Tangible Tidbits 2012 #33: Slow And Steady Wins The Race

Hey, everybody! :) Well, a number of promising things happened as a direct result of last week’s blog post, so thank you to those who are actually reading it! :))

First, a family friend in Florida saw the bracelet I decided to submit to the 3rd Annual 1978 Maplewood Arts Center Members' Show, and liked it a lot. She had purchased a Murano glass necklace in Italy, but liked the beads more than the necklace itself. A couple of years ago, she had me redesign the necklace for her with sterling silver blanks – which she had also seen on a bracelet I made and liked. ;) As it turns out, she doesn't wear the "new" necklace much either, so she asked if I could make a similar bracelet to the one I posted last week and sent me the necklace. Making the changes won’t be too hard, but the glass beads are kind of bulky and heavy, so I'm afraid the bracelet will be too heavy. I guess there's only one way to find out! :P She doesn’t want the other components of the necklace back, so I will have four of sterling silver blanks left over, which I am hoping I can fashion into the Autism puzzle piece charms I mentioned last week. :)

Speaking of the puzzle piece charms, a friend from high school had a job interview at Tiny Tots Therapy this week, and mentioned my project while making small talk. The Director of Marketing overheard her and asked for my contact information. My friend says the group works with school districts all over the state, so it could be really good exposure for me. I have no problem working with not-for-profits, but I am not one myself! If they are only interested in donations from me and/or Something Tangible, I am not currently in a position to oblige on a larger scale. :\

My chiropractor's assistant loved her necklace, and a coworker purchased a pair of Evil Eye hoop earrings with a pair of orange eyeball beads on each 40mm black hoops for Halloween this morning. She also asked me to hold onto a pair with purple eyeball beads – her favorite color – on 40mm silver hoops for her. The orange and black pairing was her own idea. ;) As for the coworker who wants the puzzle piece charms, she’s on vacation this week and I'm away next week, so I have until early September. I have a 20" sterling silver box necklace chain she wants regardless, so she will purchase at least that. Hopefully, I can make puzzle charms out of the blanks from the Murano glass necklace that will be in her price range. The blanks are not too large, so I’m hoping it will work out. :) I ended up purchasing two sterling silver toggle clasps, one for the sterling silver chain maille bracelet I mentioned last week, and one for the Murano glass bracelet, as her preference is also sterling silver.

My internet friend decided to purchase the Peridot beaded ring -- this month's Focal Piece of the Month -- "as is" for her friend's birthday, after I offered to make any required changes/alterations the gift recipient requests for free. ;)

Here's a link to this week’s social media poster. It's not quite as popular as some of the earlier ones, but I thought it was funny. :))

Wednesday night’s America's got Talent filming was fun, although a bit long. They had us come in an hour earlier so they could pre-tape a performance for this coming Wednesday's show, so I have seen one whole live broadcast and two pre-taped segments in all. The show I saw live aired this past Wednesday; I may try to see it On Demand if I get a chance. I checked over the weekend and it is there, but I don't know if I will have time or the desire to see it before they take it down. :P

Wanna hear something totally bizarre? I got a missed call on my cell phone this morning from a number I did not recognize. I checked whitepages.com for a reverse phone look-up, and it came up with a land line in the Madison/Florham Park area. It turns out it was a wrong number from the New York Jets ticket office! Someone had left two numbers, and apparently one was recorded incorrectly because it was my cell number. I told the guy it was ironic because I'd had season tickets for 15 years! :-O He asked if I was watching from the comfort of my couch when I told him 15 years was enough...too many late, cold, dark games. :P Is that freaky or what? :))

I have to do laundry and pack this week, as I am leaving for the annual trip to Ocean City, Maryland on Saturday morning. Next week's entry will be posted on location! B-)

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #32: Back On TV?

