Post Holidaze

I hope you all had a wonderful holiday! It is always great when they come, and GREAT when they are over.
I had Christmas dinner at my house.....for the first time EVER, and I am pretty old never to have hosted the family Christmas before. What a lot of work!
Since the move, the house has not been totally "done", so now, the rooms had to look like actual rooms, cleaned, fresh sheets, blankets for all, etc, and lots of food needed to be cooked. Most of you know this drill.
So I noticed that in my normal life, when I have so much jewelry to make and shows to do, there are times when I LOVE being in the kitchen, or times I am wanting desperately to be cleaning a messy house. So now, when I had so much kitchen and house work to do, I longed to be in the studio!!! Isn't life weird?
My stepdaughter wanted a pair of copper hoop earrings for Christmas, which of course I don't normally make, so I was messing around in the studio on a break from "Christmas prep" to see what this would entail, and it was so much fun, I didn't want to quit! But I just didn't have the time. So today, post Holidays, I am going out to the studio to play around with copper. Perhaps if I make something interesting, I will post a picture here of what turns up!!

Did you miss the sale?

If you missed the last sale, send me an email, and I can post some more pictures here of pieces I have left at HALF OFF. Let me know colors you like or stones, or pieces that are sold.
Maybe I could just post more pictures!!!!
I am sorry I didn't get the postcards out in time for people to plan ahead to attend the sale. I just wasn't functioning well the week prior, and as a result, things didn't get done.
I have heard of one artist, a potter, who takes one month off in the winter. This may sound luxurious, but believe me when I tell you she does about 50 shows in the other 11 months, so she really needs it. During that month, however, she says she will work here and there, and put the finished pots in her private "bank", and when she wants to take a day off, or is sick, she can make a "withdrawal" of work to get her through a show. I thought this was amazing. So perhaps, I need a Fun Girls Jewelry Bank, and the same principle could apply!!
How about a Fun Girls Credit Card?????
WRONG IDEA!!!

Clearance Sale Tomorrow in Redwood City

I don't know if I have ever been to Redwood City! I am sure I have driven through.
Today I am doing all the final pricing of stuff for the Clearance Sale. I will probably find more STUFF as well.
What I won't have at the sale are my big art pieces, those with lots of glass beads, like the Chunky Monkeys, and the Crazy Chains. They just take too long to make to put on sale. But I have a lot of necklaces with glass, and of course lots of pieces with interesting stones.
Hope you can make the sale. I think it will be fun!

Seconds Pendants for Crazy Eights Sale

I found another whole box of "seconds" when I was moving the studio. Most have a small flaw somewhere, and some just didn't turn out as good as I like, so here they are! I have about 40 for the sale.

Davis Cancelled

I am not feeling well, so I had to cancel the Davis show, but I will still be at Redwood City on Sunday. I am laying in bed, updating this blog. Too amazing for words!
I hope to upload some more pictures of work for the Crazy Eights Sale, so check back in!

"Crazy Eights" Studio Clearance Sale

Where: The Fitzsimmon Center at St. Pius Church
1100 Woodside Road, Redwood City

When: Sunday, December 7th, 10-5 ......One Day ONLY

How: The sale price of HALF OFF all prices ending with an "8" will not be posted .
therefore, if someone hasn't received my card or email, they won't know about the
sale pricing. I intended the sale prices to be for my regular customers.

I have about 40 "seconds" glass heart and misc. pendants, and about 40 necklaces, with more odd ball things thrown in for fun!!!

"Crazy Eights" Clearance Sale in Redwood City

As some of you know, I have been relocating my studio for a few months, SOOOO...it seems the perfect time to have another STUDIO CLEARANCE SALE!! There will be lots of odds and ends, designs that never made it to the shows, overstocked beads and SECONDS!!! I love seconds, so I hope you do too. These are mostly glass pendants that have a flaw, so I wouldn't take them to a show, but I will discount them at this show.
I had the first Clearance Sale last month, and since then I have discovered bags and boxes of things that I will have at this Clearance Sale. I will post directions and addresses soon.
The show is a holiday bazaar at St. Pius Church in Redwood City, on Sunday, December 7. The church is located on Woodside Road. I will ad a map link and address on the next post.
I am going to call this the Crazy Eights Sale, because every price that ends in an "8" is half off!!! I'll count the necklaces and see how many there are. I think I just wired up about 30 heart pendants that will be discounted. More info tomorrow.

