I had all kinds of plans for posting this week, but it turns out that keeping a five year old calm on the couch is a harder job than I thought. Especially when there are three snow days that same week, and his older brother is home. Luckily I have Marigold helping out. She takes her job very seriously. I can't believe this little puppy is turning one years old this weekend.
This morning I got an email telling me that tomorrow's sale at the farmers market is canceled. I was disappointed, but only for a few minutes. I am glad to not be sitting at a show while the weather is too bad for shopping. Since my day was free, the boys and I headed to the park for some Portland sledding in the mud. Mitchel and I mainly watched, but he did get to go a couple of times.The boys are out of school for the next two weeks, and the holidays are officially underway at our house. We walked peacock lane tonight. A Portland first for us, but so sweet, I'm sure we will go again next year. I'm signing off here until the new year,but wanted to wish everyone a Happy, Happy Holidays, from "snowy" Portland.

Wonderland

Yesterday morning this is what we woke up to.

The kids were thrilled. I was not. There was not a lot of accumulation, just enough to bring the city to a halt. I got ready to go to Crafty Wonderland and packed a few magazines thinking that for sure no one was going to be shopping. I was wrong. People came out and braved the cold wind and ice. There were slow points throughout the day, but considering the weather it was a great turnout. I finished my shopping and traded for a couple things that I will show when I get a chance.
This morning we were out in the snow again. Not for school, it was canceled.
This guy had a little surgery. All is well and we are home now. We'll be hanging out in this spot for a couple days. If you look closely under the blanket, you can see where Marigold plans to spend her next few days.

This weekend

Keeping my fingers crossed that the snowstorm everyone is talking about doesn't actually hit!

I had my doubts last week, but I made it to all three shows despite being a single mom again and the urgent care trips. Thankfully Matt is home now and will be for a while. The shows were slower than I would have hoped, but the good news is, that makes getting ready for next weekend so much easier.

I was able to do some shopping at the Da Vinci show and bought this princess kitty made out of a recycled cashmere sweater for my neice (I thought it was safe to show since she is only one). I haven't been lucky enough to shop for girls much, and I think this is the first kid present that I actually wanted to keep. I wanted to share the artists name or company name, but didn't get the chance to meet her. If I come across her name I will be sure to post it.

We are working on getting all of our packages and cards ready to be sent. As you can see, I have a helper who takes his job very seriously. We're hoping the lines at the post office won't be too long.

Another picture, just because. This is Marigold's current favorite sleeping spot. I've never seen a dog that you had to keep out of a fireplace. I think she would climb in the fireplace if we would let her.

I've got a busy busy weekend coming up, but today is a grouting day.
I'm having so much fun with these mosaics. They are quick and I've been able to use some of the scrap glass that I've been saving for so long.  

These along with my other pieces will be for sale this weekend @

Davinci Art Fair 

2508 NE Everett

Saturday 12-6 and Sunday 10-4

Camp Cactus

NE Brazee @45th Ave

Friday 6-9, Sat and Sun 10-6

Sellwood/Westmoreland Art & Craft Sale

6826 SE 17th Ave

Saturday 1-6 and Sunday 1-3
(The yellow house with the blue door, half a block from Bybee)

 

So I've realized that the weekly project posting has faded.  All the projects I've been doing are either gifts that I can't post about or are just too boring to post.  Really who wants to read about my laundary, cleaning, and grocery shopping.
I thought instead I would show a few pictures from our trip to a very sweet tree farm this weekend.  It was a great Pacific Northwest weather day.  After a lot of searching we found the perfect tree.  Hauled it home and decorated it.
I have another post that I want to share later this week about the ornaments. 

Until then, I wanted to let everyone know that I am offering some free gifts and free shipping on select items in my shop this week.  Check it out here. 

Happy Thanksgiving

I taught a fun mosaic class at the DIY Lounge last night, and had one of those "small world" moments. One of the students recently moved here from Wyoming. Earlier this year she was visiting Portland and bought the bag I made for SCRAP. It always surprises me what a small town Portland feels like.
With last weeks list gladly finished and behind me, this weeks project is a big family dinner tomorrow.I'll be back soon, hopefully with some new things to share. Until then, enjoy your holiday!

Making Progress

I finished and delivered this yesterday!!! I'm not sure that I've ever been so glad to be done with something before. Hopefully I can get a good picture of it hanging on the next sunny day, but this is Oregon, so these will have to do for now.

