Putting it All Together

I wrote a HUGE post yesterday, and took ALL my surfing time doing so.  I have other things I want to do online, but I just MUST talk about one piece I finished today, so here I am again.

This really will be kept brief!

I fuse glass, I bead, I do lots of things….. I am now starting to combine them!

You have read my stories about millefiori and fusing, and my stories about beading… well, here is a new twist!

mil·le·fi·o·ri

noun /ˌmiləfēˈôrē/

A kind of ornamental glass in which a number of glass rods of different sizes and colors are fused together and cut into sections that form various patterns, typically embedded in colorless transparent glass to make items such as paperweights

In August, I bought a bunch of millefiori from Murano Millefiori.  I talked to the woman who owns and/or runs the place and she seemed very nice. 

Also in August, I created a bunch of fused pieces with the millefiori.  You can read my August 12^th blog post for more of that story.  Here are some of the pieces that I created:

My original plan was for the matching pieces to be earrings, and the single piece to be an accompanying pendant.  Simple, but nice.

Over the last week, I took those pieces and put bails on them.  Somehow, I started thinking about trying something and played around with putting two bails (one on each side) of the matching pieces AND one a couple other complementary pieces that were also supposed to be earrings.

Today, I made a trip to Joann’s and bought some findings.

A few wire cuts and twists later….

I can find a dozen flaws with it – including that I used the wrong COE glass with the millefiori and there is cracking.  However, my favorite millefiori place is now carrying 104 COE (same as the millefiori) sheet glass!  Small sheets, but I’ve ordered a bunch of them.  Millefiori jewelry coming soon!!!

Do I Really Have to Clean Up?

Not a Cat Picture

My cats are my babies… but this is a real baby! 

Cassidy Hope Flores – born 12/13/12.  The proud mommy is my lovely daughter Elinor.

Do I Really Have to Clean Up?

AKA – differences between home studio and using studio time at a professional studio.

It is no secret that I have many hobbies and use a LOT of the space at my house.  For example:

• My fabric collection is in the basement – lots of shelves and well organized
• My thread collection is also in the basement – rolling bins, color-coded, etc.
• The embroidery machine is in the basement
• The office on the second floor has shelves – lots of them – and the shelves are full of bins of crafting items, and art supplies.  There are even two cardboard literature racks which hold (one each) paper and instructional booklets
• My extensive bead collection and supplies are binned and sorted in the office as well
• If I count reading as a hobby, I have to list the library, the shelves in the living room, front porch and bedroom where all books are organized by genre and author
• My polymer clay supplies are binned and in the server in the dining room
• The findings and accoutrements for glass jewelry are binned and also in the server
• The dining room tables serves as my primary sewing locale

And so on….

BUT…..

What didn’t I list there?

Glass….

Plan was to be buying a kiln shortly and setting up a studio in the basement. 

However, I am neither ready to buy a kiln – I have so much more to learn – nor am I sure that I want a glass studio in the house.

Why?

Glass is messy and dangerous.  Yeah, I step on pins sometimes in the house, but that is nothing compared to little glass shards everywhere.  I drop pins occasionally – it is not a pervasive action – but glass pieces go everywhere, always, when you work with glass.  There will be dangerous scraps everywhere.  Sure, when sewing there are bits and pieces all over the place, and I am constantly pulling threads off my clothes days and weeks later, but those do not cut you!

Therefore, my glass is all sorted by COE and color, and binned.  It is stored in the trunk of my primary vehicle (which changes by season).  The studio I prefer for open studio time is located within 10 minutes of my office and that alone makes it very easy.  My common routine (it is even on my Google calendar as a standing appointment) is to leave work on Fridays and go to the studio.  I work there until they close – 9 PM – and use their kilns.  I do not think her prices are unreasonable, and it is a social time for me.

Social time…

I am social impaired; I do not have enough friends.  I value my quilt group more for the camaraderie than anything else.  If I were to work with glass at home, it would HAVE to be in the “pantry” room in the basement.  It would have to be someplace where I have the ability to shut a door and keep some semblance of containment.

And I would be alone…. At least when I sew, it is at the Dining room table and my hubby is usually nearby.

Only downfall I see is the need to clean up.

Glass is heavy, and true to Mary habit – I have a LOT.  I need a palette to work with… who knows what I will feel like what day?

So, I get to the studio, haul it in, make a mess, and then have to haul it out.  At some point, I also need to clean up.  I get wrapped up in things, and often I look up, realize its 15 mins to close and that I still have to load the kiln, clean up and pay.

Luckily, Karen who owns The Studio at Rush Creek is a wonderful and patient person.  I have pushed her time boundaries a few times…..

