Shore Debris' Handmade Creations

Green Treasury

2012-02-16T12:00:00.001-05:00

This year, one of my goals is to create one treasury per month. I did last month's in pink, but this month I was feeling the green:

Using Those Boca Grande Shells

2012-02-11T12:00:00.001-05:00

I mentioned shelling at Boca Grande last month. I've gone and used a couple of them in this new butterfly necklace:

I just love making butterflies out of coquina shells! I used 20 gauge wire to make the antennae. The cockle shell backing of the pendant is the same square shape that I found on the beach, but I did drill two holes in it to attach it to the chain.

Visiting Richardson's Rock Ranch (again...)

2012-02-09T12:00:00.001-05:00

This week, my husband and I were in Oregon visiting family so I was able to stop by one of my favorite places for stones - Richardson's Rock Ranch. They're known for their thundereggs: but I really prefer all the things I can find the in the Rock Shop - like these polished amethyst pieces, crystal points,
the large stone hearts,
small jars of stone chips,
stone starfish,
and pieces of argonite.
I can't wait to begin playing with these!

Guilt-free Mini Cheesecakes

2012-02-01T12:00:00.000-05:00

I pull recipes out of magazines all the time, but rarely get to try all the ones that I want. I already love the traditional version of this covered in cherry pie filling, but decided I'd try these "White Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes" recipe printed in the February 2011 copy of Fitness Magazine.

I found these mini cheesecakes to be delicious and you could definitely taste the white chocolate. Since I live in the middle of nowhere, some of the ingredients were unavailable. My local grocery store does not carry reduced fat vanilla wafers and the fat-free cream cheese was completely out of stock (and has been for more than 2 weeks). I only garnished mine with strawberries and chocolate flakes because the kiwis were hard as rocks, too.

Ingredients
12 reduced-fat vanilla wafers
8 ounces reduced-fat cream cheese, softened
4 ounces fat-free cream cheese, softened
3 ounces white chocolate baking squares, melted and cooled
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup fat-free milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Chocolate curls (optional)
Sliced strawberries (optional)
Sliced kiwifruit (optional)

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 350. Line a muffin pan with baking cups. Place one vanilla wafer on the bottom of each. Set aside.

2. In a medium bowl, beat cream cheeses with an electric mixer on medium speed 30 seconds. Beat in white chocolate, sugar, milk, and vanilla until well combined. Stir in egg white. Spoon mixture into muffin cups until each is about three-quarters full.

3. Bake about 20 minutes or until set, then set pan on a wire rack to cool 10 minutes. Remove cheesecakes from pan; cool on wire rack 1 hour. Cover and chill 3 to 24 hours.

4. Before serving, remove baking cups. If desired, garnish with chocolate curls, strawberries, and/or kiwifruit.

A new print for my home

2012-01-28T12:00:00.002-05:00

I get the greatest gifts. My sister/brother-in-law bought me this print from Green Girl Canvas on etsy. I love the print and it has been lanquishing in my favorites for while I tried to figure out if I had room for even more artwork in my house... I'm glad that decision was taken away from me or else I might have wavered until it was no longer available. Now I just need to figure out how I want it framed and put it up on my wall!

Thrift Store Finds

2012-01-25T12:00:00.003-05:00

Are you someone who likes to rumage around in thrift stores and come out with amazing items? I definitely am. And my favorite stores are those in Naples, Florida. My grandmother and I spent the day hitting all of our favorites, including St. Vincents De Paul Thrift Store where I found this wonderful soup bowl:This fits in my house perfectly! The bottom is a basketweave design and shells/sea life decorate the sides.When I turned it over, I even found it has the artist's name: Karin Villaroman. Now, hopefully the artist isn't too offended that I paid only $1 for this bowl, but it is definitely going to the home of someone who will love it, cherish it, and use it regularly for the beautiful piece that it is.

First Craft Show of 2012

2012-01-18T12:00:00.002-05:00

I had a booth at the Placida Art Market this past Saturday. For those of you who don't know, Placida is in South West Florida (near Port Charlotte), and yes, that is me standing there wrapped up in a blanket with a large scarf and fleece jacket. I belive it was 10 degrees colder there at the time this picture was taken than it is right now at my house in North Carolina.I had lots of fun and met tons of great people. This art market occurs every other week during season, so if you're in that area, I recommend stopping by. I went shopping on the New Year's Eve market and picked up some great pottery and notecards for myself. You won't know what treasures you will find! If you can't make it for a Saturday Art Market, there are a couple of stores (art gallery, gifts, and orchids) with a Key West vibe and the Fishery Restaurant that are worth visiting.

If you're an artist in this area - try on this market for size. It has friendly artists and is an artist-promoted event. The entire atmosphere is fun, and who could complain with a waterfront view all day?

My First Treasury for 2012!

2012-01-11T12:00:00.002-05:00

Bangle Giveaway at Scarborough Seashells

2012-01-07T21:26:00.003-05:00

I ordered shells from Scarborough Seashells years ago (on eBay, even, I think) and have just recently come back across her store.

Lucky me, she's giving away this beautiful sterling bangle on her blog:

You have until Friday the 13th to enter by visiting and commenting on her blog post !

Shelling at Boca Grande

2012-01-06T12:00:00.001-05:00

Visiting my parents in South West, Florida has been quite fruitful. My mother and I drove out to Gasparilla Island and found piles of shells in only an hour on the beach at Boca Grande. There were you're ever present cockles, coquinas, and scallops, but I also picked up some good ones including the apple murex, fig, immature fighting conch, and olive. And someone knew I'd be making some Valentine's Day themed items, so made sure I found a heart shaped beach stone and heart shapped coral.

Can't wait to get my wire on these babies!

2011 has passed too fast...

2012-01-04T12:00:00.002-05:00

2011 has come and gone for me, and it all seems to have gone so fast. My business has progressed so much that I ran out of time to make posts on my blog... I'd have pictures taken and stories in my head, but never get the chance to get them out there.

What I'm most proud of from last year was perfecting my handmade clasps. I think it adds so much to a handmade jewelry design by having my own clasps. Here's a picture of one of my 3-strand clasps (a technique I'll be teaching in the upcoming months at BD Unique): This coming year, I have so many goals I need to pare down my list to a manageable list, but that will be something I'll have figured out before the end of the week!

I'm not ready for Christmas!

2011-11-29T13:09:00.003-05:00

Of course I wasn't ready for Thanksgiving either. This year is ending way too fast for me... I feel like I've barely begun to create my Christmas jewelry. I've incorporated some red and green glass pearls this year,
ordered new preciosa glass beads,

and played with some cute Christmas-themed buttons.

Once I get my camera downloaded again, I'll share the aluminum wire ornaments I've also been creating.

