My Time at the American Craft Council Show - Photos and Websites to Share

Yesterday was the last day of this year's American Craft Council Show, and we were there by 10:30 am, waiting for the doors to open at 11:00 am. Chickie and ChickieMama also came, although we only saw and chatted with them while we were all waiting entry. After the doors opened, I never saw them again - they probably were working opposite directions than I was, and I wasn't lingering. DH stayed with me for the first aisle, then broke off to keep his own faster pace. He found me later and told me he'd find a place to sit and wait for me and for me to take my time. I was finished shortly after noon and we headed home to watch football. 

I really liked the idea of recycling stained glass into 
various jewelry pieces. These earrings are by Linda 
Banning - a local artist from Minneapolis. If you are 
interested in seeing more of her work, go to her website 
www.LBOriginalsStainedGlass.com and click on any 
of the larger photos to get into the sales area for that 
product. 

As always, there were many lovely things to look at - items I enjoyed, or simply admired. I hope all of those exhibiting were happy with the sales for their long weekend, but it's always difficult to say that for sure. There certainly were some very talented artists and craftspeople showing their wares. 

I mis-spoke when I said I had only collected the cards 
of jewelry makers. I also collected a card from Grant Kaihoi, 
a wonderful craftsperson from Illinois. I loved his use of 
negative space. Look carefully at the photo above. Although 
there is a crack in each bench, that crack is carefully filled with 
perfectly symmetrical, darker wooden rods "stitching" the 
wood together. His use of negative space for positive 
impact really entranced me. It has so many applications 
in other crafts as well. If you would like to see more 
of his work, check out his website at www.grantkaihoi.com .

I rarely buy at these shows, but have been known to place orders, or to simply go onto websites afterward and buy that way. I've also been known to watch artists for several years before deciding on a piece. Instead of buying, I collect business cards from those artists I want to examine more carefully with more time. To my surprise, after I came home and looked through the small amount of cards I had collected, at least two were local. That's good news because they might also sell their work at a couple of stores that feature collective work from local craftspeople. 

Sam Woehrmann creates fine jewelry with 
precious stones out of gold, but he has 
a sense of whimsical design that bring his 
designs out of the staid and boring and 
into the playful and charismatic. I didn't 
care for a lot of his work - too predictable, 
but there were pieces like this that caught 
my imagination. I'd be entitling this one 
"Orbit" - the orbit of the earth in the 
solar system, the orbit of the moon around 
the earth. Does he call it that? Probably 
not. It may not even have a name, but 
it's lovely, isn't it? Want to see more? 
You can see his work on www.iamthatsam.com .

At least one of the craftspeople has an Etsy sales platform, although she doesn't have much selection on it. I wasn't in a buying mood - general expenses have been too high lately - but I did sit down at my computer and look at each of the websites or sales platforms from their business cards. I might buy later on, or simply mark down that I want to check their work out again next year. 

I loved the work of David Alvarado who 
sells under the name Irthly. He uses 
the heart of palm to mimic ivory or 
bone, making something precious from 
a sustainable source. He has a wonderful 
design aesthetic, which was rewarded by his 
being a finalist for the prestigious Saul Bell 
Award in 2018. His work is FINE jewelry 
and VERY expensive, but absolutely 
captivating and beautifully crafted. You 
can see his work at shop.irthly.com and it's 
well worth a look. 

The number of vendors was down at least 1/3, maybe a bit more, from pre-Covid years. That's great for new vendors who are being encouraged to try selling by virtue of reduced booth fees and other assistance from the ACC. In past, there had been several "shared" spaces for new vendors - crowding 3-4 vendors into the space normally reserved for a single person. This time, each vendor, new or established, had their own space, and it was a generous space. The "new vendors" could really showcase their products, and some did their displays beautifully. Others ... not so much. 

I wouldn't normally bother with a beadworker - 
after all, it's a media I have worked in for more 
than half a century. But I liked the vision of 
Barb Benjamin and her pieces were well 
constructed and well designed. She sells 
on Facebook under Singing Bear Creations and 
also has an Etsy store. She's local, so she also 
has some of her items at "Antiques on Main" 
in Hopkins, Minnesota. She's easiest to find by 
just doing a search on Singing Bear Creations 
if you want to see more of her work. 

