Two

No distractions yesterday at all, though I wouldn't have complained about maybe a sale interrupting my work, but I digress. I got the choker finished and opted for a regular adjustable clasp. Though I think the ribbon would have worked as well, the clasp just makes it far more wearable for most people. It also means it sits a bit looser on the neck which is quite comfortable for me at least. It's listed in my shop now.

After I was done with that I thought a it about today's video which will likely be how to start round laces. I'm still not completely certain, but I have the morning to work it out. I followed that with working up a pendant necklace from the central motif. This is the first go round with it. It's interesting, but I agreed when it was suggested that it needed something added to it. Unfortunately I have very little in the way of charms or drops on hand. It's an ongoing side effect of selling less and less over the last few years.




This is what I was able to come up with from what I had on hand. I know the picture is not very clear, but I added seed beads to the picots and a round drop to the end. The chains are simple crochet cord and it closes with a macrame slide clasp. I still haven't decided if both or either are going into the shop, the reception for the design so far has been less than enthusiastic. Maybe I'll try it in color and see if that changes my mind, or maybe I'll just move onto one of the other ideas and see if the motif works better in bracelet form. We'll just have to see how this weekend treats me.

Weekend Recap

It was a nice quiet weekend really. I did a little light cleaning on Friday, but that was it. I sold one of this mask late on Friday, so I spent both the rest of that day and a bit of Saturday making a new one. The rest of Saturday was pretty boring, though we did get out for a nice walk before the weather started to turn.

On Sunday we did a little holiday shopping and I came home to an order for a choker. I spent the rest of the day catching up with dvr'd shows and tatting up that choker. That was pretty much the whole of my weekend.

This is our last week of schooling before winter break and I'm finding myself a bit more stressed out than I'd like to be. The semester is getting away from us and there's still so much that needs doing. So add that to the usual holiday stress and other silly nonsense and I pretty much want to crawl in a hole for awhile and hibernate. Instead though, I'll just keep plugging along and hope for the best.

Current Etsy Shop Sale: 15% off with the code HOLIDAY215. Code is good through Dec. 20

Lost

One of my least favorite parts of selling pieces online reared it's head a few days ago, the lost package. There are certainly worse parts, but it's definitely up there. Luckily it was accompanied by a very patient and understanding customer. I watched the tracking on it a few days hoping it would start moving again, but after a week in one place, I can only assume it's been irreversibly misplaced, or stolen. So I spent the morning remaking the Tardis blue key choker necklace so I can send a replacement out today. While I was at it I made one last one for the shop. It's the last for a while as I used up this thread almost completely. I definitely won't be ordering anymore thread until after the holidays at least, so yep, it's the last one for now.

After that it was back to remaking a pair of ankle corsets and crossing my fingers that more orders would arrive. I had had a custom request overnight the night before last, but the customer has yet to purchase the custom listing or reply to my message so I can probably assume that they've changed their mind. I did get a bracelet order in the evening though and that will give me something to make this afternoon when I finish the ankle corsets. I am quite enjoying being busy and I've taken to reading again while I tat. I finished two novels yesterday alone. They weren't long or particularly complex reads, but it always makes me feel like I accomplished something when I can not only make things, but finish a book at the same time. Let's hope the busy keeps right on coming!

Current Etsy Shop Sale: 25% off with the code HOLIDAY25. Code is good through Nov. 6

Remade

I spent the morning starting schooling stuff with the kids. The didn't complain even though schooling doesn't officially start until next Tuesday. I think deep down, they like getting a little ahead too. This morning we have another teacher meeting along with some early schooling. This meeting is online though. I'm not so keen on doing it that way, but I don't really have a choice. I'll just roll with it, like I try to do with everything.

After our mini schooling I sat down to work on a few pieces for the shop. There was this necklace that actually needed to be remade and back in the shop. It's the same as the white one I made recently. It was also one of the first big vintage pattern conversions I did. There wasn't a huge amount of modifications to change it from one side of a collar to a necklace, but it's still one of my favorites.