Halloween Jewelry

2011-10-31T12:00:00.002-04:00

This year, I decided to have some fun with some jewelry. I tried a few spiders, but even silver foil glass can't make a spider look attractive. When I tried to make a pair of earrings,
I decided those would be the last spiders I ever make :) I even found some cute skull beads

to make a few pais of earrings, but my absolute favorite

had to be my button rings :)

Fall Cameron Antiques Fair 2011

2011-10-10T20:22:00.001-04:00

Earlier this month, I made sure my Saturday was free for touring around Cameron, North Carolina for its semi-annual street craft fair. I was so disappointed when my normal button guy wasn't to be found :( Good thing I bought way too many buttons in the last two years anyway! I did find tons of shutter doors... bought way more than I really needed, but that's something my husband would say is normal. I have this neat spinning thing (a friend and I rescued it from a trash heap) that I thought if I could find a way to attach these doors, I'd have a wonderful new spinning earring display for craft shows.

And no trip to Cameron would ever be complete without adding to my extensive collection of vintage bottles :)

Perfect Set-ups

2011-09-28T22:27:00.001-04:00

This past weekend was the International Folk Festival in Fayetteville, North Carolina. Not only were all of my joints creaking, but my tent and display items were covered in a layer of dust. (It's been a while since my last show). At some fairs, your booth arrangement is better than others... I don't mean my items in my booth; I mean the vendors around me.

Once the rain finally stopped on Saturday, it was so neat to see that my booth stood in the perfect spot. The vendor to my left had PVC sculptures. (Yes, those birds and frogs are made out of PVC pipes). What screams beach more than tropical birds, especially those pink flamingoes? This couple will be at the same show I'm doing in Concord, NC next month and I can't wait to show my mom the birds. I think she needs one on her lanai ;)

To the right side of me was the Island Breeze Soap company. They had a plumeria bar I just had to buy. I thought the grass skirts were a wonderful idea for the booth - made it looked like we were purposely put right near each other. And then there was my booth. I got a new banner that is the beach scene that I feel is more fitting to my style. (And I still steal the DVD shelf out of my living room before every show... one of these days, I'll have to get something new.)

I was so tired after this weekend that I am glad I have 3 1/2 weeks until the next one!

Organization...

2011-08-15T22:06:00.002-04:00

Trying to get my jewelry and craft supplies under control has been an ongoing process in my life. Last week, I tore apart one of my supply drawers looking for one silver plated finding...By the end of the day, I had the entire silver plated findings drawer emptied on the floor. In a flurry, I ran out to Walmart and bought a few more organizing cases that fit in the drawers and have it so organized. It is exciting to me to open the drawer and be able to see what I'm looking for... and also have all of my headpins in one place, all earwires in one area, etc, etc.

I think I'm on a roll, so I'll keep organizing and see where that leads me!

Playing with paper

2011-08-08T12:00:00.000-04:00

I have been a scrapbooker most of my life. My entire high school life is documented with faded photos and bad handwriting in journaling spots. Later, during my husband's and my years of dating and engagement, I created a scrapbook just for our special moments. But over the last year, I have been way too busy to do any sort of scrapbooking or card making.

I was inspired when I found PaperQuick on etsy. Her various die cuts got paper back in the front of my mind - especially after my envelope of pretty paper things arrived :)

In the last two weeks, I've made a few cards and many sets of gift tagss. I'd forgotten how much fun this is!

My New Favorite Pancakes

2011-07-30T12:00:00.001-04:00

I've had a recipe from Fitness Magazine since May that I've been dying to try. Now the name was not so good - they were called "Banana-Nut Protein Pancakes." That doesn't exactly sound delicious, and it totally turned my husband off from even trying them.

Thanks to his job, he's out of town, and I decided to try them on my own!

Recipe:

In blender, combine 1 banana, 1/4 cup rolled oats, 2 tablespoons low-fat cottage cheese, 2 egg whites and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract; Blend until smooth. Stir in 2 teaspoons chopped walnuts. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and coat with non-stick cooking spray. Pour batter into skillet to make two 4-inch pancakes; cook 3 minutes on each side. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons maple syrup.

It was like eating banana nut bread for breakfast! That's exactly what they tasted like. I actually doubled the recipe so that I could have leftovers for the following morning (cooked them all up at once), but I ended up with five 5-inch pancakes total.

I almost balked when I saw the recipe calling for only 2 teaspoons of Maple Syrup. Surprisingly, the pancakes are so dense, they do not soak up the syrup at all, and 2 teaspoons is really enough.

Back in the garden

2011-07-28T16:52:00.004-04:00

I've had some great harvests recently. Not near enough to feed the neighbors or give away food, but making me think of interesting things for dinner. I think I just got my last 1/2 cup of blueberries but this looks to be my first of many zucchinis! The entire garden is going pretty well - I've got corn, green beans, butternut squash, cantaloupe, bell peppers, watermelon, okra, tomatoes... I think that's all. This picture doesn't do it justice, but it looks good in person.

What I am most impressed with though is the corn! I've been trying to grow corn for the last three years and have never gotten a plant taller than 10 inches before it keels over on me. This year, I can even see my very first ear of corn starting.

Can't wait till he's ready to pick!

Slow Going...

2011-07-23T06:45:00.000-04:00

I love wire wrapping... I live for wire wrapping... my old part-time job involved intensive computer sessions for 4-5 hours a day... suddenly my body said, "No" to all of the repetitive motion and I developed a very large and very painful ganglion cyst. Even 3 weeks off with no jewelry making and no typing did not calm it... nor did it go away when my chiropractor hit it (literally attempting the whacking with a bible theory).

So this week a surgeon removed it. I can hold pliers in my left hand still but have no leverage when playing with wire. I guess my end of the summer will be a full out sprint in jewelry making as I try to make up for so much time off :)

Vacations...

2011-07-20T18:22:00.001-04:00

I have been on vacation for the first half of this month... I've been lucky that my job ended at the same time the rest of my extended family was also taking time off so I could visit with them.

I had no idea how much I needed a vacation until I returned. I have read a total of 4 books in the last 2.5 weeks and in turn realized it has been more than a year since I read my last book.

Now I wasn't reading anything remotely intellectual, but I do love a complete fictional retreat. This summer I'm going to make sure I get back into my reading habit again.

Handmade Toggle Clasp

2011-06-09T20:41:00.004-04:00

I've been making my own sterling silver hook and eye clasps for a couple of years, but until last month, I'd still been buying all of my toggle clasps.

Last week I'd finished this sea glass pendant and decided on agate beads for the necklace. The only clasps I had in gold fill were those super tiny lobster clasps that I didn't think were large enough to go with this piece. I've never bought any other sort of clasps in the 14kt gold fill simply because of price... and I couldn't do my normal hook and eye clasp because I'd never bought wire larger than 21 gauge in the gold fill.

That's when I decided to try the beaded toggle... I'm so happy with the result, I've made earrings that look just like the circle part of the toggle clasp :)

My poor little apple tree

2011-06-07T19:53:00.003-04:00

My little apple tree got its first blossoms this year and has tried to produce a total of 39 apples. I got up and saw the little branches almost touching the ground. I've taken off approximatley 1/2 of those apples, but it is still pretty droopy.
I hope some of the branches are large enough to hold an apple or two!

The best carrot cake in the world...

