She made us...The Beads

Hello all, hope you are having a wonderful summer...I have been kind of slow this summer, this blog post is actually from 100s of beads I have made that are still on the mandrel and need to be cleaned and photographed & listed...but I have listed a whole bunch of new beads in my etsy shop for you to check out...

About the giveaways...the last bead set of giveaways goes to Lori Anderson of Pretty Things...thanks for playing...I am looking for new and exciting ways to have bead giveaways, most people seem to be bored with the way I am doing it now...So please leave a comment on this post about a cool way to hold giveaways on my blog...if I pick your idea, you will get your choice of a set of beads or focal bead from my etsy shop...
Other than that life is good...there has been so much going on from our pretty garden my friend helped me put together to taking a great class last month with Joy Raskin at the studio... Dont forget the awesome Holly Cooper is teaching a lampwork class at the studio this September 8 & 9th. I think there is one space left in class...
Thanks so much for stopping by...
Jelveh
Peace

Happy December & New Beads....

Hello all, hope your December is off to a good start...ours has been good so far, on Sat we gave my dad a big happy surprise 75th birthday party, it was so much fun & we saw a great movie called Hugo...it was awesome, great story, well acted, well told & directed...so far December has been good to us...
In Bead News: I made some new beads & other goodies & have listed in my etsy shop...check them out below, click on the one you like & it will take you to that item & my shop...I have 52 items up & there is more coming...

Quote of the week: “Worry pretends to be necessary but serves no useful purpose” by Eckhart Tolle

New Tool: Graceful Studios has an awesome new tool called Ripples & Ridges, I have made a few angels & fish with it & its a great tool to use for all your ripples & ridges needs, such as angle wings, fish fins...

Weekly Giveaway: Last week's yummy pair of golden red earrings goes to Designs By Dawn Marie, please send me your address...I will also email you...also the winner of the tree bead Julie T. of Sparks NV, please send your address, I could not fine it...sorry...OK on to this week's giveaway...I have a encased organic flower pot bead with a metallic rim...I love the way it came out, its about 25mm tall...enter to win it by making a comment on this post, maybe about what kind of gifts you will be making by hand or purchasing that are handmade this holiday season...

Thanks for stopping by...life is good...
Jelveh
Peace

Wow, Happy Thanksgiving 2011

Hi all, I thought 2010 was a fast year, 2011 feels even faster, does this mean life is good...? I am having a good life & that's why the years seem to pass by fast...in any case I am so very thankful for my good life...hope you have a great safe & happy Turkey day & weekend...

New Beads: I had made a ton of Christmas Ornaments & brand new design of rings for our Holiday Boutique at Graceful Studios, which went very nice by the way, our 3rd year was the best year so far, we had a very nice group of artists of all kinds showing their art, lots of local guests visited us & we had a great time, we hope you had a good time too, we shall see you next year...I will be listing on Friday before Noon California time in my etsy shop all kinds of yummy items, from brand new beads to earrings & ornaments. Use the coupon code HOLIDAY20 at checkout for 20% off of your purchase from my shop...

Quote of the week: "Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance." by Echhart Tolle

Bead Giveaway: Last blog giveaway of the yummy Tree bead goes to Julie T of Sparks, NV. For this week I have a gorgeous pair of earrings for you, my lampwork golden red beads with Sterling Silver findings...enter to win them by making a comment on this post...

Thanks so much for stopping by, Life is indeed good...

Jelveh 

Peace

Twice in Two Weeks...wow

Hi all, yes its true....I am actually blogging twice in two weeks, don't get used to it, may just be a fluke...hope you are having a good week. All of a sudden all the leaves got orange & fell off our tree, its obviously finally fall where I am... earlier today there was a crisp wind in the air too...so its official, cold weather is coming...I have to say I like the weather like this...not so hot that we are boiling & not so cold when you have to wear a blanket to leave the house.

This week I had some fun making beads & a few items I don't usually make, like jewelry with my beads, trying to get ready for two shows. But now I am thinking I may just do the 3rd Annual Holiday Boutique at Graceful Customs Studios in Gilroy on November 19th from 12 to 6pm...check out the studios blog for more information contact Grace...or me...

