Silver Lotus Studio Blog

Nasty Nate

2006-10-31T21:27:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!!

Today's pic is not at all Halloween related. It is a picture of my new fishy, Nasty Nate. Isn't he beautiful. All of his fins have that crimson in them that you see, but you know how betas are. They seem to change color depending on which way they turn. Right now he is frowning at me and he looks entirely red. Evil little thing. He is a replacement for Fish Stick, who sadly passed away as a result of my feast or famine tank cleaning style. The water was green, and then I think I changed too much of it. I was pretty sad. It took me over a week to get a new one. I think i have the hang of it now though- he seems pretty happy to be out of that awful Wal-Mart cup they live in. And I have some neutralizer stuff for the water, so that it takes all the minerals out and helps him keep a slime coating. I think that we are going to be very happy together.

Anyway, I guess tomorrow I will update you on last night's epic cleaning session in the den. I tried last night but Blogger wouldn't load the pics. Wait till you see the mess, and then the cleanliness! The order! And all the SPACE!! So much flat surface to work upon. Everything neatly put away in it's appropriate place. Yay!

So, now that I know where everything is, and I have room to work on it, look for lots of new things. I think that my muse just ran away because she couldn't handle the mess anymore. I hope that she comes back really soon. I am ready to get to work!

If at first you don't succeed....

2006-10-29T17:44:00.000-05:00

then try, try again. At least that is what they say. I don't know who they are, but i guess I will still take their advice.

Anyway, just in time for Halloween, here is something sure to scare you: my first resin beads! Aren't they dreadful?

So here's what happened to make these the eyesore that you see before you: I didn't have enough hardener in the mixture of clear. I was also too impatient. I didn't seal the sheet music very well, and so that is why it has some spots where it is soaked through. Next error was that i didn't let the clear set long enough before adding the paper. The same goes for adding the black. Whoops! Oh well, it is still not as bad as making a mistake with silver. I am gonna try again this week, and play with pigments.

Speaking of mistakes with silver, and try, trying again, I have a first and second try to show you. This is my first time weaving silver, and my second try. Can you guess which one is which? I hope so!

Anyway, I did another big long piece, about 8 inches, and the last four are really good looking, like the second piece. Nice and even. So I think that I have sufficiently gotten the hang of the weave to work on a finished piece. Wouldn't that be a novel idea? something I haven't done in ages!

Anyway that is just about all the news that is fit to print. I will hopefully check back tomorrow with before and after pics of the cleaning project that is really taking place right this minute.

Hope your weekend was great!

Marsha's Book

2006-10-17T20:57:00.000-04:00

Well, here is my first installment of altered book pics! And I am actually posting pics this time, not just promising to post them. Anyway, here's the first:

And here's the second. This one is my favorite:

This one has a Sunflower base, with crackle medium applied next. On top of that is Metallic Copper acrylic. I found out that you don't get the crackle effect with acrylic on paper (yet...) but you do still get a really neat texture. Then there's some images from magazines, a line of sheet music, gold sequins, and wise words about the nature of money. Oh, and the lady is crying a blue rhinestone tear. Pretty snazzy huh?

So, Marsha's book has now hit the road and is on its way to Illinois. I am ready for my next book!

Well, for me it is now back to the task of making my house look clean and tidy for when my mom comes to town. Did I tell you that I am having my wisdom teeth taken out this Friday? Yup, and my wonderful mommy is coming to take care of me. It is nice when you don't feel well to have a mom around. :D However, my house currently looks like a craft store has vomited all over it. there are books, scraps of paper, silver wire, pliers, paintbrushes, various forms of paste and glue, and every other thing that you can imagine strewn all over the living room and den. I have to get to work. I have to not only contain the mess, but find real places for everything so that mom a) won't nag me about it b) touch things and try to mess with them. Gotta get to work!

More tomorrow. Maybe I will even show you pics of those awful resin beads that I made. You are up for a laugh, right?

EEEEEEK!

2006-10-11T09:05:00.000-04:00

Oh my god, look at this spider that made her web on my porch!!! Isn't she horrifying? I didn't really zoom in all that much on her. She is just that alarmingly large:

Aren't you glad that this is the first pic that I show you in months? I bet so! Anyway, I have gotten rid of her. I didn't kill her, but I sent her packing. Let's just put it that way.

Well I have played around with some jewelry stuff over the past few days, but not a whole whole lot. I hope to get some more done tonight. I have had an idea for earrings rolling around in my head for weeks now, and I have just not had the motivation to sit down and give them a go. Perhaps I will do that this evening. I guess I should since this is the deadline for this week's FSOJ!

oooh, I just checked the good old email, and it seems that there is some stuff showing up here for my book altering. That is good- I was worried that it would take too long and I would hold everyone else up. Maybe I will be finishing the other pages that I want to do in the book that I have now, and those will be some fun pics to show you this weekend.

I can't believe that I forgot to mention this: two more days till Widespread Panic in Charleston! Yay, right here in my very own hometown. They come every fall. It is always nice to see them and be able to go home and get in my own bed, and not have to travel super far either. (the coliseum is about 15 minutes from my house). Good times.

Recent news v2.0

2006-10-08T11:17:00.000-04:00

Okay so I take responsibility for not updating much lately, but now it seems that the stars (or Blogger, or both) are aligning against me! the last two posts, which were highly informative, are not here! Ugh. So let's try again with the high and low points.

Since deciding to take a breather from selling, and relaxing my expectations and refocusing, I have had so much fun. Lots of ideas, and lots of branching out and starting new things. One thing that I am having a lot of fun with is something totally new for me: altered books. Google them; you will see amazing examples on the net. Anyway, I joined an altered book group that was started on one of the forums that I frequent. I am currently working on the first book that I have received, and I gotta say that I am having a blast with it. My book is in Ohio right now, and I don't think that I will see it again for about 5 months. I can't wait to get it back! So I will post pics of the pages, but not tell you who they are for, in case those people don't want to know.

I have started over again on the FSOJ. It is already a new season, and I have been making stuff, but I have already fallen behind on posting. Ugh. Sigh. Shame on me. So, I am going to get back on track with posting and writing it up here. Lots of new pics to come, I promise!

Here's another high point of the last few weeks: my new neice! Caroline Arrington Henley was born 12 days ago! She is just wonderful, and I really like having her around. She is a big snuggler, and cuter than anything. I need to post pics of her too don't I?

Here's a low point of the past two weeks: while I was waiting at the hospital for Caroline to be born, I was also working on a horrifically abscessed tooth that ended up having to be pulled. Not fun. Not fun at all. Anyway, the pain pills kept me pretty foggy for the better part of that week, and Caroline kept me busy otherwise, so not a lot happened last week. I guess it was week before last at this point!

Oh and yesterday my car pooped out on me. Something with the clutch. I have been on my hands and knees (figuratively) begging and praying that it is not the transmission. Please, please, don't let it be the transmission. Please.

So with no car, I am stuck here for the day. That means that I have no excuse but to clean the house, do the laundry that I need to do, and get back to work on fun stuff.

I will check in tomorrow with pics hopefully!

Procrastinating

2006-09-19T10:46:00.000-04:00

Two updates in a row! What will she think of next?

I am really just updating my blog in an effort to not have to mess with the pile of crap on my desk for even just a few more minutes. Pretty sad, huh?

Well, the purpose of this update is to kinda counteract the tone of the last update. I re-read it and thought that it sounded pretty melancholy. I hope that it didn't come across that way to you, faithful reader, because I am really excited about the change in direction! I think that sometimes admitting things to yourself that you don't really want to hear can be pretty liberating. I know that I feel like I have a big wieght taken off of my shoulders. I wonder what it is about Americans as a culture that makes us feel like we have to be superhuman. I was starting to feel that I failed somehow by not making every spare minute count toward some sort of progress. Progress to what end? I dunno.

So far so good on the new jewelry plan. I am finally doing what I said that I would a million years ago, and I am devoting two hours a day to my jewelry. I really like it! I have only done it for a few days, but I can already tell that the definite time period makes me lots more productive. At what, you ask?

Well, I am working on something that is rather ambitious for your usual Silver Lotus piece. I told ya I was gonna push myself! It is lots of chain, lots of headpins, and lots of really pretty watermelon tourmaline. The bracelet is beyond labor intensive! After about four hours so far, I am almost done with the bracelet, and I made 50 headpins last night to get started on the tourmaline parts. I have a feeling that within the next day or so it may be put aside for a little while so that I can do something else. Mostly because the design requires LOTS of repetition and tedious work. Maybe since I haven't posted photos in so long I will share this as a work in progress. I love looking at works in progress, and seeing how much they change from one phase to another.

Well, that is all I got for ya today. Not very exciting, I know.

Crossroads

2006-09-17T20:44:00.000-04:00

Hmmmm.

Ever feel like you are being pulled in two very different directions? That is the way that I have come to feel lately with regard to a lot of different things, most notably my jewelry, and the vision that I have for my business. I think that the pull of both things has been equal up till now, and that is what had me stuck in one spot for the last month or so.

I have been torn between what my jewelry is and what I want it to me. I think that in the past few months I have played with a lot of different styles in an effort to find my own style. Ultimaely what I have come up with thus far is a parody of other people's styles. I no longer want that for myself. I want very much for people to see my work, and say, "That is a piece from the Silver Lotus Studio." I don't think that they can quite yet. and the places that I want to take my jewelry are a bit scary to me. they are scary because they are new to me, and require me to ask a lot more of myself. But, I think that after a lot of thought, I am up to the challenge.

So, here's what I am going to do: I am going to take down my website for a bit, and re-work some things. I'm going to narrow my focus to things that I think will help me set myself apart from a lot of what you see out there today. Mostly, I want to be able to get behind my work again.

I also would like to push myself artisically without forcing the business. It was the hardest thing to realize, but I am just not in a place where I can devote myself to growing a business. I want to grow *me* as an artist before I can put myself out there to sell. I think that will put the fun back into it again. I was really sad there for a bit thinking that jewelry was no longer fun. I just want it to be fun again. So, watch for new things, totally unlike what you have seen from me before.

Should be exciting....

Oh man, a MONTH!!

2006-09-12T08:52:00.000-04:00

Wow, hard to believe that it has been just a hair over a month since the last time that I updated this damn thing! I am sorry about that, but things just kinda ground to a halt around here. I was kinda down and out during the month of August, and became (as my friend Marsha calls it) creatively constipated. Ack! I just couldn't get any motivation to mess with much of anything. That, in turn, stressed me out. Which made me want to make stuff even less! It just goes on and on from there. But, you will be glad to know that I am getting back to work, I have made some new stuff and have a long list of more new things to come. So here's a rundown of what I have been up to:

FSOJ: sigh. I have fallen woefully behind on this, and I am trying not to let myself feel too bad over it. It happens, ya know? So I am just going to have to dig in and get a month's worth of entries done here soon. Shouldn't be too hard, because of what I have been up to-

New things: Once again, I am all over the board. Always trying new things. It is fun, but I get annoyed with myself because that makes me a jack of all trades (or jill, if you will) and master of none. Kinda annoying. But, the good thing is that the more that I try, the more that I can dig around to find my own style. So, the new things that I have been up to are: lots more maille, and I have been reaming the hell out of tons of beads! remember how I said that I wanted to do that? Not being restricted by the size of the holes of the beads that I want to use is very freeing. I like that I can work around limitations like that. Also, resin! I just made my first set of resin beads last night! I don't normally like to share awful things, since this blog is attached to my website, but ya gotta see them- they're horrible! I think that I had a cute concept going, but I guess that you gotta start somewhere. Resin will be good for me in that casting is an exercise is patience- you can't hurry and you just have to wait for things or else you'll ruin them. I am not patient at all, so this will be interesting. Wire weaving- I have been secretly reading over a new book that I got every night, and meaning to sit down and get to work on trying some. I love the look of woven wire, and I thin that it will be a fun alternative to coiling, which I have had about enough of for right now. So that is where I am with that. Oh and filigree: that is next on the list!

Personal stuff: Some of it is, well, personal. So butt out, LOL! Just kidding. Today I have my exam for the property manager's license, so I am about to start kick ass cramming for the next three hours. That just shows how much I don't want to study- I'm actually updating the blog! But, it will be nice to have this out of my way, and off my back after today.

Business stuff: I have some things that I have been working on, let's just say that for now. I am kind of filling orders as they come, and not really aggressively marketing anything right now. I have so much that I am just now getting into, that I feel like I have set myself back into newbie status, and just need to take a while to feel out the new style of stuff. Lame, huh?

Well, that's if for now! New pieces to come soon, I promise. I may even update the website!

Break me from these chains, Lord!

2006-08-11T21:17:00.000-04:00

Do you ever feel like a prisoner?

I am feeling very imprisoned today. It has been so hot here that all I can do is lay around. Awful! I am ready for the cooler weather. And, there is this spider that is holding Charlie and I hostage in our house. There is a big brown spider that has taken up residence on my porch. I mean that mother is HUGE! I took a broom the other night and swatted it as hard as i could, hoping that it would fall to its death. Nope! it climbed back up its evil little web, with its evil little legs and I hate it. Charlie is mad because he wants to go outside and I am not letting him. there is no way that I am chancing the spider biting him and him getting sick. Emergency vets cost a fortune!

It also occurred to me today that I will not be able to cut my hours back at work like I had hoped. Wah! It is just not financially smart right now for me to do it. Working forty hours could put me in a much better position to get caught up on some things, and get some cash saved up for the things that I have going on. I guess that it will just have to be this way, because I don't want my drive for my business to suffer because of money stress. Man, I need to win the powerball!

In other news, I am thinking about changing the format of my website to contain less verbage. It is just getting to be too much to keep up with. I am also trying to think of some new ways to organize things, a little differently, but I think that people just want to shop for a necklace by clicking on necklaces, not having to dig around, ya know? Maybe I will just keep things as they are. Bleh. Who knows.

Well, it seems like there was something that I was going to tell you, but I just can't think of it right now. Oh well. Maybe tomorrow. The heat has fried my brain, I'm afraid. :-D

WEEK 46: Shaggy Moonstone Earrings

2006-08-09T22:08:00.000-04:00

Aren't these cute?

This is what finally became of all that griping over those moonstones! finally! Man those stinking things took forever. Forever, I tell ya! But, I am really pleased with the result and I intend to do more stuff with this weave, which is Shaggy Loops that I got from M.A.I.L. And man, these suckers are looong too. They are just a hair shy of three inches long, and they look wonderful on. I think that long narrow earrings are very flattering to the face. and they are fun because they are swingy.

Well, that is all that I got for today. I am all caught up, and I don't have much else to report. Hopefully I will be able to come up with something tomorrow to tell you. Or even better, show you, since my boss will still be gone tomorrow. This is fun!

WEEK 45: blue opal coiled bangle

2006-08-09T22:01:00.000-04:00

I am very humbly and shamefuly posting this a week late, although I can promise you that it was finished before I went out of town this weekend!!

Okay so this bangle is made of bali silver, Hilltribe silver and lots of blue peruvian opals. I almost gave up on it when the drilling of the opals was going so poorly, but I will not quit till I am the reaming/plunging/drilling Queen of the Universe.

Anyway, I know that this piece is not too terribly exciting but you should be glad that I am sharing it with you. that is because it is the first piece in the Eni Oken challenge that I am participating in. the first piece should be more of what the tutorial is for, so that is why I am showing this one. The other five or so pieces will just have to be a secret till the end of September!Ha!

Team Eye Protection

2006-08-08T17:22:00.000-04:00

Yeah! Panic was freaking awesome!!!! Here's Team Eye Protection:

***OK, well some other time then. Thanks for the awesome pics, Blogger***

We had so much fun! There are just way too many stories to even tell you.

The venues were really cool. Friday night was the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, MD. It is a really neat venue, and the crowd was just right, not to many people, and not too few. There are tons and tons of trees inside the venue, which you all know is a rarity these days, since developers like to level all the trees when building something new. We stayed in a really awesome hotel that night, and had a great time. Next was Portsmouth, VA. We were running late because the traffic was terrible, I mean like add another two hours onto the trip terrible. So we got to the lot just in time to drink a beer on the way and then head into the show. The venue is suuuuuuuper cool there too. it is like a giant tent, but looks like the sails of a ship or something. I will show you some pics of that another time, since it seems like I am pushing my luck getting one pic up. But man- my little rant before the shows?

Totally Unnecessary. I hate to say it, but they sound better than they have sounded in the past four years, and those were three of the best shows that I have seen in a really, really long time. It is cool to be on a three show run when the shows start strong, because the crowd is more and more ready to party, since a great show seems like a sure thing. I am so glad!! I shook my booty like it was my full time job, drank a TON of beer, and I have come home fat and broke, just like I like. What a wonderful, wonderful, wonderful weekend.

