Here's the rest of the set...

As promised, I photographed the necklace and earrings first thing this morning and sat right down for an update. I love the way they turned out! Definitely one of my most chunkiest pieces! Ana, I hope you love your set! It was really fun designing it for you!

Dream Catcher Update!

I had a custom order for a matching necklace and earrings to go with my Dream Catcher Bracelet and I made it tonight!! Oh my! It's stunning! Since it's dark outside, you'll have to check back in tomorrow to see a picture! (In the meantime, you can see the listing on Etsy, which is reserved now for purchase with the remainder of the set, but you can check it out here).

On another happy note, I went out tonight for some household supplies, and I found something that I have been looking for for a very long time. I decided to take a chance and purchase it and see how it was and then if I didn't like it, I would take it back... but it does exactly what it is supposed to do! It's a Sunlight lamp! I put it in my office and turned it on and gosh, I felt like I was outside in the natural light making my jewelry. It made the colors of the beads I was adding to the glass easier to see and it helped to make sure I was adding the right thing. Fabulous investment! Plus it's supposed to boost your mood. So that along with my CD rocking the walls in my office, I sat and bounced around in my chair singing at the top of my lungs for 2 hours and made the set that I'll show you tomorrow! Can't wait to get your opinions!
Talk to you tomorrow and have a great night!

Happy Birthday Meghan!

Can you say Nintendo DS? It's ALL she's been asking for, and she nearly came out of her own skin when she opened it!!! This expression says it all! You gotta love Meghan, doesn't ever ask for much and truly deserves it. Thank you Ann Marie for getting Meghan one of the best Birthday presents ever! She hasn't put it down yet! :) Happy Birthday Meg!

The wait is over!!

The secret project that Carey and I have been working on has been launched and is ready for viewing!

Carey and I have started a joint blog together called "Class With A Whole Lotta Sass!" It is going to be so much fun to have a blog dedicated to Carey's beads and my jewelry made with Carey's beads! I hope you'll swing by and check it out! There is a link now added to My Favorite Places to the right and you can also get to it by clicking the banner in this post or here!

Be sure to leave us comments as we love feedback! Enjoy!

Office 360

One of my first posts when I started this blog was to show off pictures of my new office space. I was so excited to have my little room where I could come in and close the door, play my music and just create in peace. I must say that I still LOVE my office. I have made many improvements since the start and thought it was time to share. I was taking pictures of the kids birthday cakes that were resting safely on my desk and took the opportunity to photograph the rest of the room while I was at it. So here is the guided tour:

When you open the french door to my office, this is what you see first. I have a big beautiful window that lets in a lot of light.

Here is the shelf that Clay made for me for Christmas last year. I just love it. It hold my clock, my hand painted wine bottle candle holder that I held on the plane all the way back from Sanibel Island, my votive holder made by another very talented and super nice Etsy member (paperplanet) a little pottery dish made by my daughter in 3rd grade, a Boyd's bear snow globe music box that plays You are my Sunshine (given to me by my mother) and my beautiful ceramic elephant that matches the pink and green decor of the room.

There is Ann's seat - my left arm as I call her. This is where we sit on the weekends and create, but that's her spot! :)While reading Kerry Bogert's blog a few months ago, she was talking about Inspiration boards that she had found pictures of out on Flickr. I thought that was such a good idea too, since I usually write things down and stick them somewhere never to be seen again. I came up with a way to create my own inspiration board out of cork board and of course a Pier 1 cast iron photo holder. Of course they are empty now, but I just put them up. One block for each season and a couple extra for new ideas. Color swatches, pictures, themes, anything to spark my creativity. My desk is special to me too, as it was my uncle's. It was made for him by a good friend of my grandparents and when he passed away, it was offered to me. I'm so sentimental about certain people and so naturally I jumped on it!
This is a picture of my Jewelry Armoire (which I purchased last year from where else? Pier 1 Imports) I have the mirror that hung in my grandfathers room (he is a constant source of inspiration for me), and my closet. Yes the door is closed because I didn't think to open it, but it's where I keep all my beads, all neatly organized in trays and bead boxes, my stereo (the speakers are around the room) and my show supplies. On the handle to the closet door is my Pink Lemonade Boutique bag, which I'm sure a lot of you know about. She makes fabulous bags, and I bring this one to every show I do.

