Something to Ponder

What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others - Pericles

!NEXT SHOP UPDATE!

more beads coming in November. and there will be eggs!

Saturday, January 30, 2010

Back to Blogging and the New Dog!

********AT THIS VERY MOMENT, DOZENS OF BEADS ARE EITHER IN MY KILN OR THE KITCHEN SINK WAITING TO BE CLEANED OF BEAD RELEASE! THERE WILL BE PICS FORTHCOMING THIS WEEK ~ THANK YOU********

This month disappeared on me. Todd was gone for a week in Orlando for a work conference. While he was gone, I got sick with a nasty stomach bug (boo! hiss!) that made me lose ten pounds over two days. It was an effective weight loss method (yay, because it has stayed off over the last two weeks!), but not really how I wanted to do it. Oh well, I'll take the jump start into being better about getting to the gym more often so I can fit into my clothes better. Remember those 200+ cookies I baked in December? They went to my hips. So, so wrong.

Work has been nuts...back to having a healthy sprinkling of late nights working outages. Just thankful it's not like this all the time. Todd was gone again last week for tennis sectionals (where the state championship winning teams play each other) in Mobile, Alabama. I brought Dylan home last Friday while Todd was gone.

Then the girl child got sick this week with a stomach bug that had her throwing up all night (my poor baby!) and us changing out her sheets repeatedly. So lots of stuff going on. Hoping February treats us better healthwise, workwise AND finding more time on the torch!

Meet Dylan. Doesn't he look happy? This is driving home for the first time with a pit stop at Petsmart to pick up a collar that fit him, as well as a name tag with my cell # on it.


I know I had shown you Chance before....we were contemplating naming him Samson or Wilson or a handful of other pretty cool names (thank you to all of you for weighing in with your favorite names!). But then Todd met Chance, who acted a complete spaz (who could blame the sweet boy? he had been penned up in a 4x10ft space for well over a week due to kennel cough and no exercise time). Todd teased that with Chance's jumping, he would knock our piano over.


So Dylan was brought out next and all this sweet boy wanted to do was to sit by our feet and be petted. Dylan didn't jump or dance. He just sat. Very patiently. Waiting to be petted and told how beautiful he was. Dylan wasn't a name we had contemplated, but all four of us liked the name chosen by the rescue and agreed to keep it. After living with us for a week, I think he knows his name now. :)

Dylan weighed in at 68 pounds, which is about 40 pounds underweight. We are feeding him four times a day, instead of two with extra helpings of puppy food thrown in to fatten him up. During his first week with us, he has gained six pounds. He has also started the beginner training class at Petsmart with me on Tuesday nights. And is learning that going up the stairs is not scary (many rescue dogs are scared of doorways and stairs).

Friday was day 8 with us and that was the first day he ventured upstairs on his own (as opposed to me carrying his stubborn/scared self up all the stairs to go to bed each night) and visited Todd over a dozen times throughout the day. He is learning to stay out of the kitchen when we are eating meals and that he must show his manners and sit first before his food bowl will be put down in front of him.

Dylan is a super sweet boy. He is quiet and unassuming; content to sleep most of the day in any cool spot he can find (in front of the fireplace in the family room or out on the back porch). He and Maggie get along well together. She is having fun joining our little 5 minute training sessions throughout the day and is learning with Dylan how to "Watch Me" as I hold a treat in front of my face. We are so glad we found Dylan and look forward to many wonderful years ahead of us with him in our family!

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

New Year's Giveaway - Take 2

Ok, Bianca had a week to claim her $50 gift certificate and she didn't respond to me. :( sniff.

But! That gives a new shot to my currently loyal 67 blog followers :)

abeadaday
Alison Kelley
Ames Mama
Artisan Clay
Beads On Fire
Becky, yep
BIANCA
BlueStoneOfOrcasIsland
Brenda Hayes
ChatElaine
Creative Treasures by Donna
Diana
Eileen
Emi_FTLOB
Evie's Tool Emporium
gaffergirls.com
GemmaBeads
gunilla.back
Heather
Higgins Design Studio
hint
How Charming by Michelle - Jewelry Design
Indian Creek Studios
Jan and Shane
Judy
kat
KimberlyRies
kristinann
Lauren
Leslie
Lisa Lutz
Lorelei
Lori
Lucid Moon Studio
lunedesigns
Luthvian
mandywillard
Marbella Jewelry Designs
mari nilda aparicio
Marsha Neal Studio
Mary Ann Carroll
Metallo Bianco Jewelry
nomadcraftsetc
PAM
pearlandpebble
Pink Quartz Minerals
PolymerClayTutor
PowersArtGlass
prettylittleshop
rmar261783
Rosanne
rosebud101
Sarah
sassyglassdesigns
Silver Parrot
SmuTopia Jewelry
Stacey Graham
Stefeny Stanyer
Stephanie
SummersStudio
susikdesigns
Tabitha W.
The Bead Stylist
The Beading Gem
Tosha.jewelry
Veda's Beads
wiredmetal