2011-06-01T22:34:00.003-04:00

Well, that is my opinion anyway... I love my family's old recipe for carrot cake and have yet to find one in a restaurant that is even half as good. It takes a very, very, very long time to make, so I don't make it very often... like for my husband's 26th and 30th birthdays (Yes, those candles are supposed to look like a 3-0, so it will be another 4 years before I taste this creation again...)

But on to the main attraction:

Ingredients:

2 c. flour

1 tsp. soda

2 tsp. cinnamon

1 tsp. sald

2 c. sugar

1 1/2 c. oil

3 eggs

2 c. finely grated carrots (freshly grated)

1 c. well drained crushed pineapple (15 1/4 oz. can)

1 c. coconut

1 c. chopped walnuts

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. raisins

Sift flour, soda, cinnamon, and salt together. Set aside. Beat sugar, oil, and eggs with electric mixer until very well mixed. Gradually add flour mixture; fold in carrots, pineapple, coconut, walnuts, vanilla, and raisins. Bake in greased and floured two 8 inch pans or one 12x9 inch pan at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Cream Cheese Frosting: Mix 4 oz softened cream cheese, 1/2 box powdered sugar, 1/2 stick margarine or butter and 1 tsp. vanilla until smooth.

Hide cake from the rest of the family so that you have plenty to enjoy :)

Sea glass flowers - on glasses

2011-05-27T07:16:00.002-04:00

My family loves to make flowers out of shells and sea glass... it's definitely in my genetic make-up and not something I can control :P

Here's one of my mom's latest creations: Sea glass picked up off the beaches of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and made into flowers. The stamens are her prized pieces of cobalt blue glass (very rare) and perfect on these cobal blue martini glass stems.

And what's even better is that I have a husband who cooks and has filled these glasses with mousse. Somedays I think life cannot get better!

Changes to etsy!

2011-05-24T21:43:00.002-04:00

I was so excited with I logged into my etsy accounts this week! The features I have been longing for are finally there....

My first desire with this site were that the item listing page was only one page... I can't tell you how many times I'd made it through the item description, item tags, and pricing pages to have my internet reset, my computer reset, my dog interupt me, etc, etc... and *poof* nothing is left. My second desire was to have a "save as draft" function. I'd thought this function would remain a pipe dream for as long as I was on etsy :)

In an ugly box...

2011-05-16T21:11:00.002-04:00

can come such great stuff! This box recently appeared on my doorstep (one of those - oops, honey, I forgot to tell you "Mary Ann" stopped by - events).
I opened it up and took a gasp. You would not believe the number of beautiful vintage buttons that are in there!
From World War I and II military buttons
to ones that are purely decorative,
my button collection has gone from large to huge :) All thanks to a neighbor's mother downsizing her home. Sometimes I think I am way too lucky to have the great friends I do!

Cameron Antiques Fair

2011-05-11T20:38:00.001-04:00

This past weekend was the semi-annual antiques street fair in Cameron, NC. I love going to this event and was disappointed I forgot my camera (although, here's a blog post with beautiful pictures). I love how you can find everything there... the antique/vintage, crafts, food, plants, etc, etc and came home with a good little stack for myself :) The first thing I bought was this cute necklace. I don't have anything like it and just had to have it.

And my prizes of the day were these glass bottles. In addition to my family's obession with shells... we have a thing about old bottles, too. We're apt to partake in occassional "bottle-hunting" expeditions (in between the beach-combing) but I've never found purple ones on my own.

I was even looking at items with a crafty eye and can't wait until I solder these miner's tags.

Somedays my husband is just wonderful :)

2011-05-04T07:49:00.000-04:00

I just look at him and lament that my veggie garden is too small and he spends the whole weekend digging up grass (well, more like weeds) and almost doubling the size of the veggie plot! I can't wait to get all of the plants in there!

2011-04-22T18:00:00.003-04:00

Recently, I was cleaning out some bead drawers and always get surprised by what I find (like beads I bought in 2nd grade, yet still have yet to use them or get rid of them?). I found some cute little sping time charms that made me wonder exactly what I would do with them since they don't even come close to looking like my "shore debris" theme.As I was laying them down together in a pile for destash, I thought, these look kind of cute... and don't leaves look like these moss agate beads hanging on the wall over here... Oh, and maybe I should pair them up with some pale pink...

Lo and behold, I got a cute little spring set.

It's fun breaking out and doing something besides the norm :)

2011-03-29T23:06:00.003-04:00

Last night, the Triangle Jewelry Makers group met at Ornamentea. Someone had this wonderful idea... "bring out your dead" project night. [Dead, as in those beads you've had for 5 years yet havent done anything with them, the 1/2 wire wrapped pendant, a 1/2 finished chainmaille braclet, etc, etc.] Since we were in a wonderful store, I got to do my needed shopping... this was one of those anticipated shopping trips that I was almost drooling thinking about it. Here's the load I picked up - everything to begin my silver soldering experiments at home! I can't wait until I can make an ammonite ring :)

More with the ammonites

2011-03-24T21:17:00.008-04:00

So I mentioned lots of ammonites before. Marilyn (Handcraftusa on etsy) bought one and has created this beautiful pendant delicately crocheted in black cotton. I've often admired her crocheting with wire:

But, my most favorite would be these little zipper rings:

State Farmers Market in Raleigh

2011-03-22T15:19:00.004-04:00

The weekend before this past one, my husband and I ran up to the State Farmers' Market in Raleigh. I love visiting during their spring craft fair (which ends up being my yearly visit). Last year, my neighbor and I went for veggies and came home with crafts only.

This year, I went for crafts and came home with plants and honey. It always surprises me how that turns out.
I got a few blueberry bushes (that are covered with blossoms!) and have them in the ground near my new garage (It's still new if it's a year old, right?).

I had to move my apple tree away from the garage and am so excited because this is the first year it will blossom (and I didn't kill it when I moved it.... my normal M.O.).

And this was my prize. The Ann Magnolia. Stands about 6 feet tall and is planted next to the southern magnolia. I can't wait until next year when I get the full force of his bloom in my yard.

Those flowers are ever so pretty!

Are you adding to your gardens this year?

Ammonites and Findings

2011-03-15T17:17:00.006-04:00

I tend to go overboard when I'm buying any sort of supplies I need... especially if it is a favorite item. Swiping the drool away when I open one of my drawers, I can now look at hundreds of ammonite fossils. In the past, I have only wire wrapped them. But recently I stocked up on all sorts of items including tie tacks and cuff links where I can use an adhesive.
And so I've started some new types of inventory like these clip on earrings:
and this pendant:

I'm happy with the results.

Bead Mixed Lots...

2011-03-09T19:49:00.002-05:00

Sometimes I buy beads and findings in mixed lots.... and until recently, they've been sitting around in my studio still in the original packaging.

Just this week, I discovered something in a mixed lot bag of gold plated findings: Magnetic clasps. Now, I've seen magnetic clasps before and since I make most of my own clasps, I'd never thought of using them in my own jewelry. But for those pieces where I need something more streamlined than my large handmade hook and eye clasps, I think these will do. Now I'm off to order some in sterling and gold fill :)

Spring has finally come!!

