Contrariwise ramblings

2 weekends ago I went to a bead show. I was like a kid in a candy shop. (Ooooo. All those bright shiny things! Did I need them? Probably not. Did I want them? What do you think. )

I added quite a few things to my stash of beads as you can see on the right.

I thnk I must have an infatuation with iridescence, because I bought a lot of labradorite, kyanite, and abalone. I really love the way they pick up the light. Unfortunately, they don't photograph too well, which is always a trial when I'm trying to take pictures of them for my online shop.

Anyway, I thought you might be interested in a few new pieces that I've made from these recent purchases.

The first thing I made was this ring. I'm not really sure what the bead is made of. (Anyone know? I think it may be little pieces of abalone assembled into a mosaic.) I love the way the little mosaic pieces glow with different shades of blue. And when the light hits them just right, you can see flashes of pink.

As soon as I saw these beads, I knew they would look great as the centerpiece of a ring. I couldn't wait to get home and make one!

On the left is the finished ring. I already got a commision to make a ring in a larger size. It's also listed in my online shop.

I only bought 3 of these beads because they were pretty expensive. Now I want to kick myself because I didn't get more.

Next, the kyanite. (You can see them in the lower left corner in my stash photo, above.)

My local bead shop sells this stone, but the price is OUTRAGEOUS. I love the look of it. It reminds me of ancient Roman glass. The kind that's been in the ground for centuries and, after it's dug up, is weathered and has a wonderful almost rainbow-like iridescence.

The long, teardrop-shaped beads would be perfect for earrings and for pendants. I made a couple of versions of earrings. I thought these beads would look good in a simple contemporary style which would focus attention to them. So I made earring that had a single long drop hung from a silver earwire. No wire wrapping. They looked OK, but I wasn't that enamored with them.

Then I tried wire-wrapping the kyanite beads and pairing them with some faceted moonstones that I had. The kyanite has a slightly rustic look to it, which I thought would be enhanced if I oxidized the sterling. Plus, oxidized silver would make the moonstones pop.

You can see these earrings on the right.

Look! Look! I even managed to pick up the blue iridescence of the moonstones in this photo! (Sorry, I had to brag. It's so hard to capture it. For each photo that captures some glimmer, they are 50 that are rejects.)

I like the way the blue flashes of the moonstones complement the blue of the kyanite.

I'm also started working on a necklace with one of the kyanite beads as a centerpiece last night. Only the center of the necklace is finished. (Sorry, it's not the best photo.) The kyanite pendant is flanked by about 7 inches of sterling "chain". Rather than have the chain go all the way around the neck, the rest of the necklace will be a gemstone. The clasp in the back will match the chain.

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When you are just starting out with a business and money is tight, sometimes you have to make do with what you have. Even though a lot of inexpensive printing options are available, maybe you can't afford to get pretty business cards printed yet. Or maybe you haven't met many people, so you only need a few cards for right now.

If you have Microsoft Office, you can easily create your own custom business cards. (Although the steps may not be obvious.) Printing your own business cards can be an pretty affordable - of course you have to figure in the costs of the cardstock or labels, and the cost of color cartridges.

This is how I created my business cards. (It may seem like a lot of instructions, but it's really not hard at all.)


1. Open a blank document in Word. On the Tools menu, point to Letters and Mailings, and then click Envelopes and Labels.




2. You'll see a dialog box, like the one below, open. Click on the labels tab and then on the options button




3. Next the Label Options dialog box will open. Make sure the drop-down says Avery Standard and then scroll the Product Number down to 5371. Click OK.







4. Back in the Envelopes and Labels dialog box, make sure under Print, it says full page of the Same Label. Then click New Document.

A table appears with a bunch of 2 inch x 3.5 inch cells:




5. Now you can start setting up your first business card.


To add your logo or a picture, choose InsertPictureFrom File. Find your logo file on your hard drive and insert it.

(BTW, I created the "C" using PowerPoint.)


6. Add your contact information on the card. If you want to add a tab to move some text over within the table cell, press Ctrl+Tab. (Just pressing tab by itself moves you to the next cell.)





7. Once you have one card set up the way you like it, click and drag to highlight it. Press Ctrl+C to copy it. Then move to the next cell and press Ctrl+V to paste it in.



8. If you have the perforated Avery stock, all you have to do is run it through your printer and tear them apart. If you don't have the prefab stuff, or you don't want to use it, you can still do cards on plain old (cheapie) card stock and cut them yourself.

