Books

Local friends who know how much trouble I'm having with inspiration have been sharing magazines, books, websites and giving me small treasures in the hopes something will click. I'm looking through some older Ornament magazines and finding some wonderful color combinations I would not have thought of and just getting jazzed up in general.

Two books have been especially wonderful...Robin Atkin's latest book(a gift from a friend), Heart to Hands Bead Embroidery, and one I just ordered (having seen a copy a friend owns) Diane Fitzgarald's, Shaped Beadwork. The last one really surprised me (and I owe a great thanks to my friend gail who shared it with me!) since I haven't done any bead weaving in at least 6 months, which is a real record for someone who started out doing nothing but the peyote, RAW, and herringbone stitches!

So now I'm planning some larger bead embroidery pieces and some small shaped pieces that might make earrings and bracelets for one or two of our local galleries.

I've got my fingers crossed...

Lizzy

A little bone lizard creeping toward some red coral flowers with a keishi pearl leaf...

Owl

What ifs and Sage

I was going through some bits and pieces of beadwork yesterday and found this face I'd beaded around and then set aside....I found some fabric that I'd cut up earlier and hadn't used for the basho piece last year and the face looked just right on it....I sure am enjoying couching down the yarn on some of the pieces...there's something so very satisfying in it.

I also found out that the closest place to buy (in person) the DMC cotton perle thread I'm using is portland...I can hardly believe it! We have towns of 50-100 thousand closer but none of them have a needlework shop that carries the perle cotton....lots of them carry the embroidery floss but that's not what I'm wanting....weird! So it looks like I'll have to order it online...I guess it's a viscious circle...the local shops don't carry stuff, so people buy it online and then the local shops go under and you have to buy it online.

Oh...and a photo of our jerusalem sage in bloom...we planted it last year but this year it's really taken hold!

Depression and Gratitude

A couple of days ago, Pam, of Of beads and other things, gave me an award and I've been trying to figure out how to respond ever since.
It's not that I'm not grateful for the award and I'm certainly grateful for every day I wake up and draw a breath, but these last few months have been more challenging than I've wanted to share here (not that you aren't all very supportive because I've had nothing but kindness and warmth from your comments) mainly because this blog is where I come when I'm feeling good enough to write or to post photos of the few small things I've been able to do and I did not want it to be where I talked about my metastatic cancer...BUT, the fact of the matter is that I'm in a daily battle with depression and what that means in my case is that getting anything creative done is like trying to run while standing in mud up to your armpits...it's a struggle.
So getting awards or passing on memes or writing about gratitude...or just writing at all is sometimes almost impossible and usually a fight I lose...and while I really want to honor the intention of the folks who pass these things on to me, I just cannot really participate in the spirit I'd like to...
I hope it's okay to say, thanks, but no thanks? I think anyone who has or has had depression will understand...I hope everyone else does too because this blog is my link to normality and I would miss you all so much if I offended you.

Tulips

I seem to be unable to come up with interesting names....maybe I should just start numbering them, lol!

June Blooms

Lots of june showers are bringing many june flowers...but I'm sure wishing for some sun!

Angel and Dragonfly

The dragonfly is made of pearls and wire...

And a third one...

Madonna...

Today's Tiny ATC

Love...

Tiny ATC-size piece...

I'm trying to do some small thing each morning to kind of get revved up to do bead embroidery...this is today's effort...Birds are Singing. The two abalone birds are sitting on a tiny piece of driftwood which holds their nest with three really tiny pearl "eggs".

June BJP

I've got the fabric and the hand for the june bjp but haven't started any beadwork yet....last month was about water...I feel this month will be about air....I'm feeling lighter and brighter the sunnier and warmer it gets...we're definitely moving into my favorite season.

And Done...

Since it's for may, I had to add a few vintage glass flowers and the three butterflies are the original three of us; myself, my husband and our son....

May BJP

I think I'm almost finished...this piece represents reaching for the water of life...hoping it will flow to/over/through me for a long time to come....

Of mice and....

I've been working on a couple of small pieces to send to my son and a tiny ultrasuede mouse for myself. I'm also working on a crocheted hair band but it's barely begun so I haven't taken a pic yet.
Yesterday was another sunny day and not quite such a cold wind, thank goodness....that gets old after a while and it is almost june! We drove down the coast a ways to Yachats, a funky little town south of us where they were having an arts and crafts fair inside and their weekly sunday market outside. Friends of ours were selling in both venues so we just went to visit but ended up buying a couple of things...some flowers for chuck and a hammered copper heart and porcelain bowl/crow candle holder combo that I just love...and it's so nice to buy a friend's work to cherish!
The small fiber collage is a "J" for my son and the bracelet is ultrasuede, as is the little yellow mouse.

You Say It's Your Birthday!

It's our son's birthday and of course, each birthday reminds us of his very first birth day, and what an incredible jolt of instant love hit us the second we saw him come into this world...and although he lives in another city a few hours away, every time we see him we get that same little jolt to our hearts that brings smiles to our faces....thank you, jaime, for all the joy you've brought into our lives...and a huge thanks to holly for sharing her life with him.
I tried to load the PDF card I made for him but apparently blogger doesn't accept PDF files so I'll just add the two phtos I put on the card....one from 36 years ago and one from this year...
Love you, kiddo....

Shell Basket

A small basket I crocheted with some multicolored ribbon yarn and filled with shells and small freshwater pearls...

Glorious Sun

Beautiful day yesterday and more to come so I find myself energized again...took a few photos and plan on doing some more and maybe, just maybe, a bit on my may bjp!
The photos are some of the small plants blooming on my sun porch and part of an old wooden statue that greets us as we come in.

Contemplation

I've been contemplating light and color and realizing that both put me in a state of contemplation.
And when I put them together in a piece, whether it's a piece of jewelry or a wall piece or a guardian spirit, each stitch becomes a tiny meditation and each finished piece my form of contemplation.
I have the same feeling when I'm by the water, whether it's a small stream or the ocean, and it brings great peace to my heart.
May the blessings of contemplation be yours this Mother's Day.

May BJP

I have the fabric and the hand ready for May...now to wait and see what comes up next.

Last weekend I made a little cuff out of ultrasuede and wool felt with some MOP buttons and rings and edged with triangle beads. I especially like the tube clasp, as I think it makes the whole piece look very simple.