So, now let's talk about jewelry. This week should be a productive one, since my boss is out of town for the whole weekend. It means that I have very little work to do and that I get to play around. So, instead of being on myspace all day long, I am going to pack some projects to work on over the next few days. Weeeeeee!!!! I haven't made anything in forever, and it gets harder and harder to get motivated when you see yourself running out of stuff supplies, or you don't have the one thing that you really wish that you had so that you could do the project du jour? For me it is wire, always wire. I am running out yet again.

Plus, i think that it is high time that I get my booty in gear and get to work on the list that I made of things that I want to do on the business side. Ugh.

Well in FSOJ news, you no doubt noticed that I was not timely last week with my posting. Have no fear though, because I plan to post last weeks and this week's pieces tomorrow evening.

THANK YOU GEORGE!

2006-08-02T20:33:00.000-04:00

Oh man. This is probably going to be a big old vent, and not the usual FSOJ blabber. So, if you only want to hear about jewelry that I have made this week, then you may have to come back another time. Because I am sad. :(

George McConnell, the lead guitar player for Widespread Panic has left the band for reasons currently unknown to the fans. WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! I am so sad about that. I love him. So, since this news comes with my friends and I about to ship out for a three show run, this is a cause for pause.

Since this blog is about me, I will tell you about a huge part of the very fiber of my being: all things Panic. It is so hard to describe because it is all a series of moments for me. I remember that there was this one girl that was my road buddy. We were so devoted to Panic while we were in college that I took to keeping camping essentials, a tent, a sleeping bag and pillow, plastic cups and a roll of tp in the trunk of my car. this is because once the mood would strike, especially for the fall and spring tours when the boys are in the southeast, we would take off like a shot and we would drive through the night, and show up haggard and ready to party. Tour is rough. Days at a time go by in a blur of interstates, hotels, and gas stations. Your car is filthy, your back hurts from car seats and hotel beds (if youre cool like that and get a hotel room). Yer belly aches from microbrew beers, expensive hot stadium keg Bud Lite [insert retching noise], lot food cooked by a hairy fellow with dirt under his fingernails, and god knows what else. Along the way, you see other people who are on tour too and you just *know* that they are one of the cool kids trying to make their way to the next show too. So you smile and nod, and wish them safe travels. by the third day, your body starts to become used to trying to get vitamins from beer and candy, having three hours of sleep, and then dancing so hard you would think your life depended on it. And your face doesn't hurt from smiling so much anymore.

people used to look at me sideways when I would describe the shows and tours and stuff. they ask why I would want to see the same band over and over again, and they laugh and call me a hippy. Then i feel sad for them. here's why:

When you get it, you are willing to brave the elements, the interstates, the absurd staff at the crappy venues, the traffic, and eating canned greenbeans after you come home broke and exhausted, and other stuff that i won't even get into because of what you get in return. most folks in the lot are your friends. you can chat with your neighbors while you tailgate, and trade stories of shows past, band gossip, and a yummy beer or two. they tell you to have a good show and you tell them to do the same, and you mean it. after a while the faces at shows become familiar, and you don't know them, but you sure do hope that they make it to the next one safe and sound. and then there's the matter of the band and their music. WSP has been the soundtrack to the last ten years of my life and was never too far away when I was doing all sorts of things that will keep me from being president, LOL. And you hit five shows in a row because maybe just maybe you will get to hear that one song, the one that youve chased for twenty or more shows (mine's "Jack"). Or maybe they will do something crazy to a song you've heard twenty times before in concert (i still yell "Venus light is rising!!" as loud as i can during "Chilly Water" and it never gets old to me.) And there are still times where JB's voice puts a lump in my throat, and the lyrics of one song or another will put a tear in my eye, just because. And then, all of a sudden you find yourself caring about the band more so than just buying their cd, wearing their shirts or seeing them when they come to your town. They matter to you, and you are sad to see bad things happen to them.

So, thanks George! he will be sorely missed by me and tens of thousands of others. he has giant stainless steel balls to fill big shoes like Michael Houser's and for that I am grateful.

*****************************
I'll post FSOJ tomorrow, and now I have to go and frantically do laundry and clean the bathroom. I'm just not in the mood tonight. I promise to do it before I hit the bricks tomorrow.

Finding Focus

2006-08-01T10:45:00.000-04:00

Well, it has been a few days since I checked in, hasn't it? I just seem to be getting worse and worse with that. I guess that other than FSOJ stuff, I really don't have a whole lot to tell ya. Hopefully that will change soon though, because:

Hence the title of today's post, I am trying to get my thoughts together and see what I need to do to get my butt in gear for selling stuff. I just love lists. They help me not panic so much, and I am making a massive list and printing it out at work. Now, I won't be sharing my plan of attack with you in great detail,but perhaps working on my plan will actually generate some news to share with you.

I think that I also need to start thinking with a business head a little bit more than I have lately, get my records organized, and start devoting just as much time to creating as running my business. I don't do that very well right now. I prefer to just play in my little studio, but that isn't going to get me too far, now is it? Nope.

Okay, on to the FSOJ, which is all I seem to talk about here anymore. Do you remember the goals that I set for myself at the beginning of the season? Well, here they are again, and the ones that I have at least touched on I am going to cross off:

General:
-post on time! (check-- so far...)
-pay more attention to finishing: no sharp ends, untucked wires, etc (check!)
-get better at soldering (um, check?)
-work more with copper (as of this weekend, check!)
-explore more with copper patinas (as of last night, check!)
-improve on the sketch/planning element of design: better drawings, more trouble shooting on technique and "construction" issues (hesitant check)
-finally implement the set time that I have wanted for making stuff! (no check-note to self)

Techniques:
-cab wrapping: why is this so difficult for me? (check! i will have to show you that sometime)
-riveting
-bezel setting
-more maille! I miss it. I also wanna try to incorporate beads into my designs with a better "flow" to them (tentative check. hasn't gone so well yet, but I am optimistic)

Now if only there was a business FSOJ.......

Another Crazy Friday Night

2006-07-28T19:13:00.000-04:00

Let me just tell you how much I love the FSOJ. I got some really great constructive criticism on the New Spring Necklace, and lots of ideas on how to make it better. Basically, everyone just confirmed my suspicions about the gauge of the wire being visually unbalanced. Thanks to some of the folks over there I was able to get a few ideas for those links that I already have, so they don't have to go to the scrap heap.

Incidentally, I think that it is time for the scrap heap to be sent off for refining. It is pretty huge these days!

Here's some other news: I have decided to join some a challenge on one of the forums that I take part in. The challenge is to take an Eni Oken tutorial, and do the first design basically following the tutorial, and then do four variations. Each variation should build on the previous one so that you ideally end with a whole new technique. Sounds fun eh? I will probably share my first one, but after that I will keep them a secret till the end of September, which is the deadline for the challenge. Sounds fun, doesn't it? I think that it will be a good excuse to go all out on some pieces. I have a hard time wanting to do that, because I am always keeping cost in mind. But I have a while to work on these, so I can stretch out the expense. the hard thing will be trying to keep them a secret!

I am going to try to drill more moonstones tonght. We'll see how that goes. You wouldn't believe how many of them I have broken, grr! I think that whatever comes of them will have to belong to me, because there is no way that I can justify the waste of all those rondelles. Besides, I do love moonstone a lot.

What else? Nothing too exciting, really. I am just going to try to clean the house again. We will see how that goes. I have to get it done, though because I am going to PANIC next weekend!! Yay! I have not seen Widespread Panic in forever. Some friends and I are going to see three shows in three days: one in Columbis, MD, and the other two in Portsmouth, VA. I am very excited, even though it means that I will be very broke for a while. But they are so worth it!! Little known fact about me that I will share (well, very well known to a lot of you, heehee)- I am a huge Widespread panic fan and I have lost count of how many of their shows I have been to. My first was in 1995, and I didn't see them again till 1999, but I have seen them somewhere betweeen 30 and 40 times. Crazy, I know!

WEEK 44: New Spring Necklaces

2006-07-26T20:55:00.000-04:00

Geez, talk about a pain in the ass! This necklace stressed me out from start to finish, and I don't think that I am happy with it yet. I will re work a few bits of it, but posting on time is important to me, so here it is!

I made copper prototypes on the leaves, which is a first for me. When something gets in my head and won't get out, I just have to go right to the good stuff. Didn't wanna waste anything this time. Next I soldered the silver links and those went together just fine, although I was nervous about them. Then I cut all the rings, and made mobius ball connectors and they went together ok enough. Then came the clasp, which is now known as the Soldering Project from Hell. I am by no means an old pro, but this gave me almost as much trouble as the soldered links bracelet. That damn solder just wouldn't flow! Or, it would flow in the opposite direction I wanted it to. But, I won out in the end as you can tell. A little photo headache later (forgetting to use the macro setting, using wrong settings, etc.) and it is done!!

Well, I do wanna tell you about the stone, because it is super cool. It is variscite quartz. It is found in Utah, and people call it green turqouise all the time by mistake. It isn't turqouise, but they are related. Oh, and the guy that I bought it from has a wonderful philosophy on stones, keeping them natural and so on, so this doesn't have the slick shiny lacquer on it that most beads do. Instead, it kinda feels velvety almost! And of course the pic doesn't do justice to the green!

Finally, I plan on reworking the connectors from the stone to the wire, but it isn't in me tonight. That stone is just so thick that there isn't a jumpring around that can accomodate the width of the stone.

Whew! Awesomely on time. Now....what to do next?!?!

Why Me?!?!

2006-07-25T10:52:00.000-04:00

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaah!! How come on my last weekday off, the day when I wanted to do nothing but make jewelry, is my back screaming at me? it feels like I have pinched a nerve or something-- WAH!! I think that I am just going to get out the heating pad and lay down till lunch, and then spend the afternoon working on my FSOJ piece.

Which reminds me: I am so sad that I can't do my calla lillies yet. It turns out that I was thinking about it, and I just don't have the right kind of wire to do the cuff part, so I have to wait till I can afford to order more. So I am hoping that next week's FSOJ piece will be the calla lilly. I don't even keep up with what the themes are anymore. Ha!

Oh I am so aggravated. I keep trying to plunge out the holes of some moonstone that I have, and it is just not working. For every two that I get done correctly, four break. Boo. It is so aggravating that I have to keep walking away, because when i get frustrated it is even worse.

Enough complaining for now. At least I know that the other project will work for tomorrow!

I passed!!

2006-07-23T20:14:00.000-04:00

Woohoo! property Management class is over! And I passed the exam for the class, which means that I am eligible now to take the state exam. So, hopefully by the fall I will be able to kick into high gear for the Christmas push. This means cutting back on my day job to be able to go approach retail stores with my work.

Like last week, I have tomorrow and Tuesday off work because of the class. I am excited, since I am not nearly as burnt out as I was last week. that means that I am gonna get LOTS done over the next two days. I have a list of jewelry to make, I am rearranging the studio, heavy duty cleaning needs to be done, and of course webby stuff.

So, for jewelry, my calla lilly idea will be my FSOJ piece, so watch for that in the middle of the week. Let's see, something leafy, some more pink shells, some firsts for me and some rings.

As for webby stuff, did you guys look at the necklaces page? It is up, I would love to know what you think. don't worry, there will be lots more added to it soon! I also need to get the pendants and rings page all done up too. I plan on working on it here and there and publishing it as I go along, so keep checking back for changes.

Well that's it for now. I will check in tomorrow and let you know how things are going.

Busy Girl (Sigh)

2006-07-20T23:13:00.000-04:00

I am pooped so this will have to be a short little update.

I got so much done today! I got pics of everything that needed to be photographed again, got them all edited and resized, and ready to tack up on the site. Those of you that do this stuff too know what a huge and repetitive task that can be. But that's not all- I got the necklace page up and running! YEAH!! I am so excited about that it is not even funny. Go check 'em out and tell me what you think.

So, what did you think about this week's FSOJ entry? I pimped it out all over the internet yesterday and have gotten loads of positive feedback. makes me feel good, ya know? I would say that my muse seems to be taking well to the concept of this FSOJ stuff. Wait till you see what I have planned for next week! I could get used to this; I like the whole overflowing with ideas thing. Pretty fun.

Hopefully I can keep the focus going tomorrow. I'd like to get the pendants & rings page put together, and then get to work on this weeks piece(s) for the FSOJ, just in case they don't go together like I want them to.

I'm pooped.....told ya this would be short!

WEEK 43: A Mermaid's Best Friend

2006-07-19T22:03:00.000-04:00

Okay! Hard to believe that it is time to post again- this summer is flying by.

I am really excited about this piece. can you tell that it is a little (okay fine- freakin HUGE!) fishy cuff? See his little eye and curly tail? Well, this piece is finally a reality after cooking in my brain for about four months. It's peruvian opal faceted rondelles, peachy pink freshwater pearls, and those fun shells. Thank god Eni shared her source for the shells, or I would have had to take this little idea to the grave with me! This is my first really freeform and random chaotic piece. Normally I twitch if things get too random, but I really like the end result. Yay for FSOJ!! I would have been too scared to try this otherwise. So, whaddaya think? I'd love to know if anyone else likes it even remotely as much as I do. Cause I love it

In other news, a lot of really good progress was made yesterday on the website, and I am about to publish everything.

Seems like there is other news, but I can't think of it now. Maybe tomorrow?

Thank you thank you thank you!!!

2006-07-18T13:25:00.000-04:00

Okay, well I am breaking for lunch and changing gears. In between huge mouthfuls of salad, I wanted to say THANK YOU!!! to all of you that have taken the time to forward my site to someone else, and thanks to all who decided to look! All the positive feedback pleases me to no end. Seriously! I took a look at my stat counter reports last night and the hits have taken a huge jump over the past week or so! So thanks again!!

So, the new gear for the afternoon is webby stuff and I hope to make major progress today on getting things priced, and uploaded and all that. Wish me luck-- you know how I have no ability to sit still in front of the computer for very long.

In FSOJ news, I am right on time with my pink fishy cuff. I should be able to post it tomorrow, maybe even tonight depending on how quickly I can get everything done. It is so cute!!!

Now if only I could find time to clean somewhere in there......

Yaaaaaawn.....

2006-07-16T21:05:00.000-04:00

Another fun day at property management class. It was NOT fun, in case you couldn't tell that I was being sarcastic there. But, all is well because I have off tomorrow and Tuesday. Yay!!

So- I am having a dilemma and maybe you guys can help me out. There is an organization in town that was accepting applications for new artists. It is sort of like a community center that holds classes, holds events, and sells only handcrafted artwork. Well, when I called for an application the lady kinda groaned when I said jewelry, but she said she would send me one. I still haven't gotten it. I wonder if that is such a bad thing though. I wonder this because their website is totally out of date, and the jewelry featured on it is....well....while it is fairly priced, I do not think that the sort of things that I make are a good fit. Further, the same things have been up on the website for over a year, and they rarely update it. So, do I pursue this? On the one hand, it seems like a great opportunity to get my jewelry out in the community. On the other, their website and inability to follow through with me are warning signs. What would you guys do?

In other news, I have the best mom ever! She finally took a look at my website the other day (cos I finally told her to, LOL!) and she was so excited and had lots of encouraging things to say. She also sent the link to everyone she knows, and forwarded me all of their positive comments. I think that I may have to make her a special little treat to thank her for being so supportive. It really is important to have people cheering you on when you start to feel like you are a hack and you are just putting yourself out there to be average. What a good mommy I have.

Oooooh, here is something else that is fun: today while I was at lunch I bought the Art of Resin Jewelry!!!! It is so cool. I wanna start playing with resin soon. I already have a lot of neat-o ideas. I swear you guys, I know that I have a problem but I have watched too much "Intervention" on A&E to be fooled into people telling me that I have a jewelry making addiction via a surprise intervention. You'll never catch me, aaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahahahahahahahahahhahahahahahaha!!!

Boo

2006-07-15T22:53:00.000-04:00

I am mopey today. Bah!

I had to go to property management class all day and i have to go back tomorrow. It is the most horrible and torturous thing ever! EVER!! I hate it. I decided that I have to take Monday and Tuesday off. I am already burned out and I have to go back tomorrow. Wah!
the only thing that is keeping me going is the hope that after I am licensed I will be able to afford to cut my work week back by 10 hours and pour that time into getting my business off the ground.
To top the day off, nothing turned out quite right with the stuff that I tried to make. The Japanese weave that I tried didn't go so hot. I got so mad that I just put it in one of the yellow pee cups and closed the lid. I will try again some other time, but right now I am just too aggravated. On the upside, I drew some really fun things while I was in class. I brought my notebook and worked out something pink and fishy, and some classy calla lillies. I am hoping that I can at least get my pink fishy done by wednesday. I would love to be able to post it on Wednesday for the FSOJ.