Here's the door again, but from the other side of the room. The table behind the door was my nightstand when I was a kid, and the photographs are of my Peony's from last spring. Tucked neatly in the corner behind the nightstand is my grandfathers cane. (See, I told you he was a constant source of inspiration for me, actually he was my hero and I keep a few of his things around me all the time so I can still remember what a great man he was).

And that's it! This small but cozy space is all mine and this is where I create all my beautiful jewelry for you. I hope you have enjoyed your tour! I'll be sitting at my desk later doing some creating I'm sure. I have so many things I want to do and the ideas need to pop out of my head, onto my inspiration board, and then into the jewelry!

Have a great Sunday!

Happy Birthday Jack!

It's Jack's 4th birthday today, and Meghan's 10th on Monday so we had their joint party today! They both love the Red Sox so we had a theme party. My dad was thrilled! Here are a couple of pictures of the PHENOMENAL cake that a good friend made for me. Isn't it great!! In the pictures it looks black, but it was the dark navy blue that is on the Red Sox Jerseys. Decorations, balloons, the game on TV, good food and friends! Such a blast! Hope you all had a great day too!

Visions of Pumpkins dancing in my head!

oooooooooh, I'm working on something... I have it in my brain!! I just have to get my hands moving to create it! It's going to be SO cool if I can translate the image from my mind to the materials in my hands. I have a pretty busy day today, but I am hoping that if I get a couple of minutes later, I can at least get it started so that I can show you all either later or tomorrow! STAY TUNED!! Have a good one!

Well Wishes...

This post is for Carey,

My dear friend, I am so glad that everything turned out OK and that you are feeling better.

You do what you think is best for you!

When you get here, I'll be sure to make your trip extra special

and I'll cater to your every need! :)

I truly don't know what I would ever do without my soul sister,

so you take care of you!

You get some rest, PUT DOWN THOSE BEADS!!!
Talk to you later

:)

16 days of sunshine!

We've had 16 days of beautiful sunshine and the forecast for the weekend is... what do you think?? RAIN! Ugh, I've asked Carey and her lovely daughter Hailey to join us for my kids birthday party and her first trip to Connecticut will be a washout! Firstly, that means that our party will be indoors... Boo. Secondly, I wanted to do something fun with the kids on Sunday, maybe go to a pumpkin patch, and go on a hay ride and I don't know if that's going to work out now. So if the rain gods up there can please take note and give us just a couple more days of nice weather, I would be eternally grateful! Weather aside, I know we'll have a great time! I mean Carey, Ann and I all in the same room with beads, glass and maybe a couple of Margarita's and who knows what we'll come up with! You'll have to stay tuned for pictures of the weekend, I'm sure there will be many!

There is also a secret project that Carey and I are working on. Hopefully we will have it completed by the time she ventures back to MD, and then we can premier it next week! Stay tuned!!!! Hope you enjoy the last of the sunshine this week... if you have any weather favors you can pull in, I'd really appreciate it!! :)

Happy first day of AUTUMN!!

Well, my favorite season of the year has finally arrived! I am looking out the window in anticipation of the changing leaf colors and wishing that I had a better view. But alas, I can always grab my camera and head out for a drive in a couple of weeks to get a front row seat for the glorious colors that inspire me so much!

I have a picture to share with you today of a moth of some sort. My husband said that there is a name for it, but to me it's just a bug. A BIG, creepy, glowing green, prickly BUG! Yuk, but I could not resist the opportunity to photograph it. There was just something about the way it was hugging this little branch that made it seem almost "Sincere". But a bug is a bug... I'm not a fan.

It is now in it's new home in our backyard, stretched out on a new branch, and I can only wonder what it will become, if it is truly a moth as he says. That's going to be one GIANT flying thing... Oh my gosh... I'm getting the creeps just thinking about it. If you know what it is, please let me know!! Thanks and have a great day! Back tomorrow with more!

