Blue Soup

SOUP SOUP SOUP SOUP SOUP!!!! It's here and just to refresh, here is the lovely stash that Rhea sent me. I was definitely challenged by the mix, and after rearranging and rearranging, I ended up using some of my own stash with this fabulous pendant and clasp, saving the sodalite and glass for a bracelet and earrings and another post. The pendant instantly reminded me of summers we used to spend on lake Michigan. We would spend a week, sometimes two, at Silver Lake, renting a cottage right on Silver Lake at the foot of the dunes. We would climb the dunes getting "lost" between the sandy mountains until we climbed over the peak that revealed Lake Michigan. Which looks like the ocean. A little tamer maybe, but still the same beautiful blue that stretches out until it meets the sky. Sunsets are beyond amazing. So this is what I see when I look at this pendant and I couldn't get past that. I played and played and played and I finally came up with a design that worked for me. I apologize for the light. As with everything these days I am right up to the last minute and this was all the daylight that I could muster.

The pendant is blue agate. I mixed my metals and used a bit of Swarovski crystal, labadorite, recycled glass and fabulous clay beads from Indian Creek Studios. Thanks so much for stopping by. Click on the link above to take you to Lori's blog with the whole list of this party's participants. And make sure to stop over at the lovely Rhea's blog to see what she cooked up! Enjoy!!!

I am participating in Michelle's Very Vintage Fall Challenge and these are the cool little bits she sent for me to work with. My wheels are spinning, rusty as they feel these days. Love the vintage lucite and especially the little have ball charm front and center! I have bunches of vintage beads I think would be fun to use. We'll see. On a completely different note, I need some advice. I purchased some beads back on August 22. They have yet to arrive. I have convo'd the seller. Never heard back. Thought maybe the holiday, sickness, made to order??? So I convo'd again the other day. Nothing. I know she's not in the hospital, because there have been updated listings in her shop. What do I do? For the record I am a very nice person to deal with. I just want to know the status or if they have shipped, if my ding bat mail lady dropped them somewhere on the grassy spot between the sidewalk and the street again. I am more upset that I am not being acknowledged. She has hundreds of 100% positive feedback. No neutral. No negative. I do not understand.

I Heart Macro

This weeks snapshot-and i did use the tripod. The beginnings of a beaded bead. I love the colors of these seed beads. I'm playing around with different beads for my Bead Soup piece(s). The pendant Rhea sent me has many wonderful shades of blues. And I have miles and miles of endless sea on the brain when I look at it. Getting so close to the deadline-the hop starts next Sat. Still we are talking about me and that means I am five and a half days ahead of schedule.

i heart macro

I have been meaning to pull out my macro lens for a few weeks now and when I read the i heart macro post over at Studio Waterstone I knew it was time to pull out my lens. I should have used a tripod I know. The least little shake makes things a little more blurry. I loved the colors when I saw this little leaf floating in the bird bath. Fallen and curled, rusted and floating quietly with a few tiny yellow bugs.

Need Some Beads?

Are these beads not spectacular?!?!?! Visit Laurel Moon's blog for a chance to win these babies! They are all creations of Melanie Brooks from Earthenwood Studio. Have you ever held an Earthenwood bead? They are magic. I truely hope I win of course, but best of luck to you. Go now and leave a comment!

Amber Tapestry

Finally I have completed something for Art Bead Scene's monthly challenge. As each month begins, I get all excited about the new challenge. When I have half a second I start shopping for beads, dig through my stash, etc. Usually I am frustrated because the month comes to a close and I haven't done anything. I really really hate that feeling. This month I managed to make it before the deadline, and actually make it a few days before the deadline! Yay me!! Isn't the glass fabulous?!?!! The glass headpins are from Gardanne. The wonderful little jump rings are from Hanson Stone and the copper earwires are from Miss Fickle Media. I call them Amber Tapestry.

Bead Update

Remember a couple weeks ago (might have been months-I don't know) when I showed you my gorgeous slag beads from Lake Michigan? Well I finally put it all together and this is what I came up with......