Oh, here's a story to make ya feel good. Have you heard about Debi Manning? Well long story short, she is a lampworker who *was* in danger of losing her home. She fell on hard times after her son sustained a near fatal brain injury. But guess what? She will be okay now! Kim Neely of Bluff Road Glass organized a charity auction with the help of Debi's church and some really generous and talented members of the lampworking and jewelry community. with two days left, the auction has already raised twice what Debi needed! Now she will have enough to get out of hot water, and a nice cushion to help her get on her feet. Take a look at the Home is Where the Heart Is Auction for Debi. The beads up for auction are amazing and so is the effort that all these kind souls have put in to save one of their own. If you are so inclined you can read Debi's story in her own words here and it really is a compelling story. I have read over it a few times, and it still makes me teary just to think about being in her shoes. See, that is why I should have won the powerball by now. I totally would have bid on something if I could afford to.

Anyway, time to go to bed so I can be ready to go sit in pergatory, er, class tomorrow. Bah!

Thursday: The Lost day

2006-07-13T22:48:00.000-04:00

Where does the time go?

Before I start griping, this is a snow leopard from the zoo. Isn't he sweet? Look at those paws!!

It seems like it was 6pm a few minutes ago, and I was cleaning, and getting ready to try a new chainmaille weave. I had the rings all cut (at least I hope that was all of them- teensy rings are a booger to cut) and it was all good. Now it is almost eleven and I have not done anything that I wanted to do tonight except for edit my chicago pics, and clean the kitchen.

Oh well. Tomorrow is Friday, so at least I only have a half day, and I can pick up where I left off. Or so I say, just like I say every week. Heh.

anyway, the next few weeks are going to be sorta wierd. I have to take a class for the state property management license, and that means that I will be in class all day on saturday and sunday for the next two weeks. the good thing is that I get time off when I want it during the week, so I am taking Tuesday and Wednesday off. I hope that will be a good time to get a lot of things done since there will be little distraction.

time for bed- I hope that I can at least have a work in progress to show you tomorrow. Japanese 12 in 2 with faceted moonstone....should be pretty!

Week 42: My first finished soldered piece!

2006-07-12T21:02:00.000-04:00

Well, can you believe that I actually finished it?!?

this is the bracelet that i was whining about last night. But I finally got the hang of it, and pushed on till i got a finished piece of jewelry out of the deal. It took so many hours, but the practice, and trouble shooting experience was well worth it. Looky- my first finished toggle! I am sad that you can't see the wonderful texture on the rings (which I cut myself), but at least I know that they are there.

I think that I may keep this piece, because there is no way that I could sell it for what it took to make it. or perhaps I just write the bulk of the price off to practice?

Waaaah! I don't wanna do website stuff tonght, but I gotta! Need to fix some bobo links and add some new stuff. Gotta run!

Oh I forgot about some exciting news: I booked my hotel room for the B&B show next sumer! yep, i know that it is early, but they fill up the rooms really quickly. Exciting! That means that I need to start saving up..........which means no more buying as much stuff. :(

Week 41: Fun Earwires

2006-07-12T20:58:00.000-04:00

Okay, I told you that these were nothing to shout about! Although the beads sure are fun, aren't they?

Basically this week was the beginning of my new focus on fun earwires and clasps. I decided that I would take my normal MO which is fancy earrings on plain earwires and totally flip that around. i don't think that these are plain as much as they are simple. Either way, I intend to do a lot more pieces where I make all the components that I possibly can. so gratifying. :)

I'm back!!

2006-07-11T20:01:00.000-04:00

Hard to believe that it has been so long since I have been around to tell you anything! thanks very much for all your concerned emails; it is nice to know that someone is worried, and not grateful, when I get kinda quiet.

Well, I bet that I totally forgot to tell you about my trip to chicago! I went there to see an old friend, and we had a blast. Tons of fun, although now I am broke and totally exhausted. Todays pic is of a funny little sealion getting a tan. Isn't he cute? I think so. It is hard to get good pictures of animals during the summer. they just sit around. I need to see action!

Okay, so I have to confess that although I am a week behind on submitting for the FSOJ, i still made my piece and was finished with it. It is nothing exciting, but it was still a part of my goal to try and flip flop things around and incorporate more interesting components into simpler designs. It worked! I will show ya tomorrow though, when I go through all my postings.

Now, for this week, i think that I am going to start over. The almost finished piece is in the tumbler right now, but I consider it an utter and complete failure. All I wanted to do was solder jumprings shut so that I made a bracelet. total failure! my soldering pad is a wreck, I don't even wanna turn around and look at the sorry state that my bench is in, and ugh, this is just a mess!!! I am determined to not get pissy (for a second time) and just start all over again, and see what I can do the second time around. I think that I figured out where I am going wrong, but I am not 100%. I guess that I have to look at it as a significnt amount of practice.

On the bright side, when i got home from Chicago, it was like Christmas. Ups got everything to me (finally-- with a big fat thank you to SFJS- they rock) and I got the missing ingredient for what I have had in my head for about 3 months now.........my first (gasp!) sculptural cuff. Nope, this isn't your mother's coiled bangle. And I hope that if it is at least 1/4 as cool as the bracelet that I have in my mind, then I will be doing well.

Tomorrow is web day once again (already?!?!) so I will be posting a few earrings, and mostly working on some mistakes that I noticed. Nothing too fancy, but I gotta say that I really like the regularity of updating weekly. Not to hard then. I love seeing the website come together, but god is it boring! So boring!!!! And repetitive. Such is life.

I promise to actually show you guys some jewelry tomorrow!

WEEK 40: The Colors of Jasper

2006-06-28T18:07:00.000-04:00

So this is my first FSOJ post and I am way excited to be participating. I am so pleased that I am on time and on theme. So here's the pics:

And here's another view:

As soon as I saw the theme for the week, I knew right away what I was going to use. I just didn't know what I was going to do with it! I am pretty pleased with the way that this bracelet came together, though. This is the first piece in which I attempted to bind multiple wires together with half hard wire, and have them maintain a parallel position to one another. I am pretty impressed with both the finished result, and how much painter's tape it took to get there, LOL! I'd love to know what you guys think of it. Oh, and incedentally, I haven't been able to tweek the binding wires down enough to where they don't slide around. That binding wire was designed to rest just below the spirals closest to it. Guess you gotta start somewhere!

Baby Shower Success! and other stuff

2006-06-27T20:55:00.000-04:00

Oh my god, I can't believe blogger is finally working! I tried to update yesterday, really I did. But it was giving me fits. If you have a blog here than you know the deal. It was like demons took it over or something!
anyway, here's a few photos from the shower that I was telling you about. I am very proud to say that I decorated the room in Sufire and did a wonderful job. hee hee. the mommy was totally surprised, all her family showed up, and the food and all was great. every one had a wonderful time. So here's some show and tell of my decorating capabilities:

Here is the present table with all my main decoration: baby clothes! don't they look cute as decoration? They are just so tiny and fun. Ignore the waiter. And the mimosa on the table. I was flustered, ok? Besides, it only sat there till we were done decorating:

More clothes above the cake. These kept falling down. Sorta embarrassing but cute nonetheless:

And finally, my super cute table stuff. I scoured the city till i found itty bitty tiny rubber duckies to put in everyone's water! yes, I washed them first. The babies also came with momma ducks, who were then transformed into candle holders:

Yeah, I know. I am awesome. ;)

Okay, so on to jewelry stuff. I am pleased to report that I took my first FSOJ piece out of the tumbler just a few minutes ago. Early! And guess what: it is on theme, and fabulous. I can't wait to show it. But that will be tomorrow's entry.

Anyway, after I grab a quick dinner I will be getting to work on some earwires. I told ya that I wanna make some funky and different earwires for just simple drop earrings. So, I am in the mood to get to work on that, and then maybe work out earrings when I am more in the mood to think about colors and shapes. So I promise that I am not just dinking around.

Tomorrow I swear that I will be updating the website and adding more stuff to it. In addition to some necklaces, I have six bracelets and two earrings to add. Lots of work!!

Can I just gripe for one second? All my stuff that UPS was supposed to deliver yesterday? Still not here. Yep, that's right. That just sucks. The website said that it has been "out for delivery" since yesterday at 5am. Come on! I want my silver sheet and solder and *hole punch pliers* (!!!) and I want them yesterday.

Be back tomorrow with a fun FSOJ entry!!

On Facial Deformities

2006-06-23T22:15:00.000-04:00

Hi, Quasimodo here reporting live on sudden and annoying facial deformities. this morning I woke up and it felt like someone drew a line down the middle of my face, and then beat everything to the right of that line (my left) with a big stick. My eye is watery, nose is runny, throat sore, gland swollen, and cheek is incredibly chipmunk like, but only on that one side. How odd. So, I am hiding away in my house, drinking rootbeer and feeling sorry for myself. I look strange and feel strange. Woohoo, another rockin Friday night at my house.

At least it gives me time to work on this weeks FSOJ theme: The Colors of Jasper. Do you remember that zebra jasper bangle that I posted a long time ago? well, I still have a few more of those ovals, so I think that I would like to do something with them. Of course, you will see what I do with them soon enough. :)

Other than that, this weekend should be pretty hectic. I hope that my stupid face gets better quick. I can tell you this now that I know that she won't look here, at least this weekend. For the past few months, I have been planning a surprise baby shower for a dear friend of mine. She is totally clueless too! All her family will be there, and most of her friends. I have managed to get them all together without her knowing! It will be so fun. We are having it at Sunfire, a restaurant that we all know and love. I know that she will cry. Hee hee, I am such a sneaky friend. I can't wait till this is over- I have been distant for the past few weeks because I have been afraid that I would slip up. I have been avoiding her like the plague this week, because I have her 9 million pound stroller in my car and it has been there since last Saturday. Ha, the lady at the Taco Bell drivethru saw it and asked me if I was pregnant. Of course I had forgotten it was back there, and almost cried because I thought she was asking because I looked it, meaning that I must have a big fat gut!

Alright, time to ice my scary looking face, and work on my jasper piece. I am going to draw it all out, because that was one of the things that I wanted to get better about- planning and troubleshooting designs BEFORE I ruin a bunch of wire, LOL! Oh and as an aside, I will try to post more pics of the things that I work on this week. I am trying to develop little themes for myself too, so I can explore techniques through repetition. This week I am going to work on fun earwires. I am in the mood to make simple dangly earrings with really fun and different earwires. hee hee, can you tell who loves her cup burr? that filing garbage is for the birds!

I finally got back to work on the website tonight. I will let you know tomorrow what's been put up there, and then order you to go have a look. Nighty night!

On Phishing Scams and FSOJ Goals

2006-06-21T22:38:00.000-04:00

Okay, let's get the ooky stuff out of the way- you won't belive what happened today! My father and stepmother called me to tell me that they received a call from a man who was looking for me and told them that I have defrauded a financial institution! Well, I won't bore you with the details; you can just have the high points. I have not defrauded anyone, duh, so this was a scam. he said he was from a law firm in NY, but when my stepmom got stinky with him, he yelled at her, and gave her a non-working phone number to call back, and the NY attorney general and bar association have never heard of this law firm. Uh huh. So, we have obviously ruled this as a phishing scam, but it is still scary that all that information about us is out there, just floating around in cyber space. that's the age that we live in, I guess. Well, being the optimist that I am, I look at this as a wonderful wake up call for cleaning up my financial habits and info, and being much more vigilant about monitoring my credit report and stuff. Close call! If that clown had called my grandma, she prolly would have told him everything he wanted to know, and then called all the relatives and told them that I was robbing banks because I was on crack. You laugh, but that is what she does. Ask anybody!

On to jewelry related things. I am all signed up and ready to go for the FSOJ. I am really looking forward to it, like I told ya. Well, I gave some thought to it and decided to set some goals for things that I want to work on and improve upon. it will be fun to look back at them in 13 weeks and see how they went. So they are in two categories, general and technique. Self explanatory:

General:
-post on time!
-pay more attention to finishing: no sharp ends, untucked wires, etc
-get better at soldering
-work more with copper
-explore more with copper patinas
-improve on the sketch/planning element of design: better drawings, more trouble shooting on technique and "construction" issues
-finally implement the set time that I have wanted for making stuff!

Techniques:
-cab wrapping: why is this so difficult for me?
-riveting
-bezel setting
-more maille! I miss it. I also wanna try to incorporate beads into my designs with a better "flow" to them

So: we'll see. I can't believe tomorrow is Thursday. Lots to do!!

Long time no see!

2006-06-20T15:38:00.000-04:00

Hi- I am still alive and kicking. I think that this has been the longest time ever that I have gone without updating. So, let's cut the crap and go over what I have been up to.

First of all, I had a slip and fall this weekend at the Piggly Wiggly. A real live one that I was neither the immediate nor proximate cause of (that is my paralegal coming out in me). I was just walking along minding my own business, when WHAM! My left leg flew out in front of me, and my right leg tried to go behind me, but instead i just sort of sat on it. No marker and water all over the floor. I just wanted some beer for the World Cup game, and instead my life flashed before my eyes. Not really, but it makes for a good story. So I filed a report and we will wait to see what becomes of the incident.

Okay now as for jewelry- well, there isn't a whole lot to report. I bought the right kind of solder and flux, so the smithing thing should get rapidly better soon.

No progress on the website. But what else is new? I will work on it some more, I promise. Honest injun.

Oh boy! My pee cups were delivered today, according to DHL.com (this is a work update)! I told you about those, right? Well- I am going to take my purple dresser (shut up, it's awesome!) and move that to the den and put beads in their pee cups in the drawers, and then move my yellow chair into my room. Have I showed you my den/studio before? Hooray for organization. It is my goal to completely free up the space of my work table for, well.....work. The space just gets smaller and smaller, and more filled with junk.

And, let's see. Oh the Summer season of the year of jewelry starts next week! The first piece is due a week from tomorrow. I am pretty excited about it. It should be a neat experience. I can't wait to see how much I grow.

Well, that's it for now. Perhaps I will spice things up with a few pics later. But probably not.

So much for web day

2006-06-14T22:18:00.000-04:00

okay, so the first try at a set date for website work fell through. Oopsie. I ended up working for about a half an hour, and got VERY little accomplished. I guess there's always tomorrow. Today wasn't my fault though! I was invited to a soccer game tonight so that took up a good bit of my productive time. By the time i got settled in it was 9:30.

Yesterday was awesome though! I finished three bracelets and a pair of earrings that were so close to being done it was sick. then i played around with my torch some and soldered some rings, and made a toggle. fun stuff. Oh and I started on a pair of earrings that I really wanted to finish tonight. Oh well. here's the fun thing- I made a big old mess, and then when i was done- I cleaned it up! it only took like ten minutes. Sorry this is still a foreign concept for me.

Oh and I did a sorta bad thing to reward myself the other day and bought 100 plastic lab dish thingies on eBay. it was only $15 with shipping! So I am going to get all organized and put all my beads in them. Organization rocks. I hope they get here before this weekend so that I can play with them. I am such a dork. No wonder I don't have any friends anymore.

hee hee. i will show you pics tomorrow. I have to go clean up!

Nasty Weather

2006-06-13T13:10:00.000-04:00

Hurrican Season has started, and I think that it will be a pretty busy one for those of us on the carolina coast. We are already getting some 'weather' from Alejandro or whatever this one is called that hit Florida today. So, my boss sent us home early, rather than have us driving around in it at 5. I am home for the rest of the day, and ready to get to work!

My flux arrived last week. The idjits in the apartment office just didn't realize it. So, I called Rio Grande and they told me the deal. Well, i just got home with my flux and I am ready to get started! And where better to do that then the squeaky clean studio?!?

Yes, that's right, I bit the bulet and cleaned everything up the right way. So the desk is totally cleaned up, the workbench is totally clean, the wire has been properly stored, as has all the torching implements. So, we're looking good! Like I was saying the other day, I think that I am starting to be able to work better when things are tidy. It is so much easier to spend five minutes getting all set up than it is to spend twenty looking for the chainnose pliers that are buried under a pile of should-have-been filed papers and old bills. Let's see how long I can stick to it, LOL!

Sorry I have been robbing you guys of pics lately. I am just trying to get better at putting things away, and that includes the photo setup, so it is a hassle to drag it out and then put it away every day.

I am pretty proud of this one too: I decided that wednesday will be web day, and that is a day that is just for pricing, pic taking, and webby stuff. I just don't have it in me to do major stuff day after day after sitting at a computer all day long, so I figured that at least one day a week of a huge chunk of time will be good for at least being regular about adding new things to the website.

Well, everyone stay dry till next time!

Monday update

2006-06-12T11:25:00.000-04:00

Hey everybody! did anyone watch the Belmont Stakes on Saturday? I did. It was a little bit of horsey craziness, but in general a very good race. All the "Get Well Barbaro" stuff still makes me a bit misty at times when I see it on ESPN. But that's just me, a sap.

