the hol-o-days have begun!

an attitude of gratitude

I am thankful for:
my family – husband, children, parents, sibling, grandmother, step-parents, in-laws, aunts, uncles, cousins.
our house – it’s not much to look at (yet!), but it’s cozy and safe.
my health.
dependable, nice cars.
good, nutritious & delicious food to eat, and the money to buy it.
a good job with good benefits.
indoor plumbing & hot water.
nice clothes & shoes.
Lindt chocolate.
toothpaste & toothbrush.
the numerous lotions and potions I use on my skin.
beautiful music.
internet access.
rainy days.
wegman’s dark chocolate ice cream.
lay’s potato chips.
somerset studio.
a decent daycare for Lily.
clean water.
the wizard of oz.
our dvr.
books.
purple.
pink.

~happy thanksgiving~

gypsy cold care is good stuff.

creating=breathing

I found this quote on Lynn Davis’ blog (I condensed it a bit). This is how I feel about making stuff. I think I am happiest when I am creating.

I used a digital tag from one of my Artella kits. Isn’t it pretty? I would love to know how to make something like that.

generations
I was thinking the other night about a common thread that runs through the art magazines I read. When the artists (mostly female) discuss their childhoods/backgrounds, inevitably they mention another family member who was artistic or creative in some way. And usually it is a female family member, particularly a mother or grandmother, and usually they created using a needle and thread, whether it was the grandmother who was a seamstress or the mother who made Halloween costumes.

These unknown artists, creating perhaps more out of necessity than purely as a form of self-expression, imbued in their daughters/granddaughters the love of creating. Female artists seem always to have another female artist in their family, and it made me think about the importance of sharing what you love to do.

My own family is filled with creative women. My Mom has been a baker for decades – baking all sorts of goodies, and making beautifully decorated cakes. She also quilts, has made clothes, and does needlework. My one grandmother used to make clothes, and my other grandmother also made clothes and did needlework. My sister does needlework too.

I hope that Lily will be interested in art and creating – I dream of spending afternoons together, creating, sharing, and enjoying being together.

she’s taking over.

don’t mess with the t.
Tabatha is back. I love Tabatha. She is one tough cookie. I admire her integrity and her high standards of salon excellence. And I like her clothes too!

off for an affaire
Tomorrow (of course at the last possible minute. Here I go paying a fortune for overnight shipping yet again! I don’t know why I can’t get it together to get this stuff mailed earlier.) I am sending off my pieces to Jewelry Affaire. Here is the last set I made, called Sea Dreams.

I think these two pieces turned out really well – very elegant, but not complicated to make.

I’m still not sure if this is what the editors are looking for, but the idea of the magazine is elegant jewelry that a beginner can make. All the pieces I am sending are, I think, simple for a beginner. The wrapped loops do take a bit of practice, but I made certain in the instructions to say that you could make simple loops instead. I hope the editors like at least something!

Artbeads discount
I have a coupon code to share for Artbeads – SCF10P-ARTBEADS-0424. This is good for 10% off and expires 12/31/09. Artbeads carries some unique jewlery-making supplies, as well as the more typical ones. Enjoy!

cookies for a cause
I found a great website dedicated to providing a bit of comfort to those serving in the military – bakinggals. These baking gals bake cookies and other treats and send them off to a designated military personnel. If you want to do some good with your baking skills check it out.

~toodles~

on this dread night.

designer painted pumpkins.

This one I did.

An appropriately-themed pumpkin by Marc.

Lily’s pink glitter pumpkin.

This one is mine…

And this one too.

These are two of the tags I made.

trick or treat

My Mom and the girls.

My mother-in-law and the girls. Lily was Dorothy, in case you couldn’t figure it out from the blue shirt and pink jumper. She did have red glitter shoes, at least! She was her own version of Dorothy. And Gwen was a very adorable pirate.

Not sure who these two dreadful characters are…

~trick or treat~

such a honey-ful day.

new goodies
I bought some new goodies from AC Moore (and I finally got an AC Moore rewards card – I might as well put my shopping to good use!):

First, some beautiful 12″x12″ paper by Basic Grey, called Porcelain.

Isn’t that so pretty? I immediately thought it would be great for springtime birthday cards.

Some gold-glitter alphabet stickers by K&Company.

Cute but with a vintage-look Halloween rubber stamps by Hampton Art.

And the newest Somerset Memories.

a rainy day kind of girl
The other morning, as I was driving to work, I remarked to myself what a perfect, lovely autumn morning it was. It was raining a bit, a little chilly, and the wind was blowing the leaves around. The leaves are still changing colors, so they were red and yellow and half-green. Rain makes the colors of nature more vibrant and rich, and I loved the contrast of the dark tree trunks against the bright leaves. Pretty!

~singing in the rain~

a good little clock.

time. time. time.
Time. Lately I have felt, more than ever, this crushing sense of time. I wake up in the morning and immediately feel pressure and stress, thinking about all the things I need to do just to get out the door in the morning, not to mention all the things I have to/need to/and dare I say want to, accomplish that day. I’ve turned into quite a good little clock-watcher – I find myself constantly looking at the clock, which drives me crazy and does nothing to alleviate the pressure I feel.

What time is it? How much time do I have? How much time is left?

I wonder what it would be like to get rid of all the clocks, and live the day according to my own pace.

Between taking care of Lily and Julian (who both need attention although in very different ways), working, taking care of the house, and shopping, I can barely squeeze in time to do the things I want to do for myself. And then it makes me feel selfish for even saying that!

I know I have too much to do, but I honestly don’t know what to cut out. I don’t think that I’m doing anything that isn’t necessary. But something isn’t right. When I’m in tears in the morning because of the stress, then all I can say is this is not working, and I need to either cut things out, or accept the fact that I want to do all this stuff and have a better attitude about it. I’ll let you know how that turns out!

but on the other hand
But somehow (and I’m not really sure how) I always do manage to find time for my creativity. Probably because if I didn’t I would be utterly miserable and crazy.

Here is a necklace I made to submit to Stampington’s new publication, Jewelry Affaire –

They are looking for elegant jewelry that is simple for a beginner to make. I have another necklace I am working on, and an idea for one more. Plus I have a few things made already that I am sending as well. I figure if I send a bunch of stuff, there’s got to be something they’ll like!

bad mommy
My sweet little daughter had her first visit to the dentist a few days ago – and she already has a cavity! I feel like I must be the worst mother in the world – how can my three-year old have a cavity already? We brush her teeth twice a day, although sometimes it can be rather a challenge to do it well. I just pray that when we go back to get it fixed, everything goes smoothly.

~toodles.

orange is the color of the season.

a pumpkin adventure

Last autumn in Somerset Life was an article by Carla Buchanan about her designer pumpkins – pumpkins that she had painted in a “way cool, shabby-chic” fashion, to borrow her words. I made a note in my calendar book for September 2009 – “consider designer painted pumpkins as in Somerset Life”. That way I would be sure to remember.

Miss Buchanan’s pretty painted pumpkin.

So dutifully last weekend I purchased two small pumpkins (from Wegman’s, alas, not a local pumpkin patch. But I figure they’re good enough). I haven’t painted them yet. I’m a little nervous, since I’ve never done anything like that before. I’m afraid I’ll mess them up! Plus I need to get some paints.

And I need to get more pumpkins, too, because my husband and son want to paint some as well.

So my pumpkin adventure has begun!

and a birthday card
Here’s a little birthday card I pretty much threw together for my mom. I think it turned out cute, n’est-ce pas?

~sweet dreams~