My productive day and Happy New Year!

I finally finished my 3d spider tutorial today. He is not posted yet but will be over at 3d beading soon. This has been a long time in the making and I am glad to start my new year off without this "monkey" on my back.
The next thing I managed to do is to get a couple items up for sale on my website
This has also been a long time in the making. I thought designing the site would kick me into high gear to start selling things but I forgot about Christmas so that pushed everything back on my site.
The last thing I did was make my new year's resolution, well I am doing that now so here goes.
1. No more starting something unless I plan on finishing it. I have enough unfinished things to keep me busy for 3 lifetimes.
2. I am going to stop saying yes to everything that is asked of me and start only saying yes to the things I want to do and that make me happy.
3. I am gonna remember that it is ok for me to put my needs first and that is something I haven't done in a long time.
4. I am gonna relax a little and have more fun.

Ok I think that does it for me. Simple, easy and things I should be doing anyway right? I have a feeling this is going to be a much better year and I can't wait!
Happy New Year's to everyone!

The tin lady

Ok so I have gotten a little crazy with my bead storage lately and had to share the neat finds I found the other day. I normally use snap and seal plastic boxes because I don't have a set area for storing my stuff and it ends up being packed into a backpack to stay safe from my kids knocking things over and such but lately I have moved to a new stoarage system.
Mike got some peppermint bark last year for Christmas, I thought the tin was way to cute so I kept it. About a month ago, I needed another storage box for some new beads I bought so I grabbed the tin and the rest is history.

And then my coworker was cleaning out her desk and was going to throw away her altoids tins, nope they came home with me along with another tin of cheese straws someone else brought in.

But the neatest ones I found are the smackers coke container, it came with 5 lip glosses so I talked my daughter into buying it with me, she got lip gloss, I got the cool tin. Then I found the Willy Wonka suitcase tins at the dollar store and heaven, bought one of each!

So I will be on the lookout in the new year for cool new tins to add to my bead storage collection!

Link issues

I am trying to see if I can fix my link issues, so I thought I would try and see if using tiny url would help.
http://tiny.cc/vYZ2d Here goes nothing.

I am trying it the normal way too.
Ok I am editing this post to try again.
here

Yay it worked when I typed it in manually!

Busy busy busy and a happy announcement

Ok I have not gotten much beading done over the weekend. I did have some computer issues, my cd/dvd drive is no longer working and since my warranty is up in like two weeks, the computer went in to get fixed. They sent me home with a loaner so Yay I am still online. I just finished installing the software I can't live without. AVG antivirus, open office suite, inkscape and first and foremost, firefox cuz IE is yuck yuck yuck, lol. I know its all in my perception. Now that I am back up and running, I have a happy announcement to make.
My wonderful dear friend Allegra has asked me to be a moderator for her site, www.3dbeading.com I am totally stoked to be able to be a part of her site (and I know my links aren't working here but the link is 2nd on my favorite sites to your right). I found her site earlier this year and have been glued to it ever since. Even better, she has become a great friend! I also created my own 3d spider which I will be writing a tutorial for to post there.
The second neat thing is that I got my yes we did Obama bumper sticker in the mail today so I can finally make the Obama ornament featured here ( http://margotpottertheimpatientcrafter.blogspot.com/2008/12/impatient-crafter-free-holiday-craft.html ) I know bad links but cut and paste people! Plus you can get your own vinyl sicker at MoveOn.org.
I will keep you updated to when my spider tutorial is up but in the mean time, here is a sneak peek at what he looks like.

rainbows

I just found this neat Rainbow at The Jewellery Goddess's blog. I think it's really accurate for me too.

Your rainbow is strongly shaded green and white.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What is says about you: You are an intelligent person. You appreciate quiet moments. Those around you admire your fresh outlook and vitality. People depend on you to make them feel secure.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Nothing to do......

