Amber Update, Good News

It's really quite amazing, she seems F.I.N.E. now - she's walking on that paw, no flippy floppy thing going on with it, her eyes are almost all cleared up, she seems to be doing great aside from hiding under the bed most of the time. When she does come out, she's very happy to be petted and purrs like a crazy woman. I'm so glad that she doesn't need to have her paw amputated, what a relief. Though I don't know that I'd trust her to be an outdoor can any more. I feel bad for her how lonely she must be, I wish I could get her to join the family. I really should find her one she can fit into more easily instead. I'll figure it out.

Bead sets and a necklace

All on Etsy, thanks for looking!

A Study in Blues with Silver

All of these beads were made basically the same way - blue base, clear stringer designs, silver foil, more clear stringer. The difference is in the blues.

This first one uses opaque medium cobalt, the second uses opaque dark cobalt:



These two use transparent Ink Blue:



And this one uses transparent dark cobalt, just like the first one I made for Frank, posted next to it:



And yes, a bunch of these are available to purchase in my Etsy Shop.

Glass Gifts for Frank

I made these beads for Frank - one is for a keychain for his new bike, the other is a good luck charm to tie onto his bags.





Both were made the same way: base of transparent cobalt blue, threaded on clear stringer, silver foil, more threaded clear stringer and then all melted in. I think the small one has some opaque cobalt threaded on too.

They match his new bike. It's a 2001 Yamaha VStar 1100.

My New Favorite Bead

I melted glass today and this is my favorite of the bunch. Light trans brown and light trans blue with light iris gold frit, ocelelot spots frit and a mixture of purple and white frits I made the other day.



And this is my other favorite bead. I think it's the same frits as the bead above, minus the purple mix and then reduced (low oxygen, high propane mix) to get the metalic mirror effect... and just on trans brown.

Christmas in a Nutshell... well ok, a bit longer than that.

Nice. The nicest Christmas I've had in... I can't remember how long.

Tyger got stoned on catnip and loves his new fuzzy pink slipper toy.

Zoe spent the day nursing a rawhide bone and letting us put ribbons around her neck.

Kesia went through three toys, pulling the squeekers out along with all the stuffing. She's one happy girl as she just stole the remainder of Zoe's rawhide. And will soon get Zoe's last stuffed toy and de-squeek it, I'm sure. She also has multiple ribbons on, she looks good in red.

Luke is STILL playing with the new Wii. He's all hot and sweaty and tired... it's GOOD. He got tons more of everything else a 7-year old boy could possibly want, his favorites besides the Wii are a digital piggy bank (it counts the money as you put it in) and a voice recorder/warper thing.

Frank got all new leather's for riding the motorcycle he got for his birthday last month. And a new pair of Chuck Taylors. He's also been playing the Wii and thinks it's the best toy ever.

Me. I gave out a list this year for the the first time ever and I got most of what I put on it. I got some cool glass presses - crunches and a spiral press (for making glass beads), some gold foil for melting into glass, some books and new ski gloves and socks. Some Lush bath bombs and a promise that my bathtub will be ready for a soak early in 2008. The new dishes I wanted are on backorder but no biggie. Oh, and I got a NAP, made a super easy but yummy scone recipe for breakfast and have the simplest of roasts cooking. I did NOT spend the day cooking and cleaning and waiting on everyone else... and I'm not sick. What a change from years past, I don't know how or why, but I'll take it.

OH! And it Snowed. Perfect. And the Zune got hooked up to my stereo so I've had constant nice music all day long. KT Tunstall is on now. Love. And my friend from Germany put me in an Etsy Treasury with some of my best WetCanvas friends. Yay. Only thing missing is the big family dinner, but maybe next year - my parents and grandmother are planning on moving out this way next summer.

Wishing a happy day for all of you too. Hope you got everything you wished for and nothing you didn't. Xoxo, Pam

Ho ho ho!

