they are DONE!

just a quickie-

The wind chimes are done!  You are probably all sick of hearing about them, but I guess because they are on a scale larger than I usually deal with I just can’t stop talking about them.  Anywhoo, here they are… they sound pretty good now, and I think they will not be my last set.  I made them for ECCOTA's 4th Annual Feed the Arts Soup Benefit on April 8th.  Click the link for details.  If you are near Elk County PA that day, I highly recommend this event.  $7 gets you in to taste 25 homemade soups, complimented by bread and desserts.  There will be a door prize awarded, and there is a silent auction featuring handmade items from area artists.  Go ahead!  Feed the Arts!

I also made this:

for a bride getting married on the first day of fishing season.  I hope the lures I used are not laughable, as I do not fish, and have no expertise in the fishing arena.  I hope she likes it, and if the lures are weird, I hope they at least make her smile, not cry.

Okay, that’s it for now- thanks for checking in!

Technorati Tags: wind chimes,fishing lure jewelry,ECCOTA,Feed the Arts

giving what’s owed….

My lovely girlfriend and fellow blogger Janis (hi Janis!) nudged me the other day while I was up on a tipsy soap box about blogging, that I probably was a little behind on my own posting. So here goes a quickie…

I offered to make something as a donation for an event my sister Abbi has something to do with (see ALL that helpful info I was able to provide- scary).  She asked what I had in mind- meaning thanks, but something other than jewelry please.  So I had this hare brained idea that I could make enameled copper wind chimes.  I even sketched my ideas!  That is huge for me- very little of my creative process involves sketching out my ideas.

 

So I dove in, and things were going swimmingly until I hit one of the pipes with the handle of my hammer to see what it would sound like.  Lets just say that when my two year nephew bangs on pots and pans it is acoustically more pleasant than these wind chimes were shaping up to be.  Luckily, I had only dry fit all the components together, and I had bought an extra length of copper pipe.  I googled making wind chimes, and just as I had hoped, I found a tutorial that had a chart that gave me the specific lengths of pipe for each note, also the spot where the holes for hanging needed to be drilled so as not to interfere with the sound waves- pretty intense. (I could have skipped this whole first step had I only googled first- that is not lost on me).  I skimmed the entire post, it was very involved, but it really made a 100% difference in the chimes.  I’m not saying they could be used in an orchestra, but they sound quite lovely now.  I have cut, drilled and enameled the new set of pipes.  Tomorrow morning I will set all the hanging mechanisms for the pipes, and once again dry fit all the pieces together.  I am in a bit of a time crunch now, as they are due to Abbi the first of April, but I will snap a few photos, to show my process.  I also need to pick up some type of wooden finial to use as the “striker”.  I am enjoying this process, but don’t think I will be adding these to my web store any time soon.  I don’t think anyone would be willing to pay for the time it takes to put these things together.  I will never again wonder at the price of beautiful sounding chimes (not that I ever thought the prices outrageous, I just now have personal experience with the why behind the price).

Work is crazy, of course, but we are down to the final 3 weeks of tax season, so the finish line is visible, but this final push is always a bit painful.  Tempers run short, but we also get a bit punch drunk as well so we vacillate between killing ourselves/each other/the clients and peeing ourselves when we do something silly.  So posts will continue to be sporadic until then.

Another announcement:  my sister Abbi and I will be testing the podcast waters.  We have been wanting to collaborate on something for a long time, and given we live four hours away from each other, this seems to be accessible for both of us.  We’ll see.  Maybe we just want an excuse for a scheduled phone call to each other.  We are also working on some jewelry component design ideas, but that is still a bit vague, so more details to follow.

So, this ended up being a bit longer than expected, but just as rambling as expected.

The moral of this story- be careful what you wish for.  Seriously though- thanks Janis for the gentle reminder. Sisters in blogging!

Technorati Tags: wind chimes,copper wind chimes,enameled copper,podcast

Where to begin?

So I am attempting to use a mobile blogging app, from which I won't be able to post any pictures. I had my doubrts about this, but typing using only my thumbs is actually going better than expected. I figured I can always add any pictures later- I had to get my thoughts down, they couldn't wait any longer.
So the last week of February was a doozy here on the east coast. I ended up with two snow days and a foot of snow. I made the most of those days off, which were quite a gift. These late winter months are generally a creative black hole for me. But two days at my bench, coupled with the excitement of a new medium to work with has gotten me through these usually creatively void days. I will also give some credit to a new part of my life, guided relaxation. I stumbled onto a free weekly podcast by Elizabeth Irvine that has had quite an impact upon me. When I told my husband I was trying this relaxation technique, he was puzzled. " you can sleep any time, any where, why do you need this". Why indeed, when he was right. I can sleep at the drop of a hat, napping being a treat I indulge in often on a lazy Sunday afternoon. Lately, I had been experiencing some chronic pain and stiffness in my neck and shoulders, making my sleep fitfull. I would rise in the morning achy and not feeling rested. I've found that since spending 15 minutes before bed using this very simple technique I wake up refreshed, with energy and zero stiffness or pain. I have been getting up early and allowing myself an hour of time at my jewelry bench before work almost every morning these past two weeks. You'll also probably roll you eyes at this, but I really think it also alleviated my usual PMS caused witchiness. I know,TMI. Anyway, I guess you can already tell that I highly recommend giving this a whirl. The price is right, and there's really no loss if it doesn't perform for you, the miracles I've just described.
Let's see, I have also entered the final year of my thirties, which is freaking me the eff out. Where did my thirties go? I remember watching "Thirty Something" and thinking "Christ, these people are old and whiny". So in honor of my 16 year old self, I have promised not to whine out my last year of my thirties. Instead, on the advice of my sage friend Janis, I will make it a terrific year. Thanks to all who so kindly thought of me and sent so may great wishes my way. I have more to say, but think I will save it for now.
I apologize in advance for what is going to be an even more poorly edited post than usual, given the fact that a 3 inch wide screen is near impossible for an old fogey like myself to read. Wow this is a weird post, but oh well, I am going to hit publish anyway thanks for checking in- oh, forgot to mention that my sister abbi and I have a new creative venture in the works for the near future. I'll let you all chew on that for a while- you may leave your guesses in the comments if you'd like. If anyone guesses correctly, I will send you a treat! There, that's fun, right? Worth slogging through this poorly edited mess? You can be the judge of that later!
Ciao for now!
Jen

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