I love the blues-like a whole LOT, and I wish I was a keepin this one. BTW the stones are from Stone Me on Etsy. And here is my second batch of glazed beads. I am pretty happy with the results. I want a block of hours where I can play with the clay. When I get little snippets of time, I just roll morphy rounds-which I love-but it all can't be just that. I also want to play with my glazes more too.

I have a really neat gold, but it comes out quite black. The black is cool. I like it. But it is not the gold I envision when I am brushing it on.

These are my favorites. I love the matte finish. I love the turquoise. I love the "roughness" and how they look like I was digging in the backyard and came across little treasures buried decades ago.

How are you all doing with your Bead Soups? I haven't assembled yet, I have them laid out, partnered with other beads, moved around and thinking about where I want to go with them. If you don't know what Bead Soup is, click the icon at the top right of the page and seriously consider playing in the next round. Have a great day!

It might have been good George........

I just got THE BEST e-mail from my sister-in-law. It's a little joke and it goes something like this: A woman was sitting in a bar enjoying a cocktail after work with some co-workers when an extraordinarily handsome, extremely sexy middle aged man wandered in. She tried to look away but couldn't stop starring. Seasoned as he was he noticed her gaze and walked over to her. He whispered in her ear " I will do anything you want me to, no matter how kinky, for twenty dollars. But there is one condition." Intrigued she asked what the condition was. "You must tell me in three words." The woman thought for a moment, reached into her purse and pressed a twenty and her address into his hand. She looked at him thankfully and said "Clean my house."

OK needless to say I found this extremely funny! All I can imagine is George Clooney wandering around my living room with the vacuum cleaner while I sip the most fabulous pomegranate margarita ever made. Johnny Depp would be OK too, as long as he was dressed in his pirate outfit.

The thing about me is that I OVER THINK sometimes, and this wondrous fantasy soon came crashing as I the pessimist took the fantasy to the point where George was constantly asking where this should go and where could he find that. So annoying. I'll just do it myself.

I know the baby pic really has nothing to do with the post, but I only have baby pics at the moment. They are laughing though!

Teaser Teaser Teaser

A little teaser pic for you of the soup ingredients for my Bead Soup partner, Rhea!

Soup Beads-YUMMMMMMM

Feast your eyes on this lovely bunch of beads that I received from my partner Rhea Freitag. And I have been so into the blues lately too. But she didn't just pick out these blue beauties randomly. She told me my sweet sweet babies were her inspiration! Not simply just blue for boys, the sunburst clasp represents the energy and excitement that Mr. Pearl and Pebble and I felt when we found out we were to finally be a mommy and daddy. The beautiful agate pendant, a stone of protection, especially from energy drain. And the faceted sodalite beads for inner peace. I am so touched that Rhea put so much thought into making these ingredients so personal! Jewelry isn't Rhea's only passion. She is quite a talented mixed media artist too. Head on over to her blog and shop and see what I mean. (I linked the shop to my favorite piece) This is her first Bead Soup and it is a whammy! There are hundreds participating. I can't believe how much energy our fearless leader Lori has stored up. She deserves an agate tiera!

The Results Are In..........

Well the Fire Fly finished firing (sounds Seussy doesn't it?) around 10pm last night so I didn't get to see the results until this morning. I was really prepared for anything. I grabbed the camera and went downstairs, snapping as I opened it up.........

A little breath holding..........

So used to having to do things over twenty times............

Oh just open the thing........

Could it be?!?!?!

IT COULD !! IT COULD!!!!!!

As you can see I did remove about four beads before firing. Sometimes I get sooooo anxious and set myself up for failure because of my impatience.

Oh glorious beads, I love thee.........

And so dear fellow bloggers, you all are the first to share my first beady success with me! Have a great day!!!