Merry Christmas! Want to take bets on whether or not there will be one of these photos next year?



Hope you all have a very happy holiday.
xoxo

More on Amber the Cat

Well, the good and bad news with Amber... we were up til 2 last night with frank at the vets with her and then getting her settled back in the house... they think she either got hit by a car or got her foot stuck in a tree or something... no scratches to indicate a cat fight or attack by an animal. She seems to have neurological damage to one leg and her paw just flops around. We have to keep an eye on it... and see what happens... if it doesn't improve, she may need to have that leg amputated. The good news... well... I'm not seeing much besides the obvious: yes, we don't have to keep wondering where she is and if she's ok... and she safe back hiding in my guest room... that's good. But she's not happy inside with us, she just hunkers down and hides...and gets really fat. it's no way to live. She's afraid of the dogs, Tyger doesn't want to share us with her, so he's being a stinker, he won't even let me pet him now. So I don't know what is going to happen, if she doesn't get better, she can't go back out. And if she has to stay in... well I don't know what to do to make it work this time, we tried for a year already and she never got used to the dogs and Tyger. She needs a quiet old lady to adore her or something, not my noisy family. Sigh.

So that's the scoop. I am just hoping against hope that they don't have to amputate. Such a downer, sorry.

Amber Update

She came home tonight! She's injured, limping, swollen eye, weepy eye... and Frank has whisked her off to the animal hospital... but she's alive. An purring and eating. Phew.

Missing Amber

You all remember Amber the outdoor cat we moved to the new house and tried to domesticate? The one who lived in the chimney for a month, under the floorboards for another, and then basically hid behind the bathtub for the rest of the year? We gave up and released her to the wilds of the back yard after making sure she had dry safe places to sleep and knew where to come for her food and such... she seemed to be doing just fine, we saw her more often with her outside... she was happier than she'd been in a year, thinner too.

Well, we haven't seen her in almost a week. Poor thing. I'm hoping someone thought she needed a home and took her in. And if so, good luck to them. I don't want to think of the other possibilities.

New Etsy Treasury

"Oh for the love of Dog" Expires 12/23/07



Thanks for looking and clicking.

Teacher Gifts

Here is the jewelry I made for Luke's teachers. We also gave them some chocolate as it seems they both have a sweet tooth. Hope they like them.

Done!

I did it. The last gift was put in the mail today... teacher gifts made and wrapped and ready to be delivered tomorrow... Santa found the wii he was looking for for what seems like EVER, the house looks beautiful (ok, the parts that are not under construction look beautiful) and I finally feel like it's all going to be ok. Done, done, done!

Of course there is still santa-wrapping to do, cookie baking, gingerbread house making... a holiday cake and one last gift to find and purchase, a menu to plan and shop for.. but that's nothing compared to the last month's worth of work, amidst floods and flu. Almost like play, right? It sounds like a lot though when I type it all out... who am I kidding? So much for that sigh of relief.

Why do we do this every year? Every year I swear I'm going to find a way to make it more simple, more meaningful, more enjoyable. Every year I wish we could just escape to some tropical island and spend the day eating pineapples and fresh-caught grilled fish, or sipping drinks served in coconut shells with little umbrellas floating on top... snorkeling in a reef full of colorful fish... burying toes in white sand... napping in hammock. But no, here I am, doing it all over again, just like last year. At least I think it's like last year, because honestly, I can't even remember last year. Think I'll remember this Christmas a month or two from now too? Or will it all be a blur?

Oh my stars...

I made these stars to hang in my diningroom windows. Polyclay, a rubber stamp, paint and string. Pretty easy. I think I'll make some for my kitchen.

Zoe Says Merry Christmas

Peace

My newest treasury devoted to Peace. Please check it out and click around on it. Thanks!

mmmmn... cofeee...

what would I do without it?

