...........Fabulous colour combo of turquoise, lime green & black

.................focal bead in blue & ivory..wire work loops

Working on some new wire wrapping designs and new ways to photograph them...

just finished a new batch of beads and editing the colours...

Lots of new ideas swirling around in my head...now if I can just get them done.

Have had lots of family visiting the past few weeks... back to work but it will be busy for the next month with visitors...

we are finally finishing the yard..getting the driveway black-top done....

awesome!! time to start all over again... our house was supposed to be a 5 year project which turned into a 11 year project...oh well..
it's not getting to the end of the road but the journey along the way!!!...so "they" say

I have been busy making some new display pieces for my sale in July @ the R.C.A.

May already.....working in my studio....trying out a few new designs..

Found this quote the other day:

'the person who risks nothing, does nothing, has nothing, and becomes nothing may avoid  suffering ...but he simply cannot learn and feel and change and grow and love and live.'

                                           by Leo Buscaglia

Spring is finally here...It's a great day in the Okanagan..lots of wildlife viewing from my yard.. The Loons are out on the Lake..the deer are wandering thru

Things are a bit slow @ the R.C.A. I am now of member of Okanagan Artists Group

Had a FABULOUS day at the 'Fabulous Finds' trunk show at Summerhill Pyramid Winery..

could not believe how busy it was all day...non-stop..

Watch for announcement for a show in the fall.

Went skiing to day.. BIG WHITE..the snow was spectacular, but the wind was something else.

Very cold and blowing snow..they don't call it Big White for nothing.!!!!!

We did manage to ski for 4 and 1/2 hours..Not all that many people there either..guess people

have golfing on their minds now.

It's back to work in the studio this week..I have been doing my 'spring' cleaning and re-organizing. Have lots of ideas for new stuff..going to try some STEAMPUNK jewellery..I have

lots of watch parts and old keys... We'll see what I can turn out...

One WEEK until: FABULOUS FINDS

An Artisan and Collectors' Show
Saturday, March 27 10 am - 4 pm
Summerhill Pyramid Winery
4870 Chute Lake Road Free Admission

SHOP HANDMADE SHOP VINTAGE

My daughter and I will be there..lots of vintage goodies, incuding jewellery, purses, scarves,
umbrellas, linens, glass wear and nic knacks.

I will of course have my hot glass, hand-made jewellery on display for sale & viewing:
beads , bracelets, pendants, & earrings

Drop by and say HELLO

Just had to post these pics I took in Ireland two years ago... just fabulous

new post for Monday...just looking after the grandkids...great day for a BBQ.. I was dispatched to get the hot dogs & buns.. time for a roast on the beach. We do this every spring when the water is low and we can build a fire on the beach

QUOTE for the week-

Creation is the Artist's True Function
Where there is no Creation there is no Art...Henri Matisse (1869 - 1954)

Had a busy time last week.. taught a lampworking class and a fused pendant class. Great people in both classes.

Did a little skiing..Big White was fabulous.. The Grandkids are doing very well considering they only started skiing last year..


I'm busy designing bracelets, etc. for an up & coming show up at Summerhill Winery..It is called "FABULOUS FINDS" an Artisan & Collectors' Show Sat. March 27... 10 am - 4 pm.
SHOP HANDMADE - SHOP VINTAGE

I will be sharing a table with my daughter, who does vintage wares..do plan to drop by...

Winter is now half over...Yeah!!!! Here's a quote I recently saw:

LIFE is a Coin...You can spend it anyway you WISH..but you can only spend it ONCE!!!

Here's a little "HISTORY of JEWELLERY" that I hope you will find interesting:

The first jewellery ever made was produced by hand in the Stone Age. Our ancestors made jewellery from materials they considered to be precious such as shells, stones or bones. The jewellery was not only supposed to decorate the person wearing it but also an expression & proof of success & social standard. The hunter, for instance, proudly wore a chain with teeth & claws from a bear as proof of his courage.

The first glass was formed over 40 million years ago by tremendous heat from volcanoes-it is called obsidian. The first man-made glass (consisting of sand, potash & lime) is believed to have been made about 3500 B.C. in Anatolia & Mesopotamia. Of course the Venetians (from Venice) took glass making to another level. Colours can be made by adding metallic oxides..glass can be poured, molded, stretched, cut, polished & etched..making it ideal to add sparkle & excitement to jewellery.

The first attempt of designing 'jewellery' is to be seen in the arranging of chain links or beads according to size. Already the Sumerians had the manufacturing know-how for making most of the jewellery we know today. The ornament as a unified form of decoration was then found in necklaces, earrings & bracelets. "Ornamento" is still today the Italian word for jewellery. Only in the 15 century the meaning of jewellery gradually changed from a status symbol to a fashionable accessory.

Both men & women adorned themselves with decorative gold necklaces, bangles & bracelets. The individual links could be taken out from the piece of jewellery & used as a means of payment.

During the Renaissance the wearing of jewellery became more & more the exclusive right of women & the styling of jewellery was increasingly influenced by fashion. The fast process of industrialization in the 19th Century brought with it the mass production of jewellery. Today thousands of identical pieces of jewellery can be produced.

For quite some time now fashion jewellery has become the fashionable alternative to real jewellery manufactured by jewellers or industry. However, fashion jewellery cannot & does not intend to replace real jewellery.

Buying hand-made jewellery from an artisan insures that you have a Unique, One of a Kind piece to add to your collection.

Another fab day in the Okanagan. I looked out my studio window yesterday and this cute little doe was looking back @ me!!!

I've been really busy making a bunch of awesome beads...just took them out of the kiln after annealing them and then cleaned them with the dremel drill. I went to the hardware store and purchased a hose clamp and L-bracket and fixed the drill to my work-bench and then hooked the whole thing up to a foot switch...presto..I can now use both hands to hold the bead & clean it out in 30 seconds flat...such a time saver.

I made a make-shift light box out of large vinegar jug..the photos of my jewellery are much better now..also I have up-loaded them all on Piccasa & it is 2 or 3 touches to fix the photos.

I hope to post some on my Etsy shop soon..taking good photos seems to be something I need to work on...

Another fab day in paradise..here's a pic. of the view from here...

Just got back from a little trip to Palm Springs..had great weather..did some bead & finding shopping.. some things you just can not get here...Time to get down to business and make some

beads and stuff..

Here is a cab that I made in my micro-wave kiln..Took just 3 minutes...awesome...