Imaginary Mumps

I patiently waited for the kiln to come to room temp so I could get these beadies outta the kiln. They just came out about an hour ago. I quickly strung them up, took their pics and posted them on Ebay. Go check out "Imaginary Mumps"

I had so much fun making these. I just played around layering my favorite colors. I kept them wonky and irregular shaped just to keep things whimsical. I even made "sidewinders" for the spacers. "Kerry what the heck are sidewinders?" You asked. They are OUT of round spacers. And I made them that way on purpose. They are kinda top heavy. And OMG!! I had silver Greek ceramic beads that were just perfect with these too!!

It is a HUGE set... 22 Beads! HUGE!! It is a 10 inch strand. I wanted to keep them for myself but I know that wouldn't be nice after teasing you with them the other day. I had planned on finishing these yesterday but never made it to the torch. I just wasn't feeling well. I was fine today and finished them up earlier (like 7 hours ago, lol, told ya I was waiting for them to get outta the kiln). Now I will start on the Bead Box Beads in these colors... I got LOTS of ideas!! You are gonna love 'em!! Just wait and see!!

Time to get to bed.

Sneaky

See, I told you I worked on beads yesterday! The first pic is a little hint at the new Ebay auction I am working on. Just a little hint... a little one, lol. I think you are going to be surprised by the shapes of them. I am hoping to finish them this afternoon or tonight. Fingers crossed!!

Second pic is of a bunch of the discs I made yesterday too. Aren't they cute? Don't ya just wanna pinch their little cheeks? LOL! I love these colors!! And I need to make lots more for my design idea. We'll see how much I can get done in the next few days. Along with the Ebay beads I need to work on, I also have to get beads ready for another class on Friday. (Man I over booked this month... 6 straight Friday classes!) You all already know you'll be the first to see the finished design!!

My Mom is coming by today for me to work on my parents taxes. I hate doing taxes, but I always like seeing what we having coming back, lol. I am still waiting on some tax documents for our taxes but it looks like my Mom already has all the paper work they need. We use TaxAct.com... super easy program and a really fast return.

Time to get to work... hopefully I'll have a new auction for ya tomorrow!

Slacker

I am such a slacker. I never made beads yesterday. *gasp* The after effects of the margaritas and champagne stayed with me all day and I was totally unmotivated to go out in the freezing air to melt glass. But, I did make up for it today!! I spent three hours out there today working on some new ideas. I am playing with my favorite colors... ink blue, turquoise, grass green, periwinkle, trans aqua, and lavendar. Yummy!!

I had time today to make beads for a new bracelet and I got an Ebay set started. I am really anxious to see how the new set looks. I am trying something different with my nugget press. I am not ready to reveal my secrets yet, but in the next few days for sure.

I have had about a dozen inquiries about that ring I made and shared with you'll the other day. So I will work on them more. I need to order a few more mandrels though... this one at a time thing just ain't cuttin' it. I wanna make a few at once and try different things, I hate waiting days to get to try it again!

Alrighty.... I gotta get a move on dinner... I promise to give you a peak at the new Ebay set tomorrow :)

OH... almost forgot... THE FREE BEADS WINNER THIS WEEK IS.... (insert drumroll).... LUISA S!! Yoo hoo!! Congrats Luisa!! I'll get the new free beads pic posted tomorrow.

Doodling

Cool doodle huh? I found this doodle in one of the kids' notebooks. I can tell from a mile a way that it is one of my Dad's doodles. I took a quick picture of it and then put it in photoshop. I took out the blue lines of paper. I think my Dad's doodles are awesome but I think he'd tell yeah "ah, it's nothing... just a doodle." I guess it is kinda like me and my beads... people saw my cube beads and went a little nuts, I thought... it's just a square. LOL. I think it is also a bit of that artistic perfectionist tendencies coming out too... I think a lot of artists feel there is always room for improvement. So this doodle, according to Lauren, is a self portrait. Check out this OLD POST with pics of my Dad... you can decide for yourself.

Anyway, we are having a quiet snowy weekend here. My class Friday night went great. Everyone was able to finish their bracelets before they went home. Yesterday my Mom took the kids for an over nighter and Ron & I went out to dinner. We went to my favorite resturaunt, Maria's and my sister came along too. Then we came home, had some champagne and watched a movie... without having to stop it 20 times for the kids, lol. A little advice though, never ever mix tequila and champagne, take it from me, it's just not a good idea. :P

Ron and I are heading out in a few minutes to pick up the kids and we are planning on playing outside all afternoon. We have a heat wave here with it being a whopping 32 degrees. We have a good size hill out back for sledding and I hear the kids built snowpeople at my parents, so I think we need one for our house too.

I'll be working on beads later too!! I have lots of ideas stirring around. Plus I hear from Francie at Joolz that I need to work on another "Frozen Branches" style piece. It seems she sold the one she purchased right off her neck at an event this weekend. It was wonderful news to hear!

I'll be back tomorrow with the results of my beading time today!

Curing Bordem

Yoo Hoo!! I finished all the beads for class! It took two nights to do it and more then four hours, but hey it's done. I have a whole "writing" theme going on... I used a new color called CiM (Creative Is Messy) Leaky Len with Moretti Ink Blue. The colors are both purpley blue-ish. They just compliment each other so nicely. Perfect for a Berry Wine bracelet!

While I was making all these beadies... I decided to finally make something with a large hole mandrel. The hole actually makes this a size seven ring. My sister has been begging me for months to make her glass rings. I bought the mandrel with every intention of making her some but this was the first time I actaully tried it. Still needs work, the these are so totally NOT her colors, but it's a start. And this little guy gave me an idea for a new necklace design.

Too bad I only have one of these mandrels... it is going to take weeks to finish my necklace idea at a one ring a day rate. LOL, oh well, it's winter, whatelse do I have to do?

So are you wondering why I called this post "Curing Bordem"? Well, I told you had worked myself to bordem on Wednesday. I was bored out of my skull and going kinda stir crazy. I had a bunch of boxed up energy too. Bored always leads to too much energy, for me anyway. So on a whim yesterday, I put Lauren in the car, drove to Lowes, bought paint and came home to paint Lauren's room.