Wow, Blogger is slow today. So much for the updates, huh?

Okay, so onto jewelry news: Let's see, tonight is clean and organize time for me. I am feeling sort of largely unproductive, and i think that is because the mess is taking over again. I enjoy a good mess as much as the next gal, and I want to be one of those people that happily work in a cluttered space, but you know what? I am just not that girl. I'm not. And I think that I may have to make some components too. I am in a component mood today.

Oh, here's a gripe for ya: Where the h-e- double hockey sticks is my FLUX?!?! Rio Grande is killing me. It is supposed to be shipped seperately because it is sooo hazardous *eyeroll* but i don't have any damn flux and it is chapping my fanny. If it is not there when I get home, there is going to be issues. I will call Rio Grande and fuss at them and tell them that they better send me some free stuff to make up for it. Tee hee.

Here's another noteworthy peice of info: I signed up for the Four Seasons of Jewelry Challenge! (I don't know how to make the fancy links so just google it till i put it in my links category, lazy!) I was always really intimidated by the premise before now, and now I think that I am in the right mindframe to do it. Here's the premise: you commit to doing one finished peice of jewelry a week, and you may optionally follow the theme for the week. And then you post it to the group's blog and everyone shares and what not. I have heard, without exception, that it pushes you out of your comfort zone and makes you try all sorts of things in an attempt to grow artistically. Fun! So, it begins in a few weeks and you will then see the blog begin to take a slightly different angle on some days. I'm looking forward to it!

The webiste is up, and looking pretty good from where I am sitting. I am trying to think of a way to brighten it up a bit- if you have any suggestions, then by all means let me know.

that's all for now- I will check in tomorrow and let you know how the supposed cleaning and component making extravaganza went. I am cautiously optimistic.

Ta-Da!! and other things

2006-06-10T16:27:00.000-04:00

Okay well first of all the website re-do and somewhat first do and hopefully not doo doo (yess i am feeling corny today) is just about done. click the link on the right side of your screen to see what i have been up to. I still have to finish the earrings and get the necklaces and pendants/ rings put together, but there is something up now, and it looks MUCH better. Thanks to Kerry for the lotus flower! Well, the site looked good in my browser, but then it looked good the first time, and we all saw how that turned out! So if it has gone wonky again let me know. Honestly, I just wanted to put it out there. I will prolly go through the individual pages again soon, just to make sure that everything looks ok.

Not today though! I have done about all I can do today. I am in the mood to work on other stuff now. Oooh, stay tuned for the next month or so: I am issuing myself a challenge. I am not allowed to buy ANYTHING else jewelry related for about a month or so. I have booked a flight to go and see my friend Caroline in Chicago, and I have to have some money to go and do that. Sooo, let's see what I get done in the next month while I am not allowed to buy anything else.

oh so i finished those earrings that I was talking about, and they are so cute. I will try to post pics later, or better yet put them on the website! I am going to get the torch out again in a bit, I think. I am working on some good ideas, so we will see what I come up with!

oooh, I gotta go. I don't know if i told you this before, but I really like horseracing, and the Belmont Stakes is about to start. Yay! Go Mr. Silver! He didn't do so hot in the qualifiers yesterday, but he sure is pretty. I will check in again tomorrow. Maybe upload some pics. Who knows.

Lots of New Stuff

2006-06-08T09:55:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone! I have been so busy that I am having to update during my downtime, which is when I am at my dayjob! Ha! Okay, well here's all the news:

As far as the website goes, it is still up and is getting a major facelift. More like an overhaul. And I have a logo type thingy! Thanks to Kerry at kabs Concepts the whole face of the site will be different. So I am working on it more tonight, and hopefully by the end of the weekend, you will see an all new and bug free website! Keep your fingers crossed!

Let's see, what else? Oh I am currently working on a few things, including some fun earrings made with the new Eni Oken tutorial, the charms and extensions. It is such a fun thing to do, adding those little animals and things. and when I got the tutorial, I don't know why it didn't occur to me before that. I guess that is the way with all things.

Okay, here is the most excting part of all: I soldered my very first thing last night! The house didn't burn down, and neither did I. Now don't get excited, It is just a pendant, and it is certainly nothing special. As a matter of fact it is pretty wonked out. There was no real design concept, I just made a few wire swirls, grabbed a jumpring that was handy, and made a frame and soldered it all together just to see what would happen. Well, it was fun, and I am totally hooked and just want to get better at it. But, I used the syringe solder stuff with flux mixed in and i am not really a fan. the rest of the pendant got quite tarnishy, and took a while to tumble out. oh and it was quite globby looking, and the syringe is pretty unwieldy. Man it was fun! Maybe I will show you a pic for later, just for a laugh. My flux is being shipped seperately since it is hazardous, so when that gets here it is on like donkey kong. I guess in the meantime I should wrap up some of the other projects that are almost done so that I can clean up and focus a little better.

Well, that's it for now! I will try to upload a pic of the funny pendant later.

six six oh six....eeek!

2006-06-06T17:19:00.000-04:00

Well, what better way to acknowledge a scary date than to make some wicked little earrings? I made these last night, and oxidized them this afternoon. I thought that Lisa Niven Kelly's toggle clasp would make fun earrings, and lo and behold they are pretty cute.

I am thinking that these are a good way to use up some of my swarovskis, which I have always sort of had to force myself to use. They sure are shiny, but man they are pointy! anyway, I thought that this would also make a good pendant, sorta like those silly rhinestone circle pendants that everyone seems to love so much these days.

Soooo, in other news, I figgered out how to publish to my website! I swear, instructions will be the death of me. Why don't I just read them?!? But, sadly, I have learned that I need change the font, because I think that the font and the blocking of the descriptions made everything go wonky! Gah! The paypal buttons moved all over the place, and it makes me crazy. So I am going to do some fixing and tweeking later on, and then try this again.

I also have some more plans for earrings that I have been wanting to try, and I need to do some housework to get ready for tomorrow. What's tomorrow, you ask? that is when all the stuff that I ordered from Rio Grande gets here! Time to solder my little heart out, and I dont' feel like having to throw everything on the floor to get to do it.

Lots to do, lots to do! I love being busy and having my energy back to do this. However, I think that I am going to put my jammies on and watch Lost in Translation for now. then maybe head to Wal-Mart and get a little crockpot for my pickle. Weeee!

Here goes nothing...

2006-06-04T18:43:00.000-04:00

Well, I did it. I went ahead and uploaded my site. We will see how that went- I am not so very confident, and BlueHost, my webhosting company, didn't seem to offer any real answers as to how long it would take. Don't go look at it. There are obviously some things that need to be tweeked, fixed and so on. I didn't want to upload the whole site, but the thingy didn't give me any options as to what i wanted to publish and what i didn't so oh well. I will just have to fix and republish more pages as I get the time.

this reminds me of the dream that I had last night. I dreamed that I lived in Tennessee, and that I went to go see Widespread panic in this old church. I have lots of dreams where there are fun concerts in churches lately. I was in a VIP part of the church, I guess where the choir would be sitting, sorta but not (its a dream, work with me). And who should be sitting behind me but Taylor Hicks. Well, he thought that I was pretty hot stuff, just like I am sure that he would in real life (eyeroll). Long story short, I was mortified when he professed his love for me and i had to tell him that my legs were very hairy right now, but that I honestly meant to shave. He bought it! Can you believe that? How embarrassing. See, I always get caught with hair on my legs, but in the metaphorical sense. Are you following here? Just like the dream I had right before I graduated college and I showed up to the ceremony in a green tshirt that i have had since i was 8 and undies. that's it, no white dress as was required. gah! so anyway I will fix the website, I promise. Or I could have done it wrong and you could not be able to see anything and I am freaking out for nothing. My head hurts!

Okay, onto more simple things. Isn't the above pendant cute? It is Rhodonite and I wrapped it last night while watching ANTM season one finale for the 90th time. I laugh when I look at the pendant. It looks like it is wearing a little hat! But I still think that it is very cute. hee hee. funny little hat!

Well, I am sad. tonight is the last episode of the sopranos for like a year! yes a year! they are stretching the last season out for another YEAR! I am furious. I am going to write HBO a letter and tell them that they suck. Grr!

Hope yall had a good weekend. Man, I got myself all worked up there for a minute, didn't I?

Forest Floor

2006-06-03T21:15:00.000-04:00

Hey everyone!

Look- new jewelry! At last! Well, I have finished two other bracelets, but this was the one that i decided to show to prove that I am coming out of my slump.

At Kerry's encouragement, I decided to give this bracelet a whirl. The beads are kambaba jasper. I love the way that rolls off the tongue. kambaba. sounds exotic, eh? and the colors remind me of mossy groundcover, and the ends worked out to look like a fern to me. I love it. the book it came from suggests that you bend all the wires this way and that, and then the effect is like rippling water. Of course, mine turns out leafy shapes and relative uniformity! That's me though- set out to do one thing and then come up with something completely different. Sure is pretty though!

Oh, here's another thing that makes me proud of that bracelet. I reamed the beads in water so that they could fit on the 18 gauge wire! I started out with my new diamond reamers that thankfully are Dremel compatible. used some bur saver, but there was little progress, and lots of heat buildup, which is harmful to gemstones. So then I decide to get out the ice cream lids that I have been saving for this occasion, cut some sponge squares to sop up the water, and went at it! It was great. Good old Dremel.

So, in unrelated news. I have a new game I like to play at the grocery store. I go to the grocery store a lot. I can't stand to be there for very long, because I hate to carry all the groceries all the way from my car to my second floor apartment. So, anyway, it is fun to get kids in trouble with their moms. EEhee! Evil, I know, but funny! So when there is a little kid in the seat of the cart with their mom, I walk behind them so only the kid can see. Then I start to clown for them, and make all kinds of funny faces. Well they think that is hyseterical. Then their mom calms them down, and I fire them up again. See where this is going? I have to stick close to the food items, so then if the mom turns around, i can act like i am reading a label and not doing anything wrong. Their poor moms! It sure is funny though. Sure is! Especially when the moms have had it with the nonsense and start threatening spankings. I usually quit it then. But not one second before! Mwahahahahahahaaa!

anyway I have been lounging all day and the weather is getting stormy, which means that I am beginning to get productive. So, I will check in tomorrow and let you know what I accomplished.

Oh and I almost forgot- I ordered all the metalsmithing stuff that I need to get started yesterday- the package should be here on Wednesday I think! So you should be watching for some melted charred blobs of metal. Weeee!

Burnout

2006-06-01T20:57:00.000-04:00

Okay so I am suffering from the most serious case of burnout that I have had in a while. Maybe even this whole calendar year. It's been terrible. I am just so unmotivated right now. The website has been totally neglected over the last week, and so has everything else. I keep sitting down to make stuff, and then i don't finish much, which isn't usually like me.

I think that I have been putting too much pressure on myself lately. I am such an Aries too- just always balls to the wall with everything, till the bottom drops out. and i think that the bottom dropped out. I try to put myself on a really demanding time schedule, and it doesn't take into account that some days my day job just takes the life right outta me. Plus, I have really isolated myself lately, by trying to force all this jewelry out. I miss my friends and my life. So, I have basically taken the past couple weeks off. And now, I am ok with that. The website, obviously has not been finished. And you know what? I could give a rat's ass at this moment. I wish that i wasn't one of those people that considers myself a failure when I don't get things done 100% to my liking. But-sigh. I am.

However, I am also your typical Aries, in that I can get waaaay down on myself, but even I can't hold me down for too long! So I am ready to get to work- and I am going to stick to it and quit playing on the computer so much. None on the weekends as a matter of fact. Well, besides checkng email and stuff. ;)

Alright- I swear I will show you some jewelry soon. Cross my heart.

Memorial Day update

2006-05-29T10:21:00.000-04:00

Hi everyone!! I am sorry that i have neglected the blog all weekend. And lately in general. Oh and sorry for the maudlin tone of the last entry- but you know how it goes if you have seen the movie.

Anywho-- the horrible jewelry drought has been lifted! Hooray!! I went two weeks without making anything. Two weeks!! Oh well i did learn the half persian 4 in 1 and that is fine, but it is still just sitting on my desk, while i wonder what will become of it. Anyway, I have made a *gorgeous* coiled bangle that is pretty different from the ones that you see nowadays. I just have to toss a clasp on it and it will be done! It is amazonite, apatite and aquamarine. man, i am never buying apatite again. Ever! About half of the ones that i picked up and put on the wire just fell to pieces. just because! but the finished product was so worth it- you will be able to see the finished product on my website this week!! **does happy dance**

That is my next update subject. I am still launching the website on June 1st, come hell or high water. Just a few more days. Wait, what is the date? Okay, i just got up to check and i have about two more days- whew! I have even made the paypal buttons for almost everything. I am so ready to have this up and running, and just maintain it, ya know? Then I will have more time to make jewelry, which is something that hasn't happened much lately.

More good news! i finally got out my torch and made my own headpins! Now, I know that does not qualify for much in the scope of metalsmithing, but i got out the torch, lit it, and the house didn't blow up. making headpins is fun. Like roasting marshmellows. :)

One last tidbit- it has come to my attention that there is someone who wants me to succeed enought that once my business reaches a certian level, they will be there to provide financial backing, should i decide to take it to the next level! That is huge, and it is a giant motivator to keep going, especially when i have those moments where i think to myself that i just should have this be a hobby. Nope! Not without a fight.

Well, this is a phenomenally long update, but i guess when it rains it pours as far as news goes. I will try to update more consistently. Honest injun, I will. For the rest of the day I am going to be doing a little power cleaning, and then I am going to go to the pool for a while *shudder* But, I have to get to be at least a little less than pasty white. then i am gonna make a goal for the night to have the earring page ready to go, and finish a necklace that i am working on.

That's all she wrote! Hope everyone has a great memorial day!!

2006-05-25T22:53:00.000-04:00

:(

i watched Hotel Rwanda tonight. I was horrified. Horrified and ashamed. And outraged. And so very, very saddened.

http://www.amnesty.org/

i have news, but i will talk about it tomorrow.

I Haven't Fallen Off the Planet!

2006-05-22T21:40:00.000-04:00

I know that it has been a few days, but I haven't had much to talk about! Can you imagine that? Me having nothing to say?

Well, I have not made any jewelry in over a week. And I have not had any motivation to make much either. Well not out of anything that I have on hand right now anyway. What a pity! I always feel like I am wasting time when I am not cranking out jewelry. that just makes it worse! I am trying to just get over that and be proud of myself for what I have been doing....

.....making mucho progress on my website! I really mean it this time. I have pics uploaded, cropped, sized, bordered, and described. I just have to price some more stuff, and get the PayPal buttons all set up. Oh yeah, I upgraded to the merchant Paypal account. Man, what a convoluted process! I mean, really! But this time I am making progress; I really really am.

Well, I promise that there will be more pics of things that I have made really, really soon. I am going to make more stuff, honest! I just placed a humungo wire and sheet (!!) order and I am hoping that it will be here soon. I got some copper sheet, copper wire, and fine silver, as well as about a jillion different gauges of sterling wire.

See, this is boring isn't it? I agree. I will stop for now and update as soon as I have something interesting to say. Shouldn't be too long! ;)

Shag Lesson 3- (groan)

2006-05-19T16:43:00.000-04:00

ok, so last night was the third lesson in shagging. hmmmmm. it was interesting. i am getting the hang of some stuff, and that is well and good. but then it came time to partner up. guess who i got stuck with? if you guessed old rotten teeth, you guessed right. he is still every bit as horrible as last week. and then, while we were practicing (god i hate holding his hand!) he just yanks my arm up and decides that it is time to twirl me around- and he bonked me in the head with my own arm! it was awful. and then while we are dancing, or i am trying to dance and he is flopping about, he kinda sticks his pelvis out. GROSS!!!! okay, so shagging may have a dirty name if you are in the UK, but it is not a dirty dance. you aren't supposed to move above your legs, and you really aren't supposed to stick your old man pelvis out at me. i was getting so frustrated that Jennifer felt bad enough for me to give up her nice old man partner so that I could at least get a little bit of practice in. that went much better. although i still don't quite get the subletly of the lead, so told him to "send me out" with a punch in the back. he wouldn't punch me though, so i will just have to try harder. and by try harder i mean use my strategy of waiting to see where rotty teeth stands and then go to the opposite side of the room. oh and i think that he thinks that we are a rotten toothed Fred Astaire and a flip flopped Ginger Rogers. He told me as I was leaving that we would do better next week. I will do better, because i will find a new old man to dance with! Gah! blah. and here's another yucky thing- this will give you the heebie jeebies- his old man cologne gets on me and follows me home. my arms hands and shirt smelled like it! yuck!! i had to scrub down like a doctor and change shirts when i got home just so that i could enjoy will and grace. Ick.

okay, on to beady news- I finally got the hang of HP 4in1!!!!! YAY!!! A big thanks to Phong for his awesome tutorials. oh and my faceted rondelles showed up yesterday along with more Kabs lampwork, and my super sale Photoshop Elements. I hate Photoshop Elements. Argh! It's I can't get it to do what I want and the concept of layering and most of the other stuff is just totally lost on me.

