More Gloves

Now all of the boys have fingerless gloves. Plus, I believe there is another pair hanging around somewhere. Add to that a cowl (still needs a button) and a headband that still needs to be braided and assembled. I'm trying to resist buying more yarn right now and just using up what I have. It's not as bad as I thought. I think I went through my stash about a year and a half ago and thinned it through Ebay. Am I regretting that now......maybe a little. Of course that just leaves room for more cool yarns, Right!!

I'm still working with the glass too! Do you like my Christmasy Goddess's? I have more waiting to be cleaned. Not all Christmas ones. Are the weeks flying by now? I know I will be running out at the last minute to pick stuff up. Today I'm hoping to get a few things too. The stores don't seem as busy these days, do they? I think most people are trying to conserve a bit. I myself am trying to be a bit more decisive so I don't freak at the last minute about whether I have "enough" for each kid. I do look forward to Christmas, in general, but I REALLY look forward to the day after! And no matter what the kids always have a great time!

Maybe we'll get a tree today.

Enjoy your day!

Have You Started Shopping Yet?

I envy the people who do their shopping all year long and are done before Thanksgiving, much less Christmas. One of these years I'm going to do that!

After having a wonderful, relaxing Thanksgiving at the In-Laws (Thanks Al & Marlene!), we are now heading into the Christmas Season. At our house it's showing already in barely contained excitement at how close Christmas is, though not close enough for their taste. This coming weekend we will see about getting a tree. Jimmy thinks we should make our ornaments this year so we are ALL going to contribute to that project. I'll take pictures of what everyone comes up with. On a crafting note. While we were at the Al & Marlene's we started discussing craft shows. Can someone tell me what happened to all the ones that were on DIY & HGTV??? They used to show all sorts of different ones but on the rare occasion that they do now, it's usually in the middle of the night. What happened to the "Creative Spirit" of both those channels. Now a days they seem to be oriented to home improvement and the like. Can anyone afford to improve their home these days??? Anyway we were just wondering.......

On my creative front I have 3 pairs of fingerless gloves done and one cowl (pictures this week). A few glass creations waiting to be cleaned and a hankering to get lots more of everything done! In between I'm back to organizing again.

My oldest, and only, Darling Daughter turned 20 yesterday. Boy do I feel old! Her, I and my Mom headed out to lunch (a very cool sushi bar) and then a little shopping (Old Navy) for her day. She didn't think that turning 20 was that big of a deal. She said it just means that she's out of her teens, though most people have thought she was in her 20's for the last couple of years. She's a good kid and for her 21st Birthday we are planning on heading to a winery in California. That will be here soon enough!

Enjoy your day!

Finished The Gloves

I finished the fingerless gloves and am quite happy with them. They work perfectly and I will have to make more but alter the pattern (I don't prefer the open back). The gray yarn and blue buttons are just some "stuff" I happen to have around. For the next pair I will take more care with picking buttons to match the yarn. The gray works nicely for what I'm doing but they need to be washed frequently because of the dirtiness of the papers. So I will definitely need to have spare pairs around. Plus Duncan went with me and has now requested a pair for himself. I'm working on a collar too, that's kind of like a mini scarf. I love scarves but hate the way they hang down and get into stuff and I tend to live in them during the Winter, so I'm going to try out a mini one and see how it goes.

I made some Holiday Goddess's the other day and am really pleased with how they turned out. I should have those up tomorrow and will be making more this week before Thanksgiving.

We were going to have Thanksgiving at home this year but my wonderful In-Laws have extended an invitation to us and we are taking them up on it. We are really looking forward to it!

Enjoy your Sunday!