So, looking at the cards I took, it seems I concentrated on jewelry items this time. Of course, that's practical. I have no wall space for artwork, and no real room for furniture or larger glass works (although there were some very wonderful pieces available). I stuck to the small - things that I would wear. I'm sharing some photos with you because the best things are shared between friends. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Nightmare Alley (the Book) - Not for the Faint Hearted But Worth a Read

Today I'm giving you a book recommendation that will NOT be for everyone. I'm fairly familiar with books regarding carnivals and sideshows from the Depression era on into the early 1940's and the setting and genre of books of this era fascinate me. Over the past two days I was engrossed in "Nightmare Alley", by William Lindsay Gresham, and although I'm off on my next book now, I wanted to share the introduction to the book with all of you (just click on the link). Some of you may be familiar with the various movies that have been made of this, but I really can't see that this would translate well to the screen. It's something that perches in your gut and gnaws on you from the inside out, the way a good tale will do. It's also an interesting window into a lifestyle that most of us couldn't imagine. The intro is long, but worth the read (just follow the link above). The author, William Lindsay Gresham committed suicide a few weeks after his fifty-third birthday. 

"Nightmare Alley" is a book that will haunt 
me for a long time. There's some exquisite 
prose in here, and the characters are 
really well presented. The scene isn't that 
far away from us - less than 100 years 
distant. Although it's been made into 
film twice (1947 and 2021) I can't see this 
transferring easily to the screen. 

On a brighter note, I spent most of yesterday working on the next group of crystals for Etsy. I've been working on the set-up sheets for the photographs - making sure that every crystal is labelled with the name and the appropriate product number, and that those are accurate. Changing an incorrect listing once it's been uploaded is a total PITA. I got totally through all of the round crystals and the 10 mm, 8 mm and 6 mm sizes of the bicones, so it was a lot of work. I'm still working on the 4 mm and the 3 mm bicones before I'm ready for the actual photography sessions. I'll have to reprint all of the layout sheets before I can begin that, and I'm waiting on a part for my printer before starting the project. Still, it was a day of progress and I'm pleased with that. 

I haven't had any time to work on my Etsy listings for 
more than a month, so I grabbed the opportunity to get 
some work done yesterday. I've got the rounds ready 
to reprint and photograph now, and I'm almost finished 
with the bicones. 

It looks like I'll be busy doing computer work at the shop today too. DH warned me that he left a lot of work for me - tons of price tags. We used to have a fairly easy way to generate our price tags, but our sales program hiccuped and we have to hand-enter every tag now. It affords us some flexibility, but it also slows us down - a LOT. Telling the computer to generate 50 tags vs actually typing in 50 tags is a real time sink.

I looked into whether I can have my HSA funds applied to my braces. IF I can get either my Dentist or my Orthodontist to "recommend" braces for me, then the expense will be justified and allowed. I went ahead and transferred some uninvested funds into my personal account yesterday just in case, so that I can afford the downpayment. I'll talk to the Orthodontist when I see him next week regarding a recommendation. I think straightening my bottom teeth will save my gums and teeth, I'll have to see if I can get him to agree to that. 

It's nice to have the ACC show back again. It used to be 
a Spring show, now it's in the Fall, but there's always 
something wonderful to look at. DH says he can go 
through the show in an hour. It takes me a bit longer 
than that - LOL. 

On that note, I'm out of here. Have a glorious Saturday and a good weekend. We have the last weekend of Renaissance Festival tomorrow, so we'll go out for a few hours to enjoy Fest for a bit, and to purchase our season tickets for next year. Then my Sundays can return to normal ... except the ACC Craft Show is next weekend, so I'll be attending that next Sunday morning. At least that's indoors and doesn't require cosplay clothing choices - LOL. Enjoy your day - Slave Ukraini 

Fine Craft and Egypt Was a Perfect Sunday

Yesterday DH and I attended the annual American Craft Council Show. We attend every year and we always enjoy it, although I strongly suspect I enjoy it much more than DH does. I took my time wandering through the aisles, looked carefully at each booth, and took cards for locations I wanted to return to. DH wizzed through his first run and sat at a side table, playing Bridge on his phone and waiting for me. I finally joined back up with him and we want through at a much faster pace while I showed him several items of interest to me. I didn't buy anything this time, nothing really pulled at me. 

I was looking for some more "statement" style
earrings to wear when I'm not bothering with
a wig. I considered these by Martha Sullivan,
and really liked them, but I didn't want to
spend quite that much. 

