New Stuff and Stuff

I am finishing up wallets left and right here and thought I would go ahead and list one today!  So here we go!  This one in red, rust, purple, and brown is now all set for it's new home in my Etsy shop.  It has been really busy the last few days but fun and busy which is my favorite.  A little bit of sewing, a visit to the pumpkin patch, helping in Ed's classroom, the school carnival, and getting ready for the very many birthdays that October brings us, not to mention Halloween!  Luckily, the kids both have their costumes already.  Just a little bit of fussing and fixing and all will be done for the big day!  I for see many fun times ahead. Happy October!

A Huge Pink Spider

Spider Body

Spider Body with it's legs

Spider with Ed's cool socks

Hairless Spider with Sparkly Green Eyes

Spider with Pink Hair

So, I was instructed last weekend to make a "big, fuzzy, pink and purple, tarantula with sparkles all over it by my soon to be four year old.  She wanted a pinata, but ended up with a fuzzy pink spider sculpture with purple sparkly legs.  We are reading a lot about spiders here these days, and seeing a lot of our beautiful garden spiders or "pumpkin spiders" out along our walkway and all over town.  I find it hilarious that both of my kids are terrified of spiders but have welcomed the big pink spider into our home without even flinching.  I guess it's because it's kind of goofy looking.  Well, that has been my project for the week.  Ed is having her birthday party tomorrow with lots of rainbows, flowers, and butterflies so we are super busy cleaning and decorating for that.  I hope to have lots of pictures of her big day to share.  Monday, I will get to do some leathery work since the birthday craziness will be over for a bit AND I finished both of the kids' Halloween costumes!  I can't wait to sew up the piles and piles of leather that have overtaken my art table.  I miss it so:)

I Don't Have Time For This!

Not today anyways. I woke up feeling like I was underwater. My head is all stuffy, my legs are achy, and my belly feels like a slept with a pile of bricks on top of it. Weird! I am trying so desperately to be ready for this weekend's fun and games and now I feel like a big steamy turd! Maybe a little nap will help. The very vivid dreams I've been having lately don't help much. I awoke from one involving submarines, alien sea monsters, toothpicks, foil wrapped chicken, marshmallows, and a sling shot................... I would love to have that one interpreted.

In happier news,my little sister is celebrating her birthday today! Happy Birthday Kiara! Have a lovely day!
AND

The little tortoise egg is doing well. It developed a very distinct dark spot and a is now growing an opaque band around it's center, just like it's supposed to. Oh happy day! I sure hope the little guy/gal is comfy and warm. It would be so cool to have another shelled baby wandering around. We will see. I am thinking good and happy healthy baby thoughts.

Other than that it is work, work, work, (which I am loving, it feels good to be busy) and baking some pumpkin bread and pies. I promised my family I would not experiment this year, I do not want to repeat last year's disaster where I set our oven on fire and made a very hideous tasting pumpkin cheesecake.

Happy Birthday To Me!

Here is a picture of my new baby! I had a hard time getting a clear photo because of my caffeine buzz this morning. What a lovely birthday so far! I have had no sleep due to Ciaran's teething and when I changed him this morning he threw a huge fit and yanked out a handful of my hair. I was sad......... then I realized my new friend was waiting to make me some coffee, so then I was happy! Then I got on the computer to check all my usual, email, my shops, etc. then I saw that little Etsy "Happy Birthday nicaeli!" right next to all my shop info. Awww, someone remembered! Thanks Etsy! Now it's on to more coffee, finishing up a couple custom orders, more coffee, pizza, beer, and lemon meringue pie, oooh, that sounds like a stomach ache waiting to happen! I am not sure if my dinner and celebration will be in that order and then hopefully I will be able to catch Ghost Hunters International and then some much needed sleep.





I received this lovely piece in the mail yesterday from my Namaste Art Swap buddy. The photo doesn't do it justice, but I just wanted to share. It was made by Dina Miller who also has an Etsy shop called fairyfelts. I love this set of felted bowls and the little pin is so lovely. They are gorgeous! Thank you Dina:) What a great experience this art swap has been. I have to give a big Thank you to Tameka for getting this all started!

Mmmmmmmmmmm Coffee!