Skinned Knee & Dorkism

Ok, you would think that in the 40 odd years I've been around that I have learned to walk well enough without falling down. Apparently not since I took a tumble yesterday and actually skinned one of my knees and a hand. It was right after my littlest got on the bus so, thankfully, he didn't see me. My first thought after OUCH! was, yeah! I didn't rip my jeans. Weird, huh? Then I limped back home to repair the damage. By last night I was wondering how I was going to function. I couldn't believe how much a knee could throb and swell. My daughter gave me a couple of Aleve and I hit the bed at around 7, wondering how I was going to manage my route today........well low and behold, my knee feels MUCH better today. It is still a little sore and I've noticed a couple of other bruises, that I didn't notice yesterday but I'm so glad it seems to have recovered. 20 years ago I would have barely flinched at a skinned knee. Amazing the difference the years can make.

So, since I didn't finish my JustBeads listings yesterday, I added the last few this morning. Sorry about that!

Gotta tell ya about something interesting that happened this morning. Our truck has a digital thermometer in it and when I walked out of the house this morning I noticed that it was shockingly warm and the sky was clear. When I started the truck the gauge read 59 degrees. That was about what I thought. The wind was blowing too and it was a warm wind. We live up on a hill so as I drove into town, which involves going down hill the temp began to drop. By the time I got into town, about 7 minutes later, it was 37 degrees and flashing "ice". It was very bizarre, to say the least, and of course by the time I got back from my route (3-1/2 hours later) it was 34 degrees at home. Just had to mention it. Weird huh? I swear I was awake when this happened :0.


Today I'm going to squeeze in a little more lampwork and finish up my fingerless gloves. They are very basic. The pattern came from Lionbrand. Tons of free knit, crochet and craft patterns (If you're into that). Plus lots of cool ones you can buy and, of course, there's the yarn. Have I told you about my yarn stash.......never mind........I'll save that for another time. So a picture of the gloves tomorrow.

TTFN
(tah, tah, for now)

I'm not a snob......or am I??

A bitch, yes, but not a snob..........I don't really talk to the other people that do routes at the same time as me. I made a choice here. I go there to pick up my papers and get the job done! Not to socialize and smoke (I am an ex smoker, but it doesn't bother me that other people smoke), in the freezing cold. Plus, I'm just not talkative in the middle of the AM hours. Add to it, that there was really only one woman there that I liked. She disappeared last weekend and I heard the "chat group" saying this morning that her husband had died (bummer). Sounded like it was sudden since I didn't get the impression from her that he had been sick and she looks to be in her 40's like me. Anyway I chose not to go up and ask what had happened because, if she comes back, I would rather hear it from her than from the people passing around all of what's going on in everyone else's life, that they work with. Where this is going I'm not sure except that I have found that I just don't fit in with this group. It doesn't bother me at all. These are not people I would choose to socialize with outside of "work" so I choose not to socialize with them at work. Maybe I am a snob. However I'm getting what I need to get done, done and I think I'm doing a good job. I do know people who think it's important to fit in with any group. That they should mold their personality to fit each set of people that they meet and if they don't, they worry that those people "don't like them". I quit caring a long time ago about what other people think of me. I answer to "myself" and feel good about it. My companion, kids and family are the most important things in my life and I realize that I don't make them happy all of the time either. Bottom line I do what I need to, to be happy......everyone else.......well...........we are all supposed to be different, Right?!

Speaking of different......I've made some more Goddess rings. I have a fascination with "pixie dust" right now and am chomping at the bit to get my hands on some enamels, but that's going to have to wait for the moment. I'm slowly adding a shell or two to a growing collection. What I'm going to do with those.....well I haven't quite decided yet. I'm going to be revamping my collection on Etsy within the next couple of weeks. It's all a work in progress.

The green fertility Goddess at the top turned out cool, but unfortunately has a "starburst" of cracks around the cz in her belly button. So she gets to stay with me. The polymer set is one that I did quite awhile a go. The rings are pixie dust Goddess's and one acceptable fertility Goddess (Merlot creme). All of these (except the cracked Goddess) will be up on JustBeads before the end of the day.

That's all I have for now.
Enjoy your day today!