In contrast, at this very moment, my coffee table and the floor space around it are covered with beading items, and there is fabric across the dining room table….  I am so lucky I live with a very patient and tolerant man! 

I think he knows that if he complains too much about my creative messes, I will make him organize the car parts in the garage….

Beading

Since I just mentioned the beading mess, I will start there.

Beading has been a serious hobby for about 20 years.  I’m sure I strung some beads in school, but it was about 20 years ago that I learned how to bead weave with seed beads (Native type style) and then moved on to bead stringing, and a little wire work.  Still working on wire wrapping, but I will get there.

I maintain a large collection of beads from seed beads to gemstones and many other things.  I am good at beading, but not great.  I tried doing some craft shows with them many years ago, but the mass/third world produced goods are much cheaper and better made.  Also, while I am creative, I am not at artist level with bead work so I will leave that part up to those better suited.  So, I make stuff for me and for friends.

A couple times a year, I get a craving for beads and I buy a bunch.  I make some pieces for myself and/or for others and set it aside for a while.  I have two friends who are also into beading and we have done one beading work day and I want to plan more.  Again, the camaraderie is good.

I have also started trying to make more complex pieces out of some of the glass pieces I have put together.  I made a few beads/units (don’t know what to call them) with the specific goal of putting them together into more of a necklace than just a simple pendant (look at the bottom of this post for a link to pendant pictures).  I glued bails on to a lot of the pieces the other day and started putting them together.  However, I found that I need some large jump rings and other findings.  Shoot… have to make a Joann’s trip…. Dang it anyway….

Where are my coupons?!?

Recent Beading Projects

Here are some of the projects I have worked on lately.

Kitty Cats

There are two “beads” that I picked up at a show.  I think that they are meant to be pendants, but I wear big earrings so I got two.  They are also PURPLE!  I did make sure to attach the ear wires opposite on each, so they’ll be one sided – different for each ear – and the cats will face purple side out on each ear, even though they’ll be facing opposite directions since the beads are exactly the same (no L and R….).

Orange Beads

These are five beads that I made in my torch work open studio time.  As I have mentioned before, I have no real abilities with torch work, but enjoy playing.  I have NOT been able to create two – much less enough for a necklace – identical beads.  So, what do I do?  This is one answer – take a bunch of the same color way and create a unique pendant

Earrings

This is another solution to lots of mismatched torch work beads – just go with it… close enough!

Amethyst Bracelet

Ok, I cannot take a lot of credit for this.  I bought this years ago in Florida, and one of the stones fell out.  My son actually managed to find the stone in my car!  I have had it all in a baggy for years, meaning to take to the jeweler. 

I haven’t gotten to it…. For years….

I have also bought a bunch of gemstones and settings in recent months and plan on putting them together.  Duh, I should be able to fix this if I intend to do them from “scratch”!!

So I did….

Hopefully it stays together!

Enamel work #1

In this post, I discussed an enamel class that I took.  I have finally put some of the pieces together into necklaces.  This is the first.  The large disc is enameled.  I put a hole on top and a hole on bottom.  I put a jump ring on top to use for the cord, and there are three beaded dangles attached with a jump ring on the bottom.  Note:  there are also little pieces stuck into the enamel on the disc and fired.

Enamel work #2

This is three enameled pieces – two discs and an asymmetrical ring – attached via holes and jump rings and a bail on top.  I chose to use a simple beaded chain for this one.

Beads with Wire Work

This necklace and matching earrings are made from beads put onto head pins and linked together with eye pins.  I then put chain lengths on either end of the fancy pieces.  I wore this today; the longest dangle sits into my cleavage – at about the lowest point I dare go!

Polymer Clay Piece

This is a 1½ x 2 inch piece of mixed and flattened polymer clay.  I coated it with future floor polish after baking to make it shine.  I put a simple bail through the hole and put it on a chain.  Nothing of technical quality or expertise, but it has the funky artist look and I had fun wearing it with the mismatched bead earrings.

Planned Beading Projects

There is still a huge mess in my living room and I am working on a few more things with my torch work beads.  I have got a couple enamel pieces to sort out, some large glass necklaces to work when I get the findings, but the one thing I want to talk about it my long necklace in process.

A few months back, I bought a long – and I mean LONG – necklace from my favorite eBay seller.  It goes to my waist.  Its 6 inches of little beads, then a large gemstone bead, repeat.  Then little beads are symmetrical, same, organized, etc., but each large bead is vastly different in shape, size, and color.  I wear it with simple dresses and usually loop it twice. 

