Saturday, February 28, 2009

Do Girls Cause Trouble?

Have you ever wondered why Peter was always getting into Mr. Macgregors garden? I think it must have been some girl bunny! He was just trying to grow big and Strong to impress her! After all aren't we girls usually the source of the reason boy do foolish things? I made this sweet little Easter bracelet for my Etsy shop and I think it turned out adorable! The little girl bunny is certainly cute enough to catch peters attention, plus she had her own carrot to offer, who could pass that up! It of course has an Easter egg with pink polka dots and a little pink rose, some cute little raised dot beads, that look like old fashioned Swiss dot fabric, and some small lampwork rondelles. I used Swarovski crystals in spring colors and sterling silver spacer beads to finish it off. If you'd like to take a look, its listed in my Etsy shop, with more photos and info. You can also contact me here. Thanks for looking!

Friday, February 27, 2009

It's All About The Love...

Cupcake love that is! At the risk of having done TOO many post about cupcakes, I am going to do one more. I can't promise this will be the last since I am on a cupcake bracelet theme of sorts, so it could happen again. The photo is of my latest listing called "Cupcake Love", it is my favorite so far. I am in love with pink, black, white and lime together. I just put the bracelet up in my Etsy shop tonight, along with the accompanying earrings. I know... earrings? I am working on getting more in my shop. I have such a thing for bracelets, that I have kind of lost any inspiration for earrings. I am tring, so when I think of something I think will work, I am giving it a go. Taking pictures of them has been a bit of a challenge for me, I am working on that also. I think the cupcake earring photos came out pretty good, if I do say so myself!

I just got in some really cute beads which I will be working on this weekend. I have the cutest set of cactus beads! They are going to make such a cute bracelet! I have some really pretty lentil shaped beads from an Etsy seller I just got in. I thought maybe they were going to be too big, but I think they are going to be a great size. I am really bad about visualizing size on the Internet. I have a gauge that sits right here next to the computer,(Thank you Clarkie!)but I still have trouble knowing just how big or small things are going to look unless it is something I have had experience buying, then I have a reference. I also don't know my left from my right, I doubt that will ever change! My husband thought when we got married I could just look at the hand with the rings and know it was left. Only problem is, when I look at the ring hand I still have to think, do you wear your rings on your left hand or your right hand? My car has an arrow that points to the side that the gas tank is on, I've had the car for 7 years, I still need the arrow!

I still have a whole bunch of things still to list, plus more pictures to take and lots more beads to make new things with, so if you haven't looked at my Etsy shop lately, chances are there are some new things you haven't seen yet.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009

Shop Update...

This week I listed several new pieces in my Etsy shop over the weekend including the one shown here called "Sunnyside Up". This bracelet features beads from Desert Bug Designs. She is not an Etsy seller, but her work is so popular, highly sought after and distinctive, that I went a head and listed where the beads came from, even though it is basically my personal policy to only list by name the artist I buy from, if they are Etsy sellers. It is my goal to promote Etsy in general, so if they sell there I will list them. Doesn't matter to me if they sell other places as well, that is up to you to figure out, I'm just only going to list the Etsy connection.

This bracelet got quite a bit of attention this week! It was listed in TWO treasuries on Etsy! I was so excited when I got a message about the first one and completely shocked the next day when I got another message from someone else letting me know they also had used it in a treasury! It's amazing to me with all the volume of stuff on Etsy that someone would find and pick anything of mine! Both treasuries were about things either sunny or pink, both well represented in this piece I suppose! I'd put the links up here, but the treasuries run for such a brief period of time that they will have expired before anyone has a chance to read this.

I love these beads! They are sunny, bright and very detailed to say the least. The artist certainly puts as much as one possibly can into every millimeter of bead. This artists strands of beads routinely sell for well over $100.00. I was fortunate to not have paid anywhere near that much, but this is still the most expensive set of beads I have bought so far. I think they are worth the price, given all the workmanship involved. One only needs to have a basic understanding of lampworking to see how much work is involved in each bead.

