Weekend Craft Fair

My friend Kara invited me to get a table at a craft fair her church was having this weekend. I got confirmation I could have a table our first night on our cruise, so I had barely a week to prepare and make more jewelry for this sale.

Here's the cutie patootie I got to hold on/off throughout most of the show because my friend Wendy surprised me and came to hang out for the day. Meet Logan. He is diligent about eating every three hours and makes you work hard for keeping peace. But he's just so dang cute!

Here was my table. I only had three vertical displays for hanging the goods, but I think they were enough.

I had my worry stones out in little boxes all over the table and they got fondled plenty, although only one went to a new home.

Here was Marcie's table of gorgeous crocheted hats, ponchos and chihuahua sweaters. I hope she starts up an Etsy shop because her work is awesome with beautiful colors. I bought a wonderful poncho from her and she's making a matching hat for me. I can't wait to get it!

Kara came and hung out with me for awhile before buying a few Christmas presents. My friend Martin also came, as did the grandparents with my kids in tow, my Mom and SIL. Todd even helped me set up at the show and then dismantle and load up to go home. I don't remember the last time I did a bead or jewelry show and had so much fun!

Don't Forget to Enter!

There is still time....you can go here to leave a name suggestion for these purple, swirly beads for a chance to win a dozen free beads.

These are the beads that Sarah won from a similar naming contest in October.

Thanksgiving

husband

kids

family

friends

pets

faith

torch

camera

job

roof

wheels

flowers

life

turn signals, when they are used

grace

kindness

helping others

making a difference

Jimmy Stewart

It's a Wonderful Life

angels

innocence

forgiveness

cookie dough

Moms

grandparents

Dads

magicians

warm weather

Etsy Sale on Black Friday!

Buy One - Get One 50% off in both of my Etsy shops on Black Friday, November 27th through Sunday the 29th!

New items coming to both my bead shop and my jewelry shop.


*My jewelry shop will be closed on Saturday while I am at a craft fair at Shallowford Falls Community Church located at 3662 Shallowford Road in Marietta 30062, just past the Sandy Plains intersection. The fair is 9am - 4pm.

Goodies from Marsha Neal!

When I got home from our cruise, I had a little box waiting for me. It was cram-packed with TONS of beads! TONS of beads from Marsha Neal Studio. Can you say "Heaven"?

Seriously, look at all of these little, itty, bitty, bebe beads! These pairs are perfect for earrings. Or smaller focals. How I wish I could wear earrings because I'd be keeping alot of these to make earrings for myself!

And these longer pendants. I bought one of these from Marsha in Philadelphia at the BeadFest 2009 and love how it looks in the necklace I made.

More of the larger variety. I am having serious issues deciding which beads to keep. I really don't want to send any back to her. But I must. I must, because I know it would take me way too long to make all these beauties into jewelry. Way too long for me to make my own beads to go with them. So I must choose carefully. And perhaps hold onto them for an extra day so I can lovingly hold these bebes.

You can buy your own lovelies directly from Marsha in her Etsy shop here.

Vacation Pics

This was the majority of my vacation on the cruise boat with my honeys. Lounging in a comfy chair on the top deck, reading a book. I swam in SPF 50 before leaving my room, so I'm not any tanner than when we left last Monday. But it was so nice to get away and just relax.
Relaxing like this was in order for hours every day as we refused to take the elevator and were 8 floors down from the restaurants. Sixteen steps in every flight and climbed up at least five times a day made for a couple of huffing and puffing adults with sore knees. :)

We got off the boat in Cozumel and walked around for a few hours. I LOVE how blue the water is around this little island!

I liked this little window in the stone wall outside the seaside restaurant we ate lunch at on Wednesday.

This was the view. Pretty awful, huh? I should have gotten much better pics before we left because it was phenomenal! The waiter was funny and teased me that my carne/beef burrito was actually made from donkey. He brayed and hawed just like a donkey. Crazy Mayans!

We had awesome sunsets with an early-rising moon. We were in port in Cozumel, parked right next to another cruise ship in this pic. I think every room had their private balcony.