Oh I will also be doing an online craft show at Pretty Things with Lori Anderson...Nov 26th to Dec 3rd

Bead News: I listed some new beads this week as well, you can find them in my shop, photo below...you can get a 10% discount if you add the coupon code Weekday10 at check out...

Quote of the week: "The past has no power over the present moment." by Eckhart Tolle

Bead Giveaway: Last weeks bead goes to Fireborn, please send your address...for this week I have the pair of yummy pumpkins for giveaway...they are almost small enough to be a great pair of earrings, or you can use them in other ways...enter to win them by making a comment on this post...

Thanks so much for stopping by, life is good...

Jelveh

Peace

Happy October & New Beads

Hello everyone...Hope your October is off to a great start...ours if good so far...


I am back from Turkey & have blogged twice since then, but this is the first newsletter...I made some beads before I went & a few since I have been back, I listed some in my etsy store...some of them in the photo below...

This past weekend we had a very glass weekend, we went to John Rizzi's 2nd Annual Sonoma County Glass Pumpkin Patch all for a great cause too...I along side Mike Hansen, Cynthia Tilker & several other glass people did a demos at the torch, I loved loved watching Mile make a great flower implosion marble with no practical marble making tools & then Cynthia made an off mandrel mouse & put it on a great big pumpkin, I love hanging out with glass people...we had a great time & bought a couple of glass pumpkins & got to meet Chris Johnson of Santa Cruz & Larry Cazes from San Jose...other awesome glass pumpkin people showing at the patch were Nick Lenoff of Monterey & Aleks Barilko. We had a great time & are looking forward to the next one...below are some photos of our trip...

Quote of the week: “The primary cause of unhappiness is never the situation but your thoughts about it.” by Eckhart Tolle.

Bead Giveaway: The hand of Hamza Focal & friends in this past post go to Leslie C. of Canada...for this post I have the blue goldstone focal vertebrate bead above, enter to win it by making a comment on this post...don't forget to check out the last two posts, first what I made with  my bead soup & then the details of my class in Turkey this past September...this one is a long read, but I think you will like it...

Thanks so much for stopping by...Life is good...

Jelveh

Peace

Bead Soup, New Beads...

Hi all & a happy September to you...just got back from visiting Grandma & Grandpa for their 90th birthdays & 70th wedding anniversary which is on the same day as ours...Drove from California to Montana & back with Mooshi, she did really well & was a hit with the Grandparents. Save for the time that she jumped in a fast moving river after her ball & did it again right after hubby fished her out...this dog has no fear...had a great time with Grandma & Grandpa, they are so cool, the stories they tell. Lets face it they lived through a lot more than most of us, so far they have made it through a few wars & a few recessions & all kinds of fun stuff in between...I asked Grandma, what has been the best times & the worst times so far in their life, she said The Best Times were when were together & The Worst Times were when we were apart...brought tears to my eyes,so sweet & honest...love them...

In BEAD News: I have only made one set of beads since we got back, the rest in the photo I made before we left...Check out my shop on etsy...The Drum Roll Beads in the photo is my new set & I hope you dont mind, I am making them in to a bracelet for myself, I love them so much...I made them with Grace's Disk Shaper...  Also you can now purchase my finished Jewelry at a lovely shop in Morgan Hill California called Carta Luna, check out their facebook page for more information...Its a great store, with tons of cool things from their clothing boutique full of timely fashions to their handmade gift cards & gifts, lots to see & enjoy...

Bead Soup News: My very lovely & creative Bead Soup Partner Jenny Davies-Reazor sent me this (photos below) awesome collection of beads & findings including not one but two of her great ceramic focal beads, I am so inspired, I am hoping I can make the design that is swirling around in my head with this collection...I am going to use all of them in one large piece, its a lot of out of the box thinking for me, even theough she does not know me, to send me two focal beads one a tree and the other a face with the word vision, you would think we were best friends, as these are exactly the themes I love & I identify with...thanks so much Jenny...come back on the 17th of September to see what I came up with...Click here to check out Jenny's Blog

 A lovely box & note...

An amazing collection of handmade ceramic beads by Jenny, sterling silver, fresh water pearls, mother of pearl, several different kinds of yummy gem stones & even a heart locket, I have decided to use them all in one piece, wish me luck, come back on September 17th to blog hop...Check out Lori of Pretty Things Blog for more information on the Bead Soup...