Goodbye November

I can't believe I am in bed writing this posting!! My stepdaughters were at our new house for the weekend, and they discovered my house can pick up the internet ...wifi I believe it is called...not plugged into the wall is what I call it, and damn miraculous!! I am just blown away. So I can lay in bed and write my blog. Wasn't there a famous author who never got out of bed???
The Davis Art Center Holiday show is coming up this weekend, Friday, Saturday and Sunday, so it is time to get ALL my pistons firing. AND, the St. Pius Holiday Bazaar in Redwood City is next Sunday as well, so my husband John will be at Davis on Sunday, and I will go to Redwood City for the one day show. Please know that he isn't a very big help with the jewelry, so it will me mostly self-serve when he is there. He does know how to write up a sale, but you can't be in a hurry, I hate to say. But it know it will all work. I committed to the Redwood City show before I knew if I was accepted into the Davis show, so there you go. It will all work out.

Finally!

I am finally making glass!! I was pretty depressed for the past week or so, and I don't usually get depressed. There was nothing I could do to speed up the completion of the studio, and without the studio, I wasn't able to work, and multiple deadlines were looming. I wondered if there was a bad energy vibe underneath the new house, or if I was passing through a "life transition", or who knows what? But in reality, I was just depressed because I couldn't get to work! Yesterday, a friend came over with a big drill, and with one big new hole in the side of the building, I was able to get my tanks and the torch going, so I am finally making glass in an empty little room! Progress!!

Dry Dock

I feel like a boat sitting in a dry dock. I am out of the glass business right now, and it is weird. I have two messy studios, and neither one is working.
You can see the outside of the new studio in the picture to the right. The little deck isn't done yet, and I will paint the rail, but it isn't as cute as my old studio, but it is a little bigger.
On the inside, you can see the two glass stations I will have. Each one needs a ventilation system, so you can see those ready to install. I am excited about the two working heights. Sometimes my back can ache from sitting too long in one position, so now I can just switch to a different height and hopefully Keep On Going!!!!

Fun at Orinda

Orinda was a great success. I also won a silent auction donation for "face work", but I am not sure what I will do. Botox???? One time maybe??? If I do, I will post pictures!!!
The felted jewelry was a hit at at Orinda. I have two left, both green I think. I thought they were fun, but I made them 3 or 4 years ago, and I just didn't think they fit into my line.
I came home expecting that the ventilation would be installed in my new studio, but no such luck. This is pretty much how this new studio thing has been going. I think I am two months behind on it. I am still too tired to think of what is next. I am just happy that Orinda was so much fun!

50% OFF Selected items

I am still working on sale items, and a lot of them will be 50% off.
New designs, and new glass pendants will not be discounted, but these will be a small percentage of jewelry at the clearance sale.

60 Necklaces and Counting for the Clearance Sale

So far I have 60 necklaces for the Preferred Customers Studio Clearance Sale, amoung other things. There are lots of misc items too. Some of these will be up to 50% off the regular retail price with YOUR POSTCARD or EMAIL PRINTOUT!!!!
I am at the old studio today, so when I go to the 'new' house tomorrow, I will snap some photos of the sale items and get them posted here.

Studio Clearance Sale in Orinda

As some of you know, I am busy relocating my studio to the new house. SOOOO...it seems the perfect time to have a STUDIO CLEARANCE SALE!!
There will be lots of odds and ends, designs that never made it to the shows, overstocked beads and SECONDS!!! I love seconds, so I hope you do too. These are mostly glass pendants that have a flaw, so I wouldn't take them to a show, but I will discount them at Orinda.
I hope to have some pictures up before the show, November 1 & 2, but my photography studio isn't set up yet, so I hope that happens.
The show will be at the Orinda Holiday Bazaar, at the Orinda Community Center. I am in room 6, so those of you expecting to see me in my old spot in the auditorium will have to search down a hallway for me. I have the WHOLE ROOM to myself!!!!

Getting Ready for Orinda

A milestone has been passed - from now until March of 2009, all my shows will be indoors. This is a good thing!! In this business, the weather can effect your sales. It has been a pretty long time since I can remember losing a show day to rain, and that isn't all good news. We need the rain so badly, that it would be GREAT to lose a show day! But not this year.
John and I took a day off yesterday and drove to Lake Comanche, which is only about 12 miles from our new house. It was pretty desolate, being October, but it is easy to see how busy it must be in the summer, with the boat docks, lots of camping and special activity areas. But it was also incredibly low, as in "no water". This is the water source for the East Bay, so now I can understand when a few of my customers were talking about installing low flush toilets, and conserving water.
In the new house, we will have to pay for extra water usage, so I am beginning to research how much water it takes to do stuff, like flush the toilet. I also wanted to save my bath water for the landscaping, but I couldn't figure that one out. Give me time!! I am getting ready for Orinda right now, so that will have to wait.