As the holidays get closer, my to-do list is getting longer. I'm crossing projects off but am finding it harder to post the pictures, as most of the things I've been crossing off are gift related. One huge thing that I was able to cross of was getting my Etsy shop updated. I now officially have more items in the shop than I have ever had. It takes me forever to list things, but I am getting better. If you check it out, I would love to hear what you think.
This week is filled with basketball practices, conferences, a stone soup potluck, me starting the last year before I turn 35, getting ready for company, and more basketball. Next week family comes and the kids are out of school, so I'm trying to make this one count. I decided to post a little of my list, hoping that will make me get it done.
This week I need to........
--make bread for tomorrow's potluck (already started our favorite recipe)
--finish quilt (a big one, but I will feel so much better when it is done)
-- make shooter magnets
--go through my chinook book and figure out what I can still use
--make glass garland for show display
--get all the Wisconsin gifts wrapped and ready to be sent back
--Mosaic, mosaic, mosaic.....
I'm tempted to keep listing, but trying to be realistic. If I get all this done, I will be thrilled!!

Saturday

If you would like me to mail you a coupon, drop me a line, and I will get it out to you. If you are in Portland, and have a Chinook book, you can use the 20% off coupon in your book until the end of the month. Hope to see you there....

The project of the week this week is all about mosaic. Here are a few of the finished ones taken before the weekend's shows. All of these were made from scrap glass and wood salvaged from that same house where we collected wood for our garden beds. They seemed to be a hit at both shows, and a really fun change for me. This week, I have a bunch more in progress to finish and a couple of gifts as well.
This project of the week idea has been working out great for pacing myself before the holiday rush. I just accepted a couple more holiday shows today and found out Matt is going to have to go on another long trip before Christmas. There is never a dull moment around here......

Both the Lewis and Crafty Wonderland sales this weekend were great. I had good sales and did lots of trading-- my favorite. I tried out a new display, which worked well. I found the cabinet doors at the rebuilding center with the hinges on them. I attached them and had an instant standing display.

I don't have a big project to post this week. I've been a single mom for the past couple weeks, and now that Matt is home, I'm playing catch up. I have so many things started, that need to be finished ASAP. Right now I'm all about organizing and craft show prep.
Saturday I will be here

and Sunday you can find me here
and, if all goes well, I'll be back here soon with an etsy shop update. Until then I'll be glued to the election. Keeping my fingers crossed.

Meet Grace. She is the youngest kiddo of some of our very best friends. Isn't she the cutest?! Her Grandma Lulu makes the sweetest sweaters for kids. She just opened an etsy shop this week, and I wanted to share the link. I am the owner of two of these sweaters, and can tell you that not only are they cute, but they have lasted through constant wearing by both boys. Check them out here!

Project of the week

The project this week was a quick small quilt for a new neighbor baby. The Fabric was recycled from another neighbor, and super cute. It gave me a chance to try out my new sewing machine foot. The red fabric was really soft, but the hardest stuff I have ever sewn.
I also started way too many new projects. Hopefully this week I'll have a few finished to post....

Score!

Look what I found at the thrift store yesterday. There are 52 of the most colorful shooter marbles I've ever seen. Some are a little dinged up but I don't mind.
I'm off to make magnets.

Last week I sold some of thumbtacks on Etsy, and realized I was out of bubble mailers. I usually save any that come in the mail to reuse , or grab them from a neighbor who seems to always have a supply coming in. I googled how to make my own and found a bunch of tutorials. I decided to combine a few and came up with this. It's made from a paper grocery bag and ran through the sewing machine. I wrapped the thumbtacks in bubble wrap instead of lining the envelope, so I was able to use the scraps I had. I'm so excited about these, they are so easy. Now I've got a pile on my table ready for the next order.

five

My project of the week this week was a campfire birthday party for Mitchel. As far as parties for boys turning five goes, I think this one turned out great. It was short and sweet, only an hour and a half, after dinner. We invited people who could walk or ride bikes, had a campfire, campfire songs, sparklers, glow sticks, and alot of boys playing tag in the dark. My favorite part, instead of a cake, we had a smores buffet. If you would like to see a couple of great pictures of the evening, check these out. This one is my favorite. Thanks for bringing your camera Melissa.
Last week I was "tagged" by my friend Leah. I was supposed to tell seven things about myself, since I decided to combine posts and wanted to keep a common theme... here are five.