You've just gotta love MARTHA!

I have many blogs that I follow consistantly, and thanks to Kerry Bogert's recent post I found out about a blog contest that Martha Stewart is having on her website. If any of my fellow bloggers out there are interested in checking it out (ahem... Carey, Cindy - come on ladies!), you should do so by clicking here:

Martha's Blog Contest

Martha always has a wealth of information available, so even if you don't blog, you should definately swing over and check out her site. Don't we all aspire to be Martha? I know I do!! :)

Black tie....

My parents have this NYC wedding to go to in a couple of weeks, that is black tie and very fancy (my dad has to wear a tux and everything!). On a sad note, my mom hurt her foot a couple weeks ago - we laugh about it now, but she is in a boot like mine only it's on the other foot. So we are sharing her sneakers. I have the right foot and she has the left and we have matching Cam boots! ha ha Ugh... Unfortunately, she has to wear the boot to the wedding with her beautiful fancy, ruffly, knockout dress, but my dad said that he would wear one too so she wouldn't feel uncomfortable. Isn't that the BEST!! Love my dad!

Anyway, on a positive note, I was asked to design her jewelry so I thought I would share with you what I made. These beads made by melissa beads (on Etsy) were called Safari. When I bought them I told her they looked like Ice Cream Sundae's!! But now that the piece is finished, I can't possibly call it Ice Cream Sundae, it's just not fancy enough. I took the beads, made some silver "s" spirals, wrapped them in Swarovski Crystals in Topaz AB and Mocca and put them all together. I LOVE THIS NECKLACE, and the earrings are so my mom... dangly and sparkly!

Mom and Dad, I hope you have fun at the wedding, and I hope you love your jewelry! :)

Caramel Latte??... No, why do I always lean towards food? Help me name this piece, would you?

Copper Valley

Here is a new prototype that I have been working on. Kind of a spin off on my Kitchen Sink series, but it's not a fully wrapped bracelet. I did however wrap the entire bangle portion with wire and added Crystal AB Disks, and Swarovski Crystals in Copper, Smoked Topaz and Light Colorado Topaz. It's so different, elegant, and can be dressed up or down. I am wearing it right now with Black pants and I just love the way it sparkles in the sunshine! Very comfortable bangle style!

I'm going to list the photo's of this bracelet up on Etsy as a Made To Order listing. There are so many choices in color combinations that are as individual as you all are! As I said before, I am a full fledged fall lover and so this combination of colors is perfect for me but perhaps you like blues, reds, greens? I can create this style in any combination you like!

That's it for now, please check back tomorrow for more goodies - I have a lot of stuff I'm working on!

So much to do, so little time!

Do you ever feel like there is always too much to do and never enough time to do it? Well I do, on a daily basis! Our little carpet ripping project has turned into a big catastrophe! There is linoleum tiles under the carpet, and beautiful hardwood underneath that. Why do people tile over hardwood, I ask you? Geez, if they left it alone it would be gorgeous! Now it's going to be a lot of work! I have an old house, and I guess that's what they did way back when, but I tell you I miss the carpet!

We've also power washed all the chipping paint (well most of it) off of our deck, and now it needs to be sanded and stained before the snow flies. I know that seems far off but time really flies when you have a mountain of projects to do. Sheds to finish building, garages to clean, basements to waterproof on top of the regular household duties. Plus my foot has been really hurting this past week. I think I'm getting over anxious in getting out of this boot and I'm overdoing it big time!

Anyway, I got in some really beautiful beads to create with and I'm hoping to sit down this weekend and create some fall pieces. On a good note, I have been invited back to the Farmers Market for two more dates this fall/winter... it's by invitation only and they asked me to return!! I'm so happy about that! Even though it will be cold, I know I can persuade my hubby to make me some sides for my tent! ha ha I'll just add it to the list... that and some jewelry boards to hang in various salons for holiday sales... and some winter proofing of the windows and storm doors... *sigh*... That to do list is endless! :)

YAY!