2011-03-07T18:37:00.000-05:00

(Yes, this is a cropped photo so you don't see the dandelions that still need to be pulled out of the garden!)

the kitchen is still trying to beat me...

2011-03-03T17:55:00.000-05:00

So, I've previously mentioned that my stove does not work... well, now the dishwasher has decided to die... Oh, well... now I'm really seeing how spoiled I got in the last 3 years by actually having a dishwasher!

Metalsmithing

2011-02-20T18:45:00.002-05:00

In my last post, I mentioned spending all day at Ornamentea...

Here's what I came out with: Granted, I didn't finish everything in class and had to go to town yesterday with my files and emory cloth, but I like the results.
I can't wait until I buy all the supplies and can do some more at home!

Bead Shopping

2011-02-09T19:37:00.003-05:00

It's been awhile since I've browsed a bead store. I've been on a bead shopping hiatus - trying to actually use up something before I go buy more plan.

This week, I've managed to get into two of my favorites again. This afternoon, I was in the Twisted Jeweler in Fayetteville and snagged some opalite. I figured what the heck - I've never bought opalite and it was a steal -buy 1 strand - get 2 free!
On Saturday, I spent the day at Ornamentea... but that will be another post :) Before I left, I was stocking up on cool stuff like this Toggle Clasp from Elaine Ray Beads and

a raw brass sea horse. I can already see what colors he'll looks great with in my overflowing collection of nugget-sized mother of pearl beads.

It's that time of year!

2011-02-08T21:30:00.002-05:00

When little spots of color start popping up here and there. Now winter won't be around much longer and spring is coming! Who cares if they just salted my road again this afternoon :) I got my first flowers of the year at Lowes - and showing a hint of my favorite color :)

My favorite thing to make right now

2011-02-04T17:58:00.001-05:00

would have to be sea shell flowers. I love lining up my little coquina shells by size and color.And love putting them on everything from jewelry to candle holders... And I love how each one is slightly different.
Do you have a favorite craft for right now?

Bye Bye Stove!

2011-02-02T19:46:00.003-05:00

On the bright side, this week, I no longer have to cook dinner... but that is because my stove has decided to kick the bucket. It definitely could be worse - I'm the last one on my street to lose my stove (We all moved in at about the same time to our little cookie cutter domiciles and all have the same stoves. All of which have died in the last 18 months).The best thing of this whole ordeal - I can now pick out whatever stove I want with whatever nifty gaget I think I can't live without!

Now only to convince my husband that this entire process will take a month to "research" so I can't do any cooking ;)

Move over Julia!

2011-01-31T18:48:00.003-05:00

And stand aside Angelina!

I'm making my way to stardom - as the back up extras's extra... but you have to start somewhere :)

So yes, I work here. We have lots of fun :)

Valentine's

2011-01-27T17:43:00.000-05:00

While sorting out Christmas, I found a box labeled "All Holiday Except Christmas." I'd almost forgotten about this one... I have little bits leftover from high school and college - including some Valentine's Day items. I figured why not - put them out now. Of course that would mean I still decorate the same as when I was in high school, but we won't delve into that.

One of my favorite items this old pin. My mom had lots of buttons leftover from her high school days that made it into my hands.

Not sure I'd ever be able to wear any of them again, but can probably provide good conversation when the neighbors come over to visit (like the shark's mouth where we keep the candy and the batteries charged...)

Get back in the closet!

2011-01-25T19:23:00.000-05:00

This past weekend my husband and I finally took the Christmas decorations down. Where I live right now, this is crazieness... we're the only house that still had Christmas up after January 1st.

When I grew up, Christmas decorations were always a big thing. All day, the day after Thanksgiving involved large boxes, tissue, and dust. As every piece of the regular decor got packed away and Christmas emerged. The whole operation took the entire family about a week (seriously - one mover asked my mom in 1996 if she owned a florist shop - was the only reason he could figure he was moving so many wreathes, garlands, sprays...). This decorating never came down before president's day weekend in February.
As an adult, I now wonder if it was less the spirit of Christmas and more the pain of putting it away that kept it up so long.

Updating Shop Banners

2011-01-22T07:18:00.000-05:00

I finally got off my lazy but and updated my banners in my etsy and artfire accounts... that whole branding thing :)

Now my banners match my business cards. I've had a similar design on my blog and back on 1000Markets when that was still around, but never got it properly resized for artfire and etsy.

Am I getting too lazy?

2011-01-20T20:10:00.002-05:00

On Monday, I had surgery on my face to remove a bit of cancer. Tuesday, I really didn't feel well, so I decided to try the "Express Line" shopping at my local grocery store. The search feature worked great. I set up my time to pick up my groceries and took at total of 6 minutes - from leaving the highway, parking, ringing the "express button," having someone load my groceries into the car, paying with my credit card, and getting back on the road. The thing I wonder now is how lazy I might be that I consider using this feature in the future on a regular basis?

Ice!

2011-01-18T20:13:00.002-05:00

Well, good old North Carolina has been getting some good old ice this winter. When I got up one morning last week, looking over my cup of coffee, I thought how beautiful this tree is. Makes me want to attach kettlebells to the end of each branch so that it hangs like this all of the time :)

New year, new year, new year...

2011-01-13T16:05:00.000-05:00

Getting organized is one of those things that always gets set into my goals - always well-intended, but not always followed through. This year, I want to look at it in smaller doses... like organizing the little area of my life that sparks my interest at the moment. So far it is working... I was able to attack my closet this past weekend and already see my year looking good.

Shore Debris Website is Live!

2010-11-30T21:42:00.001-05:00

Yipee!! My new website is up and running: www.shoredebris.com

Off to go make new business cards :)

Holiday Baking - 1 - Pumpkin Bread

2010-11-26T19:46:00.002-05:00

My holiday baking has begun... and the Thanksgiving ritual since I left my parent's house - start with the pumpkin bread. (Yes, that is my diet pepsi in the background... only #2 for the day.)In my new gigantic mixing bowl - Thanks, Susan! - I mixed up the double batch for 6 loaves of bread. (1 for Thanksgiving, 1 for my parents, 1 for the in-laws and 3 for those impromptu hostess gifts I seem to always need).

Here's my family recipe:

3 eggs

1 c. oil

3 c. sugar

2 1/2 c. pumpkin (can or fresh)

5 c. flour

1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cloves

1/2 tsp nutmeg

3 tsp soda

2 c. walnuts

1 c. raisins

Blend eggs, oil, sugar, and pumpkin. Sift in flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, salt, and soda. Add chopped nuts and raisins. Bake at 350 for 1 1/4 hours for loaves or 45 min for muffins.

Ahhhh... and I've sniffed the nutmeg, so now I'm in the spririt!

