It's Almost a New Year!

It's December 29th, my son turns 11 years old today! It's so hard to imagine he's growing up so fast. He's sitting at home with his good friend Andrew and they're playing some new video games on Sams new TV. He's having a sleep over tonight, I bought the boys some candy (yes candy), and other junk food, popcorn, "pop".....everything I know is a special treat for my sons big day! We had such a good time in Illinois visiting family, it's so hard to say "good-bye".

Here's wishing everyone a Happy New Year!

It's Almost Christmas & a Sprained Ankle!

I am so glad I had all my Christmas shopping finished before Friday afternoon! What a week! I was asked to bring my jewelry to my son's elementary school and I did on the day I was there for his Christmas Party. However, several teachers and staff did not get to visit me during that time so I was asked to bring it back the next day.

Well, As I was leaving the school, I was loaded down with my son's leftover Birthday Donuts, my 2 wheel cart with my jewelry displays inside, Sams coat, my coat and a purse. I was walking down to the parking lot (and someone was parked in front of the "no ridge walkeway) so I had to walk behind that car and I swear......the next thing I know is I'm laying flat out in the parking lot of my son's school. Fortunately it was 3:45 pm and there weren't many parents, kids or teachers left and of course the few that were there (thank God) were friends and they all came running over to help me! It was like a slow motion movie and when they got there, I couldn't even get up without their aid. I was too shocked to be embarrassed but when I got home within a few hours I was in a lot of pain and I ended up spraining my ankle!

What a way to start out the holiday season but I am optomistic. I'm going to take advantage of "sitting around" watching TV! My new laptop has been delivered to my Mom and Dad's house so I'll have something to do when I get to Illinois!

I hope everyone has a blessed Christmas! I know I will! Merry Christmas to you all!

Open House is Thursday!

I'm getting ready for my Open House this Thursday! It is so much work to get it together and afterwards I'm so exhausted! But I love selling my jewelry and then investing the money in some new jewelry making ideas! Really need to work on making soldered charms....the ones with a picture between two microscope glass. And I'm wanting to make some more Rosary Type necklaces. Just finished "The Living Christmas Tree" last night so I feel somewhat behind on getting my Christmas presents together. Sam is getting so big (he'll be 11 years old on the 29th) it's getting a bit hard to pick out gifts! And my husbands birthday is December 11th, Can You Say "Broke"?

Love these Long Holidays!

I just love having all this time off! I visited the big Bead Show in town last weekend so I'm ready to get to work! And I'm getting into the Christmas spirit. I'm making Christmas earrings. Are these little snowmen adorable or what! They seem so happy!

I've made several new pieces this weekend, I'm trying to get ready for my December 10th Open House!

December 10th - Open House Jewelry Party!

My sweet friend Debbie from Prairieemporium.com gave me this beautiful hand made bead in blue and green and I couldn't wait to make something out of it. So I mixed it with a brass "joyful" pendant and made a bracelet. I'm getting ready for my December 10th Open House! Thank you Debbie!

Love those Mixed Metals

I loved making this necklace and all the components. First I soldered the brass rings together and then I made this sterling silver circle and clasp. Then I added lots of fun gemstones and beads. I'm trying to make pieces for an open house but I'm having a hard time finding a date to have my Open House. I love these parties though so I've got to find a time. Do you think the 2nd week in December is too late.....is your Christmas shopping done by then???? Just looking for some feedback about a good date for a jewelry party!

Green...the color of Fall!

My good friend Debbie from Prairieemporium.com gave me this pretty glazed glass leaf pendant and I just love the color. Then I found this pretty green/gold fiber at our local bead shop and threaded it through some copper chain. This is so fall............

Halloween!

This is Sam and mom getting ready for an evening of Trick or Treating! We had a great time...caught up with some friends and did our treating in a big group! We got tired rather quickly since we had the Tulsa Run earlier that day......but Sam has plenty of candy (I'm hiding a large portion of it)! Hope you all enjoyed your Halloween!