Chilly Weather

It must be fall. The weather here is chilly, and we are thinking about turning on the heat for the first time in the new house.
My new studio is still in process....the electrician was here today hooking it up. That's not done, and there is so much more to do. I will be working in my old studio until it is ready. I can't really think about when that might be. It needs painted too, and my ventilation system needs installed, and THEN I can pack up all the stuff in my old studio, and move it. Wow. I hate even seeing it all in print.
I must end this post now. I think I am hyperventilating.

Montclair Village ( Oakland ) This Weekend

It looks like rain this coming Saturday, October 4 & 5, and I can't complain because we sure need it. However, I will be on the sidewalks of Oakland on Saturday and Sunday, so it may be a little dicey.
We set up in the morning on Saturday, and if it is raining, they will postpone this set up, and if the rain stops, we will set up then and proceed for the weekend.

However, if it isn't raining in the morning, we will set up, and stay there all day, rain or shine.
I am located on the corner of Mountain Blvd. and La Salle, right in front of the old WaMu bank. I wonder if it will have a new name?

People are wondering about the economy, and other people's lives, I have found. My show last weekend in Walnut Creek was good-not great but better than average. Several artists selling had a very good show, selling major pieces of art. Some artists didn't do so well, but it is usually this way at the shows.

Some people are still enjoying life. If you aren't, come to Montclair this weekend!!
Sorry no new pics. The photography equipment is still packed up, in the new house, and I am writing this post from my empty old house, with the working studio!

No Photos Yet

I have some new work, and no photos. All photo equipment is still boxed up, as is most of my house. I am here at the old, empty house, cleaning and making beads for the Walnut Creek show. I knew it would be confusing, some things here, some there. But I am dismayed that RIGHT OFF THE BAT.... my mailing labels are still packed up in the new house, and I am here in the old house needing to get my mailing out for the upcoming show.
?????

Where I am

I'm sorry I don't have any pictures of the new work I have done for the Palo Alto show tomorrow. The photography equipment is still boxed up., and I don't even know yet where it is going to live. I am sitting in a sea of boxes right now, and I am just so grateful for this little laptop that didn't need boxed up!!! I need to at least get a snap shot for my records!
I am so looking forward to Palo Alto. It will seem a return to sanity, after weeks of dealing with the move....and that was just the house move! I will still be working at my old studio ( which is an hour away) and sleeping in the old empty house until my new studio is ready. With all the glitches, it is hard to say when that will be. But it feels like we have crested the summit, and while not easy, at least the hardest part is over.

Too Pooped to Post

But I am posting...it is so much easier than packing another box. Sigh.

Too Important

I love Thomas Friedman. I didn't want to use my blog for political purposes, but this article is just too important not to share. This election is too important.


http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/14/opinion/14friedman.html?ex=1379044800&en=c3c37388fe4618aa&ei=5124&partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Thanks Fun Girls. I won't do this often

Moving House and Studio

I am posting pretty irradically right now. Our move is scheduled for next Thursday, and we are packing, and making small trips down to the new house.
There has been hold ups with my new studio. I bought a 20' x 8' construction office trailor, and it has proved much more difficult and expensive to get it hooked up than I had ever thought, but I won't go into all those boring details now. Let me say, that I decided to do it "legally", so all the codes have to be met, and we need to burrow under a lot of BOULDERS to meet the electrical codes. So that is where I am at.
I am going to live in the old house with my old studio until the new one is up and going. John, and the furniture will all move to the new house. This will be strange, but I can't move until I have a place to work.
I have some orders shipping tomorrow. If you are waiting on something, it will go out tomorrow!!!

New House

I don't know if I have written about the house here. I think I may have mentioned the escrow, which seemed to go on forever, but I never mentioned we finally closed on the house. I may have a picture to upload, but it doesn't photograph well. The house sits midhill, and the half acre or so below is a big field with live oak trees....very California, yet the view and the rocks are reminisenct of Arizona, where I first took metalsmithing classes in the late 90's. The house sits on a small piece of the acre, and is surrounded by "mature" landscaping, a real estate term I learned that means big trees/and or bushes. And it is a good thing they are big, or they would have died. With no rain this year, and the house empty for 6 months, a lot of things died. I really need to thank the listing broker, who sent her son to the house to do some watering, or everything would be dead. What a nice thing to do!!
I will look for a picture now.

A Little Breather

I just took the day off, except of course for updating mailing lists, and easily accomplished paperwork. We are getting ready for the move in a few weeks, so I did pack a box or two.
Tomorrow I will get back to work. If you are waiting for something from me, it will be there next week!!!

