That's a wrap.

See this face? This is a happy face. The week long sale is just beginning its final day and I gotta tell you, I'm pooped. I never dreamed it would be as successful as it has been. Man, you guys rock! It's been insane and knowing that I can function on about four hours of sleep is good info to have.


So, for Friday the sale is this: buy a Metalsgirl gift card in ANY amount and I'll double it. Yes, double it. Now you can get that ring you've been wanting or get a couple of impressive gift cards for holiday gifts. Whatever you want! It's good for anything on my website, custom, close out, anything. Happy Friday everyone!

work, work, work

This week has been all about work. So much work that I actually started to fall asleep sitting up just a few minutes ago. Glad I didn't have a torch in my hand. But it's been wonderful. So many orders and such nice notes from customers to go along with those orders. Sometimes I have to pinch myself - who gets to do what they love day in and day out? It's surreal some times.


So, Day three of sale extravaganza is in motion. This one is actually my favorite. It's not the biggest sale of the week, but it's far and away the most personal. Today is the one of a kind sale. 30% off of everything on that page. I love making jewelry, I love making all of it, but the one off items are just a tiny bit more fun. I give myself permission to go anywhere with it, any shape, any color, no color, resin, stones, mixes of chains and patinas and metals, no rules. Sometimes it results in something I love and adore and want to keep and sometimes it a big fat oops. But even the oops are okay because they give me insight into new do's and don'ts. So, here are a few of those pieces that resulted from a fun day of playin' on the playground, so to speak.

yep, it's day three!

It is day three of my sale-o-rama! ~buy ONE get ONE free Bangle Charm Bracelets~ Check it!!

hmmmm...

So, don't get me wrong, I adore what I do for a living. I love, love, love it and I am the luckiest girl in the world for getting to work at home creating things all day. But for some reason my blog posts about jewelry are dull, da, dull, dull, DULL. While my posts about my dogs are more, I think, vivid, passionate I guess. Not sure what I think about that. Not sure why my passion for what I do doesn't come through like my adoration for my dogs does. But I mean seriously, look at that face!! He kills me. He is laying on the arm of the couch as if he were a 12 pound cat instead of a 60 pound pit bull. I guess Pasqual just has such a large personality, as do most of our dogs, you just can't help but gush.

But, this moose bangle has loads of personality as well. Seriously, I think it's freakin' adorable. And I can say that because I didn't make the vintage moose charm, I just put it together with the little vintage pearl and the white resin and herb charm. But it's a pretty cute combo if I do say so myself. Per-SON-al-a-tee! Imagine if you were wearing it - people would say "oh, do you collect Moose's?" Is it moose's or just moose for the plural? Oh, anyway, they might think "She must be from Canada." My point being that it would evoke a reaction possibly, add to your already charming-I'm-sure personality.

My whole point of this post is getting dreadfully lost. Day two of the week of sales is already in full gear even though it is only three hours into day two (yes, it's 3am!). The sale of the day is Buy 2 close out items and get the 3rd FREE! Yes siree, Free! So hop on over, or lope on over as I think a moose would do, and check out the plethora of close out items. I am afraid that Mr. Moose here might be gone already. But if you have your heart set on Mr. Moose just shoot me an e-mail or leave me a comment and I can make one for you. But seriously, the sale has only been going for three hours and things are already fuh-lying out the door!

50% off earrings

Today: 50% off earrings. Tomorrow: well, you'll have to tune in to see. But it is five days of sales and five days of free shipping.

In these economic times I doubt jewelery is high on most people's priority list. But I have such loyal customers, such fantastic tried and true shoppers and they are still buying. So I thought I'd offer up a couple of deals to make the shopping a little easier. And it helps me too. Win win.

Oh, and if you're curious about the display props - those are pill bottles with song lyric prescriptions. When I was in college, about to graduate, everyone has to participate in a "senior show". Most of us spent the entire semester gearing up for this gallery show of our work. My work was a series of pill bottles. Anti-depressants to be specific. I etched a "prescription" into each bottle. They were really song lyrics. I cast sterling silver bottle tops and hung a medicine cabinet in the gallery. I was really proud of that piece.

I don't get to do much sculptural work these days, but it's pretty cool that I can use that last college product in my work today. very cool.

attachment issues

Don't you just love this hammer? Okay, so maybe you might not love it, but I absolutely adore it. I bought this hammer for my very first semester of beginning metals. That was, um, almost 15 years ago and this is still my favorite hammer. My dad had to use his favorite tool, duct tape, to reattach the head to the handle, but other than that it's perfectly perfect. I'm just a a girl in love with her hammer.

cute, but chunky...