Usually we go have an early meal and a drink or two after the show, but since it was raining hard when we left the arena, we decided to just go directly home. After a lazy day and Chinese takeout for dinner, we settled down to watch Discovery Channel's "Expedition Unknown" which had a two-hour LIVE broadcast from Dr. Zahi Hawass's newest excavation in Middle Egypt. The broadcast had a lovely mummy in an above-ground tomb to start, with a beaded, netted gown and pectoral collar. Then they headed underground into various pit shafts and smaller tombs. 

All of the burials had Ushabtis - small statues to serve in the
afterlife. Ideally there should be a minimum of one for each day
of the year. When the deceased is asked to perform a task, the
ushabti of the day will step up and perform it for him. 

The second tomb was a family tomb - father, mother and children. What I really loved in this tomb were the finely painted canopic jars and the fact that the family dog was also in a place of honor. It really was a family tomb. Unfortunately, the family didn't have a lot of money and the mummy of the father that was opened live on the show was a disappointment - not very well preserved and quite skeletal. Still very interesting and I still love that dog. 

Dr Zahi Hawass is the most recognized face in Egyptian
archaeology. Although no longer at the head of the
department, he is still a force. Egypt has managed to
reclaim many of the European and Indonesian
tourists after last year's murders, but the US has
been slower to respond. Last night's broadcast
was one of several planned to get the US tourist
back to Egypt. 

They moved to another vertical shaft, climbed down another long ladder, and Dr Hawass led on a long and very tight crawl through a long horizontal shaft, into a large chamber with a beautifully carved sarcophagus. The entire dig centered around a temple of Thoth, and this interment was one of the high priests of Thoth. After a lot of maneuvering, the multi-ton sarcophagus was moved away to display a perfect linen-wrapped and gold embellished mummy. Stellar! The other thing that really impressed me was the discovery of a wax "reserve head" behind a small false wall. Reserve heads were used in the 4th Dynasty, but this burial was from the 26th Dynasty - a VERY long time later. 

Several Egyptian sarcophagi were opened during the two hour
live show. It actually was pretty darned cool. I didn't go into
Egyptian archaeology because I have such intense
claustrophobia, but I probably could die happy, if I had been
in Egypt at least once. 

All in all, I was totally stoked and what a wonderful thing to watch. It ended at just the right time too - time for me to get to sleep since I have a very busy week ahead of me. I hope some of you had a chance to see the show last night, or that you can catch a rebroadcast of it. It was a lot of fun even if Josh talked over Dr Hawass a bit too much. 

So, that's it for today. It's Monday, I finally have my social security resolved, and I'm ready to hit the machines at the gym and get rid of my Chinese take-out pounds. All's good, at least for the start of the week. Have an excellent day and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Mozy Is Now Carbonite - Computer Backup Saga

Backing up electronics is important - I'd say it's essential in this day and age. Everything in our lives that we stuffed into file cabinets and various drawers in earlier times now resides in digital form on our hard drives and in the ether. It's a bit frightening, but it has its positive aspects too. However, what happens when systems crash? 

There's nothing much worse than a computer crash. I've
been through several in my electronics life and it
totally sucks, even with the amazing computer guru
that I have. 

I know - you don't even want to think about such a catastrophe. I totally understand! I'm there with you! I run multiple computers (as I've mentioned in the past). Two with Win 98, two with Win XP, two with Win 7 and one with Win 8.1. I tried Win 10, hated it, and uninstalled it. I suppose my next computer will end up with it, but I won't be happy. 

To be safe, computers should be backed up both to
external hard drives as well as to the cloud. I do
both with my main computer, I don't think I can
afford to pass on this one. 

I also back up - I use an external hard drive, and also do cloud backup through Mozy which is now Carbonite. Apparently Carbonite purchased Mozy from Dell Computers, so the two rivals are now one. Once I got my credentials accepted, Carbonite began a new system-wide backup of my computer. I think the last time I did a system-wide backup it took almost five days. I'm into this for a bit less than 12 hours now, and I'm 20% done. It seems to be faster, but I guess my computer will be on until the new backup is completed. 

After I get everything uploaded and completed, I'll have
to think about which level of backup I want to have.
It's a monthly subscription fee, like everything else
in my life *sigh*. We're all getting poorer in small
monthly increments. 

Sometimes maintenance is just as important as content, so I'm going to call today's post short and sweet and catch up on some other things. DH and I have the American Craft Council show this weekend - an annual event for the two of us. Last year wasn't so good, so I'm hoping for a much more enjoyable experience tomorrow. It's my goal. Have a great Saturday and a safe and happy weekend. I'll be back on Monday - hopefully backed up and up-to-date. 

