Heart Felt Bouquet

Remember me talking about my friend Pat, and her gorgeous hand dyed wool? Well, she and her partner Christine have come out with a great needle felting kit for Valentine's Day, and I just had to share it here. If you click on the photo, it will take you to Decadent Fibers, which is the website where you can buy the kit. Be sure to surf around while you're there. If you are a crafter, this will be a great new craft for you to try! And even if you are NOT a crafter, needle felting can be a really fun place to start expressing your creative side, while making great gifts for your friends! I mean really, could that bouquet be any cuter? You should see the penguins, and snowmen, and pumpkins, and...well...you're just going to have to go to the website and check it out.

This Heart Felt Bouquet was featured in February's "Create and Decorate" magazine, too, so they're famous as well! :) If you live anywhere in the vicinity of Pittsburgh, and you're into wool and knitting or crocheting, look for Pat and Christine at the Pittsburgh Knit and Crochet Festival February 9th and 10th, at the Crowne Plaza, Pittsburgh South. You won't be able to miss them...their yarns will be the most gorgeous! :)

Is it wrong to covet a necklace? "Thou shalt not covet thy Etsy necklace"...lol....I don't think I've heard that one before, what with all my Bible reading and all. Double ha. Anywho...I just listed this yummy garnet and jumbo pearl necklace in my Etsy shop. I hate to part with it. I just Luuuurve it! I listed matching earrings too. I figured I might as well create something for all the January birthday girls out there. I bought these garnets around the holidays, and have been admiring them ever since. They look gorgeous with the pearls, and the little Hill Tribes silver twists I bought around the same time. I didn't have a plan for those, but they all came together nicely, don't you think? (Boy, I need to eat some humble pie or something...lol.)

Speaking of humble...here's the part where I brag about my gorgeous kid. She just made me take some pictures of her since I had my camera handy. Tess just happened to be nearby too. And of course, Puff is being his normal energy-filled self:

I'm off to the grocery store to bring my movie back. Have you guys heard of redbox? It's a big red kiosk that dispenses movie rentals for $1/night! I just discovered it yesterday, and I rented "Good Luck Chuck." You just put in your debit card, and voila, out pops out your chosen flick! I grabbed it on my way out to the car. Very cool. I think I may rent the latest Harry Potter tonight...we haven't seen it. It's a toss-up between that and the Pirates of the Carribean. Hmmm...

Enjoy your evening!

Lazy Sunday

Did you ever just have one of those days? The sun is shining through my windows, and it's colder than a....well...it's COLD outside today...and I have Romantic Country magazine, the "Bedrooms" edition...and I've been lounging about in my giant bed, reading, and surfing blogs all morning. What you all may not understand, is that I have SO much work that I should be doing right now, so the guilt is getting to me a little bit. The good news is, Kathleen has a playdate tomorrow, so I'll be working double time tomorrow. Does that assuage my guilt? Eh. Only a little.

I think what threw me off is that I had to bring BF to the airport this morning at 4am (AGAIN--please tell me WHY his company insists on these ridiculously early tickets?! Does noone think of ME--the poor schlub who has to drive him to Albany?! Argh). He's headed to Washington for 10 days to install a big job (indoor water park) at the new (opening soon!) Great Wolf Lodge in Grand Mound, which is about halfway between Portland and Seattle. One if these days I'm going to tag along on one of these jobs. He keeps insisting that it's not a vacation--that it's nothing but WORK WORK WORK, but what he fails to realize is that if I went, it would be a vacation for ME! Ha! He can work all he wants, and I'LL go see the sights. Right?! Sometimes he just fails to find me amusing. So, here I am, enjoying my solitude, and enjoying all the surfing and reading. I'm sure I'll eventually emerge from under the covers and get something done--like all the piles of laundry, and the sewing that's piling up by the job. Maybe. Here's to all of you out there who are surfing blogs and happened by mine this morning. Enjoy your lazy Sunday!

Atonement

I saw "Atonement" last night, and can I just say...it's a MUST SEE. Beautifully shot, brilliantly acted, and heartwrenching. Wow. Loved it. Two thumbs up and all that. And I'm sorry, but that James McAvoy is a regular hotty. Do you SEE those eyes?! There are plenty of closeups of those babies in the movie, so get ready! He's my new "movie boyfriend."

And HELLO...but does anyone deserve to be as gorgeous as Keira Knightly?! She looks absolutely luminous in this movie, and skinny as ever. Bitch. Heh. Seriously, she can act too! I just can't imagine a face like that looking back at me in the mirror every morning. Must be nice.