Blessed Little Orbs

Oh I am still figuring out what furniture is needed. Working with what I have though, and soooo anxious to have a load of finished beads, this is the configuration I came up with to get the most beads cooked. Shouting out to the clay people-will this work? The back left three are not touching, it is just my shooting angle. I have kiln wash on the floor. The wire is 14g hefty something or other that I just got last week from the ceramic supply. I will run it in the morning unless someone yells STOP!!!! That is a nice pallet isn't it? Very interesting (and exciting) to me that what I see is not what I will get.

Memoirs Of A Nipple Washer

It's like a metropolis. The counter almost always looks like this. We have a dishwasher but we also have hard hard water and so the nipples would have a residue on them that I couldn't tolerate so I was always washing nipples by hand. Made me crazy. Mr. Pearl and Pebble did something with the water softener so the last few days, the dishwasher has been a relief. Won't last though. We need a new softener. My sweet precious babies have begun to partake of solid food. Well Gerberized of course. We l-o-v-e our green beans.

And I guess a mouth full isn't complete unless we can stick all of our fingers in too.

Green Beans. I'm just thrilled they love them. Crazy here, just crazy. My indulgence?

Poor Yellow Dog. Life just isn't the same for her either. Couldn't give her chocolate, so I let her lick the wrapper.

I did a new bisque firing at cone 4 and they are fine. BUT my holes were too small for the rods after they dried and I hung them on a high temp wire. Good thing I tried in the bisque fire, because there was MAJOR saggage. If it had been a glaze firing, I would have had a huge mess. I ordered some high temp wire in a smaller guage, but I still don't know if I trust it. Might have to do really tiny loads so that each bead can be on an isolated stretch of wire. Can't wait to glaze and see though!

Teapots, Babies, Beads Oh My!

I found a teapot! I choose a little Bee House ceramic pot. Thanks for all your suggestions. I was torn really. I really liked the cast iron fish teapot that I saw at Enjoying Tea, a cool site Nan recommended. Ultimately though, I decided on this little beauty. The little guys are doing well. This week we got their helmets for their phlagiocephaly. We aren't starting off so good though because we do not have central air and it's been houvering near or at 100 degrees and I don't want them to start out in misery.

And my beads? Well I had misunderstood what I was reading on the various sites while researching product. My stoneware matures at a cone 6 and that's what I bisqued to. OOOPS! I was confused when I was looking at my glaze bottles and the label was telling me to apply to a bisqued cone 04. Now, I knew that the glaze could be fired up to 6 so that got me inquiring again. Good thing, because I am guessing if I had applied the glaze and refired it would have slid right off onto the kiln bottom. I've also purchased a shelf in the meantime so if I fufu I won't wreck anything. Hopefully. I did apply kiln wash to the floor, but I want a little more peace I guess. I suppose I should really take a refresher course, but I don't see me doing anything of the sort until about 2016. Bout the same time I get my hair cut again and this tooth filled-if it's still there.

I Need A Teapot

A nice cup of tea..... Don't get me wrong, the day doesn't start well without a nice cup or two or three of coffee. I am a purist. I like it full bodied and black. I do like a nice hazelnut, but only from my local market. If you live in southeast Michigan and are near a Nino Salvaggio, get their hazelnut beans. I prefer to grind right before I brew, but I prefer to not wake sleeping babies even more. Somewhere mid day I really dig a nice cup of tea. Earl Grey is my favorite, not so pure, with sugar and milk. I do prefer loose tea, but I suspect there is a world of tea undiscovered by me.

So I am asking for some enlightenment. First let me explain that this year for my b.day, I asked for a teapot with an infuser. I have been given funds to pick out one that makes me giddy with delight. But this is not an easy thing to shop for. Do I want glass, ceramic, iron?????? Who knew? I had seen one at the hardware store and when I sent Mr. Pearl and Pebble over there yesterday, he said it was "crap". So I need some recommendations from any tea lovers out there. Please. I don't want to use my little infuser spoons anymore. What kind of teapot with an infuser should I buy? What tea makes your toes curl with delight? By the way, don't you love the mug?!?! I got that years and years ago in North Carolina at a local art fair. The artist's name is Amy Hunt. I was delighted to see that she has an Etsy shop too. And just in case I still have to do all that "stuff", Twinings has no idea I like their tea or that I posted a picture on my blog.

