New Work

I've spent quite a bit of time working on projects the past few days.  The pendants in the picture were a lot of fun to create!

I bought a bag of decorative glass thingys.  They were really cheap, but they are all turquoise blue.   I played with them a little bit and this is the result.  I think I may have to buy more  in different colors, even if I can't find them as cheap as these were.


I haven't decided yet how I want to string them, so I'm going to think about that a bit.


I also finished three necklaces and a bracelet; and I'm working on two more necklaces.  I'm hoping to have them uploaded to my Artfire Studio later this week.  I need to photograph them, but I need a sunny day.

And, I actually did a little painting today!  I've been working on the same dang painting for almost two years.  I need to finish and move on.  As well as paint, more consistently . . .

Baby It's Cold Outside!

I'll be the first to admit, I'm a wimp when it comes to cold.  And it's been really cold here all week.

This is a snapshot taken looking out my workroom window. I'm glad I'm inside and all that snow is outside!

Now the garage is a very frigid 36 degrees.  Great for chilling champagne, not so good for working on anything in the garage.


I need to antique some copper wire in liver of sulfur so I can finish the "Tree of Life" necklace I started for the Art Bead Scene November Challenge.  I suppose I could turn a heater on out there, but like I said I'm a wimp when it comes to cold. 

I also scorched another batch of beads this week and I'm wondering if it is because of how cold the garage is.  I'm wondering if the oven I'm using runs hotter if it is cold? 

Maybe I'll put on a couple of pairs of long johns and some sweats and venture out into the garage.  Or maybe I'll hide under the blankets until spring. . .

Spring!

It's 5 degrees Fahrenheit (-15 Celsius) out and I just can't help myself.  I'm thinking of spring!  I know, it's not officially winter yet and Thanksgiving is tomorrow.  But, what the heck! I thought I would take a look at the Pantone spring color forecast for 2011.

And I'm thinking the Coral Rose and Regatta colors would make some vibrant jewelery!  I'm wanting to play with some color mixing with the Kato polyclay and I thought I could use some of the 2011 spring colors for a little inspiration.

And while I'm thinking of spring, here is a cute little girls dress by A Green Dress  on ArtFire.  I know, it's a little early, but it is a very cute dress and it is on sale.


A couple of reminders:

The Polymer Clay Smooshers Holiday Scavenger Hunt is still on!  Runs through November 29.

It's not too late to enter the November giveaway at the Shops With Less than (10) Sales Blog.  Leave a comment for a chance to win a $15.00 gift certificate for VaBeachQuilter's ArtFire Studio.

One more thing - I'm offering free shipping at my ArtFire Studio through December 31.  Additionally, I'm offering 15% off all jewelry price $18-$34 until November 30.  Use the coupon code ROSIEDOG at checkout for 15% off.

And one Final thing:
HAPPY THANKSGIVING everyone!

Color Recipes for Kato Polyclay

Some time ago, I made faux bones from polymer clay.  I have used up most of those faux bones making jewelry and need to make more.  And I forgot how I mixed the color for them, so I had to go searching.

What I found was a  page of Kato color recipes  And a color mixing chart as well. And then another page of Kato recipes!  Although I think most of the recipes are the same on the two pages.

I'm thinking of gradually working through some of the recipes and making some color charts. 

Oh, and the bone is 1:1 white and ecru (on the Kato color recipe pages) that is then layered or rolled into a cane with translucent.

I'm going to have to flex some muscle and get out some special equipment to condition the Kato clay. . .

A little of This and That

Premo is Doing What?
Polyform announced on their Facebook page some color changes that they are making to their Premo polymer clay. They are adding some new colors and discontinuing some others. Included in the colors being dropped are the primary colors zinc yellow and cobalt blue. And things are getting lively over their if you want to go look.

I'll probably be using more Kato Polyclay anyway. The new Hobby Lobby carries it, so it will be much easier for me to purchase without having to order it all the time.


Getting Ready for Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving approaches - I did a kitchen experiment today. I know, scary!  I tried out a vegan pumpkin pie recipe. What I ended up with was more like pumpkin pudding, but it tasted pretty good!  I can have a pumpkin dessert on Thanksgiving! YAY! I haven't had pumpkin pie in years (allergic to eggs; can't tolerate dairy anymore).



Featured Studio
Jewelz Creatives is the featured Studio for "Shops with Less than 10 Sales", one of the guilds I belong to on ArtFire.  She has some whimsical cat toys for the discriminating kitty!  These are all filled with her own organic catnip.  She also has squeaky dog toys (don't tell my dog, Rosie), grocery bag storage dispensers and other fun items in her studio.  Her catnip toys really make me smile! 

Squiggles the Zombie Kitten

Organic Catnip Toy Egg

Blue Snowflakes Christmas Stocking Catnip Toy

November Challenge

Each month Art Bead Scene has a challenge based on a specific piece of artwork.  This month's particular piece is Tree of life, Stoclet Frieze by Gustav Klimt.

I'm fairly pleased with how the pendant looks, and I'm thinking of making a couple more.  However, I'm a little stuck on putting it together.

I'll give it a bit of rest and look at it with fresh eyes in a couple of days.  Looking at some of the entries, I'm a little intimidated. But I can't let that stop me! I'll never get anywhere if I let that sort of thinking control me!


The other thing big on my mind right now is Thanksgiving - I've go a lot to do between now and then; cleaning (ick, yuck, bleck) and cooking.  So if I go a bit AWOL from my blog it's because of that.

Here is the menu for Thanksgiving:

Ham (for the non-vegetarians)

Stuffed acorn squash with molasses (with soy sausage)

Stuffed acorn squash with molasses (with rice)   

Wild rice with apricots, figs and walnuts (vegan)                   

Baked beans (vegan)             

Broccoli casserole (for the non-vegans)

Broccoli and mushrooms(vegan)

Mashed potatoes (regular)

Mashed potatoes (dairy free)

Bourbon sweet potatoes (vegan)

Stuffing

Cherry delight (for the non-vegans)

Vegan pumpkin pie

Champagne

Port

Triple berry liqueur

Lets see, there will be four of us, so I will be making food for about 20 people.

And I probably won't cook again until sometime next year. . .

Holiday Scavenger Hunt

The Polymer Clay Smooshers, One of the ArtFire guilds that I belong to is hosting a holiday scavenger hunt.  And we are giving away some cool prizes! 

See this cute little guy? All you have to do is find him in as many of the Smooshers' shops as you can. 

If you go to the Smooshers Blog you will see a list of Guild members.  Just click on the member names to go to their respective shops.  There are also more details on the blog.

Look at all the cool prizes there are to win!

Good luck and happy hunting!