After that was made I worked on things that I should just have backups made of for the shop. I made some cat ears and started work on a pair of ankle corsets. I'm hoping that I still get a little busy for the holiday season and without all the extra time summer affords me, it's good to get some things done when I do have time. Once these are made, I'll probably look over what sold last year and get backups made of some of those pieces as well. At least that's what I'll do with any spare time I have. It's not exactly interesting, but it seems like a good idea. I'm also still toying a bit with an Armenian lace idea, but so far it hasn't quite gelled. I'm certain to let you know when it does.

A Long Day

Apparently I needed to clean yesterday on some fundamental level, because as soon as schooling was done I was vacuuming the upstairs and mopping. This was immediately followed by putting together a new water fountain for the cats. Their old was had given up the ghost just before Shade passed and we'd ordered a new one online. Its arrival led to cleaning the space on the floor where their food bowls live and then before I realized it, it was lunchtime.

After lunch I got some reading in while waiting for a mail person to come to the house to fix a package mix-up. It was nice to get back to reading since the weekend sucked my desire to quietly read away. Then once the mail issue was remedied I got some tatting in. I was just continuing to remake this choker, but that was a good thing. There's not much as meditative and soothing as working a familiar, repetitive pattern.

The day ended with a small celebration of my niece's birthday. It was going swimmingly, with the kids playing with their cousins and their neighbors outside, then my oldest child ate asphalt. Well, her knees did anyway. That was pretty much the end of the joy and the visit. She'll be fine, but I'm thinking a nice knee scar is in her future.

I don't have any projects lined up yet for today. The shop is still very quiet, but there are still a few pieces that I could remake if inspiration continues to stay away. I would definitely prefer some inspiration, or a few sales. Either one will do really. Anything, but more cleaning.

On Task

It's amazing how much better I stay on task when I have a piece to remake for the shop that I know should be there. I actually wanted to get tatting and I wanted to finish the piece, so I did. It wasn't anything new, but it sells eventually, so I was happy to make it. This is one of my Grand Daisy pieces, I think I have three choker using the same basic beginning and then they progressively get more complex. They do take a while to make since they are essentially pieced together with many daisy motifs, but I was glad for the work.

I also got another nice sale yesterday, but it was for one of my one of a kind pieces, so that doesn't really give me anything to remake today. Though if I can manage some inspiration, it does give me an excuse to make another one off piece. I guess we'll just have to see if the Muses visit, if not, it's back to the cross stitch which is still managing to keep my hands busy when they would otherwise be idle.

Well it sounds like I have at least the initial rumblings of a plan for the day. Here's to inspiration, motivation, and a spot of old fashioned luck.

Thank You

Well, that was a busy Tuesday, but first I want to thank everyone who commented here or elsewhere to remind me that they were reading the blog. No, I don't really need daily comments to keep blogging, I'm going to do it anyway, but it sure is nice to have the occasional reminders that I'm not shouting into darkness. I do appreciate everyone who takes time out of their day to read my ramblings and thanks also for putting up with my occasional need to be validated that presents itself as childish whining.

Back to the busy though, I started the day with a custom request to make a bigger heart necklace. I was asked for a particular size which would usually be met with a, 'tatting doesn't work quite like that' response, except in this case where I had already modified the design to several different sizes and one was already just right. The original design this is modified from does not belong to me, but rather from a bookmark by Betsy Evans. I have however, mucked with the stitch counts so liberally over the years, I don't even remember the original anymore.

After that, some errands and a walk with the kids, the oldest one seems perfectly fine now, I actually got the choker listed. I know, I know, it's almost unbelievable. It's true though, it's finally listed and now I'm going to have to come up with something else new soon to not list for weeks and keep mentioning until you're sick of my excuses.

Thank to your comments, I do now have a good idea what pattern may make an appearance for April 1st. So over the next few weeks I'll actually have to write up a pattern and get it suitable for posting. There's also a chance that I'll do two, one for sale in the shop and a second as a free gift on the blog, but it's still too early to make promises.