Sunday Beauty Shared With You

I had a great time at the ACC Show yesterday, wandering the aisles and looking at all of the various artwork produced by so many talented people. DH did come with, but his hip was hurting him a lot and by the end of the show, he was in serious pain. It put a cramp in the rest of our day because when he hurts like that, he pulls back into himself rather like a tortoise pulls into its' shell. We settled down at our respective computers for the remainder of the afternoon and had a quiet evening watching an old episode of "Midsomer Murders". 

There were a few artists whose work, in person, was spectacular. I have already shown most of them to you, but they merit a second shout-out. 

Lynda Barh's metal mosaic was as good
in person as in her publicity photo. A
stunning mix of textures and colors. 

Lynda Bahr's metal mosaic work was spectacular and intricate. I fell in love with her bracelets, but her smaller items - pins, pendants and rings - were also quite nice. I didn't ask pricing here, but there was some serious labor being put into the work. 

Chris Armstrong's felted wool sculptures were impeccable and
so intricate. He had a family of foxes to die for, and a
hedgehog that was playing the violin that was so cute!
I fell in love with all of his "Wind in the Willows"
sculptures. 

Chris Armstrong's felted soft sculptures were phenomenal. He took scenes from well-loved books and brought them to life. He had one of Rat and Mole dressed in their robes, seated in chairs and talking in front of a fireplace that just resonated with me. I'm such a "Wind in the Willows" fan and he brought the characters to life. 

Ivy Woodrose had amazing clarity and depth in her
enamels. Even after seeing them in person, I'm
unsure about whether she was using heat or
resin enamels, but her designs were gorgeous. 

Ivy Woodrose's enamels were lovely. She textured the base metal or added small metal charms at the bottom, then applied the enamel. I didn't physically handle the pieces, but the clarity and the depth seemed to indicate resin enamel instead of vitreous enamel. I've worked with both types and love each of them for different reasons. I couldn't fault the quality of the work at all - it was stunning. 

I really loved the bent wood bracelets of Tom Evans. The
one that I really fell in love with was two bands
of highly finished apricot wood with three small
aventurine beads separating the bands. 

Tom Griffith Evans' wooden jewelry was in a pop-up stall. The ACC has several booths that are shared between 4-5 artists, cutting their exhibition costs down and allowing them to get a foot into the door, attract a discerning audience, and test-market their dreams. I loved his pieces - bent wood and precious stone beads made from trees that were dying from old age on his land in northern New Mexico. I felt he was priced WAY too high, but his designs and the actual work were impeccable. 

I own two sets of Keith Lewis' sterling silver kinetic
earrings and I love them. He's doing some work
with stone and pearls now that I'm really liking. 

Two other artists caught my eye, although there weren't any surprises about that. Keith Lewis makes jewelry with movement - mainly earrings. I own two pairs of his earrings and he is also lovely with follow-up and repairs when I've needed some fixing. He had a few sets where he used spears of threaded quartz instead of metal and those were fantastic. 

I adore Mark Laub's furniture. He had a giant winged
scarab this year that was so amazing. I'm putting
a link in his paragraph. He has several videos on
his cabinets page that show how his furniture
opens and closes. 

Mark Laub exhibited again, and as always I'm in love with his works. They are statement pieces and so elaborate. I'm including a link here because many of his items are also shown in small videos so that you can see how they open and how they are display artistry of the highest level. 

So there you have my Sunday - at least two hours of it - encapsulated. It would have been a perfect day if DH's hip hadn't been so painful, but he didn't have a good day at all. I hope all of you have a great Monday and remember to make something nice today - cook a great meal, write a perfect paragraph, or just settle yourself down with a cup of tea and a good book. Make it the best nice you can and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Hope Spring Eternal - Is Spring Finally Here?

Hope springs eternal, right? We've now had almost a full week without snow. The 15.8 inches we received last weekend are now a distant memory and our temperatures have been balmy over the past two-three days with low 50's for the highs. We're losing snow pack quickly and seeing that sad excuse for grass that has been hidden from sight for months and months. It's exciting, and I'm hopeful that we've finally banished Winter from us until late this year. 

Nicolette Absil from Philadelphia PA is a new
artist this year, specializing in enamel. I'm
curious about her technique and want a
closer look. Enamel is one of my own art
forms and I love learning from others. 

