TAMMY ROBACKER: TACOMA ARTISTS LAUNCH BELLABALLS >>>

For Tacoma designers Diane Hansen and Lesli Jacobs-McHugh hope literally floats. They will launch bellaballs â€" their new line of hand-blown glass floats â€" and host an open house at their bellaballs studio in Tacoma Saturday, Jan. 17 from 4 to 8 p.m.

Each bellaball design is original and comes from the heart of Hansen and Jacobs-McHugh as they endeavor to celebrate the beauty of life with their hand-crafted, collectible objets d’art. Inspired by the ancient tradition of Japanese fishing floats, both women discovered they had a common interest in collecting the rare sea treasures.

“Our bellaballs are designed in keeping with that tradition. They are made to be original, personally discovered, or given away as beautiful gifts. Each one really takes on a life of its own,” says Hansen.

Originally Japanese floats were used to hold up fishing nets cast on the ocean. But as the ocean ebbed and flowed, waves often tore the nets apart. The freed glass floats drifted across the waters, eventually landing safely upon beachfronts across the world. Hansen and Jacobs-McHugh see that journey as a metaphor of life and endurance.

For more information on bellaballs and their studio, visit their Web site.