Sometimes I wonder if I have some bipolar personality tendencies with the way mood and energy levels swing. Bored and lifeless on minute... taking on big projects at the spur of the moment the next minute.

I had this idea of Lauren's room last summer but just kept putting it off. I have a photo below of how her room started out. It was a pinky peachy color called "Dawn Light". What Mom doesn't run out and paint a room pink when she finds out she is having a baby girl after having two boys? Really, now. But the color was never quite right. Plus I am so much more a purple person then a pink person. So, now Lauren's room is two tone. I have trim that will run around that seam where the two colors come together, but it needs to dry before I hang it.

Lauren is so excited she just loves it. I even let her do some of the rolling. I love painting. I have painted every room in the house (and a few times each). This is the 4th coat of paint this room has seen, my living room 3, family room 3, my room 2, bathroom 2... I really like painting! I started around 11:30 and was done by 5pm, not to bad. Her room is small though, only about 11x12. So it was an easy job. The boys want their room done now! Maybe next week ;)

Alrighty... I got the Bead Box beads already to post... I have an auction ending in a few hours... and I have a class to prep for tonight!! Yoo HOO! Lots too do!

Go get a last minute bid in on "ICE CUBES" before someone else does!! And watch for email for a note when the Bead Box Beads are posted.

Work, work, work...

Disney movies seem to be the backbone of my up bringing... and for my kids too. They just love watching movies. I know every line to almost every Disney movie. Well, not all of them. But I know every single word to Beauty and the Beast, and The Little Mermaid, and Finding Nemo, and... well I won't bore you with it. But as I was writing this post title, I was remembering the characters in Beauty and The Beast complaining after Belle turns the Beast down for dinner. The stove says... "I work and I slave and for what? A culinary masterpiece gone to waste..." I feel like I have been work work working and for nothing.

I know it's not for nothing. But I guess I am just being cranky. LOL. I have worked myself to the point of utter bordem. I am not excited about anything at the moment, for some reason. I think the glow of new website excitement has worn off and I am only left with tidious things. Like spending all morning hunting my hard drive for images and uploading pics to the galleries for hours.

(YEAH! They are reloaded!! Go see the "Glass Gallery" and the "Sold Items Gallery")

Now that Lauren is in school for the afternoon, I really should be out at the torch making beads for Friday's "Berry Wine" Class. The class is full which means I have 40+ beads to get ready. Each bracelet takes 5 beads and I need enough for all the students and enough for myself to make a bracelet along with them. I am avoiding the job completely. I hate making the same bead over and over and over... but it has to be done. My other excuse it that it is freaking freezing out there!! The studio is in the 20's right now, yikes! But don't you worry, if you are one of my students checking in to see what I am up to... don't fret... I will get it done, I always do :) And this time I won't forget the sterling spacers.

What do think of today's photo? Does it have you counting the minutes til Friday's Bead Box update? I am going to have lentils, nuggets, and ovals... I didn't end up getting to do sprees cause of the website stuff the past few days. But maybe for the next update. I am already formulating plans for the next batch... hmmm... I got ideas. I have plans for a new Ebay set too! Lots for you all to look forward to. Me, I got a repetitous beading session to look forward to... yuck. Maybe I will make another wild set of brights for me to use in my class bracelet... hmm, that could make it more fun!

COOL!

Just had to pop back and tell you all!! LOOK QUICK!! My "Ice Cubes" auction has made it to the Ebay Pulse Page!! I have always wanted to create a set that got enough attention (and watchers) that it got on the pulse page. I am just tickled that people like my beads that much :)

Website Evolution

Well, by now you all know what my big secret is/was!! I got a NEW WEBSITE!!!

I thought it would be interesting for you all know to the evolution of my website.

I started "beading" and making jewelry a little more then three years ago. And in the Fall of 2004, I recieved an email from Yahoo! about buying a domain name. (A domain name is a web address, mine is "kabsconcepts") They were having some special that let you buy a domain for $4.95 a year. I talked to Ron about it and he thought it would be a complete and total waste of $5 bucks. LOL. But I went ahead and did it anyway. In my confirmation email, Yahoo! provided links to their "hosting" offers and packages. Being new to the website world, I of course went with the cheapest option available. It was just $11.95 a month to have my website hosted on Yahoo's servers. They also provided a free website building program called Yahoo!Sitebuilder.

I downloaded the program, which is very easy to use. It is just a point and click, drop and drag program that gives you what-you-see-is-what-you-get layouts. I have been using that program since I got it to create the website you were used to, until yesterday. My first version of my website (along with my jewelry, I might add) was very amature. It was choppy and had no "flow". I never thought I would use it for anything more then showing family and friends the stuff I was making.

About 6 months after I put up the first site... I decided to make something completely different. If you ever checked out my old archived glass galleries you might have seen glimpses of the older site. It had deep purple backgrounds with big white boxes where I showed pics of all my stuff. I slowly started to figure out what I was doing with that site. I was better at linking things together, I learned about thumbnail images, I started adding "Buy Now" buttons and the starts of the "Kab's Concepts" you are more used to started to come out.

In the winter of 2005-2006, I got bored AGAIN, lol, and did another revamp on the site. I wanted something cleaner more professional looking. I also started this blog around that time too. I cleaned up my design, using lots of white, and letting the jewelry and beads be on display more. I was also paying attention more to things I liked about other sites and then manipulted the program I was using to make my site look like those. I made the menus on the left hand side, I organized catagories and pages so that they made more sense. Later, I added that big image to my homepage with pics of my work and linked it to different parts of the site. And that is where it has been for several months now.

Is if you couldn't tell from my work, lol, I am one who loves changing things up. I get bored doing and seeing the same thing all the time!! LOL!! I have been wanting for sometime now to do something different with my site. I needed to get a more "grown up" website. One that is more user friendly. I wanted to have an actual shopping cart system, I wanted product availablity to update itself, I wanted to be better organized and be able to have a layout more condusive to writting descriptions too. If you check out the sites at Artzee.net and MyOhMyShops.com, you find that about most of them are hosted by a place called www.pappashop.com . I have been so tempted to upgrade to one of their sites for sometime. This weekend I started asking more questions about making the switch.