Step Two Challenge

I have been making glass beads like crazy. As many years as I have been doing this, it still amazes me that when I absolutely must have exactly 'this' bead, I can't make it work. In the perfect world, I would 1) make a list of what I want at the next show 2) sit down and make the glass 3) marry with the stones/pearls/whatever/ and make jewelry. It is step 2 that doesn't always go as planned. Sometimes, I get great new glass designs because what I was trying to do didn't work out as planned, thus, a "happy accident". Lots of times, I just get mediocre glass.
I have been trying new kinds of glass in an effort to elimate a major problem ( as I see it ) in one of my heart designs. So far, no luck. No happy accidents either.
I'm going to check the kiln and see what I got this morning. I am leaving on Friday morning for Kings Mt., so my fingers are crossed.

New Macha Chain Dangle

This new dangle was inspired by Emily Harris, pictured below ( (Fun) Woman of the Year in Technology 2008.)Three beads dangle from a sterling loop that slips on your Macha Chain. I am also doing these in colored beads as well as the crusty black and whites, and on snake chains in different lengths. Some of the earrings to match are assymetrical as well.
The head I used here for the photo is very small, but you can guess the proportions if you own one of the machas.
I have a kiln-loaded waiting for me! Hope I get some good ones!

Kings Mountain Art Fair Labor Day Weekend

I havn't posted for a while since I am working madly for Kings Mountain. This show is in Woodside, along Skyline Dr. south of 95. It is the most beautiful setting in the redwoods! It is a benefit for the fire department there, and it has a long history. It is a very successful show, which you can see from the incredibly nice fire house built there with the funds raised over the many years of the show.
If I get any good photos before the show I will post them. I have lots of glass in the kiln -I need to go check!

Lake Tahoe -Homewood Ski Resort This Weekend

I will be at Lake Tahoe this weekend, at the Homewood Ski Resort, Friday Saturday and Sunday August 15, 16 & 17. Homewood is on the Western shore of Lake Tahoe, on Hwy 89. Homewood is about in the middle, between Tahoe City and South Lake Tahoe.
I won't have a "mail list" special, so I must apologize ahead of time.
Hope you can make it!!!

Is it just me?

Is it just me, or does it also seem to you that nothing is moving right now. People are slow to return calls, things that normally happen instantaneously are, well, not happening at all. I am slow. I mean, slower than normal.

A lot of people are on vacation right now, so perhaps that is part of this energy. If I don't hear from someone, I just assume they are on vacation. This is one very good thing about making jewelry for a living. It isn't like a heart by-pass, something that has to happen right now or look out. A necklace, while perhaps desired for a special event on a certain day, most of the time can happen at it's own pace.

Now the house we are currently in escrow with, certainly has it's own pace and time reality. I remember the show we did in June just after we made the bid. That show is so far in the past!! How many shows since then, and how many pieces of jewelry I have made since then. But the house is still in escrow. Perhaps this is where my feeling of S>>L>>>O>>>W>>> is coming from. I wonder if it is setting a world record for the longest escrow ever.

I am looking forward to the new house, but I am also very excited about the possible return of the focus I have lost while waiting for this house. Not that I was a champion of focus pre-house,
but I have set a personal record lately for total confusion and lack of direction. My mind is stuck.

Enough of this. I need to go make stuff!!! I will use my hands, and not my mind. Could be interesting!

August Already!

I just can't believe it is August already. I am busy making glass to catch up with the time I lost in July due to smoke and heat. Yesterday, I used both kilns in a way I never had.....I thought I would blow a fuse, but it worked OK. So my production will go a little faster.

There is a BIG Art Glass conference in Oakland next weekend, and I am hoping I can go for a day or two. It is a yearly event, and the locations are across the country, east coast one year, and this is the year for the west coast. Of course, for me, the timing couldn't be worse. We may be moving to a new house ( escrow is taking forever) and then we need to move two studios, and the house. THEN be ready to do some shows. Whew. Better get to work!

Truckee Mail List Gift with Purchase

My Truckee Art Show Mail List Email List Show Special are pictured at right, Bead Lapel Pins. I will give away three on Saturday, and one on Sunday to the first customers that ask!!! YOU NEED TO ASK, so I know you have read this posting!!! Then I also know you are on my list!!
I have found that most people come on the first day, and that is why I am giving away more on that day than on Sunday.
See you in Truckee!!