Finally!

How long have I had my little Fire Fly Kiln?!?! It was my happy birthday present to me I believe, um, in '09. Finally I have my first baked batch of stoneware beads. Yay Me!!! Really looking forward to playing with some glazes. I chose a clay with alot of texture, so it will be interesting to see how they finally end up. I hope they won't be too scratchy. Thanks to all the Beads of Clay artists who have been so helpful and willing to share with me!!!!

Time is so limited with the babes these days. They are rolling and creeping and unless they are napping in a confined area, I can't leave them. Sooooooo I have also continued to play with my seed beads and trying to learn some patterns and following a few tutorials to see what I can come up. Pretty theaputic actually. The round beads are a tutorial from Etsy's The Crimson Moon.

Some really really really beautiful slag beach stone beads from Stone Me. I just love these blues. Indulged in this little purchase to whip up something special for my mom in law's birthday. She's so awesome. Never complains that all she ever gets from us is something handmade usually by me. Have a great weekend. Maybe I can get some glaze on my new babies and post that picture before next month. HA! Cross our fingers

My Quarterly Post Here.........

Ok second attempt here! Don't know why the first post didn't take. Doesn't Blogger KNOW that I have squeeze this in between feedings?!?!?! So this is my latest find on Etsy (while browsing for beads of course.) Mary from Birch Bark Beads makes these glorious little beads from rolled birch bark. LOVE them! She also has a blog. Check it out. We are doing pretty well. We met with the boy's birth parents last week. It was the first time they have seen the babies since we all left the hospital. They were so happy to spend a few hours with them. On a much less happier note, our brother-in-law lost his battle with cancer last Friday. It has been an odd year, 2011. Grandma passed away a few months ago. A friend also lost her fight with cancer and the same brother-in-law's father went on ahead about a month or so ago. It's a very curious feeling I feel about it all. Can't put my finger on it. I guess it all just makes me more aware of my own mortality and the circle of life; and how the very nature of life means that all living things are simultaniously dying also. Sorry for the downer-go by some beads!

Hello There

Oh how sweet is nap time?!?! Thought I might actually fit a bit 'o bloggin in at this time. Silly Mommy.

This lasted until I stuck the camera card in the computer. Then........STEREO WAILING. Of course to be fair, they were starving. Poor sweet things. Like little alarm clocks they are. They still have their night and day mixed up a bit. Night time is rough on Mr. Pearl and Pebble and myself. If we can maintain a feeding stagger, it works out OK. However this week they are on the same one and that means we both have to be up. Right about now, I could sleep for a week. Yellow Dog is a bit neglected these days and gets all excited when I get the camera. It used to be reserved for her and beads. Do you see her sticking out her tongue at me? Such an attitude!!!

And the beads? They are not even speaking to me they are sooooooo fed up. A few shots of portions of my table last visited in February. Yikes! I had re-situated down in the basement from the guest room where they used to live. The guest room has had to be a guest room.

Yes we have had the visitors. Next week Mr.'s sis is coming to lend a hand. She is insisting on doing my laundry. Oh how we really just shouldn't go there. My laundry and the babies bottles..... I am a bit OCD and have control issues by nature and these two areas have me a wee bit stressed. Oh well Miss Pearl just let the ones who love you take care of you if they want to.

I picked a good day to visit the blogging world. Lorelei is having an awesome giveaway! Four Jade Scott pendants. Check it out. Hopefully all my stars are in alignment. I'll cross my fingers. Click on the links for a look-see. I have a new computer and am still trying to figure out how get the pictures I want. My old HP director is gone. Mr. Pearl and Pebble is thrilled with this, but I knew how to work it and I am a bit lost.

The Little Pebbles have again begun a concerto soooo....................... (In a perfect world binkies would grow on trees)