Hey, everyone! Well, I changed my mind about submitting the Evil Eye Chan Luu-style bracelet to 1978 Maplewood Arts Center's Members Show at the last minute, and offered a wire-wrapped Blue Crazy Lace Agate and Blue Ribbon Jasper bracelet instead. I decided it looked a bit classier and, therefore, more impressive. It’s another fundraiser so if the items sell, 1978 gets 20 percent. :)

A coworker wants an Autism puzzle piece necklace and bracelet, both in sterling silver. I have a chain for the necklace and I worked over the weekend on a chain maille bracelet for her. She likes toggle clasps on bracelets, so I made one for her with some sterling silver wire I had on hand. However, it's kind of awkward to put on and opens with a lot of movement, so I have to go back to the drawing board and try again. I thought I had some sterling sheet metal left over from my classes at Montclair State, so I was thinking about cutting the puzzle piece pendants myself, but it turns out I don't have any. It may be more cost effective to purchase pre-made pendants; I’ll have to see what I can find. I offered to engrave her son’s name or initials on the pendants, as I recently acquired a set of letter stamps that I have not used yet. I tried to test them on aluminum yesterday, but I didn’t like how it turned out. Since sterling silver is softer than aluminum, they will probably work better...I have to find some silver to test. :-/

In addition, one of the receptionists at my chiropractor’s office liked the EnVined necklace I brought to display last week, and asked if I could make her a necklace and/or bracelet without the Swarovski yarn to bring the price down. I came up with something earlier today...hopefully, she likes it! ;)

At my chiropractic appointment last week, I mentioned wanting to get a massage…I haven’t had one in 2-3 years at least. He offered to give me one at my next appointment, which was really sweet of him. He doesn't usually do that, but since I'm a long-time patient, he said he’d use my time for that instead of a regular treatment. My left shoulder and upper arm have been bothering me a lot lately – I’ve even resorted to using Bengay on them! :O – so I’m hoping this will help loosen everything up. :)

My nieces were over on Thursday and rented Marley & Me from the library. They'd both seen it before, but Mom and I had not because we’d heard it had a sad ending. It did, but it was still a good movie. My younger niece said that Owen Wilson's character was "old" when they celebrated his 40th birthday. I told her I was already 43, and she responded, "He's old; you're not." :))

Yesterday, I watched Star Wars: The Clone Wars animated series with my cousin/Godson. I'd bought them for his high school graduation gift, but I’d never seen them. He told me he's watched them A LOT, so I guess that was a good gift! ;)

Our local bead store, The Beaded Path in South Orange, is closing and I went to check out the clearance items earlier this week. I got a $45 parking ticket THREE MINUTES after my meter expired. Needless to say, it was an expensive afternoon! :-/

Here's a link to this week’s social media poster, which I forgot to post on Friday and posted on Sunday. :P

As you may recall, I will be attending the live filming of America’s Got Talent this coming Wednesday, August 15, at NJPAC. Look for me if you tune in to the show! :))

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #30: A New Educational Goal

Hi, everybody! :) Well, we went to NJPAC on Tuesday and the "America’s Got Talent" (AGT) segment we saw aired on Wednesday. I had posted on Facebook to my sister that the show hadn’t started yet...and 28 minutes later, we were back in the car! :)) They performed one song and when it was over, my mother asked if it was a joke because it was over so quickly. We did watch AGT on Wednesday...and no, we weren’t on-screen. :P The show was interesting, as neither of us had seen it before. I’m going back for the live show on Wednesday, August 15 with a friend, so that should be a bit more exciting. ;)

Obviously, I took Tuesday off from the office to go to the taping. Unfortunately, I had to make up the time over the next few days in order to catch up on the work not done that day. Why is it I am the presumed back-up for half of the department, but no one can back me up for one morning? :(

The deadline for Lark Books’ Showcase 500 Necklaces submissions is coming up on August 1. I haven’t decided yet what necklace to submit for my second entry, but I don’t want to waste the opportunity. I will probably make a spur-of-the-moment decision when between now and Wednesday. :p

At the suggestion of a social media expert I met on Facebook, I’ve started a new awareness campaign. She suggested posting relevant quotes with photos and adding the website URL at the bottom to generate interest. I’ve posted two such pictures on Facebook and Pinterest so far...one this past Friday and one the Friday before. I don’t know if I will have enough to post every Friday, but I guess I will give it a shot. I really like the second one (the Chinese Proverb). I’ve been looking up quotations whenever I think of a topic I can use. :)