These are for a hometown charm exchange. Seattle may not be my home town, but I've lived here longer than I've lived anywhere else, so why not? Coffee to represent the reputation Seattle has for having a coffee stand (or two) at every corner. It's mostly true too, thank goodness.

Luke's First Play

Luke's class was invited to participate in the middle school's big play - Peter Pan. He got to be both a pirate and one of the lost children. Oh what a night - the kids did great!

Here he is as a pirate:



Here he is as a lost child:



Here he is "crying" after the "Wendy-Bird" was shot down. Look at that pout and tell me he doesn't have that emotion down pat:



And here he is at the end, eyes glazed over, had enough:

Bigger is Better

My second ever Etsy treasury - this one devoted to B.I.G. jewelry. Check it out!

Circles

Have been in the mood to paint lately and finally got a chance to do it. More circles.





Also, I decided to separate my jewelry and beads from my paintings on Etsy. So here is my new shop: TheBlueBetween.etsy.com. Thanks for looking!

It's Starting to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Got most of the rest of the holiday decorating done today: the tree is up, the mantle is about as good as it will get, outdoor lights are hung (yay!) and I'm happy.

Scored a Treasury

I scored an Etsy Treasury! My very first one! I filled it up with things I love. Santa take note, this stands as my official wish list, haha! Please visit it and click around: Things that make my heart sing.

Bluebird of Happiness

Check out this sweet little set I just listed on Etsy!

Holiday Markdowns

My two B.I.G. necklaces are marked down significantly and listed on Etsy - if you've had your eye on these pieces, check out the new prices!

Exchange Gift

I made this for an exchange with an online group of jewelry artisans. Wrapped up in a handmade scarf was this charm necklace that can be worn either long or short. I love how it turned out.

Not how I was going to spend my day

Snagging the last 16 gal Wet/Dry Vac at Home Depot (Major Score): $100.00
Six gutter extentder jobies: $60.00
Two floor squeegies and poles: $20.00
Digging ditches, sweeping out gallons of water: Much hard work, sweat and tears

... A House that is starting to dry out: Priceless

Winter is Here

It snowed all weekend. Rain too, slushy rain, wet, heavy rain, and more snow, it's kind of a mess out there. And high winds expected soon, fun fun.

In the Nick of Time

I did it! I got something in to the Art Bead Scene November Challenge: Coffee Haus

Some of My Favorite Lampwork Beadmakers

I just thought I'd share some of my favorite beadmakers with you today. I have a long list, so I'll only share a few. Maybe more another day.

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ANASTASIA: A German artist: she makes the most fabulous trees. And her dots are amazing. I think she uses enamels...something I've been thinking about but have been to chicken to try yet. And her photography is really great, I'd love to know what she uses as a photo studio. I can't pick a favorite bead, they are all... so perfect, and amazing. Check them out: http://www.anastasiabeads.de/gallery_ebay.htm



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Melanie Moertel: Another German artist. Bold bright color combinations, perfect lines and dots. Love her flowers. And great photography too. Check out her site: http://www.melaniemoertel.de/GBs/index_gb.htm and be sure to follow her link to her flickr gallery. Wow!


Happy Monday II | Focal
Originally uploaded by melaniemoertel

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Jennifer Geldard, aka GlassGirl: She uses enamels too, her beads are so fab, to look at them you can tell she pours her heart into each one. I'd love to take a class with her someday. You can see her newest work here: http://www.glassgirl.com/new_work.htm but be sure to check out her older work as well. Beautiful.



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Andrea Guarino: Earthy, organic, yet colorful and full of soul energy. Yet again, enamels. She lives near me, I hope to take a class from her someday. Her site: http://andreaguarino.com/



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Sarah Hornik: The most colorful, organic, swirly, wonderful beads. Layers and layers of glass. Pure treasure. Check them out: http://www.glassbysarah.com.


Secret Smiles
Originally uploaded by lyzardqueen

There are many more... but I need to get out to my own studio and melt some glass now.