I am in love with their service. Any questions asked by email were answered in less then 24 hours, their online tech support has been very very helpful, their Pappa-Pak program is a breeze to use, and although it is a bit more expensive then other hosting services... I think it is worth every penny. Surprisingly though, I am now only paying $1.00 more a month then with Yahoo!

When I made the switch, I quickly had to teach myself FrontPage and some html. I decided not to get a designer to create my new website. (But maybe someday) Being the former designer I am, I thought I could do it myself. As I learn more about the programs, I will make changes to the new site. What is great is that I only need to create a single "template" page and the Pappa-Pak software applies it to every page, and I don't need to reload my products. So, here and there, you'll be seeing changes as I learn new things. I also have Jessi Kelly at www.jessi-design.com working on creating a better "banner/header" for the top of my page. She created the original "Kab's Girl" logo for me a little over a year ago. She is wonderfully talented and HIGHLY recommended.

So, some cool things I like about the new site...

"GUEST BOOK"... go sign it! If you have bought beads or jewelry from me, write I review for others to read!!

"FAQs"... get quick answers to common questions! Check this out for some important info to my shipping policy. I have had to up shipping to $3.00, sorry :(. But I had to, with the cost of packing materials and gas to the post office... had to make the change.

"Featured Items"... I am going to be able to have at a glance featured items right on my home page, kinda cool.

"Contact" form... getting messages to me will be super easy with this new feature. Just type you message and it gets right to me!! No need to open you email programs, just type and send.

There is also going to be "Gift Certificates" available and "Wish Lists" too.

Thank you so much everyone for being patient while I make all these changes. I am going to have Bead Box Beads on FRIDAY!! So we will have the true test of the new shopping cart then! :) Needless to say, all these changes have kept me glued to the computer the past few days and not at the torch... I will be making beads tonight, tomorrow and Thursday too. I have 6 plus bead sets almost ready in me really fun "Party" style. I know you are gonna love 'em!! It'll be worth the wait, I promise!!

This week's free beads winner is Cindi H!! YOOHOO!! Congrats CINDI!! I'll get new pics posted soon :)

Just wait....

I am kinda of excited at the moment... I don't know if I want to go into details quite yet but there are gonna be some interesting changes around here soon. And that's all I'm gonna say for now... but stay tuned!! (NO... I am NOT pregnant!! It is something else, beady related)

With that little teaser out of the way... things here are quiet and I have a bunch of beautiful party beads made. I will be working on more today, along with some matching spacers for you to fight over, lol. I am still trying to decide how I will break the sets up... do I do a few set of 5 beads and the spacer sets separate... or will I make smaller sets of 3 beads and mix some matching spacers in... What do you all think? I want to give ya what you want. Send me an email or let me know right here!!

Sneak Peak

I have been working on some fun new beads!! Here is a little sneak peak for you... these and lots more are going to be partying in the Bead Box this week! Aren't these FUN!?! I am going to have lots of brights in lots of shapes and sizes, cool huh? Ron says I should be keeping these and making jewelry, but I am going to share :) then maybe make extra for some of my own designs.

We are all huddled in the house today trying to keep warm. It is freezing cold and snowing here, so it's hot cocoa, baking cookies and movie watching for us. The studio is only 25 degrees, but I am gonna brave the frigid air to make beads this afternoon. Ron said something about bree, crackers and wine this evening too... looking forward to that!!

Class last night went great. All the girls left with great new bangles... gotta give a shout out to Melinda, Danielle, Mary and Lesley... HEY GIRLS!

Lesley shared an interesting tidbit of info with me that I want to talk about. (Hope she doesn't mind, I don't think she will.) She told me that while at a craft show a few weeks ago she saw a jewelry vendor selling "Berry Wine" bracelets and "Sandy Lantern" bangles. Lesley has seen my designs and recognized them right away. She asked the artist if she knew me and had taken my classes. Lesley said the artist turned bright red and was rather embarrassed. So, Lesley suggested she put out something that let buyers know they were my original designs. She said when she went back by the booth later,the vendor had put a small sign out.

So it got me to thinking... I can't remember if we have talked about this before or not... but I am sure some of you wonder where I stand on the whole issue of "copying"... duhm duhm dum (insert dramatic music). The topic of copying is a highly highly controversial one. In many jewelry/art/bead forums the mear mention of the word has people taking sides, starting fights and ending friendships. As an "author", I have to realize that my designs are going to be reproduced, my tutorials are going to be tried by people and yes... people are going to sell it as their work. Personally, I would never do that to another artist. If I try a tutorial, or I get inspired by another artist's work, I give them all the credit. I do not sell projects that I make from tutorials. I used them as a learning tool! After I complete a project, I take the new things it teaches me and I work those skills into my own style/designs.

In a perfect world, here is what I would like the people who use my beads or make my tutorials to do...

If you use my beads... let the buyers know "These beads were made by Kerry Bogert". If you have a website and have item descriptions, that is the best spot to let people know I made the beads. I would love a link to my website, but that would be a bonus. You pay for your beads so really, what you do with them is totally up to you. Just don't try to claim you made them yourself ;)

If you are using my designs... let buyers know "This design is by Kerry Bogert and was in such and such a magazine". I really feel strongly that since you haven't "paid" for the rights to the design, that you need to be linking to my website in this instance. Now, if you have done like I do, and you used the tutorial as a spring board for your own piece... it's all up to you. I would appreciate a "inspired by" tag but that is gonna be your call.