I haven't made any jewelry this week. But, I think that I am going to sit down and give some a shot in a little bit. Kerry got me motivated to try a bracelet that I have had on the "list" for a while. Oh, and guess what! I found another place to approach with my jewelry! I am going to have to get my website spiffed up so I can go out and get this done.

I'll come back tomorrow with jewelry, hopefully! then i think that i am going kayaking, and crabbing out in Mt. Pleasant. should be fun, and it is high time that my pasty white fanny got out in the sun. Hopefully there will be crabs for dinner tomorrow!

Bad Cat Free to a Horrible Home

2006-05-15T21:12:00.000-04:00

Oh my god! oh my GOD!! oh....GOD!! WHY?!?! Charles the Homeless Wonder Cat peed on my clothes. Yup, that's right. Stop laughing. I mean it. It's not funny! Why on earth did he do that? Was that his way of saying, "Mom, you need to grow up and quit leaving your clothes in a pile on the bathroom floor"? Is that it? Or maybe he meant it as a Mother's Day Present? A new yellow shirt for the best mommy ever? Oh I am so mad. Well, at least I needed to do a load of whites anyway. Nothing spells motivation like cat piss. Maybe this is a good thing. Maybe, thanks to the power of All Small & Mighty, I will have a sparkly clean white shirt that doesn't smell of pee and I will write them such a passionate letter of thanks that they will put me in a commercial and give me $250,000. I bet that's it. You know what the worst part of it is? He is a sneaky little bugger. I NEVER catch him going somewhere he is not supposed to. To make it worse, he KNOWS he shouldn't do it, so he finds clothes, tax documents (I'm not kidding) and other stuff and uses it to cover his poo. Normally he goes in front of the litter box, which I always took as a gesture of spite. Like saying, "Thanks for the free food and free place to crash, by the way, I made this turd for you. Enjoy, ass." Thanks, Charlie. Really, you're too kind. So yeah, he is so sneaky, that I can't beat him when I find it. I mean, he won't remember. What's the point?
The moral of this story? Some days you're the cat, and some days you're the shirt.

Today I am the shirt.

More Opals!

2006-05-14T14:53:00.000-04:00

these earrings would make a great little companion to the bracelet from yesterday, wouldn't you think? I know that it is kind of a shaddy pic, but oh well. It is hard to believe, but the opals are even from the same lot as yesterday, and they look almost white. But, the are light as a feather and very swirly girly once again.

I have been oh so productive since yesterday. I worked on my website a LOT last night and I am pretty pleased with the progress. Once i get my photoshop then I can go into warp speed and get the site to go live. Oh and today i sat down and priced a bunch of stuff. man, things really add up! it is hard for me to say the prices of things with a straight face. But, I know that it has to be worth that money. I make all of my own rings, most of my components including end caps and clasps and earwires, and i don't use cheapy materials. I guess I just need to practice having that confidence.

Oh and I finally got my butt in gear and made a call about applying to the SC Artisans Association. they won't be sending out the info and applications for another month or so, but when it comes I will be all over it. they sell stuff on consignment, have several events throughout the year, and they need teachers for the summer! So I think that it will be worth the wait, because being involved out there could really be a good thing.

I need to get back to work. I hope everyone is having a wonderful Mother's Day!

I used my opals!

2006-05-13T18:27:00.000-04:00

Finally! I got into my opals and made at least a little dent in the strand. I think this bracelet is cute and girly. Girly isn't my usual style, but the links are so light and airy and the opals have the most delicate color. they are a little paler than they appear in the picture. And there is also a little cha-cha element to this bracelet, because the opal dangles make the most fun little clinky sound when they hit eachother. so cute.

well i don't have my photoshop yet, because of the shipping problem. according to the email, it went out yesterday. but, i think that i may have figured out the key to the photo thing. looks a lot better doesn't it? and that pukey pink hue is gone. so we all know what that means. Time to photograph everything ALL over again. but only after i wash the background, because it looks pretty shabby right about now. yuck!

Well, today I am going to sit down and make myself do what I have been avoiding for a while now. I am going to price and photograph everything that hasn't been done yet, and then photograph it. That way, I can get it put away safely, and not leave it sitting in a pile on the floor. :P That is so much stuff! And, I am also going to make some cute little opal earrings to go with the bracelet. too cute.

Oh and good news! through my own resourcefulness, I have managed to get a $100 gift certificate through work that is good for a Visa gift card. and i still have my $10 gift certificate from Rio Grande, so I am going to go nutso and buy a bunch of stuff that I want. And, I think that it is high time that I go and trade in my silver scraps. You should see the bag; its pretty big. Gotta do something, since I am running soooo low on wire. Hope I get that card soon! More tomorrow!

Shag Lesson 2

2006-05-11T21:19:00.000-04:00

Well, this time I promise this is short update. :)

Tonight was lesson 2 o shagging. It was fun. We have started going on thursdays, and the class is much smaller. the teachers went much slower, and i think that i made some prgress. this time i got a new old man dance partner, and I can't say that I was thrilled about it. He had rotten teeth and was a bit of a spazz. he was there to learn, and he did nothing to boost my confidence, because he just sort of flopped around. but oh well. I still learned a whole new step, threw a turn or two in there, and i didn't look too shabby. I think that we may go back to the club, get some drinks in us, and dance with more old men some time soon. goota practice with a human you know. the cat is a terrible leader, although he does have great rhythm. :)

in beady news, i am just not up to it tonight, and wasn't last night either. I think that I may make some "filler" earrings tomorrow so that i can practice my earwires. maybe i will work some more on the website too. but- those faceted peruvian opals have been calling to me and i think that I have some ideas. I even made a cool link tonight just messing around, and I have to figured out a way to cover it in opals. i just love them.

oh, and i really do have a serious addiction to beads. i am out of control. i took money out of my savings account to buy stuff. what do you expect? the earth bazaar weekly sale got me again. i only spent liike $70 and got lots of faceted rondells in peridot, moonstone, apatite, and aquamarine. fun colors, huh? i will have pics of jewelry to share tomorrow. i promise.

told ya i would be brief. i should just go to bed. i am not even in the mood to ramble. :)

Blue Cat Coats

2006-05-09T21:33:00.000-04:00

this will just be a quick update. I promise this time. ;-)

I just thought that i would pop on and show off what i made tonight. I love it when ideas just come to you without plan or direction. this is the product of a goal that i have to use what i have before going out and buying more stuff. it is a custom made focal that i had done based on the spacers on the earrings. they are called blue cat coats. kinda tortoiseshell-ish, and i love the color combo. anyway, i whipped the set out in just under an hour. kinda cute and delicate, huh? I love the modern clean lines. enough of that. yawn, I'm boring myself.

shag class has been moved to thursday, as i mentioned and i am secretly glad because idol is almost over and i love it. i just love that taylor. sigh.

oh yeah, and bad news. my photoshop won't even be shipped till friday and it is coming by regular mail. so that means that this weekend i won't be able to use it, and thus not be able to do a whole lot for the website.

you know how i told you that i was planning to drill on some shells? yeah, well it isn't going well at all. I think that I am using the wrong kind of bit. not sure what to use though. any ideas? it's frustrating, i will tell you that. but i can't give up because the bracelet and necklace that i have planned for these shells are really, really, really wonderful.

and this is one little gripe to leave you with. i haven't checked the price of silver in a few days. that is the last time i don't check, i will tell you that! holy moses i almost fell out of my chair! it has gone up like $3 per ounce since the last time i bought. and wouldn't you know it, i am running out of just about everything. I think that i can *maybe* make it another week and a half, two weeks at the most. Ugh! between this and gas, how am i supposed to get by? maybe i should go take a different kind of dance lesson and invest in some tassels, eh? but seriously. puke. grrrrr........

*image loader isn't working. argh. i'll try again tomorrow*

_____________________________________________

okay i fixed it!! :)

the Purple Tortoise

2006-05-08T22:04:00.000-04:00

Well, this is a little piece that I just finished a few minutes ago. Pretty cute, huh? It is some lampwork that I came across while cleaning up the studio, and the runaway links that I told you about on Friday. For an accident, I think that it is pretty snazzy! I meant for the links to be a different shape, and they wanted to look like this. I like the clasp too. I haven't made one like this in a long time, not since my time of haunting the Connie Fox site. Feels like years ago! But, she calls it the Swan clasp and puts a little V shape at the bottom. I call mine a duck, and leave it round and make the neck much closer to the body. Either way, the necklace is great. I am pleased.

So, did you notice how much better the pictures are getting? I think that I am really getting the hang of the picture thing. And, I got on Amazon.com today and was able to find an old copy (but unused) of Photoshop Elements for $20 including shipping! I know that it is not as cool as the other photoshop, but it is about 1/16 of the price, and that is worth trying out. Can't wait to see what it does for my pics!

Well, bad news on the website front. I finally came to my senses and realized that the color scheme that I chose was AWFUL! What was I thinking. The colors looked good together, but they absolutely swallowed the jewelry. Ugh. So I am thinking that I will just go with a white background, and then the same burgundy for the text that the background is now. I think that I should also sit down and read the manual for a little while. That would probably help with some of the obstacles. I don't know how I managed to not inherit the "read instructions BEFORE starting" gene. Hmph. When will I learn?

Okay, I am getting pissed off with the Half Persian 4 in 1 weave. I have been trying it for days now. Days! And i just can't get it right. I am so stinkin mad. But, I have a nice little pile of rings, and I am NOT giving up. I will not be bested by a buncha stoopid rings!

here's the off topic news for today: Shag class has been switched to Thursday night. It is also singles night (groan- "singles night") which is good and bad. Good because there might actually be guys under the age of 80 who want to dance with me and boo on it because it is called singles night. Now, I love my singleness, I really do. I am not a settler. I don't settle. But damn if something about the term "singles night" doesn't sound like I should skulk off to my mother's basement after a long night of singles dancing. Sounds losery. *Shudder* Maybe I will have a better attitude if I pretend that I am Carrie from Sex and the City. She was cool even if her outfits were bizarre sometimes. In other life related news, I am receiveing Napoleon Dynamite from NetFlix and I looooooooooved Brokeback Mountain. Jake Gylenhaal is hot. I love him. Oh and Fish Tycoon? It is eating me alive. I adore that game. I get so sad when fish die though.

Hopefully I will be back tomorrow with a Half Persian victory......

Look who learned how to use her camera!

2006-05-07T15:54:00.000-04:00

okay, i admit it. i am a dummy and i never bothered to sit down with my camera and do some reading through the manual. White balance was a foreign concept to me. But, I think that I am slowly getting the hang of it. Here's before:

And here's after, complete with the photo cube and all:

Now, there is still a little bit of a pink hue to it, which is kinda pissing me off, but we are still getting somewhere because the beads are being accurately pictured, and that is what counts, for now anyway!

So, I have been so busy this weekend. I have gotten a lot done on the website, and I got fair amount of jewelry made. I am going to have to wait for a few of the projects that I had in mind, because I am either out or running out of a lot of the gauges that I want to use. that is okay though, because I think that I can at least get started on a few other things. whenever I hit an idle time where I can't think of a lot to do, my mind wanders over to chainmaille. I think that I am going to try a few new things and see how they go. Either way, I will be sure to show you vastly improved pics. I am going to keep trying to get that pinky tone to go away. I think that I am close......

Oh, and at this rate, the website could be live within a week or two! Yay! But, it will be pretty basic. No bells and whistles, just non broken links and okay pictures. that's okay for now right? If it is not, then oh well. I am getting antsy.

I will check in tomorrow if I have any news or an especially special bead related tidbit to share. Enjoy the rest of the weekend, yall!

Just a quick update

2006-05-06T10:38:00.000-04:00

I am just stopping by this morning to tell you what I have been up to. I know that I have been seriously neglecting the blog, so I am going to try to get better at posting. Also, I know that I need to get better about making stuff so I have something to post. Ya know?

Well, I am still in full on busy mode this weekend. the minute that I opened my eyes I thought "tourmaline abacus earrings!." I am working on some, 'tis true. I will finish those as soon as my eyes are all the way open, and perhaps share them with you.

You know I am going on a serious jewelry bender this weekend. If I finish all that I say that I will (no comments please!) then I will have done two necklaces, two bracelets, 3 earrings, and a pendant. not too shabby, huh? I guess that I should keep the studio clean more often huh?

I am also going to try my hardest to catch up on all the misc. stuff that I have not been doing. I need to take pics of everything, scrap all the old pics, and get everything priced. here's what I do with pricing: I use an index card and write down as i go along the chunks of time that I spend on one side, and the materials and price on the other. so then even if i don't feel like it right then and there, i can still go back and know just how much wire is used for example and how many of this or that, and how long. Aren't I clever?

Well, in off topic news, IT"S A GIRL!! Can't believe that I forgot to tell you all that! I am excited. Although, I would still be excited if it was a boy. When is it not good at this point? Never, but I sure do like the little ruffle-butt dresses babies wear. The mommy knew it all along. Oh,and I am hooked on Fish Tycoon, the MSN game. the first computer game I ever bought! I will make sure to let you know how I get on, since the reality show commentary seems to have gone by the wayside.

Yeah, right, a short update. I told ya brevity was not my strong suit! Be back later with photos!

Cinco de Mayo!

2006-05-05T20:21:00.000-04:00

Well, can you tell what the magic surprise was that came this week? Yup, photo equipment. It is a light cube, tripod, and some lamps. Much better, eh?

I LOVE this necklace. Love it! It has been torturing me as a work in progress for the last probably two or three weeks. I think that it is a lot more 'grownup' than most pieces I make. It is quite long too, coming to just above my cleavage. Sorry, that is the only way that I can describe it. Hmmm, then I will just have to make a mental note to wear it to the next shage class! ;)

My studio is so clean and organized, you wouldn't believe it. Wunnerful! And I have been working like a crazy lady since I got home today. I finished the iolite necklace, and started another necklace that decided to take on a life of its own (I'll be sure to share it soon). Don't you just love that. I had to stop because my hands got achy. So I took a very long nap.

Brokeback Mountain came from netflix today and i am really excited to see it. So there is a pizza in the oven, a movie to watch, and then I am getting back to work and would like to make another thing or two and then bust out the photography studio. Pretty crazy cinco de mayo. huh? well it is raining, and I am broke! But I have lots to do and I have been itching to make stuff the whole week, so it is fine by me!

Nobody Puts Holly in a Corner

2006-05-02T21:48:00.000-04:00

Do you remember that, the best line from Dirty Dancing?

Well, I have started taking Shag lessons. No for all you UK readers, not THAT shag. The really fun dance that is popular on the coast, and an artform where I live. Me and some girlfriends are going once a week to a beach club here to learn to do the dance properly. How fun! I really like it. The problem is, there are way more ladies than men, like all dance classes. Not the place to meet a guy, but it was fun anyway. First it was like a junior high school dance; boys on one side, girls on the other. then we had to get partners and I didn't get picked. Like gym class. Eventually a nice old man came to dance with me. He was very patient and nice, although I caught him checking out my boobs while I was looking at my feet. The price you pay, I guess. So now for the rest of the night, I have tried to "glide" everywhere chanting "one and two, three and four, fiiiive six." Hopefully they will cover gliding while you do the steps next time, because right now I just sort of flop and shuffle. And I look like Baby from Dirty Dancing, trying to twirl myself. But don't worry, in a few weeks, I will be a dance machine. Well too late, but a good dance machine. :)

Tomorrow night I have to go out to dinner with friends. We are going to 11 Center Street on Folly Beach, and we are going to find out the sex of my best friends first child! Exciting. they are going to have the doctor write it down and put it in an envelope and not tell them. then the envelope will be opened at dinner so we all know at the same time. Too exciting!

Okay well I haven't made any jewelry or even tried in days. I am starting to get the shakes and get really aggravated. You just wait. As soon as I have an evening to myself, I am gonna go NUTS! I will also be getting some fun packages tomorrow, and that should help me force myself to get focused. The next time I post some jewelry, you will know exactly what I got!

I need to get in bed. I am worn out from all that shagging.

Is this bracelet wierd?

2006-04-27T21:47:00.000-04:00

Hello I am back and I actually have a pic that is jewelry related this time!

This is a terrible photo. Just when you thought that I could not get any more shameful, I have taken the photo on a *wet* papertowel. Well, it is getting late, and it was fresh out of the tumbler. oh well.