1. I did not plan to be a stay at home mom. Things changed. I think it is the best/hardest thing I have ever done. Before I had Mason, I was signed up to begin a Master's of Education program. I was all ready to go and had him signed up for daycare and everything.

2. I am a cancer survivor. Adenoid Cystic Carcinoma. This halloween marks 8 years since I finished radiation treatments, and have been cancer free.

3. When I first decided to start my own business, I was making soap. I made wire and bead dragonflies to decorate my booth at a craft sale and people were much more interested in them than the soap. My wire and glass work grew from there.

4. I'm a nail bitter. I wish I wasn't!

5. I've had long hair as long as I can remember. I've thought about cutting it many times but always chicken out. It used to be bigger. I forgot how big until I recently found a picture of me with two college roommates on spring break.


According to the rules, I am supposed to tag more people. Since I'm already breaking them, I'm going to break that one too. If you've read all this and want to play along, let me know. Here are the rules;
1. Link to your tagger and list these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, interesting, random, or weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blogs.
4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs.

I taught another mosaic class last night at the DIY Lounge. It's so fun seeing how everyone starts out with the same materials and comes up with such different ideas. If you are interested in signing up for classes check out the link above. If you didn't see the piece about the DIY Lounge on last week's Oregon Art Beat you can see it here.

Girly Headbands

Here is a quick pic of this week's project of the week. Headbands. They are gifts, so I didn't want to show too much. I found the free tutorial here, and am excited that we finally have girls in the family to make things for. I'm already late posting these, but really they were done, just postponed by the computer issues I was having. Matt completely reloaded everything. Now it feels like a new computer. I can't believe I let it go for so long. The other project that got finished around here....both raised beds finished and planted with garlic, broccoli, cabbage and lettuce. It is so strange to me to be putting things in this time of year. I'm excited to see how it works.

Project of the week

Last week, Lea brought it to my attention how quickly the holidays are coming. She started posting a project of the week on her blog on Mondays. If I can keep myself organized enough, I will be joining her by posting one here on Mondays too. Because we have a bunch of birthdays before the holidays, we decided to make cards this week. Mason was introduced to collage and artist trading cards at school, so we went with it. I don't have pictures of the finished products. I was scrambling to make it to the post office before they closed and forgot to snap some, but here you can see the in process shots.
Next week, I hope to have a more exciting project, and will take pictures. Thanks again Lea, for the great idea, and helping me keep organized for the crazy times ahead.

The Sampler

The Pdx indie city sampler is available for purchase starting today. There are only a limited number available, and they look awesome. Check them out here.

It's coming

We cleared out our plot at the community garden this weekend, and were able to bring home a ton. The kids were really in to "harvesting the apples" and climbed to the tops of the trees at the garden to get the best ones. I barely left the kitchen Sunday, and the freezer shows it. We have applesauce, apple butter, and pies, and there are enough green beans and tomato sauce to last us until next summer. I don't know who was the most excited about these pumpkins, probably me. The kids kept saying they couldn't believe we could grow something so cool.
On another note, people have been signing up for my classes, which is great. So if you are one of the people who have asked about classes....... the next mosaic and soldering classes at the DIY lounge are running for sure and there are more spaces. Check out the links if you are interested in the details.

Since it sounds like fall will be here later this week, we'll outside, be trying to soak up every last drop of sun while we can. Have a good one..........

New Stuff

After our Florida trip, a sand scratched lens started me on a search for a new camera. I went back and forth for a while, and finally decided on a Canon Digital Rebel. I am so happy with it, but am a little lost on actually using it. I have a stack of books from the library, and am slowly figuring it out. That necklace? I've meant to post about it sooner. I bought it at the farmers market show from Judy at Curly Girl Glass. It's my new favorite, I never take it off.
Yesterday, I dropped off this custom spoon mirror at Bowl of Thistles, a new shop in Sellwood. It is made with a big serving spoon, and they plan to use it as a display piece. I liked it so much that I am thinking of making more. The grand opening is next week, you can find my suncatchers, spoons, and garden balls there. I'll post the store details when I have them.

The last new thing, this treasury. Check it out!

Our good friends' new home was part of Portland's build it green tour this past weekend, so I had the opportunity to do a little free (shameless) promotion.

Every room had either a marble ball or glass ball. We covered the living room wall with spoon mirrors.
We even put a bowling ball next to the info booth. Can you see it back there?