Summer Scenes

Do you remember just a few short months ago when I braved the single digit temps and took you on a winter walkabout? Well, now that we're approaching the triple digits, I thought I'd take some photos of the same scenes in their summer light.

Day Lillies glow

You know what they say about the early bird

Daisy Shadow

I always knew I had a guardian angel. I just never knew he looked like an Easter Island statue!

Perfect spot for sunset watching and wine sipping.

Winter winds took down the pump house door, revealing this view of my house

And on the other side of the door -- lots of farmer's math. Wonder what he was calculating?

When in doubt, head West.

Fall Class Preview

I just finished my samples for fall classes at Ben Franklin Crafts, my local shop. The challenge was to design interesting projects with a good teaching value, but keep the overall materials cost reasonable and to use products available in the store. Here's what I came up with. What do you think?

Early Frost necklace

Early Frost Bracelet

A Little Loopy necklace

A Little Loopy earrings

Garden of Weedin'

I have been overwhelmed with yard work this year, but in the spirit of "when life gives you lemons..." I decided to take pleasure in the entire garden today, not just the pretty flowers that I want to be there. I mean, who are we to judge, anyway? What makes one plant beautiful, and one a common weed? Here's a tour of the less cultivated parts of my garden:

This used to be my vegetable garden!

A single sunflower among the stinging nettles. Not going to pick this one!

The fire pit isn't getting much use this summer, except by the daisies.

A "volunteer" shrub in the middle of my field

Milkweed

Joy

Her friends say she has a smile that lights up a room, so I knew my donation for the silent auction for Lynne's Legacy of Hope would be all about color and Swarovski crystals. Here's my bracelet, called Joy.

Here's more about Lynne and the event:

Lynne Sater, wife of WISN-TV news anchor Terry Sater and mother of 3 beautiful girls, Savannah, Autumn, and Sierra, has been battling Stage IV Bile Duct Cancer. She was diagnosed in December of 2009. As she has been valiantly fighting this terrible disease, medical expenses have mounted. Lynne's Legacy of Hope is a fun way for you to show your support for the Sater Family! So mark your calendars and join us on July 24th, 2011, at Lapham Peak State Park for an unforgettable day!

Stash Busting

Every now and then, you need to take a hard look at your stash and try to use up some of the beads that have been hanging around for a while, or might be lonely leftovers from a larger, long-ago completed project. That’s what I did this weekend. I tried to make pretty, unique projects without buying anything new. Here are my results:

Lampworked glass and sterling silver beads

Charm necklace with labradorite briolette, Czech glass, and silver

Quartz, fluorite, and India glass

Is it spring yet?

Working with what you have can be challenging, but it can be freeing as well. I love these bead combinations, but I never would have "planned" these designs in advance. What do you think?

Artbeads Winter Enchantment Project

My backyard in January

For this season's Artbeads.com blogger project, we were asked to design jewelry based on winter. Here in Wisconsin, winter is a long season. Our first cold snap comes in October and we're usually not seeing daffodils until late April. The season is long, but it isn't bleak. We have wonderful white snow, beautiful bare brown branches, and brilliant blue skies peeking through whenever we can. For this project, I wanted to explore working with some new-to-me materials. While I often use glass beads in my designs, I haven't worked with artisan-made lampworked beads before.  I was immediately drawn to these lampworked art beads when I started planning my winter-white necklace. Brass accents and just a hint of blue completed the palette, and I had this design together in no time.



Winter White necklace



Earrings

Beaded links connected by large jump rings

This necklace and earrings set came together very nicely. My original intention was to string the necklace, but I wanted the lampworked beads to be visible from all sides. Making beaded links instead set the beads off. I rummaged through my supplies for brass jump rings, thinking 5 or 6 mm would be the perfect size. I only found these super-sized rings, though, so I decided to try it out. I like the look even better. It's more open and airy. 

Do you design by purpose, by "happy accident," or a little of each?

Disclaimer: The lampworked beads, brass beadcaps, and brass findings  used in this project were provided to me free of charge by Artbeads. My review is my opinion and I have not been paid for my endorsement.

Be My Valentine

Here is a quick and easy Valentine's Day card project for you. Remember when I made the cute felted sweater pillow? I wasn't sure what to do with the scraps, so I just cut them into random heart shapes. A few days later, I had this idea. If you don't have a felted sweater handy, just use felt from the fabric store.

Sew simple!

Winter in the back yard

Here are some winter pictures for you to enjoy. Hopefully you're reading this from a warmer climate!

Simple Gifts

It seems like Christmas was months ago, but I am so thankful for some of the gifts I received, I wanted to write a quick post about it. This was a year that many people felt crunches -- both time and money -- and there was a lot of discussion both in the media and in my own family about cutting back or simplifying when it came to gift giving.

I have always believed that it's the thought that counts and it's better to give than to receive. Sounds trite, but I've always felt this way and believe I've lived this truth. A gift selected and given with love is the most important gift of all. The value is in the process, not the item itself.

This year, I spent a delightful day shopping in a non-mall venue with a dear friend. I purchased gifts for the people I loved. I thought about them, how they would use the gift, shared a story or two about them with my friend as we shopped, and truly enjoyed myself. My daughter helped me wrap the gifts and prepare the packages for mailing. We had a lovely evening away from the TV (and Facebook) and felt the Christmas Spirit in our home.

The gifts pictured above are gifts I received. They too were selected with me in mind and given with true generosity and a nice dose of the Christmas Spirit. The scarves are from my mother in law and are something I never thought I needed but now can't imagine not having. They are pretty and feminine and just my style. The house pin is a gift from my mom and dad. It was made by a little girl whose class decided to raise money for Haiti. It speaks to my love of houses, philanthropy, and good-old-fashioned arts and crafts. In this year that I am selling a house and hoping to buy another one, this pin reminds me that a home is any house with a big heart inside. The peacock feather is from a close friend. It reminds me of the "stray" peacock that was living in her yard a few years ago and it's a reminder to me to be strong and proud (and maybe a little vain) -- all qualities that are important for me this year. The necklace is from a new friend, but honestly -- how perfect: I'm a jewelry book editor, and now I have book jewelry. I'm proud to be her editor and her friend, and I wear this necklace for inspiration.

I don't mean to be ranting in this post. I just want to offer a gentle reminder that simple gifts, gifts from the heart, are all anyone needs and are worth all the money in the world.

Snow Day Project

When my kids were in preschool and I was a stay-at-home mom, I loved to wear colorful, seasonal sweaters. Now that they are teens and I'm working for a living, not so much. Here's a fun way to upcycle your old wool sweaters (this would work with blankets or throws as well):

Step 1: Forget all the rules of laundry, and throw your sweater in the washer set to hot water. Add detergent and a few towels and/or a pair of jeans.

Step 2: As the washer agitates, the wool will begin to shrink and felt. When the cycle is done, check to see if you're happy with the progress. My sweater felted a little, but I could still see the stitches. I liked the look, so I tossed it in the dryer. Here's how it came out:

 Step 3: Cut the sweater as if it's fabric in a shape to fit a pillow form. I used one side seam as an edge. Turn right sides together, and sew the open sides, leaving a small gap to insert the pillow form.

Step 4: Turn the pillow case right sides out and insert the pillow. Hand sew the gap closed. You'll find the wool "swallows" up your stitches, so using a doubled thread is fine and you'll hardly see the hand stitching.

Tah-da! My new seasonal accent pillow: