Cows And Chickens Of MIL

We were at MIL's yesterday afternoon and I managed to take a few shots of her chickens and cows. She had 50+ chickens orginally but I think they're just 40+ now as some of the baby chicks didn't make it plus coons got some of them. She get so much eggs everyday... needless to say, we've been having fresh farms eggs for months.

DH started to pick up some empty shells this week and he got me 7 pieces so far. Hopefully, the cold weather will be over soon so I can start picking them up myself! Planning to add daggers or bicones with these.

Beady-wise, here's a simple pair of earrings with howlite turquoise, hematite & repurposed faceted glass beads.

Enjoy your weekend all!

Fire Mountain Gems Notable Artist Feature

Doing the happy dance! I got an email from FMG that my jewelry making story will be featured at their Facebook page today. If you want the full scoop, you can go directly at the Notable Artists section of FMG site. Thank you so much Diann for letting me know and FMG for making my day!

Surprises! Surprises!

It looks like 2011 is my lucky year for give-away winnings! Last month, I won beading stash from Sweden (don't forget to check out her blog as she's having another give-away)... and this month, a yummy coffee from a fellow EtsyNEAT member who had a "The Land Of A Thousand Hills" coffee give-away on her blog. I got the coffee in the mail today and couldn't wait 'til morning to try it - now enjoying a cuppa as I write this post. Thanks so much to Gwyn & Ava for your generosity.

And this goodies came as a total surprise from my dear friend Jodi of WI. She's one of those people who loves sending surprises and I'm such a lucky recipient of her generosity! These are soe of the goodies she sent me recently - she also gave me a GC from her fave etsy shop, which I used right away and now waiting for the stash! Thank you so much for your sweet gestures and making my day Jodi!

A sterling silver & freshwater pearls necklace

that became a fave instantly!

Have a great night all!

Rings & Things Blog Partner

I've been contemplating for a while about this and I finally caved in last week. Just a few minutes ago, I got the confirmation from Dave that I'm in! Woohoo!

Rings & Things got a lot of yummy goodies and their new chains are to die for - come check them out! Simply click on the logo to go to their site. They also have a Facebook fan page and Twitter you can follow so you won't miss their new product announcement.

*** Shop at Rings & Things ***

*** R&T's Facebook ***

*** R&T's Twitter ***

A Package From Helena Of Sweden

A fabulous package arrived in the mail today... all the way from Sweden! Helena had a blog giveaway last month and I was the lucky winner - my first win for such ever! She sent more than what I expected, and I'm so excited to try everything. Thank so much for the yummy goodies, but most of all to your generosity Helena.

The goodies were packed well!

Ta daaaaa... the yummy goodies!

All mark - so organized!

While on the topic of new stash, I thought I'll share some of the goodies I grabbed from my craft escapade with MIL & a family friend on January 28th. Would you believe that I never purchased swarovski pearls before? LOL I wanna purchase some sterling silver findings first befor I'll use them - they're still intact 'til now. I had to indulged myself with seedies (24? tubes) as I'm running low with them - I'm so bummed though that they're not on sale at HL. I got an assortment of goodies from all the 4 stores we visited:

@ Hancocks - hand dyed embroidery threads, suede fabric, beading threads, a bunch of sequins (for my bead embroidery, particularly BJP pieces), and assorted beads.

@ Big Lots - spring theme beads, a quilting book, and metal pendants.

@ Hobby Lobby - an assortment of czech seedies, swarovski pearls, cabochons, and jasper focals.

@ JoAnns - czech seedies, acrylic flower beads, display stands for bracelets & necklace/earring, quilting goodies & wooden birdhouses (to paint) for MIL's birthday.