Durham Art Walk Holiday Market

2010-11-22T17:12:00.004-05:00

This past weekend was the Durham Artwalk Holiday Market. I was in the Durham Armory where we had live entertainment both days. My favorite group was the Durham Divas - they were great - all between 50 and 85 and cheering everyone into the holiday spirit.Here was my booth - an 8' x 8' space. I've finally spray painted all of my display items black... last year I still had some unfinished wood in the display.And here's a closer view of my new favorite necklace:
center - paua shell and cultured freshwater pearl double strand necklace. I finished it last week just in time for the show. Now only one more show to finish out my year!

Holiday Shopping...

2010-11-13T20:06:00.003-05:00

I love it when the stores get ready for the holiday season... The things that appear like peppermint mochas (really, now why can't these be made year round?), fresh peppermint bark, apple cider,

This week my grocery store had a "Naughty and Nice" bottle from my favorite winery - the Duplin Winery. I thought it was cute and needed it for my kitchen counter. What seasonal favorites are you rediscovering?

Getting ready for tomorrow!

2010-11-05T05:43:00.001-04:00

Shopping in Fayetteville

2010-11-01T16:25:00.001-04:00

This summer, I discovered the "Arts Alive at 4th Friday's" events in Fayetteville and decided they are lots of fun. I did lots of shopping down there and have just gotten out a pile of stuff that is making me drool all over again :)

This first piece is an agate I got from the Cape Fear Mineral and Gem Society Showing in August. I have dreams of wrapping him in gold and making him my centerpiece at the Durham Artwalk.These beads I got from my new favorite store downtown... The Twisted Jeweler. If I had no job and if they also had a coffee bar in the shop... I'd probably live there!

I love scouring the antique shops for pretty pins, too. They make such an addition to a beaded necklace!

And finally, the other bead store - Strung Out on Beads. Who could believe that 13 months ago there wasn't a single bead store in Fayetteville, and now there are two!

School, School, School...

2010-10-25T15:53:00.004-04:00

This past August, I decided it might be a nice idea to go back to school. Researching local schools, I discovered I needed a GRE score to qualify for financial aid. I thought, it's been a long time since I've been in school, I ought to take the prep course. I, being my normal self, signed up for both the GRE Prep I and II courses at the same time, and noticed that there were grant writing and web design classes that also looked interesting. So here I've been taking 4 classes at one time for the past 2 months.

I really like the beginning web design class - I'm using it to work on my business website. One of my goals this year was to get a site up an running, but I'd never seemed to find the time. The class lets us develop pages on any topic as long as we include all of the required elements for those assignments.

So last night's work was some colored stacking tables with images and links... and now one of the pages from my website is complete!

I'm very excited because, I will actually have my website up and running by the end of the year... It won't be the best website ever created, but I'll finally be able to say, "I did it!"

When you really should measure first...

2010-10-20T18:29:00.003-04:00

There are some things in my life that my dad always mentioned I should do... one of them was measure first. From the amount of scrap wood shoved in the loft of my garage, you'd notice that I've never listened well... and here is good photographic proof: In 2008, I bought the epoxy floor covering for my garage. I have a 2-car garage and the box read something like... covers some number of square feet approximately equal to a 1-car garage...

Buying 2 boxes and planning on painting right away - 2 years later, I've given time for that epoxy manufacturer to no longer be carried in my local home improvement store.

I scrubbed all of the oil spots off of the floors, get the right temperature, dry it out... and begin my epoxying. Oops, I never measured and the home improvement store says there's no way to match my old color.

So I tried something totally different and made my own mini-masterpiece:

Now it looks like I'm just a slightly eccentric homeowner who has a flair for the creative. You should have seen the eyes of the guy at Lowe's - he thought I was nuts when I told him what I was doing :)

The only thing I wonder in retrospection is why I prefer to have people think I am eccentric than that I make mistakes?

My favorite end of summer flowers...

2010-09-07T14:09:00.002-04:00

I love my impatiens at the end of summer. When everything else seems so done with blooming, my impatiens are going strong and I can see them from the road.

This year, I couldn't believe the deal I got on them either - they were in little 6-packs for 10 cents at Lowes. My only regret will be when the first frost gets here, they will all be gone.

Creating a Pendant

2010-09-01T16:39:00.002-04:00

I love wire wrapping randomly shaped objects (especially those found on the beach), but do you ever wonder how I get to a finished item like this? I start with a rough sketch (outline) of the item I am going to wrap and then draw across is where I think the wires should go.

Then I slowly wrap starting with my base wires (the wires that hold the bottom of the pendant).

Then I connect my base and top wires (normally I use 20 and 26 guage wires)

and start adding embellishments:

Until I decided I need to change my pattern a bit - by taking away various swirls and adding wire where I hadn't planned to:

But eventually it turns into something I like :)

Couscous Salad

2010-08-30T16:28:00.003-04:00

I love it when I find Real Simple in my mail box. They had an article on a speedy way to clean a bookshelf that I am just going to have to try and this delicious couscous salad. My husband was leery when I told it to him, but after making it he went back for seconds and ate the leftovers a day later. I made it with the full box of couscous and increased all ingedients appropriately, but here was the recipe:

Ingredients
1/2 cup couscous
1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
1/2 cup crumbled Feta (2 ounces)
1/2 cup halved red seedless grapes
1/4 cup chopped parsley
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
kosher salt and black pepper
pita bread, for serving
Directions
1.In a bowl, combine the couscous with ½ cup hot water; cover and let sit for 10 minutes.
2.Fluff the couscous with a fork and fold in the walnuts, Feta, grapes, parsley, olive oil, lemon juice, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Serve with pita bread, if desired.

I couldn't tell from the recipe if it was a cold dish or a hot dish, but I served it cold and loved it!

The Rower...

2010-08-23T16:54:00.003-04:00

I have wanted a Concept 2 rowing machine for years. I think between 2003 and 2006, I checked craigslist and ebay daily hoping one would pop up that I could afford. I tried just about every other brand,but could not find one that felt like actual rowing. I fell in love with rowing my first year of college - I'd gotten a letter in the mail saying "Your application indicates that you might be the right size to be a heavy weight rower. Are you interested in rowing, come out to...." and so on. What that letter meant was, well, you are over 5'5" and weigh more than 160 lbs so you might make a good rower.

I ended up rowing all 4 years of college (and got my letter), but was never able to keep with the sport after college. I am finally old enough for a masters rowing program, but do not live close enough to a boathouse to join.

My husband and I found this rowing machine on craigslist! Now I'm planning on getting in shape and being ready to row in D.C. when we should be moving up there in 2013.

The new look of etsy...

2010-08-19T15:07:00.004-04:00

ICK... was all I thought when I saw the look of my new shops on etsy (of course I've been a good shop owner and failed to check in at all in both shops over the past two months.) I'm fine with the picture layouts and everything - my problem lies in the word wrap for my shop announcement... Guess I need to get off my butt and learn a new trick to fix that.

Richard Triebe - Author and Tent-mate for a day

2010-08-18T20:05:00.003-04:00

So Monday I mentioned that I got to share my tent at the last minute with an author over the weekend. So here he is - Richard Triebe: He was showcasing his book, On a Rising Tide, historical fiction set in the Civil War and a non-fiction work on the soldiers who were captured at Fort Fisher,NC and taken to Elmira, NY that will be released this fall. Conversation with Richard made my entire day flow by very fast.
And this is a picture of my new book! Yet another addition to my library (that is running out of space). I've been reading it over breakfast in the mornings and have almost made myself late to work since I'm finding the beginning such a gripping tale - Chapter 1 opens up into the middle of a blockade run, lots of cannon balls, and some surprise...