Go see this movie. I'm not going to say anything more about it. Don't read reviews, or spoil the story for yourself. Go in blind--it's the best way to watch a movie anyway. Don't forget the Kleenex. ;)

Oh, ok...if you need to see some preview stuff...go to this website. Check out the photos. The music is really great, too. I don't usually gush about movies, but this one really deserves it.

I think I really need to head down to Florida to see my sister and my father. I can't seem to stop making pearl necklaces. They just appeal to me on so many levels. And I've always loved silver. I think I've only owned two gold necklaces in my life. (Word is, I should be hoarding gold these days, right? Dang--I guess I missed that boat.) And when I look at these pearl necklaces I've been making, I can't help but think about the beach and the warm sun. I do love the change of seasons up here in NY, but there is nothing like the sound of the surf, a good book, and the sun on my face. Maybe we'll head down over Easter break. I'll have to check my calendar. I just got an email from Southwest advertising a $49-99 each way sale if I fly on a Tuesday or Wednesday. Sounds like a bargain to me!

In the mean time, I'll just keep making jewelry that inspires the beach...I can live vicariously through my necklaces! Ha!

Skim Coat

Well, so much for our touch of Spring! It snowed last night, leaving a blanket of snow over everything, and sticking to all of the trees. It's gorgeous. I may have to go for a drive and get some more pictures. You can't have too many snow pics, can you? I love how the snow is a great "leveler"...breaking everything down to its form, eliminating the distraction of color. It makes for an interesting view of everyday things. Case in point: the hay bales I photographed last week. Gold and white. That's it. Love it.

I've got Valentine's Day on my mind, and I've listed another necklace at Etsy in honor of the holiday. I'm in love with pearls of any kind, and I'm not afraid to show it! These top-drilled chocolate freshwater pearls are just so delish! I'm just here to share the love! If you'd like a closer look, go to fiddleheadstudios.etsy.com

Well, it's the start of a new week, and I'm feeling refreshed now that my mother's house is all cleaned out (FINALLY!) and the closing is this Friday. It'll be good to close that chapter, and move on. It's time to start thinking about a house of my own. I need some SPACE to put all the stuff we pulled out of there...lol. Of course, we still have boxes of videos and cassette tapes that need to be checked out ...and old papers to go through. That's going to be no easy task. But it'll be nice to do a bit of time travel that way. We found an old "newspaper" that we wrote as kids...The Lalor News. I believe it was dated 1977? It was hilarious. If I can find it again, I'll have to scan it so you can have a look. It's amazing the stuff we did to fill our days before computers and television were the norm. At the risk of sounding old, I'm going to say: "Those were the days."

Snow Cat

The snow is fleeting these days,with the spring-like temperatures we've been experiencing up here this week in NY. This cat was sculpted by my friend Jennifer in her back yard last week. Today, the snow has all but disappeared, replaced with green grass and mud. Global warming? Who knows? All I know is, I haven't had to wear a coat in DAYS! I can smell spring in the air, and it's such a tease! We have months to go before we can expect this kind of weather to stick around. I think I'll enjoy it while it lasts.

I've been listing some new items on Etsy this week. I especially love this one. It's faceted smoky quartz and Hill Tribes silver. I'm headed over there to list it now. Then it's off to work with me today! Tomorrow my sister and I make our final trip out to Elmira to clean out my mother's house, and then it will FINALLY be over. For such a tiny house, Mom sure had some STUFF! (Now I know where I got it from....lol.)

Have a great weekend, y'all!

Winter Fun!

Now isn't this what winter in the Northeast is all about? It's not about icy roads and paying oil bills and freezing to death...it's about sledding on big awesome hills with ramps that Dwight built in his back yard! (Dwight is my friend Jennifer's husband--a gem he is!) I brought Kathleen and her cousin Madeline over to Jennifer's this morning, and they had a blast.

Even the dogs had fun!

Happy 2008!

I'm baaaack! It was a hairy holiday, but I made it through the stress with a fresh new outlook, and some renewed energy (after taking about 5 days off) for a long list of new year activities that await. It's late, and I really need to get to bed tonight, but I didn't want to go one more day without posting.

I went for a drive a few days ago after a beautiful snowfall, and took some photos. Here they are for you to enjoy!

Sweet dreams, y'all. Stay tuned for some new jewelry and some more regular postings from me.