Saturday, October 15, 2011

The Inconstant Blogger

That would be me! Obviously I'm tragically irregular with this blogging thing. Why? Would you believe I'm shy? I honestly can't imagine anyone else giving two shakes of a dog's tail (or some other messed-up metaphor) about what I think. But, well, maybe I can share a grain of insight somewhere along the way. So...I'll try harder.

What I'm doing:

Immediate--hemming Corri's wedding gown, layer by layer. Corri is the blessed purveyor of Lampwork, Etc, and a genuine sweetheart of a person. Some crazed business wanted to charge her a ridiculous price for hemming her gown. Okay, fine, it has 4 layers. The tulle simply gets cut shorter, big deal! The under-layers can get a quick but secure whipstitch. The outer dress...well, normally I'd head towards my beloved sewing machine, but due to a bunch of clutter (that's a whole 'nother post) and what I think is more presentable, it's getting a good, patient rolled hem. The quirk is, satin desperately wants to roll outward, not to the inside. Luckily I'm persistent.

Real Soon Now--I'm working on a yummy yarn that's a 2-ply with a great sandstone shading from Lisa Souza plus another ply that was my present from my local spinning gang's holiday exchange. Both are BFL, incredibly soft, with great colors. The LS yarn is done, and I'm about 2/3 done with the other. Fun stuff, to resume as soon as Corri's gown is completed.

In the pipeline: A few other colorways; new garb for Danica and myself (maybe for Coronation???); and hopefully Leot will be done with my sheet metal soon so I can put it on my workbench and get back to melting glass. Good lord, I miss that!!!

I should only post some pictures, but it's late. Next project for the list!

Monday, February 7, 2011

A Day at Best Bead Show in Tucson

I spent a chunk of yesterday at the Best Bead Show down in Tucson. It started with an entertaining drive with my son (who was going to a Pokemon tournament, lucky for him that it coincided with my intentions), who talked my ears off about Pokemon, video games and upcoming systems, and future plans. It's funny how driving turns him into a chatterbox, which I completely enjoy. :)

I arrived at Best Bead right at 10 a.m. and managed to get a great parking spot (nice for leaving when you don't think you can go another step LOL). I headed directly to Sylvie Lansdowne's space so I could say hi and offer her any help. She's my bead-mentor-mom and my hero since we met online wayyy back in the AOL days. Her space was arranged and decorated so delightfully that it was easy to find! Her latest designs are whimsical and clever, with lots of different elements and terrific color combinations. And the way that she combines lampwork with seed beads (I don't DO seed beads), is incredible!

After that, I zipped off to the Beads of Courage booth in the tool tent, so I could deliver this year's bag of odds & ends donation beads, plus several purple hearts and a butterfly. I got to meet their Karen, who handles donations. Hopefully I'll do this more regularly in the future. I'd failed to count my beads, but I know they weighed 2.4 pounds.

Next big stop was Hot Glass Color, one of my favorite glass suppliers for Kugler 96 cane. They have a new line of 104 glass (Friedrich) with some great colors, including a lovely transparent aqua and an intensely orange opaque.

Onward to score primo hugs from Rashan and Lori. Yay! I had a great time chatting with them. Looking at Rashan's work always makes me want to play with boro. I know I'm seriously unworthy, though. His jewelry collaborations with Jennie are fabulous, BTW. (Sylvie bought a gorgeous necklace!) I love Lori's color sense, and her heart designs make me grin.

I browsed through the rest of the tent and drooled at all of the lovely bead strands. My mantra became "I don't need any more freshwater pearls, I don't, I don't, I don't!" I want lots, but need is a different story. (Some day I'll post a pic of my stash.)

I had to repeat that several times as I entered the main gym space, too. Add tools, dichro, wire, and other good things, too. I got to stop and say quick hellos to several artists, as well as having nice chats with Lisa Kan and Lori Engle. Lisa's display was lovely, especially her rainbow arrangement of her beautiful flowers. Lori's beads always enthrall me. Her large lentils are compellingly touchable and her colors are very soothing.

I got in some other quick "greets and waves" and missed a few friends who weren't at their booths. Most notably, JC Herrell, but at least I got to see her beautiful new micro-mosaic designs. I hope this link works, it's from Facebook.

After that I table-sat for Sylvie for a little while and schmoozed with her and her neighbors, until my son summoned me and we returned home in time to watch the Super Bowl. (No comment. LOL)

I have to say that I also missed some folks who just weren't there, for various reasons. Clearly the economy has changed the "face" of Best Bead. While it's a fabulous and important show, especially for glass artists, times have been tough and it's much more difficult to justify the costs of participation. There were notably fewer glass artists there, and more components and stranded "other" beads. I was going to add tools, but Frantz Glass wasn't there, and that was also a notable hole in the tool tent. I hope the economy is truly beginning a turnaround and that the face of Best Bead goes back to what I think of "normal", and soon.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly

Bad: I have a cold, I feel whiny and yucky, so I'll keep this short.