Last Saturday (February 5th) , I got a call from SIL early morning and asked if I wanna go with her & MIL at the Fairgrounds' Flea Market - my answer was YES of course! By 7:30Am, we're on our way to Des Moines already. Despite the cold weather & crowd, the market was full of people of all ages - from babies to oldies with canes! I can attest though that everybody had a good time. I had to grabbed a bunch of vintage stuffs (i.e. old jewelries), bead assortment, embroidery threads, a couple of old embroidery books, some (new) nail polish that I'm planning to use on sealing my beading threads, and cards.

The necklace below is a 2-strand crinkled faux pearls with damaged clasp which I had to tear apart right away when I got home - and for some lucky reason, I found a rivoli in my stash that fits perfectly in the clasp (see lower right in the photo).

I had to have these earrings when I saw them... planning to use them as focals on my next embroidery creations.

We try to do some escapade despite the snowy weather here in IA, otherwise, we'll suffer from cabin fever! So do the same and have a good time! Happy beading all!

A Day At The Spa

I had a long day today with SIL and MIL... Many thanks to Mom for the massage treat! By 7:30 AM, we're on our way to Des Moines already and got to Massage Heights before 9:00 AM. It was such a great treat and I'm literally sleepy afterwards. Everybody should have such experience once in a while - or better yet, on a regular basis. Here's the room assigned to me, took a few shots after the massage.

Beady-wise, here's another ring kinda similar in my previous post. This will be for SIL, but may not be able to give it to her 'til our next domino game.

Remember to pamper yourself once in a while - you deserve it, a rejuvenating massage is perfect. This was something I missed in the past when I was in the midst of a very busy and stressful job... the construction industry! Happy beading all!

Earrings For A Blue Lover

These earrings are for a family friend who I think loves anything blue! I used howlite turquoise, garnet delicas and amethyst iris seedies for the beaded beads. She's a french hook wires kind of girl and am glad she doesn't ave allergies on any metals. They will come with a matching ring that is still in the making process. Hope to give them to her on or before Valentines Day.

Got a call yesterday morning from SIL, asking if I wanna go in Des Moines with her & MIL on Saturday for a lil shopping spree... this time, it's for MIL's upcoming birthday! We already know what Mom wants, and might as well take her to the shops where she can choose her gifts personally - a stand mixer (we're eyeing a big kitchenaid mixer with all the bells & whistles) and a pasta maker/machine. To complete our day, SIL also scheduled a spa massage somewhere in the city - now, that' a real treat... don't you think?

Life is too short, and before you know it, it's gone... so enjoy it to the fullest everybody!

Wood Jasper Earrings

Can you tell by now that I really love working with brown? I love these wood jaspers and I look forward to using more of them in my next creations.

Got a call early morning yesterday from SIL asking if I wanted to go thrift shopping with her and MIL... I said YES of course! Before 11AM, 3 of us are already on the road on the way to Waukee. We all got some goodies there, then we headed to Urbandale - where I got most of my goodies... our last destination was Ankeny and we all went out carrying bags - you don't expect us to leave the store empty handed, right? We then headed to a nearby Subway for a late lunch - by the time we're done, it's past 3:30PM already. We all had a tiring but fruitful day and I would love to do it again when we have the chance! One thing I regret though, wish I purchased the lazy susan spice rack (for about $10) at Waukee that I could use as findings organizer. Oh well, I'll just have to try to visit our local Goodwill!

We're suffering from a nasty weather again today... here comes icy roads! Enjoy beading all!

All White Outside

It snowed pretty bad last night which made DH to leave an hour early fo work. Here's what our lawn look like this morning:

1. Our car is covered with snow, but glad that it's not that much compare to other states where they have to dig their cars.
2. I tried to stepped out of the porch... that's my left foot!
3. The driveway is invisible.
4. The front lawn!

And here's another pair of earrings with garnet rounds, black pearls and garnet seedies!

I can see myself drinking heaps of coffee and cocoa today... but will try to finish my first BJP piece as well. Keep warm and enjoy beading everybody!

Birthday Goodies

SIL gave me a boxful of beady goodies, gift card from K-Mart/Sears, and jeans...