Number 55 is Silver Parrot! KJ, I think your bead porn stash is about to increase nicely in size. :)


On another note, this is the new boy we are adopting within the next week! Isn't he handsome? He's a two year old Great Pyrenees that I found through a rescue for these gentle giants.

Right now, he is getting over a case of kennel cough and is scheduled to get neutered on Thursday. I'll be bringing our Maggie dog up to the vet's office on Friday for a controlled introduction between the two dogs and hope to bring him home on Saturday. I am so excited!!!!

We are still throwing around names, but have narrowed down the possibilities to Beau, Jack(son), Isaac, Samson, Simon and Wilson.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

Look What Pearl and Pebble Did with My Lentils!

She turned them into these gorgeous earrings with bead caps and chips of amber and they're just gorgeous!Buy them here in her Etsy shop!

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

My Beads All Grown Up!

Check out these beautiful necklaces Gunilla made and she used some of my beads!

I think they turned out wonderfully!

And my beads got the added bonus of flying all the way to Finland to be made into these beauties :D

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

New Year's Giveaway ~ $50 Gift Certificate!

I wanted to hold a giveaway for my loyal followers, just for dropping in and seeing what is going on in my studio. No contest open to the masses. No hassle with leaving a comment. You were entered just for following.

Just to say Thank You for visiting and a Happy New Year to you.

The giveaway is for a $50 gift certificate with a coupla options. The winner needs to email me with her (yes, her because I know who the winner is) choice. The $50 gift certificate can be used on my beads or my jewelry. If you want beads that you don't see in my shop (a set you found looking through my sold items, perhaps?) then just let me know and I'll make up some new ones just for you! Or if you like a previous piece of jewelry, I may be able to create a new, but similar piece. You can look through my portfolio of jewelry work at www.kelleysbeads.com because there are years of pieces there that are not captured in my Etsy shop.



I couldn't find any easy way in blogger to show all of my blog followers in a sequential order from when each person started following. Nor could I find any gadgets through google that would show this. So, I went through all of my followers and sorted them alphabetically. If you have a blog, then it should be linked by clicking on your name.

Look at all of my 66 wonderful blog followers!

abeadaday
Alison Kelley
Ames Mama
Artisan Clay
Beads On Fire
Becky, yep
BIANCA
BlueStoneOfOrcasIsland
Brenda Hayes
ChatElaine
Creative Treasures by Donna
Diana
Eileen
Emi_FTLOB
Evie's Tool Emporium
gaffergirls.com
GemmaBeads
gunilla.back
Heather
Higgins Design Studio
hint
How Charming by Michelle - Jewelry Design
Indian Creek Studios
Jan and Shane
Judy
kat
KimberlyRies
kristinann
Lauren
Leslie
Lisa Lutz
Lorelei
Lori
Lucid Moon Studio
lunedesigns
Luthvian
mandywillard
Marbella Jewelry Designs
Marsha Neal Studio
Mary Ann Carroll
Metallo Bianco Jewelry
nomadcraftsetc
PAM
pearlandpebble
Pink Quartz Minerals
PolymerClayTutor
PowersArtGlass
prettylittleshop
rmar261783
Rosanne
rosebud101
Sarah
sassyglassdesigns
Silver Parrot
SmuTopia Jewelry
Stacey Graham
Stefeny Stanyer
Stephanie
SummersStudio
susikdesigns
Tabitha W.
The Bead Stylist
The Beading Gem
Tosha.jewelry
Veda's Beads
wiredmetal

I've got 66 public followers (apologies to you anonymous ones!) and then entered that into random.org.



BIANCA is the lucky winner! Please contact me at kelleysbeadstudio@mac.com if you have a custom request for beads or jewelry. Otherwise just check out through my Etsy shop as normal and I will send you an adjusted invoice if you happen to spend more than $50. Apologies, but the difference will not be refunded in cash...we can save that amount to be applied at a later date, if you wish.