I have learned a lot over the past few months of buying lampwork beads and am proud to say I buy only artisan made lampwork beads made by artist who live here in the USA. I have seen some very talented people on Etsy from Canada, Australia and Europe as well, but I am too impatient to order from them! It's not even the cost of shipping, most offer very competitive rates, it's knowing I'll have to wait a couple of weeks to get my beads. I'm not sure how this is any different than waiting for made to order beads, since they can take that long as well. I guess I may have some flawed logic, which may need some reconsideration.

I also posted some fantastic pieces in my shop featuring beads by my friend nikki, of Bastile Bleu on Etsy. Look for bracelets named "Day At The Zoo", "Reflections In Gray", and a piece yet to be listed called "Laughing Heart". She does a fantastic job with her beads and offers a wide variety of styles to chose from. You have to check out her new baby dragon hatchlings! These are adorable! I'm getting one for myself since I am a dragon by the Chinese zodiac, even though no one ever believes I could be a dragon...(she says sarcastically!)

I've got another cupcake bracelet finished and ready to list. This one even has matching earrings... I'm not going to show a picture of it here yet.. it's so cute! I'll unveil it later this week in my Etsy shop!

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Childhood Favorites...

Do you have a childhood favorite? I am speaking primarily of food here. Those things we ate mostly when we were kids, but still occasionally visit from time to time, because, they are just good. I am currently having a cream cheese and olive sandwich. Sound odd? Green olives, the standard grocery store type stuffed with pimento, sliced up and stirred into some good old Philly cream cheese. I spread mine on some miltons whole grain bread, I must say it's rather tasty! Where did this come from, I have no idea other than it is what my mother routinely made us for lunch. I began taking them to school for awhile when I was in high school, at first to the horror of my friends, only to start a new lunch trend with anyone inclined towards the flavor of olives and cream cheese. Their parents probably thought they were off their rockers, but it's not so bad for you! Not low fat, mind you, but it can safely sit in a lunch box till it's time to eat.

When you start to think about it, we have quite a few family foods that started as kid foods, that we still eat at our house. Another favorite is tomato soup and noodles, probably the poor mans spaghettio's, but my daughter, who is almost 15 still loves it. I am sure I could think of several others, but I am going to get back to eating my sandwich...

Friday, February 20, 2009

Does Starbucks Have a Treatment Center Or Support Group?

I just got done paying the bills, I put it off as long as possible, only to have a pile of debit receipts a mile high to enter into the check register. I noticed a trend while I was performing this tedious task, there were quite a number of Starbucks receipts. I will admit that I did contribute a few, but the majority belonged to another member of this household. I am beginning to wonder if I should look into some type of out-patient treatment program or a possible support group. At the very least I think we should look into buying stock, since we would be supporting our own interests that way.

Bob did just win a bunch of gift certificates to Starbucks from a local radio station, they are only for the new line of tea lattes, which he will drink, and they expire on February 28th 2009, so we have to use them up quickly. I feel I will have a tea/caffeine charged weekend ahead of me. Thank goodness they now have a drive through close by. I put on a hat to hide the unwashed state of my locks, get into my cozy slippers, throw my Quinn, trusted golden retriever, go with guy, companion extraordinaire, in the car, and off we go. The gals in the drive through are usually so enamored by Quinn they don't even notice the mess that I am...

You can check in with my shop later this weekend to see what all that caffeine may have accomplished..

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

New Listings In My Shop!!!!

Well, I finally have made, photographed and listed the first of my cupcake creations in my Etsy Shop. I am very please with how it turned out.
I added another bracelet today and will continue to add pieces throughout the week. I still have more pictures to take, but I am taking a more calm approach to my process these days. I am not trying to take too many pictures at once, which then just overwhelms me in the editing process. That part tends to be a bit tedious as it is, so I think I am doing better taking it in smaller chunks. I am updating my slide show tonight, so some of the items not yet listed will be on there. If you see something there that is not listed and you are interested, just leave me a message here or contact me through my Etsy shop

I bought a set of beads from a seller on Etsy and I just love them! I knew when I bought them, they were for me, and when they arrived, I was certain that the only place they were going was around my wrist! I made the cutest bracelet out of them! I can duplicate this design if anyone is interested. I just need a little extra time since these are special order beads. As long as the artist still has them available I'd be happy to make this for someone else, but this one is MINE!

