Time for some shabbilicious fun!

Time for some fun!...Oops, hubby heard that ,apparently..he doesn't understand. I mean girlie, shabbily accumulated, pink sparkly jewelry fun...not let's go out to the garage and work on our snowmobile's fun...
I don't know about your hubbies, but my hubby is huge fan of winter. Snow, snow snow, is all I hear once October hits! That is his fun.
Sadly for him we have been lacking this year.
And unfortunately, I will be leaving him out of our jewelry viewing this afternoon. (or so I thought)

I was looking at my bins of broken down vintage findings the other day when I realized..very soon it will be Valentines Day! That led me to open up my "pink" drawer! It had lots and lots of pale, whispery fairy pink in it! Which led me to create the necklace above!
(back to hubby, for just a moment!)
I showed the necklace to him when I was finished..."That would be perfect for a bride!"
I did a double take...
"Huh??? Really!??"
(I had actually been thinking along those lines myself, but hearing if from a man, a man that also was my hubby, means something!)
High and appropriate, and almost unsolicited opinions from him are of great value to me.
I remain flabbergast.

Perhaps he needs to consult with me more often. Who would have thought? I mean go back up and take a look at the pic of him...does he look like he would have an opinion about a pale pink, ever so delicately made, shabby accumulations necklace???
That just added to the fun!!!

So thank you for joining me in welcoming first of spring 2010's "Shabby Accumulations" bridal collection!
It is waiting for that perfect someone...

Don't just stand there!

I do some of my best and 'clearest' thinking when I run. Which, if you are a regular reader, you may know I have not been able to do much of this winter, due to a knee injury.
The weather has been so nice this past week, than I HAD to go running.. It had been a while, so I thought I would give the old knee a chance to prove itself once again.
Well, I was able to run, about 4 or 5 miles, further that I had been able to all winter. The knee, still not quite right, but seemed somewhat better. All the same, it was so nice to feel that freedom again!
I find I am more motivated, I get more done, and am generally happier, if I run!
On to my original reason for this post, which is not to ramble on too much about little ol' me!
Well, there was a connection between the running and the post..
I have been trying to think of how I wanted to donate and help a cause in Haiti.
While running, yes, an epiphany, I decided to do this:

The above print is being sold as a limited edition aceo. Only 100 will be sold, if I happen to sell that many, wait, when I happen to sell that many..(power of positive thinking my friends!) I will then post a 2nd limited edition for Haiti. All proceeds go to the Mission of Hope Haiti.

If you know not of aceos then I will tell you...
they are little pieces of collectible art.
The only requirement is that they measure 2.5" x 3.5".
They can be in any medium.
This aceo can be found in my etsy shop...so head on over!

Can computers be infected with H1N1?

Really! I think I should have vaccinated mine! Apparently some new age virus/bot infected my laptop last Friday!
It actually turned green! And then continued to be cranky throughout the weekend, after which, I broke down and took it to a neighbor for treatment.
He was able to fix it, but it did not last! It again turned green...and 'puked' viral goobers, continuously. That led me to take it for serious rehab, off it went to a co-workers hubbie, who by the why runs his own computer business. It is called Alltech , for those locals reading this. It was hit or miss for a few days though, didn't know if my little Spartan would pull through. Alas, I am happily typing away again!
I am very content to be back. Photoshop withdrawl is becoming a distant memory.
Now to catch up on DJ Pettitt's online class I have been taking!
I hope everything is well with my readers, oh and watch out for that nasty computer bot!

More copper!!

I have been stuck home for about a thousand years now, well not really that long, but have had

a nasty winter cold this week that has kept me housebound.

I do believe I am well enough to go to work tomorrow! My poor dogs, I things they are now clinically depressed after watching me lay around for three days! They are however, well versed in the latest happenings on Days of Our Lives.

Perhaps you read a few posts back, and saw, the earrings I made out of copper wire. This is a necklace using the same type of design. Par for course, it started out being something different, a bracelet, but after finishing the pieces, I much preferred it as a necklace.

I was lucky enough to catch the morning light streaming through the windows when I took these pics. The necklace has a longer chain, which seemed to fit the style I was going for.

It may be making an apprearance in my etsy shop, once another wave of ambition hits me!