Now in rare instances, I have come across bead for bead copies of things I have made. For me, that is a big no-no. And when I need to, I let the maker know that they have come to close for comfort. It has only happened a few times, but it does happen. (And I am sure more then I know about.) For the most part, I am a very down to earth designer. I give people the benefit of the doubt. I know I didn't invent everything, and I know if something inspires me, it can inspire others too. So who's to say that what I think is original isn't original for someone else too. I hate to cry "copier", I really do. I have been accused of "coping" before, when I absolutely had not... and I did not appreciate the accusation. I think that contributes a lot to the stand I take now. I don't want to assume the worst in people, as was done to me. So I try to stay open minded. And, I am sure as I continue to grow as an artist, even the bead for bead copies won't bother me. It really should be considered flattering, I suppose. Someone likes what I do enough to make it for themselves. Just like I did 4 years ago when I was thinking I could make a necklace I saw at Target for less money. We all start somewhere.

I am a firm believer in "sharing the knowledge"... I hate information hounds who won't tell you so much as the time of day let alone where they found those cool spacer beads. Those of you who send me emails asking questions know that I am always more then happy to share sources for things, techniques for making stuff, and if I don't know the answers... I try to point you to someone who does. I don't worry that if I tell you to get the ceramic spacer at Mykonos.com that you will go out, order them, then buy solid color discs, make two dozen of my "Fling" earrings, and sell them all to the highest bidder. I think you would be surprised just how many people do think that way. I think it is a terrible perspective.

Anyway... that is my 2cents on "copying". Any questions?

Ice Cubes

Here is the link to the new auction... "ICE CUBES"
Remember, the link won't work until the auction starts at 9:15pm my time 6:15pm PST!

I got new beads, yes sir-e I do! I managed to squeak this new set "Ice Cubes" out last night. A little before dinner, a little after dinner. I had been dreaming of an encased set of cubes for a while now, so there wasn't a whole lot of hemming and hawing... they almost made themselves!

I think they are so appropiate for the recent Ice Event of 2007. All the beads have a bit of encasing just like all that ice that encased everything all week. Kind of a fun way to celebrate the ice don't ya think? I pulled out all the same colors as my recent "Cubism" set, but left the transparents out and tossed in a little EDP. What's EDP you ask? Well, for those of you not familiar with glass... it is "Evil Dark Purple". The rod looks like lovely shade of pinky purple fuschia... then you get it in the flame and it acts like to rolled it in baking soda. It is very hard to control. So, I just let it do it's own thing and I like how it turned out. I think it gives the beads great texture and personality. I also like how I used the same colors as before but this time these feel much more pastely. Almost springy...

There is a funny story to go with these beads... most everyone knows by now that my glass studio space is in my garage. Now in winter we have been known to have a mouse or two living in the garage... can you tell where this is going? Well, my first hour at the torch before dinner was fine, quiet, uneventful. But when I went back out to finish my set, Bity Kitty can out in the garage with me. I noticed she went right to the corner by the back garage door. Ron has a bunch of golf bags lined up in that corner with play clubs for the kids. It is just a few feet from my desk. I was thinking, that's weird, what is she doing in the corner? So I just as I was getting settled and I am just about to touch the coral orange rod to my mandrel when what do I see out of the corner of my eye?... Bity leaping up on top of the golf bag after a BIG HUGE MOUSE running up the bag strap, across the head of a club, and down inside the bag. OMG!! Did I start screaming like a little girl?! YES I DID!! I totally freaked out. I know, it is a completely irrational fear... I am like 100 times the size of that mouse. But dang if I didn't almost pee my pants! LOL! The rest of the time at the torch I kept thinking I saw movement out of the corner of my eye. And anytime I moved my foot, I jumped thinking the tie of my slippers was a tail, lol. Bity stayed on gaurd for me. If we get a warm night anytime soon, I will leave her locked in the garage to "take care of the situation", lol.

I'll pop back in with the link to this new auction later tonight when it starts!

Been Busy Beading

YES! I finally got my torch refueled yesterday and I have already been beading away! I got loads to tell ya about! So lets get started...

First, check out the new raku frit (crushed reactive glass) I got to use on the "Sandy Lantern" bangles. It's new because it is much finer then the other raku, much "sandier" looking. At class tomorrow students will be wire wrapping these little beauties up in to some sweet looking bangles. I love love love raku! Who doesn't? Look at all those colors just POP!

Whenever I teach a project class, I have to make beads for myself to use too. I make the project right along with my students. I am still addicted to brights so I made some funky lentils for my class bracelet. Aren't they wild? Kind of a darker version of the beads I used in my "Fiesta" necklace don't ya think? I am definately going to need to explore this style more.

Today was a busy one... I have been working on making kits for tomorrow's class and I had a visit from the owner of Joolz, too. What's Joolz, you ask? Well, it is a new jewelry shop opening this spring in Canandaguia NY. Francie stopped by today and picked out a bunch of pieces for her new shop. Once she is ready to open the door, I'll let you all know the where and when details of the opening. It sounds like it is going to be fabulous place to find some unique pieces from around the country!

While I had all the jewelry out, I took the opportunity to get some things finally photographed and posted on the website. Take a minute and check out the new "Earrings", "Neckwires", and at last, the "Lariats". You need to scroll down on the Necklaces page to see the Lariats. The earrings and neckwires you may remember from back in November when I was getting ready for holiday shows. You can read the old post to find out what inspired those :) I can't believe I let these sit in my jewelry case for the past 3 months!! Shame on me... but there are loads of hearts so they are now, just in time for Valentine's. You would think I planned it that way, lol.

Did you notice my ticker change yesterday? I am so excited!! I lost another 4 pounds :) Yoo HOO! I am loving the direction the scale is heading, and it is all coming from eating healthy. Lots of fruits, veggies, whole grains... and don't forget... lots of water!! Gotta drink your water. Kids keep eating all the fruit on me though, lol. Jacob and Andrew love fruit. We have gone through 2 five pound bags of apples, 1 pound bag of grapes, 12 sunkist oranges, and a dozen bananas in just two weeks!

I plan on getting back out on the torch again tonight. I hope to have a fresh batch of Bead Box Beads and a couple more auctions next week. In the meantime... GO BID ON "COLORLESS CUBISM"... the auction ends tonight!! Hurry... go... before someone else gets them! They are going really cheap!