Copper and Silver

I need to work on my photography skills! But this is a cooper piece I etched and I added a sterling silver piece that is hand stamped "WISDOM".

Fibers and Paint??

I'm using some fibers in my latest creations. I'm also wire wrapping chain..just something new to learn. I'm always wanting to learn a new technique!

I've also started stripping furniture and painting it and I'm so in love with the entire process. Everything right now is getting painted with black paint and I'm distressing and waxing the bare spots. I'll take a picture to add to this blog sometime!

OSU / OU

Can you say go OSU / OU?! I was asked by my sons school secretary to make some Union School jewelry which the colors are OU. However, an avid OSU fan standing next to her said I must also make some OSU pieces! So......hence, OSU and OU jewelry. I only have these earrings made but I'll soon be working on necklaces and bracelets!

Rosary Necklace

I've been interested in designing rosary necklaces. No, I am not catholic but I think the symbolism behind a rosary is interesting. I am a Christian so I just love the cross and the picture of the Virgin Mary. This also gives me a chance to work on my wire wrapping skills. I haven't really done much wire wrapping but I'm really enjoying it. I also just made a pearl wire wrapped necklace with silver wrapped fibers in the middle of it. I'll try to get a picture of it this week so I can post it.

Victorian Earrings

When I spent a weekend with my friend Debbie, she made some beautiful earrings so I had to try to make a pair when I returned home. I'm really into making longer earrings! I need to spend more time actually "making" jewelry than watching what everyone else is making.

Happy Birthday To Me!

Wow, did I have a great birthday. I belong to a quilting group that I helped start 8 years ago and we do the "secret sister" gift! Well this is what my Secret Sister gave me for my Birthday; there are some beautiful fabrics, The Quilting Book, a Belle Armour Jewelry magazine and a gift card! I have such a generous secret sister...she is absolutely spoiling me! When I'm not making jewelry...I'm quilting!

PEACE

I had a request to make a PEACE necklace and I think it turned out quite well. I took a sterling silver disc, stamped the word PEACE on it, antiqued it and polished it up. I then added a sterling silver peace charm and strung it on 2 strands of black seed beads. I'm told the girls in high school are wearing "anything" with peace on it.

A Weekend in Greesburg

What a great weekend it was. My son and I drove to Greensburg, Kansas to visit my friend Debbie of Prairieemporium.com We tried etching for the first time and we came up with several nice pieces. Then Debbie drew a cross and a leaf (she's the really artsy one) and we made some pendants out of those shapes in brass. We also did some soldering and she did some resign designs! It was so much fun, it was like being at a workshop for a few days. And my son, Sam, had never been in the "country" before so he was in heaven around all the animals! Thanks Debbie for a truly wonderful weekend!

SING......

Sing..........such a small word but it has a lot of umph!!! It seems like whenever I have a charm with the word "sing" on it, it sells immediately. Some friends from Colorado visited a couple weeks ago and bought this right up, I need to make another one similar because I have so many things I could wear this with.

I'm going to visit a friend this weekend, Debbie at Prairieemporium.com and we are going to have so much fun....we're going to make jewelry all weekend. We're going to solder, etch pendants, make silver rings and all sorts of things. She is so talented and I can't wait to see what we come up with!

Turning Over A New Leaf!

That's right. I finished making this incredible leaf pendant that the owner of my local bead shop taught her instructors! I will teach this class this coming Saturday and can't wait. It was so much fun and they all turned out so unique!

Teaching Day!

Today I'm teaching a class at our local bead shop "Beadles". I'm going to teach a class called "Charmed". It will be a small class demonstrating how to cut metal, stamp metal and add adornments to the charm. It's a simple class but I "love" making charms.

This necklace is currently my favorite. It's made of copper charms, copper rings and a beautiful brown and teal cross stone pendant!

Sam's New Blanket!