I've taken a huge liking to this style, and have made several long necklaces out of craft beads from Joann’s – each themed in color.  The other day at a more upscale bead shop, I found a bunch of approximate 3 mm roundel beads in a light sea foam green on the clearance table.  They may be gemstone; they are at least rock or crystal – not plastic.  Each strand of 6 inches was 75 cents.  I bought a bunch, sorted out my torch work beads, pulling out the green based ones, and started stringing them.  My plan is 20 of the roundels, then a large torch work bead.  I will post pictures when done.

Another Use for Torch Work Beads

Last bead story and I will move one…

Promise!

A friend came over on Tuesday and brought a card game called “Lunch Money” for us to play.  It is quite amusing; you have action cards on how you will beat up other players.  There are also cards to block, dodge, etc.  Upon losing an encounter, you also lose “life points.”  The last person to lose all their life points is the winner.  Each player must have 15 counters for their life points….

Yes, I brought out my container of torch work beads and we all used those for counters!

It was amusing to watch two fully-grown men playing with pretty beads…

LOL….

Bad Glass

Or should I say “Bad Artist”?

I should not blame the medium; it’s only doing what it is designed to….

Go to this post, and search or scroll down to “millefiori Pieces”, read the first two paragraphs, skip the bullet list, and look at the two pictures of black and white pieces.

One cannot mix glasses with different COEs.  You can get away with a little bit – some small millefiori on a large piece, a dusting of powder or frit of a different COE, etc., - but I pushed the envelope… big time.

I dropped two of those black and white pieces the other night.  Not very far – less than two feet.  I have dropped pendant pieces from much higher and they have been fine.  What happened truly illustrates the weakness caused when mixing different classes of glass.

Dramatic isn't it?

Latest Finished Glass

In this post......

Which was nearly a month ago! 

I MISSED the studio so badly… I

 Cannot let so much time go by again….

(Ok, I was sick – twice, and holidays, and work….)

Basic Pieces

My concentration last time at studio (and this time) was to use up a lot of the “lower class” pieces of glass I have in COE 90.  These are a bunch of small sheets that were bought at a cheap price at the store.  When bought – the purpose was to build stash and have some throwaway piece for experimenting.

And, just like fabric – I have learned that there are some definite different qualities to glass….  Some of it is crap.

So, I’m trying to use a bunch of it up…making a small thing one studio night to see if the glass is ok, then using the rest on something bigger the next time.

Green Pendant

A simple pendant with a couple greens… success

Purple Dish

About 7 inches, a couple purples, some white.  Mostly a failure… the glass is ok, but there are gaps in color, etc.  That is what happens when you do something quickly and skimp on technique. 

Purple and White Strips on Green

I think this piece is cool.  I need to name it something to belay that.  It is not the highest quality of workmanship, but it looks neat – much neater in person.  Very much a success.

Blue and White Dish

This piece has flaws, but is really cool looking.  The blue base is a single layer, but it did not scallop up (pull in) as much as I expected.  The corners got a little sharp and I sanded them.  Pretty much a success.

Trivet?

This will be going to Ana. 

Why?

A few months back, I played with different COEs (putting millefiori on pieces).  One piece, I put way too many millefiori on AND had it slumped into a square in square rather than a sushi shape (sharp corners rather than gentle sloping). 

It cracked….

A couple bad gaps….

Ana took it home.  She said that anything I gave her in glass would eventually be broken by the cats.  So, that way, she got to look at and display a piece of mine, and then not feel bad when it broke.

Which it did….

There are many flaws on this one.  The light turquoise colored glass melted funny and looks gummy.  It is really not a great piece.

Therefore, it is time for a new piece for Ana.

Oh, and I rate it a failure.

Green/Purple Pendant

I used fiber paper on this to make a tunnel for a chain.  I like how much it pulled in.

Copper

My other focus on the last studio day was to play with copper.  It MUST be put in-between layers, so each of these pieces is a colored glass with clear on top.  I used a thin copper sheet and cut shapes from it.  The copper was thicker than tin foil, but not too much.  Not quite as thick as cardstock.  The copper changes color when fired – all metals do – and sometimes it looks reddish, and other times bluish.

Amber Waves of Green

There is a little red tinge to the copper here.  This piece is about five inches.  I cut the waves from the copper sheet – very carefully.

White Copper Pendant

This is just some random shapes from copper on white glass.  There is also a fiber paper tunnel for a chain.

Hand Rolled

For this one, I used one of my last pieces of the hand rolled very expensive glass from this post.  I put some squares of copper on it, and covered with clear. 

It is hard to see in this picture (I really have not figured out how to take good glass pictures inside), but something occurred with the glass in firing – there is a whitish ring around all the copper pieces.  I swear that is altered from the original composition of the glass.  This type of thing does happen – glass does odd things at very high temperatures.