That is a weird thought for me, I have nothing to do today. Oh sure the usual things, light house work, making dinner etc. Thanks to my odd work schedule, Friday thru Tuesday, I get to have an extra day off to make up for Christmas day. I really wanted Friday off but seniority rules in my office so here I am, home today with nothing to do. I have been so overwhelmed getting ready for Christmas that my to do list has been pages long. I can't believe I have finished! All my ornaments are made, Christmas presents are bought, wrapped and hidden till Christmas eve. Its just us this year so I will be doing just a simple dinner, ham and homemade scalloped potatoes and a fruit tray from Costco.
We have missed Santa twice this year at Christmas in the park. The first time was a day before he got there. The second time we went, we had dinner first and got to the line at 9:05, they closed it at 9:00. We will be trying again Christmas Eve as my dh works tonight and tomorrow during the day. This time we are going straight to Santa then out for Pizza at our favorite pizza place, Pizza Chicago! YUM-O. We will be making cookies tomorrow morning too.
But today is nothingness! This will give me a chance to finish up some UFO's (unfished objects), play with my goodies I got from Margot Potter, the impatient crafter, and maybe even get some items made to post on my site for sale finally. I will even be able to let the munchkins outside since it is not raining and not to cold which means uninterrupted work time!

FINISHED!

Yes that's right, my ornaments are FINISHED! And what, pray tell, do 53 hand made beaded ornaments look like you ask? Well they look like this.

Ok so they are in the tin because I really can't stand looking at them at this moment (and because I have become a collector of tins lately and love stashing my beadwork in them.) I needed something to keep them out of my sight! It seems like all I have done for the last few weeks is make ornaments. I did pull out a few so you can see them better.

I also finished my mother in law and sister's amethyst necklace/ bracelet sets today. They are the same so I only took pictures of one. (ok ok I forgot to take pictures and wrapped one set before I realized it lol it is 1:34 am right now!)

So all that is left now is to pick up two gift cards and ship tomorrow morning. Mike will be doing that before he goes to work at noon.
Oh and we still have to wrap presents for our kids. That will be fun this year. I scored big time today when we finished shopping. Mervyn's has about 8 days left before they shut their doors forever. I have already experienced this sadness once as they closed in Oregon a long time ago. I love Mervyn's sales. Something is always 60 or 70% off and the clothes are a lot better quality then shopping cheap. I am not one who buys name brand but Dickies jeans last a lot longer on my 8 year old son than the cheap jeans from Wal-mart and Target and if I can get them for the same price, I am going for the Dickies!
While I am sad and praying for all the employees who will be left without jobs, this came at a good time for us this year.
We were still wearing shorts to school a few weeks ago. I love the weather here. But we had to pull out the pants and long sleeve tops and low and behold, everything from last year is a few inches too short! The girls can manage but my poor son just won't wear capris! LOL The kids are loaded with new clothes now, I even got my husband some south pole jeans for $14! I think it is going to be a good Christmas and the first one I can proudly say I am ready for! No wrapping presents all night Christmas eve, WOOOHOOO!

Halfway there

Ok I am about halfway done with making Christmas ornaments for my coworkers. Wow this was a big undertaking. I don't know if I mentioned this or not but I work in two departments so that means I am making 50 ornaments. Yep, you read it right 50. I have right around 25 done. I cheated a little bit and bought three kits of snowflake ornaments. Each one is supposed to make 14. It came with plastic beads, just not my style so I am having fun making each one unique from my stash of beads. It has really helped with my time being able to get them worked up so quick. And it came with these cool little stoppers to put on the end so I don't have to wrap each one. They are short so it would have really been a challenge but they were the only forms I could find on such short notice. Ordering online would not have gotten them here on time.
I also still need to make my sisters and mother in laws necklaces tomorrow night in order to get them shipped by Thursday morning. Tomorrow morning I am set to finish my shopping while the kids are in school. Then of course we get to work in wrapping time too!
Ugh this list is daunting! I need a nap just reading it. Ok back to work on more ornaments. I will post some pics if/when I ever get them finished!
Oh some good news too and I have to give some link love to Margot Potter, the impatient crafter. I am the lucky winner of a wonderful set of beads from her blog. YAY, getting beads in any way is always a great way to make my day! Check her out at http://margotpottertheimpatientcrafter.blogspot.com/ (sorry my links aren't working for some reason so you will have to cut and paste but trust me, well worth checking out!) She also has some great crafty quickies on her site. I have learned everything on my own so its a great resource to learn proper techniques.