So whaddaya think? I am not sure that I like it. In my mind's eye it was a fascinating design, but I am not sure that I like the finished result. I know that the pic is a little out of focus on the jade, but you can at at least see that the rest is byzantine weave with a handmade clasp, right? yeah, I know you can't. But I would love to hear what you think of it. I wanna make a necklace to go with it, but I am not sure I am up for it, since it will be thrice the work ( I love it when I get a chance to say thrice in context) and I am sorta lukewarm about it. What to do?

Here's something a little disturbing. I tumbled two jade beads, to see how they would hold up in the tumbler. I was so relieved that they didn't look terrible that i didn't wait to see how they looked when they were dry. Well, guess what? They absorbed a little of the soap (I think) and then have some white crusty splotches on them! Oh no! Any suggestions as to what to do about this would be most appreciated. I have thought about soaking the bracelet in water, and I won't even tell you what else I thought about doing, because this is in writing and it can be held against me, ha!!

Well, lastnight didn't go so hot in terms of jewelry making, except that I got the jade piece done, and did the chain today. Some earrings came out really poorly, and it was only after I threw them down in frustration that I saw where I went wrong. I will pick them back up again tomorrow. Stupid pearls.

I will make this a busy and productive weekend. I HAVE to. People are coming to steam clean my carpets on monday, so I have to have the house clean. Plus, everything is so out of order here that I can't find the things that I am working on and the tools that I am using. And, I have lots of cool new beads, lots of wire, and lot of ideas. So I have to stay motivated to get stuff done. Lots to photograph on Saturday morning (when the light is best on my balcony), lots to price, clean, organize, coil, bend, loop, etc. Look for more fun pieces and hopefully decent pics soon!

No day but today....to cry and cry

2006-04-25T22:37:00.000-04:00

this photo has nothing to do with the post title. Just thought I should say it upfront. these wierd little guys are actually out fron of a bead store in Nashville. Funny, eh? I like the one with a trumpet.

Why cry and cry today? Because I watched Rent tonight. thank god I watched it by myself. I cried more than I have at any movie in a loooooong time. Like to the point where I think I had a snot bubble or two and now I have a headache. Good stuff. Sometimes it is nice to have a cry like that. It reminds me of those pore strips. you know, just kinda cleans you out (emotionally, guys, don't be disgusting!) and gets a little of the under the surface yucky out too.

I didn't get a lot done today. at all. I worked for like half an hour during american idol got to a stopping point and just quit. i just didn't have it in me to work after watching that exhausting movie. but, at least tomorrow AI is only 30 mins. and Netflix won't have sent me anything new to watch, so I can get back to bidness.

Ever have a really cool idea for something, but you aren't sure of the logistics of it? I have an idea for an awesome jade and silver set, but I am not sure of what to string the jade on. I don't think that beading wire will be strong enough, but I am not sure that I want the ends to be finished with wrapped loops. And that is all that I am telling you. Oh and I am not sure if I want to do it part chainmaille part something else. what am i talking about, of course I want to do chainmaille! I love it. Perhaps more Persian. We'll see! Hopefully more goodies will be here tomorrow, so who knows. I could end up with nothing that I set out to do. Story of my life.

Well, Corpse Bride should be along soon. That is why I have to hurry up and get some more work done so that I can watch and not feel guilty. But I am sure that I won't cry too hard over that one. Ha!

I was gone and I Didn't Do The Dishes

2006-04-23T19:23:00.000-04:00

Hi! I am back after a very long absence. I tried to update this week, I really did. Well, once. Sadly, i got all the way till the time to push the 'publish post' button, and somewhere along the line i lost my internet connection, so all was lost! this is probably a good thing, since the post reeked of Blue Moon on tap. this is a polite way of saying that i was the teensiest bit overserved at good old Gene's Haufbrau, and i tend to be faux philosophical during times like those. Not my finest hour(s), to be sure. Moving right along....

I didn't do the dishes this weekend, or anything much else for that matter, but I did use some of the Kab's concepts lampwork I bought during the birthday shopping extravaganza. The set is called Don't Do the Dishes, and they are too cute. I think that the necklace turned out pretty swell also. Forgive the photo taken on top of the stove:

And yes, I made the chain all by myself. that was by far the most time consuming part of the whole piece. I think that it looks really good though. the necklace feels great to wear.

Well, this weekend I finally got the hang of the Persian weave! thanks god. I almost gave up about 6 times and now it is super easy. Yay me. Even got another bracelet done that incorporates the weave. Love it!

Oh and my first bead show was pretty cool. It was sorta smaller than I thought that it would be, but that is ok. My money went fast enough as it is! Got some awesome jade (the real deal, not "jade" -eyeroll), some GORGEOUS pink peruvian opal (faceted rondells) that is to die for, and some other odds and ends, including the swarovskis used in the necklace above. it was a good time. then I had to jet off to a baby shower down at the Charleston Place Hotel. Fancy! It was actually a tea party, and it was so fun. Gotta love yummy tea, tiny sandwiches, and crumpets. Oh and little bitty baby girl clothes. the decor of the tearoom and the whole fanfare of the event gave me an awesome idea for a bracelet. It was a great day all the way around.

Well, i don't think that i will stay away so long this week! Lots on the brain, and lots in the mail. But I won't tell you what...perhaps I'll show. Maybe even dig out a new list. Okay now I make myself sick with the list nonsense. Oh and I start my diet tomorrow, which means that I will have to make a ton of jewelry so that I can keep the food out of my piehole. Ha!

Happy Birthday to MEEE!

2006-04-17T17:36:00.000-04:00

Yup, you read that right. I am a quarter of a century old today! And here's a few pics of what I did today. I had a lunch date with some old friends (who are also birthday boys and girls today!) then I went book shopping and bought some awesome resource books, including a Tim McCreight book. I am really excited. Oh and the new Art Jewelry *swoon* Anyway, after that, I went with my best friend to Folly Beach for a walk. Here's some purdy scenery for ya, with a cute little sandpiper:

And here's the Morris Island lighthouse. It doesn't work anymore, and is in danger of falling right over. there is a big "Save the Light" movement here, and has been for some time. It's current location is the result of longshore currents, and erosion here in the area. No I won't tell you anymore about it. Look it up! Learn something!

Well, I needed today. I needed a hooky day off work, and new books, and a walk on the beach. I made nothing this weekend. I had no ideas, no inspiration and just wanted to wallow. that hasn't happened in a while, and it worried me as I am perpetually gearing up to approach galleries. But, I am ordering my smithing stuff and bought cool new beads and books. I am looking forward to learning new things, and perfecting other things. I love that process. It gets really frustrating, but that feeling of having something come together is something that I am getting addicted to.Exciting.
I know this is a short post, but i am sandy smelly sticky and sweaty. Time to get cleaned up!

Have you seen my mojo?

2006-04-15T21:38:00.000-04:00

Ugh. Ever have one of those days that by the end of it you wish that there was a button you could push somewhere that would start it all over again? Well, somwhere along the line last night, someone stole my mojo, and that made today a total waste.

I wanted to get up early. I meant to. But, I went out last night and was slightly overserved. that made me sleep in pretty late, and then lie on the couch for a while, wondering how beer could be both a friend and a enemy all at once. I wanted to take a nap, but I just couldn't sleep. I couldn't even make jewelry today! Not that I really felt that bad, I just didn't feel like it. I hate those days. So, I decided that some retail therapy was in order, and off I went to my favorite bead store. this will show you just how little mojo I had: i went with the intention of carelessly buying things, and I was there for like 40 minutes at least, and I spent nine dollars! I know, right? Nuts!

So, I decided to at least do a little administrative stuff tonight to not make the whole day a waste. this means that I did a little more planning the structure of my website, and ordered a Rio Grande catalog. I designed some note cards too at VistaPrint. I am really most excited about the catalog. I am going to break the bank when it gets here, I know it. It's gonna be swell. *Sigh* I just have to remember that my first bead show ever is next weekend, and I have to save some cash for that! It's almost here!!

I think that tomorrow I will go to the beach, and maybe do some wandering downtown too, and remember to bring my camera. I bet that will give me some inspiration, if I just get out of the house and go look at the things that make it worth living here in charleston. And go to Wal-Mart (god how I hate that place) and buy all the candy and torch and some fuel. And maybe some fun organizer thingys.

Happy Easter Bunny Day!

Earrings on Birthday Weekend

2006-04-14T14:56:00.000-04:00

Wow, I am experiencing a little bit of internal conflict here. I found out this week that people actually read my blog. I don't know why I didn't think anyone would ever see it, but I thought I was just talking to myself. Knowing that I have an audience means that I will probably drone on even more. But, I read on the Blogger thing that you should keep your posts brief and to the point. Brevity goes against my nature. What to do?

Today's pic is of 4 pairs of earrings that I worked on over the past few days. Told you the block was lifting! I am particularly fond of the lampwork spiral pair. Probably because the beads the result of faithful voting for Kab's Concepts on Artzee.net and Top25.com. Well, the little silver coiled beads are cute too.
Creativity is a funny thing, don't you think? My list making has shown me that.

Remember the European 4 in 1 bracelet that I have been droning on about. Well, now it is sitting on the edge of my desk, all forgotten about. I decided that I would try Jen's Pind today, and took off with that. I am almost done with the chain portion of it. Now all I have to do is wait for the focal to get here. My point with that story (see, I told you brevity isn't my strong suit) is that sometimes I notice that when I try to force something, because it is the next item on a list, makes it just get blocked up and not work at all. But when I sit down to play with something, it goes really well. Huh. Funny.

I have also decided to make an effort to take care of myself with regard to beading, wire working, etc. I hae started to do hand exercises and take breaks, and pay attention to whether my hands are tired or not. It makes a huge difference. I decided this because more and more I think about what it would be like if I got to realize the dream of making jewelry being a full time job. Or even a part time job! It means that my hands are the most important tool I own, and I have to take care of them. Respecting my personal boundaries has always been really hard for me.

In the interest of brevity, I will leave you with an update: Mary's Ring was a hit! She loves it. That makes me really happy. She gasped when she saw it, and put it right on. Then she kept holding her hand out throughout the day to admire it. I love that! My mom did the same thing when she was here and picked out a bangle for herself. That is the greatest compliment. And it just makes me want to push harder, so that there are more people smiling because they are wearing something I made.

Now it's nap time. I love Fridays! Oh, and wait till you see all the lampwork that I bought today. I am so excited about it. Yay!

Mary's Ring

2006-04-12T22:17:00.000-04:00

Here it is! the long-awaited Lapis Ring!

And here's a side view:

I am really pleased with the way that this turned out. Like most things that I procrastinate on, it wasn't that bad. I was nervous about it, and now I just dont know why. It took a little bit of adjusting after it was all done, but I am really pleased with it. I think that Mary will be too. She is my coworker, and she has been so supportive of all my jewelry making endeavors. It is nice to have people like that in your life. You know, the people who don't poohpooh your dreams, and the fact that you could make them a reality. It is even better when they give you $$ for the things that you do. I hope it fits her ok. I hope she likes it.

I wish that I hadn't waited so late in the evening to get this done. My boss is out of the office this week, and that means that I get to play around. I did most of my work today and was planning to cut some rings so that I could maille tomorrow. What a bad girl! I do have some rings laying around, and that directionless European 4 in 1 chain sitting here. Maybe I will grab some more wire and some pliers and throw some stones in there. Might as well, right? I think that I may bring my sketch book too.

I lost my list. I can't find it. What else was it that I wanted to do this week? Is it thursday already? Oy.

ooowwwwwie!!

2006-04-11T21:33:00.000-04:00

is there a masseuse in the house? or a chiropractor? somebody?

well, I made another to do list, and i decided that a good goal to have would be to try and learn a new chainmaille weave every week or so. especially since i had so much trouble this weekend with all the weaves that I tried. nothing was clicking! well today we finally got some clicking action. I just so happened to have cut some rings this weekend that worked for the European 4 in 1 weave. this is like a two in one weave because it is just one step away from being the boxchain too. after a few tries, it finally clicked in, and I am now mostly done with a bracelet. it is totally not fancy or anything, just rings put together. Maybe I will take some of it apart and add some stones or somethingonce i get the weave all the way down pat. But my hands really hurt sometimes. And i scrunch up my right shoulderwhile I am working, and sitting on the phone, so it is like stuck up around my ear and it is sooo stiff. Maybe I will start yoga again.

I dunno why, but I have a total mental block up around doing this ring that I have been commissioned to do. Hello?!? It's MONEY, Holly! I am nervous about it I think partly because I have never made a ring this way before, and I also have to make it a good deal larger than I have ever made a ring. I need to just get over it and get cracking tomorrow night. Okay! this ring needs to be done this week. I need to get over this.

As for the other things on the list, there's a pendant, a few pairs of earrings, and maybe another cuff or bangle. We'll see. Stay tuned for the saga of the lapis ring that just won't come to be!

Lazy Sunday

2006-04-09T18:22:00.000-04:00

nothing new to report here today, really. mom is still here (she's snoring on the couch like usual). her visit is almost over; she leaves tomorrow morning when I leave for work. boo for work. maybe i will win the powerball this week.

i actually have managed to get a few things made this weekend, in between my mother trying to "clean" the studio when she thinks i am not looking, and her accusing the cat of trying to kill her. she is a bit of a nut. But, I am lucky because she is very supportive of me and understands my drive to make the Silver Lotus Studio a success. that means a lot becuase i think that my dad sees it as a cute hobby. I guess he likes it because surely if i am at home and broke because i bought beads, then i can't be out at bars drinking beer. but i do still manage to squeeze a little bar time in. ;-)

i am just too lazy to photograph things right now, so there are no pics to share. but, i am working over the earring block, and made several kewl paris this weekend. even conquered a new technique. then chainmaille blues set it, because i just didn't have the patience to wait till the weaves that i tried clicked in my brain. but, as long as i am putting out *something* that I love, then there's no wasted time.

speaking of, I ordered my business cards today! yay! they are so cute. and I am going to have to start promoting myself more once they get here. sontcha think?

well mom is stirring, so maybe I can go back to making more earrings. and shooing her out of the studio. :-D

Noooo! Anything but that!

2006-04-06T17:51:00.000-04:00

this is Charlie. He is just waking up from a nap in the linen closet (groan). yesterday was his birthday. He turned three! I can't believe that I let him live this long. And, I remember all the stuff that I was going through at the time that I got him, and I can't believe that I lived through it all to look back on it three years later. Anyway. the look on charlie's face is one of dismay. He is saying in kitty speak, "Are you kidding me?!? My grandma is coming to town? And she called to give you 23 hours' notice that she will be staying the weekend?!? She's gonna tell you that you need a haircut and someclothes that fit right. come get me out of the closet when she's gone." Yup, that's right, my mom is coming in town this weekend. Tomorrow. And she called to tell me that 10 minutes ago. Yeowza!! I really do want to see her, and I am glad that she is coming, but TOMORROW?!? I wish that I had more notice.

Here's my secret beader gift. I told you it was cool. I am mailing it out tomorrow. I hope my beadee likes it. I bet she will. I love it and I loved making it. And Ithink that is what counts. Don't you?

Oh, and here's another sucky thing: DC Wireworks' site is down! and it is down in such a way that I don't think they paid their bill. I hope that it gets running soon. It is such a great resource for chain maille tutorials. I was really wanting to get into some mailling tonight, and maybe try the Harvest Moon weave. But noooooo. the site is down. Hmph. Maybe this is a blessing in disguise. Yes, that's it. You see, I have had a serious lack of ideas for earrings, and now the block is starting to lift.Sooooo, this gives me a chance to get moving on some earrings.

Time to sign off and get to work! Gotta clean for mom! I guess something was bound to happen so that I had to clean the house. ;)

I Can't Think of a Clever Post Title

2006-04-04T22:37:00.000-04:00

I suppose that I should try to be more brief in my blog entries. They have gotten to be so long that even I don't want to read them. So, let's get to it. The pic above is a V shaped necklace. It rocks. It is made of carnelian, bali beads, and smoky quartz. It's pretty fragile, but when it is being worn, it is fine, and has a nice wieght to it. The pic should be commented on in that I sunk to a new photography low and used a paper towel as a background. I don't wanna hear it, ok? ;)
Well, the other night I made a list of the projects that I wanted to accomplish this week, and I think that may be the key to lots of productivity for me. this necklace is crossed off, as well as my secret beader gift (!!!) and two more pairs of earrings. and it's just tuesday. I am hoping that I can knock out a ring that has been custom ordered tomorrow. that will leave the the whole rest of the week to do my list, which is playtime stuff. Easy, short projects. this will get them outta my head and into my inventory. That's how I likes it. :)My secret beader gift will go out on Friday!! Weeee! I am really excited about it. I don't want to talk like a rapper from the early 90's but I have to: my gift is DOPE. No other word for it. Perhaps it will be tomorrow's pic. It is soo cute. One thing that I like about chainmaille done a certain way is that it has a strong, yet feminine look to it. I like that in jewelry. And something about handmade chain; no machine cut chain feels like it. I may have to make one for my mom too, since we have the same birthday. Incidentally, her b-day is the 17th. *hint hint*
I know that on Friday, I am hiding from my friends. I am taking my customary Friday nap, and then I am going to CLEEEEEEEEEEN. My studio area, and the living room are horrendous. I mean, they are appalling. Beads, wire in 7, count them 7 gauges, jumprings, pliers, findings, and so many tiny ziplock bags are alllllllllll over. It's appalling. The bathroom floor however, looks great. And, I am pleased to report that Charles the Pooping Wonder Cat seems to be feeling better. That is good, but the fact that he has not pooped in the tub in two days is even better. Yeah, you read that right. I have such a glamorous life. Beads and cat poop pretty much sum it up right now.