Bead Giveaway: The yummy focal from the last post goes to Kiersten, please send your address so I can ship the bead to you...for this week I have a yummy set of 3 beads modern shin mixed with organic feel...love this mini set, hope you do too...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

I am getting ready for my trip to Turkey for my workshop...there is one space left let me know if you are interested...Thanks so much for stopping by...Life is good...

Jelveh

Peace

47 & counting...New Beads too...

Hi all, What is 47, is it just a number? surely it is not the answer to the meaning of life, if you remember that number is 42...47 = I can count 47 things that I am great full for in my life, heck I can count 4700 things that are positive & good about my life...47 = just about the number pounds I would like to lose...

47 = there is an actual group called The 47 Society no joke...47 = I can give you 47 reasons why you should never ever buy any glasses from any Site For Soar Eyes or their mother company Sterling Vision locations, bad service & so over priced & mean people...send me an email if you need more information

47 = I gave away & tossed at least 47 pieces of clothes, thanks to my mom's help my closet is 47 times more organized than it was...

47 = the number of listings I hope to have in my etsy shop at all times check out the ones I have so far...

47 = is a prime number...

47 has many other meanings but so do other numbers I am sure you can find them all on the web...this last weekend I turned 47 years young...I don't feel older, I don't feel different at all in any way...it is just a number to me...we went to Santa Barbara for a couple of days & had an awesome time...it was a great calm happy birthday...I am sorry that the same can not be said for so many people in Joplin MO and other parts of the south that have storms going through again today...sending lots of prayers & good wishes to them all...

and here are more beads I will be listing...

Graceful Customs has a new cool website where you can purchase all of their cool tools from, Grace is extending her introductory price on the tools for a bit longer so check them out now, as the prices will go back to normal soon...

I have listed the new Classes & the July & September bi-Monthly get together at Graceful Customs Studios  on the left side bar of this blog, check them out and contact Grace if you have any questions & want to sign up...

Winner of last blog post's Zentangle bead is aMorita-sa of GA, please send your address...for this blog post I have a yummy marbled blue white water color bead with rain drops & raku spots, this bicone bead is about 36mm long & very lovely if I say so myself...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

Thanks so much for stopping by, Life is good...

Jelveh

Peace

New Beads & Class News...

Hi all, life is good here, Tuscon was fun, but not enough to make me want to actually make beads all year long so I can go to this show as a seller, but I had a great time with Grace, we bought a ton of findings, silver and gem stones to have fun with...I met Jeff Barber and saw some old friends and made some new ones too...
Since then the sun has been out, so Mooshi and I have been going to the park everyday...save for today, it actually rained today, surprised us all...but hey it is spring weather after all in these parts...A happy fun birthday to my hubby too...

New Beads: There are new beads in the shop & there will be more, so keep checking back...

Bi Monthly Meeting: Join us at the Studio for our next meeting on Feb 26th, friends of ours from Nor Cal SGB will be here to make beads for Beads of Courage, it promises to be a fun day...

New Class: We are excited to announce a One-Day lampworking class with lampwork artist John Rizzi, at our Studio on Saturday, March 12, 9am to 5pm, supplies and lunch included!  Cost is $200.  There is very limited space left!  John Rizzi will be teaching a one day beginning complex murrini class.  Students should be intermediate level and have good heat control skills as we will be working off mandrel.John will be teaching at least 2 designs in class, a basic 3- 4 color flower and a feather murrini in the afternoon. We will also practice different ways of murrini application. The class will focus on creating murrini on steal punties and heat control to get a good consistent pull of your cane. We will use basic tools and learn how to create pattern and design in murrini from the inside out. John has been a lampwork artist for the last 9 years.  He creates a variety of sculptural, wearable and decorative art pieces. John has a special interest in the art of murrini making, you can view more of his work at his website  http://www.johnrizziglassworks.com Or view many of his murrini designs at his etsy shop http://www.etsy.com/shop/JohnRizziGlassworkss

For more information on this class and others held at our studio in Gilroy, contact Grace by clicking here...

For the last blog post we have two winners, Sioux wins the electronic copy of Hubby's new book

And the cool bead from the last blog goes to Brenda H.For this week I have an awesome & large Landscape bead, over 34mm round...love this one...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

Thanks for stopping by...Life is good...