Ok, so when I'm not "beading" I'm sewing my son a new blanket! Sam has always found the feel of soft fabric across his face relaxing. A few weeks ago I dragged Sam to a fabric store while I looked for some quilting fabric and we came across this extremely soft and plush fabric with Skeletons. He fell in love and "begged" me to make him a throw to cuddle with. I simply stitched it around, turned it inside out and so now he has a very soft blanket to cuddle with. I love making things that make Sam happy!

I'm Charmed!

I guess you could say I'm on a "charm" kick! I found this tutorial on the web on making a birds nest and this is my "first" try and I love it. I bought some steel wire today at Ace Hardware after reading a couple blogs that use steel to make some absolutely beautiful jewelry. I've never used steel in my pieces before but I like the workability of it and the way it looks so I'm going to try to incorporate it in some of my future pieces.

After looking closely at the "birds nest" picture, I need to get my tripod out so the picture isn't so blurry. There is sooooo much to consider when you start a blog. I read some blogs and they add a new piece of jewelry and comments each day and I think...wow, I don't think I could ever get enough ideas for jewelry pieces to make, then take a picture, edit the picture, download it to my computer, add it to the blog along with a comment. My goal starting August is to post twice a week showing two new pieces that I make that week!

I so appreciate those of you that continue to check out my blog even when it doesn't change regularly! Thanks! Leave a comment and let me know what I can do to make my blog for fun to visit!

Here are some charms that I made during my vacation. I've really been wanting to master the art of making a tree with branches, grass and a bird. And while I was at my parents I found some tools in my dad's tool box and I think I've got a couple of pretty good trees with branches. Notice the bird(s) on them, I've been wanting to use this new stamp forever!

I went to the Beadles (our local bead shop) today and signed up to teach a few classes for August and September. I'm going to teach a class on making charms, forging silver into earrings, and riveting a pendant! I hope to see some of my local friends there! You know who you are!

SUMMER IS FLYING . . . . . .

Wow, my summer is flying by! Sam and I visited my family in Illinois and the weather was perfect, low 80's every day we were there (compared to 107 in Oklahoma).

I have this favorite gift store I shop during every visit and they had two of these awesome necklace stands for sale. It's a metal copper and it looks really organic. I've got some ideas in my head I'm anxious to make into jewelry necklaces so I'll have some pictures soon. Also I have new stamped copper charms I'll get posted on here tomorrow! So much to do, so little time!

It's good to be back to my blog and my beads!!!

I Love The Ocean!

It's so great to go on a vacation! We had sooo much fun and my son is still partically waterlogged. Once he got into the ocean...he never got back out! And I read a book, under a large umbrella while listening to the roars of the ocean.....it was paradise!

I actually made this necklace "before" vacation but didn't have time to post it. It's a butterfly wrapped in copper wire that hangs on a beaded necklace! I'm in the process of making a couple new items before Sam and I leave for Illinois Friday to visit his grandparents and aunts.

GOING ON VACATION!

We're going to the Ocean! Yes, we're leaving in the morning for Destin, Florida. We'll stop in Jackson, Mississippi overnight and then get up Thursday morning and drive into Destin. I have been there before as a "single" girl....but my son has only seen the ocean from Galveston, TX so I'm so excited for him to see the blue blue ocean and the white sand. We bought our snorkling gear today, we have our beach umbrella and swimsuits and of course.....Sunscreen! Sam is very light skinned so I make him wear a swim shirt which he doesn't complain about too much! I can't wait to sit on the beach with my husband and son and just ... R E L A X! I'm taking magazines on quilts and beads and a book I'm currently reading so I'll have lots to read...I love to read!

And when I return...I promise to have a new piece of jewelry to show!

Your life is your message!

A copper pendant measuring 1 1/2" square on a copper chain. I added lots of colorful beads so it can be worn with just about anything! It has a baked and antiqued shiny finish which makes it look really rustic!

I made an anklet out of pink heisha beads and a heart charm from Thailand and a sterling silver clasp. Click on the picture to see it up close.....if you want a better look at the pendant.

I also just stamped, antiqued and tumbled some charms so I'll be putting them into jewelry pieces this weekend.....visit again soon and take a look!