Forcasting

I know, I know, I know... blogs about the weather are boring. I promise to keep the weather take to a minimum and let the photos speak for themselves. The extremes go from one end to the other in this neck of the woods. We ended up with about a half inch build up of ice yesterday. And for those that asked... nope, it didn't melt! It is now hiding under a 6 inch blanket of snow! It is making for some very slick travel conditions. So I still haven't gotten out to get my torch fuel, but definately tomorrow... come hell or high water, I mean snow, lol!

The fact of the matter is I have to get fuel. I am teaching a "Sandy Lanterns" bangle class on Friday and a "Berry Wine" class next Friday... I gots lots of beads to make! Plus there are all the ideas I have playing around for new Bead Box Beads and Ebay sets too!

Even though I am torchless today, I did still do a lot of beady related things. First I secured my spots in the classes I wanted at the Bead & Button Show! I really had a hard time deciding what to take. I wanted "techniques" classes as opposed to "project" classes. Projects I can buy kits for and figure out how to do on my own, techniques I can really learn from. I really wanted to learn things that 1)I wouldn't normally have the oppurtunity to learn and 2) I wanted things that were totally foreign to me. So here is what I chose...
Exploration of Resins - An Emerging Voice in Metals - Instructor Susan Lenart Kazmer
Rio Grande's Education in Motion: Exploring PMC

My roommate, Holly, actually told me about the resins class. I really know nothing about it, so should be cool to learn something completely out of the ordinary for me. I am feeling bummed for Holly though, the class sold out before she got her spot in it!! She and I will be hitting the PMC class together. Technically, PMC will not be new for me, I have tried it before and HATED it. But I know if I am taught the "right" way to do it, I may like it more. Sculpting and molding clay, then turning it to pure silver, just lends it self to my "artist" personality. So, all in all, I am super excited for the show!! Maybe next year I will apply to teach Totally Twisted!! I really didn't see a good introduction to wire working class in the schedule.

Another interesting beady thing happened today... I got my advanced copy of BeadStyle magazine with my "Breeze" necklace tutorial. I am excited to see my name in print again!! I told you before, I am disappointed with the actual article itself. The editors have you using odd tools (ei... "right angle mandrel") and the "tip" is the exact opposite of what I would do. But still, I am really looking forward to the emails from people trying the project out. When Step By Step Wire came out I got about 30-35 emails about it from strangers around the world. BeadStyle is a much larger, more main stream magazine and reaches so many more people! I'll be sure to let you know from what corners of the earth I hear from.

I think I will bundle Lauren and myself up to go out and play in the snow. Maybe we will shovel the driveway, rather then waiting for Ron to come and snowblow it. It'll be great exercise!! Tomorrow is "Weight In Wednesday" too. Did you notice the 4 pounds I lost last week? I wonder how I did this week. I guess you'll just have to come back tomorrow to find out.

Free Beads & Auction!

Just popping in to let you all know, I got plenty of power... it never went out! Though more then 50,000 lost power in the area.

CONGRATS GOES OUT TO ERNA P! She's this week's free beads winner... YOO HOO ERNA!! I have a new set put together for freebies... I'll get the pic posted for ya tomorrow.

DON'T FORGET!! The auction for "ROUNDISM" ends in just a couple hours!! Go get your bids in people!! And while you are there, you can bid on "Colorless Cubism" too.

An Event!

We are in the midst of an amazing weather event here in Western NY. It is just getting going so this photos are only the beginning. The weather foresact is predicting several more hours of the freezing rain before temps drop and lake effect snow begins falling tomorrow.

Isn't it just amazing what a little cold rain can do. I am sure the power will be out in a little bit and I'll have to head over to my Mom's to keep warm in front of her fire place.

Fortunately the kids are all off school today and they will be home, safe and sound. No worring about buses sliding off the roads. I am worried about my husband though, he decided to brave these elements and head into work this morning. He was the one who said "Honey, go get the camera... it is beautiful out there." He only works about 10 mins from our home, so hopefully it will be a short return trip with loks of salt on the roads.

All this icy and slippery conditions means that I won't be making a trip to the welding supply store to refuel my torch. Which means it is going to be a few more days before I have any new beads to offer. I am itching to be behind that torch though, I have some funky fun ideas playing in my head that I am dying to make. I'll get to them later this week though.

OH no, I just realized, I need to register for my classes at Bead & Button tomorrow... the power better not go out on me!! Anyone want to be my back up? LOL. I'll give you all my info, you sign me up... wait no that won't work, lol... I won't have power! Which means my digital phone will be off. Oh lets just hope the power doesn't go out!!

I'll pop back in, weather permitting, late this afternoon and let you all know the Free Beads winner :)

More Hattitude!

I realized today that I never told you what my sister and I did for our Mom for Christmas. Of course, I couldn't tell you cause my Mom is sneaky and would read my blog and find out. But these photos are the answer. Remember when Bonnie and I got our hats at Cornhill this summer? Then we wore them to La-Tea-Da's Tea Room for my Mom's birthday in September. Well, that day Mom was so sad she didn't have a hat like Bonnie and I did. We even swung by the boutique that carries Moire Bagale's hats in the city, but, alas, they were closed. Bonnie and I decided we would get Mom a hat of her own for Christmas.

We weren't about to pick it for her so she actually got a gift certificate for any hat she wanted. We went today to pick it out. She done good, people. She knows how to pick 'em. This hat is just to die for. Every stitch is hand done. Moire said she has about 20-30 hours of work into this hat. It is actually handwoven horse hair, but it is so surpizingly soft. I am just in awe. I wanted it!! You know I am going to come home with a new one after Cornhill this year!! My goodness I love this HAT! It is just an absolute work of art.

Dad topped off Mom's hat gift with a gift of his own. A gift certificate for a repeat tea party back at La-Tea-Da's. Mom has decided my birthday would be the perfect occassion to use it. So we are heading out in our hats for high tea in just a few weeks. Should be a BLAST!

Moire says her website is in the works so the minute it's up and running, you all will have a link to it. You gotta get a Moire hat... you just gotta. If you can't wait for her website... send me an email, I will give you her info!