DH handed some of his gifts on my birthday but he hid a box really well as I didn't able to see it since yesterday, at the gathering. I had been giving him the hint that beady stash is always a good deal for me. LOL

MIL must have read my mind that I've wanted a portable drive. DH got me an external drive for christmas so I didn't include the portable in my bday list anymore. Anyway, I can see this drive going to places as it's a great travelling companion.

And here's my beady accomplishment for today! A simple bracelet with beaded beads as focals... more bracelets in the near future.
Stay warm all... enjoy beading as usual!

Yummy Seedies From Cat

Though Cat advised me that she'll gonna send some seedies, I didn't realize she'll spoil me too much. So imagine how big my smile was when I opened the package yesterday. Thank you soooooo much for your generosity Cat. I am truly blessed with wonderful friends from the stitching & beading virtual communities! Click here to Cat's blog... while you're there, don't forget to visit her etsy shop as it's filled with OOAK creations.

I had to use one of the seedies right away and made beaded beads with them - as focals for this bracelet which will be given as birthday gift to a dear great aunt. Have fun beading all!

Happy Birthday To Me

I can't believe I'm another year older again today! Seems like it's just yesterday when I fixed my age on a certain number. LOL DH came home with a can of mocha cappuccino powder (I love to mix this with coffee) and this card - inside is an ebay GC as he knows there are so much goodies I wanna purchase from there. While having our breakfast, he told me that we'll have a lunch out on any restaurant I'll pick - but with the weather and all, I decided to just prepare lunch myself. LOL We'll gonna have my birthday party at SIL's house this weekend - with turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, rools, pies, cake, ice cream, etc. Another tradition that my in-laws have for many years is, the birthday celebrant can choose all the food he/she wanna eat on his/her birthday... the celebrant won't prepare anything, other members of the family will. How cool is that?

And here's another pair of earrings as after christmas gift for SIL. I'm making some more and I'm planning to give them to her this weekend, along with my extra jewelry gifts for other members of the family... so I won't be the only one who'll gonna open presents.

Stay warm everybody... and happy beading!

WELCOME 1-1-11

HAPPY NEW YEAR ALL!

Me and DH tried to stay awake 'til midnight to welcome 2011! We don't celebrate New Year here as much as we do back home, so when the countdown's done, we went to sleep right away. In my (Philippines) family, we treat New Year similar to Thanksgiving, though we have our big feast at midnight of January 1st... Moreso, we attend the family reunion on my father side in the morning, then my mother side in the afternoon. Something that I know I'll miss for many years.

Beady-wise, what better way to start the year than beading? This necklace will be an "after christmas" gift for MIL - whom I love to pamper with my jewelries as she loves wearing them. It has two removable pendants which can be used individually or altogether. Focal on one pendant is a beaded bead while the other has a gold-tone filigree heart with brown & clear crystals. The said heart pendant has been sitting in my stash forever... so glad I finally able to put it into good use.

Hope you're all enjoying this momentous day!

Goodbye 2010, Hello 2011

The weather has been nasty since this morning, and I don't think tomorrow would be better... me and DH managed to give MIL a visit this morning to give her books & a couple of country DVD movies but we had to leave early before the roads turn icy. In return, MIL gave us a big box of assorted snack goodies which was given to her.

Anyway, I wanna end my last 2010 post with a big thank you to all the wonderful people I run across this year - specially the BD peeps! It has been a year since I joined BD, and since then, you all inspired me to get out of my comfort zone. I can't thank you enough with your wirework help! I'm pretty sure I won't learn that technique if not with your encouragement. Thank you so much to all my marks all year round, on SSE's by Inca, Bracelet Swaps by Lois, Necklace Swaps by Lina, Challenge Swaps by Jeni, and various challenges by other members. I did enjoy them all and I look forward to doing them again next year - if I'll have time. And to all of you great ladies who are behind these books, THANK YOU SO MUCH for filling in some space in my beading bookshelves - you know who you are!