Monday, January 4, 2010

Happy 2010

I can't believe I have been blogging for over a year now. Time just continues to speed up on me and disappears in a blink. Apparently, so have the last 2-3 weeks, as is seen by my lack of blogging over the holidays.

While I have neglected my blogging duties, I have been busy in other avenues. My sister-in-law moved out, after living with us for close to a year and a half. I have spent time reclaiming our guest room and refilling that closet with all of the stuff I pulled out to make room and eventually just sat in lonely piles over the past year. It feels good to have carpet space back in my closet and in our bedroom. Less clutter around the house is helping me think clearer, too. Along with this room, I have also spent mucho time cleaning out my office/studio, my bedroom closet and the one and a half problem counters in the kitchen that seem to always be heaped with mail, AA batteries, Christmas light bulb replacements and kids' art projects.

I washed and put away Keeters's food bowl and haven't gotten over how empty and lonely the top of the dryer looks now (all our cats' food bowls are in the laundry room, either on top of the counter or the washer and dryer). I still see Keeters out of the corner of my eye in the kitchen, like he's on top of the counter being naughty (the last 6 months, he was so naughty and was constantly being shooed off the kitchen counters where he knew full-well he was not allowed) or near the pantry door, waiting for me to get a scoop of dog food out so that he could snatch a piece.

I cleaned out the kids' toy cabinets and dresser drawers and now have a ton of stuff to take to Goodwill once they start accepting toys again. The kids got mostly clothes for Christmas, which was much appreciated over a boatload of toys that will not be played with after the initial novelty wears off.

I have learned how to shoot in manual mode on my camera and now feel comfortable adjusting the f-stop, ISO, shutter speed and white balance. I also have deleted hundreds of pics as I work my way through the various adjustments in each of those settings, but it has been instrumental in learning hands-on how each little dial notch makes a difference. My next step is to learn how to adjust the light metering and focus points. As well as the white balance lens cap that my honeys gave me for Christmas. I don't know how to set the custom settings on WB after using the lens cap.

I didn't make any New Year's resolutions, but have renewed old goals. Exercise more. Take time to breathe. Just Say No to cookie dough (because that, along with the 250+ cookies I made this Christmas, I'm not digging the eight extra pounds I put on. neither are my jeans). Find more patience and exercise it. Lose the sarcasm. Be kinder. Up my random acts of kindness. Find more time on the torch. Find more time for me. For my blogs. For making jewelry. For my friends. For my kids. For my husband.

I had a fantastic 2009. I'm really looking forward to 2010!

To you and yours, I wish you all the best! Health. Contentment. Peace of mind. Love. Joy.

Come back tomorrow, I'll be posting a new giveaway! No entry necessary. You just have to be one of my loyal blog followers :)

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

New Beads Coming Soon

The fruits of last weekend. The top, middle and bottom mandrels are all using the glass from Val Cox's sampler pack that arrived via Santa's UPS truck. :) I just love the teal and blue in those polka dotted beads on the bottom!

The ivory and chocolate swirl beads above the teal polks were made for Pearl & Pebble who won my last naming contest. She received one of those beads in the giveaway and loved em so much she needed a dozen more! Those beads are now on their way to the tundra for her :)

Close-up pics coming this week!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Goings On in the Wenzel Household

It has been a long coupla weeks. My Chloe Bean has had a 102+ fever every day since Friday, December 11th. Do you know how long that is for a five year old? To be stuck at home with Mom & Dad while they work and not have any friends to play with? Eons. It is truly eons for the girl child.

Tonight we made our third trip to the doctor's office and found out whatever she had has now turned into walking pneumonia. We started five new meds to combat the pneumonia, infection, rash/hives and itchiness. Thankful we now have a name for this pain and a treatment to get her back in school by the start of next week (crossing fingers for this Friday, but we'll see). Even with this high fever, she has kept a great disposition and has felt pretty good. She has also become quite proficient using the ear thermometer.


The other main event (which is more draining) is that our 18 year old boy cat got extremely sick last night. He has had hyper-thyroidism for the past three years, which has slowly taken his 22 lb frame down to 6 lbs. Last night, he threw up blood all over our living room. It looked absolutely horrible and I could only imagine how awful he felt. We called a neighbor to come stay in the house while we drove Keeters to the emergency vet clinic. We knew before we left that we would likely be putting him down.

When we arrived, all of his vitals were much lower than normal. The veterinarian ran through at least a dozen tests they could run through, but ended with she didn't think any of the tests would help him. She agreed that euthanization was the best decision. The most humane. But oh, how hard that is. The weight of that decision, that responsibility, is just so staggering. It never ceases to churn my stomach with pets, but I know we made the right decision last night.