I know I told ya I would show you a picture of my mug from Color Me Mine but it is hideous next to this hat so I am saving it for tomorrow.

Outta Gas

I am on a forced few days of rest till Monday. I ran out of fuel for my torch and the replacement tank won't be in till then. That's life, lol.

So, I am spending my "free" time researching torch upgrade options again. I found out a bit of bad news, I really wanted to get an oxygen concentrator but apparently they won't function in the lower temps that my garage studio reaches. But that means one of two things... one, I start out with tanked oxygen for a while... or two, I move the studio inside like I wanted to a few months ago. It would be nice inside! Especially with a new torch that is whisper quiet. Can I trust the kids though? Hmmmm.... still lots of internal debating going on in here....

Anyway, Lauren seems to be on the mend. Her fever has been down since yesterday afternoon. I don't think she has been 24 hours fever her yet, technically, but I am contemplating sending her to school anyway. I need to run some errands and it would be great to do it kid free for an hour, lol. My health is slowly improving... the cold is still hanging on but I am getting there. These few days of forced rest I am sure will help.

I need to get some chores done... but come back tomorrow, I will have a photo of my Color Me Mine mug to share with you!

Colorless Cubism

Come on, you all know me well enough to know that I would push through my exhaustion to get the beads finished. This is "Colorless Cubism"... I think the name is pretty self explanitory, lol. I love this B&W! You knew that already too, didn't ya? I am addicted to B&W desings, and of course B&W are gonna rock as cubes.

I am just doing this quick update. Lauren is still sick but thinks she can go sledding. The auction will start at 9:00 pm my East Coast time... and don't forget!! "Cubism" ends TONIGHT!! Get over there and bid before they are gone!!

Loop De Loo

Do you ever get to that point where you just keep moving cause you know the minute you stop that you'll just crash? That is the point that I am at. I am kinda going on fumes... but I going cause I will crash hard when I do stop. What does that mean for you all... another bit of eye candy!



Yesterday after I made the "Old School Recess" bracelet, I had some twistie mini disc beads to play with. And I decided they would be perfect in a new version of the "At The Playground" piece. This style was actaully a lot easier to make then the other one. I didn't need to torch the wire so it went a lot smoother. I like it a lot. I wore it last night while I was cooking dinner and kept catching my reflection in the glass of the microwave over the stove... it was so sparkly. And I love the twistie wire with the twistie beads, they are both very playful!

Lauren actually helped me a lot with these beads. On Monday when she came home from school, I was still wanting to play with glass, so I set her up next to me in the studio with some safety glasses. I told her we would make twisties and she picked the colors to twist together. She loved it. Did I mention these are MINIs. Here is a comparison for you. The Minis are dime size and the big ones are closer to quarter size. The are easy to make, the dozen I made took about 30 mins to make.

So after dinner last night Lauren got really fussy and fell asleep around 7:30, by 9:30 she was up again with a high fever and vomiting... she didn't stop to almost midnight. She and I ended up having a slumber party in the living room to let Daddy get some sleep. I didn't sleep much though and was up by 5:30 this morning.

One bonus is that we woke up to a fresh 6 inch blanket of SNOW!! FINALLY!! This has been the least snowiest winter in Rochester history. Something about El Nino... I don't know... but it is nice to finally have it and we are supposed to get another 6-10 inches throughout the day. Since Lauren is home sick from school and we are huddled inside from the weather... I probably won't get to finish that Ebay set of beads. But we will see, if I get a good nap this afternoon (really I swear I am going to take one this time) then I may sneak out after dinner.

Stay tuned to see what happens next around here...

June Cleaver

This morning when I got up, it was extra early again. Okay not that early... but early for me at 6am. I am still having trouble breathing and sleeping so I just went out to the couch to finish my book club book. The boys followed me shortly after, both making appreances by 6:30. So, Jacob reminded me of his homework... "Read 20mins, Spelling Pre-Test, Go to bed early, Eat a good breakfast". Weird sounding homework right? Well today NY state is doing ELA (English Language Arts) testing. I rolled up my sleeves and set to work. I made a spead fit for Sunday morning. Pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, fresh orange juice for the kids and hot coffee for me and Ron. Far from your usual bowls of cereal!

As I slaved over my skillets, it made me wonder about the kind of wives who do what I did this morning, everyday. Suddenly June Cleaver from Leave it to Beaver popped into my head. I think I must have been channeling her because the eggs were done right when the bacon was ready to come off and the pancakes were on a warm plate in the oven. Though I was missing my full toolled skirt and ruffley apron, lol... I had my signature tee shirt and pajama pants. I used to love to watch that show! (No I am NOT dating myself, lol... I watched reruns on Nick At Nite) It was such an idealic life wasn't it. I doubt I could be that dutiful for more then a few days before I just went completely BONKERS! Not to mention what I would do to Ron if he acted like Ward Cleaver smoking a pipe and reading the paper every evening after work.

I finished cleaning up the breakfast mess and sent the kids off to school. I washed up the beads from yesterday, wait, what... I didn't mention I made beads yesterday? Oh yeah, nap didn't work, lol, so I heated up the kiln and made some beads instead. (Gotta Love DayQuil) I only had an hour so I made up the disc beads I need to put together this new B & W version of my "Playground Series" (yeah I think 4 - 6 pieces in the same style is definately a "series"). Kinda ironic... I am having a very retro day... June Cleaver... B&W TV Show... B&W Bracelet... I had to name it "Old School Recess".

Can't you just see June taking this off as she gets ready to wash the dishes? Laying it on the window sill in front of her so she could stare at it as she cleans. Okay, that is a little extreme, lol... this wouldn't match her pearls but you gotta give my imagination some credit.

I know waking up so early is going to hit me hard later. I am already totally drained. So, I think the latest Ebay set of beads that is half finished is going to have to wait for tomorrow. But I will tell you this... Ron was the starter beads of the set and said "WOW, Those are cool." No grunting, head nodding or asking his usual engineer questions like "how much are those?" So I do want to get 'em finished up. I hope to do them tomorrow then have them ready to post on Thursday when "Cubism" ends.

