About this blog

The original intention of this blog was to help promote my handcrafted jewelry and beading supplies. However, I believe I lead an interesting life (which Dave gets a lot of credit for), so you will often find ramblings about things other than beads and jewelry! Hope you enjoy reading about it as much as I enjoy living it!!!

Monday, March 30, 2009

Now That's a Big Pecker...A Big Woodpecker!






We caught this guy sitting on the side of the truck just before sunset this evening. Not really sure what it was that drew him to the truck although it did appear he was admiring himself in the sideview mirrow. Or, maybe he thought he was looking at another woodpecker. He flitted around the side of the truck for a while. I think Dave may have scared him off while he was trying to get closer for a better picture.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

First Attempt at Fusing Fine Silver



I made my first attempt at fusing fine silver last night, and I really, really like it! The earrings pictured are the results of my first attempts. The round and oval rings were made with 16 gauge fine silver wire. The Swarovski crystal and pearl earrings will be listed on Etsy later tonight. I've decided to keep the cat's eye earrings for myself! I would love to hear your comments on what you think of these earrings. I always welcome constructive criticism.


I also made several attempts at soldering, and that didn't go nearly as well. I think I might be using the wrong flux...it seems to be heating up too quickly. And I think I need a thinner wire of solder. I'm winding up with way too much solder on my pieces. I'll have to check out some of the jewelry supply places to see what they have. I think I'm also going to look into a disc cutter to cut blanks from sheets of metal. I have lots of ideas!!!



Saturday, March 28, 2009

Forming a Habit - An Exercise Habit

You know how you hear people say they battle their weight or are a yo-yo dieter? Well, I battle my mind...I am a yo-yo exerciser! I will go through periods that last months where I workout regularly and really feel healthy (for me it's not about weight...it's about how healthy I feel). Then out of nowhere, I just stop and get back into a bad cycle of making excuses not to work out. I could be on my way home from work, and have myself all psyched up about having time to squeeze in a workout, but somehow, by the time I walk in the door, I've talked myself out of it! Why do I do that?! That may be a question I never answer.

In any case, today is a new day and the start of a new habit. They say it takes 21 days to form a habit, whether it be good or bad. So, I got up at 7:00am (anyone who knows me is well aware that is early for me on the weekend!) and went to my workout room. I manged to get through 30 minutes of weight training and 40 minutes on the treadmill. I have to remember to download some more songs with good, fast beats to my iPod...good music always motivates me!

I'm hoping that blogging about it will keep me a little more committed. Hopefully others that read my blog will share their comments and tips for staying motivated!

That's all for now. I'm off to the local bead shop to buy some new tools. I'm venturing into the world of soldering and fusing. Normally I would order online because the prices are usually much better, but I'm so excited I can't wait for the items to be shipped. I need instant gratification! Fellow jewelry artisans will completely understand this!

Friday, March 27, 2009

New Items Posted on Artfire






I've posted several new items in my Artfire shop. They include this rose quartz and smoky quartz bracelet, a hematite and sterling silver necklace, a picture jasper necklace and this carved bone necklace. The picture jasper necklace and carved bone necklaces are both unisex items...perfectly suitable for a male or female.
I will also be listing new items in my Etsy shop, including some beading supplies.



Quote - 03/27/09

"Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars."
-Anonymous

Thursday, March 26, 2009

What a Surprise!

Dave (my long time boyfriend...if I could get around to writing a profile you would know that!) and I finally got around to taking down some rather large pine trees in our backyard. They had been struck by lightning during the 2004 hurricane season and died and were definitely becoming a hazard (falling branches, etc). Dave found that we didn't even have to use the chainsaw...they were so dried out and rotted we were able to throw a rope around the upper branches and pull them down. Imagine our surprise when seconds after the first one hits the ground, with a rather loud thud, something flies out of it and into our shed! Whatever it was hit the inside wall of the shed, and then didn't move. We went over to examine the tree, which now lay in several pieces, and found an eggshell inside of it. We had no idea anything had made a nest in it otherwise we wouldn't have taken it down. We were kind of upset at first thinking it was the mother that had flown out, and that the tree hitting the ground had cracked the egg. Dave decided to go into the shed and investigate. At this point we had no idea what it even was...hawk, woodpecker, owl, duck. When he finally located it, he realized it wasn't the mother...it was the baby!!! It had apparently hatched some time ago and the remnants of the egg were still in the nest. By the way, it turned out to be an owl! We told our neighbor about it and she came over with a pet carrier, welding gloves and a net, none of which she needed probably because the little guy was still in shock. We were going to take it to a wildlife sanctuary, but my neighbor has some experience with caring and rehabing animals, both wild and domestic, so she is going to care for him. I'll be sure to post more updates and pictures in the next few weeks and months.

This is one of the reasons I live in a somewhat rural area...you gotta' love the wildlife. People think I'm crazy because I commute approximately 2 1/2 hours a day (140 miles roundtrip), but i love where I live and love my job.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

It's a start!

Okay, so I've made a little progress. Definitely need to work on my banner. I really like the picture, but have no idea how to move the title down to the bottom. I think I'll check out Etsy and see if anyone there can help me out with that.

Since I'm at my regular job (I'm taking a short break!!!) I don't have too much time to post. I did however, want to leave everyone with the following quote. I don't know who it's from, but I really believe it.

"The happiest people don't necessarily have the best of everything. They just make the best of everything."

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Under Construction!!!

This blog is currently under construction! This is my first attempt at blogging so please be patient and check back often for updates. In the meantime, please check out the links to my shops. Thanks for visiting!