Time does fly.

The Start of The Season Market was on the 15th of September. I really enjoyed the venue, the organizers were on top of it, and there were PEOPLE shopping!  Can I tell you how exciting that is?!

It was a one-day show and seemed like a couple of hours went by and then it was done.  I shoomsed a lot about what I make and how it comes to be.  The Winston School art teacher came by and said my items were orginal.  I glowed for the rest of the day.  She even "got" my question mark enameled pendant.

 

Check out the new logo designed by my friend, Shy.

Love it.

 

 

What I take from this experience is to keep going, keep signing up and showing up. But, most of all, have fun while doing it.  Then time will fly... in a good way.

P.S.

I did sign up for Retailr at http://creativeinputbyliz.retailrapp.com/ .  The reasoning is that people (YOU) can purchase directly from Facebook or Twitter.  I am still working out the challenges.  I will be buzzzy setting it up while preparing for two more shows before the new year.  Yeah!

The show must go on...

  I was so excited about this handmade show and worked really hard to create and finish beyond what I had accomplished before.  I did meet my own expectations to get ready and I am really, truly proud of that.  However, the organizer of the One of a Kind Market disappointed most of the vendors with little to no advertising and absolutely no social skills.  She didn't even introduce herself or offer any condolences. 
  By 2 p.m. on Saturday, vendors were packing up and walking out with a storm cloud over their heads.  Personally, that kind of negativity makes me nervous.  I stayed because I was doing what I signed up to do.  I went back on Sunday.  Seventy-five percent of the vendors did not return.  Still the organizer did not address anyone.  My heart went out to two very talented ladies at their first show.  It was just downright sad. 
   Popping back from a dismal show takes some self-confidence and a lot of faith in my talent.  Sigh.  As I sit and write, I want to cry about it but that does no good.  I seem to have a need to create, to reuse forgotten items, to give a new life a piece of metal, to dream.  With that said, I continue to believe and look forward, NEVER behind (except to bring forth the lesson into my today). 
   The great news is, I have another show on September 15th at the Winston School at Royal Lane and the Tollway.  They are calling it The Start of the Season Show.  This is a juried show, which means there will be judges awarding certificates to artists.  This means, also, that the organizers are serious about attracting solid vendors and, secondly, they are vested in getting people to attend.  I will be ready in mind, body and spirit... and jewelry!
  Create for the joy of it!!

One-of-a-kind market, Pinterest, etching copper, anondized aluminum, and enameling

One-of-a-kind Market begins on Saturday, June 23rd at the Richardson Civic Center.  I have been preparing by destroying the house with various jewelry making methods.  Last week it was a blissful day of enameling.  The week before it was stamps, dyes, and aluminum coupled with etching copper. 

I also joined pinterest.  OMG, it is so addictive and so very different from anything else.  You create boards that reflect your interests while getting lost in the maze of other peoples interests.  Love it.  So, I made a board of making anondized aluminum.  Check it out.  I hope you likey!

http://pinterest.com/creativeinput/making-anodized-aluminum-jewelry/?timeline=1&fb_action_ids=3501269365258&fb_action_types=pinterestapp%3Apin&fb_source=aggregation&fb_aggregation_id=10150402389062165

Finish it, girl

Where have I been?  Ugh.  I think wanting to sleep for the past three months.  And, no consistency, which is quite harmful to my business and my exercise regime.  UGH!  But, you know what, who cares? Right?!  Just get back on the horse and gallop. 

I have a show the weekend of June 23rd and am ramping up my production.  I love making jewelry 'cause there are so many aspects to it.  The fire, the kiln, the hammering, the cutting, dyeing, stamping, and etching. Endless possibilities swirling in my head. I already think I have many personalities and all these options have them chattering with much enthusiasm. Focus is the theme for June.  Finish, completion, consistency.

Pray for me.

Me and the International Bakery Cuban Dulceria

I am getting excited about my next sale at The International Bakery Cuban Dulceria on Friday, March 30 and Saturday, March 31.  I talked to the lovely Rita today to confirm and hash out the details for the postcard.

Here is the postcard:

                   

Cute, huh?!

     

God's voice

I am fortunate enough to believe in God.  I have been guided by many of His angels on earth.  My own life is one of transformation from hopeless darkness, to believing in someone else's faith in God, to knowing the love of God is mine, no matter what. 

What has inspired this writing today is a Catholic Monsignor named Don Fischer (Msgr. Don) and his weekly radio show. I have heard his voice for going on 30 years, beginning when Denise would drag me to church with her at the University of Dallas in Irving.  I am sure I listened but I did not hear. I remembered the sound of his voice and that it was without judgement.

Years later, I came to my breaking point.  I wanted to stop my destructive behavoir.  I stopped drinking with a lot of help and self-searching. It wasn't easy.  I felt I wasn't worth God's love because of who I had become and what I had done. I was given a belief that God doesn't judge, people have a monopoly on that. This faith absolutely works for me.  And it is freeing.