I am taking the rest of this week off from work to regroup. To spend time with my girl child as she recovers. To wrap Christmas presents. To bury my Keeters boy once this rain stops. To re-organize the house and clean in prep for the upcoming company we will have beginning next week. To make new jewelry. To spend time on the torch when the girl child is napping (if I don't nap with her!). To bake cookies. To ship presents. To write our yearly letter and get it sent out on time, rather than sending our Christmas cards in July (like I might have done this past year). And to clean out the 40+ beads I made this weekend and get them photographed so I can blog about them. :)

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Go Enter This Contest!

Win a $25 Artbeads.com gift certificate here! Lorelei also posts a facebook link to another chance to win a $100 gift certificate to Artbeads.com. How cool is that?!

Monday, December 14, 2009

New Beads Coming Soon

For the first time in almost a month, I got to spend hours n hours on the torch this weekend. Woot! I had several orders to fill. I ended up making over 40 beads!!!

Unfortunately, these are the only beads that I have gotten cleaned out and photographed. I like them alot and originally had plans to make similar ones in a deep red. I like how the fine silver melts into little dots as more heat is applied to it over the glass. And on red, you can see a trail of where the silver touched, even after it draws up into these little balls.

But then this weekend came and Santa delivered a five pound package with the Val Cox sampler pack inside. A BIG THANK YOU to Lorelei for her big heart, belated bday and early Christmas wishes for playing Santa after seeing my wish list. She totally rocks!!! It was a spendy pack of glass and I would never have expected one of my friends to go all out. Seriously, that would have been alot for family. I was very touched.

Anyone want to guess what might be headed her way in another week for under the tree? :)

Saturday, December 12, 2009

The Loot

Just thought folks would like to see what Pearl & Pebble won from my Need a Name 2 contest. :) A dozen beads that would sell for $35 in my Etsy shop.

Friday, December 11, 2009

New Jewelry

I made these red and green beads quite awhile ago (I even have another set, just a little bit redder for sale here), but didn't know what to do with them until recently. I had bought some really cool beads in Philadelphia at the 2009 BeadFest and realized the Apatite and quartz beads would be a perfect match. The Apatite ovals are more blue, but the green on my beads has quite a blue tint. The earrings are waiting here for you. :)


Here is the bracelet, using the small coral quartz beads and medium size ruby red quartz. I love how they sparkle!

In the necklace, I used long sterling silver tubes to separate the beads. I think it is pretty eye-catching, but what do I know? I'm only a masked lampworker carrying a lighter around in my pocket for the next unknown bead emergency ;)

These black and white ones were a special request I received a couple of months ago from Perrii to make in time for Christmas. I made alot of different black and white beads, but decided these were my favorite. There is a small core of white under several layers of clear. In some of the beads, the clear tugged on the white, forming a little outward spiral of white which looks pretty cool. Then I used wisps of black over the top. With all of the clear glass in between, the black wisps create little shadows on the white underneath.

In the necklace, I used ivoryite barrels and onyx coins and discs in between my lampwork beads. The onyx and ivoryite were mined in Southern Arizona by a man who runs Sweetwater Gems. I met him at the bead shows in Tucscon in 2007 and have been hoarding, I mean protecting these beads ever since.

And that's another Marsha Neal Studio ceramic pendant dangling front & center. I had been looking for stone pendants, but didn't have any luck. I asked Marsha if she could make any black & white pendants for me and she sent me a TON to choose from. I took pics of them all with the necklace partially strung to show Perrii, who agreed with me that this was the best one.
The necklace and earrings are now on their way across the globe to land under a Christmas tree for one lucky lady. I hope she loves them!

Thursday, December 10, 2009

Another Winner!

Sadly, my first winner did not leave an email for me and there is no contact info or place for comments on her blog. So after a week of waiting to hear from her, I am choosing a new winner through Random.org.


Out of the 29 comments left on I Need A Name: Part 2, 28 of those counted and Random.org chose #1.

Congratulations to Pearl & Pebble as the new winner of a dozen free beads! Check out P&P's blog and Etsy shop. Raspberry Chiffon is the new name for my purple beads, going into my Etsy shop this week!


Please send me your address so I can get some cools beads shipped out to you ASAP! :D

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

My Wish List

I want one of these. Not the cocoon. Just the baby. Although, I do really like the cocoon. I want for the baby to stay this small and quiet and cute. Perhaps I should just make the picture my wallpaper. For more wonderful baby pics (to get your baby fix!) and adorable photography props, check out Jolie Anne's shop!