Jelveh

Peace

New Year, New Beads, New Tool...

Happy New Year everyone, hope you had a great holiday season & are now looking forward to a great new year like me...life is good, I have no excuses nor any real reasons for not blogging or listing beads for over a month...I am having a great time playing mom to Mooshi, she is such a great dog & we are so happy to have her...I did have a bit of a cold for a few days, but other than that all is good around here...

I made some new beads, listed some & will be listing more in my etsy shop...including a brand new design from me called Charming Grace, since the idea is really Grace's, over the holidays Frank made this new tool that Grace played with it & came up with this cool idea with love love the Pinch Me Right...a very cool hip tool that does a lot of fun things, you need to figure all the cool things that are possible with this tool...

Also with the new year we started our Private Beadmaking Parties at the studio...the group on Monday Jan 10 was so so so nice, there was 8 students in class and for 2 hours I thought them how to make one bead and I have to say they all did such an awesome job, I had a ton of fun with them, they are a very artsy fun group, I look forward to seeing Mary-Lee & her group of glass addicts again at the studio soon...can you tell in the photo below which bead is mine, no one had any experience in glass prior this two hour class/party...

Oh ok now for the winner of the last blog post which was oh my gosh all the way back in December 2010, is Janette from NV. Enter to win the trio of yummy focal beads in the photo above by making a comment on this blog post...

Thanks for stopping by, life is good...
Jelveh
Peace

SGB NOR CAL Meeting & New Beads...

Hi all, hope you are doing well...things are a bit nutty around here...lets see Grace is in the hospital with her back injury, the good news is she will be home soon & will continue therapy & will be back on her feet in no time...

Hubby & I had our 7th wedding anniversary, we went to Negeen our favorite Persian food restaurant & the funny thing is we got each other the same card...life is good...

Over the weekend, my sister treated mom & I along with her friend & her mom & sister in-law to a two day one night visit to Sonoma, we had a blast, had way too much wine & cheese & stayed at the Sonoma Fairmont Mission Inn & Spa...it was an awesome Girls weekend...one that I hope we repeat again with the same group, they are all so much fun...

I have been making a ton of beads but have been slow about listing and or sending an email out to everyone, finally got a few listed & will be listing more as the days go by...stop by my shop to see them all...36 items listed already...

Society of Glass Beadmakers Northern California, aka SGB Nor Cal is holding their September meeting at our studio on Saturday September 25th, the fun will begin at 1pm and go on till about 6pm...several artists will be on hand to show & tell about their art, they will included Silver Artists, Glass Artists (Sharon Peters & Lori Peterson to name a few) & a Rock Carving Artist among others...it is going to be a pot luck...bring your beads, your art to share, show & sell...need more information send me an email...

Last week's focal Ribbon bead goes to Sioux G. for this week I have a rather large yummy focal bead that goes with two of the sets of beads that I am listing tonight called Wild Thing from an older series of mine, I just love these colors together...enter to win this focal bead by making a comment on this post...

Thanks again for stopping by...life is good, specially now that Grace will be coming home soon...oh more information on the Beauty Contest soon...as you may have guessed the deadline has been extended again...
Jelveh
Peace

Frit & Toni Lutman...

Hi all...this one is going to be quick and easy...ok there are so many things to tell you about, first off I love love love giving a bath to our guinea pigs, they are so cool, they just sit there & let you wash them & dry them & clip their nails...we saw The Kids Are Alright, it was a great movie...Other than that I have been busy at the studio with students & frit & making beads, beads will be added later this eve, so when you wake up on Sat & Sun this weekend you will have a choice of a ton of new beads...so check out my etsy shop often to see all the new yummies...

I will be teaching a class today to two sisters from Arizona, who are also here to take Toni Lutman's sold out class on Saturday...I know you wish you could take Toni's class too, we are so excited to have her, sign up for my email list to find out about classes, beads & new tools...

Grace has new yummy COE 96 frits in her etsy shop for sale...yours truly helped out with picking  colors & testing...it was very fun for me...I love the new colors which are called. Amazon, Monterrey, Ocean Breeze, Purple Passion, Tropical Sorbet, Victorian Pink & very warm Indian Masala...check them out they are awesome & well priced...