It was really nice being able to wear tank tops. Outside. At night. :)

I was playing with the remote to my camera and snapped this shot :) How I love this man

I wonder if the crew ever gets tired of blue skies and blue water. I don't think I'd let myself take it for granted.


The getaway was much needed. I'm grateful we had a wonderful set of grandparents willing to come to our house for the week to watch and love and spoil our children. I'm thankful we had the means to make this trip happen for the second year in a row. Thankful for blue skies, time to read as much as I wanted and time to catch up on sleep.

Come Friday morning (the last full day on the boat), I was filled with nervous energy. I wanted to run and run and run. I wanted to be home when I blinked my eyes. I wanted to kiss and hold my kids. I was ready to be with my family again. Todd felt the same. Five days was more than long enough, but much enjoyed.

Somebody in Germany Loves Me!

Ok, she doesn't love me. But she loves my beads. And that's virtually the same, right? ;) Whatever. I'll take the kind words and wait to see pics of what she makes with them, I hope.

Take a look at Nicki's Reef to see her post about my beads. Thanks for the kind blog post, Nicki. You rock!

Large Disks

I made some large holed, large disks. I want to make more. Feel free to throw out color combinations you'd like to see. And no worries, I'm not expecting you to buy them if I make them. It's just a little like how I feel about cooking dinner some nights. It's nice to have someone else decide what I should make every once in awhile so I don't have to think about it. :)


This bead uses the same colors as the bead in my Etsy avatars that I made several years ago. They are ASK-104 colors that are no longer made. I jealously protect these colors and would prefer to just look at them in my glass cabinet than use them up. But I pulled them out and made this. I left this side slightly ridged between colors of glass.

And put this side in the flame longer to melt away the ridges between colors so they would flow smoothly together. mmmmm, I love this green!

That's all for this week. I get back home tomorrow afternoon for a few short hugs and snuggles with my kids before we head out to a celebratory evening with Todd's tennis teams that made it to the ALTA city playoffs and his USTA 7.5 combo state champions. Sunday I can (maybe, hopefully) catch up on blogs and I'll rejoin you again the week of Thanksgiving. I'm thinkin a day-after-Thanksgiving-sale in both of my shops might be in order. Still mulling over the terms.

Have a great weekend!

More Big Rings

I'm having fun using my big mandrels again after a long hiatus from them. For months I have looked up at them on my counter, sticking out of a vase looking back at me. But then I re-dipped them this past week and started making big holed beads/rings again.

I like the square shape of the pink and green bead. And the purple on the turquoise is still a little bumpy because I think texture on beads is cool. :)

Birthday Presents

To myself:

I love the shampoos, handsoaps and lip lubes that Rhonda of In A Lather makes. My husband loves her Clean shampoo, too. He doesn't want to go back to anything we can find at Target.

And from my Mom & Grandma:
Phat Straps makes these FABULOUS camera straps. They detach easily from the camera to be swapped out because she uses great little buckles. This one came lined in soft, minky fabric so there are no rough edges cutting into your neck. LOVE it! (I ordered a similar one a few weeks ago, as well as a couple of lens huggies. Her sewing is top-notch and the lens bags are excellent quality with their silky corded drawstrings and fashionable fabric!)

They also gave me this wonderful laptop/camera bag that I had been dreaming about from Xcess Rize Designs. I love this fabric.
And look at all the pockets inside! So much room and very padded so my lenses, camera and laptop will all stay safe.

I love this new bag and was so thrilled my Mom and Grandma gave it to me. It is perfect for bringing my camera and my beloved macbook with me when I travel. And it came just in time to pack up and take on the cruise. Before you admonish me for not taking complete advantage of this opportunity to relax and unplug (ahem, CZ), I did not take my macbook to check email, blogs, facebook or even my checking account.

I brought it along solely to better learn how to use photo-editing software. Something I very much want to become better at manipulating (family photos, not beads....I want to learn how to make those cool rounded corners and add textures), but have not found any time to learn in the past month that I've had these programs. I'm sure the laptop will be turned on between a multitude of naps and most assuredly with a nearby beverage with an umbrella hanging over the top.