Cleaning Beads & Photographing

Today will be devoted to both of those......yeah! I got to spend a few hours on both Sunday & Monday melting glass. I always forget what fun it is to do this when I spend sooo much time away. I think that I may have to make up a schedule to keep me on track, somewhat. I love variety so I'm thinking that I will devote certain days of the week to certain "things". Hmmmm, will have to work on that thought some more. In the meantime, today will be for cleaning and photographing, just because I need to get it done and it one of those tedious things that "needs" to be done in order to move on to the fun stuff!

Interesting, I have been following some other blogs, plus what I read in the newspaper (I stay away from the news on television), which is only because I deliver it everyday, and I've noticed the word "Fear" coming up a lot. This, of course has to do with the state of the economy. A lot of artist's are being "forced" into finding supplemental jobs because of this "fear". My reason for my job was not, so much because of the economy (or so I thought) but just because I'm sick and tired of worrying every month about whether or not we can make ends meet. So I figured that if I could find something that wouldn't interfere (too much), with the kids and my routine that it would be nice to finally be able to work to play "catch up" instead of robbing Peter to pay Paul every month. Plus with Christmas just around the corner, that added to the motivation. I do think that all the "Fear" that is being reported by the media is creating a domino effect. If the media focused on the good instead of the bad more. I think that people, in general would be in a better state of mind and that the economy would feel the effects of that instead. Has anyone noticed the price of gas lately?? It's almost under $2 a gallon here, YEAH!! Or how about that you really DON'T need a lot of money to have a WONDERFUL Christmas. We have had a couple of years being "dirt" poor, through the holidays and you know what?? The kids still had a great Christmas!

This year we are planning on making ornaments for the tree. Everyone in the house can contribute and you can make them out of just about anything. The kids love the idea! We've decided that we (in general) are just going to try to focus on being more positive!! I think I'm going to have to quit reading the newspaper. So for today, try to think of the good things instead of the bad. This economy is NOT going to last forever! It's going to upswing SOON!

Ok, off my soapbox for today. Check back tomorrow for new goodies!

My Route Continues

I'm really enjoying having my boys tag along on the route with me. They only get to "work" on the weekends and only one at a time. I've started rewarding them with an Egg McMuffin. For the moment they think that it's a fair trade. But I'm sure they'll start asking for $$$ soon.

I've decided that I need some fingerless gloves and a hood of some sort for working these routes. I've been looking at some crochet patterns for something quick to "stitch" up. Or maybe even a sewing pattern. It's getting cold enough to where having a little extra help staying warm on the route would be nice. Actual gloves are not an option because of the handling of newspapers. And a hood that will actually stay on my head would be wonderful with all the rain and wind. I think a raincoat would be a little too bulky with getting in and out of the truck.

I'm still lagging in the lampwork department. Every time I make plans to sit at the torch something comes up......but.......tomorrow is looking good for some time. We'll see! I'm really into Goddess's, shells & my Tree Goddess Beads. I also have a couple of ideas for new ones. Of course I always have ideas for something or other. I'm telling ya, I need at least 48 hours everyday!

I wanted to add a couple more people that I love in the pattern department too......Knit Art By Grace, Iza Malczyk & Julida Designs. You'll notice that they are not all jewelry but a variety of patterns that have interested me. I could offer a ton of other artists but I spend far to much time on the net as it is so for now have fun checking these ones out.

Stormy Season Is Here

It starts with loads and loads of rain then it clears up and the wind BLOWS and it gets down right chilly. You would think that living in the Pacific Northwest, I have no right to complain about rain and I'm not really complaining. Rain in and of itself isn't so bad. In fact a lot of times it's nice, especially when you're looking to stay in and create. But add some wind and the cold. Maybe a power outage or 3 and I've had enough! I start pining for Spring! Luckily for us we live up on a hill so flooding is not an issue unless you count the creek that runs the through the yard and other than giving the kids something to get muddy in there's no threat there at all. So the stormy season is here and it's just time to ride it out.