Fun Thing

I have a great story from a San Francisco show. It had been a really fun show, my first in the spring season, and the weather in San Francisco had been record-breaking sun and warmth.
It has been so cold there on previous shows that I almost cried! So it was a really great experience.
On the last day of the show, a woman walked by with this incredible orange-squash color purse. I swooned over it, and we proceeded to do some purse talk for a few minutes.....why she loved this bag, and so forth . ( It's true, white interior helps you find things easier!)
She started pick up a necklace and I encouraged her to try it on, and she backed off quickly, explaining that she was a compulsive shopper, currently in therapy to overcome this problem. I stammered a bit, told her I understood, and stopped any encouragement, and she went on her way.
A few hours later, I saw her coming up fast to my booth, and swinging the orange bag.
"Here" she said rather breathlessly, " take it. I want you to have it."
I hesistated, but she gave it to me and said, "It's part of my therapy".
I was stunned. My brain started to think about what I could give her, but then it instantly became clear that my job was to be the receiver at this point, so I took the bag and thanked her.
It took a few weeks for me to carry the bag. I had several shows in a row, a major death in the family, and life got hectic. Then I remembered the story, and remembered how much fun I had had at that show. So I started to carry the bag, as a reminder of just how much fun my job is, thanks to the wonderful people I get to meet.
It is getting pretty dirty right now. A woman stopped me in a restaurant last night, admiring my bag. I FROZE........ should I pass it on???? Is it my turn to let go?
Naahh. I'm going to clean it up today.

Finally making glass

I am finally making glass again. The heat coupled with the smoke, made it too unbearable (not to say unhealthy) to fire up the torch. So I am behind, but at least I am seeing molten glass!!
I will be in Downtown Truckee this weekend , July 26 & 27, at a new show. Truckee is a pretty artsy community north of Lake Tahoe, about 30 minutes west of Reno. This is the first year for this show, and I hope the community is supportive. We'll see.
The second Lake Tahoe show at Homewood I usually do that weekend was cancelled, and replaced with this Truckee show. So I still get my "semi-vacation" in Tahoe. If I make anything wonderous I will post some pictures before I go. Jury duty this coming Wednesday may end this possibility.

Back to Work

The temperature seems liveable, so I am going to try to make glass today. Of course, I will need to clean for about an hour to find the torch!!! I hope this cool weather trend continues. This is the first time the weather has prevented me from working. Too much smoke in the air to be in my studio, and too hot as well.
I did post the picture of the earrings and bracelet made from the crusty beads yesterday. These are shipping out to Libby Elliot. You'll get them as soon as I find your address Libby!

Please Don't Bring Your American Express Card

I just have to whine for a minute. Whine Therapy.
I may quit taking American Express. I have spent most of this morning trying to justify my credit card reports. There are deposits, and credits, and fees, and I try to track them. This is, of course for me, difficult. On top of this, the credit card software generated report has one total for each "batch", but American Express has it's own figures within each batch, so the totals on the afore mentioned deposts, credits and fees don't match up.
So besides being the most expensive, American Express takes all this additional bookkeeping time. Wow. This is the truly ugly side of doing what you love for a living.
Please don't bring your American Express Card.
I will post something fun later to make up for this. I think it will be too hot today to make glass.

Here they are

Quick photo of the beads I will be wiring up on the way to Oakland. We are leaving soon, and I am looking forward to seeing everybody. I love Montclair!!

Montclair Gift with Purchase

I spent all my time posting the new earrings I made from the crusty bead bouquet pictured several photos down on the right, so I don't have the mail list special gift for Montclair finished yet. The beads are done, but I need to wire them up.
We are leaving in two hours and I have much to pack, so I think I will be finishing them in the car on the way down to Oakland!!!
Keychains, similiar to the ones several photos down on the right, but some will be hearts, and some dots.
The first TWO CUSTOMERS each day that tell me they read this email will get the keychain! A $45 value or around there somewhere, since I don't sell them. They roll over to Sunday, so if nobody asks on Friday or Saturday, I will have 6 for Sunday!!

Great Kilnload

This was such a fun kilnload of beads I wanted to show you. It looks like a bead bouquet!
I have a finished necklace for sale at my etsy site made from this style of beads. These will be earrings and bracelets to match, soon.

http://www.fungirlsjewelry.etsy.com

I don't know the special for Montclair yet. Stay tuned......

New Piece for Montclair

Just finished the piece in the photo to the right. I call this a crusty bead, because people think it is pottery or something more "crusty" than glass. The silver beads are hollow, and the beads are hollow, so this necklace is lighter than it may look. Pretty cool if I do say so myself.
Now I am going out to check the kiln. I made a bunch of these same beads yesterday for earrings to go with this piece, and a bracelet. I wonder what I will make!!!
I should know the Montclair Show Special in a few hours. I will need to make something, so then I will post it.

I cancelled Danville

I actually cancelled a show when I wasn't sick or anything. I overbooked shows for "insurance", if something came up, or had a bad show, I had a "back up" show. It is hard to decide which show this should be, so I have pretty much come to the conclusion that I need to alternate years at some shows. There are just too many good shows in June in Northern California.