So, my first roommate, Jeannette, re-introduced me to, then, Father Fischer and his weekly program Sundays on 101.1 at 10:30 a.m.  I listened religously (pun intended) for years even taping the episodes for future times. Yesterday, the link "appeared" on my browser bar and I opened it.  I didn't have time to listen to it yesterday, but I did today.

The message was of forgiving.  Allowing yourself to forgive instead of resenting (re-living the hurt) as you are the benefactor of the act.  You are free of the poison you took hoping the other person would die.  It was perfect for today. Perfection. God is always on time.

I am still warmed by the words he chooses and how he interprets the gospel into real, today language.  It is always in the language of God's love for us. I am astonished at the gentle power of Msgr. Don's message.  I don't practice a religion, his program is the closest thing to it for me. I can believe in the God he represents when often I am mentally arguing with other's representation.

This is the description on Msgr. Don's program on the website http://www.pastoralreflectionsinstitute.com/ . 

For more than twenty-five years, a spirit-led message has flowed through Pastoral Reflections, a weekly radio program reflecting on the Liturgy of the Word for each Sunday. Listeners awaken to a Heart-Presence as they identify with Monsignor Don's journey of self discovery. A message rooted in the recognition that as believers we are called to accept our human condition and its perfect compliment, the indwelling presence of a loving God. As one who longs 'to see', Msgr. Don has always looked for the story within the story, the hidden teaching of Christ, which rather than telling us what to do or what to believe, heals and transforms us. As one of his listeners wrote,"He speaks not about the truth, rather his words resonate with the Truth". Many who listen are moved to bring this healing resonance of God’s love into the world and to live an authentic life of service in Christ.

I am hooked, again.  And, you can listen from anywhere in the world.

My new addiction...

Anagram tiles. What the heck is an anagram tile, you ask? Well, it is a beautiful piece of art in a small package. This wood tile, about 3/4 inch square, has the nicely aged character marks with a letter of the alphabet. It has texture and some even have an added carving on the back side. Such bliss!

How I discovered them was innocent enough. I went on a weekend trip with some moms from last year's Kindergarten class to Cedar Creek Lake. Is wasn't a cabin on the lake. This was a very gracious lending of a beautiful home on an inlet of the lake. Tricky to find after dark, but nice, nice, nice.


Aside from being with ladies I enjoy a great deal, and a weekend away from mommyhood, part of the allure of the weekend was a trip to Canton. OMG. Shopping mecca. Especially for a rusty junk hunter like myself. I found hammers, an anvil, texture galore and these anagram letters. I went right to them. They called me over with a subtle whisper. The letters were obviously vintage, at least, but mainly these had it all. They are old, textured, have character and peeling paint. What more could a girl want? Right?

But you want what for each letter? Really? Joanne and Karen were telling me they would buy a necklace with one of these letters on it. I have witnessed the scrabble tile rage. I like them, but frankly, scrabble tiles aren't hard to come by.

Click here to find this in my Etsy shop

Direct to Etsy listing, click here

So, the tile lady at Canton explained why they were so bloody expensive per piece. I bought 40 on the spot thinking for sure, bargain babe that I am, could not only find more, but get them at a better price. Ooo, not so much. Anagram tiles aren't so easy to find and people are proud of their tiles. But you can find 600 scrabble tiles on e-bay.

Anagram pre-dates the scrabble game. I have been busy obtaining more of these tiles and have discovered no two shipments have been alike except for their individuality. This is trouble for me. It is a challenge of sorts. Plus,crazy ideas fly through my head like making word braclets... my favorite being, "make me". Isn't that great.

So, you see my quandry. I have too many half finished ideas all over the house. But, I can't help myself.  An idea is a bolt of lightening that moves me to create no matter the circumstances.

I have listed some of these individual letters on Esty. Give me an A S, D, E, R, G, K, and a V

K tile  http://www.etsy.com/listing/92883217/upcycled-vintage-wood-anagram-tile
H tile  http://www.etsy.com/listing/92882372/upcycled-vintage-wood-anagram-tile 

The see the Etsy listing, click here

And here is the Etsy language I use to explain each one:

Each of the cream on black tiles are 20 mm square, just short of an inch. Each piece is made out of wood and is sealed with a spray lacquer and then I re-sealed with varnish to ensure the coloring will not bleed onto skin or clothing. The charm is super duper lightweight. I drill wee small holes and inserted a screw eye with wood glue so it will stay put.

Must I be so in love with everything vintage and jewelry making. Guess so. Not a bad addiction. I have had worse!

History

Reputed to have originated as a Victorian word game, Anagrams have appeared in many published versions in the last century. Anagram tiles were used in a game in which players would flip tiles over one at a time and race to take words. They can "steal" each others' words by rearranging the letters and extending the words.
The first modern version seems to have been the game The Game of Letters and Anagrams on Wooden Blocks published by Parker Brothers around 1890. Another game called Anagrams was published in 1934 by the manufacturer Selchow and Righter, who would later publish Scrabble in 1953. Spelling and Anagrams (a set incorporating two distinct games, Spelling and Anagrams) was also published in the 1930s. In 1975, Selchow published the Scrabble Scoring Anagrams version which featured tiles with point values similar to the familiar Scrabble system. The Embossing Company, formerly Halsam Products Company, also produced a yellow-on-black Eye-Rest set. Many other versions have been produced and used sets can still be found on internet auction and specialty sites.