Sam

This is Sam! We were playing with his BB gun in the back yard today and it was not working so in frustration, he decided he needed a newer one that would work but he was down to only $6.00. So he decided to have a Lemonade Stand! He actually sold out of Lemonade and made over $6.50 so he was pretty excited!

This is why I haven't any jewelry to post......he keeps me hopping but I wouldn't want it any other way! I just love this boy!

Gem Faire Came to Town!

Wow, the Gem Faire came to town on Friday morning and I, needless to say, spent most of Friday shopping and Saturday morning. I had to stop.....I was getting "beadshoppers overload". It's where every bead starts looking the same and you can't remember what you bought and what you didn't. I was having fun shopping for my friend PrairieEmporium.com, it's fun spending someone else's money! I also picked up some sterling silver findings and quite an assortment of copper clasps and spacers! I can't wait to get started beading but it is "summer break" and my 10 year old son keeps me very busy during the day and by evening I'm ready to crash and burn!!!!

School Is Out For The Summer..........

This is the first day that School is Officially out. And this is the first day that I'm finished with my job for the last school year. So....I now have time to make some jewelry. These are the latest pieces I made this morning. I sold the orange owl bracelet at the Blue Dome Festival so I found this green one and I love it!

Sam and I are off to Grand Lake with some dear friends tomorrow so I won't be making anything over the next few days....I'll be getting sunburned and having fun!

I made these earrings for my boss....she was having a "whatever" period and I thought these earrings would look great on her ears and she would just give them a little flip when someone asked her to do something stupid! They are made of sterling silver disks, one says "what" and the other says "ever" and then I dangled a freshwater white pearl over them..in case she was feeling a bit more "compliant"!

I'm Back!

My latest creation! It's made of glass beads, copper wire, sterling silver, brass, and freshwater pearls! The copper pendant running up the side of the necklace says "wired" and there's a copper wire running underneath it. I wore it to my son's picnic today at school and got a lot of compliments. I always like to wear something I made to be sure it's sturdy and ready to sell!

Blue Dome and The Art Car

Here is a picture of an ArtCar that came through the Blue Dome Event tonight. It was a Rat Car with a really long tail that left behind baked potatoes!!! Terry and I are having a good time and selling lots of goodies....and it's been great seeing so many friends and customers!!!

We made it through the wind, and the storm, and looking forward to a sunny Sunday.....if you haven't already stopped by please come by on Sunday and see all the local artists of Tulsa! There are some really awesome artist booths that are worth the trip!

Ok...Mayfest is here so I'm packing up my jewelry to take to the Blue Dome! I'll try to load several pictures of my new pieces so if I sell them at Mayfest I can make another!

These earrings were made using copper wire, then were forged, textured, antiqued and tumbled for an antique look. From the ear wire to the bottom it measures just under 3". I may have to wear these to the Mayfest!

This is a new bracelet....It has a wooden owl in orange but he's upside down because I don't know how to turn him around in this picture........I need a photo editing course!

Here's my latest and currently my new "favorite" piece. It's made out of copper, sterling and has a freshwater pearl dangling. Click on the picture and you'll see a larger version of it. I hand made a heart out of copper wire, then added a new charm. It's cloudy here and I'm having a hard time getting enough light to take a really good picture. If you have any ideas on photographing jewelry I'm all ears?!

Thank you again to my Secret Sister. In my quilting group we draw names once a year and pick a secret sister and this year my secret sister gave me this for Mother's Day. You'll note that although it's a quilting group "my secret sister knows me well".....note the BEAD magazines!!

Happy Mother's Day!

I finished this bracelet last night and I'm excited about the way it turned out. It takes alot of time to cut out the copper, stamp it, liver of sulfer it, sand it, and then wait for the pieces to tumble for 4 hours but the look of the copper when it's finished is awesome so I guess I'll continue to endure this long process! I've got a couple more pieces to put together and I'll get their picture out soon!

Hope you had a great Mother's Day. Mine was wonderful!