Happy Spring!

I'm not sure what happened to March but it sure has come and gone quickly.  While I'm still trying to grapple with the idea of spring the Easter weekend is already before us.  The snow has melted in the front yard and glimpses of spring are starting to be seen as the first bulbs push themselves through the soil.  In the backyard there is still mounds of snow mixed with inches of wet, sloppy grass by the midday sun.  

Our backyard is visited daily by two or three local rabbits and our dog is most interested to greet them and as often as possible.  This makes for lots of paw wiping when she gets back in the house and that is a sure sign of spring.  I've noticed the birds singing.  I don't know if they have always been there and their voices muffled by the snow or they have just returned from a southern winter but it sure sounds nice. The garden is wet and brown but there is hope out and there and a sense of excitement as to the possibilities.  Spring is a very welcome sight to me.

Happy Easter!  

May you enjoy your weekend with some rest, sunshine and friends and family.

Paint Works Magazine

Last winter one of my lovely customers, Amy Mogish, asked me to make a custom eye glass chain for a project she was working on.  Amy had painted a beautiful wooden eyeglass case and she wanted me to make a coordinating chain for her eyeglasses.  She sent me the sweetest owl charm that she had painted herself and wanted me to attach to the back.  She also sent a couple of pictures of her painted owl for inspiration.  

Now her work can be seen in the latest Paint Works Magazine (April 2013).  You can even try your hand at making this project with her detailed step by step instructions.

Paint Works Magazine

Owl Be Seeing You by Amy J. Mogish.
Page 82-84.

I made the glass chain with denim blue and brown glass beads along with some copper beads.  All handwrapped onto copper wire and attached to antiqued copper cable chain.

So much fun to see this project in print.  I'm so happy for Amy and so happy I could be a small part of it.  You can find Paint Works Magazine at your local book or magazine shop.

Happy Valentine's Day!

 Mmm....the house has a wonderful warm, chocolate scent to it right now.

What better way to celebrate Valentine's then with some heart shaped brownies.

I think these strawberries might still need a little chocolate dipping.

Have a wonderful day!

Drawer by Drawer.

Well, I must say my new year plans are going along pretty smoothly.  If you knew what kind of week I've had you'd be pretty impressed (small kitchen fire, credit card fraud).  Really? What's next??!!

Anyways, my organization plans are slowly but surely happening.  Today's accomplishment...cutlery drawer.

Ok it seems pretty silly now that it was left for months because it actually took me less than 15 minutes to clean and sort.  I bought a new drawer organizer at Winner's last week and it worked out quite well - it even gives me an extra spot to keep those measuring spoons that we are always searching for.

It went so fast it actually left me some time to sort out the kitchen utensil drawer below it.  The bonus cleaning this drawer was that way in the back with the crumbs I found an earring I had lost a couple of months ago.  I had searched everywhere in the house - well, not the kitchen utensil drawer because who would think to look there for an earring?  I guess we should be lucky my earring didn't fall into somebody's dinner!

Ok so maybe kitchen renos are not in our budget right now but at least we can have an organized one in the meantime.

Looking Ahead at 2013.

The corner of the living room does look a little bare right now.  The tree is down and the decorations are packed away for another year.   Another year, another Christmas gone by.  A new year brings hope of something better, excitement of things to come and knowing to enjoy it day by day.

We have some big changes coming us to this year.  It's hard for us to believe that Erica will be moving out to University in nine months. Wow! How can that be?  By the end of this year it will just be the three of us at home and I'm sure that will be a bit of an adjustment to us all.   As quantity of time inevitably diminishes as the girls get older we want to make sure we have quality time together.  We'll have to work at continuing as many family dinners as we can and just spending time together.

I have some things I'd like to work on professionally.  I want to be more proactive with planning, sales goals and effective marketing.  I think to take things to the next level I do need to consider the business side of things in conjunction with the creative side.   To continue to be profitable and competitive I can't just follow every pretty bead I see.  I think sometimes beads to me are like squirrels to our dog Mabel. Beads!! Squirrel! (if you know what I mean!)

I want to start painting the walls again.  A few years ago, and before I opened my etsy shop, I was painting rooms all the time.  Paint chips and swatches could be constantly found taped to our walls as I considered future colours.  It's definitely time to do this again and I'm ready.

To do this I need to find a better balance of my time with work and our home.  One of my biggest goals this year is to organize and clean the house.  This goal will involve other members of the house but we're all ready to get rid of all the stuff we've accumulated over the last several years.  We've been in this house for 15 years now and it shows.  My mind thinks big when it comes to organization (everything cleaned in the next 2 weeks!!) but I know this will be a long term process.  Drawer by drawer, cupboard by cupboard.  The time spent will be time saved later on when you don't have to go searching through mounds of stuff to find things.  Most importantly for me though is that less clutter just makes for a calmer feeling.

Some sorted inspiration!  (Style at Home)

We started our organization plans off right by sorting and purging all our Christmas boxes.  We had decorations that haven't seen the light of day for years.  We still have a lot of Christmas boxes but they are labelled and everything in them is something we use. We are still missing a box of decorations that we could not find this year but I'm sure it will show up over the year when we tackle the basement.










I'd like to grow about 3 inches taller but while I wait for that to happen we will continue to walk more and eat healthy.  For me, I need to make sure to take the time for myself to do these things.

A picture from a beautiful walk we took at my parent's cottage over the holidays.

Happy New Year everyone.  Any plans for your year ahead?

It's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas!

Sydney made this beautiful gingerbread house in her culinary class.  All hand baked by her.   I think this might be one gingerbread house that actually tastes good and doesn't risk your dental work!

No time to waste taking the pictures as we have some eager people in this house ready to start eating this one!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!

18th Annual CBC Charity Craft Sale

In the last week I've had the Christmas songs playing while getting ready for my Christmas show in Toronto this Thursday.   I've been beading like a mad woman (well a happy one but sort of in a frantic way!)  Beads are, well, let's just say everywhere right now.  I'm hoping I can find the dining room table again before Christmas dinner!!

In amongst the beads, wire and chain I've been printing earring cards and having a trial run setting up my table.  I've been tagging and pricing and rearranging the table set up.  Phew no wonder I've been drinking a lot of coffee this week!  I also ordered new business cards - twice.  I'd love to say it's just because I love them so much that I had to order more.  Well, actually I am really happy with them except for the spelling error on the front.  Arghhh!!   My fault entirely as I just didn't see the error.  Perhaps this is a cue that I have a tad too many things going on at once! Anyways, the new and improved ones should arrive just in time for the show.

It is a busy time of the year but I'm really looking forward to this show.  It will be great to see some of my customers in person and to meet new ones.  It's also a great opportunity to meet some fellow vendors.

If you are in the Toronto area please come out and visit me at the CBC Charity Craft Sale. 

 CBC Building Atrium at 250 Front Street.

Thursday, December 13th 2012.

8:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.  

You can find me at Booth #51 under Wallis Designs.

The Sale is in support of Unicef.  All proceeds from vendor table fees and public donations go directly to Child Protection around the world. 

While I'm at the show most of my Etsy shop will be travelling with me so I'll have reduced listings on Wednesday and Thursday this week.  I also won't be shipping those days.  I'll be back listing and shipping on Friday the 14th.