There was a family event I wanted to attend last weekend, and normally this is NOT a valid reason to cancel a show. Imagine each show as a paycheck, and then realize you are cancelling one of perhaps 20 paychecks. The average person will get 24 paychecks a year, if they get paid twice a month. Some people get paid 52 times a year, if they get a weekly paycheck. In this business, a show is a paycheck. So cancelling a paycheck is a BIG DEAL. But I really wanted to be at this special event.



So, we drove through the California Valley on Friday, in our old Toyota with the broken air conditioner. This was still OK, but very hot. We used to live in Arizona, so it brought back memories.



We also used to live on Highway One, 20 miles north of Santa Cruz, So, on our way to Santa Cruz having survived the vicious heat, we went to the coast to drive south . The temperature went down 20 or more degrees, and we were back in our old neighborhood. We stopped in Pescadero for lunch, and Duartes is the place to eat. But it was a Saturday, and there was a long line to eat. In our normal life, the life of doing art shows for a living, we eat out most often when we are on the road doing shows. And, we just don't wait in line at restaurants. There is no time or energy to wait in line. We just move on to the next place to get a table. This day, however, we actually waited in line at Duartes to eat. It was such a relaxing experience!! We actually had time to wait. I said to John, "Wow! We are doing something normal!!! Some people do this all the time. Some people do this every day.!"
It was a great weekend.

We are in Escrow

I am so sad right now. We are in escrow for a house about an hour away from West Point. I told my neighbors last night, and I am so sad. I have moved many times in my life, and I know that you gain and lose something special with every move. But I am very sad right now. I am leaving wonderful friends and neighbors, and my little studio in the woods.
The new house is great, but right now it just doesn't hold a great deal of meaning for me. I suppose I will get over this, but right now I am so sad. How do I go make fun jewelry when I am this sad???

Getting Focused

The title of this post is certainly my big challenge right now. I just finished two shows in a row, and I need to get back into the studio. I have always found transitions difficult. After the shows, I need to rest for a few days :( before I can get back to studio work. Resting includes the paperwork, office work, answering emails, ordering supplies and phone calls that any normal business requires. To transition from this side of the brain, to the creative side is always hard for me. What do I focus on now? What is the most important thing to do? What do I need to make? Then, when I am finally get rolling along creatively in the studio, it is time to pack up and go to a show.
Now I am going to my studio. I will just pretend I know what to do...
(Except of course for all of you waiting for orders. I know I have that to do!!!)

New Heart

You can see my new heart pendant to the right - Flower Power! I will be doing this heart in many colors, so some are one of a kind until I find the combination I like the best. The ones with the dots raised, as opposed to the red one with the dots melted in completely are my favorites. The pale pink doesn't POP like a brighter color, so I will work on a brighter pink.

Marin Art Festival Mail List Special

For those of you on my mail lists, both snail and email, I offer this special for the Marin Art Show......
My "Fun Girl" jewelry stands, in the photo top right, is normally $59, and at Marin they will be $29 if you mention this post. Of course you can use them for jewelry, but they are also fun hand towel racks for the bathroom! One woman was so fond of her fancy underwear, that she bought a girl stand to hang it on !
I only have 5 left, so get there early!!!

New Red Glass Experiments

Here is a pic of some of the beads with lots of red I just made. The neutral experiments didn't turn out so well.
The heart on the gray pearl necklace is nicer in person than in this photo, but I wanted you to see my idea of a detachable pendant. So this is a prototype.
I have been doing a lot of pearls for summer, for a lighter cooler feel.

Back to Work

Well I have been so busy catching up with work that I have forgotten to post anything. But I am trying some new color combinations in the glass, more neutrals and metallics than actual color. It is always interesting to try new things. Tomorrow morning opening up the kiln to see what turned out will be interesting. Sometimes it is a good surprise, and sometimes a bad one. Hate those bad ones. That is the downside of trying new things! It can waste time.
I went to an afternoon party yesterday, and stayed longer than I should have. I wanted to get a kilnload of beads in, but alas, it was a fun party! So after dinner, I raced out to the studio, and focused intently to get a few in the kiln in time to make it to bed at my normal time. I can work until about 10:15 pm, and then I collapse. So last night I got a few beads done, and this morning it was GREAT! Woonderful surprises. I was working on getting intense reds in some of the glass, and it worked. That was a great morning!
Hopefully tomorrow will bring more great surprises with the neutrals and metallics! I am hoping to pair them with pearls.

No Fun Girls at Los Altos Rotary This Year

I am sorry to say that I had to cancel this weekend's Los Altos Rotary show. I havn't recovered from the stomach illness I had at Saratoga, and I am not strong enough to do this show.