I actually got to lampwork a little last weekend. I'm also working on several tutorials. The first will be very basic and I'll build from there. This is something I've been talking about doing for a couple of years and now I have no more excuses! If I can publish a couple before the New Year I'll be very happy!! Tutorials are all over the place now! Coming up with something new is the fun part. It has been interesting watching people price them. I was really excited that another lampworker was making a tutorial on one of the floral pieces she does until I saw the price. I do feel that people can price there tut's for what ever they like, but when it's overpriced I think it motivates people to work at "figuring" it out instead of paying for it. I was willing to pay what I thought would be a reasonable price. Needless to say, she's sold very few tutorials in comparison to those that are priced "reasonably". This is, of course, just my opinion and as I've said everyone is free to price their work at whatever they think it's worth. There are tons of fabulous tutorials for great prices out there so look around. These are some of my favorites: JewelryLessons.com has tons and this will be one of my venues for when I'm ready. These are just a few of the artists I would highly recommend for their Tutorials: EarringsByErin, Eni Oken, Cabisuteria, (Christina Amador), Gailavira, Mary Lockwood, and Christi Friesen just to name a few. This is a very small mix of what's out there. So if you're looking for tutorials there's lots out there to choose from and the price range varies greatly.

No pictures today. I need to etch a couple of things and will most likely be lampworking again this weekend. I'm looking to start playing with enamels soon with my glass and am using pixie dust on a regular basis. New stuff coming soon! I should have at least one tutorial done by the end of this month (fingers crossed).

Add me to your favorites if your curious.

Have a great day!

Change Is On The Way!!!

Just a quick note today to say how relieved I am that Barack won. I think we have been long past due for a change (at least 8 years worth). But after the fiasco of the last election I was a little worried at what the out come might be. Needless to say it was a wonderful overwhelming response that this country is READY for change! And yes, I did vote.

Moving on to behind the scenes. This week has been crazy and I'm slowly making progress on the jewelry/lampwork front. I'm hoping to get my torch lit up this Friday but that will depend on how the day goes. I'm volunteering for about an hour in the morning for Connor's class while they have an Art Docent come in. She was looking for a couple of extra parents to come in and help with a project they are doing. Sounds like fun, so I'll be there. If I don't get a chance to torch on Friday I'll definitely be squeezing in a weekend session. I have a couple of requests and need to get busy melting glass.

Pictures up above are of sets that will be going up on JustBeads sometime within the next couple of days.

Time to go get dinner started. Have a great evening!

Featured Artist For Just Beads!!

Yes, Me!! I'm the featured artist for November for JustBeads.com! I'm thrilled! Can you tell? Just click on the link at the top left of their home page.

Now that the contest is over I can also post pictures of my entries for PCC (Polymer Clay Central) monthly challenge. I had been thinking about entering one of their monthly challenges for ages but finally got around to it when they made is so that you could send your photo's online. I didn't win but that's ok, it was fun to do, and I'm thinking I will probably be entering more in the future even though they've returned to the Snail Mail entries. So keep an eye out for more of me in the future.

Those were my surprises that I was waiting to tell you! An excellent way to start November!! It would be even better if I could spend the day creating but alas I desperately need to restock our pantry today. The natives are hungry and complaining that we have nothing to eat in the house, so off I go. It will probably take most of the day but hopefully I won't forget anything (seems to happen even when I have a list). The one store that's the most fun is Trader Joe's. I love it!! Filled with unique, yummy and great priced goodies. Dakota claims he's going to work at one when he's old enough. Hopefully they will have one a little closer to us when that time comes.

I'm off to take care of business, enjoy your Saturday and don't forget to Fall Back tonight!

Surprises Coming......No

Not this week but next week. Things behind the scenes seem to be coming together :) I've been working with a lot of clay and am feeling the need to get back behind the torch as I adjust to my new work schedule.

