Oh Happy Week

The fab Tab at TabMade blogged about her involvement in Curious Girl's "Happy Week" next week and I knew it was something that I wanted to do. I've been rather stressed lately and a happy week is definitely in order!

So, next week, every day, I'll post a photo and some ramblings about something that make me happy. A jump start is the photo to the left of the best thing in my world - my daughter Amber. She's nutty, brilliant and has such a sharp wit that she makes me giggle constantly. Nothing better in the world than that little girl's belly laugh.

Today is the unveiling of the Spragens Memorial that our Arts & Humanities Council raised the money for. Gene & Nadine Spragens were great benefactors to the arts in Marion County, bringing in performing arts, giving away tickets to shows and establishing scholarships for music students. The sculpture is absolutely gorgeous - brushed aluminum music staffs with blackened music notes spiraling in a double helix. It stands in front of the new Performing Arts & Culture Center and will stand as a testament to their influence in this community. I'd like to someday be remembered as someone who helped promote the arts, especially the visual arts, within the community. There's something to be said for what the arts can do, be it in education, therapy, release or just plain enjoyment. I owe so much to the arts, visual and performing alike.

Tonight, we unveil the sculpture, revel in live music, relive history and peruse original works of art in our little ol' town of Lebanon. And it makes me really happy.

Treasuries!

I've been featured in a Bluegrass Etsy Street Team Treasury!
The Best of Kentucky: http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=34752

I've been beading like mad, despite being busy with oodles of other things this week, including the Arts & Humanities Council and some personal issues. I got a few more ornaments made, including a custom one for a friend and another quilt patch. I've got orders for 5 patches and a custom snowman that I need to completely before next week. I have an open house with our community's Dickens Christmas event tonight and then I should be able to tackle the other ornaments. We'll see!

Just Breathe

The auction is over and I can breathe again for a bit. As always, I wish things would have sold for more and I wish the crowd would have been larger, but everything sold and people got some great deals on original pieces. My feet were killing me by the end of the evening after playing Vanna White in heels, but I survived, as did my mother, who happens to be the treasurer for our organization. Kate was a blessing, helping my mom out, as was my step-dad and my awesome friend Patty. Don't know what I'd do without them lately. Even Amber got into the groove, helping Mom bid on Patty's garnet set. And the appetizers! Michele Espinosa and the gang at the Oak Barrel are incredible. I really hope the restaurant is a huge success.

I say I can breathe, but I still have quite a bit to do.

• Barktoberfest at the park today with Amber & Buddy
  
• Amber soccer game tomorrow
  
• Chamber lunch Wednesday
  
• update inventory
  
• Meeting with youth leadership member Wednesday
  
• Finish Halloween costume
  
• trick-or-treating with Amber 10/31
  
• My grant application for marketing materials is due 11/1
  
• I need to get ornaments ready for Lee's open house the second weekend of November
  
• I have a show that same weekend in Somerset
  
• repair work to finish for a customer
  
• the Maker's Mark pendants to finish and get out to the gift shop
  
• the Etsy-Beadweavers Challenge entry to finish
  
• coffee beans to order for the gallery
  
• catch up on my filing
  
• scrub the gallery
  
• Nude 2009 entry to think about (due 10/31) - Nope, not entering this year
  
• Painting series to finish (15 paintings)

Sometimes, to do lists give me an anxiety attack :)

Hop Hop Hop

Tonight is the Marion County Arts & Humanities Council 4th annual art auction. I always freak out when it gets close, but this year has been especially bad, with all sorts of other things going on with the business and in my personal life. I literally didn't finish getting everything ready until a few hours ago. I can honestly say that, even though I'm a control freak, I'm looking forward to just being a board member next year instead of the president!

I've got two pieces in the auction this year - a painting and a jewelry set. This is our biggest fundraiser of the year, so I don't mind donating more than one piece. I tend to donate pieces that I've had for a while or that I'm tired of looking at :) Sounds horrible, doesn't it? BUT - they're pieces that I've received lots of compliments on and that people have expressed interest in. It's just time for them to rotate out of my hands & into someone else's.

