By The Way, It's BTW!

It is Bead Table Wednesday! And I just happened to have rearranged mine today... perfect timing!

Balancing Out The Bright

One of the things I love about having a Flickr Photostream is seeing, so plainly, color patterns in the images. Yesterday, everything had hints of yellow. Today, as I loaded photos, I noticed everything took a turn to the rustic and earthy. Sometimes the transition in the stream in the palettes is subtle and other times, like today, it is more obvious.








(as a side note: My hubby and I have recently become addicted to American Pickers on Netflix. He called me yesterday and said "I went pickin' on lunch". It is something we both have always done with my estate sale adventures and his garage sale ones. It is fun now to have a little lingo to go with the junk rummaging. Check out the cool antique oak apothecary cabinet he found for my studio!)

Seeing these photos today compared to yesterday is interesting to me. It really punctuates what is going on creatively for me right now. The book I am working on writing at the moment couldn't be more different visually than my first. Color wise, it will be like seeing yesterday's photos (aka Totally Twisted) side by side with today's (aka Rustic Wrappings), when you hold both books in your hands. What is wonderful is that both are still so completely me. I love old rustic rusty objects and the sentimental thought/feelings to hold. And, I am loving the process of going back to my roots, so to speak (do you remember the days when I oxidized everything I made?), and exploring the wonderful possibilities in this design style. It is making for some really magical studio time, lemme tell ya.

I can't wait to get to that studio now and finish up the project using those little resin-ed papers. You know, pages from a love story, written and printed, more than 100 years ago makes for the best little details in a design.

simply ten good things

(thanks to a prompt from Amanda Blake Soule... )

the feel of new yarn in my fingers as i knit away on a new project

the sun pouring in my front window when rain is expected

the quite of the house now that the kids are back to school

the comfort and smell of fresh linens... *love*

and the knowing tonight's sleep will be as good as last thanks to an unmade bed

the mix of spent blooms from bought flowers and flowers from our garden

the dirt stains on my nails after planting seeds

the smell of my hubby's cheek when he left for work this morning

the commitment to flip flops regardless the temps

and the fullness of inspiration waiting at my studio

April Is For...

:: surprise snow showers
:: washing all the linens
:: building lincoln log catapults
:: curled up kitten tails in sunlight pools
:: still toasty fires
:: sleep overs parties with stove top popcorn
:: camping out in the living room
:: cat cuddled naps
:: funky coffee cups
:: catching up on bookclub books

More Time By The Water

On our last day in VA, we headed just a little further down the state to Virginia Beach. OH how we love the ocean!! It has been far too long since we were ocean side. The water was freaking freezing and pinked our skin, but the temps were high and the company wonderful.

We made the long drive home yesterday and it feels good to be back. We are falling right back into the comfort of our routines. It is colder here than the water at VA Beach, but as I walked to the car this morning to grab a few things still not unpacked, I took a deep breath of the cold. It felt really good. Really really good.

There is no place like home.

Sun & Snow

While there is word that it is snowing back home in New York, we (the kids and I) are in Virginia enjoying sun, friends, and celebrations. My best friend Kelley, I mentioned her here before, is turning a ripe and fabulous age she rather I not mention. I wouldn't miss it for the world! And now we are in the throws of one of the best spring breaks EVER.

Be home soon...

Osculate Makes Three

Have I every mentioned just how helpful a thesaurus can be when trying to name a new design? I really could kiss the person that invented the thesaurus, I really could. Which is kinda ironic since one of the definitions of the word I discovered to name this new necklace is "to kiss".

os·cu·late   /ˈɒskyəˌleɪt/ [os-kyuh-leyt]
verb, -lat·ed, -lat·ing.

–verb (used without object)
1. to come into close contact or union.
2. Geometry . (of a curve) to touch another curve or another part of the same curve so as to have the same tangent and curvature at the point of contact.

–verb (used with object)
3. to bring into close contact or union.
4. Geometry . (of a curve) to touch (another curve or another part of the same curve) in osculation.
5. to kiss.

I really couldn't imagine a better word for this necklace. Could you? You might recognize these beads from this piece created ages ago. I was in the studio today absolutely wracking my brain about what to make for the 3rd design needed to photography for jury slides. Do I make more hollows, do I make discs, do I make rings? I couldn't decided. So as the kiln heated up, I thought to myself, I better shoot an old piece just in case. One thing led to another and suddenly I was busting the old necklace apart and reworking it into this completely new design. It is LONG at more than 30in in the round. There are more than 20 cupped glass discs with glass headpins attached to tiny figure 8 hammered links which connect ginormous 10g sterling silver rings. And those big rings have each been wrapped with coils of colored copper wire. It took hours to make and I sawed into my fingers... twice... when working with the 10g wire. Yikes.

I seriously couldn't be more thrilled with the final result and seeing the three slide images together is just so satisifying. The top photo is the one I decided to use as the third slide. Below are lots of other attempts at getting the perfect shot. I must say, it is dang near impossible to squeeze 30in of necklace into one frame and still show details. But I think I managed it.

Slide 2 - Drizzible

I know, I know... you want to know what the heck "drizzible" is. Well, it is the word that came to me as looked out the window while descending the stairs in the bleak halls of the building where my studio is. I thought to myself... it is miserable out, and look at that drizzle, it is definitely drizzle... hey, it is drizzible out! And OH MY, that is it... that is the name for the new necklace!!! I have been working on this all week and pondered multiple names during that time. The minute this made up word popped into my mind, I just knew that was what the necklace would be called. I just knew it. And to me... when I look at the necklace, and think "drizzible", not only does it suit it perfectly, it doesn't *feel* like drizzle and miserable put together.

The top image there will be what I use as slide #2 to represent my work when submitting to art shows this year. I just love it. Below are lots of other eye candy photos for you to oogle. For those that have asked themselves "what do people do with glass headpins?" THIS is my answer! Yes, those are all my original lampwork glass headpins (similar to the Striplosion ones from a few weeks ago). I wrapped them an assortment of colored copper wires and linked with sterling silver hammered rings. I love seeing this image side by side with the image from last week. Oh how giddy I am at how these images are turning out!!

Sticky Thoughts

:: you remember this, yes? saturday i had a sudden inkling to move it.
:: moving and reorganizing a book shelf might possibly be the most soothing activity ever.
:: you see, it was there, in the background... now it is behind the torch station.
:: having the glass cubbie fit abso-freaking-lutely perfectly into the shelves caused me to be gitty.
:: granted, the stereo is a tad big for that bottom shelf, but i will pretend i don't notice it.
:: moving this might lead to moving other things now too... hmmm, and i really want a big solid colored couch too.



:: there are a bunch of goodies in the kiln that i am excited to get to tomorrow.
:: i have show applications due next week!!
:: the wind is blowing so fierce right now the chairs are moving across the deck!
:: today was our first day in the 70s of the season. so balmy.
:: i went for a run and blame my pathetic wheezing and chest clenching on explosive amounts of pollen, not my current physical condition.
:: so what if i haven't run in weeks, erp, months. ahem.



:: my godson, ben, turned three last week... i got extra special hugs at his birthday party yesterday, so sweet.
:: sometimes, i just can't be bothered to capitalize. who really cares?
:: saturday i am driving to virginia to see my best friend... can.not.wait.
:: i am clueless as to what we are going to have for dinner tonight.
:: nearly finished an orange sweater i started two weeks ago. i think you'll like it.
:: here is hoping my magnolia tree waits until i get back from va to bloom.