Busy Bee

2006-04-02T18:24:00.000-04:00

Wow, this week has just flown by! I have been really busy. Today's pic is "Lillypad," a cute little necklace that I finished yesterday. I am really proud of it. It was my first go round with the ornate coiled bezel technique, and I think that it came out relatively well for a first effort. The coils weren't quite tall enough, But, I will know better for next time. The focal stone is ruby in zoisite, and it looked so much like a lillypad, that I had to get a little silver froggy to sit on it. The necklace's colors are a little bit more saturated, but I don't think that is such a bad thing. It's malachite and garnet, and they combo is pretty fun, I think. Plus, I am slowly whittling down that 19 mile long strand of garnet chips that I got. :)
What else have I gotten done this week? Well, there were three super cute bangles that I made from Kerry's Haunted Hollow beads. And, I started some cool chainmaille earrings, but of course, ran out of rings halfway through the second one. Boo. But, there should be like a mile of 18 ga wire coming (my favorite) any day now. Woo!
Well, there may not be too many updates this week, because I have a really long to do list. But, that makes me happy. I like having inspiration, and being able to hit one of those runs where I can just crank things out. After all, it is the season to approach galleries, and I need stock!
On the business front, I am at least getting a little renewed interest in it. I designed my super cute business cards. And, it's time to get all the paperwork in order. I swear, it is just taking over my life. There are receipts to be filed, there are beads to be organized, and don't get me started on the pictures! They are soooo disorganized. And there are so many things that need to be priced. Ugh. So little time!
this week look for: a cute carnelian and smoky quartz Y shaped necklace, LOADS of chainmaille, and an ornate bezeled ring. Guess I should go get to work!

I'm a Winner! (I knew it all along)

2006-03-27T18:13:00.000-05:00

Well, here's a pic of a necklace that I finished last week. I think that it is way fun. It is so light! the patterned beads are wooden, and I think that helps. I am such a fan of orange. I think it is because not everyone can wear it, and I have been told that I look good in it, so I like that the color makes me special, even if only in my own mind. ;)

Weee, today is a good beady day. I won the bead drawing on www.kabsconcepts.com ! Yay! they are cool beads too. You guys should go vote for Kerry's beads. I myself am becoming addicted to them. they're sweeet! I just love to win stuff. Now if only I could win the powerball..... Let's see what else is fun....oh yes, and I finally got off my big dumb fanny and sent a semi-decent pic of what I did with Kerry's Deep Sleep beads, and she has added them to her website. Click on "Creative Corner" and feast your eyes....

Oh, and here's the two sad things: I finished a necklace with the Haunted Hollow beads that I bought from Kerry at about midnight on Saturday. I tumbled them for 15 minutes and the crappy FMG chain that I used broke in two places! Argh. Just as well, because I can probably stretch the beads out pretty far by making a few different things with them. But man, that necklace was striking. I never use that word, but it was. Oh well. 'Twasn't meant to be, was it? the other sad thing is that when I got home my Thunderbird supply order was waiting for me at the apt offices. But they closed at least 10 mins. early and I couldn't get it! :( I guess that is a sign from the beady gods to clean my house tonight, get organized and then get to work tomorrow. This should be a busy week....... new pieces and new techniques on tap for this week. Lots to share soon...

I almost forgot: my Sopranos recap! Tony came out of his coma after a very scary rbush with death. He is still is a semi-catatonic state, which I don't like. Silvio couldn't handle the pressure of being in charge and got sent to the hospital after an asthma attack. The family is coming unglued with Tony out of commission. Christopher is soing dumb movie crap again, the fellas, including Paulie of all people, thought about swindling Carmella out of Tony's share of a big job. All kindsa trouble....can't wait for next week...

Grr. the image loader isn't working. I will try again later.

I heart Byzantine!

2006-03-21T22:31:00.000-05:00

What a fun day in the kingdom of the Silver Lotus!

I am just an emotional roller coaster aren't I?

First off, I was at work today and I decided to take a peek at Eni Oken's site. Just kinda surfing. I like to read her online journal; I think that her insights into business and jewelry making and inspiration are really interesting. Well, she apparently did a search of who's posting pics of things made from her tutorials, and guess what? A link to the post for Mi Corazon was on her site! That was pretty cool. I really need to get to work on my website then. I didn't realize how high blog postings rank in the search engines. Matter of fact, I googled the Koil Kutter tutorial, and one of my posts came up! How funny is that!

Speaking of, wonder of wonders, my Koil Kutter came today! Yahoo! I looooooooove it. The story of it's first use is pretty funny actually, but my hands ache too much to type it. Suffice to say that there is a (small)learning curve to using it. And, I think that my Dremel will probably have to be replaced before too long. It doesn't quite have the power behind it that I think that it needs. I think that it is the economy model. Well, when it gives out, it gives out. Till then~ I will Koil Kutter my heart out. So, here's a WIP: Byzantine weave with a blue Peruvian opal focal bead. Byzantine is so simple, but I really think that it is beautiful, and I love the feel of it. Man, chain maille is addictive.

As for my ongoing commentary for reality tv, I gotta say that I was disappointed in Taylor's performance tonight. Luckily he is still way too popular to go home tomorrow. I think that it will be Bucky or Kevin. Chris was awesome though! I have a soft spot for Johnny Cash anyway, but he really did a good version of it. I am such a weenie. Ha....

Therapy

2006-03-20T22:45:00.000-05:00

Well, things have gotten rocky for me in my personal life all of a sudden. I don't really wanna go into it, but I am pretty emotional today. I am sad, and angry and frustrated and cranky and everything all rolled into one. :( Lots of poopy stuff to deal with.
But, I guess I need to figure out how my glass is half full. and my jewelry is what fills up my glass in times like this. working on something, especially when the technique is repetitive and realxing like coiling or stringing, soothes the savage beast (me). It helps for me to get a little bit deeper inside my own head, and make sense of the things that are just rumbling around in there, bumping into eachother and keeping me upset. By far, the best thing about turning to beading when I am down and out is that when I focus really hard, a thing of beauty comes out of all the ugly emotions. that's pretty nice!
Woo, my treasures are rolling in! My mother lode of profanely cheap silver beads came today from Earth Bazaar. I managed to get in on the first hours of one of their super sales, and I racked up on silver beads. i am going to try to spread them out as much as possible, so that I can keep cost down. As for the rest of the epic shopping binge, I bought some more stunning lampwork from Kerry at Kabs Concepts. Man, I am a sucker for her beads! When she emailed me a pic today, I literally gasped. Seriously! Well, I imagine that this week those will arrive, as well as the Koil Kutter stuff, and the tumbler, shot, and liver of sulphur. I am so excited. I imagine that more beads, wire, and other things will be on their way shortly, within this week or the next. If there is one thing I love, it is getting stuff in the mail.
I leave you with a pic (above) of a cute little baby deer that I saw while visiting my college roommate in Nashville, TN. And the observation that the parallels between last night's Sopranos episode and The Death of a Salesman is very interesting, and I like the deeper look into Tony's psyche. Next week should be interesting. the family is coming unglued with Tony in a coma...
Please stay tuned for tomorrow night's installment. Highlights will include a kick-butt necklace that will be finished tomorrow, a mail order update, and my thoughts on American Idol.

Sticker shock

2006-03-19T01:20:00.000-05:00

this is a picture of my kitty, Charlie. His mustache is the real deal; he grew it himself. He's a cutie, isn't he?
Well, I haven't worked on much since my last post. I do have one project going that isn't even worth photographing yet. Maybe tomorrow. I love using up things that i bought forever ago. It makes me feel less wasteful, and it makes room and justification for new things!
Well, the mailman is going to be so sick of me this week, and probably next week too. I lucked out and got in on the Earth Bazaar's sterling silver sale, and bought a TON of stuff for a very reasonable price. Which is good b/c silver is really expensive right now. :( I also bought the Koil Kutter, like I mentioned before, as well as a can of liver of sulphur, a tumbler and some stainless steel shot. Fun!
I guess the sticker shock wore off, because before I knew it, I was back in front of the computer, buying more stuff! I have all sorts of good things coming although I have already forgotten what they are! Ha! Oh, I think that I got some more silver beads, and some basic stuff, along with the supplies that I needed to get to work on a custom order.
I guess my next purchases should be photography stuff (how many months have I said that nw?) and something to store finished pieces in. the inventory is taking over my desk, and that is not very good for the look of the desk, or my lovely finished pieces.
Oh well, the moral of the story is to look for more fun stuff to come this week. Hurry up, mailman!!

Game On! / Harvest Tree (WIP)

2006-03-16T18:15:00.000-05:00

Okay, so here's the necklace as it is right now. I don't care for it too much, although I really like the color palette. I'm bored with it already. So, I am going to put it away and see what becomes of it later on. There's just too much other stuff to do to force a wanky necklace into being.

I think that my poopy mood regarding my whol current state of being (obsessed with jewelry and builing my business) is just disorganization and confusion. So, I sat down today and I reconnected with an old love of mine.....LISTS! I made a list of lists, and I am still formulating the overall game plan, and the lists are growing longer. But, I feel good about the lists, and I came up with a strategy so that I can stop sitting on my porch smoking cigs and thinking, "why did I ever decide to want this so bad?" First thing is office/ studio hours. I have to set a schedule daily that is a block of time devoted to website/ research/ marketing/ jewelry making, etc. The hard part will be sticking to it, especially since the weather is getting nicer and I get distracted by drinks ooutside with friends, or playing outside in the beautiful town I call home. Second, I am setting two monthly goals: one business related, and one skill/ technique related. The second is going well so far. Okay I am done babbling about how good it feels to be proactive. game plans are my friends. :D

Weeeee! I bit the bullet, and I ordered the Koil Kutter setup, a tumbler, some shot, and some liver of sulphur (smelly). Now that the sticker shock has worn off, I am really excited. Chain maille is not out of the question for March! Yay!!

On the subject of my quasi-secret passion, reality tv: I don't think that Melissa should have been kicked off of AI yet, it should have been Chicken Little. Taylor Hicks gets better and better and Chris had the goofiest sideburns I have ever seen. I thought they were working with stylists. I know someone who had sideburns like that once; it was because he lost a bet. No new Survivor for I think two weeks. Yipes. And Flavor of Love is over, so I feel my brain cells regenerating. thank god that crazy broad that looked like a man didn't win. I liked Hoopz from the getgo. And thank God that The Sopranos came back! Life has meaning again! Can't believe Uncle Junior shot Tony!

Craptastic Beady Day

2006-03-13T22:33:00.000-05:00

Blah! Blah. Grrrrrrrr! Sigh. Okay enough with the sound effects. But that is how today was.

I had a bad beady day. Well, I feel like it was. I got home from work and dinked around on the computer for way too long. Stupid MySpace. I wandered about the little "studio" area I have set up here in the house forever, waiting for something to catch my eye. Well, the studio is just a fancy name for the den, and that is small and packed full of junk. So, I really just paced around in a little circle.

Finally~ I was able to get down to business. I had all the makings for an autumn colored Tree of Life. I have been wanting to try that tutorial. I love the look of the twisted wire. It's a pretty substantial departure from the uniformity of coiling, and that was fun. But, like most things worth doing, it was a bit easier said than done. I am still worried that I will have to solder the frame, because the "roots" just arent enough to hold it together. Guess I had to start somewhere since I have about a bazillion othervariations on the Tree in my head.

I am not sure what I think of the finished product. Since it is autumn themed, I wanted it to have a little bit more of a bare look, but now I am not sure what I think. It just seems nekked to me now. Not naked, nekked. But, I guess since I put all that effort into the stupid tree then I guess I should just finish the necklace. Hmph. Hopefully it will grow on me some more. Even if it doesn't, it will at least be something simple to do while all the wankers sing on American Idol tomorrow night. All of them that is except for my Taylor Hicks. I love him.

Ihave been thinking a lot tonight about goals. I think that I am becoming a goal oriented person. Wierd. I wasn't always that way, but I love being able to look back at this goofy self indulgent, horrible photgraph riddled blog and see that I accomplished what I set out to do. So, for March, I wanted to tackle the Eni Oken coiled bangle, and start on chainmaille. Did the bangle, can't do the chainmaille just yet. I did buy two more tutorials today from Eni Oken, and I don't think that I will be able to start those just yet. I'd like to finish the Tree of Life study that is rolling around in my head. And I have to get better about keeping a journal with me. If I had a tenth of the ideas with me now that have popped in my head, I don't think I would have beady days as blah as this one. It's so hard to keep color combos, themes, random little idears in my head when there are so many, and they get stuck in all the cobwebs. And then there's the matter of the website. I am tired just thinking about it. I'm hoping tomorrow will be better.

Mi Corazon, etc.

2006-03-12T22:52:00.000-05:00

Well, it has been a while since I got to catch up here! But, Why I Hate Comcast will be another blog all it's own. Moving right along....

I have been pretty busy this week, and that has bugged me that I haven't been able to post things here as they progressed. the majority of the week was taken up by tackling the Eni Oken coiled bangle! Yup, it's done, all 18 feet of the 28 gauge wire, and all TEN HOURS of patient coiling. It's done! and it's called Mi Corazon.

I can't believe that I did it. But here's the tragedy. It didn't contract quite like the tutorial said that it would, so it is like an inch and a half too big for me! Horror of horrors, I can't wear my most lovely piece to date. that just means that I will have to make another. And believe me, I will. It was really fun to watch it come together.

What else, what else....oh yeah, I finally got a hold of the Koil Kutter guy, who is way nice. So, it looks like I will be getting all the Koil Kutter stuff for my birthday. Can't wait! I'm ready to get to work on some chain maille.

Wow, that is about all I know for right now. I got some more goodies in the mail this weekend, and I think that I already need to place another BIG order. I have been comissioned to make a few different things! I suppose that I should get on that. And I have been pretty inspired this week. A kind soul also supplied the tutorial for the Tree of Life pendant, which has so many possibilities.

The coming week should be interesting......

Insomnia is done!

2006-03-05T21:41:00.000-05:00

Well, here it is!

I added the eyelashes in the form of teeeeetiiiiiiiiiiny little Hill Tribe beads. I think that it really was the finishing touch that the piece needed. Cute, huh?

OK, so why on earth is my blog lined up all funny? I just don't get it. does anybody know? Can you help me someone? Grrrr. It makes me mad.

Let's see.....other news......Oh! How fun is this? so my favorite bead store's owner said the nicest thing to me on Friday. She is too sweet. I brought the jade donut necklace in to show her, like I said that I would (see multiple posts below) and she was floored!! She said that the workmanshipwas wonderful and that she would be proud to have it in her store! Wahoo! and I bought some cool stuff there to start on the coiled bangle tutorial. Now if my order from Thunderbird would just get here......I may not order from them again! It has been a week now! I mena, come on. I want my stuff and I want it now. I also won some cool stuff on eBay from StoneAge Hardware so I will be able to get some good things going this week........

My goal this week is to Clean Sweep the studio/office so I can work in here again. And then~ go nutso on all my new goodies as they get here. Fun!

But seriously, the appearance of my blog is killing me and I can't figure out how to work the help forum. Save me from myself. Maybe if I republish?

Insomnia

2006-03-02T22:49:00.000-05:00

Okay. I will not even go into whining about my goofy and horrible pictures. I won't. I promise. If you need to know that I know that my pics are dreadful, well then see below. Now that the defensive little disclaimer is out of the way....

Here's a Pretty in Progress! This is kind of the antithesis of the one below, Sweet Dreams. It's called Insomnia. Why? Well because the lentils have big eye shapes (at least to me they do). I have struggled with this little set for a while. I originally envisioned links that look like Jack Skellington's lapels. I love old Jack the Pumpkin King. He's a snappy dresser, that Jack. But I digress.