My head hasn't been too happy this week, so that has slowed down my creative streak a bit. I will try to get back to my beads tomorrow. If not, there are always more pictures to take. The amazing thing about running this business is I really am enjoying it, despite the fact that I spend a ridiculous amount of time doing it. I am getting better at balancing it out with the rest of my life, but it certainly takes effort to figure that part out!

Oh! Wednesday tomorrow, only three days till the weekend!

Monday, February 16, 2009

Did Somebody Say SALE???

OK, It sounds more exciting than it actually is, since it isn't so much a new sale, as much a continuation of the previous one... I added a sale section to my Etsy shop and put the remaining valentine pieces in there. I will probably begin adding items I feel aren't selling and are just taking up space in the shop as time goes on. I feel I need to do some spring cleaning, so I am certain a spring sale is on the horizon. I have a lot of stock right now in my shop and it's just not all getting looked at. I know there are some really great pieces, but when they sit on the back pages, they just don't really get viewed.

I have had a fairly productive weekend. I made quite a few bracelets, and I'd give you a sneak peek here, but I haven't made made it to the photo part yet, so that will have to wait. I need to update my slide show that plays at the bottom of the page since quite a few things on there are sold. I will add a bunch of my new items onto there this week, I promise. I have been able to get the laundry done, did the dishes, have dinner cooking, had Emily vacuum and dust(thank goodness for slave labor!), I even got Bob to clean up his mess, although he didn't like my approach very much!

I have a lot more beads still in the mail... I have made some SUPER cute stuff for the shop! Including the much talked about cupcakes! I am amazed at the array of talented lampwork artist I have been able to find. They all bring something different to the party! It's so much fun! I really enjoy working with this type of bead! They are just fascinating!

I should have some pictures taken tonight and new listings going up in my Etsy shop little by little this week! Thanks for stopping by

Friday, February 13, 2009

Three Day Weekend!!!

Who doesn't look forward to a three day weekend? I guess the people who aren't having one... Sorry Bob. I think I will get a lot of beading done this weekend. I got in a whole bunch of fantastic lampwork beads, with more still to come. I've stocked up on some nice Bali silver pieces, still waiting for a bit of that to arrive, as well. I tried out a few new sellers this time around, mostly from Etsy, one from eBay, whom I since discovered also sells on Etsy.

I have so many ideas floating around in my head right now, I need to find time to create, so I came clear out some brain space! I go to sleep beading, wake up beading, and think about things I could be doing with the beads as I am opening the packages when they arrive.

Things are definitely going to be more whimsical for spring and summer. I can't help myself with all the fun beads I have found. I will still have some normal stuff, or as normal as I get. Look for some nice bright colors, I have a great set of bugs that will make it's debut in several pieces, some delicious strawberries, and of course, the much talked about cupcakes! I have plenty more ocean/sea/beach themed pieces planned with a good bit of whimsy involved. I will post some of my finished pieces here, but all items of course will be in my Etsy shop as I get them made. If you are interested in something custom don't hesitate to contact me. I'd love to work on something special. You can leave me a message here or contact me through my Etsy shop.

Tuesday, February 10, 2009

More Cupcakes!!!

Well, I just couldn't help myself, I had to custom order some cupcake beads! The one I got in the set of beads I bought was so cute I just HAD to have more. The custom ones are pink,black white and lime... seem like a familiar color theme??? The second set is pink and brown. I can't wait to get them! I ordered them from mmaazebeads.etsy.com She does such a good job on these cute little things!

I am not sure how many of these will actually make it into my shop! I may have to keep them all for myself! But you can check my Etsy shop to see if any of them actually make it into a bracelet in the near future.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

Naked Toes

It's a beautiful sunny day, it even feels warm if you stand in the sun, despite just being just 50 some degrees. It has me thinking about getting a spa pedicure. Every time I take a shower, I look down at my poor, sad, naked toes. I always take off the last remnants of my final summer pedicure when it looks too trashy for my taste. So I am left with an entire late fall and winter, plus early spring having naked toes. My theory is that it's good to go with no polish on them for two reasons. One, no one but me sees them, since my feet spend all those months locked away in socks and slipper or shoes. Two, I think it's good to give the nails a little time to breath, since having polish on them, while very pretty, isn't exactly natural!