This last weekend I had my oldest son Dakota go with me on my Saturday morning run. He thought it was quite the adventure and I was very proud of how well he did. In fact with his help we shaved about 30 minutes off of my delivery time and he hopes to help out again in the future (weekends only during the school year). Jimmy helped with the Sunday delivery. I hate to say it but he wasn't as much fun, but a big help non the less. I think adults have a much harder time finding the adventure in it as kids do plus he's a huge fan of his own sleep time. Me, well I don't really mind it in the least. If I can come home and nap for an hour or two, I'm usually good to go for the rest of the day. A general observation about people doing this kind of work. Most have day jobs and the men are talkers. Does that sound odd?? I've always thought that women were the talkers, in most situations, but in the middle of the night men seem to be the ones who like to shoot the breeze. In fact I think my talk "center" is still asleep but everything else seems to be functioning just fine. This is nothing more than an interesting (I think) observation........

I've finished a few pieces of jewelry but haven't had the time to photograph them yet. I'm hoping to squeeze in some camera time before Halloween. Can you believe that October is almost over!? We have some spooky decorations hanging around, the boys had a ball decorating, but I highly recommend checking out this womans decorations, Notes From The Fae Side. Her decorations are the coolest!!!

I've posted a couple more pictures of ornaments up above and one of my lampwork tree goddess's. Just something to tide you over until I get to clicking with the camera again.

Enjoy your day!

I've Been Tagged!

Thanks to Cristina Amador,

The rules are as follows:

1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.

2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.

3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blogs.

4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs.

7 facts about me...

1. I'm a huge Zelda fan. If I could get away with playing all the time I would, but because of guilt I play about twice a year. Just too many other important things to do. I'm secretly hoping for a Nintendo DS for Christmas.

2. My creativity started with sewing. I still have a room (literally) full of fabric and still get behind my Husqvarna now and then, but have pretty much moved on to glass, clay and wire for my creative outlets (see past blog posts). My hubby would love it if I would part with most of my fabric stash but hasn't he heard the rule "She who dies with the most fabric wins".

3. I shaved my head a couple of years ago after my Mom had brain surgery. It was a great "one" time experience, but I would do it again in a pinch for any of my close family in traumatic circumstances.

4. No one remembers me from high school (I was extremely shy back then) but I posted on classmates that I was an artist and have had a ton of hits (views) from those people who wouldn't know me from boo, even though we graduated together. Do you think those people will claim to remember me, if I go to my 30 year reunion?

5. I love tea and drink it all day long (black & green only). Favorites are Gevalia Jasmine (like a fine wine) and Trader Joe's Earl Gray. Flowering teas are wonderful for special occasions plus the bonus of being eye candy!

6. I'm pretty much a vegetarian living with a bunch of carnivores though I indulge in the occasional egg or tuna. I feel loads better since starting to eat this way plus the pounds have started disappearing, Yeah!

7. I dream of writing tutorials, articles or maybe even a book on creativity.

Here is my tag list!

1. Donna of Gailavira

2. Allison of Sunny Rising Leather

3. Rice of The Voodoo Cafe

4. Janelle of Pigeon Point Fiber and Glass

5. Notes from The Fae Side

6. Carla of Carla Kurt Art

7. H. Palleiko of H. Palleiko Designs

ZZZzzzzzzz

Pretty Flowers
Doing The Limbo
Loving My Grannie's
Another Cool Sale Item!

That's what I feel like doing right now. Just got Connor off to school and Jimmy is home for Columbus Day. I didn't have a clue that it was a holiday today.

I started a paper route today. We could use the extra income with Christmas just around the corner and it's perfect because I can be home for the kids and still work on my art. I'll be learning the route over the next couple of days and luckily it's not to far away. If needed I can nap at certain times during the day to get in a little extra zzzzzz's. Funny I had started to adjust my sleeping habits over the last couple of weeks and I think it will help a lot. I'm normally a night owl.