I am sorry to miss this, but I am so glad I will get to recover without futher damage to my health. In retrospect, I should have cancelled Saratoga, then I would have been well enough to go to Los Altos. Oh well.

Catching Up

I am finally back to work, and getting caught up on orders, purchase adjustments etc. Sorry I have been so tardy. I started out the year by optimistically telling people these things would take two weeks. Now I know never to say two weeks, since that would be the time frame in the perfect world! So now, two weeks is really four weeks, so I have learned something new......again. Thanks for your patience.

The Show Must Go On

Back in the day I had a 'real' job, I had to be REALLY sick to take a sick day, so I remember many days on the job not feeling well enough to be there. Well, let me tell you that when you are self-employed, there is no such thing as calling in sick, regardless of how sick that might be. Being able to stand upright constitutes the necessary level of health to go to a show.

I was pretty darn sick at Saratoga on Sunday, something I have not experienced before. I tried to lay down for a while, but I actually felt worse laying there in complete awareness of how sick I was than when I was on my feet, keeping busy talking to people. So today, two days later, I am still recouperating . And I am pretty behind on orders. So there is the sad story about that. Now I am going to lay down again.

Saratoga Rotary Art Show this Sunday

I'll be at the Saratoga Rotary show this Sunday, May 4 from 9-5.
Great show too!

My booth is just off the Fruitvale parking lot, far left side of the show as you face the show with your back to the lot. I think the number is #560, but that won't help you much in the parking lot!

My husband's booth faces the lot, paintings by John Muir Reid, and as I type this I am asking myself if he remembered to pack his sign. (sigh)
It is the same space I was in last year, so that may help.
Hope you can come!
for directions: http://www.saratogarotary.org

Thank You My Walnut Creek Fun Girls!

It was a hard show for me in Walnut Creek. I was pretty depressed about the death of Aunt Sis, and I usually don't get depressed, so it was hard to work. Luckily, I took most of the day off on Saturday, so if I missed you, I am sorry. I may be a little behind on orders as well, so I will get to those this week.

The good news is the day in bed Saturday really helped, and it is time to move on. It was a timely death, she would have been 99 in a few days, and she wouldn't have wanted to be bed ridden, as she may well have been had she continued to live. So we loved her, and will miss her, and we were so lucky to have had her as long as we did. She always made us laugh...for good and bad. She had quite a fiery nature! But she loved life, and I think that is why she stuck around for so long. Blind in one eye, and failing eyesight in the other, she still DELIGHTED in new clothes I had, or jewelry I had made. She loved beautiful things. And nothing makes you feel younger than hanging out with with a 98 year old!!! So we go on.

Saratoga Rotary this coming Sunday!!

Walnut Creek this Weekend

Friday, Saturday and Sunday, April 25, 26 & 27 I will be in Walnut Creek, on North Main Street at the Bonanza St. intersection, in front of the Silk Road Restaurant. I personally will not be there on Saturday, but my booth will be open. 10-6, except on Sunday, we close at 5pm.

I am sorry to say that I won't have a free gift this show for my email list. Creating the free gifts has been great fun so far this year, but due to a death in the family, I just won't be working this week. I will be continuing this at all my future shows , as possible.

Hope you can make it this weekend!

Home from Menlo Park

I got home yesterday afternoon around 3pm from the Menlo Park show. I went directly to bed. I got up to cook dinner, ate dinner and went back to bed and slept until about 8 this morning. Wow!
Fun show, but the weather made it really difficult. If you were one of my last customers on Sunday, I really need to apologize, because I must have seemed like a crazy woman. I was pretty burnt out from dealing with the weather - cold, then hot, and so so windy! So don't worry, I havn't lost your orders yet or anything!!!
The weather this weekend for Walnut Creek looks good. Anything but that incredible wind will be OK with me!!!!

San Francisco Magic

Last weekend's show on West Portal Ave in San Francisco was perhaps one of the most fun shows I have ever done!!! The weather was absolutely unbelievable.....hot and sunny!!! Someone said it was the warmest day there since 1982! All three days were just beautiful, and then, at 5:00 on Sunday just as I started to pack up, the fog started rolling in. Amazing! It went from sunblock to felt hats in a few minutes!
People were out and happy! San Franciscans are such friendly people. Everyone stops to say hello, and it is just a great deal of fun. I am looking forward to Menlo Park this weekend, and will post a picture of my email special in a few days. It was fun to give away the key chains at West Portal, so read that email!!!!!!

Fun Gift for Email List Only

I thought of a fun game... the first two customers each day from my email list will get to pick one of these really cute keychains! Read your email, and get stuff too!! I hope to do more promotions like this for my email customers, so keep reading! You will need to ask for it!