Now honestly, I won't go get a pedicure until there is a pretty good chance that my feet will be visible for more than the time it takes me to shower daily. I am kind of a cold person, temperature wise, so this won't be happening for awhile here. I'm just not someone you'll find wearing flip flops in the winter. So for now I will just dream about my next trip to happy toe land.

Friday, February 6, 2009

Cupcakes!!!!

I just bought a bead set that has to be one of the cutest set of beads I have ever found!

I thought the set was adorable, then I noticed, THE CUPCAKE!!!! That did it for me! I had to buy it! This gal sells beads on Etsy, and usually does sets with lots of cupcakes, but I liked the variety offered here... Plus you get a CUPCAKE!!!! Look for these beads in the future in my Etsy shop They will make such a cute bracelet!

Speaking of cupcakes, if you like the edible variety and are ever in Portland, Oregon, you must visit Saint Cupcake. This place is heavenly! I think they picked the right name! They sell regular size cupcakes, but they also sell what they call dots, little one-two bite cupcakes. This way you can try several different cupcakes in one visit with out appearing to be total pig!
I absolutely love this place. I wanted to take a friend there on Monday, but they are closed on Mondays! What's up with bakeries being closed on Mondays? I think I need to start a "people need pastries on Mondays" petition! We we're going to go to another bakery that same Monday and they were close too! These places need to find Monday bakers! A girl needs her cupcakes!!!!

Valentines Day Sale!!!!

My Etsy Shop is having it's first ever sale! 15% off selected Valentines Day Bracelets! This sale runs through Valentines Day only, and is on items marked with a sale banner listing a sale price. These pieces are primarily from my Parisian Valentine Collection. You can view them on the main page or by clicking on the Parisian Valentine section. As I list new items, these will move further down the main page and will be less visible, so they maybe more easily found by using the sections on the right hand side of the page. I think I will be starting to do some seasonal type sales, especially on pieces that are more themed in that manner. Thanks for stopping by!

Wednesday, February 4, 2009

Just Hit 100

My little personal Etsy shop mile stone happened today. I obtained and then surpassed 100 hearts! That felt good! Thank you to all how have stopped by, visited, and shopped! I appreciate the support! So here's to the next 100... I'm sure it will come!

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Working Out the Kinks...

After about 17 attempts, I finally figured out how to get links into my new template. It was automatic before, now I have to put them in. Apparently I am a SLOW learner when it comes to this technical computer stuff. I guess the good news is, I'm not likely to forget how to do it now! I am off to list more items in my shop,www.junipergems.etsy.com. The link should work!!!!

A Brand New Look!!!

I bought a book on blogging since I am not a computer genius by trade and I have already made some significant strides just in one evening! I was able to find this cool template in pink, black and white, to which I added just a touch of lime. I rather like it!

I went to my favorite book store in downtown Portland, Powell's books. If you are ever in Portland it's worth a stop, if you read anything! They are an independently owned store that takes up an entire city block and is at least 4 stories high. They sell both new and used books. It's book heaven! I was able to find a book I was looking for there, used, in perfect condition for almost half price, plus on additional book on the same subject.

I have been adding new pieces to my esty shop(www.junipergems.etsy.com) every couple of days. I am trying to find a balance with my time. Time to make, time to photograph, edit, write copy, list, time to grocery shop, do the laundry, pay the bills, go to work, yes, the day job... I can't say I feel terribly successful in any one area daily. I can get a few things done, but never all. Something always suffers. Tonight I "made" dinner with a take and bake pizza, that's it, no salad, nothing! How sad! (Not that the 14 year old complained!)

I did have a lovely outing today with a girlfriend I meet at my favorite french bakery. They make a fantastic quiche, to which I added a chocolate almond croissant and tea. It was quite a nice afternoon.

I just got a couple of new beads sets from www.bastillebleu.etsy.com and they are tres magnifique! Beautiful beads and the packaging was too cute for words! Like a gift to self only better!

I had today off, teacher planning day or something, but tomorrow it's back to the grind! Emily has the day off, so she is coming to work with me. She tries to act like she doesn't want to, but she's not really putting up a fight, so I think she secretly wants to go. I told her all the little kids think the high school kids are super hero's when they come in.

Hope you like my new look

 
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