Daydreaming...

2010-08-16T19:35:00.004-04:00

That's my excuse.

I can't believe almost 2 months have gone by since I last openned blogger. Recently, the idea of blogging has been... oh, I should write about "that" - I'll do it next Monday. And next Monday keeps rolling by over and over again.

Well, enough of that. This past Satuday was my first of what I call my fall show schedules... (I know it is still 100 degrees outside, but when I did my big yearly planner, I divided my shows by spring and fall for the year.) And look at this view:

taken about 25 feet from my booth. I was at Fort Fisher, NC for the North Carolina Historic Sites 2nd Saturdays event. I could have stayed all week (but I guess they have laws about vagrants down there).

They put the artists up in this lovely grove of live oaks:

and I had tons of fun. I'll definitely be looking for whatever the NC Historic Sites program puts out next year.

And here was my little display - the big change from my shows last year is that I spray-painted all of my display things black (the ones that weren't already black).

At the last second, I was privileged enough to share my tent with an author, but I'll tell you about him another day.

More garden surprises

2010-06-20T15:03:00.002-04:00

Don't you love when unexpected stuff happens in the garden. (Well, not the surprises when the neighbor's cat uses it as a toilet... the good surprises!) Since I do a rather pitiful job at weeding (it takes me forever to get the "spring" weeds down) - there was a section near my lilac bush that I had never touched... and look, my very own black-eyed susan is just growing - no seeds required :)

Going small...

2010-06-19T23:12:00.003-04:00

I love large jewelry so my wire wrapped sea shells end up being the bigger sort, but recently, I've begun listening to friends a little more when they say they'd like smaller pendants...

so I've been trying it out. My favorite I think is with 26 guage wire: And I used square wire here in the same method I would use to wrap a marble:
And this on is 20 guage round wire in a rather simple design:

New Toys!

2010-06-15T21:29:00.002-04:00

Don't you love those days when you get a new toy!

Mine came in the mail in the form of these two books: Woven Wire Jewelry and Silver Wire Jewelry. (Plus the necessary clamp I bought at Lowe's.) My goal is to make some woven wire necklaces (like the one on the cover of Woven Wire Jewelry), but instead of a PMC pendant, I put in one of my huge wire wrapped pieces. I cannot wait to start experimenting!

I want to have 2 or 3 of these statement pieces done before my holiday craft show season.

The needed vacation...

2010-06-13T21:19:00.003-04:00

I got to visit my parent's home for the weekend and was so glad we had time to run out to Boca Grande (on Gasparilla Island). Not only did I come home with a whole bunch of venus clams but just smelling the salt air, if even for only a couple of hours, really improved my outlook on life. Of course I did find my next home for sale... now just where to get the $1.2 million to buy it!

I want it!

2010-06-12T22:34:00.003-04:00

This evening I was fiddling around with my artfire account when my eye got caught by an ad...

The Sew Essentials Quilter's Design Table:

I was drooling before my mouse even clicked on the picture.

Open dimensions: 56-1/4''x29-3/4''; Closed 47''x15-7/8''x29-3/4''

Designed for quilters, this Quilter's Design table has a fold out table with 1'' grids for extra work space as well as a roll-out serger storage shelf. Locking casters for added security.

Yes, I know, I just bought all of that furniture from Ikea - but this table even matches... once I finish the last 7 boxes, I'll be measuring to see if I can fit this in there, too.

eBay

2010-06-09T22:27:00.003-04:00

Much to some of my etsy friend's dismay, I've been an active user of eBay for awhile (since 2005 actually) but today something happened that almost made me cancel my account.

I've thought eBay is a good place to sell supplies I do not want, sell scratch and dent pieces, and sell my stale items at material cost just to turn over inventory.

But today, I came home to an e-mail that had me waiting on the line for customer service at eBay. (I hung up before I got anyone and then attempted to use the "contact us" link - a totally worthless circular loop that takes you to the options of "chat with us" or "call us" - click the chat link and it says they are too busy, close the window, and click the e-mail us link found under "contact us.")

So what was this problem you wonder... here's the e-mail but my screen shot is way too small.... I couldn't believe it. Someone who just joins eBay, bids on an item about 1/2 hour before this e-mail and eBay sends them my personal cell phone number? I couldn't believe my eyes. No contact via the eBay messaging system? Straight to my personal cell phone number?

I'm going to sleep on it, but I might be ending my long standing account with eBay tomorrow.

The bane of my existance

2010-05-27T23:15:00.002-04:00

Has been this little door... taking up hours and days just to get hung, but at least now I can say my husband's desk is built. (minus 1 drawer because I have extras of every other piece besides the one I need to finish).

I never realized how slow a process this would be to get these two rooms set up.

The Gardenia...

2010-05-20T22:15:00.002-04:00

Getting out of the car and walking up my sidewalk, a wonderful aroma drifted up...

Looking down, I couldn't believe it, my gardenia bush is blooming like crazy. I was so excited I had to run in and grab the camera. I bought this gardenia bush from a little landscape place down the road from me in 2007 and was disappointed with no blooms at all in 2007 or 2008. Last year, the bush had a total of 9 flowers. I had seen all of the little green buds earlier in the week and assumed it was sprouting leaves... no idea that this plant was getting hundreds of flowers all over it.

I hope everyone else is getting to see beautiful spring and summer flowers, too!

The Garden

2010-05-19T22:59:00.003-04:00

I had to take a break from working on the studio space and get my garden in order - can't have all of my seedlings keeling over on me! Especially after I cheated and spent so much money on them. Normally I grow my own seedlings in the kitchen, but this year I just ran out of time. So, my little, bitty garden plot has tomatoes, bell peppers, watermelon, zucchini, okra, basil and sweet potatoes. The only thing I still have left to plant is the butternut squash. I'm going to have to try the seeds because I couldn't find a single store carrying those seedlings.

I can't wait until about 40 days from now when I'll start getting the first of the produce!

Paint!

2010-05-18T22:08:00.003-04:00

Ah, now the painting is done (finally...). Not sure I will be painting anything again in the near future. The color I chose was Benjamin Moore's Gargoyle. I did the entire walls in my husband's office and a stripe in my new studio area. I'm hoping that with the new white furniture I ordered, the stripe will help it stand out.

Creating the New Workspace - Day 1

2010-05-17T21:08:00.004-04:00

So Day 1 is done...

For those of you who don't know, my husband and I have a bonus area over the garage. There is a long skinny room that will be my studio and a small office off to the side that is my husband's office. (His office makeover is actually a surprise for him... and good thing my family finds my blog too boring to read.) So here's his office, sans furniture, everything pulled off the walls and all edges taped.
And here's my big long room with my wide stripe taped up.