Lets see we had our monthly meeting last Friday at the Studio & there was so much fun to be had, Ed Ferner came with a video of his work that won an award, Jen & Jim brought out the big machines, I learned how to trim & polish my fused pieces, its a long process dont know why all the great fusing artists out there dont charge more for their work...although if I had done it right in the first place I would not have too much polishing to do...we had a few new people at our meeting, and then second...you can see all kinds of photos and stories on our Studio Blog...

Last weeks winner of the yummy set of 3 garden beads is Brenda H. send me your address girl...they yummy bead above is a pillow shape bead silver foil encased in two transparent colors and details in white stringer, I love this bead, been holding on to it for a while and today I decided to let it go...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

Thanks for stopping by...life is very good
Jelveh
Peace

Mr Snuggles & New Beads...

Ok, I know its been forever, but there is so much to do & so little time to do it in, its been almost two weeks since I came back from my trip to Turkey & the things of have done a lot of are, spend time with hubby,   sleep, be at the studio making beads & getting ready to go on holiday...but the one thing I have done the most is snuggle Mr. Snuggles...the newest member of our family...

You see sadly our beloved Sammy the best hamster ever who came to America with us from England passed away a week before I went to Turkey for my class, he had a stroke at the ripe old age of 3 & died in my hands...we were heartbroken, he had seen us through a lot of good & tough times...needless to say my trip to Turkey & my time there teaching was all overshadowed by the loss of Sammy...he is in hamster heaven now...both hubby & I cried for some time & still do a bit here & there...
However life must go on & so does loving small critters...

Enter Mr. Snuggles...he is a baby Guinea Pig...unlike Sammy, he loves & needs to be held & he is constantly talking...so I guess I am finding out what it may be like to have a baby who needs to be held all the time...I have been looking for a friend for him, I was not able to find another Guinea Pig yet, I am surprised that they did not have him with a friend for sale, as many Guinea Pigs need companions & are sold in pairs...so guess who he is bonded with? he is even jealous of hubby when I pay any attention to him while Mr. Snuggles in on my lap...

In other news, I have new beads, Listed many on my etsy shop, will list more in the coming days...photo below...

Last Friday we had our Monthly Get Together at the Studio check out the photos & the story of the fun had by all....be sure to stop by Grace's etsy shop & check out the much sought after new mashers that Frank has been making, I love love all of them...

On Sunday I had 2 lovely students Wendy & Gloria in my beginning lampworking class, I can tell they are both going to be great bead makers & I am glad to report they are both Glass Addicts already...I have another student Amber coming in on Tuesday...I love my job & getting a chance to meet all these lovely people...

Mel P. wins the yummy vessel from last week...for this week I have a yummy encased dichro background pink flower focal bead...I love the way it came out, its about 20mm long & made in to a pendant with silver I bought in Turkey...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

I am sure there is more that to talk about like two very good movies we saw this past week, Knight & Day, a great fun movie & Grown Ups, another fun movie...

Thanks for stopping by...life is very good...

Jelveh

Peace

Can you Believe what she said...?????

Hi all, dont you love email marketing? now that I have your attention...I just wanted to say sorry for the silence, been busy getting ready for Turkey & fighting a sinus cold thing...its the weather I tell, its cold one day, sunny one day & wet the next...I am confused, its the end of May already....where is my sunshine...ok enough weather talk, life is good here, lets get to the beads...

I made tons of beads, all kinds of beads, big ones, little ones, fishy ones, flower ones, you name it, I made it, I even made a shirt & a skirt bead...more on them later...I have listed many of them in my etsy shop...some are sample beads I am taking to my class in Turkey...so they will not be listed, not yet anyway...so below is a photo of most of them together...

Beauty Contest...some of you may remember that I used run a beauty contest every few months, where you sent in photos of jewelry or art pieces made with my beads & then I had Fire Mountain Gem vote on the best one, so we are doing it again, this contest will start sometime in mid to late June, I will post photos on to the blog as they start arriving, & it will go until the 15th of Aug...Rules are simple, the piece has to included my glass beads or bead...1st place will get a $100.00 gift cert. to my etsy shop, 2nd place will get a $50.00 gift cert. & 3rd place will get a $25.00 one...please make sure your photos are nice and clear...after all your name will be on them...you can start sending photos in now, but officially the contest will not start until mid June...

