With Spring in Mind

We've had cloudy, rainy days for a while, but it's not been too cold and the sun is starting to come out more each day - it's pretty sunny right now. The tree out back thinks it's spring and has started putting out some blooms.

I've started to think about spring as well, and that's what inspired this knotted necklace. I'm using a rose quartz donut, rose quartz oblong nuggets and small round beads, jade beads, Swarovski bicone crystals and glass seed beads. The tassel is made with diamond cut sterling silver curb chain, jade leaves, Swarovski crystals with sterling ball end head pins and a little rose quartz flower.

Here's how it looks draped - it hangs at about the collarbone level on me. I still have some small tweaks to do, specifically, a couple of the jumprings on the tassel need to be closed up a bit.

The Non-creative Side of Business

Today I did paperwork. Got my sales and expenses spreadsheet all finished up from my saved receipts and other docs. Went to the online state sales tax site to see if I could do my taxes online, but it wouldn't accept my info. Will have to call the franchise tax board on Tuesday (Monday is a state holiday).

Then I went upstairs to read for a while and fell asleep and got up a couple hours ago. I worked on a couple of my pieces in progress - a knotted one with rhodonite and ecru Gudebrod FFF silk, and a jump ring chain and howlite necklace and a byzantine chain. I've moved back and forth as I felt like it on these for a while now. The byzantine chain in particular will take a while to finish. All of these reflect how much I like tiny stuff, which is why I put the quarter there. I usually prefer to work with 3 and 4mm beads, tiny bead caps, tiny jump rings. I have to wear a stronger pair of reading glasses for working with the tiny jump rings.

Tomorrow, It's Back to the "Real World"

Vacation has come to an end - I look back somewhat wistfully, but gratefully, on my time off. My children were home; Christmas, I think, did not disappoint anyone too much, and certainly not me as I had all I could want and more.

Getting back to the reality of the day job will be a bit challenging, as I have so immersed myself in those habits and luxuries one is able to when their time is all, and only, their own. Sleeping in and staying up late will not be possible for many months as I have used up all my vacation time and will need to let it accrue before I can take more than an hour here or there if necessary for appointments. It's at the end of a prolonged vacation, like this has been, that I wish I had been foresightful when younger, and saved up for an early 'retirement' and could dedicate these years after turning 50 exclusively to the creative and enjoyable things I love most.

A few things I had thought to accomplish during my time off, I did not rouse myself to do, so next weekend or the next few evenings, I will have to take time for them - there are deadlines that must be met for things like the final 2008 accounts for taxes. Other things are not so urgent, but still need to be done if I want to increase my chances of more success in 2009.

So, before I go to bed and truly end my vacation, I'll share the work I accomplished today - I'm really enjoying making knotted necklaces much more than I thought I would and finished three strands today and am nearly done with a fourth.

These three may be made into a triple strand necklace - haven't decided yet. All are crafted from Czech glass beads (except for the seed beads, and I have no idea where they were made, having long discarded the original containers) strung on black size FFF Gudebrod silk.

The next is made with black ceramic tubes, embellished with yellowish-ecru designs, found at Global Beads quite a while ago, round shell donut beads strung through the center with black Czech glass disks, two sizes of black druk beads and small black seed beads to keep the knots from slipping through the rather large holes. I used Create Compliments #2 nylon thread, doubled, as the stringing material, needing something thin enough to go through the holes in the shell donuts but strong enough to carry the weight of the ceramic beads without stretching - so I hope the label "Super Strength, No Stretch" lives up to its promise.

Good night, all. Here's hoping we have pleasant dreams and a trouble-free Monday!

Beading as a Form of Meditation, and a Diet Aid

One of the things I've noticed in the past couple years I've invested in my beading is that focusing on stringing beads, making loops, watching patterns emerge, and now, knotting beads together on silk thread, is very calming and perhaps a bit meditative - although as someone who has never practiced meditation, I can't be sure.

Sure, mistakes happen, but they don't have to be the ruin of a piece or even all that annoying to undo and fix. It's as if narrowing down the world to this bead, then the next bead, is a conduit for the release of everyday stresses into tiny, slow moving, streams of creativity. Sometimes I'll put on background music - instrumental, new-age-y Hearts of Space tunes, or Celtic ballads or even Zydeco (although that's pretty peppy if I'm learning something new, it tends to make me rush a bit). Amazing how the hours roll by, almost imperceptibly.

For example, today I continue making knotted strands, this one using 4 and 6 mm tiger-eye Czech druk glass beads, chestnut brown size FFF Gudebrod silk and 9x6mm Opaque Ivory w/ Half Picasso Roundelles with gold plated pewter bead caps and Gold Elegance gold plated 3mm round beads (link shows the 4mm size). (turns out all of the beads and the tiny bead caps in this are all from Artbeads, silk from Fire Mountain gems, large bead caps from Global Beads (Gold Elegance beads are from my local Michael's).

I lost myself in the process - trying little new adaptations to make it easier to get a good knot, thinking about what I want to do next, learning that about 30" (I should have measured) of string will only give me about 14" of finished beading plus a couple inches at the end for attaching the fastener (which I haven't decided how to do yet). I haven't mentioned my 'needle' for threading the beads. I just used a left over piece of bead stringing (.30mm) wire bent in half. I could have grabbed a needle, but this works just fine and if the silk thread slips off, there's less hassle re-threading than with a needle (with my eyes I have to use a threader, plus re-threading on a needle frays the cord).

I have taken some time out today to write this, and while I was looking up some of the items I used on the Artbeads site, I stopped to write a review of the gold plated pewter bead cap (which should be up in 72 hrs according to the site).

I also went out to do some shopping and picked up a new 'daylight' 23 watt flourescent bulb (same output as a 100 watt incandescent and allegedly uses 75% less energy and will last over 10k hours, also provides a brighter, more natural looking light). I had a 60 watt incandescent bulb in my desk lamp, this new bulb is an enormous improvement.

Another necessity was replenishing my Arizona Diet Green Tea supply. It's pretty much all I drink, and I drink a lot of it, so I buy 6 or 8 gallon jugs at a time. What I haven't done yet is stop for a meal - beading as a diet aid...