Of course Spring has its own issues. This year's Spring will be very fast - a mere nod of her regal head before her more headstrong sister, Summer, pushes her aside and takes over the playground. That's a shame, because I really love Spring, and Summer is not my favorite season - too hot, too humid, and of course we'll get some epic thunderstorms and their accompanying tornadoes. Still, life is never boring here in the Frozen Northlands. 

Look at these fabulous stuffed animals by Chris Armstrong
from Nashville TN. The attention to detail is amazing. 
You could almost imagine this conversation. 

Those of us who live up here take to Spring and those warmer temps in very different ways. Yesterday, driving home from the shop at night, the temp was 52 F - a temp that we'll consider cold in most times. I had my car's moonroof uncovered, but not opened. Ahead of me on the road was a sporty convertible with the top down! The two girls in the car still had coats on, but they looked as if they were enjoying the experience. I'm afraid I'd be huddled in the back seat, freezing. Fifty-two degrees F is a temp that we haven't seen since last November, but it's still not hot enough for a drop-top - at least in my opinion. 

Tom Evans from Albuquerque NM is a new artist
this year. He works in wood to create jewelry.
Since I've become so metal sensitive as I age,
this might be a great jewelry alternative for me. 

My shop is near one college campus and I live across the street from a different college. I'm seeing the young men (usually only the men, not the women) already wearing t-shirts and cargo shorts, despite the temps only being in the low 50's. Jackets have come out of storage and heavier coats are being put away until next fall/winter. I'm looking forward to doing that too, but when I leave the house it is still in the mid-30's, so too cold for a mere jacket. 

Amy Faust from Oakland, CA uses mixed materials
to create some very organic shapes and styles.
She's new this year and I'm looking forward to
seeing her work. 

But I do feel that Spring is in the air, hovering just the other side of the door. If we manage to make it through this next week without snow, I'm calling Winter finished for this season and I'll be welcoming Spring - probably with a good Spring clean in my house. I'm SO ready for it! 

Autumn Higgins is a local ceramic artist. I have a
feeling these may be sized as Saki cups, but
I'll have a better idea when I see them in person.
Her techniques and images are interesting. 

Have a wonderful weekend. I've peppered this post with more artists from the ACC Show that we'll be attending on Sunday. Enjoy the artwork and have an excellent weekend, I'll be back on Monday. 

Slices of Time and Place

The annual American Craft Association show opens today (actually opened with a Preview Party last night). It runs through Sunday and DH and I will be attending. Chickie, Chickie-Mama and their friend Anne will also be there and I'm fairly sure we'll run into them. I always look forward to wandering the booths, looking at the new and different and getting inspired by the designs of other artists and jewelers. It's a lot of fun. 

I love leather handbags and computer bags. I'll be checking
out Richard Davis from Adirondack Designs. 

Of course, it also means I'm not going to be able to sleep in quite as long on Sunday morning, but we're not in any rush to get there, so we should be fine. We'll still be able to have breakfast and read a bit of the Sunday newspaper (comics for me) before heading out the door. 

Patrick Fitzpatrick from Chicago, Illinois, uses
industrial glass and brings it into a more
personal setting working with light and
electricity. 

I scanned through the list of artisans exhibiting this year, and there are a lot of artists I've seen before, several of whom I've purchased from in the past. I'm not very cash flush this time, so I'll be shopping with my eyes instead of with my pocketbook. That's OK though. I don't need to own something to appreciate its' beauty. 

Karin Jacobson is a local Minneapolis
jewelry artist with a very different twist. 

That's lucky, right? How many times have you looked at the sun hitting a valley just right, or the rainbow carried on the mists of a waterfall, or an ice cave on a lake, or the love in a child's eyes and been struck by the beauty of that moment and that scene? We can't own it - can't bring it home and stick it in a box. I think that's really lucky, because our mementos bureau of wonderful things and moments would become crowded all too soon. 

Ivy Woodrose from Oak Park, Michigan, does some
really stunning enamel. I'm looking forward to looking
closer at her work. 

Still, we all need to keep looking for those "Ah-Ha" and "OMG" and "So Love" moments to look back upon when things get tough. It's those small little moments, those slices of time and place that will never be visited again, that make the hard times between them worthwhile. Consider the good times to be balm to the soul. I'll get a chance to collect some band-aids for my creative soul when I wander the aisles of the American Craft Council Show this weekend. 

