Category: family

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Holiday Shipping and Gift Certificates!

Just a quick reminder ~ the USPS says that if you want your packages to arrive by December 25th, they should be shipped by  December 21st (which is also the winter Solstice).

If you’d like to avoid shipping and shopping hassles all together, gift cards are a great way to go. They allow your loved ones to choose just what they want, and best of all it spares you from dealing with crowded malls and congested traffic. I’m now offering these in both of my Etsy shops.

You can print them at home or if you prefer, I can personalize and mail it for you… Did I mention that I’m a calligrapher?

These are available in multiple denominations in my mask & jewelry shop, which showcases one of a kind beaded jewelry and original leather masks… Aannd, you guessed it! You can also find gift certificates in my bead and jewelry supply shop, Treefrog Beads, which focuses on vintage and unusual materials. This is an awesome gift for your favorite bead addict 🙂

Whatever you choose (and however you celebrate) I hope that you find a way to avoid the stress, and enjoy some  time with the people you love!
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Precious Things

I was cleaning out my studio recently, and it struck me that I tend to collect – and cherish – the oddest things. I have saved every little note or scribble my daughter has given me over the years, along with pebbles, feathers, sticks, bones and other random mementos.  As I tidied up, I arranged some of these things into more contained groupings. This one is my favorite:

  • The abandoned nest came from good friends – they came across it doing yard work and they saved it for me, knowing that I would love it. 
  •  The little white stones were collected over a decade ago, when I lived on the beach. My daughter and I loved to go beach combing with the neighborhood kids. They would pick a different color of rocks and shells to collect each day, and we’d bring them all back to my house and put them in clear glass jars, which we lined along the long stone wall between my yard and the beach. When we moved out, I saved this small handful of white pebbles to remind me of how much fun we had.
  • Friends of ours have an old family cabin out on Whidbey Island where they hold an annual camp out, which is where Robb and I met. We found this feather on the beach that weekend.
  • The rose petals are from one of the first rose bouquets he ever gave me.
  • The little dove skull is particularly special to me. I’ve always found beauty in the antlers and skulls that I find while hiking. A few years ago, I (very randomly) told Robb that I thought birds have the most beautiful skulls of any animal, and I wished that I would find one some day. Later that week, I was hiking in my favorite city park and I stopped to catch my breath. I noticed some owl scat at my feet, and a little voice inside my head said “maybe it’s in there?” I laughed at myself for being so ridiculous, but some hopeful part of me kicked it with my toe just in case. Out tumbled this perfectly clean and intact mourning dove skull! Whenever I see it, I am reminded that sometimes the universe grants our wishes.

Those are the stories behind this little collection. Most people will see an old pile of worthless tidbits … I see symbols of time spent with family and friends, precious reminders of childhood innocence, memories of falling in love, and proof that dreams and wishes (even really silly ones) can come true.
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Thanking our Veterans

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Many of the social networking sites have a meme going around right now, that encourages people to list what they are thankful for during the entire month of November, rather than just for one day (Thanksgiving). I’m doing this privately, in my paper journal, but I may share some of these things here … if I remember … and if I have time. This one is important enough to me that I’d like to post it publicly:

I’m thankful for the warriors in my family, and for the efforts they’ve made and the risks they’ve taken so that I can be free. My stepdad Tom (Vietnam)  my partner Robb (Desert Storm) my cousin Jeff (Gulf War) and Robb’s brother Shawn (on his way back to Afghanistan now). I disagree with the politics of war, but I respect our warriors.
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2007 BJP – June page

This is a picture of my June 2007 bead journal project page.

It’s about 3 & 3/4″ round, and it’s about my daughter. It uses her colors (which are SO opposite from mine!) and the words describe some of the traits I enjoy and admire most about her: compassionate, brave, curious, silly, resilient, insightful & wise.

It incorporates Czech glass flowers and firepolish, 2mm Swarovski crystals, and seed beads ranging from size 15/o to size 18/o. The colors look washed out in the pic — it’s much louder & brighter IRL.
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Studio overhaul, take 52

This weekend’s big project has been to give my studio a much needed overhaul — again. It’s a familiar dance, we do it every 6 months or so. The beads start threatening to take over the house, and we high-tail it to the hardware store in search of new ways to corral them.

Our condo has great space for a family of 3 — but we need space for a family, an art studio AND a bead business. Moving is not an option for at least a few more years, so we’ve learned to be creative & maximize our space as best we can. Thankfully, my family is very indulgent 😉

This makeover will provide a third work table — devoted exclusively to packing & photography — and lots more shelving (“More shelving!” is like, my battle cry). I’m so excited by the prospect of being able to see my desk again! Maybe I’ll even post some pics when we’re done.