Arts on Fire Festival

Sally of Wireworked and I will have a tent at this Saturday's Arts on Fire Festival. We are really excited to be participating in this event:-) Come on down and see what is going on!

Of Kindness and Passion and Plain Ol' Good Heartedness

A few weeks ago, my daughter and I finally made our pilgrimage to Earth and Wears, Lyn Carey's shop at 68 Main Street in Dallas, PA. Lyn makes beautiful pottery and ceramic jewelry. I am a very proud wearer of one of her pieces I fell in love with last year. See me and the Gorgeous Necklace?! She also makes really cool mugs. I really wanted to buy one, but if I came home with one more mug, the Bird Man I live with would change the locks. He doesn't understand when I pick a mug to drink out of based on my mood. And he doesn't understand why we bought a matching set all those years ago, if I was just going to add individual mugs to the cabinet anyway. So instead I bought oil and vinegar containers. Been looking for just the right ones for years. Who knew I would find them in Lyn's tiny shop?! And it is tiny! Teeny tiny, in fact. But you know what Grandma always said...Good Things Come in Little Packages! As small as it is, it is not cluttered and I never felt claustrophobic. Lyn's jewelry is so beautiful and earthy and very unique. Lyn has other people's pottery in her store too, all very beautiful and creative. I love seeing people's different styles side by side like that. There was other artists' handmade creations: jewelry, accessories, handbags, change purses, and beautiful journals. Sally of Wireworked gave me one of the handmade journals from Lyn's shop as a gift. She said she was drawn to it and wanted to give it to me. It is one of the most cherished gifts I own. The color and feel and size...great dreams and ideas seem possible when I hold that journal and write in it. When I walked into Lyn's shop for the first time, I had the same feeling---Greatness was all around me and I needed to take my slow time and soak it all in. Lyn welcomed my daughter with open arms and an open heart, answering all the pottery questions she had, making her feel special. The whole ride home, my Little Sunshine Girl talked non-stop about wanting to feel the clay in her hands and really create something lasting. Who knew a visit to a teeny tiny Handmade Shop could spark such a passion in us? I came home and filled the vessels with EVOO and Balsamic Vinegar. The Bird Man thought they were perfect---"Just what we needed!" he said. And he really meant it :-)

Do Over Challenge

I participated in Jeannie's Do Over Challenge as did all these Talented Bloggers. Check 'em out!!! Jeannie sent us a piece of jewelry she made long ago and we had to use at least 50% of it and make it into something new. Happy Hopping!

Sally http://www.wireworked.com

Dagmar http://kokopellidesign.blogspot.com

Donna No Blog

Lisa http://lucidmoonstudio.blogspot.com

Christine http://www.onekisscreations.blogspot.com

Erin http://treasures-found.blogspot.com

Leslie http://www.madmaggiedesigns.blogspot.com

Shannon http://www.formysweetdaughter.blogspot.com

Niky http://silverniknats.blogspot.com

Diane http://www.dianehawkey.com

Barbe http://www.barbesaintjohn.blogspot.com

Elisabeth http://www.beadsforbusygals.com

Lori http://www.PrettyThingsBlog.com

Linda http://lindalandig.wordpress.com

Jamie No Blog

Pam http://ferrarioriginals.blogspot.com

Patty http://www.mylifeunderthebus.typepad.com

Nancy http://nedbeads.com

Kim http://www.kimmykats.blogspot.com

Marci http://www.moosepetals.com

Charlene http://clay-space.com

I see so many of you do BTW and I was thinking of making up my own called WTF?!? Or so as not to Offend, WTH(eck)?!? Or maybe simply WhatThe?!? or WhatNow?!? Or, or, or. Because we all have those projects that are started but then what? Or at least, I have those projects. What I wanted to do isn't working and nothing is coming to me. Or I just don't know how to get from where I am to where I want to be. Or I just lose my umph. Then there are those projects that are completed the way I saw them in my head and I think "Hmmm. I thought I would love it more" With these pieces, the question is: Sell? Cut? Will someone else love it? I tell myself over and over "You only wasted time and thread" as I cut it apart.
This is one of those pieces. The rock came out of the Susquehanna River when we were kayaking (back when the Water was warm enough and the Sun actually liked us). I did everything I had hoped to do. But I am just not sure. I really like it, but it didn't grab me the way I had hoped it would. Thoughts?

And the Giveaway Winner is.....

Four More Days

Four Days until the Giveaway! 8 additional followers came since I got so giddy over the 13th follower! Yippeee! To see what is being given away, look at the Post called "Bakers Dozen".
I will announce the Winner on Sunday. Hope it is YOU!

Loving the Sun and warmth this week. The Garden is being prepped and a few veggies have been planted. Potatoes, radishes, lettuce, onions. We are going to my friend's greenhouse this weekend to get the rest of the veggies.

Here is an oldie but a goodie---reminds me of planting rows of seeds. Can't wait to sink my teeth into a sweet cherry tomato :-)

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

Happy Mother's Day to all you other Mothers out there!!! We deserve a huge round of applause for all we do in the name of Love. We also deserve delicious food, a quiet house and a stiff drink.

This is for you, Mom. This is your gift. I hope you like it!
I am looking forward to you showing us how to make those beautiful dried flower wreaths I remember from my childhood. I left the baby's breath out of this one :-) I love you.

They Spoke, I Listened

Sally gave me some beads the other day(go check out her website. You'll drool!). I took them home and strung them the very next day. Then the strangest thing happened. Today, I was in the middle of getting some projects done-ones with deadlines in a couple days- and I stopped what I was doing, cut apart the bracelet I made with Sally's beads, and made this with them instead! Now I know it is not the best piece of wire jewelry you have ever seen, but coming from my hands, it is not too terrible. I really can't stand to use wire. Sally has tried to teach me. I have tried to learn. But once I leave class, I am lost, uninspired, all thumbs, cursing my lack of skill and the money I spent on tools that I could have spent on beadweaving supplies. I waste more wire than I use. It is just a constant source of frustration. So where did this come from?!? I really do not know. Maybe it was the beads themselves. The tan colored ones, Sally called Buddha Beads. Maybe that has something to do with it.

Flowing

Closed my eyes today and saw myself wading in the Rio Grande, picking rocks. Green, Red, Yellow, Rust, Purple, Maroon, White, Grey. Quite the palette lying at the river bottom and along the banks. Don't forget to look down. You never know what you might find. And never be afraid to get wet. And always wear good river shoes :-)