Monday Housekeeping

Or maybe that should be "blogkeeping?" 'Cuz lord knows I am NOT a "house keeper." I am barely a "house maintainer."

But anyway, it just means I have a plethora of small, unrelated tidbits to post about today.

First off, thank you all for the BP comments! I really enjoy getting feedback on the blog because it helps me determine whether I'm providing content that people are enjoying or not. After all, there's no reason to keep posting on certain topics if they are actually boring the snot outta everyone.

Based on Friday's comments, I have not managed to dent your snot levels in the slightest so...I will keep on with the BP until I hear otherwise from the audience ;-)

Secondly, Keirsten Giles is having a giveaway for a pretty, pretty pair of earrings on her blog so go check it out and enter to win!

Next - it was a busy, busy weekend during which I pretty much accomplished nothing LOL!

I'm still playing and experimenting with resin and trying to determine if this is something I really want to pursue. I've certainly managed to ruin a LOT of pieces and the perfectionist in me is quietly going insane over this, but I'm trying to ignore her and just accept that this is parting LEARNING and that I will eventually get past the "ruination" stage and on to the "creating goodness" stage. So, I did manage to get some items prepped (artwork applied and accent items selected) but no actual resining took place.

That was Saturday while the kid and the ex were in the backyard building the kid's rocket for the upcoming Cub Scout Space Derby.

Sunday was my nephew's first birthday party. Evan was due last year exactly on the day of my dad's funeral so we all appreciate that he delayed his arrival for a couple of days long enough for us to get past that. The party was held at my sister-in-law's parent's house in Seal Beach. They have the cutest little two bedroom bungalow just one row of houses back from the beach. I'd never been to this particular beach before and I've heard that it can be really windy a lot of the time, but the weather decided to cooperate on Sunday and it was gorgeous. The water was freezing so the kids mostly played in the sand, but there were pelicans diving for fish and it was sunny and nice. I even managed to pick up a few tiny shells to incorporate into some of my resin pieces! Note: this beach is NOT a restricted marine area.

I was so tired when we got home that I didn't even get my normal Sunday jewelry photo shoot done. Thank goodness I finished a piece last week that I haven't posted yet:

The etched lime and turquoise lampwork beads are from I Make Beads on Etsy. The yellow Chinese glass beads are from Dragon Beads (a local bead show vendor) and the yellow Czech glass squares are from Kahn-Fagan.

The green heart is a dyed nut bead from OC Beads (a local bead store) and the sterling silver heart charm is from Hip Chick Beads. I originally made the bracelet without the charm, but I felt like it was lacking something and this seemed to be the perfect touch.

The etched turquoise resin beads are from Natural Touch and were part of my score from the Bowers show a week ago. See? I do sometimes use stuff right away without hoarding it.

Sometimes.

I contemplated using a more "artsy" clasp, but I felt like this bracelet already had a lot going on - especially with the bright colors and the braided strands - so I decided to keep it simple with just a plain sterling silver lobster clasp.

Now...it just needs a name. I have been running low on the name creativity lately...

Hope everyone had a good weekend!

KJ