I wanna welcome 2011 with an open heart... that I'll be able to do the major goals I failed for 2010. Some of which are lose some weight, extra focus on embroidery, improve my teaching portfolio, finish as much models, learn wireweaving and metal stamping... and lastly, I will do my best to finish all my BJP pieces for 2011. I'm having second thought on what shape to use but I'm leaning towards odd-shapes with free-style designs.

From our humble home to yours... me and DH wish you all a Happy & Prosperous New Year!

Christmas Gifts

It has been a family tradition with my in-laws to prepare a christmas gift list that we can share to everybody months before christmas. My list this year is mostly beading books as I don't have much of them - just started collecting more of them this year. I didn't expect to get all the stuffs I listed but oh boy, my in-laws plu DH pampered me. I just told DH the other day that I must have been really good this year coz Santa granted my wishes. So, to shorten my post, I'll try to focus on beady related stuffs!

This book (1000 Jewelry Inspirations) was not in my original list, but when we had a shopping spree in the city, we dropped by at Barnes & Nobles - I had to grab it so MIL included it in my gift list. As my way of thanks to her, I grabbed all the books she picked (plus a Yoga DVD) and I included them in her list.

These are the stamping tools I picked at HF, also from the same trip above. Though I knew I'll get these, my excitement never ceased. I've always wanted these since early this year but I knew christmas is the best time to have them.:) These are just some of her gifts to me. She also got me beading and embroidery magazines subscriptions, plus some $$$ for after christmas shopping. Thanks to MIL for granting my wishes!I've been enjoying some of SIL's gifts since October - 5 tickets for musical shows in the Civic Center (done watching 9 to 5 and Mary Poppins). She also got me a couple of jackets from Younkers (both brown - leather & curdoroy), a pair of jeans from Cold Water Creek, $50 ebay GC, and these books: The Art Of Beadwork by Valerie Hector, The Art Of Beaded Beads by Jean Campbell, The Art & Elegance Of Beadweaving by Carol Wilcox-Wells, Beading On Fabric by Jean Van-Horn, Zulu Inspired Beadwork and Shaped Beadwork by Diane Fitzgerald. I've always wanted to have these books... and since my birthday is in the first week of January, I thought I won't have them 'til then. So imagine my surprise when I open the big box of books! Thanks to SIL for her generosity.

The Santa in my household let me open the box on the 24th... remember this post? Anyway, the content of the said box are as follows: nylon threads, beading wires, beads, and adress labels. DH always knows what I want. LOL One day, he went to Hobby Lobby without my knowledge and got me & MIL some GC from there. He must have hid the cards really well coz I didn't saw them 'til it was time to open presents. He also got me a bunch of antique & vintage jewelries, and a 1.5TB external hard drive that I picked myself on Black Friday.

The weather tomorrow will be super nasty so me & DH decided to dink around in town today. I lost count how many stores we went to... but we managed to grab some shirts on sale at JCPenney and when I saw these pair of earrings, I knew they're perfect for MIL - I had to grabbed them as well of course, moreso, they're on sale. I'm planning to put some beadworks with them to match my Margie And Me entry as they'll gonna be after christmas gifts.

I got a GC from Walmart so we had to dropped by there too - where I got some bronze findings (eyepins, headpins, earwires and toggles)... then DH found a couple of books on sale for MIL - another after christmas gifts.

We also dropped by at K-Mart where I got some hair accessories for my nieces & me, Hyvee where we got some bargain groceries & chocs for DH, Dollar Store where I got a great assortment of glass mosaics to be used as cabs... and our last destination was KFC - Can you tell we were worn out to cook? LOL And this metal puncher was waiting in the mailbox when we got home. It has been in my list for a while so i got it for myself. I gotta say that most of what I earn this year from my embroidery business went to purchasing jewelry making stuffs - so hopefully, I can justify the expenses next year by creating more jewelries!