Friday night we went to a "Family" dance at the Elementary school. It was a lot of fun and as you can see Connor really enjoyed himself, Limbo Baby!!

Have I mentioned that I collect Granny glasses? I'm not that old but I do use them a lot in the work that I do. Especially for detail. This is just one of the cool pairs I own. I keep at least one pair in every area that I work in. And have more on hand just in case. Yes, they do end up breaking from whatever the miss hap may be, but that's why you can never have enough. Plus who wants to waist precious time looking for the only pair you own. Usually they don't turn up for at least 6 months and then you find they have fallen behind a cushion or maybe one of the kids tried to swipe them just because they look cool (like maybe a camouflage pair that I own).

Anyway, I think I'm just rambling on right now. I hope you are enjoying your Holiday or just your Monday. It's rather rainy and a little chilly right now but I'm not minding it.

SALE, SALE, SALE!!!

How could I forget to mention that I'm having a sale over at my Art Etsy. 30-50% off all of the jewelry listed in my store. This is an excellent deal for the month of October. Pictures above are samples of what's waiting for you! Get em while there Hot! Excellent Christmas, Birthday or Just Because you deserve it! This sale only applies to my jewelry items and ends at midnight October 31st (Halloween).

Ok, that was my "Shameless Promotion" for the day :) Now I need to saw some copper and sculpt some clay. My one "free" day that happens every 2 weeks when Connor goes for the full day on Friday (every other one), which is actually a short day since the school district implemented personal growth day, last year, every Friday and they get out 2 hours early. The teachers are supposed to work on improved teaching skills and other ways to educate the children on the last 2 hours of the day. I guess it worked so well last year that they are doing it again this year. Personally I don't mind it and of course, neither do the kids (imagine that).

Off to accomplish some stuff while the gettin's good!
TGIF!

Clay And Woodburning

Ornaments & Woodburning
Ornament Bowls
Jewelry Ideas


So I've completed a couple of ornaments and have also been working on potential jewelry pieces. Polymer clay is truly wonderful! Along with the ornaments have come the tragedy of dropping a couple which produced a new idea for glass bowls. I should have a couple of those up on Etsy in a week or so.

Along with that I have a small collection of these cool wood tea boxes. After sanding off the labels they make an excellent canvas for some wood burning art. The box shown above was my first one and I won't be using food color dye to color again. As you can see it smears/runs when sealed even after it has dried. Oh well, it was a learning experience. I'll have another in the works soon.

Do you like my Friesen inspired pony pendant? The other 3 pendants are coral and a couple of stones accented with polymer clay. Can you tell I'm having a little fun? ;)

I made a couple of glass beads a couple of days ago but my muse for the glass has been missing in action. Hopefully she'll be back next week :D

I have book club tonight. We didn't have one all Summer and yet I still didn't get the book read that I was supposed to (Change Your Brain, Change Your Life), turns out I wasn't the only one, but we're still going to get together just to visit. Very cool! The book it turns out wasn't what my Mom thought it was going to be and it was her choice. She said she didn't finish it because it leads you to believe that you can improve illness, and the like, by changing your eating habits but that most of the book is case studies that they end up treating with medication. I've watched his show on KCTS and if that's the case his show is misleading, to me anyway.

You'll notice some changes to my blog. I'm updating some things and will work toward making myself a bit more prominent on the internet. Stay tuned!

We got it done!

Past Polymer Images


The carpet that is! Spent Saturday re-carpeting the living room and I'm still putting it back together. We may also be doing a bedroom next weekend (or the one after) since my daughter is moving out. She's going to be rooming in a house with several other people and has decided that it's more feasible than living at home since the rent is cheaper. Yes, I charge my daughter rent. It's a long story but has a lot to do with financial responsibility and accountability. I love her dearly but it's time (at the age of almost 20) for her to try it on her own.

