Drip, Drop, Plop

This week went by (as most of them do) Way Too Fast! We took the kidlets to see Bolt. I have to admit that the ad's did not have me jumping up and down to see it. But I was very surprised. It was very cute and has a great message. It had great laughs and a few teary moments. Loved it. As we were watching the end credits, which are more and more becoming part of the movie which I love, who's name should appear but John Lasseter! We should have known! Is there anything that guy can't do well? And if you happen to catch the trailer for UP that looks super cute too! We couldn't be bigger Pixar fans.

So here are a few things from the last firing...
Drops...


I had found this wooden bead necklace a while back for $2 bucks at a thrift store. Stay tuned to see it in a new incarnation!

I Blinked!

And just like that, Friday went by! I wanted to post a picture Clover with the winners name....

From random.org...

Here are your random numbers:

2
Timestamp: 2008-11-22 18:40:54 UTC

Congrats to Round Rabbit! Just send your address to gaea at ojai dot net and I'll send you a squirrelish goody!

Art/Jewelry Exchange.... Just a little more time...

It is almost time for the long awaited reveal (much too long in my opinion!) It has traveled far and is now home. I will put the finishing touches on it and post some pictures soon. The above image shows how the last artist, Stef made her additions (Thank you Stef!) You can check out her blog post here! It all started last June on this post Just thought you might wonder what the heck had happened to it... I think it is looking grand!

All wound up!

I've been a wire wrapping fiend! No blister nor finger cuts will keep me from tirelessly wrapping wire. I'm on a roll! (pun intended) I'm nearly finished with my monthly firing and can not wait to see the new pendants and beads that will be in that firing. Yup. must wrap wire. I'm not doing very well in the listening to that little voice that says work first, fun later.....

Strange. I don't remember moving to India?

Occasionally I do a google image search just to see where my images pop up. Sometimes they pop up in the strangest places...

I don't remember moving to India or having my items bought by this company...

http://pinnacleexport.com/neckleses1.htm

and yet here are images that I took of my jewelry and beads on this website. I emailed them to remove them. They have not responded. It is a long distance call, but I'm considering making it. I would love to hear what they have to say. It just goes to show you have no idea what happens when you "put it out there".

Squeak, Squeakity Squeekin...

Did you know we speak squirrel? It may say November on the calendar, but it feels like freakin' summer! It was in the mid 90's this week and dry as all get up. Even with this weather I am in a fall state of mind. And for some reason squirrels say "Fall" to me. With all of their gathering of acorns and adorableness it is hard not to be in love with them. From our kitchen window we watch them chatter and scurry, chasing each other sometimes four or five at a time, sometimes startling us when they run across the roof. My son decided this squirrel's name should be "Clover". So cute and fitting. We have a friend Clover so it is a good fit. Although "she" is starting to look more like a "he" to me, with the hat and flower and all. This will need some consideration.





I think it is fun to see the drawing come to life. She looks a bit different but not too much. I am racing to get her done so I can put her and some of her squirrelish accessories in this months firing...

What reminds you of Fall? Leave a comment by next Friday and I may have a squirrel friend to send you!

This Mama Could Rule The World!

There are many thing we can not control in this world. Kids are one of them. It's not so much that I want to "control" my kids, as much as I would like to help them make good choices. Vegetables. Let's just say as an infant they were a big part of my sons diet. Organic vegetables. Nothing from a can. Nothing from a jar. Hand milled fresh and delicious. I'm not sure when or how it happened but they disappeared from his diet. Fruits? No problem. But not a vegetable for him in literally years. I've taken to giving him fruit and vegetable blend juices. Sneaking them into my pumpkin, zuccini, carrot "cake". So it isn't like he never has them, but more like, he doesn't know he's having them. The vomiting that ensues after eating just one raw tiny baby carrot is just too much. I've tried to let him pick his veggies. Not even sweet juicy corn can tempt him. Nope. Vomit. As the years have passed I've told my self, "Just be patient. He will grow out of it. He is healthy." Well today was the day. I said "Eat these six cooked carrots and you don't have to go to school tomorrow!" His reaction was excited and quick! "Really Mom! No school?" And guess what? He did it. No fuss, no muss. Veggies eaten. Please don't tell him tomorrow is Sunday.

Sweet Hearts...

