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Wednesday, December 9, 2015

ABS ORNAMENT BLOGHOP


It's been a couple of years since I last participated in this.. I've done an ornament exchange the last couple of years.. but I can't really see anyone wanting this one.. Actually it might look nice on the glass of the front door but it's way too heavy for my charlie brown tree..... actually the enameled leaves are really a much closer colour match than they appear to be in these pictures!

Holly with a bad hair day!

White bead is lampwork (mine) most of the components are copper wire or enameled copper sheet.  the holly berries are seed beads.

Hopefully the link to the hop will be added tomorrow?
ornament-blog-hop-party 2015

The list of participants is at the bottom of the blog!



Tuesday, November 24, 2015

More on cat head pendants....

My first cat head commission was Tucker a black cat with a white chin...  I didn't even have a picture of him  I can visualize that.....

Next a Calico cat called Calipso  Cali for short as you can see she has nice regular markings... and that orange colour isn't a glass colour that is made... and she hissed at the photographer....

Markings for bead...  I found it was too difficult to keep looking at the photos and the bead is flat...
left one done from photo blech,  #2 I ran out of propane half way through, so while I was reheating it I  remixed my orange glass to finish this bead so  it has two colours of orange, 3 the whiskers are too fat, but I like the chin # 4 ..... will have to do!

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

Playing with paper.....

Prototype paper necklace..  Made from paper strips, the blue beads are etched glass and the orange seed beads are seed beads which are an awesome colour and also an awesome price  (ie expensive!)

Since I really enjoy wearing my paper necklace I made one for a New Brunswick charity auction, hopefully at least two  someone 'elses' will like this!  It also has small round amethysts between the beads.
Since Auction pieces need titles...
It's called
"ALL WOUND UP"

Saturday, July 11, 2015

A typical Saturday... One can only hope not!

This morning after spending the last 4 days going through every bucket of beads in the  350 sq/ft room I've claimed for my beads: at least 5 times.... I picked up a drawer with silver findings to put it back where it should belong, and guess what the missing beads were under the drawer...grrr  


Then my first customer of the day came in and said :
"well you won't have very many customers for awhile" 

Me "why?"

Her "that little girl"

Me "what little girl"

Her "well they found a dead little girl on Deer Island"

Me " there are a lot of Deer Islands and I haven't seen a cop car here since last summer, so I don't think so"

Her " there is more than one place called Deer Island????"

Me  "3 or 4 that I can think of"

Her  "Oh"

And guess what I had never even heard of Deer Island MA part of the greater Boston area  where the body was found, so there is now another Deer Island....  With the internet how can someone be out by that far on location!
ie: be that ignorant.. or is it stupid?

And what is a blog without an image...
A 'Netfloat' bracelet'  hand wound hollow beads made from Caliente Glass... and yes I have a fairly significant stash!


Monday, June 29, 2015

My Cat's had kittens!

I bought a metal press from Bavarian Beads in November.  First bead I mad with it I added glass to the top edge instant ears... and decided that the bead looked like cat heads and that's all I've made with the press cat head after cat head after cat head.....
The most recent batch of kittens!

A black raku kitty 'torti' with a custom enameled clasp because 2mm findings don't fit 2 mm leather cord!

This might eventually end up on my etsy site but at the moment they are being adopted as fast as mommy kitty can produce them!

Friday, May 8, 2015

Snow is gone - magnolia is blooming AND..... a jewellery post (drumroll please?)

I was sent two 'die-formed' pieces of copper just after Christmas from Art Jewelry Magazine
This was one of them after I punched a bunch of holes in it...

First coat of enamel
I made some of my red enameled poppies to decorate it.. they were suppose to go  around the bump but I couldn't get them to look good on that side so  they went in the bump!
Then I built it a hand made copper and bead chain...
The other piece was oval (I did trim it) The copper was heat treated then'riveted' to an enameled backing  and attached to a 'me-made' copper chain

Couldn't find my liver of sulpher so tried a boiled egg... Never again.  Mainly because I've found my liver of sulpher (right where it was suppose to be - and will never misplace it again)!  and my DH thought it was a major waste of an egg!

To see all the entries click here die-forming-challenge

Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Snow is mostly gone so I can find the studio!

Meow..
we're all sold but mommy knows how to make more!

Trying to come up with the perfect endcap for lentil beads
...

The other side  I think there's a crack because I used metal enamels for the implossion not glass enamels... may just be a weird bubble but whatever.. Guess it's mine!

Wednesday, March 18, 2015

Think we're loosing 'ground'!

St Paddy's Day Joke?
My car this morning... my car is the two little spots you see in the snow.. The car on the driveway with wheels is my husbands!

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Guess this is progress?