Hearts

Copper hearts.  This is going to be a pendant.  The hearts are quite red against the white.

Star

This is also going to be a pendant.

Spoiled Me

So, I was off work early yesterday and decided to stop at the glass supply store.  Since I am trying to finish off my stock of 90 COE glass, I needed to get some clear and white in 90 (base and topper).

That’s all I needed…

And that’s all I bought….

Really!

Don’t believe me?

Well, you should not!

Do you really believe that I could walk into a hobby store for ANY of my hobbies and get ONLY what I NEEDED?

ROFLMAO….

My purchases for the day were:

• Bead release – ok I did need this for torch work
• A couple dozen 104 COE torch work rods – sort of needed.  I have a lot of fancy rods, but am running short on basic colors.
• Bead wire – YES, I needed this.  Was going to stop at Joann, but they had it too
• Some amethyst and green (mentioned above) spacer beads for with the torch work beads
• White, black and clear in 90 COE
• Some sale and discounted glasses in 96 COE, including a really cool green piece – swirled.

And….

Hangs head in semi shame……

A REALLY expensive piece of mauve/rose/white hand rolled glass…

It is absolutely gorgeous!

And, did I mention it was expensive….?

I wanted a treat, and the piece just called out to me.  It matches the general color of my dining room…. Ok, that is an attempt at justification…

I am going to make pendants for the cafeteria ladies at work….  Yea, another justification…..

I will have pictures hopefully in the next blog post, but I put together several pieces – including another leaf bowl – featuring the hand rolled glass, AND put together a bunch of jewelry pieces.

Pendants

Most of what I have done with glass is to make pendants.  It is a good way to test color, technique, placement, etc.  I have learned a lot about what glass does – especially in the kiln – when different things are done to it.

A couple days ago, I pulled out all the pendant pieces I had - including my own use ones from my jewelry box, attached bails (to those without) and took pictures of them.  They are not the best pictures, and there are some missing – from pieces I have already given away – so it is not a complete record.

There are a LOT…. This is already a huge post.  If I put the pictures here, I’d double it.  Click here for my photobucket album with the pictures.  Keep looking – I’ll add descriptions at a later date.

ALL of them are available!!!  I will gift and/or trade – see the rules below.

• If you are a friend reading this, and want one – send me email.  It is yours.  Rules – you have to take a picture wearing it for my gallery.
• If you are not someone I know, and would like one – or many – I BARTER!  I love to trade for things.  Pretty much anything… just ask.  Handmade soap is top of my list, unique baby clothes, other artwork, handmade paper products, etc.

Christmas Means Socks to Me.

I believe I have posted before about our annual Christmas project.  Indulge me though, let me tell the story.

History

Somewhere around ten years ago, I worked for Piper Jaffray and I headed up a lot of their volunteer efforts.  This was well known around the company.  Adopt-a-Family was one of those events.  I’ll spare that explanation – look it up if you need.  The fact you should know is that all donations are gathered, and presents bought weeks before Christmas.

A day or two before Christmas, as I was walking through the building, a pretty high level broker stopped me and gave me $200 cash…

“For Adopt-a-Family” he said

“Oh, that’s all done” I said

“Do something with the money”

“What?”

“You’ll figure it out; I trust you”

Okaayyyyy

“Think” I said to myself….

The Union Gospel Mission is near my house.  I've supported them in many ways over the years.  Since they only serve adult males, they can take open food.  Many times over the year, I've brought them serious leftovers from meetings at the businesses I've worked at.  One time, I carried THREE FULL SHEET cake boxes full of pastries to my car…. 8 blocks…..  Another time, I put popcorn, pretzels and cookies from bowls (FULL bowls) into plastic bags and dropped them there.  The men love the food and are appreciative.

In the years that I had been doing community service work, I had learned that there are Christmas present programs for families, single parents (both male and female), children, and even adult women.  However, I've never seen a large scale program that supports gift giving to adult males.  So, I decided that that $200 was going to adult males.  Little did I know that it was the start of something long term.

I called over to the Target store next door to my office and asked them to put together 40 - $5 gift cards for me. 

Yes, I called ahead. 

I did NOT show up at an overworked cashier wanting FORTY cards activated on one of the busiest shopping days of the year!

Now that I've been working for Target corporate for a few years, I am even gladder that I called ahead!  I would have been embarrassed if my current coworkers found out I didn't!

On Christmas Eve, Chris, the kids, and I went to the mission and handed out the cards.  We couldn't give one to everyone, but we got quite a few people.

One man looked at me, looked at the card, looked back at me and said….

“Thank you, now I can buy socks”.

Socks….

Yes….

Socks….

