Bead Soup is Here

It is Bead Soup time again. I am thrilled that life is allowing me to be participating this time around. Life is good.

I am partners with Laurie from Tree of Life - rooted in my soul. Now if you have been following me and my work in anyway you will surely agree that this partnership is a perfect pairing because of my LOVE for creating trees of life!!!

Tree of Life in my Etsy shop

I am looking forward to this Bead Soup adventure. If you would like to follow additional Bead Soup adventurers please visit our gracious hostess, Lori Anderson at her blog Pretty Things.

Here are a few links to 2011 Bead Soup:

Sneak Peak

What I Rec'd 

The Big Reveal 

What I Sent

Fabric Folies

I can't put my finger on the reason why but as the season changes to Fall I find myself inspired to work with fabric. Perhaps this harkens back to my quilting days. I do have quite a stash of fabric still hanging around from those days. It comes in handy when the inspiration to make something of fabric strikes.

I came across a DIY tutorial, somewhere on the web, for a cup cozy. You have seen them. Almost any time you purchase a hot cup of java, tea or hot cocoa when you are out and about, you can get a sleeve to go over your cup to protect yourself from the heat of the cup. I was inspired by the tutorial to make some of these. I would share the link with you if I could find it again. I searched and searched yet I never did find that tutorial. I finally had to design a tutorial for myself.

It really wasn't that hard. I used a sleeve, from a cup of tea that I had purchased, as a rough pattern. Cut out two pieces of fabric, batting and interfacing. Sewed them together and whooola....Ema K's cup cozies were born....

I currently have these in a local gallery space but I will be making more to add to my Etsy shop.

Of Life and a touch of Copper

Life has been an emotional roller coaster these past few months. For those of you that don't know...two of my sisters AND my mom have been diagnosed with breast cancer in the past 5 months. It is CRAZY that this is happening to my family all at the same time. No, it is not in our family. They are the first. We were completely taken by surprise when my first sister was diagnosed then to have 2 more diagnosed in such a short period of time seems unheard of. I am too much in the moment of it all and unable to put my emotions into the proper words so I will give you a brief update on how everyone is doing.

Sister #1 has set the tone for everyone. She has handled her diagnosis and treatment with the utmost amount of Grace. I can't even begin to tell you how easy she has made it for the rest of us to cope. She had her last chemotherapy treatment last week. Although she will continue with additional weekly treatments for another six months, we are looking forward to her strength (and hair) returning.

Sister #2 began her chemotherapy treatments and is half way through already. She had a different course of treatment, so although it is shorter in terms of time she is getting mega doses of chemo in one shot. She has followed Sister #1's lead and is in a very good place emotionally and showing an incredible amount of Grace as well.

Mom will begin radiation treatments shortly. This will be new to us so I'm not quite sure what to expect. Sometimes ignorance is bliss. Right now I don't want to know more. I can't even believe how much I have learned about cancer, treatments and cancer centers. We will deal with this one day at a time, just as we have everything else. And of course Mom is ever graceful also. I guess her girls learned it somewhere ;).

While I am here I would like to give a shout out to the beautiful people that work in cancer centers daily. They are truly amazing people!! I think they are angels here on earth.

My life is one day at a time. One appointment at a time. One person at a time. I don't do much thinking ahead or trying to plan a schedule for the family like I used to. Just one day, everyday filled with as much happiness as is possible. I strive to be joyful and creative everyday. I am surprisingly finding joy. It really is about the small, simple pleasures and enjoying the company of each person I come into contact with.

Creativity has been a bit more difficult. I don't have the drive to be as creative as I was in the past, but it really does make happy. So I try to do one creative thing everyday.

I haven't felt much like melting glass so I have been working a bit with metals. I have been practicing a new technique of etching metal when my time allows. I purchased a wonderful tutorial from Payton Jett. She totally rocks! You can find out more about Payton and the tutorial in her Etsy Shop. I have only etched copper so far but today I am experimenting with brass and silver. I can't wait to see what happens. I will keep you posted. Here are a couple of pictures I snapped to show you what I have been up to.

This was my second attempt at etching. The first didn't come out quit so well but I think I didn't have the right type of ink to make it work and I got excited and rushed the process along. You can't do that and expect great results. I was much happier with my second attempt.

Here is what those cut out circles look like. They are one inch discs. I have since drilled one hole in each disc. I am thinking they would make cute earrings.

And today I will etch these...

 The group shot.

 One inch disc with heart. Sterling Silver.

 One inch disc with owl. Brass. Isn't he cute?

And of course I had to do a tree. This is a 2 inch disc in copper.

I hope I will be adding some of these to my Etsy shop, Ema K Designs, one day soon. But as I said earlier, one day at time.

If you have an interest in any of them. Please do contact me. I still need to make some money but I haven't been very good at listing lately so do contact me if you like what you see.

Peace and Joy to All,

Favorite Things Tuesday July 19

Tuesdays are a great day to show off a few of my favorite things. Since we are in the middle of summer let's celebrate today with a summer theme.

I LOVE to drink iced tea all summer long. Even though I'm from the Northeast I visit the south often and have learned that the proper name for iced tea is Sweet Tea. I used to put sugar in my tea and would promptly gain 5 lbs by the end of the summer season. After all sugar water is what hummingbirds survive on, the only problem is I don't burn as many calories as a hummingbird. This summer, instead of using white, processed sugar I am using Agave Nectar. Let me tell you....it is GOOD stuff. I don't notice any difference in flavor, it is even a tad bit sweeter and yummier. So far I have eluded any weight gain. This is a very good thing because I LOVE my sweet tea!!! I think I will be giving agave nectar a try in my baking as well. It is so much better for you than processed sugar. I buy my agave at Costco but I have seen it at my local grocery store too.

