post... that was funny!

I was being serious.

[Gelly]

Originally Posted by beadstillmyheart

I was being serious.

Me too. I seriously thought it was funny.

[Lizabeads]

Well Irene, you may have something for her but I've got something she NEEDs, WANTS, everybody around her WANT's her to have.....
D E O D E R A N T !! Can you say eeeeeewwwwww

hahaha

CarolAnne email or PM me the addy to send it to !!

[Reenie]

Liza.....lol too funny. We've had conversations about that too. I've got a list from Rene and a few others from the factory so it's going to be fun. Their probably going to open the package and go wtf???? I'll have to wrap her's individually
Irene