I still have a mask to finish today and the husband is coming home from a  conference that he's been at since Sunday so it promises to be an eventful day. Too bad it will most likely end with copious amounts of man laundry.

Adpating

After a very frustrating morning with the kids schooling because the web site was tossing us out over and over again, I was determined to make the rest of the day as productive as possible. I had actually set the wheels in motion before schooling. I had decided that I was going to adapt a vintage edging. I grabbed the first book from the 40's in the pile and picked one that I had tried and failed with in the past. While drinking coffee, I worked on a prototype, changing something new every repeat. I got this far before schooling and once I was back I knew what else I needed to change.

Of course it did take a while to get back to it as there were copious amounts of cleaning to get on with. Blankets to launder, counters to clear off and floors to vacuum. Of course I still have another set of tasks saved for today because with 6 cats and four people in the house, I never clean the tiled floors until the last minute to reduce the chance of befoulment. Not to mention more counters to clean and laundry to do.

So, exhausted I sat down to my tatting. After evaluating my earlier changes and deciding on a few more, I was satisfied with the stability of the design and started to work on what will become a nice choker. When I muck with these classic designs, I'm trying make sure they can stand on their own without getting stretched out of shape. The original pattern had many fewer joins and would have been fine attached to some linens, but would have been a mess on a neck. I also have a different aesthetic sense than designers of that era and I try to make each piece my own with new choices. While I'm fairly certain a few of you will recognize the original edging within the design, my hope is that I've made it entirely new in feeling.

Today should be another crazy, over-packed day. I have a teacher meeting to attend for the older child, schooling, more cleaning and some errand running. If someone finds me curled up in the fetal position later, don't be surprised. I am hoping that I'll get this choker all the way to finished sometime today, but I'm not holding my breath. I guess it's a good thing the shop is dead, at least for today. If I had to add orders to complete to this list I might snap. On second thought, I'd be glad to do that. I work great under pressure, just not too much.

Busy Day

The oldest child just started working on the next grade level language arts courses yesterday. The plan is to try and finish a year's worth of those classes in the half a year we have left. So as you can imagine schooling is taking a bit longer and is slightly more draining. We also don't have all the books yet, so we're reading The Hounds of Baskerville together as a fill in since we know she is suppose to read it later in the course. I guess the point is, lots of schooling yesterday and that is likely the new normal.

I did get the new necklace finally listed yesterday. I'm not overly fond of the photos I settled on but I just did not have the energy to go all out for them. At least I got it done though. I also finished up the barefoot sandal order I had started on Sunday. Sometimes I forget how long those things can take to make. There are just so many steps involved.

It was nearly evening before I remembered that I had yet to do day 10 of the TIAS, so I got that made up quickly. Still no clue as to what is forming. Luckily day 11 is today, so no waiting to continue to not know what is is I'm making.

I finished the day with a custom length bracelet which I thought would be a walk in the park to adjust. I was a little wrong there and it took some time to work out how to properly reduce the size. Once I had that worked out though, it was simple enough to get made. So I start today without anymore orders in queue save for the never-ending mother-in-law list. Honestly, I'm kind of grateful for that list of things to make. It means never getting bored because I haven't anything to do. Of course I will still get bored with what I have to do, because that's just how it is, but that's still better than having nothing to do. Here's hoping for another packed day with lots to tat.

New and Lost

Well I worked on it all morning and I won't go into how many different iterations of chain and bead combos I played with, but I finished the new choker. If it wasn't for this old mannequin that my brother "loaned" me years ago, making the chains on theses sort of piece would be nearly impossible. The problem is always making them lay well on a person, so if I make the chains flat on the table, they always fail at draping, at least on the first try. Of course you probably don't care one bit about all that nonsense. The point is, the necklace is done and hopefully I'll manage to get it listed some time today. I can already tell I'm going to have pricing issues though. This one was a whole lot of work to make.