Before taping, I also put together my first piece of Ikea furniture. It is this small set of drawers here. I really like the set and am so surprised at how well it rolls around on the carpet. I can't wait until it is all done!

Sandi Who?

2010-05-16T13:06:00.001-04:00

Why the T-shirt lady of course! And this month's featured EtsyBlogger.

She's got a shop full of just about everything... Handmade by Sandi has crochet, sewn items, jewelry, felted, painted, etc, etc - a very multi-talented lady. And I just love this little doggie placemat of hers:

And with her stash of fabric, she must be a woman after my own heart!

I just drool over colorful collections like this one:

The path to organization...

2010-05-14T20:56:00.005-04:00

begins in a car ride to Charlotte, North Carolina.

Or at least that is how I am finally attacking this year's goal of getting my jewelry-making stuff organized.Last Sunday, a friend and I drove to Charlotte to visit Ikea and have my new office all decked out. Not everything fit in the car, so the rest is being delivered on the 18th, but here's what made it home with me. See all of those glass jars? They are spice containers... I bought 28 packages of spice containers along with the stuff to hang them on the wall. I figure that will keep the beads within sight, but oranized, too.

I ruined a masterpiece!

2010-05-12T07:07:00.003-04:00

I was working on a pendant for me... wanted to call it my new masterpiece and I have managed to break a piece of sea glass. I love purple, so the rarity of finding a lavender shade of sea glass was just amazing, and while wrapping it in sterling wire, I managed to break off a corner (there was a "fault line" running where it broke when I started wrapping it). I guess I will use supper glue and some more wrapping to hide the fix when I wear it around.

Mail

2010-05-06T22:39:00.003-04:00

Monday night, I stayed up late putting in a huge order of supplies... getting ready for a marathon of making during the summer to get ready for fall shows. I've been so excited wondering exaclty how big the box I've ordered will be when it comes in the mail, I feel like I can barely sleep (now this order is approx 5.5 times larger than any other bulk order I've done, so I guess it is alright to pretend I am 5 waiting for my on special present).

Anyway, today the box wasn't here (it isn't supposed to be delivered until Saturday, so not sure why I was getting worked up on the "just in case").

But something else good came in the mail - the first issue of my new subsription to Real Simple. I believe I have a magazine addiction - way too many subscriptions. I'm starting to wonder if that's partly why I have no time to read books anymore?

More Shells!

2010-05-05T21:12:00.000-04:00

I love visiting beaches... especially when I walk alway with lots of shells. I made my husband take me to Topsail Island recently and walked away with all kids of loot. I even got a few good pieces of sea glass that day - I so rarely find sea glass in North Carolina it is always a treat

Apex Peakfest

2010-05-03T20:08:00.001-04:00

Another weekend festival has passed for me and boy has it gotten me beat. I had one of those days where it was so hot, I was uncomfortable the entire day and every kid that had popsicle or lollipop mess dripping off their hands picked up jewelry. I'm so glad my last show of the spring is indoors!

Porn

2010-04-29T14:15:00.002-04:00

Dear makers of pornographic websites that continually post comments on my blog,

I don't want or need your sites and am getting tired of rejecting all of your comments. Is there really a need to waste the world's time with your disgusting choices? Please find someone who actually wants your spam and not me.

Thank you and best regards,
Vicky

(Now we wonder if they will ever listen?)

Neglect

2010-04-28T22:03:00.003-04:00

So, I've been neglecting all online portions of my business lately. This blog, my shops on etsy, 1000Markets, and Artfire...

I was aghast last week when I openned up my etsy shop and it said 4 items! What? Everything had expired? Had it really been that long? I had to finally admit to myself that I was neglecting it (and stop doing the "I don't see it - so it's not really there" routine. This miniscule picture shows how it looks today and it only says "6" items because immediately after seeing "4" last week, I renewed one and yesterday I was able to add another.

but I promise the world, I was not spending my days staring into space and doing nothing!

I've been making stuff like my new sea shell flower necklace idea:

and I've tried a more "random" wire wrapping method to make these sea glass earrings.

Now I just need to write some descriptions so I can get them in my shop soon :)

This weekend's present to myself!

2010-04-26T21:01:00.003-04:00

What weekend isn’t great if you start with a present for yourself?

And this isn’t my normal type of beautiful stone/fossil/or shell to add to my jewelry-making-supplies collection… This was just something I have wanted for a couple of years and I finally broke down and bought:

The only problem with it was the directions for putting it together... I could write for hours about how bad they were, but since I finally did get it together, I am happy. My brother and I were able to make a few passes on it

and now I've got some new shelves to show off as soon as I get the camera outside :)

My first ever treasury

2010-04-23T02:45:00.001-04:00

So I finally got around to reading all of my e-mails and created my first ever treasury - which was pretty easy with the new always open/always on concept. I centered it on the NCTriangle Etsy Team. Blue Row: AzureChina, IndigoArts, BrooksBoutique, KirksSilver
Green Row: KarensSoaps, ShamsandCoverups, ChristieTriplett, FlyTrap
Yellow/Orange Row: OrangeCatArt, SarahHolsapple, MegRNC, EllesBeads
Red Row: PurpleFuzzyFeet, JennGee, LindaSFabricStash, Smutopia

Now, to be getting on to other stuff I should be doing... like sleep!

Birthdays...

2010-04-22T19:43:00.004-04:00

So do you do anything special for birthdays? My side of the family seems to have gotten almost lazy... we have one big birthday for everyone with a "near to the date" birthday. On December 30th this year, we celebrated all birthdays from November through December (which is about 1/2 the family) and was lots of fun because it included presents under a Christmas tree again.

Now, I'm popping up on Memorial Day weekend when we will celebrate the rest of the family's birthdays. I love the idea of an entire get together although sometimes I wish I had more time to pick out that single perfect gift for someone versus doing all at once.

Why is it always trash?

2010-04-21T22:05:00.002-04:00

Oh, tell my why do you always choose trash? Over the toys you have all over the house... the toys I trip over, toss for you clean up debris from regularly...

Yet, stealing trash seems to make you the happiest?

My prizes from the Durham Artwalk

2010-04-20T21:23:00.002-04:00

Most people know I have a thing for notecards... and some days I think I keep the USPS in business. I got a few from other artists who were in the Carolina Theater with me during the Durham Artwalk.

The first here is a handpainted card from Beth Palmer. This is my favorite note card from Orange Cat Art, a fellow Triangle Area Etsian. (I also got the pink dogwood blossoms... couldn't resist.)