Information was found @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anagrams




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Bow crazy

Audrey's hair is finally growing out from when she cut it short last year.  She has beautiful blond hair that was on its way to being luscious locks of gold until I found the patches of the straw-colored hair all over my bathroom.  Not a proud mommy moment since I am the dope who left the scissors out.  Her golden locks had to be cut into a comb over to cover the fluff that were her bangs.

Audrey

Since THE CUT, Audrey has been referred to as a boy.  THEM: "Oh, how old is your son?"  ME:  "you mean the one wearing PINK?"  Really, people?  I digress.

Alligator clips

Back to the bow craziness.

The bangs are now in her eyes but I wanted to go with all one length so instead of investing a small fortune in bows, I invested a large fortune in bow making materials.  So much more fun to make my own, exactly as she and I want them. 

Jeff and I happened to be close to Micheals. Serendipity, right? I never miss an opportunity to stop in a craft store and Jeff, I thought, was preoccupied at the book store next door. He found me, so I had .2 seconds to decide on materials. I chose alligator clips and some flowers from scrapbooking.



More expensive but nice.

The next day, Audrey and I made trip to Hobby Lobby and purchased more bow stuff.  Armed with a glue gun, we went to town.  This is so ridiculously easy, all you need is a glue gun, some adornment, and clips.  One tip is to clip the clip onto something plastic while you glue the adornment on or you will glue the clip shut.  Or if you use cardboard, as I did, you get cardboard on the clip, which you can't see but it is still there!

Audrey and I loved this project and even though the bows are getting lost at school, she is wearing them and her hair is out of her eyes for a little bit. We have since been back to the hobby stores and have big, grand flowers from the floral section.  They cover half her head but the are sooo cute.

Amethyst, nuggets, necklace, fire polished and swavorski crystals - $37.50

Amethyst is the birthstone for February and of our first born, Brendan. The 18" necklace is made of natural amethyst nuggets that are a rich, deep purple. Interspersed between the amethyst are purple and clear swavorski crystals with a smattering of green fire polished beads. The large toggle (makes it easier to put on) and chain are silver plated.

Click Here to Visit My Etsy Shop!

Blue heart, upcyled silverplate textured, love to run, double pendant, gifts under 35 - $32.50

Beautiful enamel covers the base heart pendant and a silverplated on nickel heart cut from a vintage tray has love to run stamped on its surface. The love to run heart is textured and colored with iris guilders paste. It is sealed with renaissance wax to keep the color.The silverplate has been sanded off in some places and the gold colored nickel peaks through.



My passion for reducing my carbon footp...

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Fishers of men, repurposed metals with a riveted anondized aluminum fish on a silver plated chain - $29.50

Trying a new program that I can slam the social media world by scheduling my posts for now and in the future. I have been making barretts with Audrey and etching today. All is well

Now about the piece:

Repurposed brass and copper highlight the fish, which has three rivets symbolizing the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. I just finished reading the book, The Shack, and I enjoyed the depiction of these three entities.



The pendant is 2 inches long, and almost 2 inches wide with the chain measuring at 18 inches long. A different length chain can be substituted. The brass has been sealed with Shella...

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Just say no

I was quite disturbed yesterday when I got to thinking about how put upon I have been.  I was given a piece of jewelry to fix, then was volunteered for a huge job at my daughter's school.  I already have a Tuesday obligation at Brendan's school and the "job" at Audrey's school is to take photographs of every child in the preschool.  I didn't count how many kids, that would have added fuel to the fire.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy being able to help at both schools or volunteering to fix other's jewelry.  You know there is a big "BUT" coming so here it is.  I work from home. I make jewelry as a business.  This is the year I am putting it all out there to be profitable.  That means, I have roughly 15 hours without children a week, not counting after they go to sleep.  I love my work and think about it even if I am not actively making pretties.  I want to have my hands dirty with metals or dyes or enamels. But, I feel crappy about saying, "no" to volunteering.  It feels like I am being selfish.  So, is it okay to be selfish?  Yes. 

No more fixing jewelry for others, excluding of course, my mother.  I will say "no" to the next huge task at either school.  I have about 20 items that I need to photograph and add to my Etsy shop.  I have to say, "yes" to my business.  I have to put time, energy, and creative thought towards my business if it is to soar. I have purchased the book, I'd Rather be in the Studio, by Alyson B Stanfield | art biz coach (http://artbizcoach.com) and have downloaded some Etsy videos to focus on my businesses goals and how to obtain them.  This is scary, but if I am to do what I absolutely love to do, I must take action and believe in my dream. 

I want my adorable children to see me give it my all.  I want them to believe in themselves and to work at what they LOVE to do.  Don't you want that for yourself and the ones you love?