Lisa Valley is new this year, and she's local. I'm
always looking for new and different ceramic
items, maybe one of these cups will come
home with me. 

Have a great Friday - I certainly plan to. I'll be back here tomorrow, and who knows what will tickle me for a topic. I do bounce all over the place - LOL. 

Tuesday - A Look Ahead

Happy Tuesday, all. I started the morning out thinking I was ahead of the game since I awakened at 2:45 am instead of at 3:15 am. But, by the time I got some old emails cleared up and followed up on some inquiries, I'm not ahead at all - in fact, I might be a bit behind. Can't win for losing - at least it's not snowing ... I think. 

I think that Spring is finally at the threshold. It's probable that we will have some cold and possibly a few snowpiles still around when the ACC show begins in a little less than two weeks, but that often happens. It's April, though, and Winter is being politely ushered to the exit door by Spring. She's tired of hosting the cranky old man. 

A variety of artists exhibit and sell at the
American Craft Council show which always
takes place in mid-April. Here's a piece
of jewelry by artist Lynda Bahr. She'll be
one of many artists exhibiting at the event. 

There's an exhibition going on at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts (MIA) that I want to see, so I told DH that he can take me for my birthday gift. He told me to get the tickets and tell him how much money he needs to give me. I guess that's a win. I think we would have gone anyway, but I've missed the last two exhibits I wanted to see, and didn't want to miss this one. 

The MIA exhibit pulls a variety of items from their permanent
Chinese exhibits into an immersive experience. They have an
extensive collection, so I'm really looking forward to this. 

"Power and Beauty in China's Last Dynasty" brings items from MIA's permanent collection into a choreographed and sensory experience including auditory, olfactory and of course visual effects. They warn that some people who have sensory sensitivities may be affected, but DH and I don't suffer from that. 

So at least I have beautiful things to look forward to while the snow makes every attempt to linger on ... and on ... and on. It does seem like the winter that never ends, but our daytime temps are much warmer, and the quantities of snow we're getting are much less. Yesterday's overnight snow was completely melted by midday - I can live with that. Our large mountains of parking lot snow are also shrinking daily. Huzzah - Spring is on her way, even though we're actually in the middle of that season. She always takes her time here in the Frozen Northlands.  

So, in an attempt to stay ahead of myself, I'm going to plug in my photos and call this post done. Have a wonderful and fabulous Tuesday and I'll return tomorrow. 

Sunday Was Marvelous

I'm running late today, even though I woke before my alarm. Go figure. Yesterday was a perfect day, although I got very little computer work done. Still, DH and I had a lovely day at the American Craft Council Show. We wandered the show the first time with Chickie and Chickie-Mama, and walked it through one more time solo, then left and had a drink at one of the downtown institutions - Mancini's Char House, finally returning home in the early afternoon.

Mancini's Char House is a Saint Paul institution. Founded in 1948, it
still draws the crowds. The many pictures on the walls of the bar area
attest to a lot of very famous people stopping by there, from sports stars
to Frank Sinatra. It was a fun place to have a quick beer and catch up
on the golf on our way home from the Craft Show. 

We spent our time together watching The Masters golf championship - what a phenomenal final round it was! We also flipped back and forth to the baseball game. Last year our team started the season with a 0-9 record before finally winning a game. This year we've won all but one game so far, so things are looking up.

The Reese Extreme Blizzard was AMAZING and SO GOOD! It
has Reese's Pieces and chunks of Reese Peanut Butter Cups in
the ice cream. I was VERY happy with it. The perfect topping
to a really nice day. 

Finally, to top off the day, we had a nice dinner at The Tavern Grill and had small Blizzard of the Month treats from our local Dairy Queen. It was lovely. We topped everything off by watching a DVD and called it an early night. We have a possible threat of snow over the next two days, so it's back to the winter coat for a little bit. Then we'll be back in the 60's once again. Crazy weather at this time of the year is expected.

DH played my Lore Master character in Lord of the Rings Online
early yesterday morning so that I could grab a "Moth Horse" before
Spring Festival shut down. So, I now have a Moth Horse, and
she's a beauty. 

I hope your weekend was wonderful. I did have time to post my latest Silmarillion Writer's Guild tale - "Feanor Never Planned to Fall in Love". I wanted my original artwork that inspired the piece to also post, but I've been having some problems getting it to show up correctly. The moderators are helping me out with that, so I hope that when you (that's the collective "you") have a chance to read the short tale, that my illustration will be there for you to see also. Have a great Monday!