Unfortunately I just got a message this morning that a package I sent to the Ukraine at the beginning of the month has yet to arrive. It is the first I've sent to that exact country so I have no precedent for how long it should take. The fear is that it is missing, though since there is no tracking to that country I can't be sure of that either. So the plan will be to wait the full 45 days before I can file an insurance claim and send another if it still hasn't arrived. This means I have to make up some barefoot sandals to have ready just in case. I hate lost packages, but it is the price of relying on other services to do business.

I also got an order last night for a custom pair of ankle corsets, so it looks like I'll be making one, then the other. That should make for a busy couple of days at least. I'm going to go ahead and cross my fingers that the 'lost' package arrives though, because that would just be better for everyone.

Choker and Chains

Before I got to tatting yesterday, I played with the prototype a bit. My idea was to use metal chains in between the motifs to tie the piece together a bit better. The idea went over fairly well on on the Facebook page, but I kept having to remind people that this was a prototype and not the final color, nor are those the final chains. It's actually some cheap chain I bought at Michaels that I use specifically for prototyping. So I kept getting the, 'it would look better with (insert color of thread or chain here)'. I love the instant feedback people give over there, but sometimes I have to hold my tongue when folks don't read what has already been asked and answered repeatedly.

Regardless of that very slight irritation, I got to work on the final piece knowing that it should be fairly well received. Unfortunately, this is defiantly a time consuming piece and I'm not even halfway done with the tatting. There were also some suggestions to add a gem or a few, so once I do get the lace done, there will be more playing with chains and beads to get the right mix. There were also suggestions to trade the chain for strands of glass pearls and while it would probably look neat, I have a terrible fear of over-weighting the lace. I know that it's strong, but the more weight it holds, the more likely it is to stretch out of shape or need seriously stiffening to prevent said stretching. I like my lace light and soft. I think it wears better that way and needs far less care.

So today I'll be working on the piece in it's final black shade. There's a good chance I'll get much of it done, but almost no chance that it will make it into the shop quite yet. If by some miracle I do finish it, I still have those cat ears to tat up because I put them aside to work on this. I was also reminded this morning that there is at least one pair of barefoot sandals that I really ought to get remade and back into the shop. I have been really flighty about these things lately and I'm going to chalk it up to being distracted with other 'life' things. I'm made some good progress though and that's a positive, right?

So Much Done

Well I had a pretty productive day yesterday, tatting wise. I finished up all the snowflakes for my mother-in-law. She even popped by in the evening and fetched them, so there is no more pink thread for me to stare at. They were requested as a memorial gift for the daughters of one of her friends that just passed. His favorite color was pink. I personally didn't know him, but it did seem like a nice idea for a keepsake.

Then I got day 8 of the TIAS made up. I have to tell you how funny it is that my oldest daughter has gotten sucked into the 'what is it?' game. She saw me working on it some days back, so I explained the process. Now when she sees the white thread come out she asks if I know what it is yet. I don't and I think it's driving her a little crazy. I think she'll be more relieved that I when the shape becomes obvious.

I even had a little time left in the evening to work on the choker prototype. I got it all the way to it's proposed length and with an adjustable clasp it should be just right to fit anyone. There are a few other things I want to play with on the prototype before I bust out the black thread for the real one, but I'm liking it so far.

I'm not sure what I'll manage to get to today though. We have a field trip right after lunch so I might not get anything at all done. Maybe that's a good thing after yesterday's progress. I could use a bit of a break, but just a tiny one.

More Things Finished

Well I was half right about about I'd get up to yesterday. I did get the choker completed and listed, though only after stalling for a spell in the morning. It takes me longer to get around to listing things that require I show my face in the photos. I mean when I think of the sheer number of photos of myself I've managed to put online in the last six or so years it turns me all shades of red. Don't even get me started on what I discovered after uploading feet pictures for barefoot sandals...it's disturbing.

So anyway, after that was done I stalled some more. Then I finally got an order in the shop so I remade the sold piece. It was one of my interwoven three color bracelets that are a bit of a pain to make. The pattern itself is pure simplicity, it's the often strange joins I have to make to make it work that cause the difficulty, not to mention making sure I join on the right side. Since they are different colors, if I make a mistake I get those annoying color blips at the joins. At least it gave something to do that I hadn't done in a while.