New Tools, ok as you know I dont talk about a tool unless I love it...last week I ordered and got in the mail very fast a disk shape bead roller from Donna Fleckner of CGBeadRollers I got the disk one and she kindly sent me a sample one to take to my class in Turkey, which I am giving away to one of my students as a gift in one of the bead challenges that I do in class...now mind you this tool is not new, Donna has been selling these for a few years now, but its new to me...I love love love using these rollers, there is a set that I have listed today that was made entirely with the sample bead roller which Donna gives away monthly to one of her lucky buyers...check it out when you get a chance...

Last week's two small focal beads goes to our own Brenda H. Thanks for palying all...for this week, I have this yummy new focal bead made with some silver glass & my new frit Tempest Rain (which will be available for sale in my shop soon) enter to win this bead by making a comment on this post...

Thanks for stopping by, life is good, my brother is doing well...oh yeah I forgot to mention I turned 46 wow 46, getting awfully close to that 50 mark...hubby got me an Ipad for my birthday, took me to Monterrey to the beach, there is also a message scheduled, he is so very cool...thanks hubby...on the way back, I had to stop by the studio to pick my beads from yesterday & share with Grace yet another new tool I got in the mail yesterday (which I will share next time), I walk in to the studio and all these people say Surprise, Grace had gone stealth & put together a great party with all kinds of Glassy friends & A strawberry short cake "cake". Ice cream, a banana cream pie, candles & champagne, she is so so sweet...I could not ask for better friends & family like these in my life, I am such a lucky girl & all I have to say is I am thankful for all the love in my life...you are all the best... oh yes forgot to mention, very soon, you will see more yummy tools from Graceful Customs...in the next update I will explain more...

Jelveh

Peace

Mother's Day Blues & New Beads...

Hope you had a great Mother's day...we missed seeing all of our mom's today...for one thing I have been sick since our last adventure this past Mon to Wed to Los Vegas...Hubby had some work to do, I went along for some fun...my sister reminds me that if I listened to her I would not get sick every time I fly...something about airborn....I did call all the mom's however & made plans to make it up to them...
oh yeah trip to sin city was fun, we stayed at the brand new very modern Aria Resort & Hotel with views of the strip...

I did had some fun making some beads before we left, below is the group shot of what I am listing by 7pm Monday night 5/10/10 in my etsy shop...check them out...already listed few of the Tempest Rain beads, the Bird Nest, the Lady Bug, Flower implosion & I forget but there is more...

A few of the beads I made this week have my brand new, possibly someday for sale, yummy frit which I call Tempest Rain...oh what a fun she is...the lucky students in my class in Turkey will all get a bag of this yummy frit among other goodies, don't forget the dates are May 30 to June 12, Glass Furnace...I will be teaching two 5 day classes...each will be filled with a ton of new information & detailed design ideas for making yummy glass beads...I wish I had been able to take this class a few years ago when I was just new at bead making...well enough about how great this class is going to be, see you there...

Speaking of seeing you there, this coming Friday we will have our monthly get together MGT at Graceful Customs, make sure to go past the calander on the blog to see the post about this coming Friday...and yes its true Grace has been practising her bead making, she is doing, I dont know about my being patient however, I can be a real task master when it comes to teaching, but I am fun, or at least I have been told I am fun in class...anyway come join us for some fun at the torch, wire wrapping demo by Jen, fused glass groove maker demo by Grace & I will make a few vessels & blow some shards, you can play on a torch too, bring your art to show, share & sell...drawing for a gift at 6pm or so...oh yeah Frank is working on some yummy new tools too, come see the new Squeeze-Me-Right-Masher in action...it may not be sexy, but it works like a charm, plus sexy cost more money & this tool is functional, clean, small, nice to hold, great to mash with & did I mention at $28.00 its a steal...& yes its not sexy...IMHO.

Last week's yummy pink focal goes to Penny...please send your address, also Nikki, I did not get your addy yet for the week before...for this week the giveaway is made of two beads, I was testing some new colors & frits with older ones...the results are very yummy, the cone is about 25mm long, the tab is about 23mm which I made with my brand new Frit, Tempest Rain...love them both, enter to win them by making a comment on this post...

Well as always I am sure there is more to tell, like how I am going crazy packing & getting ready for my big trip to Turkey...but will catch up later...

