While my Mom was working on finishing her quilt top so I could quilt it, I've been having a pretty busy week, which is why I haven't been posting much here on my blog. I made two necklaces this week using the Venetian beads I purchased Easter weekend at Bella Venetian Beads, part of The Place to Bead in Naperville, Illinois. This necklace, from the November 2008 issue of BeadStyle magazine, allowed me to play a little more with shapes and colors and pushed me out of my comfort zone because it's asymmetrical in design. I love the teal/aqua/blue combinations in the beads, along with the metallic highlights that range from gold to copper hues. And I loved mixing it with the blackened chain from AD Adornments.

I've been making jewelry the past few days, so I'm sharing a picture. The necklace in the photo at the right was created from the January 2008 issue of BeadStyle magazine. (You can buy the instructions if you don't have the issue in your stash.)

When I was down in Chicagoland last weekend, I was able to stop at The Place to Bead in Naperville, Illinois, home of Bella Venetian Beads, and they always have a lovely selection. I had a ball picking out these beads, and beads for the necklace that I plan to share here tomorrow. Of course, you can order them online, but I was right there, so I HAD to visit them in their new location.

Since I'm still on vacation in CA, I'm unable to post any photo or projects, since I haven't created anything since I've been out here. But I did press some pennies at Disneyland, so maybe I'll create a project or two from them when I get home (thanks for the inspiration, Cathy).

Gotta run. More boxes to pack at Vickie's!

Today I spent a great deal of time in meetings, but I did get a little time on the show floor. And I got to catch up with some more old friends. Michael Jolly and I (right) worked together more than a decade ago in Birmingham, and we got to catch up on our lives and our business ventures. He works at Plaid as their creative director and I can't imagine a better title for him because he's amazing in the creativity department. Cathie Filian took the picture for us even--she's such a creative gal and fabulously friendly to boot!!

I also got to see all the lines that Blue Moon Beads has out right now. In addition to what you see on their web page, I got to preview their new line, called Noir. I didn't think to take a picture of the line, but I'll try to swing by there tomorrow and get a picture. It's a great line--as their press sheet says: edgy, dark, sultry, moody, mysterious, extravagent. Except it won't be extravagent in price, which makes it even better.

The cabinet is in the living room, thanks to a very good friend with muscles, a truck, and flexible daytime hours. And the folks at Chattel Changers were great about figuring out which piece of furniture I was talking about on the phone, taking my payment over the phone, and helping my friend carry it out.

I still have to clean up the wiring situation and all that (as evidenced by the wires below the cabinet) and figure out the best use of the storage space. There are three drawers behind the two panels on the left side--each hold 30 video tapes quite neatly, amazingly enough. On the right side (the center panel and the two right ones), there's a removeable shelf. Right now, two clear plastic containers fit nicely on the top shelf--both are currently filled with video tapes and DVDs. I'm starting to think I have too many videos if all three drawers and one shelf are pretty full.

So that's the new piece of furniture. Now that I've got it in place, I can finish tidying up the rest of the room and organize the stamping corner. (And making good on my 2009 goal of getting to the gym more often.) Then it's on to sprucing up the dining room. And finally, I'll be going through my closet and dressers and getting rid of the clothes that I no longer wear or need. Only THEN is it on to creative endeavors again--cardmaking, quilting, beading, etc. Don't worry, I'll keep you posted when I regain my creative time. Meanwhile, I'll let you know how the clean-up goes.

And boy-oh-boy does it take up more space than I anticipated! I knew it was going to measure a bit over 10-ft. long, but I didn't really expect it to be SO WIDE. The specs said 41", but now I know that that doesn't include the space you need to actually operate the machine. But the good news is that it's built, and the machine is on the carriage. I didn't actually hook up the machine itself, but look what I built, all on my own!! The instructions were great--I didn't watch the DVD, but I didn't need it for additional guidance. And while measuring the room preconstruction, I realized I needed to remove the closet door so it wouldn't almost smack into the machine every time I opened it, and I was able to remove it on my own, with help from some man via an internet video. I'm so proud that I was able to put the frame together on my own. (That lyrics that should be running through your head right now is "I am woman, here me roar...".)