I was offered a free listing on eBay this past week, so I posted my steampunk trinket box, hoping to reach a wider audience. An internet friend saw the post on Facebook and sent me a PM...he suggested I look into becoming a vendor at Dragon*Con, "the largest multi-media, popular culture convention focusing on science fiction and fantasy, gaming, comics, literature, art, music, and film in the universe." He said there are a lot of potential buyers for steampunk items there, and I have a feeling chain maille would also be popular with that crowd. The show is Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, so it’s too late to apply for this year. I have to remember to look into it next spring for 2013. :)

Earlier today, I emailed a friend from the Bead Society who was talking to me about a group that meets the first Sunday of each month to make polymer clay pieces, the New Jersey Polymer Clay Guild. I may go next Sunday if they meet in the summer. That looks like fun! ;)

Speaking of fun, I received a course catalog the other night from the Gemological Institute of America. I don’t remember signing up for it, but I must have...maybe at the MJSA Expo earlier this year? The school has facilities in New York City and Carlsbad, California, and focuses on teaching students to identify and classify different stones. I was intrigued by the three-course eLearning certification they have to become an Accredited Jewelry Professional (AJP). It’s not terribly expensive because no labs are required. I’m thinking I want to pursue that once I have my debts paid off, hopefully by the end of the year. They give you three months to finish each course, so I could get the certification in one year if I apply myself. I was getting kind of excited looking at the catalog, so I think this would be something that I might really enjoy doing. :)

The August Focal Piece of the Month is up.

I can’t believe it is practically August already, although I won’t be sorry to see the summer heat become a distant memory. :p

Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #29: I'm Gonna Be On TV!

Hey, everyone! Guess what? I got an email on Friday night offering me the chance to go see a free special performance of the 2012 Tony Award-winning Broadway musical "Once" at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) tomorrow. It's being taped for "America’s Got Talent" and will eventually end up on television! [Note the venue is in NEW JERSEY and not New York as publicized by the "America's Got Talent" website. #-o ] I had to rearrange a few appointments to be able to go, but Mom and I will be there! How kewl is that? ;)

The good news for me is that I thought we were going to have an Initial Public Offering (IPO) to get out on Wednesday at work, but it will be tomorrow and no certificates are being issued so I am off the hook! A couple of weeks ago, we had three IPOs in one week – one issuing approximately 500 certificates, one for 1,700 certificates and one for 200+ certificates. A supervisor and I usually coordinate special requests to FedEx certificates to certain shareholders, which can be a PIA (as my mother used to say when we were kids, rather than coming out and saying "pain-in-the-a$$"). I ended up working 12 hours in one day that week! We are really short-staffed with summer vacations and such, so it's not easy to pull people from their jobs to help with special projects. :| At least I got paid for the extra time. :D

I really have to spend tomorrow morning before the taping cleaning up my computer room/studio at home. The top shelf of my bookcase fell down last week when I tried to put one too many jewelry supply catalogs on it, causing the two shelves beneath it to fall as well. I had to take everything off the bookcase and put it on the floor in order to fix the shelves, and I did not put the catalogs back for obvious reasons. I have to sort through and pack them up – I still have the box from my new printer, so I will put them in there – to be recycled. I'll keep the books and magazines I've purchased, and only the current year's catalogs. Originally, I kept everything because there are some good ideas and pictures in them, but it's just too much to keep it all. :| We have the cleaning lady coming on Thursday, so I want to get them cleared away before she yells at me. :))

Over the weekend, I was working on a potential entry for the Fire Mountain Gems and Beads’ Swarovski Elements Jewelry-making Contest, but it didn’t work out the way I thought it would (does it ever? :p ). I ended up with a bracelet and a necklace instead of one necklace, neither of which are appropriate for that contest. However, the bracelet will work for Rings & Things' Pick Your Palette Crystal Jams™ Challenge with Swarovski Elements. Crystal Jams are Rings & Things' Swarovski Xilion bicone assortments created in particular color schemes. I recently purchased the Into the Ocean and Bohemian Rhapsody assortments, and used the former in the bracelet. At least that's one entry down! #:-S

If you get a chance, check out the new cover photo on my Facebook Profile. It supports the USA in the London Olympics. ;)

Things finally cooled down here after some big rainstorms earlier this month. Hope Mother Nature is being kind to you wherever you are! :)

Take care and have a great week! B-)