If you want to print them on card stock (like I did), it's a lot easier to cut them out if you put a very light border on the table.



Choose TableSelect Table:


And then choose FormatBorders and Shading:


In the Borders tab, click Grid. In the color drop-down choose Gray-25%:


In the Width drop-down change it to 1/4 point:


After you print it out, get out your X-acto knife or scissors or use a paper cutter and start cutting on the lines.

There you have it! Quick and easy business cards right from Microsoft Word.

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I just took my first jewelry class the other week. It was a silversmithing course to make a silver pendant with a stone.

It was SO MUCH FUN! Lookie at what I made!

I bezel-set the stone, using a propane torch to solder it to the sterling back, which I cut freehand, using a pair of scissors.

I had brought a stone that I wanted to set as a pendant, but the instructor didn't think it would be the best for the project - the back of it wasn't flat. But he had brought a bunch of stones that he cut and polished himself for us to pick from. So I went through his pile and finally settled this red one that you see above.

I asked him what kind of stone it was.

He looked at the stone. Then he looked at me. The he gave out a long drawn out sigh and coughed a few time.

After he got everyone's attention it was time for a story.

It seems that he had been out in Arizona a while ago, looking for fossils to bring back as specimans for his classroom.

Well, not fossils, exactly. Coprolites.

One of his old friends had a dinosaur on his property that he had been digging out for quite a while. As the story goes, it was a raptor, and whatever had killed it, must have scared it sh%tless because there was a big pile of dinosaur poo at the base of his tale.

Well he dug up this prize speciman and displayed it in his classroom for a number of years. He also cut and polished chunks of it.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, my pendant is fosilized dinosaur crap.

Nice color, isn't it.

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A few crafty links.

Bottle cap necklace.
Here's a craft I found on the HGTV website: how to make a personalized bottle cap necklace.

I think this would be fun to make and would even be a great craft to do with an older child. (Mommy daughter bonding opportunity!)

I did a little googling and found out this HGTV tutorial was created by an etsy seller, Reillybelle! She creates jewelry out of every day objects like buttons, bottle caps, nuts from the hard ware store, and legos for children and adults. She also has a website. (Let me tell you, I am so impressed with her photography - you should visit her site for inspiration.)

Hammered Silver Cuff.
Loose Wire Studio posted a tutorial on how to make a hammered silver cuff.

I just took a class on metal working this week (Yes, I'll be posting about it sometimes soon) and this tutorial just makes me want to go out and try it!

Loose Wire Studio also has an Etsy shop here.

This is from her profile:

"How it began: A few years ago, some friends began to join together in the spirit of crafts. At the time I was doing woodworking, but this was hard to bring to a dining room table of crafters, so I began the pursuit of beading. This led to working with wire and recently metalwork.

Each piece includes the wisdom from the one before. Each bead find or natural inspiration finds its way into my work, or at least my notes.">

Just for fun:

GQ interview with Keith Richards.
Do I even need to say it's rambling?

(BTW, I hope the picture on the right didn't scare you away. It really was the least scary recent photo I could find. Here's a much scarier one. But remember, you were warned.)

Q: You should sell your body on eBay.
A: Yeah, I think so. Apparently, I do have an incredible immune system. I had hepatitis C and cured it by myself.

Q: How?
A: Just by being me.

Q: Do you regret not moisturizing your face?
A: No. I leave that up to other people.

Q: Ever think about getting Botox?
A: No one's ever talked me into doing that. You're lucky if you walk out of there alive. God bless you.


Q: Are you still cutting your own hair? You've done that all your life, right?
A: Yes. I did this bit here yesterday. [holds up a few strands on the side of his head] Also, I'm letting the dye grow out, since I'm not on the road. If the wife likes it, I'll keep it.


Awwwwwwww:

After that interview, and picture, I thought you would need some eye bleach. Here's a sweet story about a kangaroo and dog.

Four-month old kangaroo was in his mother’s pouch when she was killed by a car in Torquay, Victoria, Australia. The unharmed joey would normally have died, but Rex the mixed-breed dog took the roo to his owner, Leonie Allan. “I’d taken Rex for a walk and we’d gone past the dead kangaroo that morning, and later I was working out the front and he started pointing,” Ms Allan said. “I was worried he’d found a snake and called him back, but when he returned he dropped the joey at my feet. “He obviously sensed the baby roo was still alive in the pouch and somehow had gently grabbed it by the neck, gently retrieved it and brought it to me.” The kangaroo was calm and even snuggled up with Rex. Now named Rex Jr, the joey is under the care of the Jirrahlinga Wildlife Sanctuary, and will be released at 18 months of age.