Beady Blast from the past

My co worker mentioned a few weeks ago she had been given some old beads from someone cleaning out their house a few years back. She knows I am bead crazy so when she came across them, she asked me if I liked them and said she would bring them to me.
I was absolutely thrilled when I opened the bag she brought me today and found this inside.



I have always wanted to buy some older beads just to have. The packaging is neat, the prices crazy and it's just cool to have a piece of bead history. These packages have been sitting in someone's attic for years. The dates on the packages that have writing are all in the 60's. I have only known beads to come in plastic tubes, all of these are glass with corks. They have been untouched for so long that the cork actual broke off of the tops of a few as I was trying to open them.

Here are a few pics of the packaging that I think is just grand to have!

The 19 cent bulges.

29 cents for these pearly pink beads (only in my dreams! How I wish beads where still this cheap, I would be in heaven!)


The back of the package with the copyright date.

This one is my favorite packaging so I had to include a picture.

I will be making my co-worker a badge holder for bringing these to me, I want to include some of the beads from this stash so I will post a picture of her thank you gift when I get it complete!
Now I am off to finish dinner and tomorrow is set aside for finishing presents and getting Christmas cards finished. I have my scarves complete but I need to make ornaments for my co-workers (like fifty so nothing impressive but at least thoughtful!) I also have two bracelet/necklace combos that need to be done but I don't have the gemstones for those. I plan on shipping next Wednesday the 17th so I have a little bit of time. Wish I would have had them all done last week when I had to drive to Oregon. Oh well.

Great day, photos are up and I have new earrings on the way!

LOL I just got so carried away I posted this blog blank the first time! I was working on getting my photos up tonight on this blog and I realized that I am much better at making jewelry then photographing it. I would have to say that it is a little harder to do where I am because I hardly ever get overcast days. I am in San Jose so the sun is always out. Great for me, bad for my photos. I did manage to get a few ok ones, a better camera definitely helps. I hope you get a chance to check them out. The link is on the right under my photos.
My website will be up and running by after Christmas I have decided. If you see something you like and or want in my photos or something you would like to have made, e-mail me about it and I may be able to squeeze it in. There are a few more presents I need to work on and also I am making ornaments for my co-workers this year. Not fancy ones but snowflakes in different styles and maybe some simple but pretty ornament covers.
Plus I need to help my loving daughter finish her Egypt project this week. I am off to Wal-mart tomorrow for plain white fabric, puff paint, cardstock and gold spray paint. I wanted to do some beading with her but with my unexpected drive to Oregon and back this last week, that is not going to happen.
Speaking of Oregon I am including some random shots from our trip home. My five year old rode with me and she took over 150 photos on our way home! Don't ask where exactly other than I-5 between Lebanon and where I got onto I-505! Except for the bird chasing shots and the snowy mountain as she calls it. That is a Weed airport and the snowy mountain is Mt. Shasta.
New earrings. I have to talk about this because I am so excited! I won a pair of earrings in the 12 days of BAO holiday giveaway. http://beadartoriginals.blogspot.com/
They are giving away a different item for twelve days made by different artists. There are a few days left so go check them out and leave a comment. I will be getting Snowball Earrings created by juiceglass from day five! My husband thought I was going nuts when I got the e-mail, I was making so much noise.
Now for pictures, and there are two more I know where they were taken, one of my dad and Jordan and one of my sister and Jordan at my moms house.

Home again

We made the drive to Oregon on Wednesday and back on Thursday. I am a little miffed because I tried really hard to do as much as I could for my Bro in law and his family and it appears that we got taken advantage of. They weren't honest with us about a few things and that really makes me mad. Anyways not going to vent here.
I wanted to let you know I will be working really hard in the next week to get my website up and stuff for sale. Also more pics of stuff I made. My DH has been promoting me but I am falling behind! I will be posting an album link here sometime this weekend and hopefully my website will be ready by then.
I hope he knows that by promoting me and pushing me to get this done, he will be doing a few extra chores! Good thing he is a good sport!

