Tangible Tidbits 2011 #3: Green Day and Gang Green

Hey, all! I hope everyone in the U.S. is enjoying their three-day weekend! :D

I've had a busy couple of days! Yesterday, I went to see "All Shook Up" at the State Theater in New Brunswick, NJ. It's a musical with all music by Elvis Presley. It was very entertaining! My sister bought Mom the tickets for Christmas, and I was invited to tag along. ;) Today, Mom and I went to see "American Idiot" on Broadway, featuring the music of Green Day. The production was well done and the cast had incredible energy...the show was 90 minutes without an intermission! As for the plot -- about three friends and the disparate turns their lives take -- Mom described it as "very disturbing." My take on it was that it made "Rent" look like a fairy tale! :o I can't quite say I enjoyed this one, although I do respect the talent of the cast, set designers, and technical crew. And the music was pretty good, too. :)

After the play today, Mom and I caught the second half of the New York Jets vs. New England Patriots game at a sports bar. WHOO HOO! Jets vs. Steelers next weekend. Dare I hope the roll continues? I've literally waited my whole life to see the Jets in a Super Bowl...I was a month old when they were in Super Bowl III in 1969! :p LOL

As you can imagine, I'm grateful for the day off tomorrow...I plan to sleep late! ;)

Coming up this week, I've got my first class at MSU on Tuesday and the first meeting of the Bead Society of New Jersey for the New Year on Thursday. I've also bought some new tools and supplies recently, so I hope to play with them soon...probably not until after class ends in May. :\ I still have a pile of kits to assemble, not to mention a lot of data entry work still to complete. I kind of burned myself out in the two months I worked full-time leading up to Christmas, so I've been taking it easy lately. I did work with the bead loom I bought for my younger niece at Christmas on New Year's Day. Her mother says it's too difficult for her. I don't recall the recommended age on the package, but I think she could handle it if she tried. I'm thinking of getting a loom for myself. :)

Well, it's past my bedtime. Have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2011 #2: Not Quite Making The Grade

Hey, gang! We had another dusting of snow Friday/Saturday, but nearly as bad as the one on December 27. Rumor has it we're due for another six inches on Tuesday/Wednesday of this week. I've had enough of winter already! LOL

Well, I got a B+ in my Metalwork & Jewelry Beginner II class. I was disappointed, more in the professor than the grade...although it does bring down my GPA. Had I gotten an A-, I would have accepted that as an acknowledgment of my efforts, even if he didn't agree with my taste. Giving me a B+ tells me that he can't separate technique from personal style. Luckily, he's not teaching my class this semester. :\

I submitted photos of pieces for consideration in two juried craft shows this week. There's an application site called ZAPPlication, and I registered for notifications of upcoming events. The two I am interested in attending are ARTRIDER's Spring CraftMorristown in Morristown, NJ March 18, 19, & 20, and Sugarloaf Craft Festival in Somerset, NJ October 28, 29, & 30. First time applicants to the ARTRIDER show are waived the $40 application fee, but I paid $45 to apply to Sugarloaf. I'm not sure how long it takes to find out if I have been accepted, but wish me luck! :D

This was the first week I haven't sent out a Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals e-mailing since the summer. It saved me a lot of time, so I'll be taking the option to subscribe to that mailing off the website with the monthly updates in a couple of weeks. ;)

You'll notice there are a bunch of new commenting options on the blog. I'd registered for CommentLuv a while ago, but they didn't have plug-ins for Blogger at the time. I found some this week, so I downloaded them...all by myself! LOL :)

In terms of the year-end figures, I didn't make my 50% increase in sales from the previous quarter goal, but I did surpass the previous quarter's figure. In fact, I more than doubled my sales from the 4th quarter last year. I think there was only one quarter since I've started that I didn't beat the previous quarter's sales. All in all, I'm making steady progress in a difficult economy, so I can't complain. :)

In personal news, I attended my younger niece's roller skating party on Thursday. I used to have my own skates (not roller blades) and went skating with my sister and a friend every Sunday morning in high school. Let me tell you, it is NOT like riding a bike! LOL :o It took me most of the party to get comfortable and loosen up on the skates. Naturally, after 20+ years, my center of gravity has changed. :o I also didn't have a bad knee back then. It popped out three times while skating on Thursday, but luckily I didn't do any long-term damage. :p And I think I only fell on my butt once. I don't think my brother-in-law got that on video, but he did get me skating like an old lady once or twice. :o

Enjoy your week! If you haven't checked it out yet, tune in to the People's Choice for TV's Best New Drama...Hawaii Five-0! It airs Monday nights at 10:00 p.m. on CBS. It's must-see TV! ;)

Tangible Tidbits 2011 #1: A New Year, A New Decade, A New Leaf...