I Need a Name! Round 2

Ok folks, we're starting the second round of I Need a Name.

Please leave only one comment suggesting a name for these pretty babies. Make sure your comment is associated with your name....Anonymous comments will be disregarded in the winner selection process. I will use random.org to generate a random number to choose the winner on November 30th.

Winner gets a dozen free beads!

Sand & Water

I need to make more of these beads. Yes, it is a need. I feel it and I know that I won't sleep right until I make more.

I just love the deep sapphire blue.

Great variations of earthy colors in the raku speckles over my blue beads. I bought these white turquoise ovals in Tucson in February 2008 during the big gem and bead shows that invade the city each year. That was the first time I ever went (and sadly, only time. so far). I was amazed at how the city was transformed by bead shows upon bead shows. They took over entire hotels, with bead vendors turning individual hotel rooms into temporary storefronts.

I went way overboard in buying supplies and spent twice my budget. But it was so worth it. I got such great deals. Much better than the deals of the traveling bead shows that come through Atlanta each quarter. So almost two years later, I'm still working my way through those supplies.

I had never seen white turquoise before going to Tucson. I love how it looks. I love the crackles. And I love it paired with my lampwork beads and the AB finish Swarovski crystals. This bracelet is patiently waiting in my shop for you.

Taking Stock on the Birthday

Today I turn the little three four. One of the few days of the year that I know my age because some family members take fun in pointing it out. Most of the rest of the year I would have to do the math before answering that 'how old are you?' question. Age isn't something that I typically devote much thought. Or perhaps it is just numbers in general that don't terribly interest me because I can never remember my salary when filling out a credit app. Numbers don't define a person very well. My age or how much I pull in doesn't tell you much about me.

So today, I am not celebrating the numbers. I'm celebrating the experiences. What makes me proud. The goodness in my life. And what I have to look forward to in the coming year(s).

I celebrate my honeys and the fact that we're happily married and still enjoy each others' company after a decade of being in each others' space. We have an awesome relationship and give support and encouragement to help the other achieve personal goals. Todd is my rock. Without him and his encouragement, I probably would have never bought all of the equipment to pursue lampworking and find out how much I can be consumed and consoled through creativity.

I celebrate my two goofy kids and the fact that they're part of me. I love seeing them grow into kinder and more caring beings. There are days where they challenge me, when I walk away to take more than 10 deep breaths to remind myself that I'm the adult. They have helped teach me more patience and how important it is to be a role model in showing my love in everything I do. Even in frustration or disappointment, kind words can be found and used. In love.

I celebrate my job at the phone company and the friendships that have formed through common bonds. When I was growing up, I wanted to be a veterinarian or an artist. The Designated Whipping Girl gig doesn't really fit into either aspiration. But through it, I have found a rewarding career where I feel like I make a difference (for the positive) in building stronger customer relationships. And that feels good. The desire to be a veterinarian dissipated 9.21.91 (ha! one of the few dates I remember. I have to think about my kids birthdays/years) when my Mom and I took our golden retriever in to the vet's office to be put down. I realized I could never do that for other people, no matter how much it would be for the good of everyone. Instead, I have three cats and a hound. For a time, we had ferrets. And that, is enough.

I am not where I thought I would be in life. I never thought I would be a mother. I wasn't ever truly certain I would find such a wonderful life partner. I didn't think I would hold a job in corporate America or be as successful at it as I have in attaining my position. I never imagined I would play with fire. That I would own a two-story home or drive a minivan. That I would worry as much as I do about my children. That I would stop reading/watching the news. That I would cry at the drop of the hat, whether it is watching a friend get married or thanking someone for serving our country. That I would send my designs to other continents or have people in India, Khazakistan, Australia, Poland, Germany, Korea, Finland, Algeria and so many other foreign countries reading my blog. (It's ok to leave a comment and say hi when you stop in. I would love to know your names!)