Road Trip

So my stranded family is still stranded. We have figured the best and cheapest solution for them will be for me to drive them back to Oregon tomorrow, my days off are Wednesday and Thursday so I have two days to make it from San Jose, CA to Lebanon, OR. That is a little over six hundred miles, each way. I will be driving there with my bro in law, sis in law, their two year old and my five year old Jordan. She is coming because I couldn't find someone to watch her after school on such short notice. My other two have after school stuff till Mike gets home so they will be ok. I am crossing my fingers for a safe and fast trip! The pass is clear and no snow is predicted for the next few days so pray it stays that way!

Turkey Coma

Happy Thanksgiving! Most of our day has gone off without a hitch but the Turkey was a little dry. It was bigger than I normally get (20 pounder this year!) cuz I wanted lots of leftovers and it dried out cooking but at least it was still tasty. Also my bro in law and his family is broke down on their way from southern Cal. They are moving back to Oregon so they were going to stop in today. At least we are close so my hubby is on his way to pick them up and hopefully he can get the car started for them. He drove a tow truck for a while and did service calls so cross your fingers that he can get them going so they can make it back here to our house at least.
My kids are in my bed watching a movie, I am hoping they will crash soon. I need to get to bed early. 3:30 meeting time to hit Kohl's and then Target with a friend. I sat down a minute ago to check my email and when I turned around a few minutes later, I saw my dear Gizmo kicked back in a turkey coma! He didn't even flinch when I took his picture.

He got some turkey munchies while I was cleaning the bones off tonight to make stock. Best part of Thanksgiving is turkey noodle soup tomorrow night. YUM-O

Progress

I am happy to say that I have actually completed a couple more Christmas presents done yesterday and today.

I made this ornament from the free directions at Bead and button . I couldn't find the 60mm bugle beads so I had to use the 24mm that my LBS had. I think it turned out really neat looking and I am going to dip it in floor wax to harden it as soon as I get out and pick some up.

I made this flat spiral bracelet for my oldest daughter. Gotta love trickery, it fits her perfectly because I told her I was making it for my sister and wanted to check on her wrist to see if it fits cuz I think their wrists are close in size!

This set is for one of my dearest friends that I have made since I moved to San Jose. She is a huge Colts fan but I forgive her for that but at least I know she will love the colors!
Now on to start my sisters scarf while I finish up this weeks Life on Mars.

My spoils (and a little bit of motherly pride!)

It's parent teacher conference this week for all three of my kids. We started early this morning (7:30 on my day off ugh!) but it was well worth it. We had such an early time because my son is in speech therapy and we have to be able to meet with teacher, therapist and principal. I was thrilled to hear such a good report on him. He has struggled immensely with school partly due to his speech and partly due to being ADHD. We changed the medication he was on over the summer and it has been a 180 turn around. I hate the fact that he has to be on meds but I know that his ADHD disrupts his life to the point where he can't function at school, in a group of people or at home. I remember back to Kindergarten before he was diagnosed, we were at the school every day to pick him up because he would cry, run from the room, hide under a table, etc.
This conference, we were told how courteous Colby has become, how helpful he is to other students and what a pleasure he is to have in class. I was most proud when they told me they have watched him multiple times initiate problem solving on the playground instead of the typical no it has to be my way fighting that you typically see. A little more work on his speech, reading and penmanship and we will be all set. I am so proud of him! I hope both my daughter's go as well tomorrow.
Now on to my spoils.

My local Dollar tree has gotten a huge shipment of lion brand fur yarns. These are about $5-8 at my local craft stores so I am thrilled to get such a good deal! I had to pull up some videos on you tube to remember how to knit, it's been a while, but I have managed to make two scarfs this past week for gifts so I should be good to get the rest done and shipped in time for Christmas. YAY!