Life explained:

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Computers are just getting smarter all the time.
(All hail google!)

via

Yesterday I started the story about a recent commission I got to make 8 Prayer Bracelets for a friend of mine, my first Etsy customer.

Luckily, I have a pretty large collection of glass beads that I've collected over the years, so finding pretty glass beads would not be an issue. The most important thing was finding prayer box charms.

I checked my local beadstores; only one of them carried prayer box charms - but the store only had 2 and I needed 8! So it was off to the online shops.

I think I must have checked half a dozen online suppliers. In most of them the nice sterling prayer boxes were pretty pricey - about $20 and up! (With the recent increase in silver prices, I guess I shouldn't have been surprised.) My friend and I were considering going to silver-plate because of this. But then I finally found some reasonably priced ones at Thunderbird Supply. My friend chose the ones she liked - actually not the typical charms I've seen on Prayer Bracelets at online shops - and I ordered them.

At this point I had 8 days left to make the bracelets.

From my experience, I usually get my supplies from Thunderbird in 5 days. Yes, I was cheap and didn't get the expedited delivery. And, yes, you guessed it, they didn't arrive within 5 days.

I had all 8 bracelets ready and waiting to add the charms.

Then I waited.

And waited.

I got worried and began thinking up contingiency plans if I didn't get the prayer box charms on time: The wedding aniversary party was going to be in another state. Could I FedEx finished bracelets there when I got the boxes?

I didn't tell my friend because she's a worrier. I kept hoping the package from Thunderbird Supplies would arrive before had to leave.

Finally, on the evening before I was supposed to deliver the bracelets to my friend, I found the long-awaited cardboard box containing the supplies waiting on my doorstep! So I spent most of the evening adding the prayer boxes to the bracelets.

The next day I brought the bracelets to work to deliver them to my friend. It would be the first time she saw them. Would she like them? Would she be disappointed?



The bracelets were individually boxed up in gift boxes. She opened them oh so slowly and admired each individually before going to the next box.

She said it was just like Christmas morning. She must have spent half an hour trying them on and deciding which of them she wanted for herself. (It ended up that she couldn't decide. She was leaning toward the blue one. But she still had a few days to make a final decision.)

I was so happy that she was pleased with them. And I can't wait to hear about the 50th wedding anniversary party - and who ended up with which bracelet.

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I haven't been posting as much in this blog for the last couple weeks. Between work, spring break, and a new commission I got, I've been pretty busy.

The commission I received came from the very first customer from my Etsy shop! Yes she helped start my business. She's an old friend of mine. Her parents will be celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary with a small party and she wanted to give prayer bracelets to the eight ladies at the celebration.

I had never heard of prayer bracelets before. So I had to do a little research on the internet. I found out that these bracelets always have a little box on them that contains a prayer. And while you wear the bracelet, it reminds you of the prayer and God's blessings to you. Here are the boxes that are often used in these bracelets:
Most of the bracelets available on the internet seemed to have a similar style, which I thought my friend would expect. The bracelets usually were made of swarovski crystals or round beads with spacers. So I sent her some typical examples from the internet, thinking she could pick out the style/beads and then I could make something similar.

Well she didn't like any of them very much.

Uh oh.

Apparently her idea of a prayer bracelet was not what was typical on the internet So I then sent her photos of all kinds of styles of bracelets, examples of styles from the internet as well as some of my own creations, all of which could be used as a prayer bracelet by simply adding a prayer bos.

It turned out that she liked my work better than any of the others!

On the left is a picture of the bracelet she liked.

Now I had about 10 days to make eight bracelets for her, including getting supplies.

My suggestion was to make them all similar, using identical prayer boxes, clasps, and silver spacers for each. But then make them unique by using different types and colors of glass beads for each.


Luckily, I have a pretty large collection of glass beads that I've collected over the years, so this would not be an issue. The most important thing was finding the prayer boxes and finishing the bracelets on time.

Tomorrow I'll write about my search for the prayer boxes and tell you about how this commission turned out!

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Twice a year, there's a small Gem and Mineral Show at the local fairgrounds. Of course it doesn't compare to the ones in Arizona or other cities out west. But, short of traveling out there, it's the best that I have and I look forward to it.

I hit the show on Saturday - so many pretty and shiny things! But I always hold back. My husband will just see the receipts and shake his head. Do I really need another strand of beads?