Welcome to 2011, everyone! I hope people rang in the New Year safely. :D

Well, I have to admit that I don't have much to report this week. I kind of took a lot of the week off from my Something Tangible efforts. I'd been "burning the candle at both ends" for quite a while working here and at the office, so I decided to take a mental and physical break from the business. I didn't have anything pressing to deliver, although I do have a few projects to do "as time allows." However, since I wasn't given a deadline by the clients involved, I figure they will forgive me for taking a bit of time for myself over the holidays. ;)

I did make my flight and arrival shuttle reservations for the Empowered Entrepreneurs conference I am attending at the beginning of February. I still have to look into off-site parking for that weekend near Newark Liberty International Airport. I will be leaving work at 1:00 p.m. on Thursday (February 3) and my flight is at 2:45 p.m. I may as well go straight to the airport, rather than go home to drop off the car and then take a taxi. I've been assigned a roommate, so she made the hotel reservations for us both. We're staying at the conference hotel...The Hard Rock Hotel in San Diego. I've eaten at a Hard Rock Café before in Las Vegas, but I've never stayed in one of their hotels. Should be fun! :D

On a personal note, I started my New Year's Resolution early. Having been snowbound at home on Monday -- we had a MAJOR snowstorm in New Jersey, in case you missed it on the news -- I went to the gym right after work on Tuesday, and went every day for the rest of the week! :D I basically decided to start immediately with my new work schedule, so I could develop the habit right away. There were a few days I left work later than I'd planned, and I thought about skipping the gym...but I made myself go anyway. :p

Looks like my Intermediate level Metalwork & Jewelry class starts on Tuesday, January 18. That gives me a couple more weeks before I start Tuesday night classes. At least I can now watch Hawaii 5-0 on Monday nights! LOL Still no grades posted for last semester. :\

I'm going to find something relaxing to do for my last "vacation" night. Take care and have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #50: 24 Hours Too Late...

It seems that Mother Nature and Father Time had trouble coordinating their schedules this year. We are in the middle of a blizzard warning here on the East Coast not 24 hours AFTER Christmas Day! You'd think they could have at least given us a White Christmas in the bargain!? LOL :p Regardless, I hope all of those who celebrate this holiday enjoyed it. :)

I finished my friend's grandmother's necklace in time for Christmas, and posted it as the new Focal Piece of the Month. Starting this month, I'm going to post the new Focal Piece on the Something Tangible LLC Facebook Fan Page, since I think people are more likely to see it there then counting on folks coming to the website to read it. ;)

No word yet from the Bead Society of New Jersey on whether or not any of my pieces were selected to head to Tucson at the end of January. I also just checked the MSU Blackboard and my semester grade isn't posted yet. Still keeping my fingers crossed for both! :)

Earlier this month, I signed up for the Beta version of a new online payment service called Paybox.me. There's no fee like there is with PayPal, but you can't add or deduct funds from your account yet in the Beta version. Once the service is up and running, I will let you know...but I'm thinking of adding it or the Store section of the website, possibly replacing PayPal entirely. :)

I'm also thinking about discontinuing the email version of the Virtual Mall Discounts & Deals circular in January. It seems that the majority of activity is coming from posts on the Virtual Mall's Facebook Fan Page, so it's really a waste of time and somewhat redundant to do both. If anyone has strong feelings about it one way or the other, please feel free to let me know. As always, I will take the absence of feedback as implied consent. :)

Along similar lines, since the blog posts are now automatically posted to both Facebook Fan Pages via NetworkedBlogs, I will no longer be posting Tangible Tidbits in the Discussions section of the Something Tangible LLC Facebook Fan Page. No one ever replied to them there anyway, so I may as well ditch the duplication of effort. :)

On the personal side, we're up to having raised $629.16 for Fondation MIRA in the Virtual Garage Sale...a few unclaimed items are generating some interest. I will be ending that effort officially on January 1. It's been very time-consuming, so it's definitely time to move on. :)