Don't worry... I didn't forget to draw the Freebie winner yesterday, lol, I just forgot to post the name of the winner. SO... drumroll please... CONGRATS TO TERRI B!!! YOO HOO TERRI! Thanks so much for all the votes everyone. I have new beads strung, photgraphed, and ready to post. I'll keep coming up with free beads as long as you all keep voting :)

Roundism

Here is the link for the autcion... "Roundism"!
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Thank heavens for DayQuil! It helped clear my congestion yesterday just long enough to finish up this new Ebay set of beads. Check out "Roundism". I am coining my own art word... Roundism: to for ever be know as the opposite of Cubism, employing soft round edges as opposed to hard right angles. This a perfect companion set to "Cubism". All the same colors and I can see an amazing bunch of jewelry made out of jumbling these two sets all up. I am working on getting the auctio set up to start at my usual evening time. And I'll pop back in with the link for you later. Don't forget to the right under the cute Valentine's avatar of me you can click the link to get right over to my seller's listing at Ebay.

I was even feeling well enough yesterday to start yet another set of beads. They are some more cubes, which take a long time and effot to make. So, I only got a couple test ones made before I started to feel too bad. I took 'em out of the kiln this morning and I am very pleased. I will need a few more days to finish them up but stay tuned... I think your gonna dig 'em.

While I am here typing away, and since yesterday's post was so horrible short and pathetic, I will take the oppertunity to tell you a little about my weekend before getting slammed with this head cold. First, back to Friday... Jacob stayed home from school, with a cold (no wonder where this come from huh). I wasn't going to let him stay, but he promised he would rest and not get wild and crazy on me. Which tends to happen to kids... you let them stay home, they rest for an hour, then suddenly they are all better and reaking havic on the place. He snuggled up in my bed and watched back to back to back to back episodes of Star Trek The Original TV Series on DVD. He LOVES them! He even went so far as to write a story "What if the Enterprise landed in my back yard?" Although his promise not to get wild and crazy was short lived, he was bouncing off the walls by the time Andrew got home from school.

Saturday was much of the same... wild and crazy kids bouncing off the walls. The weather here has been unseasonable warm for weeks now. Ron went golfing at 7:30 in the morning!! It is a rare thing to be golfing in NY state in January, well that is unless you are in a "Polar Golf" tournament. I was near exhaustion and pulling my hair out by time Ron got home... so snuck out with my sister for a few hours. It was great getting some adult girly time with her. We actaully decided to go Color Me Mine again and make coffee mugs. I can't wait to see mine... it's just like these beads!! Wait till you see it next weekend when I pick it up!! It was so cool that I had strangers commenting on it, and one lady tried to copy it on to her teapot. By the time I got home, my congestion of this cold started to setting in and it fit full force about 2 am with that whole one sided breathing thing I told ya about.

So you already know about yesterday so you are now all caught up on the life and times of Kabs. Lauren is at school right now and my bed is calling me for a nap so I will catch ya all later...

Sniff sniff, sneeze, cough, UGH!

I am sick as a dog!! I don't know where that phrase comes from or what it exactly means... but I know it is what people say when they are sick. I have a miserable, aweful, make-you-wanna-stay-in-bed-all-day kinda cold. It started yesterday afternoon and hit full force about 2 am. I kept rolling from one side to the other trying to get to breathe out both nostrils. I just sucks.

So please indulge me with a few days rest and I promise to come back with a big bunch of beautiful beads (sanitized in Lysol) when I am feeling better. I already have a second Ebay set started that it the opposite of the "Cubism" set that I am excited to share but it needs a few more beads to complete it.

HAA Chuuuu, I am going back to bed...

Cubism

Auction is all set to start at 9:15pm my East Coast time... check it out "Cubism"
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Are you ready for a little art inspired art? Cubism is not for the faint of heart so be prepared... these are pretty wild! Remember me saying that Tuesday night I had intended on working on an Ebay set that was playing around in my head, but lost my train of thought and made discs instead? Well, since making the "Love Cubes" that are in my Bead Box, I couldn't stop thinking that they would be amazing done in bright colors. These are those beads and I think they ROCK!

This morning I was surfing the web for "Cubism". I knew what it was and some of the more well known artists, but I wanted to see if I could find something like my beads. And I did... Hans Hofmann is a dang near perfect match for my beads. The piece I have cycling through my slide show is called "simplexMunditis" and it was painted in 1962. I think it is great!

I got more goodies to share too...can you guess what this is?



I'll give you a little hint... it's NOT a new lariat and I made one of these a few weeks ago to take to the book club Christmas party... have you figured it out?



Clever huh? I had some discs left over from yesterday's design so I strung them up on a scrap of cording. A very bright fun way to mark your page! I have seen LOADS of "bookmarks" for lampwork beads, you can buy blanks all over the place, but this design of mine I think is truly original. I have never seen anything like 'em. If you are a big reader and really want one, send me an email. I will take orders for them for a short time. They will all be random and brightly colored. Cost: $18 each plus shipping. I will send you an invoice when you order :)

Thanks so much for all the votes and suggestions that are pouring in on my survey. I am getting some really wonderful feedback. I am going to give the poll a few more days then let you know what I decide!

In other chit chat type news, you may have noticed at the very very bottom of my blog there is a "ticker". A weight loss ticker. I am not one to make resolutions, so don't think that I have suddenly decided to lose weight because of the new year. But it has been a concern for me for a few years. When I was younger, I was always healthy and active. I never had a weight concern, that was until I was pregnant with Jacob and shot up to 230 lbs. Since then weight has just stuck to me. I am not nearly the weight I was when I was pregnant, but I am more then I would like to be. I just don't feel like my outsides match my insides. SO, you can watch my ticker and see how I do. I have set a goal and I am taking a more active approach to eating healty and getting myself moving more.

Alrighty... I need to get the EBay action for this new "Cubism" set ready to start this evening. Which means it is time to reorganize my "Glass Gallery" on my website! Gotta archive all those old photos. I'll pop back in with the link to the auction as soon as I have it.