I shouldn't say cute but chunky, I should say cute and chunky. Because one can be both. And that's our Horatio or Rayshee as he is affectionately and most often called.

The other day at pt (I've been going to physical therapy for about three months now, "Thank you Preacher" from lifting Preacher into the car)...so, the other day at pt my therapist said I should start walking 15min. a day three days a week. She tried to make it sound all fun "You can take one of the dogs" - imagine that in a high pitched "this will be so fun" sounding voice. Fact: I hate exercise. Fact: I hate the word hate and try hard not to say it. That's how much I hate exercise. I know, a 15min. walk is nothing, less than nothing. But it still sounds like finger nails on a chalk board to me. But I do want to get better so tonight Rayshee and I went for our first walk. It was hilarious. With every other dog we have they will pull, pull, pull, pull on the end of the leash until they are choking. We've trained them so well. But not Horatio. He walked right along side me for about half the walk and the rest - I was having to pull, pull, pull, pull him. We were a sight I am sure.
but he's cute!

flower power

I think I am a little earring obsessed lately. I've made like three new styles of earrings in the last week...maybe I need to consider a few other body parts like the poor neglected fingers, necks and wrists! But earrings are such a fun way to express yourself - a lot of us wear the same rings everyday, that special necklace...but earrings are so fun to change out every day depending on your mood. And the thing I love about these new little flower earrings - they could be just as easily worn by a 10 year old as a sixty year old. I made the mistake of saying they were for young girls and my friend Kathy said, and I quote, "Young girls my ass". So, there you have it - these babies are for ANY age!

and the winner is...

...well, you can see that I opted for this very official manner of selecting a winner...all of your names on a little piece of recycled paper, folded up, and ready for me to pick one out of the pile!
Here's a hint, the winner picked these earrings as their favorite! With out further to do, the winner is...
...emster! Thank you so much for your comment, all of your comments and your feedback. It seems it's pretty split down the middle on the earrings so I've decided to put BOTH pairs on my web site! Again, thanks for participating! You guys are the best!!

ps emster, can you give me your e-mail address so that I can get your address to ship these babies off to you asap? Thanks!

July 14th only!

Yep, just today, July 14th, these babies are buy one set of five get the second set free! You can choose from either brass or silver. According to my friend Ashley, the more the merrier - she wears 50!

eenie meenie minee mo

It's about time for another blog give away, don't you think?

This week in the midst of working to fill orders I played around with a couple of new earring styles. I am thinking that I'll just add one to my website...but which one? That's where you come in - I need some unbiased opinions. Can you give a girl a hand? I'll make it worth your while... Just leave me a comment on which style you prefer and why and next week, Wednesday the 14th to be specific, I'll draw a name from a hat and send the winner the pair you liked best.

Both pairs are sterling silver with sterling ear wires. So, whatcho think? Which one is the big seller!?!?!

OH, and don't forget to include your e-mail so that I can give you the good news!!

I made jam!

A couple of years ago Tom and I planted a tiny little peach tree in our front yard. I assumed it would take years to produce but this year, it's second year, we had peaches out the wa-zoo! It was so exciting!!! Maybe that makes me weird, but I was ridiculously excited about my home grown, literally grown at my home, peaches! And look at how gorgeous they were. First thing I did was just eat them straight off the tree. Next I made a peach pie for father's day - it was pretty fantastic if I do say so myself. It had an oatmeal, brown sugar, and almond crumble on top - yummy! Then we used them in a few fresh fruit smoothies. Then all of the sudden all of the peaches were ready at once. What can you do but make jam?
I've never made jam or any kind of preservative but my Nana made plum jelly every year and I just remember that it seemed very, umm, involved. But I love anything home made so I was pretty excited to make my own jam.
I found this recipe in my favorite cookbook (Better Homes and Gardens - I know, you'd think it would be Martha or something, but no, I really love this cook book. It has simple, real, home made food). Tom and I got all of the supplies out, did the prep work, boiling the jars and lids, pealing the peaches, etc. Let me tell you, making jam is no joke.


Tom started mushing everything up and I added some vanilla - the recipe didn't call for it, but I think just about everything is better if you add vanilla. I also cut about half the sugar - 5 cups just seemed like a real-lot.
The recipe said something about using a "canner" but what the hell, I don't have a canner - so we just boiled the jars in the dutch oven...surely that is what most people do, or do people have "canner" stashed in the way back of the cabinet for jam making?

We ended up with about a dozen jars of jam. It was a lot of work but a lot of fun too. Tom and I were pretty proud of our 12 little jars and decided we need to plant more fruit trees.