Tangible Tidbits 2012 #39: It's A Good Thing I Have A Sense of Humor!

Hi, everyone! I will explain the delay next week. :-O Let’s start with a chuckle today, shall we? ;) This was my Facebook status update this past Saturday:

“Just got a hot cider at Dunkin' Donuts...Fall has arrived! If only the kid at the register didn't tell me I could have a free donut with an AARP card. :P”

For my international friends, AARP is the American Association of Retired Persons. I believe you have to be at least 50 or 55 to join. :-O The kid was lucky...I just laughed it off. :))

I posted my last social media poster yesterday, so I have to make some more this week. I try to make a bunch at a time, so I don’t have to think about it every week. ;)

It looks like I didn’t place in Beadaholique’s Autumn Colors contest, as the top 10 entries were posted on Facebook for public voting and mine wasn’t among them. :-/ I think I’m going to submit it and a few other pieces to the The Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts’ 2013 Scholarship for Beaders. The scholarship is open to “anyone who makes beaded jewelry and would like to learn more about traditional jewelry making in metal” to apply. The winner will receive a scholarship for full tuition, kit fees, airfare from anywhere in the U.S., and lodging in San Francisco!” Can you imagine? The deadline for applications is October 15. I have to call them to check and see if it would apply for the Spring; if so, I can’t do it because I will lose the MJSA Education Foundation scholarship for $900 to attend MSU next semester. I’m hoping it would be good for all next year, in which case I could go in the fall if I won. Not that I expect to win…but I will never know if I don’t try, right? ;) It’s really too good of an opportunity to pass up with literally everything covered! :-O In addition to the glass Opal ring, I want to submit my Totally Twisted Swan, Pretty in Purple, embroidered red and green teardrop rivoli, and black & gold embroidered pendant necklaces. I think they are the best examples of my beadwork to date. :)

Speaking of MSU, I made my first payment in September toward alleviating my debt, and I’m now enrolled in a payment plan. I want to have it completely paid off before the beginning of next year, so I have three months to get it done. It should be manageable...although throwing the holidays and my sister’s new baby in there may make it a bit harder than it would be otherwise. :-/

Some of my sister’s stay-at-home Mom friends are throwing her a pre-baby luncheon in mid-October and she asked if I wanted to attend. She’s not really comfortable with people making such a fuss about it, since it isn’t her first child. She said it wouldn’t be on a Wednesday because one of the hostesses works on Wednesday, so I may try to switch my day off that week if I get enough notice. I have a Gund My First Puppy already for the baby because my older niece has a Pink Puppy (which is now gray from constant companionship! :)) ) and the younger one has a Blue Puppy. The style the girls have was discontinued, but we all wanted Mackenzie to have the same one in a different color. I was lucky enough to find a tan one on eBay, so I snatched it up. The girls were so excited! :D I figure I will bring that to the party if I go, possibly along with something else for my sister. ;)

Here’s the link to my Wire-sculpture.com’s Feature Artist of the Month page! WHOO HOO! B-)

And please vote for my two entries in Stones and Findings Component Design Contest! Voting closes 4:00pm EST, on October 15th. Thank you! :D

Gotta run now. Take care and have a great week! B-)

Tangible Tidbits 2012 #38: I'm A Featured Artist!

Hello, everyone! I got some exciting news on Friday via email. I will be Wire-sculpture.com’s Featured Artist for the month of October! :D I applied sometime last year and kind of forgot about it -- of course, it’s always in the back of my mind when I get the email announcing their selection each month. ;) Now, it’s finally my turn! :))

At Thursday’s BSNJ meeting, we started – I can’t imagine anyone finished that night ;) -- a sun catcher crystal decorated with either a winter or Halloween scene. I chose the winter scene, so I’d have a bit more time to work on it. ;) This was my first time working with a pattern, so that was a valuable experience for me. I also used a Peyote Quick Start card, which Deb Moffett-Hall, the speaker, recently developed. It definitely makes starting a new Peyote piece easier, IMHO. Peyote itself is a pretty easy stitch, but starting it off...actually, starting off any new piece for that matter! :))...can sometimes be a bit daunting. :P After restarting my piece three times, due mostly to counting errors in reading the pattern, I made a fair amount of progress. Naturally, I haven’t touched it again since that night, though. :-O

Yesterday afternoon, I was finally able to submit the new ring -- also featured as the new Focal Piece of the Month -- to Beadaholique’s Autumn Colors contest, as well as a bracelet in Fire Mountain Gems and Beads’ Swarovski Elements Jewelry-making Contest. It’s the same bracelet I entered in Rings and Things’ Pick Your Palette Crystal Jams™ Challenge with Swarovski Elements. I doubt it is complex enough to impress the Fire Mountain judges, but I figured I would give it a shot, anyway. :P

Stones and Findings did accept my “Battered Heart” pendant drawing, posted here. I was thinking I might submit a few other drawings, but I doubt I will have the time to make any good ones before the deadline. Maybe they’ll do this again next year, and I will have more time to plan ahead if they do. ;)

Here is this week’s social media poster, which didn’t get posted until late Saturday. :\ I did end up going to my colleague’s wedding ceremony on Friday night, but I skipped the party afterward. It was a really nice ceremony and she looked really happy. :)

I did schedule myself to take Wednesdays off from the office for the next five weeks, as I mentioned I was contemplating last week. I will end up working extra hours on Thursday and Friday to keep up with the work load, but it’s better than trying to catch up after being out for a whole week at once. :p Hopefully, I can use the time to get my life organized, as I don’t really have the energy on the weekends after keeping so busy during the week. :-O

And on that note, I will sign off. Take care and have a great week! B-)