These are earrings I made using handcut pieces of brass, cut by me, and yes I still have all ten digits. I have had a few of these pieces floating around since summer, they were patiently waiting for me to decide what to do with them. Only two of the metal pieces seemed to match each other shapewise, thus just one pair of earrings....and

a matching necklace!

While I may joke, and complain about having a little harmless cold, there are so many people who are experiencing a nightmare of challenges. I am speaking of friends close to me, and people who are oceans away. It reminds me to be thankful for what I have at the moment and that it could all be taken away in a heartbeat. I remember reading that we should live in the moment, because "it"will never be again. I have lost sight of that. That said, my goal is to be more mindful and conscious of the here and now. Because really that is all we really are guaranteed. Take care my friends!

I spy...

Another bench Monday here! I am lucky enough to have a lovely neighbor friend, who just loves to pose!

She also loves to take lots and lots of pictures...hmmm, sounds like someone else I know!

And it finally happened...a winter cold...I mean the sneezy kind..not the temperature outside. That is cold too!

All the more reason to stay inside and possibly catch up on some projects.

I started this collage a while ago. Inspired by an article in the July/August Somerset Studio's Art of Paper and Mixed Media publication. The article was called "Let's Face It" , written by Cindy O'Leary, with artwork by DJ Pettitt .

It was put on hold when I had to stop and order modeling paste from Dick Blick. I have never worked with this, this is my first attempt. Will try again though. This collage is on regular drawing paper. I would like to use canvas next time.

The modeling paste arrived last week, and I MADE myself sit down and paint yesterday. First I had applied layers of the paste and let them dry, a day for each layer. This project was lots of fun, and still is not finished...I have fabric I want to sew on it. That will be another first..wish me luck!!!

Who's watching who?

click on the pic....the print is small in this size!!

Do you ever get that feeling someone is watching you, but there is no one else in the room? Or perhaps a feeling that you are not alone?

I do. But I am still standing on a line between what, or who is making me feel that way! I do teeter to the side of belief, sometimes my faith wavers. Perhaps that is why I am so intrigued, or should I say hooked, to the plethora of ghosthunter shows out here! I love to cuddle up on the couch with my Tia (warm, cuddly dog) and an afgan, and watch for a sign to jump out on the screen!

I think a majority of us believe, or want to believe, in something in the great beyond. Though others flatly disregard that thought. It seems to be part of human nature to wish that some type of self will never end.

I must say, there are times when I feel someone or something has given me peace of mind, or strength. I believe in god, and a spirit that guides you...but beyond that I wonder...

Regardless, angels are a huge theme in art today and years ago. It as if we need to put them down on paper, and that helps makes them real.

Shabby Chic steps out, and then sits down!

Sometimes, a quiet moment gazing out the window can lead to a lifetime of creation, or at least an afternoon of it!

I must admit, I dissappoint myself in the fact that there are so many thoughts of what I would like to do as an artist, but they remain just that, thought.

Thus, a list each morning, or a goal for me, to bring some of those dreams and thoughts to realization. I try to pick one thing and tell myself that I need to work on it, and if possible finish it. It isn't that I don't want to, I just can't decide where to start sometimes. The indecision then leads me to the easiest thing to do, for me at the moment...digitial art.

That in turn leaves everything else in the background!

Yesterday, as I was once again playing with pictures on my computer, I glanced to my left. At my left, strategically next the chair I am sitting in right now, are bins brimming with shiny jewelry pieces, broken parts, the old, the new...
The bossier part of me but a stronghold on my will and forced me slowly back away from the laptop.
I then spent the next few hours creating a few new pieces of jewelry.

Once I got going, I was lost, utterly lost in the sea of sparkles! Broken rhinestone necklace, vintage black and crystal clip on earrings, the gaudy, the dainty...the unwanted. They were my playthings..and what fun I had!

This is "You Make My Heart Soar" necklace. The heart is actually a locket and is so gorgeous!


"A Rusted Love" necklace.
Not so sure about the name. It could be a good thing, or a bad thing. I guess you have to decide for yourself!





The chain is a rhinestone, and fits like a choker.

Oh, and it looks like a dream, my dears!

When your heart's desire is being pulled so many ways....sit down, look out the window..and do nothing but listen for a moment or two.

What you hear in silence will be amazing.