I just got a call from Carey and she has my list of beads that I would like her to make for me! I'm SO excited!!! I hope you all can stand to wait until they are posted on her site! Then they'll be MINE! I'll give you a hint... they will be "Spooktacular!" :)

New Idea's!

I have a mountain of new jewelry designs in my brain! I need to discuss some of my thoughts with my friend Carey, who will I'm sure create the best beads for the job! I'm gearing up for fall, and of course, my favorite holiday... HALLOWEEN!! Last year I could not find any halloween beads that I liked enough to buy (or that I could afford... artisan crafted glass beads are expensive!). So this year I decided that instead of spreading out my purchases, I'm going to consolidate and try to bribe Carey to design my line! We'll see if she's game! :)

With that said, it's been a crazy week here already. I'm finding less and less time to sit and create new pieces, because we are having an issue with one of my cats and she is pretty much destroying the carpets in my house. So I have been consumed with trying to clean up after her and needless to say, we have already had to cut the majority of the carpet out of the hallway upstairs. So hopefully we can get that situation under control... QUICKLY and then I can move on to bigger and better!

Hope you all have a great day, I'm off to get the kiddo's ready for school, then I'll have a little time to do something for myself... hmmm what will it be? I wonder!

Inspiration!

Can't you just feel fall in the air?

You can't beat a good bead show! Ann and I went down to North Haven yesterday afternoon and rummaged through "Heaven!"... What I mean by that is... tables and tables upon tables of fabulous glass/gemstone/silver beads! Ugh, If I could have moved in, believe me, I would have!! Love the glass, I'm such an addict! I guess there could be worse things I could be addicted to... but no, it's the shiny, sparkly, beautiful handcrafted GLASS!

Here's a picture of what I picked up after two and a half hours! Carey, take note... I have LOTS OF IDEA's!!! We need to chat!

Have a great day everyone!

New Listings Up!

I have put some of the items that did not sell at the show up over on Etsy, if you want to swing over and take a look! (Click HERE!)

I may have pictures of a couple more, but I have to search the computer. Then my plan is to take some additional pictures of the earrings I have in stock and perhaps have a small end of summer sale. I have some great earrings with dragonflies, hummingbirds, and lady bugs! Really cute!

I'm heading out to the Bead Bazaar tomorrow to take a peak at what they have so maybe I'll have something to show when I get back! Hope you're having a great day!

and the winner is...

CONGRATULATIONS!

Let me know what you would like me to design for you, a Key Chain, Phone Charm, Pendant?

Or do you want to leave it up to me to decide. :)

Thanks to everyone else who participated! Don't worry I'll do this again sometime, it was a lot of fun. I have something in mind for around Thanksgiving time, but maybe I can get somthing in before that as well.

Have a great night!

All done!

Ann and I had lots of fun today at the show, I hope all of you who came out enjoyed the beautiful day! I handed out a lot of business cards and met a bunch of really nice people! Thanks to all who helped make it a successful day (especially my Dad, who helped me unload my car and set up my tent!), and to those of you who purchased jewelry, I hope you enjoy it and wear it in good health!

Brass City Harvest - Crafts on the Green

I only have 4 things to say:

Downtown Waterbury 11-3

Go

NOW!

Hope to see you there! :)

One day to go until the show!

I finished the Kitchen Sink bracelet yesterday and I have to say I just LOVE it! It has the light Gray and Peacock colored Swarovski Pearls, the dark gray disk pearls, white top drilled seed bead pearls, sterling silver round balls and Volcano Swarovski crystals in two sizes to round out the woven, sparkly bracelet! I love these bracelets, even though they take hours to make. I weave each bead/crystal in individually and am able to place them where I want them! A very time consuming but fascinating and fun process! Each one is unique!

I'll be bringing this to the show tomorrow, so it wont go up on Etsy until Friday if it does not sell. I've got to go make some earrings now! More pics later on! Hope you have a good one!

It's a lazy day for felines....