I recently cleaned out my sock drawer.  I could wear a different pair of socks each day for several months without having to wash anything.

It’s shocked me.  It’s a line that floats in my head and I've never forgotten.  I can do a Sheldon Cooper and tell you where I was in the building, the time of day, etc.  (I just can’t tell you what the man looked like because I don’t do facial recognition).

I discussed with my husband, organized and by the time Christmas rolled around the next year, I had 30 dozen pairs of socks on my front porch and a plan.

In short, we put together and wrap 75 present bundles for the men at the mission and hand them out.

We started with 100, but we had a lot left over.  We settled on 75 after two years, and have stuck with it.  One year, we had way too many and went to another shelter with the extras.  Big mistake.  The men at the mission are grateful, thank us, and are polite; that was not the case at the other place.  We decreed that we would only do this project at the mission from then forward.

The Contents of the Bundles

Main Items

It’s changed over the years, but there are three main items that go into the bundle:

•  Socks.  This started it, so of course socks!

Buying the socks has changed over the years.  A couple years, I bought from a whole sale place online.  One year it was a great deal, the next year the only deal was a box of socks that we had to match ourselves, then the next year it was a good deal again.  Another time, we had a lot from previous years, so we paid retail at Wally World to supplement.  Last year, a quilting buddy Jo Ann joined us and brought about half the socks.  This year, she bought the socks herself; she found an awesome deal at another online place.

• Scarves.  Fleece scarves actually, all cut out ourselves.

I buy remnants of fleece, and sometimes yardage, from Joanne’s and cut out scarves that are width of the fleece (about 50-60 inches) and 6-9 inches wide.  It all depends upon the size of the pieces that I have.  The scarves are simple, but warm and effective.

• Candy.  Everyone needs a little treat!!!

Other Items

Over the years, we've added other things to the bundles as we've had money, ideas, been given things, etc.  Some have been hits, other times they weren't that great

Good:

• Razors
• Toothbrushes (Jo Ann found an internet deal and handed them out to trick or treaters too!)
• Towels.  Ana found towels on Black Friday for a really cheap price.  Chris refers to them as “hotel towels”.  They are not what spoiled me would have, but they are full sized, white (white is the most absorbent color because it hasn't had to absorb dye) and not too plush, so lighter weight/fold up well.

Maybe:

• Playing cards.  I got a ton of them from thrift stores and dollar stores.  It worked out to be cheap and I have seen mission residents playing cards.  I've contemplated going to the Casinos to get on their donation list, but I know some people object to cards and the Mission is a religious organization.
• Washcloths.  We did towels this year, and I’ll let you know how those go over, but men with a nomadic life often don’t need extra items, and, face it, 99% of the washcloth use in this house is me.
• Notepads and pens.  Cost a bit, and most people probably didn't use/need.  There’s a lot of free notepads and pens out there anyway

Bad:

• Knit hats.  A group of women knit 100 hats for us to give out.  They were definitely regarded as “cheesy homemade” items and we didn't repeat that

Financing

We get no grants for this.  Everything is paid for by us.  One year, a friend gave me $50 to use towards the project, but that’s it.  We can afford to buy 75 each of a few items and it goes a long way to our credibility.

A bundle with socks, scarf, candy and misc., is not going to dramatically change the life of one of the recipients.  However, the knowledge that a family (extended with friends now) takes the time to buy, wrap and hand deliver a few items WILL send a good message.

We are often asked “who is this from?”  We are met with incredulous looks and admiration when we tell them “US”.  We get asked “what organization” and other similar questions; and we can see the realization on faces when we explain that we’ve taken time to do this on our own.

Also along that “we care” line – Bags versus Paper.  The first few years that we did this, we setup bags in the living room and assembly line filled them with the items and then taped them shut.

Then came the year that genius me forgot to buy bags.  We had NONE. 

That was also the year that we put off putting the bundles together until Christmas day….

No, you cannot find 75 paper sacks in the Twin Cities on Christmas day.  The only option we found was gift bags at Wal-Mart for about $1 apiece.

Luckily, we (okay, mostly me) are bargain shoppers and hoarders.  In my defense, we have a big attic!  Also, my hoarding came in quite well in this COMMUNITY SERVICE case, so I feel justified!!!

I had stashed several dozen rolls of wrapping paper (bought at 90% off).  It didn't take too long to wrap the gifts.  We’ll admit that the wrapping job wasn't the prettiest…  And, the lack of cellophane tape was mitigated with masking tape from the painting supply bin….

The reaction that we got to the WRAPPED presents assured that we would be wrapping each subsequent year.  The men really noticed that little effort and were touched by it more than even white paper sacks (versus brown).  It also further illustrated that these were personal gifts – us to them.