So the Skellington links were just not happening. I guess only in Halloween town would you want to wear a sharp, pointy bracelet. But, in my land, you can make links that look like open eyes, and there you have it! Insomnia!

I am not done with this yet, though. LIke I said, Pretty in Progress. I think some coiling around the eyes, kinda binding them to the "pupils" so that the links dont get all caddywumpus. I love that word. Caddywumpus. Makes me smile...... so yeah. I also got some fun little Hill Tribe faceted beads that I would like to add to the coils. Like fancy eyelashes or something! Way more on theme than the Sweet Dreams of Amoebas.

I am willing my Thunderbird Supply order to get here tomorrow. I am willing other bidders to not try to snipe me on the auctions that I desperately want to win. I already have some Sunstone briolettes coming (swoons at the thought) and a big old Ruby Geosite pendant coming. I am crossing my fingers on the peruvian opal focal and the fossilized coral square thingy. If myorder gets here, well look out!

I will be attempting Byzantine weave, and making a ton of my own jumprings. I will start goofing around with putting the Dremel to some SS charms. My first Eni bangle will be buggy themed (like ladybugs, not the things that the Amish drive), and I want to play with tossing some charms in. I am cooking up a Cinderella bangle too......

Sweet Dreams

2006-02-26T21:55:00.000-05:00

This has been a bit of a ho-hum week for me. I didn't really get a whole lot done. Just this one bracelet.....

The beads came from an awesome set that I bought from Kerry at Kab's Creative Concepts. She is just too talented I tell ya! Well, I think that she started out wanting to go in a Tim Burton direction, but came up with the Deep Sleep set. So, these four lentils told me that they wanted to become the Sweet Dreams bracelet. cute, ain't it?

I like how the links that I tried to make look like clouds came out like amoebas. Isn't that fun. and yes, I know that the picture is dreadful but I just didn't care enough to try harder at taking a good one.

On the bright side, i should have lots more treasures and enlightening things to share within the next few weeks! I just bought a whole lot of stuff today. And, by then end of the month, I should have some photo equipment to take some semi-decent pictures! Yay! Oh and there is a bead show -my first- the weekend after my birthday! that means lots of fun things, right? Yep! For March, I am going to try to learn Byzantine weave, and give the Eni Oken bangle a shot.

Should be interesting......

and that, my friends is how we do that!

2006-02-22T18:50:00.000-05:00

Oh yeah. she is done! Actually I finished it last night, but couldn't get any decent pics of it till this afternoon. and I still consider this pic to be just barely adequate. But the necklace, oh the necklace!

the pendant and briolettes (teardrop shaped thingies on the bottom) are jade, and the other beads are peridot jasper and lapis lazuli. I think that the color combo is pretty springy. I made the S shapes and the clasp all by my lonesome.

On the philosophical front, I got an interesting piece of advice from none other than Eni Oken herself today. I have been concerned about becoming a hack, most importantly an Eni hack. I just admire her style and love the techniques she uses so much. She issued a challenge: create the same piece ten times, and change something each time. That will help my style emerge naturally. What a fabbylus idear! I think that I shall have to get on that. Perhaps I will take that task on with her coiled bangle. I have been dying to try that tutorial out. Its like marajuana: a gateway technique! Bwahaha! It lends itself to so many things: necklaces.....well, you could do necklaces too. :D

Now, I have to get back to work. My awesome Tim Burton inspired lampwork beads have arrived and they need some attention. I scooped them up off eBay, and I really adore the artist's work (kabs_concepts). these beads are SICK! Wahoo!

I think I can, I think I can.....

2006-02-19T10:32:00.000-05:00

Well, here is the work I've gotten done so far on this piece. Not a lot! I am pleased that my vision for it is taking shape, though. I was worried about what would happen with wrapping the accuflex. But, it seems to be going well, just sloooooooow. Hopefully I will be able to get it mostly done today, but I thought that I would maybe take a pic of it while the sun was still right.

this week has been a slow one in the progress of building the Silver Lotus empire ;D
I haven't even messed with the website, which is ok. I decided that as long as I can make myself sit down and get to work on it once a week, then I am doing good. Especially since the photography issue has raised it's head. But-- I have decided that it will be taken care of within the next two weeks or so. I found the photo equipment that looks like the most bang for the buck. And I bought the most fabulous set of lampwork beads from another Art Jewelry member, kabsconcepts. Man, she sure is talented! I should get them in the mail tomorrow. I am looking forward to it b/c new beads always give me a shot in the creative arm. So does new magazines, and I got Step by Step wire and Art Jewelry today. Love them!

Art Jewelry is a dangerous publication. I love it! I am going to start keeping it under my matress, hahaha! One of the most dangerous things about it is that I want to start learning chain maille. Yipes! I thought that it was pretty, but I never really felt the urge to try it. Until now. I wanna! Perhaps next month i will order one of those Urban Maille kits. I guess that is a much cheaper alternative to buying the jump ringer setup, which is the thing that allows you to make mass quantities of jumprings. that is why is costs mass quantities of money! :D

Enough blabbering for now. Perhaps I will get back to work on that necklace. Talk about delayed gratification!

A Pretty Busy Week!

2006-02-12T15:12:00.000-05:00

Well, there is lots to share for this week. I have been pretty busy with all things Silver Lotus Studio. Big fun!

the website is actually going pretty alright. I am starting to feel my way through the whole setup thing, and it is going well. I think that it will be pretty basic with relatively few bells and or whistles, but that is not even the biggest problem. the problem is: I have no current inventory to speak of! I have a few things that are done, and a few things in the works, but the website is lookin pretty nekked as of right this minute. But no worries! that just buys me more time to figure out how to build the sumbitch while I make more shiny things to put on it.

So, here's what I got into this week:

Made thses springy little puppies whilst I was at home sick on Monday. I was really impressed with the way that they turned out, since they are on the Advanced section of Eni Oken's tutorials. *Pats self on back*

And then there is this little beauty. It is a yummy piece of zebra jasper that I picked up -where?- in Asheville on that oh so lucrative trip for the Warren Haynes Christmas Jam. Weee! Well, it is not QUITE done, because i see that there is a lot more that I could add to make it a bit snazzier, namely some more coiling around the stone. Gotta love constructive criticism. But, I am really pleased with this one namely because it was my most adventurous work to date, and I made every SINGLE component all by myself! Even the clasp! There is something very rewarding about that.

And lastly, I thought that I would start to post some works in progress. This blog is more for me than anyone else, so why not have some sort of pictorial review of how a piece progresses? It will help spur me on to make some progress on them each week too, since I will feel like a failure this time next week if there is no noticeable progress on them from week to week.

This piece holds so much promise for me. All I have done is some hammered silver S shaped links (not pictured) and the focal done, but it is going to be something else when I am finished with it. Here 'tis:

And, here's a little bracelet that I got going on today. Mostly I am just practicng more wrapping techniques here, but I just love the Moukite (never quite know how to spell that)nuggets. the colors are right up my alley: rich jewel tones. Not much to look at yet, eh?

I gotta get a photo cube and some lighting. my pics are so lowbrow it's not even funny. Well it is a little funny. But, I guess that will have to wait for another day.

Whew, what a long post. I will have to do better about that next time.

silverlotusstudio.com

2006-02-09T23:08:00.000-05:00

Yay for tax returns!! yay for spending the money 10 seconds after you get it.

I bought a web site package thingy this week! Hooray. www.silverlotusstudio.com is mine, all mine.

Now who's gonna build the site for me? I don't know how. I have this software on a trial basis that is pretty easy, but it is still annoying. I guess it will be a perpetual work in progress. But aren't we all. My goal is to have it up and running by my birthday, which is in April. Ha. We'll see.

Well, I didn't post a thing last week. Yep, I suck. But! this weekend's addition will be much better, as I have a few goodies I've done this week. Hell, I may even post them tomorrow, if the sun is out and the light is right to get some decent pics! that is another thing about this website. Gotta get some jewelry made so that I can have some crap to sell. Well, not crap, but shiny stuff.

Oh, and I opened up a business checking account! Well, another checking account in my name for only bead money. So, I guess the week has been rather productive. Enter Holly the Hermit. Man, it is sooooo tough to try to have a life and a full time 9 to 5 (i guess it wouldn't be a 9 to 5 if it were part time, eh?), and make jewelry and build a website. Yeowza! Well, at least I won't have to keep the house clean at all, since no one will remember who I am soon. I am the wierd lady in the apartment with the cat. Well, I guess that in order to be fair, I was the wierd lady in the apartment BEFORE all this Silver Lotus Studio hooha began.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

Week 5: Square Links

2006-01-29T20:14:00.000-05:00

I am so glad that this week's offering worked out better than last week. And I already forgot to take my own advice and use craft wire!

I have been drawing and refining a few things that I really wanted to try out, but this idea just popped in my head and took over. I love it when that happens. I was really in a rut this week-- I was so discouraged over last week's debacle that I took it easy and tried some earwires made with some awesome spacers that I got on ebay. But then the idea just took over, and next thing you know I was sanding, bending and hammering away and this is what happened!

Fun little wire work square links and these awsome lentils called Mossy Pink, and the links are 20 gauge wire, which I hammered, and fully intend to tumble once I have a tumbler. :D the hinges are an awesome little improvisation that worked just right. I will have to remember them for later, because they bear the weight of the piece instead of the frames, and give it a bit of flexibility. Now I guess I am cheating by posting this b/c it is not in any way finished, as it still needs a clasp! But, the clasp is all worked out in my mind's eye.

I said that I wasn't going to make this blog a forum for my money woes, but man, starting a business is sooooo hard with no cash flow. But, I filed my taxes and I will be getting my stuff all straightened out soon. And, then I can buy all the supplies that I have been wanting to get. Why is it that no matter how many beads and supplies that I have, I always need so many more things to get a project finished. When does it end?

Week 4: The Ugliest Thing I Ever Loved

2006-01-22T21:44:00.000-05:00

I hope that this is the ugliest thing that I ever post! Man, it is pretty bizarre. I had this idea for a mosaic technique rolling around in my head for the longest time. I really thought that it would be cool, and so I sat down and planned. I laid it out, traced the outlines, and even drew some things out. I re-read Eni Oken's tutorial, from which the frame was adapted. But Oh, it went so woefully wrong! the beautiful labradorite rectangles ended up either having too much slack, or altogether way off center, or crooked. Very wrong, almost from the get go. I have already wasted 24 feet of wire on this monstrosity! And you know what? I would do it all again, too!

[Cue the sappy Full House backround music]

I love this ugly pendant in all its unfinished, clumsy glory. Because it taught me so much that I think is really going to help me grow.

First of all I have to get a hold of some craft wire. Sterling wire is just too expensive for practicing. End of story.

Second, I can't get discouraged when I try out something new and it doesn't go well. All it does is help me refine the technique, and that is how you grow. the bracelet is going to be even better! This is a big thing for me, because all my life I have been terrified of failure, and have shied away from challenges. Now that I know that there aren't that many jewlery oriented failures that will cause the roof to cave in, I am excited about not being afraid to fail.

third, there will come times to see a piece all the way through to the end, and the fight to make it right is worth having sometimes. Other times, it's just not.

So all in all, this week is what this blog is all about for me. I want to be able to chart my growth as an artist, and there will always being growing pains before there is true progress.

Hopefully week 5 will prove to be a little more productive in terms of creating a finished piece.

Week 3:Guilty Pleasures

2006-01-15T01:14:00.000-05:00

Still on time posting! Yeah!
this pendant is called Guilty Pleasures. I made it tonight during one of the most pleasant nights that I have had at home in quite a while. I decided that I was going to stay in and make jewelry, and that was that. Even though it was a Saturday night, I stayed in and didn't answer the phone. I felt so guilty, like I was cutting school or something. And that made working on this pendant that much more enjoyable.

Isn't this a sad commentary on our society? A girl decides that she is going to stay in and hide from the world and try to make soemthing pretty. And then, that girl feels like she is getting away with something. I mean, I picked up the Ott Lite and plugged it into the wall in the living room and worked in front of the tv and it seemed wrong, like my mom was going to bust in the door and yell at me. Well you know what? I am going to do this way more often. I guess I will have to if I want to have anything to sell in this lifetime! And I don't wanna feel guilty anymore about it either. As a matter of fact I am going to make it a point to neglect boring stuff in favor of things I enjoy way more often. Sayonara, personal hygeine!

Okay here's the specifics: this is a jade rectangle, another product of Christmas Jam 2005 shopping trip mentioned below. Also, there is approximately a ton of 28 gauge sterling silver wire for the frame. And that's it! Oh, and it's my first pendant. That counts for something, right?

For the record, I know that the picture is terrible. I will probably replace it tomorrow. And let the record reflect that my coffee table desperately needs to be refinished. But it won't happen in this lifetime, and the next lifetime isn't looking too good either. Here's to guilty pleasures!

Silver Lotus Studio open for business......soon!!!

2006-01-09T22:04:00.000-05:00

Well, I did it. I really did it. I am now registered with the state of South Carolina, and I am the OWNER of the Silver Lotus Studio. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!

I am really excited. Registering seemed so scary and impossible. that is only something that business people do. I am not a business person! But wait- I AM a business OWNER!! Weeeeeeeee! Now all I need to do is get to the Business License Office on Friday and apply for a license. Then I think that I will be in business- literally!

I guess now it seems like the easy part. I have to get a logo. I have to construct my website. I have to make business cards. What am I doing blabbering away on my blog? I have to get to work!

WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!

Week 2: Herringbone Weave

2006-01-08T09:48:00.000-05:00

I cannot believe how close I came to not being able to post at all this week. the whole week was full of internet trouble and a cold, and then.....no wire at all. But then good fortune stepped in (for once) and I decided to suck it up and order the Eni Oken tutorials and a whole ton of wire from Fusion Beads. I got the eni cd on Friday, and it was like torture, reading all the tutorials and not being able to try out a single one. But wonder of wonders, when I got home yesterday what should be waiting for me outside my door? Yep, the wire is here!

So this week I decided to work on the herringbone weave, and I am pretty pleased with the results, much better for a first go round than last week. I had so much fun with it, even though my shoulders are KILLING me today. I had to do a lot of self talk to keep from getting peeved with myself, but I have come up with some conclusions that I think will help me a lot:
I have to get over being sad about the amount of wire that is wasted when wrapping things.
It is ok to completely mess up and then scrap it all; I can just start over.
I won't know how something will look till I try it. It is ok to make a finished earring three times over as long as I am happy with the end result.
I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and doggone it, people like me. Okay, i am not so sure about the last part, but this will take me into the particulars:

This is a close up of a bracelet I made using only the herringbone weave. The beads are some orange lampwork rondelles that I scored on eBay. I love eBay. I used gabillions of feet of 26 gauge sterling silver wire to acheive what I think is an adequate result. Bordering on lovely, actually.

The earring? I love it. I came across these very rugged tourmaline ovals in a bead store in Asheville, NC during my annual trip for the Warren Haynes Christmas Jam. I loooove tourmaline, but due to monetary constraints I have admired it from afar- till now! Once again, herringbone technique, with a fun silver tassel that I found at my new favorite local bead store. If you don't count the earwire, they are more than 3" long! I think that this little pair of lovelies will stay in the private collection.

Note to self: Buy a freakin light tent already. Learn to take decent pictures. I mean, really.

Week 1: Wrapped Bead

2006-01-01T17:46:00.000-05:00

Well here is my first post of the year, and all I can say is that you have to start somewhere! This is a wire wrapped olive jade bead. You wouldn't think it, but it took over 2 feet of wire just to wrap this little bead! the tutorial came from Marc Lareau's book, All Wired Up. For a first try I am pretty pleased, and at least I can say that my first "official" post for this project was timely. And, although I am ashamed to admit it, this is the first time that I have used my new little studio-in-the-den setup since it came to be at Christmas. What will I use as an excuse now that the holidays are over?

The photography does need some serious work, and I will post a better one once I rig up a better photo setup.

Either way, I really like this technique and I will be giving it a shot again in the near future.

Here goes nothing.....

2005-12-31T13:31:00.000-05:00

Ok, so this is the start of my blog. It's funny. I have a blog now. Huh. I always thought that blogs were very self indulgent things for people who did not have nearly enough to do with their time. But now I have one.

So, I started a blog to chronicle the new year, and the commitments that I am making to myself and my craft of choice. Witch craft. Ha! Just kidding. But now, if I say wirework and jewelry, it doesn't sound so cool.

My commitment to myself is that I am going to post a new work each week. Kind of like the Four Seasons of Jewelry, but not. I decided not to join that particular group for a while, as I hung my head in shame just looking at their stuff. But I figure that if other people decide to look at this blog - ever- then I ought to push myself a little. Ok, a lot.

Here's to you, and here's to me. But it's my blog so here's to me!