It wasn't until late in the evening that I heard back from my large order. This one is to the same museum store that my last really big one was to that had the Steampunk show. It still hasn't been finalized, but I expect that some time today. So I'll just get a jump on those pieces. They've ordered multiples of several pieces so I have plenty that will need making in the next week. Of course that also means I will likely be quite boring in the coming days.

That's reminds me that I failed to remind you of something. Quite some time ago I was approached about adding a piece to a textile exhibit at the Denver Museum of Art. The exhibit opened yesterday called, Spun: Adventures in Textiles. I, of course will never get around to see it, but if that's your neck of the woods, I have a pair of barefoot sandals on display with their section on tatting that you can visit for me. I hope to get some picture from them soon and if I do I'll share. That's interesting right?

Finished

Guess what? I stayed on task yesterday. That's right, I did exactly what I said I would do. I tatted until I had both the new bracelet and the matching choker made up and then I read some Sherlock Holmes. I never did get around to any video game playing though.Just not enough hours in the day.

Right after schooling I worked up the final version of the pattern as a bracelet. I made a few changes from the prototype. I increased the stitch count on the upper chains and I added small joining picots for the bottom points. It may not look much different, but it's a bit longer and much sturdier. Since almost everything I make is meant to be worn, it's important that the design not only look good, but also that it can withstand that stretching and pulling well. The way those bottom points were before was fine for decoration, but the would have twisted around when worn without the added stability.

I stopped tatting just long enough to get the bracelet pressed and listed. Luckily this pattern repeats at just the right lengths that I was able to list it as being available in lengths of 6,7, and 8 inches. Right after I got this up I started on the choker version. I completed the tatting on that one as well, but I didn't bother putting the clasp on yet because I knew it wasn't going to get all the way to listed yesterday. I shall leave that task for today.

So today I'll finish up the choker and hopefully get it listed. The shop is going through another, hopefully short, dry spell, so getting new pieces in there is helpful to keep it looking fresh. Then I'm hoping to hear back from a potential order I got word from yesterday. If that happens I'll have more than plenty to do, otherwise I think I'll muck about in the vintage pattern books for inspiration again. Not that the shop 'needs' to be any fuller, but it either that or the video games. At least with the tatting I have something so show for the wasted time.

Chokers and Rings

Normally I don't notice anymore if a day goes by without a blog comment. I rarely or almost never comment on the blogs I read so I just don't expect it here at all either. The exception is when I've designed something new and I really hoped for feedback like yesterday. Now, don't get me wrong this isn't some sort of fishing for compliments expedition, just an observation. If I need to fish I stop by the Facebook page and beg for attention outright. I'm in a lovely mood really, so no need to complain, I was just a little surprised. Plus I have plenty more to show you.

First off I did get the new piece all done up and listed. I don't know if you can actually see the things I changed from the prototype, but I really like the way it turned out and it's a really comfortable length...for me anyway. It sits at the base of the neck with the slightest curve. It does take a bit longer to make than some of my other choker designs, but that's what happens when you go ornate with the scallops.

I had of course hoped that having a new piece to show off would attract customers and the shop did get more views than it has been getting, but no buyers. Again, I didn't let that get me down and I decided to go ahead and make something else new.

I was pretty well stuck under a cat at this point and I could only reach one supply box so I decided to get out a ring base and make something simple. Yes, I am aware that I could have thrown off the shackles of the lap cat at any time, but it was warm and that would have been mean. I had the purple and black thread out, so I made this ring while trapped. I didn't use any beads partly because of the entrapment and partly because I actually prefer plain lace most of the time. I like the occasional over the top embellishment, but I think the lace generally does fine on its own.