This Year’s Effort

Jo Ann, her friend Monique, Chris and I spent two hours sorting, organizing and wrapping this afternoon.

A good time was had by all!

Delivery will be sometime after 10 on Christmas Day.

Contents of the Bundles

• 1 towel (we only had 50 some, so the last few got an extra pair of socks)
• 5 pairs of socks
• Fleece Scarf
• Toothbrush
• Candy Cane (12 for a dollar at Cub!!)
• Handful of miniature candies

Pictures

And here are a few shots to illustrate this story!

The box of socks:

Jo Ann (in white), Monique (on the floor), and Chris (backside).  You can see towels, the bowl of candy, and a box of tooth brushes (on the table by Jo Ann)

Jo Ann (in white), Monique (on the floor, mostly blocked), and Chris (backside).  Nice smile on my hubby there!

Jo Ann putting together a bundle.

A view of the table where I was working.  See the wrapping paper and empty rolls?  Also notice the wrapped packages on the chair.

Glass

In one of my September 2012 posts, I discussed the various types of glass and showed my attempts at working with very hard – borosilicate – glass.  You can see that post here.

The efforts were not pretty….

I’ve also discussed a lot about my version of art (very organized, geometric) versus organic art and that I will never be good at Torch Work but that I enjoy it and will continue.

Today, I retook the Borosilicate glass because I felt I needed more assistance and because I got the glass for half price.  Yay Groupon/LivingSocial/etc.!!!  The coupon from one of them is what originally brought me to Potek Glass and I just love taking their classes.  I prefer the Studio at Rush Creek for my open studio time, but the classes at Potek are professional and geared to only glass artists/enthusiasts.

Even if you have to pay full price, I HIGHLY recommend going to Potek for ALL their “Try-It” classes.  They are focused classes and packed with information AND hands on activities.  I've had all their primary instructors; each is different and all are good.  I prefer Annie over the rest; just feel comfortable with her.  She’s a good teacher, a good artist and a comfortable person for me to be around.  She’s not overly social/seeking out conversation as some instructors are, nor does she come across as cold or critical.  Not that other instructors there are – just that I have run into those traits at other places. 

As I've said many times, I have my social ineptitude;  taking classes from Annie is just how I want it – acceptance of personal recognition but totally focused on the class and the information given.  So, I would also say she’s Asperger friendly!! A “good work” comment from her is honest, and she doesn't put me on the spot.  This seems little, but I have issues with “fitting in” at some places (never going back to the Mosaic place – that was all about popularity and “Party” atmosphere).  This was my second time taking the class, and she didn't make any kind of deal out of that.  I didn't feel criticized for needing more help, nor did I receive false praise for my work being a little bit ahead of some of the others (mostly that I could light the torch with the striker…!)

I got a lot out of the class; realized where I was going wrong with some steps and, overall, feel more comfortable with the process.  I think there was a little improvement in the projects done in the class (note: the same exact format was followed and did the same projects).

Before

In my first round of the class, I produced two misshapen lumps that were supposed to be Icicle ornaments.

After

This time, I made three and they – whist still misshapen – actually look like ornaments and are currently on my tree!

Embroidery Machine is Up and Running Again

Cat Picture of the Day…..  It needs some explanation.

I've been sick… bad enough that I worked from home for two days.

Most people who work from home get up in the morning, shower, eat breakfast, and sit at a desk or table.  They have a work routine that is separate from their home routines.

Not me….

I’m lazy

VERY lazy

I had a friend call me with a wake-up call, (no alarms for me!), ran down, grabbed laptop, crawled back into bed and worked while propped up with down pillows.

Lazy and spoiled…..

Work clothes were pajama bottoms with cartoon animals on them and a Captain Crunch t-shirt (I also had peanut butter captain crunch for breakfast)

In my defense, sitting at the kitchen table is actually BAD for me.  I have an elbow issue and it’s not ergo dynamically correct.  I need to have my elbows above my wrists… which they were in bed….

So, here’s the cat picture – they are helping me.

Glass

I’m getting anxious!  I haven’t picked my things up from the kiln yet!  It’s been two weeks. 

My excuses: 

• Two Fridays ago – didn't go to open studio because I was sick.  Barely made it through work.  I left at 4:30, came home, slept until 8 and went to dinner with Ana.  That dinner each week is more important than anything else
• Last Friday – Chris’s Christmas party. 

The Party

Let’s talk about the party.  There’s actually nothing hobby related to it, so it really has no place in this blogs…

But, my enjoyment is one of my hobbies…..

As an empty nester, I have discovered going to a spa regularly, tanning, working on my thighs… etc…

So – I’m my own hobby!