Man, it's going to rain... AGAIN! Geez, let's just get it over with. It's two days away from the Crafts on the Green show I'll be doing on Thursday downtown waterbury! It's supposed to be a really nice day too. The weather man said "Autumnal"... what a GREAT word! I love that word, since it's my favorite season after all and what better weather could you ask for to sit outside and sell jewelry? I don't mind wearing a sweatshirt and jeans! The morning will be chilly, but then once the sun comes out it will be nice to not have to sweat all day. Ann and I will just sit under my tent and hopefully there will be lots of folks buzzing around just looking for a nice piece of jewelry for that wedding coming up, or for a night out on the town, the movies Saturday night, or just for everyday! I've got a little bit of everything so if you can make it I'd love to see you!

I'm going to make some earrings today, and finish up that bracelet and then I should be ready.

Only 3 entries so far for the "heart" contest. I get a lot of hits on my blog, but not too many people comment. Wont you take a moment and say a few words... you might just win free jewelry out of it!! Talk to you all soon, have a great day... stay DRY!

The sun is out!

And it's hot again! Good grief! I can't stand this heat. Thank goodness there is a breeze. I'm completely unmotivated to make jewelry today, I have my hands completely full here with the kids today. They are bored and driving me mad. My husband is not home and so I am here alone with them and fighting a killer headache. SO, with that said, I'll try to do something on a positive note.

Let's have a contest, anyone up for it? I just realized that I made it to 50 "Hearts" on Etsy, so in appreciation of all of you who have marked my store as a favorite I have this really cute Heart focal bead that I am dying to make something with. This is a picture of the focal bead not made into jewelry yet. What I would like to do is find out from you, my loyal customers and fans of my work... what was it about my jewelry that won your "heart"? Tell me your thoughts, and I'll design something for the winner with this beautiful heart bead. It may be a ring, or a pendant, key chain, cell phone charm... the possibilities are endless! The winner will be drawn at random (by one of my kids) after I place all entries into a hat. So go on... get writing, you will have until next Friday, September 12th! Tell me what's behind your heart!

Talk to you soon!

Ugh, this RAIN!

I know we can probably use it, but we already have water in the basement and it is depressing the heck out of me! I can't help clean it up because I am wearing this boot and can't get it wet and I can't walk without it so my poor husband has the pleasure of bailing us out all on his own. Guess he better enjoy himself playing cards tonight, as he will have lots of work to do tomorrow!

Anyway, I got my hands on one of the flyers for the Brass City Harvest Farmers Market, Crafts on the Green in Waterbury that I will be selling at this coming Thursday. I hope all of you locals who read my blog will take a drive down to see me (and Ann Marie, of course!) and all the other talented crafters who will be there from 11am - 3pm! It's sure to be a blast!

Hope to see you there!

A new Kitchen Sink...

Bracelet that is! I made this one for Ann Marie, per her request. It includes Swarovski Pearls in Peacock and Light Gray with white seed bead pearls and a really pretty gray disk shaped pearl. I wrap each of these beads one at a time to create this pretty bracelet. I call them Kitchen Sink bracelets because they have a little bit of everything in them! I have another one started in this same color scheme, hopefully I can get some more of it done when Jack goes to school in a little while. They take a couple of hours to make, as I'm sure you can recognize by the process. The one I am working on will also feature some Swarovski crystals and small round silver balls. Once it's completed I will list it up for sale! Check back tomorrow for more new things! Have a great day!

Jack's First Day of Pre-K!

And yes, there were tears... mine, not his. He was such a BIG boy and I'm so proud of him! He waited patiently for the bus, that was late. He got on, buckled his seat belt and sat near the window so I could see him drive off. Of course, then Clay and I got ourselves and Matt into the car and drove to the school to make sure he arrived safely. He did great! Didn't even know I was there, across the parking lot taking his picture. Clay told me I was being a stalker, ha ha But he's my baby I told him! I had to make sure he was safe and sound before coming home. All in all it's been a hectic morning/early afternoon. So once I get him off the bus I'll be headed to my foot doctor follow up... cross your fingers that I have made some healing progress! I'm so sick of this darn boot! :) Be back tomorrow for another update! Oh, and for those of you waiting for my newsletter, I'll be getting that out shortly. It's been a crazy weekend!