And here is a print of a painting by Charles Dillingham:

Any my final prize - my new sugar monster by Rachel Maready Bowman! Since my counter is covered with beads and glue and all things that don't belong... she'll have a place of honor in the library until I've gotten motivated to clean:

It opens up so cute and has a beautiful color inside:

The Durham Arwalk... the aftermath

2010-04-19T21:12:00.002-04:00

The Durham Artwalk over this past weekend was one of the most fun events I have participated in a long time... as an artist, I would definitely recommend DAW to other artists. The staff and volunteers were all enthusiastic (which kind of wore off on all people around them) and the amount of traffic was just perfect for me. Steady all day, but probably a good 10 minute break every hour where you could run to the restroom or eat. If the Junior League of Fayetteville says I can't get into the Holly Day Fair next November (I've already turned that application in) - I'll definitely be back at this one as a vendor next year... Otherwise, I'll be there as a shopper getting all of my holiday gifts! I did my booth set up different than normal... normally I do a U-shape and sit behind the display... this weekend I tried a bit different and brought and extra table to be my workspace. I can't believe how much the 18 inch by 2.5 foot table helped me be organized - for everything from receipts and credit cards to somewhere to hide my lunch... now I'll never set up a booth without my workspace.

Oh, and did I tell you I bought lots of goodies while I was there?

Durham Art Walk

2010-04-16T14:44:00.001-04:00

I'm excited about this weekend... been busy trying a new layout for my booth and creating like crazy!

I'll be in the Carolina Theater along with Linda Searcy!

P.S. Yes, I'm Back!

2010-04-15T21:20:00.000-04:00

Yes, it's been a few weeks and it always amazes me how many thing change in life in such a short amount of time... but I'm back and have a bag full of stories an pictures to share over the coming weeks :)

Who is Magdalene?

2010-04-15T19:15:00.004-04:00

Well, Pamela Baker to be exact.

This month's featured EtsyBlogger and creator of both jewelry and knits!
a shop full of beautiful jewelry that reminds me of spring! Especially this Palace Green Opal Necklace:

and

a shop with great knitted scarves and the, like... but as always my favorite knitted items are for baby:

Meatballs... my go-to party food.

2010-03-24T19:39:00.004-04:00

Do you have a food you make for every party? I actually have 3 and sometimes worry if the neighbors are getting tired of the same stuff over and over. So here are my meatballs (yes, I know most of my recipes involve these little cups... I actually serve meals in them to my husband and he's gotten used to it in the last year that he how thinks it is normal).

The meatball recipe that I love... pre-cooked frozen meat balls into crock pot with equal parts barbeque sauce and grape jelly. Cook on high for 1 hour then turn to low for 2-5 hours.

Such an easy, tasty recipe and many of my friends think that I'm spending hours over the stove (even though I tell them I am not).

Yippee the heat pump is fixed!

2010-03-23T16:45:00.004-04:00

Just in time for spring, too! (But at least there will be no worries when next winter rolls around.)

The local Sanford Airotemp company was able to help me out... I cannot tell you how nice it was to have a repair/contractor-type person show up to my house when they said they would.

Dear Census Bureau

2010-03-22T20:13:00.002-04:00

Please stop wasting my hard-earned tax dollars... So not only do you buy ad space on cable TV (Since I watch about 2 hours of TV a week and have seen your ads, I'm sure most Americans have seen them), you sent me a letter about a week before you sent me my census to say you'd be sending me a census in the next 5-10 days, but now, I, a person who filled out my census and returned it the day you sent it to me, get a post card saying I must send back my census?

I will never understand the government and its practices.

100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 11

2010-03-20T08:30:00.005-04:00

So another great week!

Fri - 2.5 mile walk, 10 min Yoga (10 min solution DVD), 15 min Pilates (Pilates Complete for Everybody) = 4
Sat - 2 mile walk, 15 min Pilates (Pilates Complete for Everybody) = 3
Sun - 1 mle walk = 1
Mon - 2.5 mile walk, 10 min Yoga (10 min solution DVD), 30 min Cardio (Ab Boot Camp) = 5
Tue - 1.5 mile walk, 10 min Yoga (10 min solution DVD), 5 min elliptical, 15 min weights = 3
Wed - 1.5 mile walk, 15 min Yoga (15 min Results Yoga), 32 min Cardio (Cardio Cabaret) = 4
Thu - 2 mile walk, 15 min Pilates (Standing Pilates Blend), 45 min Cardio/Strength (Feb '10 Cover Workout from Shape Magazine) = 6

Total: 26 (Overall Total: 187)

Back to the grind...

2010-03-18T22:10:00.004-04:00

So last week I started a new job. It is an absolutely wonderful new job, but I totally underestimated the adjustment that I would face. Even though I've always been an early riser, over the past year, I wasn't worried about what my hair looked like or even if the clothes I put on matched and my days seemed pretty long. Now, I feel like I have no time and am neglecting everything... like vacuuming, laundry, this blog, and everything else you can think of...

EtsyBlogger of the Month: Dizzy Dragonflies

2010-03-13T08:34:00.002-05:00

This month's etsyBlogger is Dizzy Dragonflies.

The owner of Dizzy Dragonflies is Vicki. I feel like I am meeting "Vick-ee's" everywhere online recently... or maybe I am noticing only because I am a "Vick-ee."

This Vicki knits and crotchets, two arts I have always found elusive, but interesting. She has more recently begun spinning and dyeing her own yarn. This is something I find extremely interesting (but hopefully would never try on my own, because what would I do with tons of yarn?) and if you want to see some of her dyes, check out this blog post titled Dyeing For Spring.

In her etsy shop, the first yarn that called out to me was this HOT HOT HOT red skien. But then, I thought maybe too much fire and settled on the spring green yarn as my favorite instead...

100 Mile Fitness Challenge... Week 10

2010-03-12T10:12:00.003-05:00

My best week yet (for week 10)!

Fri - 2 mile walk, 15 min yoga (15 min Results Yoga) = 3

Sat - None

Sun - 1 mile walk = 1

Mon - 2.5 mile walk, 25 min yoga (Yoga Fitness) = 4

Tue - 2.25 mile walk, 22 min Pilates (Standing Pilates Blend), 53 min cardio/strength (Billy Blanks Basic Boot Camp) = 7

Wed - 2 mile walk, 15 min yoga (15 min Results Yoga) = 3

Thu - 2 mile walk, 10 min Cardio (Slow and Steady Burn), 35 min cardio/strength (Cover Workout from Shape Magazine Feb 2010 issue) = 5

Total: 23 (Overall Total: 161)

My New Pedometer

2010-03-11T20:35:00.002-05:00

I've been posting my updates for the 100 mile fitness challenge weekly since October... which is probably getting boring, but I feel like if I show the world what I am doing every week, I'll be motivated to do more because I don't want people to think I am some little weakling.

In 2005, I began to almost religiously wear a pedometer and I found it a challenge to reach 5,000 steps per day (the literature I had was saying to be healthy, you needed 10,000 steps per day). I remember dropping the pedometer in the toilet at work (by accident - it fell off my belt) and never getting a new one in 2007.

Being without a job outside of the home over the last year had me worried (I've been trying to get back into shape since my knee replacement in December 2008 and know the expected time for "complete" recovery was to be 18 months.) I walk a lot since that was most of my therapy after I passed the 8 month mark, but was worried I am still not getting enough movement to be healthy.

So here is my pedometer from the Dollar Tree: I had such a happy surprise to find out that I am ranging 11,000-15,000 steps per day on weekdays and 8,500-10,500 on weekends. I am no longer quite so worried about my health as I was two weeks ago.