Bloggus Interuptus

Well I have just experienced my first "life interrups blog." I spent several days in the San Francisco Bay area with an elderly aunt who fell and broke her arm. She was hospitalized for several days, and because it was an arm break, they wouldn't send her to a nursing home for care. So we arranged for 24 hour caretakers in the assisted living home she had been in for several years. This arrangement wasn't permanent, however, and we finally found a placement for her in Sacramento. This was a difficult journey that involved a two night stay at our house in the mountains. It was so sweet and sour to have her here with us, but an incredible amount of work. I tried to do some jewelry while she was here, but she really needed a lot of attention. I think I got a few pieces laid out, but not a lot more. I fantasized about 'keeping' her, but we don't even have enough room for her to walk around, let alone our need to work.

She made it two days in her new assissted living, and she fell and broke her hip. At 98, this could be the end. I feel so incredibly sad for her. Surgery may happen today. I will keep you posted, as this is all I can think about right now.

Family Health Matters

Sorry about the lack of posts. I had a family health problem that demanded my presence in the Bay Area. I am looking forward to posting as soon as I get back to work. I am ready to go to work too, after hanging around a hospital for four days! I wish I had taken some work to do there, but it didn't happen, so I hope to write soon.

Fun in San Francisco

I got home from San Francisco yesterday, and what a great time I had! The weekend weather was perfect, and the people flocked to the Contemporary Crafts Show at Fort Mason on Saturday. Sunday was less crowded. The quality of the work was really impressive, with metalsmiths in attendance that I see regularly in the major jewelry magazines, and fantastic clothing from artisans around the country. It was a good thing I couldn't leave my booth- there was some clothing I was dying to buy!
It was wonderful to see so many familar faces. I sold a lot of my new pendants and it is great when people like my new work. I wish I had taken some pictures at the show to post! I will in the future.
I stayed in the city a few blocks from the hotel, so it was easy to walk out of the hotel to the busy San Francisco streets for dinner and drinks. I had the most amazing macaroni and cheese, with lobster no less, that I have ever tasted!!! Monday I treated myself to a cab to go to the new Barneys at Union Square, then Saks, Neimans, Bloomingdales, etc- etc. Lots of fun.
Now back to reality. I am doing my taxes and I am so happy NOW that I wasn't tempted to buy anything at Barney, Saks, Neimans, etc. etc. !!!

The Snow is Gone

I thought I would take this picture of my studio before we get more snow. There has been so much snow this year that we couldn't get up our driveway until last week... and that was from the first of January! We had a LOT of snow!!! I thought I was going to have to load the van for the show by carrying everything down the driveway in several feet of snow and ice!

Working on good things for the San Franciso show. Gotta go up the hill to work.

Handmade in LA

I am so excited that this upcoming show in San Franciso is indoors. Sounds crazy, but trying to anticipate cold, hot or wet weather for outdoor shows is difficult, especially when I want to look as good as possible in these same clothes! I feel my "eye" for what jewelry looks good on women has certainly developed over the course of my jewelry career, but this same eye hasn't transferred to what clothing looks good on me!

I was just in L.A. for the weekend, and went into a clothing store in the Silver Lake district. I am a lover of hanmade clothing anyhow, so when I learned that all of the clothes in this store were made in the store by two sisters, I could feel my credit card slipping out of my pocket! I tried something on, I was doubtful. The owner told me I looked good in it, and of course my inner critic wondered if she were trying to make a sale. A different little voice told me it was the kind of clothing that doesn't come along again, so I decided to trust her judgement. I am so glad I bought this piece! I DO look good in it! And I love it. It will be in my collection for a very long time, and I would be shocked to ever see anyone else wearing one. Maybe I can get a photo up here. The shop is Matrushka Construciotn on Sunset Blvd- http://www.matrushka.com/

Now, back to the studio!

Friday February 29

So this is my second post, and I have already learned something very important, like don't write experimental posts just to see what they look like! That post will live forever on the internet, unless I learn how and if they can be deleted!
I have decided to blog twice a week. I have read suggestions to blog 3- 4 times a week, and frankly, I just don't think I have that many interesting things to say about my work, and absolutely nothing that interesting to say about my life! So twice a week should be good for keeping up with the work, what is happening in the studio and at the shows. At least, I hope it will be good and of some interest, and even, be still my beating heart, value to the reader.

Whats happening Thursday Feb. 28

Well this is my first attempt at a blog. I should either be 1. making jewelry or 2. cleaning the house. So here I am, with a new blog.
I am busy making new work for the Contemporary Crafts Market in San Francisco this March. Therefore, I will see what this looks like, and go to work!