Hate this time of year the snow is so dirty... but since it appears to be leaving ... all is good (for now anyway!)
See it really was a car!

Snow plow hit our railing....  looks pretty trashed!

Saturday, March 7, 2015

My car on March 4....

At least this was the last place I remember seeing my car!
The car is the little red dot about 18 inches from the truck!

The light has just about disappeared and the snowplow ripped the end off the railing which is totally buried!

Saturday, February 14, 2015

Origins of Valentines Day

I was sent a request to review a book... The book was eaten by the postal system so never got reviewed.... So instead of reviewing the book I am posting an article on the origins of Valentines Day written by "Jassy de Jong the  author of the book I was suppose to review....

And I can't do a blog post without an image so in honour of valentines day here's one of my "Dance of the 7 Viels Heart" beads


I confess... I love Valentine’s Day.

Some call it over-commercialized. I say that’s just as well. Thank goodness for all those entrepreneurs out there, designing cards with hearts and glitter, and making teddy bears on sticks and ruby pendants and chocolates with red wrappers, and growing long stemmed roses. I mean, what would we give as gifts otherwise? Easter eggs? Pumpkins?

Some call it schmaltzy. Well, what do you expect? It’s a day celebrating love. Soppy, doting, romantic, couply love. It’s all about hand holding, intertwined fingers, long, deep gazes into each other’s eyes. It’s about saying, “You’re so amazing,” and getting the answer, “No, you’re so amazing, and then saying, “I’m so glad I met you,” and hearing, “No, I’m so glad I met you. Here, have some more champagne.”

I googled the origins of Valentine’s Day... I had a confused idea it was something to do with a saint rescuing a lot of animals, which sounded loving and very appropriate for a day filled with so much caring. But I found out I was wrong. The animal rescuer was St. Francis of Assisi and his celebration day is on October 4.

Valentine’s Day doesn’t quite have the romantic roots I hoped it would. The ancient Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia from February 13-15. During this time they sacrificed a goat and a dog, and then, while drunk and naked, whipped the women with the hides of the slaughtered animals. Say what? I’m struggling to see the romance in that. Apparently the women believed that a good beating made them more fertile, so they eagerly lined up for their punishment.

There was a matchmaking lottery as part of the festivities, where names were drawn out of a hat. If the match was right, the couple would get together for the duration of the festival.

Of course, it wouldn’t be ancient Rome if there weren’t some executions involved. History tells us that Emperor Claudius II executed two men, both called Valentine, on February 14th, during different years of his reign. Why on the same day? Who knows? But as a result, the Catholic Church began commemorating this day to honor their martyrdom.

It seems a big leap from whippings and slaughterings, to restaurants with elegantly designed menus featuring oysters, with tables set up for two. But seriously, aren’t we lucky in today’s modern times to be able to unwrap a carefully chosen gift while waiting for our heart shaped chocolate mousse to be served, instead of watching somebody flaying a dead goat before they start flogging us with the skin?

Valentine’s Day. It’s all about gratitude.

Oh, and love, of course.

+++++

AUTHOR BIO
Jassy de Jong was inspired to write her first novel, Random Violence, after getting hijacked at gunpoint in her own driveway.  She has written several other thrillers including Stolen Lives and The Place for Fallen Horses. De Jong also edits a hair and beauty magazine.  She lives in the northern suburbs of Johannesburg with her partner Dion, two horses and two cats.

BOOK LINKS
·         Amazon: http://amzn.to/1FutJVh
·         Barnes & Noble: http://bit.ly/1xwZLPm
·         Astor+Blue (publisher): http://bit.ly/1u8LJk5

Wednesday, February 4, 2015

SNOW

Having a hard time posting without the weekly prompts..  12 days ago we had green grass ... then On Saturday Jan 24th we had snow...  Sunday was warm and it sort of melted.. enough to make everything icy... Then on Tues Jan 27 we had what was forecast as the storm of the century....  OK more snow ...  Then on Saturday Jan 31 we had a little Blizzard way more snow and wind than the storm of the century.... Sunday morning I jokingly said better go check the weather to see what time the next storm is starting...  HA HA Monday noonish... still yet more snow...  And the forecast for tonight is another 30 cm ( or 14 inches if you prefer Imperial!)

Here's a link to a blog post I did 6 years ago when I thought we had a lot of snow in Feb snow-snow-go-away  Here's a picture I took this morning 
Remember the railing in the picture from 2009 beside the lamp post... It's GONE!

This is the view out the dining room window.. my very own Matterhorn!

Guess what folks I don't like snow anymore!


This is a close to the same angle as the 2009 picture as I could get.. hard to see over the snow banks left by the plow truck!  The 2009 snow was wet most of this snow has been accompanied by blowing snow and frigid temps!