What's going on?

Malta in the garden, and my climbing rose, Celine Forestier, blooming.

It is spring, but in typical North Texas style we have been getting some crazy weather. Arts Goggle on Friday night was more quiet than in the past due to bitterly cold (for here) weather. I do have to thank all my friends and great supporters who came out and said hello to me. Also, a big thanks to Craig at Park Place Pharmacy for being such a generous host!

I started this pendant last week with a picture in my head. Of course it came out a bit different than I had originally intended. I just finished it Sunday and still need to get "proper" photos. This will be on display at Fiesta next month.

Custom Heart Pendant

I did another custom piece for The Heart Girl. This one is a little pendant that she will wear on a cord. Check out that shiny finish I got on the back. I have to thank Delias Thompson for introducing me to Zam! I used to be totally averse to a shiny finish, but have come around a bit. I think it works well in some cases. Even if I am not going for a shiny finish, Zam is still quite helpful. It takes out all those surface scratches from sanding and refines the surface of the metal. I can then go back with either steel wool or scotchbrite to give the metal a matte finish.

Playing with color

I don't draw too often, other than sketching ideas for jewelry designs. I've been sort of missing it, and also drawing inspiration from watercolor artist Geninne. I thought drawing out a color chart for the baby babette would help me to decide what colors to add to the mix. Plus, when the blanket is gifted I'll have my sketch as a keepsake. Oh yeah, and I finished a couple more squares!

Babette Beginnings

I have put my kool-aid dyed yarn to use! Here are the beginnings of a baby blanket. I wrote a while back about wanting to make a Babette Blanket for myself. Well, I haven't done that yet, but am using the pattern for a baby blanket. I think I am going to keep it to one size of the squares, probably the 4 round size. I love these colors and can't wait to dye more to add to the mix! I kind of jumped the gun and added pink in hopes that one of the pregnant ladies I know will have a girl. I'll let you know how that works out.

Feeling Springy

Yesterday was the most beautiful day here in Fort Worth. It was sunny and warm with a cool breeze. My kind of day! The flowers above are from my yard, spring is definitely on its way. I also took a walk around my neighborhood with my camera. Oddly enough, I had never done that before. Usually I have the dogs with me. It was nice to wander and take photos, and I saw things that I had never noticed before. The flowering trees below are from around the neighborhood.

Fun stuff

I got so excited when I saw the selection of drink mixes at my local Mexican Grocer. They have interesting flavors like Melon, Jamaica, which I tried. I also found some kool-aid at another store. There are apparently some elusive flavors that I might have to hunt around for!


I spent yesterday afternoon dying my yarns. I used 4 skeins total of Moda-dea washable wool. I am still learning as I go, but am thrilled with the outcome. I plan to overdye that bright green one, and to do more colors as well. I think I am going to use these for a baby version of the Babette blanket.

I had heard that wool yarn could be dyed with Kool-Aid, but had no idea how well it could work. Check out these images I found on flickr and the great colors they created! I also found this info on how to do this at home. I'm planning to try this asap, and will let you know how it works out.

New Release Thursday!

I am so excited to introduce my Painterly Collage Cocktail Ring for Etsy Metal new release Thursday! The one pictured is mine, and now you can have one too. As always, shipping is free and you can even take advantage of my sale, which goes through Sunday.
I hope you love this ring as much as I do.