My next stop was to my LBS. We got there at 10 but they didn't open till 11 so it was off to make a payment at the dentist, then a quick stop at Michaels to pick up the Dec. Bead and Button. I know, I just need to order it but we don't have an outgoing mail slot at our apartment and I always forget. It is on my Christmas list now so I will be good for the next issue. Then it was back to the LBS. I am dying to make some flat spiral bracelets as gifts too so I had to get some bigger beads.

Most of my stash is 11/0s.
My DH came in and even got a couple things himself.

He occasionally beads with me but it is few and far between. I of course love it cuz I get all the stuff he buys and never uses all off! I really like the maroonish color he picked, not something I would have bought myself but I am sure I will be snagging some for something eventually!

Dumping gournd yeilds treasures untold!

Or we could call this post, I cleaned my desk yet again! My family strongly believes that during the week while I am at work, the best place to put anything they don't want lost is my desk. Of course this generally means we lose most of it. I have tried very hard to break them of this habit but it has become a test of wills! I just found my desk trays that I used when I was in school to keep old papers close but organized so I am going to give them each a slot and hopefully that will help with staying organized.

I do my bead work at my desk so most nights lately I have been not doing any because I have no room to work. With Christmas coming up so quickly, I really need to get on the ball to make a few gifts in time to send back to family in Oregon.
Here is an interesting list of things I found at my desk while cleaning today.
Bubbles, a missing package of ear wires, a few pieces of jewelry my daughter has broke and of course knows I can fix, both my missing camera batteries (wooohooo!), a missing earring I made and thought I lost in the car and five pairs of scissors. I also found my husbands missing SF Giants bracelet that I made him.




Neater than that, I found my very first piece of loomwork that I made, on a loom that is. The first piece I did was done with the warp threads taped to my mothers coffee table. That piece is long gone but I thought it was pretty cool to find this one again, I haven't seen it in ages.

I would say this piece was made at least 13 years ago, I used a thick string for the warp threads, sewing thread to string on the beads and the beads came from the cheap mix that walmart sold way back then. I wore it for a really long time, I am surprised that it never broke but it definitely great to have to be able to look back and see how far I have come. I am so glad that I got back into beading.

12......GULP

That's right, 12. My oldest daughter turned twelve on the 6th. Pre-teen and yes the attitude has already started! But like all things, we will live through it.

Here's the birthday girl talking to family back in Oregon.

She is constantly eyeing my stash of finished jewelry and hinting about which items she likes so she got some of her favorite pieces. It was nice to see her light up when she realized they were for her since she watched me make them!

And her blowing out her candles, I thought she was gonna set off the fire alarm, there was a ton of smoke!
So here is to a year of emotional ups and downs of a pre-teen. Pray for our survival!

Trick or Treat!

We had a wet and windy trick or treating session last night. The kids had a ton of fun and got way more candy then they need but it's only once a year right?


Jordan was so excited with her haul she couldn't help but show it off, Tori had to make her peace sign in the background, I remember going thru that phase! She went as Cleopatra this year.




My son Colby made a great cop and Mike went as "Grandpa", he was in his referee uniform at the beginning of the night and looked really cool but he wears it all the time so didn't think it was fun to walk around in.

The best pic of the night award goes to Colby, he didn't realize I was watching him!

Pumpkin Carving.

We got our pumpkins carved today! One of my favorite parts of Halloween is getting to carve the pumpkins. I have so many books and patterns printed I can't ever decide which ones to do. We never managed to find the patterns in the garage so we bought a new book today. I know it's cheating but have you seen my garage lately? Yeah its that bad.
Jordan and I tackled the gutting of the pumpkins while Tori and Colby were still at school today. She of course did her one tiny little pumpkin and then promptly ditched me for afternoon cartoons.

And no that is not the one she gutted, hers was softball size.
She did come back for a few minutes and help me poke on some of the pattern.

Tori and Colby made it home and they were much more willing to help.


Here are our finished results. I did the haunted house, Jordan picked the cat which I ended up finishing, Colby did the skull and Tori did the face that kind of looks like the clown from it. I am so excited to set them out tomorrow!