I am so into turquoise this summer. Any and all accessories turquoise is right up my alley. I found these perfect summer accessories in dachuksb7196's shop on Etsy. Her crocheted item pieces are simply beautiful. She has some fun, sexy items for the one in your family that loves to be barefoot.

In keeping with the turquoise summer theme I created this bracelet in a style similar to Chan Luu, but ofcourse added my own lampwork beads to it. A wrappable bracelet which creates stackable layers. I will definitely be making more of these. If you have any color suggestions please let me know, I will be happy to put something together for you. I plan to list my leather bracelets on Etsy but it is likely I won't have time to do so until the middle of next week.If you are interested in more info on this bracelet please contact me on my Facebook Page, Ema K Designs. 

As always, thanks for stopping by and visiting with me. I look forward to your comments.

Each Day is New

Hi. Thanks for visiting my blog. My life as a wife, mother, sister, employee and artist has been crazy busy the last for months.

I began a part time job in April. I'm still not sure if I will continue with it. I like the job. Working from home, as an artist can be solitary and I miss seeing people so this job has been great fun. The problem is I haven't had a chance to make any beads or jewelry and I am sorely missing being creative. I am praying on finding a solution to this dilemma. I think if I put as much effort into my own business as I am putting into this part time job I could be successful. The problem is having enough discipline while working from home and being accountable to myself can be tricky.

My sister is successfully waging her own personal battle with breast cancer. She has made it easy for those of us that love her by handling the entire situation proactively with an amazingly positive attitude and an incredible amount of Grace. Yes she found Grace. I tell you she is an inspiration! If you are inclined to pray we would gladly accept your prayers on her behalf.

My second son graduated from high school! Phew!!! I am so pleased he is finally out of public school and will be creating his own direction and making decisions about his life. I think this is a wonderful place to be in life. I am excited to watch where he will go. He is heading off to college in the fall, studying film. Look out Hollywood....he will be storming your doors down some day soon.

Now with summer underway I hope I will be able to find some space to make beads and decide which direction I will take. I have decided I can't manage my family, manage my husbands business, work at a part time job as well as run my own business. Some decisions need to made...NOW if only I could decide.......



In the meantime....you can find my beads for sale in my Etsy and Artfire shoppes.

One World One Heart 2011 WINNERS

AND THE WINNERS ARE......
The winners of my One World One Heart 2011 giveaway are numbers 20 and 71.
Robin of the blog a Robins Nest. 
Connie of Concetta Williams on Etsy.

Robin has won....the enameled tree pendant

Connie has won....an enameled tree bead

I also participated in OWOH on the Fire Divas Blog and the winner of that giveaway is Trisha too of Easily Amused. This is the pendant she won.

I send out many thanks to Lisa of the Whimsical Bohemian for the enormous task of she undertook spear heading this event. I have made many friends world wide. I would have never met so many fantastic people without the OWOH event.

Congratulations to all the winners!

As always, thanks for stopping by.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Be My Valentine

'I love HMET! Will you be my Valentine? ' by JennasRedRhino

The Handmadeology Team (HMET) is a great group! They are working hard to create successful Etsy sellers, and also publish a very useful blog. All items listed here were made by HMET participants.

Customer Appreciation Primit... Rabbithollowpr... $19.76	plum heart ... 4 inches JDWolfePottery $10.00
Hand Embroidered Linen Heart... juneatnoon $18.00	Kissing in a Tree Valentines... thunderpeep $4.00
Valentine Heart Pendant Neck... Jewelrybynala $19.00	Tropical Rapids - Dichroic G... mysassyglass $30.00
Heart Design lampwork focal ... emakaye $20.00	Heart Wine Cork Wall Decor a... LizzieJoeDesig... $24.99
Fine Art Print: Candy Love ... TatterBeans $7.50	Extra 25% off 15 Colorful fu... JustJaynes $22.50
With Love - Dichroic Glass P... mysassyglass $17.00	Lampwork Glass Heart Hair St... ZaftigDelights $29.00
Collage Mixed Media West Mem... RetroChalet $18.00	Original Art Card 'A Lo... oddballartco $25.00
Love Birds in Nest w Eggs Li... almostmonday $25.00	Little White Rabbit Valentin... VerukaDollsLan... $10.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.http://www.etsy.com/shop/JennasRedRhino

A New Team on Etsy...Handmadeology Team

'It is all about Love from the Handmadeology Team' by emakaye

A collection of work from the NEW Handmadeology Team. A reflection of the amount of love which goes into each and every handmade piece.

chairity TimothyAdamDes... $2100.00	Pink Power - Genuine Sea Gla... SeaFindDesigns $30.00
DECLARATION OF LOVE . origin... hrushton $28.00	Pearl Cluster Bracelet - Spr... skyejuice $22.00
Knit Cowl/ Circle Scarf Doub... jgaido $12.00	Raspberries and Cream Ribbed... AshlynDesign $36.00
Fill my Eye (Peony), 8x10 Fi... eyeful $28.00	Vintage Valentine Cupid Hear... allthingshomey $10.00
FOUR - Bliss Premium Soy 18 ... blisscandles $74.00	Shimmery Shiny Fused Glass P... SassyGlassStud... $25.00
Vintage Pink Grey and Pearl ... RetroChalet $12.95	Close up and Pretty - Print susanmossphoto... $15.00
Personalized Sweetheart Tree... LittleSketchyC... $4.00	Cotton Candy Pink Frosted Gl... BeachCoveJewel... $25.00
Lisa's Earrings - Light ... PrizedPossessi... $5.00	Copper Cuff Bracelet, Hand H... arcoirishandcr... $45.00

Treasury tool is sponsored by Lazzia.com.