My Birthday Wish on Facebook has raised $85 for Donate Life America (including my $25), so I feel better about the Virtual Garage Sale being a bust in that effort. :D

And last but not least, tomorrow will mark my first day back to permanent part-time work with my former employer. Unfortunately, one of the people I was helping to replace will not be returning from medical leave. I'll be working 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, which enables me to participate in company benefit programs (25 hours is required). It wasn't a tough decision to make...while I will no longer have the flexibility I've enjoyed for the past couple of months, I will have a steady income to help me fund my efforts here. It's been nice to go to an office full of people again -- I missed the socialization working by myself. I hope to eventually be able to afford to work on Something Tangible full time, but for now, this is the best solution. :)

As my next message will not be until after the New Year, I wish everyone a happy and healthy New Year's celebration! :)

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #49: The Holidays Are Upon Us!

Hey, everyone! :D

Well, I baked Christmas cookies today with my nieces, and then we went to their house for dinner. Santa is driven down streets in their town accompanied by a firetruck, and he made his visit after dinner. We each got a candy cane. The Christmas Season is officially here! LOL :D

I've been working on my coworker's grandmother's necklace this week. I finished with the pendant part, so I now just have to reinforce the chain section. I want to get it to her before Thursday, since it will be a half-day in the office and people will be going nuts. The office is closed on Friday, as Christmas Day falls on Saturday. :)

Just a little while ago, I submitted six photos of original pieces to the Bead Society of New Jersey. A three-judge panel of Board members are selecting pieces to represent the group at the Tucson Expo Center next month. The J.O.G.S. Gem & Jewelry Show and Art Bead Circle LLC is looking for superior, high quality, completely original work to be exhibited there January 28 through February 9, 2011. I sent some metalwork pieces, wire work, an embroidered pendant, and my Steampunk Box. They will select 15 pieces to represent us, so wish me luck! ;)

My final critique for the semester at MSU was on Monday night. The professor said to my friend (a teaching assistant) afterward, "That was not easy." LOL My friend replied, "She should have been a lawyer." That made my night! :D I wasn't disrespectful or trying to challenge him, but when he talked about aesthetics as opposed to techniques, I justified my choices. A few reasons were admittedly lame, but they were the truth and I stood by my choices. :) I think it rattled him a bit that I would not be intimidated by him and I could really care less about my grade. I didn't even ask him about the grade, to the shock of my friends! It didn't matter to me, because I knew the grade was based on his own taste. :\ I just checked and grades have not been posted yet. I should know by January 4 at the latest. ;)

I posted a new Factoid this weekend: If You Can Tie a Knot, You Can Macramé Your Way To Handcrafted Jewelry! That's eight articles in all now. Two more and I move up from Factoidz Writer to Staff Writer! And thanks to a new Buzz It Up! process at Factoidz, all of my older articles rank high or very high in search engine optimization (SEO) for their categories! :D

One other small business coup...I applied and was accepted to attend a special seminar during the first weekend in February in San Diego, CA. It's professional and personal development, and only 25 or so people will invited/allowed to attend, so that everyone can get to know each other on a first-name basis. A lot of work will be completed at the event, as opposed to them giving us tools to take away and work with on our own. I think attending this event will force me to take some steps I've been putting off because of a lack of time or other resources. I have 70,000 Continental Airlines OnePass miles racked up, so I will at least have that part of the trip covered. ;)

As for my Virtual Garage Sale, the last official week ended on Friday night. I am leaving the unclaimed items on the board until the New Year, as a few people have asked about them. So far, I've raised $624.16 for Fondation MIRA and $2.50 for Donate Life America. As I mentioned last week, I did make a personal donation of $25, and I made Donate Life America the recipient of My Birthday Wish on Facebook, as my birthday is conveniently next Friday. Hopefully, that will make up a bit for the lack of interest in "Moonlight" items. :)

The next time I post will be on December 26. So, best wishes to those who celebrate Christmas! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #48: As Grandpa Always Said, Slow And Steady Wins the Race!

Hey, all! It's rainy but warm in New Jersey on this December Sunday evening.