I wouldn't change any of it. I love where I am in life. There were experiences that I hated at the time, but now I wouldn't change those either. They made me who I am. They brought me to where I am. And that is what I am celebrating today.

I am at peace. And I am having fun. I wish the same for you.

Worry Stones

I made two worry stones last weekend, but neither turned out quite how I wanted it. Not as much of the tropical blue. I think they are both still good worry stones, just not what two of my customers had ordered. So they will be going into the shop shortly and up for grabs.

Here is the smooth side, which is still a bit wavy with just a tad of bumpiness.

And the opposite side with lots of bumps and ethereal creams, greens and blues inside the clear bumps. This is about an inch and a quarter in diameter.

Here is the larger worry stone. I totally love this smooth side. It has the most awesome blues dotted in and a great pearlescent shine depending on the angle.

Here is the bumpy side of the larger worry stone. The blues on this side are a very deep blue and then a light aqua surrounds the bumpths in the depths of this bead. This bead is an inch and a half long, an inch and a quarter wide and half an inch thick.

Either bead will keep nervous fingers busy, rubbing away your worries.

Artisan Clay Giveaway!

Artisan Clay is having an awesome giveaway/BOGO sale in her Etsy shop!

She is giving away one of these gorgeous copper luster beads with every item/listing purchased in her Etsy shop. How wonderful is that?!

Get shoppin!

Atmosphere

I made these beads with an ugly looking glass called Lichen. It is this vomitous brownish transparent color with a core of blue shooting through the middle. But then it turns into this lovely creamy color in the flame.

Only the slightest hints of the blue are left behind and tinges of amber. I encased these in swirls of clear for added depth and interest.

They remind me of cloudy skies. But not from the ground. From up in the air when flying through the clouds in an airplane.

Veteran's Day

Today is Veteran's Day in the states. A day we reflect on the sacrifices our service men and women have made for our country and their families. Both of my Grandpas were in the army and overseas in World War II. That experience placed hardships on their marriages and families. It changed their lives and outlook on life. They were both filled with their own quiet pride that they followed what was in their heart to serve and protect the freedoms of our country. That they did the right thing.

One of my cousins is married to an army man who was allowed to come home from Iraq just long enough to see his son born, but then missed the majority of the first twelve months of firsts. My best friend's Dad attained the rank of Colonel before retiring, but still acts as a consultant for the army on a part-time basis. Another friend is married to a man who had a tank roll over him in Iraq several years ago, but that hasn't diminished his spirit or desire to serve our country.

There are so many brave men and women who are compelled to join our armed forces. To fight for our freedoms when necessary and to protect our country and others. They do what I know I can not do. I could not make those sacrifices or spend so much time away from my family.

Saying "Thank you" to a soldier when I see one seems so inadequate. But it is about all I can say before my eyes well up in tears and a lump forms in my throat making it impossible for me to talk.

Big Rings

I pulled out my large mandrels the other day to make a coupla rings. I attended Amy Holms's class on making glass toggles in March when I was learning how to climb phone poles.

I had problems with making the toggle bars, but the rings are pretty cool. They would make for easier components for others to use either as part of the clasp or focals. I want to make more and may use them as part of a giveaway to see what others come up with in their own designs

Silver in the Fire

I had fun playing with silver this weekend. I haven't done this for months and had forgotten how therapeutic it is to burnish the sheets of silver onto the ivory and then stick the bead into the flame to watch the silver melt away.

This is the smaller focal bead.

After melting in the silver (it's a foil sheet, but don't let the word 'foil' fool you. it is 99.999% pure silver) over the ivory, I melted a bit of transparent pale aqua over parts of it before fully encasing in clear.

Here is the larger/taller focal.

I also put dots of clear on the ivory before melting in the silver, so patches of ivory would show through....

I really like these beads and the sun helps show them off wonderfully :) It was my last day of sun for awhile.

Hurricane Ida is set to hit Alabama and Georgia overnight, making for a rainy Tuesday and rainy/cloudy Wednesday. Glad I got in a little photoshoot :)