Monarch........

Well. I've got work to do but here are a few of my Butterfly Hearts.....They are intended to be more "painterly" .......I'm just not sure about them. I think I like a couple and dislike a couple too..... I feel a bit rusty on my scroll work .....need some free time at the torch!

Its always fun to ask my husband which he likes......he almost always picks the one I hate....He is always counseling me on being less critical.....

February??!

I know. Its not even December yet and I'm thinking about an Open House I'm planning in February. This is most likely due to the fact that I am a hard core procrastinator and need time to think and plan. So here is my theme: Retro Love Beads. I was born in the 60's and loved all the colors, styles and songs of this period....my aunt and my mother were "hippies" and I was introduced to this all while growing up.....Janice Joplin was one of my fav's and even the Monkey's

So as you can guess, be looking for Hearts, of course, and Monkey beads too.......why not be a bit silly?!

Later today I'll post what came out of the kiln....new heart images and a new vessel.......

Sunday, Sunday

Sunday's are suppose to be relaxing and stress free.......so far, mine has been just that. I started my day with a nice brisk walk....and coffee of course.

Stopped and took a picture of pumpkins from our local farm market. I love fall.

I've posted my Silly Witches to my Etsy Shop along some Sugar Skull beads. Stop over and pick something up since Halloween is just a few weeks away.

Gonna sit a spell right now and read a few chapters and then, work on whipping up dinner!

Silly Witch!

Here are a few silly witch pendants that are for sale! I'll place them in my etsy shop later...

All sterling silver components....glass dress and face. 

Love this witches.........picture taken with my phone so just know they look even cuter in person )

Life: Amazing and Strange

It seems that I seem to get myself back on track with blogging and then something else that requires significant attention crops up and takes me away again. So I say yet again.........I'm getting back to blogging on my regular basis!

Two weeks ago my beloved dog, China Girl, had to be put to rest. She was 15 years old and just recently began to go down hill....rather fast. Although it was not definitively diagnosed, she had liver cancer or possibly blood cancer. We did what was best for her, and put her to rest. It broke my heart and I was unable to do much before and then after her death.

I got myself back on track only to have our second dog, Winston, develop a neurological problem (pictured above)....he can not use his hind leg and falls. This means constant supervision and we have to assist him with everything!

I LOVE our dog/dogs and would do anything for them but this is challenging. To keep my sanity, I am doing my best to blog more and stress less. There is a Buddhist Relic exhibit here this weekend that I think I'll go to and see if I find peace in this...

On a bead note....bead making is therapy so I will be beading more today...my husband and I will take turns caring for our dog.

See you tomorrow.......here on my blog :)

Torching for Beads of Courage!

Good morning everyone. I know I've been away from posting here lately but I'm getting myself back in the saddle! Summer flew by, two big shows are now behind me, our house now has beautifully restored hardwoods and MOST things are back in place. Although it was so worth getting our floors done, the process involved a lot of labor for us! Packing, storing, moving everything as if we were moving out was much more than I imagined! But....we are 95% back together again.

Today I will be torching for Beads of Courage. All the beads I create today will be donated to this cause. I am a BIG believer in giving and feel that I could really put my talents to use with this organization. This will be my first of many torch days so when I announce the next one, I will also arrange for a way for YOU to be part of things too.

Great Resource Discovery!

I love social networking. You connect with people who you know plus you "meet" people who love the same thing as you......I'm talking beads! I've become friends with Kandice and Kim which of course lead me to their blog called Coloraddiction......What an amazing resource!! The color testing they do and write about is wonderful. So if you are a beadmaker, pop over there and check it out.

At the bottom of their post I also discovered this Tutorial resource. What a great find! Now maybe you all have been up on this and all this information is old news but wow, I'm thrilled with this new to me discovery!

Let me know if this helped anyone out....I know, it requires leaving a comment but please :)

Almost Show Time!

This weekend is the Arts at the Garden show at Sonnenberg Gardens. I love this show. Beautiful landscape. The show volunteers and personnel are so kind. The artists are amazing one and all. AND the bathrooms are the best!

As you can guess, my days have been filled with making beads and constructing jewelry. I'm happy with my new work but would love to have more. If I wasn't such a procrastinator I would have more but it just is what it is.....Summer life has been busy of course. House projects, vacations, and family gatherings all take front stage..........but don't worry, I do have plenty of new things :)

After the show this weekend I will be getting ready for another in just 21/2 weeks. Its always a mad race to restock after a show but I've been doing this now for 13 years so I'm fairly use to it....And school starts during this time too......ugh.....I need more summer vacation!

I hope you will come out to the Sonnenberg show this weekend. My booth is E-1!

Summer Life

We had a great time in Cape Cod recently......Beaches, sunshine, good food and bead shopping of course. Went to my most favorite bead shop.....Beadniks on the Vineyard and came home with some lovely items. I had to control myself since we rode bikes and I was the one with the basket....it was very full already with things too :)

I've been working daily preparing for a few upcoming shows. Its always a nail bitter to see if I will have enough stuff but I typically do.....I just love working a deadline I guess.

Abstract hollows have been a recent love. Abstract since they are not perfectly round but what we beadmakers call "wonkie". I decided to make it a look.....using very a very earthy color palette with a bit of silver. Don't know what I'll call this series yet.....thinking of Sediment or Canyon Rocks.....at least thats what comes to mind when I look at them. I'm also using some discontinued colors on this project.......not all but a few. Relish, Lechin  and ..can't remember the name right now... all were old colors that were discontinued for some reason. I hate when they do that since its those "old" colors that I like best.

Buttons! I just love buttons.......I often wonder if it is because my Non had jars of awesome buttons that I use to love to comb through and play with. I've got some really funky buttons to share at the shows!