Ugly: My wonderful oxygen generator had gone downhill fast. I'm working on getting it repaired, but it's going to be pricey (one-way shipping will be about $60, and it's all downhill from there). At first I thought it was the sieve beds (the parts that take everything else out of the room air and leave you with nearly pure oxygen), but in discussions with People Who Know, it's probably them AND the compressor. Ugh!

Good: First, I'm on tanked oxygen and my torch is humming along for now. We're kind of kicking around the idea of going back to tanks long-term but it's actually a lot more expensive than getting the Onyx repaired.

Second: I have bead sets listed on Etsy!!!! You can find them, and some listings for handspun yarn, right here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/DesertDreamer

I'll leave you with a new music recommendation. I heard Crystal Bowersox on Jay Leno a few weeks ago, and really liked her voice. She's country-ish, but not in a way that I find annoying. It's just fun, sing-along, toe-tapping good music. Enjoy!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Tripped up already LOL

Obviously once a week was a little ambitious. I knew, last weekend, that I should be posting something, but really didn't have much to say. I've been swallowed up by my Nook and all of these lovely books to read! I used to be an avid reader, back when I lived in NYC and Philly...commuting by mass transit is good for that. These days I don't have a commute and there always seems to be something else to do. I swore I was going to start reading at least 40 pages a day...then a very good book sucked me in and that was that! I've come up for air, though, and now I'm going to try to LIMIT myself to 40 pages. (Yeah, yeah, don't hold your breath.)

Both offspring will be back in school as of tomorrow, so I get to rearrange my routine all over again. Planning on more torch time and more fiber time. I was generously gifted with some silvered glass (thank you!!!!), and I want to try to make the best of it and get it figured out. Crossing fingers!

Here's the book that ate my time last week. It's a romance (something I don't usually read, unless it has something else going for it), entwined with a young woman's love and study of wild butterflies.

Sunday, January 2, 2011

This time I mean it!

Okay, so my Good Intentions for 2010 blogging didn't go so well. This year I'm going to aim for a once-a-week post, because how hard can that be? LOL Stay tuned, and prepare to mock me later, I'll probably deserve it.

Meanwhile, here we are at the start of 2011. I have hopes and goals on several fronts but, me being me, I'm playing it cautiously. I will say this much, just so it can be on "paper" to allow me less wiggle room later. I have goals for more consistent listings on Etsy, better productivity overall, better organization, and genuine attempts to stay on track and focused. (Anyone else wondering how much Ritalin that might take? LOL) I want to make more finished jewelry, more consistent bead sets, and spin down a significant portion of my fiber stash. I'm also buckling down to work on the Handspinning Certificate of Excellence. I've been a spinner for over 35 years, I think that's long past due.

I have to mention one gadget I acquired over the holidays. Mike (hubby) bought me/us a Nook Color. I love it! It's easy to use, and has a tremendous amount of potential, as well.

So, it's 10 a.m. on the first Sunday of the year. Time to sign off, get laundry going, and finish unpacking. I'd intended (there's that word again!) to make beads today, but I think I'll be better off getting my various spaces sorted out and decluttered instead.

I wish anyone and everyone who reads this a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year. Flame on!

Friday, April 23, 2010

I Guess You Could Call This a Test

Just dipping my toes into the blogosphere a little bit.

I got a treat from Amazon today. It's a CD compilation of Linda Ronstadt's three previously recorded albums with the Nelson Riddle Orchestra--Round Midnight.
The music is wonderful!  It's vintage 30's & 40's torch songs composed by the likes of Hoagy Carmichael, Rodgers & Hart, Cole Porter, and George Gershwin. The selections are sweet, funny, bittersweet and romantic, and Linda's voice does them all more than simple justice. I love her versions of Skylark and What'll I Do? It IS a bit of a splurge, but when you consider the fact that you're really buying three richly orchestrated albums, the pain lessens significantly.

I plan to make some beads tomorrow. You can bet that this will be on my CD player.

Begin at the Beginning

This is my first blog post, ever. I've always kind of thought that blogging was a bit narcissistic. I still do, because I very much doubt that there are all that many people out there who are interested in what I have to say. So, why am I doing this? Did I cave in to peer pressure? Did I suddenly have an attack of ego? Do I feel like I'm missing the boat somehow? Maybe a little, but not really. I find myself needing one place to just keep track of all the stuff in my life. If anyone else reads it, enjoys it, maybe even has something to offer, well nifty! But honestly I just want to be able to note my progress with a number of things in one hopefully simple location.

And so it begins.