Also, my hubby is my hobby…. A serious hobby….!

One of the things at the party was a photo booth.  They've come a long way from the 75 cent machines at the arcades that we used to take the kids to.  But, same concept – take amusing pictures of yourselves!  Those were always black and white; now you can choose effects!  Sepia, black and white, color, etc.

I want to rent one and have it at a Christmas party some year!

My husband has a sense of humor and is confident in his masculinity… I love the reindeer ears!

I want to use this for some Christmas Cards:

I also indulged my inner goddess and vamped it up!  Not bad for a 47 year old grandmother!

However, the photo booth award goes to my Son in Law – Eric….. (note - this is from another date, but still hilarious)

 No idea how he did it so quickly!

At least he’s not wearing his boots…..

Fabric 

Scrap Tamers

Today was scrap tamers.  I got caught up on my mystery last weekend at the QQ mini retreat so I felt confident going.  I’m getting a little excited about it….. We've had enough clues now so we have some pieces and I’m trying to imagine what it might be.

The currently monthly Marti and Me pattern (part of the Scrap tamers club) is a patter with a lot of half square triangles.  I might do it just to use up a bunch of squares that I have collected.

Fabric for Lincoln’s challenge

One of the special extra patterns in the “Jo’s Little Women” club of this year was an original pattern by Anne Marie at Glad’s called “Lincoln’s Challenge”.  I cannot show you any pictures on it because she is releasing the pattern.  After she does, I will.

Anyway, the pattern called for a bunch of 5 inch squares in a color way/pattern set.  I chose to use a charm pack from Tonka – batiks.  I actually reversed her color recommendations.  Where she has lights, I did darks and where she did darks – lights.

I absolutely LOVED the end result.  It’s a gorgeous small quilt.

Then, in browsing my favorite quilting sites, I found the layer cakes (10 inch squares) for the same fabric collection.  So, my plan is to make the quilt again, but with the 10 inch squares in place of the 5 inch.  This will effectively make the quilt four times bigger, and with some borders and/or extra blocks, be a decent sized to use on a bed!

I couldn't find some of the other fabrics used in it, but have ones that are VERY close. 

I’m excited….

Now I just need time.

Secret Projects

Still working on my secret projects.  I will post when I get things done and delivered!

Embroidery

My big project of the week was getting my embroidery machine up and running again.  There was nothing wrong with it; I just have too many hobbies and not enough time.

• Three weeks ago, my friend Cathy’s sister asked me to do some embroidery on a quilt for her grandson.
• I’m overdue with doing name tags for my quilt group
• Last week, Nancy asked me to make some more baptismal clothes for the church….

That’s the one that did it… threw me over the edge.

I’m on a mission from God.

(Ten points if you can name the movie, twenty for the actor)

It wasn't hard to get the machine going again… I just had to remember the menus on the screen and get out the strong cheater glasses for threading those TWELVE needles!

Sue’s Quilt

Here are some pictures of the embroidery that I did for the grandson quilt.

All the embroidery is on the bottom inner border.  The trucks are the same except for the color.  I took a close up picture of the letters in the name.  Since they are so large, I didn't do a simply satin stitch, but did a patterned inner fill with a satin stitch outline.  The file for the name was more stitches than BOTH the trucks!

Avatar

I check Face book with regularity for pictures, etc.  My husband has a strange sense of humor and isn’t afraid of showing his soft side either.

I burst out laughing one evening when I checked his profile….  He put up a picture of the Bengals and posted “I should pimp these cats for cat calendars”

The comments went downhill from there……

Use your imagination….

Bead Making/Torch Work

I haven’t worked with the torch for a while, and don’t have any plans until January.  My schedule has just been so terribly busy.  You’ll have to wait a while after this to hear stories of burns and mishaps with molten glass.

These are the beads that I picked up a few days ago.  They were made in the October Open Torch session.

At the left is the small pile of broken beads.  In the middle/towards the left, is a mandrel with a bead still on it.  The reason for this is that I can NOT get it off.  I’m going to try for a little while more before I give up and smash it. 

It’s a pretty good looking bead.

So, I get a good one right, it does NOT break… but is still useless to me!

*sigh*

Here’s a closer look at the broken beads. 

I’m getting much better with the dots and other decorations.  The worst part about these particular beads is that at least two of them are were near perfect matches for beads that did survive.

Why is that bad?

Well, I have a tin now with over 100 beads that I have made.  Some large, some small, some decorated, some plain.

What I DON’T have, is two identical beads.

No perfect pair for earrings.

Here are some close-ups of a couple of the beads that I’m most proud of.