I only bought a few things.

Of course I went home and thought about what I had missed out on. Why didn't I buy some mother of pearl beads which are priced HALF of what I would pay at my local bead shop? How about those kyanite beads which I've been lusting after for so long?? Then what about the many things that were just so unusual??? Why didn't I buy them?!!!

Luckily the show was still open on Sunday - and the admission was good for both days!

Yes I went back. I always do. And I always spend WAY too much money

Here are the latest additions to my stash:

Some labrodorite, prehnite, mother of pear, kyanite (aren't those long beads wonderful!) and some other stuff! It may not look like all that much, but I spent more than a couple hundred dollars. And that's after the silver order I placed this week - about $250 ! I'm sure that most jewelry artists think this is a really minor purchase, but I only do this part time as a hobby so this is quite a lot for me. (Selling my jewelry helps with the costs. So far I've been pretty much breaking even.)

The first thing I made was a brand new ring from some amazing mother-of-pearl mosaic beads. (I already listed the ring in my online shop!) I'd never seen any like these beads before and I probably paid too much - but they're so pretty! They have an amazing flash. (I only bought 3 beads.)

Tomorrow I'm taking a jewelry class on how to make bezel-set pendants- the first jewelry class I've ever taken in my life! I bought a fossil just for tomorrow. (You can see it in the upper center in my stash.) I thought it would look great set and hung from some turqoise heishi.

I'm going to bring my camera to the class and take some photos. I'll plan on posting them later this week!

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A few crafty links.

I found this great site called Crafty thoughts from Crafts forum Members which has tons of tutorials. One that I thought was really cute and really great for the spring is a card with a pinwheel on it. It's perfect whether or not March comes in like a lion or goes out like a lamb. The tutorial seems like a lot of fun.


A couple of years ago, I asked for an iPod for my birthday. All 3 of my kids already had one and I felt a little envious. I love electronics and thought that an iPod would be fun to play with. My husband bought me on of the more expensive models - I was tempted to return it because of the cost. But I'm so glad I didn't, because I use it all the time. I travel a lot and I take it with me everywhere. I even installed an iPod adapter in my Mini Cooper so that I can play on the way to work. I really never expected how much pleasure it would give me!

The one thing I really should have done is bought a protective cover for it. But I thought that that was a bit silly : buying things for my things. Can you believe it! But the iPod does tend to scratch.

So when I saw this tutorial for a nano, I thought it would be a great thing to make. (Pity I don't sew!)

You got to admit it's adorable!
Just for fun:
10 historically inaccurate movies

We all accept that movies stretch the truth in the interest of building drama. The following ten flicks, however, treat the truth like it was Silly Putty -- pulling and twisting it until it's unrecognizable.

10,000 B.C.Director Roland Emmerich is usually a stickler for realism (see: sending a computer virus via Macintosh to aliens in Independence Day). So we hate to inform him that woolly mammoths were not, in fact, used to build pyramids. Heck, woolly mammoths weren't even found in the desert. They wouldn't need to be woolly if that were the case. And there weren't any pyramids in Egypt until 2,500 B.C or so. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

GladiatorEmperor Commodus was not the sniveling sister-obsessed creep portrayed in the movie. A violent alcoholic, sure, but not so whiny. He ruled ably for over a decade rather than ineptly for a couple months. He also didn't kill his father, Marcus Aurelius, who actually died of chickenpox. And instead of being killed in the gladiatorial arena, he was murdered in his bathtub. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

300Though this paean to ancient moral codes and modern physical training is based on the real Battle of Thermopylae, the film takes many stylistic liberties. The most obvious one being Persian king Xerxes was not an 8-foot-tall Cirque du Soleil reject. The Spartan council was made up of men over the age of 60, with no one as young as Theron (played by 37-year-old Dominic West). And the warriors of Sparta went into battle wearing bronze armor, not just leather Speedos. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

The Last Samurai

The Japanese in the late 19th century did hire foreign advisers to modernize their army, but they were mostly French, not American. And they certainly were not Scientologists. (ARGHHHH!) Ken Watanabe's character was based on the real Saigo Takamori who committed ritual suicide, or "seppuku," in defeat rather than in a volley of Gatling gun fire. Also, it's doubtful that a 40-something alcoholic Civil War vet, even one with great hair, would master the chopsticks much less the samurai sword. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

ApocalyptoThis one movie has given entire Anthropology departments migraines. Sure the Maya did have the odd human sacrifice but not to Kulkulkan, the Sun God, and only high-ranking captives taken in battle were killed. Yes the movie was entertaining, but when have you ever seen a complete solar eclipse that lasts for approximately 2 minutes - the time it takes to save the protagonist. Sigh. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

Memoirs of a Geisha The movie wasn't nearly as good as the book, and the book was just OK.