Spring, Holidays and the Weekend

It's the weekend, and looking out of my door in the mornings and on my drive to work, I'm noticing that the trees are starting to look fuzzy. Of course, their skeletal branches are still reaching upward to the sky, no covering by the leaves. But there are buds on the branches now. There is the hope of warmer days, more sunshine, green leaves and grass, and flowers - lots and lots of flowers. Spring may not have sprung quite yet, but it's absolutely on its way and it promises to be glorious.

Martin Tabor makes non-metallic jewelry. I'm curious
about what materials he's actually using. It might
be an alternative for my metal sensitivities. 

Tomorrow we'll be at the ACC Show. DH is grumbling about how I've got his day occupied and planned for him, but he's usually pretty happy to not have to make decisions. Do you find it difficult to make decisions? It seems that DH is finding it harder and harder, which has potential problems for the future. I'm hoping he'll get over the worst of this when we're finally retired.

Elaine Unzicker knits these wonderful fingerless
gloves out of chain mail. There are many things that
I can do, and I know how to do chain mail, but the
actual process bores me to tears. This, however,
are lovely and so painstaking. 

I did some revision on my SWG story last night and uploaded the picture I'm basing the story on so that (hopefully) I can post them together. I'm not too good at attaching photos to stories and having them flow through the various other websites easily, so we'll have to see. I'll do one more read-through this morning and then get things up and running. I'll be on time, and that's the important thing.

Stacey Lee Webber makes wonderful vessels from metal.
I'm really curious about her construction techniques.
This bowl is stunning! 

The major holidays for many of my friends throughout the world are coming up quickly. Passover, for my Jewish friends, starts on the 10th, and Easter Sunday is the 16th. It's a week of people getting together with friends and family and prayers for peace ascending into the aether. If only peace could come via prayer, we'd live in a perfect world. Unfortunately, human nature seems to get in the way and peace gets pushed back into the dusty corner of the world. It won't stop my prayers, but it does patina them with the grit of reality.

Cornelia Goldsmith makes these wonderful bracelets
studded with surface elements and gemstones. I really
like this look, but want to see her work closer. 

I hope you have a wonderful weekend filled with sunshine, happiness, and friends/family. Once again, I've peppered this with beautiful things from some of the ACC artists whose work I'll be viewing on Sunday. Enjoy the eye candy, I'll be back on Monday.

Working? You Must be Joking!

Yesterday and today have been filled with mail orders, some of them international, so my time to read, write and play any computer games has been overshadowed by ... WORK!!!!! Oh no!!! I'm totally laughing at my desk right now, and it's just 4:00 am. I'm hearing the echoing "Voice of Doom" moving through my head as I laugh at the idea that I'm actually supposed to be working while I'm at work. What a concept!

Mark Laub does some of the most amazing furniture
of any wood artist I've ever met, and he's local!
Unfortunately, he's also WAY out of my price range.
But his works are totally amazing and so beautiful. 

I had a spare slice of time yesterday and quickly fleshed out my SWG story. I'll take a bit of time today to review, edit, and edit a bit more if necessary, but I think I'm almost ready to go with it. That's a good thing, because I have to download the darned thing no later than Sunday to squeak in under the deadline. I'm REALLY trying to do the full year and get all of the writer's stamps. I'm not guaranteeing the reviewer's stamps, my time is spread thin.

Suellen Parker works with glass, and she's producing
some very complex fused and folded pieces. This one
is exceptional. I can't wait to look at them closer, since
glass is one of my media and I love working with it. 

My "Audible" membership is almost ready for renewal. Do any of you listen to audio books? I had a period of time there when my vision was more challenged, also, I was listening to audio books while I was on the treadmill. I rarely listen to books any more, but I can still see myself doing that in the future, so I always keep a current membership. It does mean I'll have to buy and download a bunch of books before the end of the month to finish out this year's membership, though.

Catherine Schoenherr makes bracelets in the "Sami" style,
braided and stitched hair on top of reindeer hide. Her work
is beautiful, intricate, and I could actually wear a lot of
it because there is no metal. She teaches in the area and
we occasionally have her students come into the shop
looking for supplies. Unfortunately, we don't sell reindeer hide. 

I've added a few more photos of items I'll be looking at while attending the ACC Show on Sunday. Such pretty things to brighten your day. Have a wonderful Friday!