Nothing But Pics

These are the medallions I have been working on. More my work and less lampwork beads. Inspiration thanks to Mary Hettsmansperger.

And of course I am still working with a lot of lampwork beads....because I have a lot of them :))

I meant to post these pics on Monday but I couldn't get my computer at home to upload them. It might have something to do with the fact that I am still on dial-up. I keep bugging Lou about getting something else. He runs Radiology IT for the hospital system that we work for. He can send a gazillion bytes of an x-ray as a digital image around the world.... but he can't get his wife something faster than dial-up. I could try to use my feminine wiles to get him to do it.....oh hell....who am I kidding there are no wiles about me....I more a bash him over the head type of woman. But as most women soon find out....if you want something done....do it yourself. So I am off to research whether cable or DSL is better. I can get a router from AT&T or get it through our cable company...although I heard that bandwidth can be compromised on cable if there are a lot of subscribers on line. No matter.... I plan to have something different soon.

Work Work Work Work

If it's not at the hospital...it's at home. I worked all weekend cleaning the house, doing laundry, and making jewelry. I'm going to try to take pics tomorrow. I made a number of ... what I call ... medallions. I just got some 3mm rubber cords in from Rio to hang them from. The cords are nice and thick and make for a substantial necklace. I need to make some additional accent pieces for the last few medallions and for a necklace/bracelet set of lampwork beads I have going. I'm going to try to do that this week.

I've finished doing my tracings of Parisii stater coins. The looked really good when I xeroxed the tracings. I now need to scan them and play with their size before I can turn them into textures plates. So much to do...so little time. I keep telling Lou I need to quit and do this full time. He just laughs at me.

And in my spare time I'm reading...The Private Lives of the Impressionists. It's focus is on Renoir, Cezanne, Pizarro, Monet, Manet, and Morisot (the only female)...how they started out in Paris and how they came together to form the Impressionist movement.

I'll post some pics in a few days.

Who Me??....Holy Crap!!

I've been so tired lately.... both physically and mentally. Work is just overwhelming. I've been too tired to do anything after work except curl up on the couch and sleep. But I think doing that for the last two weeks has done some good. Every once in a while I have this fantasy of just escaping from the world. Finding some cabin in the woods, someplace that I can just go to and "be". I think that's what I've been doing the last couple weeks....just coming home and "being".

I've made nice with the doc at work. We've worked together for 10 years...it was hard to be so upset with him. He was out of town for a week and we had to e-mail with each other to get some work done. The e-mails gradually got more friendly. It's a good feeling to be talking to him again.

In these past two weeks I have been contemplating giving up doing shows. When it comes down to it they are a major pain in the butt. Hauling all the stuff around and setting up/tearing down. Getting ripped off and dealing with persnickety customers. The idea of giving it all up is really appealing. And while I have been brooding over this I have let most of the application deadlines go by.... except for one. Today I got an e-mail from Ohio Designer Craftsman. I got accepted into the Craft Fair at Hathaway Brown. It is my first outdoor craft fair and what I consider to be my first real art show (vs. holiday boutiques). So all those thoughts about giving this up.....WHO ME?? I'm really excited about this. At 50 I'm doing my first art show. Look out Julia Child (she was 50 when she published her first cookbook). Besides...this might be a foot in the door to the ODCs Winterfair in Columbus. That show is huge.

So now I'm going.....HOLY CRAP!! Inventory is way down. I need to get cracking. No more laying on the couch for me. I've got to get it in gear and produce. You might be thinking...but it's 2 months away. Designing takes time and these 2 months are going to fly by. I'll start to work tomorrow. Luckily I have so much raw material in inventory I can work the entire 2 months and only have to purchase minor findings.

BTW....I've have no experience doing a tent show. Anyone have any advice or tips for a novice.....send them my way.

Costume Jewelry and Coco Chanel

So it's taken me a while to shake the funk that I was in. Nothing much has changed...going to work still feels like I am sinking in quicksand. I wish I would hit the lottery so I could quit....or find some bazillionaire who would supporting me while I explore and expand my skills and talents. Don't rich people do that...discover and support writers and artists. If ya'll know of anyone like that....send them my way.


So....my work has been referred to as "costume jewelry".... as in I don't buy "costume jewlery". Am I being dissed??? I always thought of costume jewelry as that cheap plastic stuff that you buy at K-Mart. Wikipedia describes it as fashion jewelry, junk jewelry or fake jewelry. Costume jewelry is jewelry that is made of less valuable materials including base metals, glass, plastics, and synthetic stones, in place of more valuable materials such as precious metals and gems. Costume jewelry is usually inexpensive, and often flashy. Its main use is in fashion, as opposed to "real" (fine) jewelry which may be regarded primarily as collectibles, keepsakes, or investments.


So I'm thinking I should be insulted. But I'm not. Primarily because I have no more rage in me....at least for now. I spewed it all two weeks ago. Also...if you do a search for costume jewelry on the intranet you will find that Coco Chanel is credited with creating costume jewelry. I know Coco Chanel created .... the little black dress, the Chanel suit, the perfume ... but I never knew about her life....until now. She was tough. She was born in the poorhouse and her mother died when she was 6 years old. Her father abandoned her to relatives. She went to Paris at the age of 16 with a millionare calvery officer. She opened a hat shop in 1914 and branched out to include clothes. She took up with a wealthy polo player in the 20's and also had a thing with the Duke of Westminster. From these two she was given jewels....which she copied and started her costume jewelry line. BTW...she turned down a marriage proposal from the Duke by saying "There are a lot of duchesses, but only one CoCo Chanel". During WWI she had a love affair with a Nazi officer and spent 15 years in Switzerland in somewhat of an exile. She came back to Paris in 1954 and worked until she passed away in 1971.


The most courageous act is still to think for yourself. Aloud. ......Coco Chanel