If I had the luxury of more space in my flat, I'd have nothing but this fabulous quilting machine in that room. But since I don't have more space, there might need to be more prioritizing that needs to be done, some additional things added to the "make this year" and "give away to friends" piles, and some more organization of the stuff that's currently in the sewing room. The jewelry-making stuff still needs to be gone through, and I might have to get rid of some old sewing patterns to make room for other stuff.

Good thing the cardmaking supplies are already in the living room...

So last night I repaired that ornament and tonight, I broke it again. No joke. It was sitting on my ironing board (I know, terrible idea) and I was moving my laptop from the living room chaise to the dining room table and the cord of the computer knocked the ornament to the floor. As happens to glass ornaments when they land on a hardwood floor, it shattered. So glad I glued that top on the ornament. Luckily this time, the broken glass didn't cut any threads. So now, I just have to clip the bottom ring and string it back up again over another glass ornament.

The most unbelieveable part is that I didn't totally melt down or swear a blue streak when it happened! Maybe I'm not as stressed as I thought I was.

Have a good Christmas and may your stress level be easily managed this holiday season.

I gave my friend Janet this beaded ornament several years ago, and a few years ago she gave it back. No, this wasn't some Christmas prank. The ornament had fallen off the tree, shattered, and cut the thread, sending seed beads everywhere. Luckily, she taped the loose thread ends to avoid future bead loss and returned it to me with a very sad expression on her face, hoping I could do some repairs. So I did, restringing a portion of the ornament last night. Amazingly, I had identical seed beads to replace the lost ones. See, I really enjoyed making these ornaments, so I bought several hanks of different colored seed beads so I could make more of them. By the way, the instructions are from Bead&Button's December 1998 issue, and though the issue is out of print, you can purchase and download the instructions online (and they're half-price, $1.95, until January 2, 2009, as are all of the PDFs from BeadStyle, Bead&Button, and Art Jewelry magazines, so check it out).

This time I glued the top on, as the top came off and the ornament crashed down last time. But it's good as new now, so I'll be giving it to her again this year, along with an IOU for a summer-themed door decoration. That's what she asked for, so we'll have to have a chat about whether that's a wreath, an appliqued door dec, or something else. One less project to worry about creating in the next 24 hours!

Mother Nature once again sprinkled her favorite city—Milwaukee—with a powdery dusting of magical wonder...

Oh nevermind the poetic phrases... 10-14 inches of snow dropped on the Milwaukee area Friday. No, I'm not kidding. Winter 2007/08 now ranks #2 in the snowiest winters on record in Milwaukee—95.4 inches. Winter of 1885/86 is unfortunately still within striking distance at 109.8 inches, I suppose. It's getting less pretty. Wednesday and Thursday of last week you could actually see dirt and dormant grass. Someone said they had bulbs sprouting in the backyard. Now, it's all white again. Lots of white.

But there are upsides to this winter wonderland! Being pseudo-snowbound gave me some downtime. My sewing machine was in for a timing issue, but the shop had graciously provided me with a loaner, thank goodness. So I was able to make some progress on some projects.

One was that quilt I started back before the snow started falling this year. I finally decided that a king-size quilt shouldn't be the first project I attempt to quilt on a quilting machine, so I had that monster machine quilted. The woman who quilted it did a lovely job and called last week to let me know it was ready. I sewed on the binding Saturday and delivered it on Easter. Woo hoo!

In addition, I made a set of beaded serving utensils for the quilt recipient. (Nothing like just-in-time gift making. I was a few projects behind.) I got the idea from Make It Mine magazine. Though it's not published anymore, you can still buy a back issue.