I'm back into working with polymer but still have tons of stuff to photograph and post. Yesterday I ended up having to run to the school when my littlest (Connor) threw up on the bus. He was fine, just a little car sick but I had to take him a change of clothes, the poor little guy! He's loving school and the teacher is really appealing to his crafty side (she said he asks everyday if they are doing a craft) by incorporating crafts and learning together. Both he and Duncan (my middle boy) have teachers that are the perfect fit this year.

I'm finding that my 3 hours of "Art" time is usually not so artistic and more catch up time than anything else, though I'm trying to be insistent (with myself) to spend at least 2 of those days lampworking. Oh well, life is moving along as it should no matter what I have planned.

At the top I've posted some of my past polymer projects (1-2 years). If I remember right the mask took 2nd or 3rd in a group contest on Ebay. This gives you a bit of an idea of what my style is. I should have at least 2 ornaments up on Etsy by the end of the week.

Have a great day!

The Mornings Fly.....

New Dragonfly Bangle Bracelet
Butterfly Branch Bead
Fall Pumpkin

by.......Not that the rest of the day doesn't do the same, but the mornings seem to be the quickest. Here is a sample of what my weekday morning is like:

5:30 AM get first boy up, make lunch for him while signing into email.

6:15 first boy leaves for school. I now have about 20-30 minutes to look through and answer or open said email. Emails usually end up with me being on another artistic site. There are several that I like to check daily (gotta stop doing that).

6:45 second boy is up, packing another lunch, visit with him for a bit before he leaves for school (first boy isn't as friendly in the morning).

7:35 second boy leaves for school. Now I continue with email, listing, creating, photographing and whatever else seems to be pertinent at the moment. Sometimes it seems like I spend so much time bouncing from one thing to the next that I haven't really accomplished anything.

My last boy gets up, usually, between 8-9 and then we continue with breakfast, some play time, a quick post maybe, and the like until we leave here at 11:15 to walk up to the bus stop.

Most mornings it seems like I blink, and that's it, the afternoon has arrived and my first boy is home.

Somehow I had bigger visions for my 3 hours of free time in the afternoon, which I usually end up torching with. Sometimes it's wire or polymer clay but the torch is the one thing that needs my full attention, preferably, without distractions. Can you imagine how fast 3 hours goes when you are trying to accomplish something??

Anyway, I really have no complaints about how my days go, I just need to be a little more organized when it comes to my work, and as for the internet. I need to pick one day a week to do my "surfing" on, like say Sunday.

A quick note, I have begun working on ornaments. I should start listing them on Etsy next week sometime. A couple of Halloween theme ones and some florals. Keep your eye out!

Enjoy the rest of the week!

On The Verge Of Fall

Fall Garden
Shells for Pandora, Troll or Biagi Chains
Bird Nest Ring


The weather has finally taken a turn to the cooler side. It looks like Fall is here. I've begun to work on ornaments along with a new jewelry idea that I'm really excited about. Unfortunately it takes a couple of days to prepare the materials properly before I'm able to work with them.

This weekend we are going to be laying some carpet, Jimmy brought home from work, that's new (used) from a remodel he's doing. It still has that that new carpet smell. Cocoa being sick, was kind of the last straw for our current living room carpet.

I'm still missing Cocoa a lot. Especially when the kids are at school. We'll wait and see what furry family member comes our way in the near future.

Enjoy your Friday!

New Creations

I've got some new glass and jewelry up! Finally, things are starting to get back to somewhat of a routine :) I'm trying to squeeze some lampwork in, about 4 days a week, even if I only play around with making a couple of beads. I've been making a lot of viking knit chains to incorporate into some of my jewelry. It's a great thing to do (like regular knitting) when you have to wait on something (pictures loading for example).

Jimmy got our shop cleaned up so I'm going to start working on some wood ideas I have for jewelry. We may even collaborate on some things, who knows. He's going to set up an area in there just for me. I would move my lampwork down there but sawdust and flames DO NOT mix. So I'll stay put on that. Plus I enjoy the work space I have, though I need to de-clutter it too!