The geisha coming-of-age, called "mizuage," was really more of a makeover, where she changed her hairstyle and clothes. It didn't involve her getting... intimate with a client. In the climactic scene where Sayuri wows Gion patrons with her dancing prowess, her routine - which involves some platform shoes, fake snow, and a strobe light - seems more like a scene from Flashdance (and we all know how realistic THAT was) than anything in pre-war Kyoto. Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

Braveheart

According to the movie, Wallace's blue-eyed charm at the Battle of Falkirk was so overpowering, he seduced King Edward II's wife, Isabella of France, and the result of their affair was Edward III. But according to the history books, Isabella was three years old at the time of Falkirk, and Edward III was born seven years after Wallace died.

Who cares, though. We got to see Mel Gibson, in his prime, in a kilt. Movie Info   Production Photos

Elizabeth: The Golden Age

In 1585, when the movie takes place, Queen Elizabeth was 52 years old - Cate Blanchett was 36 when she shot the film - and was not being courted by suitors like Ivan the Terrible (who was dead by then). And though the movie has her rallying the troops at Tilbury astride a white steed in full armor with a sword, in fact she rode side saddle, carrying a baton. She was more of a regal majorette than Joan of Arc.

Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

The Patriot

Revolutionary War figure Francis "The Swamp Fox" Marion was the basis for Mel Gibson's character, but he wasn't the forward-thinking family man they show in the flick. He was a slave owner who didn't get married (to his cousin) until after the war was over. Historians also say that he actively persecuted and murdered native Cherokees. Plus, the thrilling Battle of Guilford Court House where he vanquishes his British nemesis? In reality, the Americans lost that one.

Movie Info   Trailers & Clips   Production Photos

2001: A Space Odyssey

According to this film, in year 2001 we would have had manned voyages to Jupiter, a battle of wits with a sentient computer, and a quantum leap in human evolution. Instead we got the Mir Space Station falling from the sky, Windows XP, and Freddy Got Fingered. Apparently the lesson here is that sometimes it's better when the movies get the facts all wrong.

Crafting links

How cute is this! What a great thing to do with the kids for Easter or spring! I have never seen these before but I think I'm going to have to make them with my daughter. My only problem are the robin egg whoppers I like them so much I refuse to buy them because I might go through an entire bag in one sitting. I think I'll be much safer using jelly beans. ).Directions on how to make your own chocolate bird's nest are from The Angry Chicken.

Did you know that The Graphics Fairy posts a free Vintage & Victorian clipart download every day!

The graphics are part of her large collection and include old wallpaper, early photos, advertising pieces, Victoriana scraps, and other assorted ephemera.

They make me want to run right out and try my hand at making a collage.

You're free to use all clip art and photos, with the exception of the banner, in any of your projects created for resale or pleasure. (You are asked, however, to limit yourself to just 4 vintage cliparts per project.)

Decorating eggs is a custom that dates back before what we know as Easter was ever celebrated. Eggs are a symbol of spring, renewal, and fertility for many cultures. And sometimes they are works of art.

Here's a link to six ways to color easter eggs. Some of these you're familiar with. some of these are amazing. And some are quite a bit different. And none of them use PAAS.

The article contains links to tutorials for all of them.

Accent Yourself Jewelry creates Briolette Flower Pendants using both semi-precious and glass briolette beads and a variety of smaller beads for the center of the flower.

She's been kind enought to create a tutorial on how it done!

Links that amuse me:

• We've all heard of urban legends, those plausible sounding but false stories that circulate so widely on email and news groups, such as the old lady who microwaved her cat, or the Nieman-Marcus $250 cookie recipe. Well, this site debunks Kitchen Urban Legends

• Neverland Ranch. Amazing collection of photographs that were taken this month.

• A trip to Bed Bath & Beyond can reveal a startling truth: the names behind behind many kitchen tools sound a lot like torture devices. Can you tell the difference? Test your knowledge: Medieval torture device? or Bed, Bath, and Beyond Kitchen gadget?
  
  
  
  
• Take the Booze Test and check how well you know your liquor. Obviously I know my stufff:
  
  

  
  
  

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