I just got the bestest ever birthday present from Mark! I got an espresso maker! Now I can make all sorts of crazy coffee drinks! AND THEY WILL ALL BE MINE! Really, it was a lovely surprise and I am so happy. Coffee is a life saver for me, especially this week! Hello little espresso maker, you are my new best friend!

Besides Professional Toast Burning.........

I finished a couple of other little projects that I wanted to share. I finished my piece for the Namaste Art Swap and which turned out amazing! I hope it's new owner will love it. It is a mash up of different pieces that I had been figuring out how to put together for years. I finally came up with this. The amethyst is amazing because it has so much going on in it. Lots of streaks and striations which I think make it beautiful.

Then I finished this little black and red purse. I really appreciate how easy it was to put together. It took a while to design and play around with but once I started working on it, it went together like a dream. Now I get to work on a few custom orders. Including another heart shaped wristlet, a snappy wallet, and four pouch/wallets. I am gonna be a busy girl! All this and my 39th birthday coming up this week wow! I think I'll go celebrate by burning more toast!

Stinker is 18 months Today!

I can't believe this little guy is already 18 months old. It goes by so darn fast! From wiggling, squirming, eating, pooping, and crying, to all those plus walking......I mean running, and talking. It has been the best adventure in my life so far. My little barnacle. I love him.

So today in honor of his 18 month birthday, Ciaran and I are going to visit Grammy and Grampy and go to the local woodfair. I don't know if this was exactly what Ciaran had in mind for his special day but he seems to love just to get out to flirt with anyone who will make eye contact with him. Then we head downtown for a donut, coffee, and one purple zipper, then to the park. Somewhere in there today I need to fit in some wallet sewing and ring making. Should be an adventure. I wish you all the best of weekends. Have fun!:)

Applewine and a Walk Downtown

I got to try the applewine last night. It is really good! I can't wait to have more than just a sip. Yummy, slightly sweet, kind of dry, like hard cider. Mark is getting pretty good at this brewing stuff. I hope he keeps his interest. Now everyone in the family wants to try his concoctions, mostly out of curiosity. I think everyone should be pleasantly surprised. The applewine should be ready by my birthday next month so I can celebrate my 39th with a nice cold glass! EEK! 39? Already? How did that happen?

Today, Ciaran and I are heading downtown to mail out a few parcels and pick up some interfacing and paint. I will probably cruise the thrift stores to see if there is any treasure to be had. It is a foggy day, not too cold, not too hot, just perfect for a walk. A perfect day for coffee, a cookie, the post office, the fabric store, and the thrift stores. I just found a pumpkin orange suede jacket yesterday, I can't wait to make things with it. I have been so inspired by the colors of the lupines and poppies growing along the highway, I really want to make a few items in those particular colors. The colors we have in this world are really amazing!

Later, I am hoping to get a few minutes to solder a pendant and a ring that I have been working on for ages. The ring is a mixture of copper and sterling silver, which will have an opal set in it, and the pendant is one of my fused sterling silver pieces. My real concern is the ring. I haven't soldered copper and silver together in a long time and this piece is a custom order for someone else. This is my second attempt at this project. I only solder when Ciaran is safely asleep so it might have to wait until late tonight. I will be the secret midnight solderer. I have my fingers crossed that all will go well. Soldering is tricky even when you know what you are doing. It gets really tricky when you pick it up after not doing it for a while. I hope I have good soldering energy tonight. Wish me luck!

Birthdays and Other Exciting Things

I finally finished my first expandable bag. I am very happy with it. I think I will play around with some different shapes and designs for a while and see what happens. I began this little bag as a small pouch with nothing more than a zipper closure but it seemed like a great shape for the particular bag design I was going for. Bag making is tricky stuff. I can pound on a piece of metal and figure out the sequence of events in my jewelry and other metall projects with no problem but handbag making still stumps me at times. I will keep on plugging away, Hopefully it will be successful journey for me.

Today my little, or not so little nephew turns fourteen years old. I can't believe that little purple squirming and screaming baby I fell in love with fourteen years ago is now a teenager. How does that happen so fast? I sure do miss him, we were the best of buddies when he was a little guy and now we send each other silly emails and share sickening jokes(yes, I have a very dark and silly sense of humor)all the time. It is still not the same as seeing him every day. I hope one day our whole family will be a little closer in distance so I can at least give him a big ol' hug on his birthdays. Well Happy Birthday! my dear nephew, I hope your fourteenth year is good to you.