Agenda update

So I managed a few things today. The house is mostly clean. Laundry needs to be folded still but what can I say, a house of five, there is always laundry to be folded. My desk was clean. My oldest daughter is doing a diorama book report and she has left her cast off's all over my desk. Thankfully that will be taken care of after she does her one chore, dishes.
The homework is still missing. I am hopeful it is in the back of my car currently at work with my husband. It is the only place we haven't checked. Cross your fingers.
Thanks for the input on how to get my pictures in my posts, I was wondering if it is possible to do an album on here if any one knows?
Now for the funnest part of my day, Ornaments. I have completed four out of five. Here is a sneak peak.

I only have silver ornaments in the house right now and wow are they reflective! The silver chain with the blue beads is my favorite combination so I am glad I was able to get it to work. One more ornament to do tomorrow morning and tomorrow evening will be pumpkin carving. Of course that means my husband gets to crawl through the garage sale in waiting in my garage to get my pumpkin carving patterns. They are at the very back of the garage. Of course maybe it would be cleaner down there if he had done the garage sale (I organized it all but I work every weekend, so a little hard for me to do) instead of taking a nap!

Today's Agenda

I am hoping that by listing my to do list, I will get more done today. First things first, I am working on personalizing this blog. If any one has any suggestions, please feel free to help me out here! I am lost! I tried adding pictures to the header but photobucket kept insisting that my photo had been moved and it wouldn't up load. Maybe I will try putting it somewhere else and uploading from there.
Number two on my list. Ornament swap. I signed up for my first ever swap and thought I would have plenty of time to get them out. I just realized it is Oct 29th and I haven't even started. I looked at tons of ornaments to get some ideas but haven't gotten on to actually getting them made.
Third on my list, Cleaning house. Ok well it's not actually third on my list. My desk must be cleaned before I bead. I somehow misplaced my daughters homework and I can't let her miss out on turning in her first ever Kindergarten homework! I know its here somewhere. I put it up in a spot and thought wow, I know I can't lose it here. Well now I can't remember where that spot is.
Now off to see how much I can get done from my list!

Hello

Hi and Welcome to my blog. This is something I have been meaning to do for a while and have just never gotten around too. I have been greatly inspired over the last few weeks reading all the wonderful beading blogs out there.
First a little about me. My name is Jackie, all my friends call me Jax. I am married (ten years this coming May) and I have three children, Tori, Colby and Jordan. I just gradutated this past spring from an LVN program and got my license just a few weeks ago, FINALLY! I spent two years doing pre-reqs and am one credit shy of my AA and I did 18 months for my LVN certificate. Then of course there is months of studying for N-CLEX, taking N-CLEX, waiting for N-CLEX results, waiting for license. All I can say is its the prettiest shade of blue I have ever seen!
On to beading history. I made my first loom without a loom piece when I was thriteen. Without a loom means I taped my warp threads to the table and moved them closer as I went ultimitaly creating an anklet with my nickname- Jax. I moved on to working on a real loom but got busy with life as all teenagers do. I worked, went to school and was a teen mom (OMG I know I am a statistic how weird huh? lol).
I grew up in Oregon in a small town in the Willamette Valley all my life. In 2004, my husband, three kids and I picked up and moved to the Bay Area. I was frustrated with school and life, and he wanted to try something new plus his closest friend was here. I was hoping that with more nursing programs in the area, I would have a better shot of getting in a nursing program.
The first place we lived was awful, the landlord was a jerk. The only good part was I met Mary. She brought me back to the beading world. She sells her work at Yosemite National park to help pay the bills, she is retired. Her sister does basking weaving up there if you ever get to visit. I had to learn and so being wonderful that she is she taught me. The rest is bead history.
So now on to my blog name. I was sick from the flu shot last week and sick of being in bed by day two. I spent a few hours on you tube watiching how to beading videos. I learn so many cool things- Auntie's beads has the best ever videos. So I ended up making a wire wrapped bracelet from some beads I got in a grab bag like four years ago and have been saving since, not sure how to get them together.
I am thrilled with the results. All in all, my day, like my life sometimes, felt unproductively productive!