New Survey!

Go check out the new survey on my website! Help me decide which photos to have made into slides and then sent out to art shows. There are four possible groupings. Let me hear what you think! AND don't limit yourself to my suggestions. You all know my work best... send me an email with your alternates.

THANKS!

On A Jungle Gym

CHECK IT OUT!! "Playground Antics" has a matching bracelet! This one is going to be called "Jungle Gym". I was fortunate enough to have Ron home last night (still on "winter break" at school) and he let me out to the torch after dinner. I was going to work on an Ebay set that is playing in my head but as I pulled rods... all those Ebay thoughts were no where to be found. In their place was the need to disc it up again!! I can't believe how many discs are still in my head. I have made dozens, literally DOZENS, in the past few weeks and still haven't made two the same.

I had a blast pulling a bunch of twisties. I knew if I kept trying they would get better! And they add so much color to a bead with out making it too big. When I start layering colors the discs get bigger and bigger. It is nice to get two or three colors in one band. Another touch to these is double bubble beads. Remember I had added single bubble transparent beads to the Playground Antics piece. These are mostly solids with random bubbles of colors. FUN! Oh, and I figured out how to get one of my "K" tags on the silk cording too. I used a large soldered jump ring and it is trapped in one of the knots. The tag dangles off there. Which adds a whole new batch of possibilities to this style... DANGLES!

On to some very important business. I need some serious help!! Later this afternoon I am going to have a new POLL for you all. It is time to start applying for summer art shows and I need to decide which photos to have made into slides as representations of my work. I'll make a couple possible grouping and you all can vote on which ones I should send.

Time to get Lauren to school. Let me know what you think of the new piece!

Kiss & Tell

There are beads in the BEAD BOX! I think you'll enjoy these. I know I like 'em. I just love the colors. These purples and reds just play together so nicely. It is definatly a combo I'll be coming back to again. And just so you know, there are photos where my wonderful rich deep dark red looks kinda orange. Trust me, it's very very red!.

When you are at my website make sure you look close at all my twisties! I am so proud to be making my own now. I know the more I do it, the better it'll get. And let me know what you think of "Candied Cubes". It is a new design and I have something extra special in mind for this style. But if you tell me you hate it, I may skip my special idea, then again, I will probably do it anyway. LOL! Cause I think they are cool. You also see in the slide show above, one bead NOT in the Bead Box. It was a custom order for a large red focal. I made a GIANT red bead swirled in strings of clear and wrapped it up with pure silver. Then it was squished into a flat coin shape, lovely black caps hide the wonky ends and give it a very shape appearance. I am really happy with how it turned out.

So, how do you like this little slide show collegey thingy? I found it via the K-Style blog. She finds the coolest stuff! I love all the great stuff shared at her blog and from what I read, she is going to have a lampwork bead website up and running soon. I can't wait to see what she makes.

In other news... the kids got off to school this morning without a hitch. They were both a little groggy but made it to the end of the driveway in time for the bus. Jacob maybe coming down with something. He was complaining of a scratchy throat. Fingerscrossed it was just the heater running last night. We have been so lucky to have a very healty couple of months. Nothing more the sniffy noses around here.

Oh, almost forgot... this is my piece of pottery from Color Me Mine.



It is going to be my new bead bowl. I need a big one to collect all the bead sets I put together when I am getting ready for a bead box update. I can't wait to go back with my sister and paint a coffee mug :)

Well, the sun is shinning and Lauren wants to head out to the swing set. I guess that means I actually have to get dressed today, lol. I was so hoping for a jammy day, oh well.

Go check out the new free beads!! AND CONGRATS TO HEATHER H! YOO HOO HEATHER!

HAPPY NEW YEAR

I was going to make the first post of the new year a bead photo, let ya see a sneak peek at tomorrow's beads. But then, I opened my email and look what Francine sent!! Let me introduce you... book club this is my blog, blog, this is book club. Here we all are at Benucci's Resturant after painting pottery at Color Me Mine. From left to right, this is, Renee, Francine, Chelsey, Susan, Linda, Nicole, Suzie, Jennifer, Chere, Kerry (Me), Tami and Chris. I love this picture, everyone is smiling, everyone's eyes are open, what more could we ask for?!? I did pick up my pottery piece from Color Me Mine the other day, it's cute. But you all know I am a perfectionist, so I definitely need to go back and make another piece. I'll get a pic of it tomorrow when I am taking bead pics. Ya know what, I just noticed... this picture really kills two birds with one stone... you get to meet book club AND LOOK, I am wearing the "Frozen Branches" necklace that I kept forgetting to photograph on for you to see. It also reminds me that I need to hurry up and finish this month's book When Madeline Was Young for Thursday's get together.

So, did ya'll have a fun New Year's Eve? Did you smooch your honey? We had a pleasant time with our friends. Julie is an amazing cook and always treats us sooooo well. She made an amazing tomato and spinach soup with pasta and a crown pork roast. YUMMY! We never actually make it to midnight on these get togethers. The kids get so over tired. So we were in bed when the ball dropped. Ron snoring away and me watching Carson Daly counting down. I did roll over and give Ron a little kiss though. :x I am so relieve the holidays are behind us. I can't wait to get back to the normal day to day life around here. The boys have been extremely wound up and just plain wild and crazy, I need them to go back to school tomorrow or someone is liable to find me in my car on the other side of the country in a few days, lol. I may run away. But no fear, school is here.

Beading has been GREAT!! A have 8-9 sets and focals ready to go for tomorrow. I am not sure when exactly I will get them posted. I am thinking early afternoon. All depends on when I finish my kid-free chores around the house and how long I sit and nurse a quiet cup of coffee. They are cool beads though. Lots of variety for you. Nuggets, Lentils, Discs, and some hearts too. Some stuff is encased, some has surface decor, and some is snipped too. I can't wait for Wednesday afternoon when Lauren is at school, I am so excited to get going on the next batch of beads. Plus I had an AH HA idea about a new Ebay set.

So stay tuned for loads of new stuff in 2007.