The weather is unseasonably warm right now, upper 70's, low 80's. It looks like it's supposed to start cooling down in the next couple of days. I've been enjoying it after our early Fall preview a couple of weeks ago and know this isn't going to last too long before we'll be forced to turn on the heater or light a fire. In the meantime it's nice!

Halloween is fast approaching and the kids are thrilled. I don't know why but I'm kind of looking forward to it myself and while we live in a rural area that doesn't get Trick-or-Treaters I'm thinking we'll be putting up some scary decorations just for the fun of it. Check out this cool site for scary paper crafts http://ravensblight.com/papertoys.html The kids will love it!!

We Are Healing

It's been a couple of days and we still have that hole. Which will be for quite a while. We made a trip to the local animal shelter today. The boys loved seeing all the dogs and cats. I'm finding that I lean towards the older dogs, a little under or over a year. They are much calmer and seem to have a little more sense than the puppies. I love puppies but feel like I don't have the patience for them like I used to. I found myself drifting towards the dogs who were receptive towards attention (scratches) and orders (sit!), than the little, hyper puppies.

We didn't come home with a new family member today. The kids are wanting a puppy but I have been talking to them about rescuing an older dog. I'm the one who will be spending the most time with it and while I understand and respect what the kids are feeling, I also feel that it is more worthwhile to "rescue" a dog that actually might be put down in the end. Labs seem to be favored. I noticed a couple of older labs/retriever type dogs that had been adopted right away. I REALLY lean towards Shepard mixes. Cocoa, was a mix, and the dog I had before her was a husky mix. There is something about the markings that I can't resist! Be sure that I pay attention to how they behave towards people, children, & others dogs, so....... no worries! I'm thinking it will be about a month (or more) before we get the next dog. Stay tuned!!

More art sometime next week!

In Loving Memory

In Loving Memory Of Cocoa

January 1st, 2003-September 11th, 2008

A true & loyal friend, companion, playmate & guardian.

You will be greatly missed!

Rolling Right Along.......

Cocoa is slowly improving. Very slowly. She's still not eating on her own but I keep at her & she is putting up a fight so I know she's regaining her strength. She's also able to move more easily.

So far the week it going fairly smooth. The kids and I are adjusting to the back to school routine nicely and I actually lampworked two days in a row (Woo Hoo!). It's more of a warm up but it's amazing to be able to sit in front of my torch for 2-3 hours without a single interruption. While I torch I listen to books on my mp3 player. I'm on the 3rd book of a Nora Roberts series (Born In) and have more waiting. I used to listen to music but I have found that listening to books is much more entertaining and boy does the time fly (not that it doesn't already when I'm torching). She is my current favorite. I'm waiting on some Orson Scott Card too. I listened to Ender's Game a few weeks ago and that is a long series of books. He's a great Sci-Fi writer! However there's a wait list for the second book (Speaker for the Dead) on mp3 from the library.

Hopefully I should have new stuff to show at the end of the week. Stay tuned!

A New Week

Cocoa seems to be slowly improving. She's still not eating on her own but she is much more coherent, moving around more and fighting me when it comes to force feeding her. Makes it a pain to feed her but at least she has the energy to resist, which I consider a good thing. I will have to steam clean the living room and office when this is finally over from her accidents and the like but I had been meaning to do that for awhile so, I'm glad I put it off.

There's still a lot of stress in the house but I'll work through that. The kids will be in school for their first full week this week and I'm hoping to get some serious lampworking in. Of course the weather is warming back up again, which I think is par for the course when it comes to September, but there is still a Fall nip in the air in the morning.

Right now I'm just muddling through everything right now knowing that tomorrow is a new day. The best part of all of this is that my boys are excited to be going to school.

A couple of more pictures of things I have yet to list......