As soon as the oldest daughter saw the ring she had to have one too. She adores rings, but she is growing at what seems like an alarming rate, though I imagine it's pretty normal, and she outgrows her favorite rings too fast. This is an adjustable brass base, so she should be able to wear it for awhile. I wasn't sure I was going to bother listing it, but at this point, I'm thinking why not. They're pretty fast to make and since there are no embellishments, I can probably list them at a fairly low price. Yeah, I guess I'll do that today. Hopefully the day throws me some new sales to deal with or some more ideas to work with. Here's to a great day ahead! Simply thinking positive works right...right?

What's Old Is New

I just wanted to start off by thanking a few people who sent their comments on yesterday's rant straight to my inbox. There is nothing more important after a rant than a little 'here, here!' and I very much appreciate it. Alright then, on with it. It was actually a pretty short day for schooling as both of them had a few tests and they always knock those out fairly quickly...as long as I'm sitting next to them to prod them forward anyway. If I left my oldest alone with a math test, she'd take 4 hours to do it.

I finished up the new version of the old choker and got it listed as well. It really did turn out nicer than I expected. Perhaps it's time to take a good look at a lot of the pieces from my past. I'm starting to feel like I'm logging a lot of years of creations and I'm certain I can redo at least a few of them with lessons learned since then, not that I actually need more designs in the shop, it's already a giant labyrinthine mess.

I guess that brings us to today's plans. After schooling I still have one necklace to remake and I think a few more spiders to tat up and maybe I'll get a few more cat ears made up as well. They've made it into quite a few etsy treasury lists lately and I like to imagine that means they may someday grace the front page of the site which my imagination further supposes could lead to more sales of them. Did I mention the huge car repair bill? I know I did, I'm just being whiny like I warned you I would be.

I shall leave you with a picture of some of the new furniture we purchased some time ago, you know before we knew about the car stuff. It was all recently, finally, delivered. This is the new kitchen table with an advanced kitten shelf feature that replaces out 15 year old discount furniture store table which is now the school table. We also acquired some nice sitting room chairs also with hidden kitty shelf features underneath them and a coffee table that opens up for cat or child storage. The children have been warned not to actually store the cats in the table. We'll have to see how that goes. I wish you all a lovely weekend and here's to a busy shop and a creative burst of energy.

Third and Final

It seems I just can't win. I spend a week remaking things for the shop and my blog is boring. I come up with new designs and variations which gives me something to talk about and my blog posts are still boring. I'm starting to think that it's only external events that inspire interesting posts otherwise I'm just a giant ball of repetitive, 'what did you do today?'. Oh, that's not going to stop me from doing it though. It is far too much a part of my routine for me to stop with the daily blogging, boring or not.

Again I got everything done during the day that I wanted to despite schooling going past lunch time. First up, I finished and listed the third, and probably final variation of the most recent design. This time I added a clover to the top edge, dropped some picots along the way and beaded the whole thing with copper seed beads. It seems to have a more finished look with the top clover, but I really like all the versions so far. I also managed to get the bracelet that sold relisted and spent a little time tatting up spiders.

I was making spiders because I've decided to offer a few free with every purchase that mentions 'spiders' at checkout during October. We took our car in for a check up and wouldn't you know, it 'needed' things done...expensive things and I need to encourage some substantive sales to offset the cost. Honestly, there is just no way I can actually offset the cost with lace sales unless someone decided to buy one of my super fancy masks plus a bunch of other things, but I felt like I had to put in a little extra effort. I probably won't offer a coupon code though because we're getting close to the holiday season and I always do some kind of deal then, free shipping usually. I will however, probably start to get whiny about the lack of sales since I will be hyper-aware of them for the time being. So, I'm sorry about that in advance. I have no tasks in queue for today, so I have no idea what I'm going to get up to after schooling wraps. Maybe one of those external events will grace me with a visit. Oh, and remember, if you want a few free spiders, buy something in my etsy shop and mention 'spiders' at checkout.

Cathedral

Another fairly productive day, once schooling was over anyway. We had been racing through 3rd grade art and holding off on 4th grade history so we could start 4 grade art with the history class. This was at the recommendation of our teacher because the two courses reinforce each other. Yesterday we were ready to start, but in order to get caught back up with the two courses I need to double up on them for a few weeks so schooling is going to be a giant for the time being.