Just got back from picking up my pieces at the 1978 Maplewood Arts Center's Buy Art Now Guys! (BANG) 5 art show. I sold a bracelet -- to another one of the vendors, as it turns out! -- and a cell phone charm there. The coordinator of the event spoke with me when I picked up my stuff, and told me "Your stuff is perfect and perfectly priced for this show." That was nice to hear! :D She also said that they had foot traffic, but sales were down this year for all the vendors, even those who have historically done well. She said I'm on the mailing list, so I will definitely be put on the posters and postcards next year and I should definitely come back! She also recommended two other local craft shows -- one at the Baird Center and another at GAS Studio and Gallery, which is the one owned by my high school classmate. As this was my year "showing" my work, I will definitely have to keep an eye out for those two next year! :)

In addition, I spent about seven hours at Salon Sung in Millburn yesterday for their holiday celebration. I sold two more bracelets and three pairs of earrings there! :D I'm happy that my pieces are selling, even if not a lot of them or the more expensive pieces. It's incentive to keep going...even if my progress is slow, at least it is steady! ;)

We had our "opening" at Montclair State on Wednesday night. At least one piece was selected from each student to show in the display case until next week. Mine is a bronze and sterling silver pendant that I created into a necklace. I wasn't surprised they chose that piece...it's pretty artistic, if I do say so myself. LOL

The fall semester's final one-on-one critique with the professor is coming up tomorrow night...then I'm free until sometime in January, at least from school obligations. ;)

On the personal side, I'm winding down with the Virtual Garage Sale. I think this will be the final week. :D To date, we've raised $589.16 for Fondation MIRA and $2.50 for Donate Life America. I will most likely send a check for $25.00 to Donate Life America out of my own pocket, as I would be embarrassed to send them a check for only $2.50. :\

Heading into the "holiday frenzy" period, I have my shopping pretty much done. However, I still have wrapping to do, packages to mail, and cookies to bake. I usually manage to get everything done on time, although some years I have no idea how I'd done it! LOL

Enjoy the remainder of your Sunday evening, and have a great week! :D

Tangible Tidbits 2010 #47: 'Tis The Season To Be Busy!

Hey, all! I'm posting this early today because I will be spending most of the evening into the night at the MSU studio, preparing for our "opening" this coming Wednesday with an advanced class. Tomorrow night is the last full studio period we have before the show, and I want to make sure I have enough time without being there until almost morning! LOL I am required to have eight projects finished and I have a few extra, so if anything doesn't get completed in time, I will just save it for next semester or finish it on my own. Wish me luck! ;)

About the critique a few weeks ago, he was pretty harsh overall...but that's not surprising. I think more than half of the students in class are Industrial Design students who have to take this class as a requirement, and they haven't put a lot of thought and energy into their work. They also look to be out of class for Monday Night Football's kickoff. LOL I think he liked my stuff in general -- he knows the hours I keep with the teaching assistant in the studio -- but he took issue with me gluing stones into pieces, even though he didn't teach us how to do it properly. Maybe he assumed we learned it last semester? In any case, he asked for reassurance there would be no glued stones in my final pieces. I said there might not be any stones at all! He suggested I fill some of the gaps with resin, so I will try that today. I did set stones in a few of the pieces...I was never told you should start with the stone first and then create a piece around it. I was doing it the other way around, which I suppose is much harder to do. :\ Anyway, I'm not in the class for the grade, but for knowledge and the experience. If he doesn't like my work, so be it. :p

In other artistic-related news, I just got back from my younger niece's first juried art show. She won First Place in her age category (6- and 7-year-olds) at the Watching Arts Center. She submitted two works and the winning one is called "Little Birds." Both pieces were in paint -- one in watercolors and the other in tempura. I'm so proud of her! :)

They are standing behind me right now, waiting for me to help with a gingerbread house, so I will make this quick! :)

I created another set of step-by step instructions with photos for a workshop this past week -- macramé and beads. I learned macramé in junior high school, taking a club during our alternate lunch period. I completely forgot about it until recently, and I made a few pieces to make sure I could still do it. I now have a pair of earrings, a pendant on a hemp necklace, and a bracelet finished, all using hemp cord. ;)

This coming week, I have the school projects to finish and a few other pieces "on deck." Luckily, people are not in a hurry and these are not holiday presents, although I did just receive the Fireline for my coworker's restringing project that I'd mentioned previously. That one IS a Christmas present, so I have to get directions for the square stitch and get moving on that one ASAP.

I will be displaying some pieces at Salon Sung this coming Saturday, December 11, as part of their holiday celebration. It's on Main Street in Millburn. Come say hi if you're nearby! ;)

Happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate! Christmas (and my birthday) will be here before you know it! :o :)