The sun has finally come out after a nasty, drizzly day. It's now 5:08pm and I'll be here til 7 tonight, then off to the auction at the Oak Barrel at 7:30. I only hope that people have started to think about the value of art. The economy isn't all that great, but there are some incredible pieces in the auction. There always are. I just wish I could get people to realize what an investment it is in both their own futures and the future of the arts in our community.

New Listings!

I've been busy this morning (uh, afternoon now...) listing things on etsy:

Crashing Waves-Necklace:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16174586
Crashing Waves-Earrings:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16175038
Iris-Necklace:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16175438
Iris-Earrings:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16175644
The Ocean is Gray:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16171856
Green Ruffle:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16171519
Winter Ice:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16170588
Black, White and Red All Over:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16168439
And the one I just finished! The Wanderer:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=16167848

Hooray! I have two more pieces that are almost finished, but a list of ideas in my head that I want to start on. I also got 4 dozen clear bulb ornaments, to do Victorian netting around for Christmas. And I need to start on my Maker's Mark pendants. And I need to work on the MCAHC auction... and then.... and then...

On a much lighter note, I bought my daughter Amber a box of beads and some elastic over the weekend, and we beaded like mad while watching movies. There's some quality bonding time for you :) We also worked on her costume last week. We got wings & a skirt at the dollar tree, then picked up a leotard and tights, adding tons of glitter paint. Over the weekend, we picked up a white peasant skirt for me, which we're now glittering up so that I can wear my wings & we can be fairies together. I love Halloween!

Weekend Wrap-Up

The weekend at St. James was wonderful. We had perfect weather for the art fair, even if we are suffering from a horrible economy. Sales were good, I met a lot of nice people, handed out almost every one of my postcards and even had The Harvest recognized by several readers of Bead&Button. The best part of my weekend came in the form of a lovely fellow beader on Friday. She recognized The Harvest and kept trying on another piece of mine that I called "Garden Necklace." (I wish I had a photo!) After several tries, she decided to purchase the piece. I knew it was going home with someone who would appreciate it, which made me really happy.

Sunday, she returned to tell me that she'd worn the piece to work the day before and had been chased around by her co-workers, wanting to know where she'd purchased it! That was a wonderful feeling.

Since coming back, I've restocked the gallery and realized that I'm quite behind on prepping for the Marion County Arts & Humanities Council's art auction. Oops! But, I've snagged the help of three lovely ladies to help contact artists & businesses. They'll be my saving grace!

Today has been repair day on several customers' vintage jewelry. I don't mind the repair work and I try to keep it fairly inexpensive!

Next projects are a quilt patch Christmas ornament that will hang in Frankfort, KY in the Thomas Clark museum and some netted, Victorian glass ornaments, once I get the bulbs from my sister.

Oink Oink - It's Ham Days

Every year, I say that I'm not keeping the gallery open all weekend during Ham Days here in Marion County, and every year I do it anyway. This year, I actually didn't setup in the arts & humanities booth, since we had so many other artists setup. I was a little worried that it would hurt my sales, but people are looking for bargains when they come here, not higher end jewelry designs, so I'm really not too worried about it. I did, however, decide last night after thinking about not sleeping and not seeing my daughter as much as I'd like, that I'd close up at 1:30 for the day and see her soccer game at 2, instead of having Mom watch the store during the game and then coming back. I've not had enough people in to stay open the extra time. Plus, I'm hosting a financial workshop Tuesday night in the gallery and leaving on Thursday for St. James... I gotta get some down time in! Not that I won't be beading on my sofa!

I'm trying to finish some projects before next weekend. A lot of friends have started freaking me out a bit about St. James. They're concerned that I won't have enough stock and that I'll sell out. Not that it would be a bad thing! I don't have another show until the second weekend in November and I need to make some ornaments for Christmas.

I started on my entry for the October Etsy-Beadweavers Challenge. I need to do some more before I make an opinion about it. I may end up using the first piece I did, I don't know. Can't take pix right now, either, as my friend Kassy has the memory chip out of my camera. I'll probably not post any new listings until after St. James, anyway, since I have to deactivate my listings during the show.