Both beads are fairly large.  Each is about 1 inch.  Both are made with a single color as the base shape (Orange and Clear).  Then, I took stringers that I pulled from other glass rods (thin strings of glass) and wrapped them around the bead.

People who do this well, get perfect lines and have more complex decorations.

I do not do this well

I call these beads “Impressionism”

And I leave it at that…..

Mini Retreat Today

I’ve been ill lately.  I slept in a bit this morning and then went and got my friend Michelle and we went to my group’s quilting "mini-retreat".  The premise of this sort of event is that we go to a local church (versus staying out of town), for a Friday evening and the whole day Saturday, going home to sleep in between. 

I was greeted quite warmly.  It sort of made me feel bad; I've blown off that group a couple times lately. I’m also blowing off the Xmas party.  I planned going to a movie premiere with my daughters prior to realizing that it was the same night as the group party.  They come first….

I packed quickly this morning, grabbing project boxes.  I managed to get one of my block of the month projects caught up (still one to go).   This particular one is the Scrap Tamers’ Mystery, of which I was two months behind…

(Embarrassed smiley face should go here)

I left the retreat early because I was at a good breaking spot and I was worn out.  Drove Michelle home, and napped on the couch while Chris watched a show.  I needed a nap before doing anything else for the evening; I'm just so run down lately.  I've got the Kathleen Turner raspy deep voice going on too.  Hopefully this will pass soon.

I’d hate to think that I’m getting old…. 

Scrap Tamers’ Mystery

Clue #1 - Cutting

That was done except for the accent fabric.  All my lights and darks for the project are blues.  I had a beige/blue/purple patterned fabric set aside for the accent fabric, but had not cut it yet.  However, when I dug out the pieces today, I had second thoughts about the accent fabric.  It is what you would consider a medium sized print.  My directions today called for 1 ½ inch wide pieces of it. 

Seriously?

That would totally lose the pattern in the fabric.

So, I dug into a bag. 

I had only brought projects; not yardage.  However, one of the projects had a bunch of fabrics from my “medium” stash section in it.  That project was/is a Lemoyne star quilt in which I gathered up a bunch of reds (stars) and beiges (backgrounds) from the ½ - 1 yard pieces in my stash.  The Mystery calls for 5/8 yard of accent fabric.  I pulled out a couple pieces of the red, and one was about a yard, was a burgundy with a lined pattern in it.  It reads mostly as a solid, and the color is a bit muted.  I held it up to the blue pieces and it looks good.

Clue #2 – Four Patches

Long story short: 72 – 2 ½ square four patches

Yes…. 72

SMALL four patches…

Very small….

The method for making them was to piece strip sets, cross cut them into 144 - 1 ½ inch wide strips and then piece into the four patches.  Each four patch has one cross cut from an accent/light strip set and one cross cut from an accent/dark strip set.

I considered it a win that at the end, I had equal numbers of cross cuts (i.e. I didn’t accidentally match two darks or two lights together and create and uneven amount at the end)

However, that doesn’t mean that I didn’t screw up an even number of times and it just LOOKS like it ended up correct

Just saying……

Clue #3 – Strip Sets and Cross cutting

This step also resulted in 144 small cross cuts…..  However, the clue didn’t give any further construction instructions.  Since the cross cuts are wider than the four patches, I’m thinking that I’m going to be adding to them, and then putting these pieces on the sides….

We’ll see

Eventually…

Other Projects

I’m actively working on two quilts right now.  However, both are gifts and both are going to people who read my blog.. so….

“zip”

Avatar

No, not the movie….  

The word existed long before that travesty of a Pocahontas retelling that billed itself as good science fiction.

av·a·tar  

/ˈavəˌtär/

Noun A manifestation of a deity in bodily form on earth. An incarnation, embodiment, or manifestation of a person or idea: "he set himself up as a new avatar of Arab radicalism".

I told Brandie that all I wanted for my birthday was an avatar of me.  I gave her a couple ideas and she went with it.

Criteria:  long hair and a Steam Punk twist

First:  Here’s a costume that I’m working on for Steam Punk role playing.  This is the basic dress; I have boots for it, need some jewelry and other accessories, and a bustier or corset under it as the dress is a little big and the genre calls for a bustier look.

Second:  Here is what Brandie came up with!

She knows me so well!  An avatar is supposed to capture the essence of the person.  Let me point out a couple things:

• Midriff:  While I don’t often expose my belly like this, my midsection is something that I’ve worked hard on and am proud of
• Boots:  I love boots.  That’s all I wear in winter – nice fashion boots.  I also always wear heels
• Those are NOT sunglasses on my head… They are goggles – tribute to Steam Punk.  They are also purple!  My favorite color.