This is an ornament that has been a back burner project for FOREVER. Geeez! Our dear friend Dean had thrown the idea of a hippo sculpture at me a while back. Finding it difficult to think about an actual "sculpture" was a challenge and I couldn't pull myself out of my jewelry freak mode to actually sculpt a free standing figure, which I am sure was what he was hoping for. This is how the "Bella" pendant came to be. Any chance I get to create something girly I jump on. His cutie-pa-tootie is getting to be such a big girl and I love things for the little ones so of course there had to be a wall hanging for her. This is the Sweet Heart ornament and it literally has her name on it!



It is now hanging above her bed in their new house. Dean tells me that many of the ornaments from years past are hanging in their house, which I find sweet and comforting. We have many an image and musical reminders of them as well. It is nice to know we are thinking about each other even if we don't get to visit nearly as often as life would let us. Friends. What would we do with out our sweetest hearts around us...

The BIG 200! Metal ROCKS!

It has been 200 posts! I can't believe how time flies! When I wrote my first post a year ago in June, I did not realize what fun I would be having. It is nice to look back and see what was going on over a year ago. How big my kids have gotten. How much work was done. All the lovely comments friends left. Thanks! This month is all about thanks. I sent some charms off to Lynn Davis for a charm swap she is hosting. Incredibly, she made some beautiful bags for the charms to be sent out in. Check them out! I will post a picture when they arrive! I'm sure I'll be doing a little happy dance when they do! Also, I got some very special somethings in the mail yesterday! Check this out...





Could their bohemian heart pendant and packaging be any cooler? Check out the Zoa Art blog. Great artists!



And then these arrived too!!! YIPPIE!!!! So much metal. So little time! Aren't these rings awesome? Thank you Lynn!

"Don't go into the light!!!"

Or my other funny title "WELCOME TO THE THUNDERDOME!!!! Three designers enter! One designer leaves!" Ok! Enough with the humor! There is jewelry to be designed!

Heather of Humblebeads sent some of her amazing beads out to me and to jewelry designer Lorelei with a design challenge, and I sent some pendants out to Heather and Lorelei. The rules were simple, create jewelry using at least one of each artist beads in each design. I myself noticed right off that I should have sent out a few smaller round beads, as the pendants were too big to make earrings. This mistake limited my designs to necklaces or bracelets. Doh! I had some really fun ideas for Heather beads and was really drawn to her color palate of warm rich reds, golds and creamy whites. Her beads were inspired by this painting by John Singer Sargent...



Oddly, I'd created the Lucky Lantern pendants a wile back but had never seen the painting. After seeing it I applied glaze in a way that would make the lantern pendants look like they were glowing with light. I would have loved to add a bit of black to the top and bottom of the pendant too but worried that it would bleed into the "paper" area. But the black would have made them even more like the painting.

Heather's oval floral bead has a beautiful blue color and I'd purchased some beautiful Iolite round beads last August that matched perfectly! I wasn't sure how I was going to use them when I purchased them... Serendipity!

Check out Heather's Humblebeads Blog and Lorelei's Blog to see what they did in this challenge!

The beads we all received...



The jewelry I made...

Woven Treasures

A while back I'd left a comment on the Cicada Daydream blog and won some of her amazing fabrics! The two selections of fabrics, "Wild Mushrooms" and "Pussywillow" are both from her Earthly Delights Collection of fabrics which is so sweet and adorable! I loathe the thought of actually cutting into this amazing fabric! What is a fabric junkie such as myself to do? I've been collect pebble cloth from the 40's and 50's and LOVE the Alexander Henry line of fabrics. How cute do my buttons look with these fabrics?!?

Happy Election Day! GET OUT AND VOTE!!!

P.S. It's almost over Joelle! XOXO

Rain, rain, come again....

I really do LOVE the rain (even if my alter ego "Zombie Mama" doesn't!) and it did a fair bit of raining over the weekend. It was great because it actually felt like FALL (Yippie a sweater!) and we desperately need the rain too! The smell was unreal! That sweet, green, rain smell! BEAUTIFUL!



I had quite a few buttons come out of the last firing. I just love their simple shape and colors. Being a fabric junkie, I have a rather large collection of mostly old pebble cloth from the 40's. I need to make something that involves the buttons and fabric, Hmmm....

Ok! I'm off to play with beads and organize my next firing list!
Happy almost election day all!