Charity wise - I thought we missed sending our yearly donation to the (American-Indian) Lakota Tribe in South Dakota but DH said he did it last month, just forgot to mention. For some reason, I love this tribe... I feel like I have a connection with them. I didn't do as much charity works as MIL this year, but then she's the most giving person I know. On our way back from our shopping spree, SIL mentioned how she delivered a truck load of clothings and toys at a non-profit organization in the city and some girls "christmas wishes" were yarns and knitting needles. MIL immediately asked SIL how much she has to pack as she has boxes and boxes of yarn in the basement. SIL also shared that when they were opening the letters of kids from the NPO she's donating goodies (she's not working there, just trying to help out and grant kids wishes), some would request for socks only... and there she was expecting jeans, jackets, etc. It's just so heartbreaking to hear stories like that.

Anyway, it would be great if we could be a good samaritan once in a while... or better yet, all year round! It has always been my motto in life that "THE MORE YOU GIVE, THE MORE YOU RECEIVE". Giving doesn't have to be in kind... there could be homeless kids or old people nearby that you can help by doing some volunteer works.

As a breadwinner back home, I seldom (as in super seldom... LOL) get gifts in kind coz I'm the one buying gifts... not to mention, I have 30+ godchildren to buy gifts too. To me, it's more than enough to see them smile when they open their gifts - kids and olds have always a special spot in my heart. I always feel they are the ones who needs extra attention and needs pampering.

Have A Prosperous New Year All!

Merry Christmas Everybody

I hope everybody's spending quality time with family and friends. As for us, we'll have our family gathering at SIL's house at brunch. Our food theme this year is appetizer buffet and I'm in-charge on bacon-wrapped lil smokies.

Beady-wise, I'll gonna do the draw later where participants are from the BD swaps and challenges I joined this year. To-date, I have 283 entries in the jar! Winner will be announced tomorrow, so stay tuned!

From our humble home to yours... Happy Holidays!

Christmas Gift Earrings For SIL

Per colors requested by SIL. I'm still making some simple rings... will share photos of them later!

Still busy doing last minute gifts here... Happy Holidays all!

Ebay Disappointments And Frustrations

I've been having so much frustrations with my ebay purchases lately, both from US & foreign sellers. First scenario, photos below is one of the packages that should contain beadcaps - as you can see, the package was damaged during transit... and came to me empty. But the good thing is, I told the seller about it and got my money back.

Second scenario... I purchased a book lot which includes "Beading With Peyote by Vicki Starr". After winning the auction, the seller (from US) told me he made a mistake and the said book won't be included. I was given the option to choose on his other books so that was ok... though I really wanted Vicki's book and was the main reason I placed a bid.

Third and worst scenario... I won 2 Bead Trends magazines & a (back issues) magazine lot from the same seller (US) - I paid for all the magazines at the same time, with a combined invoice. After 2 weeks, I recieved the package without the Bead Trends. I immediately contacted the seller to let her know about the situation... I didn't get an answer 'til after the 3rd ebay email when I mentioned I will report her to ebay Customer Service. She insisted that she mailed all the magazines in one package and that she got the delivery confirmation. I had to open a case through ebay but I didn't get my money back as ebay believed that all the magazines were delivered due to the delivery confirmation the seller provided - where in fact, the seller claimed the delivery confirmation is for both Bead TYrends & the other magazine lots, but obviously, she only mailed the magazine lot without the Bead Trends. I can't understand why people of those kind exist. Needless to say, I left the seller a negative feedback... which I really hate coz in my 6 years of using ebay, that was the first negative feedback I ever left.

Oh well...

A Typical Winter Day

DH went out deer hunting with his buddies last Friday, so I had to get the mail. I always throw a joke on him when I go to the mailbox during winter... to make sure look for me if I'm not back after 45 years. LOL

The driveway!

The road infront of our house!

The side lawn which I prefer to take... it is a long walk!

Keep warm all!