Tangible Tidbits 2012 #9: My First Runway Show!

Hi, everyone! Well, I survived my participation in Montclair State University's (MSU) Metalsmith Guild's Jewelry Galleria last night! Truth be told, it was more fun than I anticipated. I half-expected it to be tedious and painful. LOL Luckily for me, the turnout wasn't overwhelming due to insufficient publicity. I think I would have been super nervous if there had been 100 people there, as they reportedly had last year. This year, it was closer to 30...and many of those were family members of the other artists or models. :p A coworker from the office was my model, and she and I walked in square around the display tables in the center of the room for SEVEN MINUTES. You have no idea how long seven minutes is until you have to do something like this! LOL We stopped and chatted with people who were interested in looking at the pieces, including some of my former classmates. There were nine artists in all, I think. After the runway portion concluded, we sat at our display tables and chatted with people about our work. I even sold a ring! I didn't really expect this to be a sales event, so that was an unexpected bonus. Many people liked my pieces, especially the Chinese Take-out set and Steampunk box. I didn't bring much with me...just some of my more "arty" pieces, and most of them made in my MSU classes. I did bring one pair of the 4" diameter aluminum disc earrings and the 5" diameter aluminum disc earrings I have. People were blown away by the size, but impressed with the craftsmanship. :) One person made a point of telling me I was very talented, which made me feel good. :) All in all, it was a pretty positive experience.

Earlier this week, I was determined to master making knit ruffle scarves with Katia Triana Lux yarn, which is almost like narrow strips of netting. At least half of the BSNJ Board members were making them at the last Board meeting, and I think they look really kewl. The yarn is back-ordered all over the place -- one person I know bought 20 skeins from a shop in Florida while she was on vacation recently -- but I found some from an eBay seller who happens to be located in Bloomfield, NJ, which is also in Essex County where I live. I went out on a limb and purchased four skeins and some circular knitting needles, even though my "disposable income" these days is already predisposed. :p Still, I was determined. It took me two tries to make my first scarf...the first one was much too wide and short to be functional. Luckily, it came apart with a little effort, and I didn't damage the yarn in the process. My second try was much better, and by the fourth one -- yes, I made all four in a 3-4 day period! -- I made very few mistakes. ;) The design is such that it easily hides imperfections, which I like A LOT! :p Below is a picture of my first completed scarf.

The skeins of yarn I've seen have all been multicolored...I don't know if they make any in one solid color. The ones I purchased were off white-beige-tan (shown above), denim blues, black-white-gray, and teal-turquoise. The last one is my favorite..I may have to keep it for myself! ;) Mom really likes them...she even offered to wear one to Church and sell it right off her neck if anyone wanted it! LOL In fact, one of my friends from the Metalsmith Guild almost bought the black-white-gray one I wore to the show last night right off me! :) Unfortunately, it's pretty warm here right now, so I won't be able to wear them without being too obvious. :o They are almost boa-like, but I wore one to the office last week and they are comfortable. :) With St. Patrick's Day coming up, I wish I found some of the yarn in green! :p

This coming weekend is the MJSA (Manufacturers | Jewelers | Suppliers | Artisans) Expo in New York City. I'm registered for two out of the three days, and will take a day trip with my former classmates at least one day. I'll report on that next week. I've taken the whole week off from the office, partially to recover from the activities and also to get some stuff done around the house. I really have to go through my tax information and get it ready for the accountant. I also have to FINALLY put away some of the stuff on my workbench. I can't even sit at the computer right now -- which has no audio except through headphones at the moment anyway (I am on my Netbook in the kitchen) -- because there's so much "junk" in the way. :o Hopefully, I will get organized next week...maybe I'll feel less claustrophobic! :\

Thanks for sticking with me and have a great week! ;)

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Tangible Tidbits 2012 #8: MSU Metalsmith Guild, Oscars, & Pinterest

Good evening to those of you not watching the Oscars right now! LOL Can you believe the build-up to the Academy Awards has taken on Super Bowl-size proportions? I've only seen one of the nominated films this year (The Descendents), so I'm not all that interested in the show. :\

I caught a lucky break this week...a friend from Montclair State University had invited me to participate in this semester's MSU Metalsmith Guild Jewelry Galleria on campus. I wasn't online much this week, so I didn't see the invite until the day after the deadline. However, they only got four artists to participate and they wanted at least six. Soooo, they extended the deadline! I emailed my friend and asked if I could participate even though I'm not enrolled in school this semester. She said I definitely could and that I should do it! :) The show is 7-9 p.m. in the University Hall Conference Center on the 7th floor of University Hall at Montclair State. I've already enlisted a good friend from the office to be my model. I just have to make sure she can be there at 5:00 p.m...I didn't realize she'd have to show up that early. :o We both have to wear black to show off my pieces. I have to see what I have in my closet...there was a time that I wore a lot of black, but not so much anymore. ;) Ordinarily, I would have had to submit pictures of my pieces to be evaluated, but since my friend was the one who picked up my items from the Allwood Branch of the Clifton Public Library last week, they can just evaluate the pieces! :) I have no idea what they will select, but we can apparently put other pieces, including non-jewelry items, on a table at the event. As it so happens, my Chinese take-out set was on display at the library! LOL Sometimes, you just get lucky. :)

In the "not so lucky" column, I also found out this week that there are registration and transcript holds on my records at MSU due to an "outstanding balance." I have no idea why, as I have not been enrolled since last spring. According to my Sallie Mae TuitionPay account, I'm all paid up. I left a message at the school on Friday afternoon, but I didn't receive a response yet. Luckily, the MSU Metalsmith Guild doesn't care about stuff like that! ;)

I started working on the scarf my niece made for me again last night while I was watching a movie I had already seen, so I didn't have to pay that close attention to it. ;) I wasn't in the mood to start something from scratch. I have a freeform bangle and a pair of earrings to make for a coworker, but I have until March 25 to deliver them. I worked on another coworker's copper cuff bracelet earlier today. She just wanted me to "decorate" it for her. After sending her some sample photos, she decided she wanted me to add hammered texture and oxidize (darken) it to highlight the texture. I'll have to see what she thinks tomorrow. The difference is pretty subtle, but hopefully she is not be expecting a drastic change.

I don't know how many of you are on Pinterest, but I'm getting a kick out of it. One of the online suppliers I use occasionally has a contest on there. We're being asked to set up a board and pin 10 items from Fusion Beads such as our favorite necklace inspiration, favorite tool, etc. Since I already had a Pinterest account set up, I entered today. I also have boards for my Factoidz articles, Birthstones, Product Reviews I've written, and pieces I've listed on Yardsellr. At first, I thought it was "just another new social media site," but it seems to be taking off. It will be interesting to see if it eventually gives Facebook a run for its money. :o

In the immortal word of Porky Pig, "That's all folks!" Have a great week! :D


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