After all that though I actually did what I needed to and got the two new pieces photographed and listed. It's always harder to do that photography step when ones face is still suffering the ill effects of a massive, discoloring cold sore, but thanks to editing tools, I think I managed to eek by. I really love how the bracelet in particular turned out. I sits right over my hand all dramatically thus the cathedral name. I might even have to make one for myself. I very rarely bother since I don't go out all that much and I hate to waste the lace.

The choker looks nice too. The only drawback to it as a necklace is that it really needs to sit very close to your neck to look nice since it is such a straight design. The header row in the original pattern pulls the design into an arc, but without it, the piece is a rail. The one here is actually too big for me and the clasp is pulling it down in the back so it looks fine, but I figured out that if I use the adjustable clasps I can make it in two different sizes by using one less repeat, but that's it. Of course it will also sit differently without a center point.

Already the bracelet has found a home so I have one to remake this morning. Well more like this afternoon since schooling now owns my mornings, but as soon as I can anyway. I'm also working on a third version of the design, this time another choker in the shorter length in brown with copper beads and a few changes. Its a lot of beads since there are so many picots in the design, but I just used singles so it's still subtle. Hopefully I finish both of these tasks today, but in the 100º+ October weather I may just melt instead. Seriously this temperature is ridiculous, I need Autumn already. Now that that's out of my system, on with the day.

Earring To Necklace

It was a pretty rough Monday. That headache I woke up with was my constant companion even though I tried fairly hard to drug it away. Sure, I kept it at a dull roar so I could function, but it was still there and it is still here this morning. I'm not sure what I might have done or eaten to acquire it. Perhaps I was clenching my jaw in my sleep again, but whatever it was, it will not keep me from getting things done during the day. The world stops spinning for no one.

I had a couple of small pieces to remake in the morning and once those were done I tackled the idea that had come to me while I was remaking yet another pair of earrings. The earrings have been selling particularly well lately. Anyway, the necklace is basically the bottom half of them strung together with some stitch changes to get it to curve well. I actually finished and pressed it yesterday so I know it turned out like I wanted, but it was later in the day so I figured I'd wait until this morning to get photographs and get it listed.

So that's the first task for today, get this necklace listed and then it's back to the snowflake project until or unless something else comes along that needs doing. I'm still waiting on those beetle wings to finish the replacement necklace. I also really ought to make a supply order soon as I'm almost out of earrings findings not to mention several other small things. I've been putting an order off because sales still haven't picked up enough for me to have the cash surplus on hand I need to justify the order. The shop has been pretty consistent, but the orders have been relatively small and I'm always afraid that the second I spend money on supplies, the sales will dry up completely and bad things will happen. I'm an optimist like that, but I think I might have to bite the bullet anyway. Here's to a headache free day and getting things done.

Done With That

Let's see, I finished up the third piece born from messing with the hen and chicks pattern and I got all three listed. There reception has been lukewarm, but I needed to make some new things and I did. I was also thinking about making a slave bracelet as well, but given the lack of love for the design in general, I think it would be a mistake to toss yet another piece out so soon. Maybe as the holiday season gets underway and I need a creation break I'll get it created.

I was also lucky enough to get yet another etsy finds shout out. This time it was for Dia De Los Muertos. The link will take you to the web version of the email. Again, it was no great windfall of attention, but I'll take any I can get. After I ran my shop numbers for October I have to say that I am desperate for a fantastic November and December. October was absolutely dismal compared to last year.

I also got a custom request for my boutonniere in Christmas colors with matching earrings.  Since I took a picture of the prototype earring. I thought I'd share it here. I wasn't so sure it would work as an earring, but it seems to. I may get these made up for the shop, in more basic colors. No other great or interesting news for you and I think I've got a pretty good queue lined up of things that need tatting so I'll be busy today. Busy is good...busier, better.