I think these white balance lens caps look pretty cool. Would be nice to never, ever have to fool with white balance issues ever, ever again. Ever. Santa, a 52mm would fit all of my lenses. :)

Water for Christmas. Just twenty bucks will provide a supply of fresh, clean water to one person for twenty years. I know there are tons of different charities and so many here in the states for excellent causes. But the stat that 4500 children die every. single. day. because there is not a clean water supply squeezes my heart. And it makes me so very thankful that I am right where I am. That I have the family I do. That I have my health. That I don't have to worry about the water my children drink will cause such horrible digestive problems that they won't live another day. It also makes me feel good to know I am making a difference in someone else's life, whether it is giving to Water for Christmas, Goodwill, the Salvation Army, United Way, Susan G Komen, local food banks or so many others. I don't know that I will ever feel like I am doing enough, but I will continue trying and giving.

Val Cox's sampler pack of glass. These colors are stunning. I want them. Not that I have any place to put them. My glass cabinet is completely full. But I would find room. Even if it means taking over the kids' game closet and giving away Candy Land. I would make room. :D

This is way too spendy for Santa, so I am slowly stocking away my dimes & quarters. But it's still on my wish list of what I am saving for down the road. Way down the road.

Five pounds of this might hold me through spring. My supply of clear has dwindled down quite low.

But most importantly, the things I am wishing for aren't really things. Not anything that can be bought in a store.

I'm wishing for health.

For peace (please Santa, days without any fuss or whine would be so totally awesome!) and contentment.

For patience.

For the wisdom of knowing when to keep my mouth shut.

For the inner-knowing of how to raise my children into thoughtful and caring individuals who give back to their community.

Who don't question their self-worth, for any reason.

Who find a purpose for their life doing what they love and being fulfilled with what they do.


What is on your Wish List?

Monday, December 7, 2009

Where I've Been

After we returned from our cruise, I was in mad-dash mode to get more jewelry made for the craft fair the very next Saturday. Then continued on in that same mode to finish several pieces of jewelry wanted in time for Christmas. Not that this is a valid excuse for not blogging, but I'm going to use it. :D

Below is a floating necklace I made, as well as a matching pair of earrings. A friend saw the beads in my Etsy shop and emailed me "Make my wife some pretties!" And so, this is what came out. I first had to make more of the same beads, since I had only 7 in my shop.


I stared at my boxes & boxes of beads for spacers, but nothing looked quite right. In the end, I decided just swarovski crystals on either side to make into a floating necklace would be the best. Nothing to detract from these beauties.

I haven't been on the torch in three weeks because we've just been into so many other things. We had grandparents visiting (which was absolutely awesome and ended too soon!) and birthdays to celebrate and laundry to do. Oh, the laundry! But I carry my lighter with me in my jeans pocket. It makes me feel just a little bit closer to my torch. Like I could fire it up at any second, if I want to. :)

My Mom's birthday was in the middle of all this, but work was out of control that night as I worked two separate outages until 7pm. Mom had to take over making her own birthday dinner. And her cake. Todd's sister helped with getting it stacked and frosted. Thank goodness for family members willing to help out and takeover when I couldn't be in there. I finished with work just as dinner was being cleared from the table. Just in time for cake!


Look at my Owensk. He just loves to help and jumped right in to secure the clasp on Mom's new necklace that I made for her. :)

Hoping to get back on the torch this week to make new beads. I still have more jewelry orders to fill. And am slowly learning different tricks in Photoshop that are fun (for my family pics, since I don't do anything other than crop my bead/jewelry pics so colors stay true).

I can't believe Christmas is 18 days away. My shopping is pretty much done, but I'm still working on photographs/calendars for all the grandparents. So much to do. So little time.

Are you ready for this Christmas?

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

And the Winner Is....

Out of the 29 comments left on I Need A Name: Part 2, 28 of those counted and Random.org chose #23.

Congratulations to S&J of That's What Love Is All About is the winner of a dozen free beads!


Please send me your address so I can get some cools beads shipped out to you ASAP! :D

*****12.3.09****************S&R, I can't send you your free beads if you don't email your address :) Your email is not on your blog, nor does it allow comments :(

Please contact me by December 7th, or I will go back to random.org to select a new winner. Thanks!***********************

Monday, November 30, 2009

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!

Friday, November 27, 2009

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.

Thursday, November 26, 2009

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




Wednesday, November 25, 2009

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.

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