Finally!

Well, I've mentioned a couple of times that I had something new to show, and I finally worked all the bugs out of my version. Presenting... Charming Clusters! Right now, they will be available in my Etsy shop and possibly at some local gift shops. I'm posting 2 that aren't in the Etsy shop here- both are going to friends, although they will probably be available if there is a demand. All clusters have lanyard hooks on the top so they can be hooked to a  purse, backpack, jacket- anything!

First up, the Pink Princess! With lots of pink beads and charms of a tiara and a prince and princess at the ball, this is a special order from a work friend (Hi, Cindy!).

Next, for all you Cullen fans, we have the I Love Edward cluster. The charms say "I Love Edward" and "Bite Me" with a cute little apple hanging down. I Love Bella and I Love Jacob are on their way- wait 'til you see Jacob's moon and wolf! Edward's is in the classic red/white/black combo from the books- I'm thinking shades of blue for Bella and green/brown for Jacob. Twilight fans rejoice!

Here's another piece!

This one is called Heart of Stone. It's kind of silly, because the heart isn't actually stone, it is polymer clay. The beads in the necklace, however, are semi-precious stones. Oh well. If anybody thinks of a better name, I'm open to suggestions.

Latest Designs that Didn't Win

Okay, I'm trying not to be whiny. Just because I liked these designs doesn't mean everyone has too. However, I did hold off on posting these because they were under consideration elsewhere. Since it does not appear they are going to be used, I'll post them here over the next few days.

First, Spring Meadow. I really like this one- using the seed bead mix was inspired by one of the ladies I bead with every week, so thanks Jane! It looks really elegant but was suprisingly inexpensive to make.

Sod and other issues

Warning- no jewelry or polymer info contained in this post.

I laid sod today with my husband and daughter, and now my sciatic nerve is really unhappy with me, so I am fairly unhappy in general. However, we do have a nice patch of St. Augustine where we once had clover, so I guess it was worth it - a sentiment not shared by my daughter, who asked "What was wrong with the grass we had?" I could have pointed out that only Uncle Jay's cows eat clover, and they aren't here, but I suspect that would have been countered with an offer to either a) acquire a cow, or b) send the clover to Carthage, TX. Either way, she wouldn't have had to lay sod. However, it isn't the right kind of clover anyway.

Of course, she's not here at the moment, having chosen to spend the night at a friend's and come home late tomorrow. 

Happy Mother's Day (sigh)

Looking forward to July!

Definitely looking forward to July- I've got a great idea for a project to share at the International Polymer Clay Association retreat! I got a brand new pasta machine- thanks Mona! and am ready to show off my stuff. Christi Friesen will be there (note to self - bring much chocolate) and I am looking forward to it.

It's nice to have something to look forward to, since they just closed all the schools in our district for a week - 1 confirmed and several probable cases of H1N1, so everyone gets to stay home until the little buggies die on the surfaces.

Fun with Donna Kato!

Last weekend I had a great workshop with Donna Kato here in the North Texas area. We all had a great time and Donna is super nice and a great teacher. Here is the link to all the pictures of the workshop- I'm in two of them, but not the final class picture, as I had to leave early.

Contests I Hope to Win!

All right,after that last post, I had to post about the ones I'm entering right now. I have 4 in the works for Bead Star (deadline May 1, so get cracking if you haven't started) and a couple for SoftFlex. Now obviously, I can't post the pictures of the entries here, but I can post the button they made to find out more about the SoftFlex contest - it's at the bottom (and very pretty, I think). I also hope to be featured in a couple of magazines soon, and will provide info on them as soon as possible. Some readers will remember a kit test offer I made earlier. Well, that turned into one of the magazine submissions. However, loyal followers will still receive a kit after I hear from the magazine and it is either turned down or published. I may even make a special kit for followers with different beads...stay tuned!