Long Time, No See...Ramblings

Hello, friends!  Time has flown by since I last posted anything...a lot of family activity this month and I have had a hard time sitting down and documenting anything.

School ended, B finished 5th grade!  He received a Presidential Certificate of Excellence!

We immediately went to the beach for a few days...had a blast, although the weather was not optimal.

We got a bit of sun, but it was mostly cloudy...

and windy!

B found this on the beach for me!

After we got home, we celebrated Father's Day, and our 13th anniversary on the 20th.  J got me 2 books I had on my wish list...Mixed Metal Mania by Kim St. Jean and Foldforming by Charles Lewton Brain!  I love them both...be prepared for new metal pieces!

Since then, it has been 9-5 work, house work, yard work, Boy Scouts (B got his Scout badge, so he is official!).  We are getting ready for him to go to Boy Scout camp for a week...his first sleep away...yikes!

Not much jewelry making going on...have some things started, and simmering, but not ready to show!

Here are some pretties from around my yard, however!

Stay tuned...I will be introducing my Bead Soup partner soon, and hopefully unveiling some new Melismatic Morsels!

Happy Friday...hope you have a fabulous weekend!

Flowers n' stuff...

...a few new blooms that I love!  My irises were a bit iffy this year, since last fall I had a big iris borer problem so I had to dig up rhizomes, cut off infected parts and replant.  I'm scared some of my special hybrid colors are not coming back, but you can't go wrong with old fashioned purples!  The big solid purple ones are heirlooms from my Momma's backyard....I can't look at them without thinking of her :)  The pink clematis is also a favorite!

This shot is from Ben's first Boy Scout meeting...they had their own bridge ceremony.  I like his face in this photo...he looks like he is has a secret!

These are patterned copper (thanks Keirsten, for tips!), embellished with stacked dapped and enameled disks...totally an experiment, and all mine, since they are not weighted right and therefore hang askew, plus the errant blob of white enamel.  I like the idea, though, so will be playing around with more!

Just a few rambling thoughts for Monday...I have loads of things to do around the house and garden, plus a couple of deadlines for custom work and Sally Russick's One Crayon Color Challenge...color me green, and it is my day on Thursday for Earrings Everyday, so check back in!

What about you?  What is on your agenda for the week?

Spring Fever Ramblings

Having a 9-5 job when Spring decides to flirt with your senses is totally unfair!  Granted, it has been  a very mild winter here in Maryland, I am so ready for warmer weather, green grass, and flowers!  The spring-like temps yesterday and today have me unfocused on my admin work and chomping at the bit to go and dig in some dirt!

Unfortunately, I have suffered with an off and on headache over the last 3-4 days...just when I think it is gone, it's knuckles tap me on the side of the head again..."I'm baacckkk"!

My day on Earrings Everyday....Confetti!

Here are a couple more pairs of earrings I created a while back featuring my new love of  bezel cups...

Handwrought copper  disks with faceted blue chalcedony; lampwork by SueBeads

Sterling disks with tiny turquoise cabs;  Picasso finish Czech glass drops

Have been working on some custom orders...including a silent auction piece for one of my co-worker's Breast Cancer fundraiser and a special gift for my son's Scout leader...she has been his den leader all the way through Cubs, and will continue into Boy Scouts.  Hope to have photos of these to show soon!

Speaking of Scouts, B crosses the bridge on Saturday!  Will take lots of photos!

Oh, I almost forgot...I am still going to have a giveaway based on my Bead Soup leftovers...will get a post up soon, I promise!

Hope you are all enjoying the spring-like weather and aren't stuck inside at your desk!

Just a quick hello...

have been really busy with lots of stuff lately, but wanted to say "O hai" before you forget about me :)

I was scrambling, trying to get ready for a show tomorrow, alas, it was cancelled due to probable heavy rain and storms.  Part of me is sad, I really wanted to do the show, and I had been busting it for the last few days.  The more realistic part of me is relieved, as I wasn't really ready!  I have got to get my procrastination under control.

I hope to finish what I started, and get some photos taken and load all my new goodies into my shops, so stay tuned for that.

I'll leave you with a virtual walk through my garden as of a couple days ago...my iris and clematis are really kickin' it :)

Have a fabulous weekend!

Last Week...

I was quiet...busy, but quiet.  Eating, working, praying, loving, gardening...not necessarily in that order!

 

1 of many photos of the devasation in my hometown, Tuscaloosa, AL, after a behemoth tornado hit  this week.  Keep them in your prayers.



BTW - Czech Glass, Spring Flowers, and a Giveaway!

Because it is Bead Table Wednesday,

because it is Spring,

because I love Spring Flowers,

because I am still not over my SBS Wire cover high,

and, most importantly,

because you all totally rock,

I would like to give a special reader an assortment of Czech glass beads to create your own "Spring Flowers"!

All you have to do is leaf me a comment (get it? I kill myself!) and answer this question:

"What is your favorite Spring flower?"

I will choose a random comment on Saturday morning (April 2).  Make sure you include contact info!  I will choose an assortment of beads from my stash...enough to make a couple pairs of earrings or pendants.

I love all flowers, but my all-time, forever, favorite Spring blossom is the daffodil!  My Mama always had a yard full of them...I don't remember ever having crocus, so the dafs were always harbingers of Spring.  We called them "buttercups" and I still do, even though I know that an actual buttercup is a totally different flower.  Mama had lots of varieties..the simple ones you see on the roadside, really ruffly double ones, bi-color, white ones, and paper-whites. One year after she died, I dug some up to bring home with me to plant in my yard, and the bulbs had been there so long that I had to get help to dig them out.   Every year when my meager collection blooms, I kick myself for not having planted more the previous autumn....this year I am definitely going to do it!  Sadly, I don't think I have any more of those heirloom ones from Mama.  I need to make a trip back down south to raid my sisters' yards!

Here are a few I picked yesterday...pretty, aren't they? They are in my favorite McCoy vase (another addiction of mine).  I should have taken the photo somewhere else, though, because my milkglass cake plate is distracting :)



So, what's your favorite Spring flower?

May 1st...Garden Walk

It is an absolutely gorgeous day today in Frederick, Maryland...almost hot!  A lot of yard/garden work to be done but we seem to be moving very slow so far :)  I went to Weight-watchers, worked out and came home to the 8 yr old still in his jammies playing his DSI, and hubby in the basement practicing electric guitar...at least a load of dishes was running!

I picked up the camera and took a walk around the yard to see what is blooming today..

This unopened iris looks like an alien pod...

I absolutely love old-fashioned bearded iris...can you tell?  My Mom always grew them in all colors.

This is a gorgeous purple clematis I've had for several years...just starting to put out its flowers.

One of my hubby's favs...lily of the valley...I always think of Ethel Mertz on "I Love Lucy" singing "I'm Lily...of the Valley..."

Phlox, dianthus or "pinks" as I grew up calling them and an unknown shrub that was here before us...I kept it because I love the little white flowers!

We just planted this small japanese maple...we had some shrubs that were damaged in all the snow and ice we had this winter, so we yanked them out.  Behold one of my plant stakes made from old wrought iron fencing embellished with lampwork beads!

Okay, this is just a mess...a couple summers ago, I planted lemon balm because I love the smell, and in Latin, it is means "sweet Melissa" :)  Unfortunately, even though it smells divine, it takes over your yard and is really difficult to pull out.  I haven't decided what to do with it yet!

I planted this last year and can't remember what it is called, but I love the varigated leaves and pale periwinkle blooms...it loves shade and inhabits the side yard with my hostas.

Thanks for taking a stroll with me...I am going out today to get some annuals to add some more color here and there!