Thanks for stopping by...life is good, save for this nasty oil in the gulf business, my heart goes out to the planet & the animals & all the folks who live in the affected areas...I hope you all have a great week...
Jelveh
Peace

More Implosions & A New Tool...

Hi all, hope you had a great week...mine was mostly lazy, I know you don't hear me say that too often, I always have so much going on, well this past week was pretty calm around here...the big events of our weekend was taking in some much needed sunshine & seeing the movie Kick Ass, which by the way is a great movie but not recommended for all, its violent & serious, unlike its name, even though the main characters are kids, it is not, I repeat, it is NOT a kids movie...

Yes I finally listed all my beads, I do have a couple of more implosions to list yet, that will come later tonight...but most everything is up, a couple of birds nests beads I made sold already today...I listed more of my new Implosion beads too...I just love making them...check it all out in my etsy shop... dont forget until the end of April you get the TRP promotion discount of $10.00 when you purchase 2 or more bead goodies at the same time from my shop, just put TRP in the note to seller & I will send you a refund via paypal...

Here is a group shop of them...all Squeezed with my favortie new masher... save for the large lentil one...

An awesome new Tool from Grace & Frank, this one is called the Squeeze-Me-Right Masher... ok like many of you I have a large pair of BBQ mashers on my bench, I have been using mine for years...however when I first tried Frank's new mashers I was blown away by how easy it was to work with...I now find my old mashers too big & not very comfortable to use...The Squeeze-Me-Right Masher is smaller & easier to use, I find that the actual paddles are the best part about it, the thickness of them gives the tool a property I have yet to see other mashers have, the other ones are all too thin in that area, so you have to mash a few times to get the results you want, with this one there seems more power with less of a push from your hands if that makes sense, its really fast & easy, I figured out its the paddle size & the way the handle works...really its the mind of the Engineer Frank, he kind of gets in to a tool & figures out how it needs to work, then he makes it to do just that...anyway don't take my word for it, try one out for your self...the coolest thing is I have paid anywhere from $125.00 to $40.00 for my mashers (yest I have a few) well this one is only $28.00 and its better made than any other I have had...

The studio is busy this weekend with Carmen & Ron's awesome Rock Carving class...sorry the class is already full, but they will be back again, we just love them...by the way we are taking suggestions for new classes at the studio for next year...

Last week's much talked about Flower implosion bead goes to Gail, please send your address girl...for this week I have a large focal & a friend bead with some Bali Silver spacers...its an aqua tab bead, the first one I mashed with The Squeeze-Me-Right Masher with a ton of stringers & raku dots, some bubble eyes & a matching friend...enter to win it by making a comment on this post...

Thanks for stopping by...life is very good, my brother is doing really well after his 3rd surgery in less than a month's time, my advise to you is never ever damage your Achilles Tendon, the road to putting back right can be very scary & dangerous...he is brave & is doing great...

Jelveh
Peace

Persian New Year, Yummy Baklava & Beads...

Another happy week around here, made even better with sunshine & warm weather...Happy Persian New Year...the first day of the 13 day holiday was a few days ago, as always we had some fun getting together at my parents...I even made my famous Baklava, the recipe in this link is not how I make mine all, mine has no almonds, rose water or saffron, mine has honey, walnuts & a few other secrets...below are some photos of the fun we all had...

Here is my Baklava, on the table with a ton of other goodies & sweets...

Mom's HalfSeen Table for Nowruz, since this not a religious holiday every Persian family has their own book of faith on the table, ours is a great book of poem by Hafez the very famous Persian poet...

Mom made a ton of very yummy food as always...

Parents & hubby...

right to left, Grace, mom, me, & Grace's friend Maria...

Sophia & I...

The kids & I...I just love playing with them...

This past Wednesday I had a great student named Sharon...she is already hooked & she was a natural...

I did make a lot of  yummy beads this past week as well, most of them are listed in my etsy shop now...photo shows a few of them...

Ok now we come to the bead giveaway part, last week's two yummy focal beads go to "our favorite Things" please send your address...for this week I have the very cool mohter pearl pinky silver glass encased focal in the top photo...enter to win by making a comment on this post...

Thanks for stopping by, life is good, I am watching Project Wonderful, I love this show...I love seeing how the minds of these creative people works & brings to like their designs....

Jelveh

Peace