More progress

I was fairly certain that the next step in my progress--after starting a blog and a business Facebook page--was to get a new digital camera that could take really good pictures.  I was also completely certain that this was going to have to wait for a while due to financial factors. 

We recently received in the mail one of those store flyers and I wasn't even going to look at it because, well, if I don't look then I don't see all these really lovely things that I "need".  While waiting for supper to cook one evening I just idly paged through the flyer to see just exactly was on sale right now.

I happened to end up in the electronics section and there was a fairly decent camera that claimed to have a super macro feature available.  And the camera was on sale for almost 50% off.  I looked at that and thought it would be a lovely next step and then promptly forgot about it because I was totally focused on the vet bill. 

As it turned out I ended up needing to go to Walla Walla Thursday.  (I am trying to limit my trips to Walla Walla to one a week.  For one, it saves me quite a bit on fuel not to drive around so much. And, two, if I'm not going into stores, I'm not spending money on things I don't need.)  Since we were already in town, I decided to run by the store that had the camera on special--mostly because I needed a new pair of flip-flops--and have a look at the camera.  It does have a lovely macro feature and I did end up getting it. 

I am now in the process of getting acquainted with my new camera.  Of course, they no longer come with SD cards, so I needed to pick up one of those also.  I ended up with a 16G memory card.  It just boggles my mind that I can get this little tiny memory card that has more memory on it than my entire antiquated computer.  Anyway, there will be pictures soon--of a variety of things...

Perception is Everything

 Perception really is everything!  Think about this--think about how long you think it takes to clean your house.  Now, how long does it actually take?  EVERYONE knows that housework is never-ending and takes FOREVER.  Well,  I've discovered it really doesn't.  I go home for lunch (shameful waste of gas, I know, but I need that break) and in the time it takes for my lunch to heat in the microwave I can have the dishwasher emptied.  Today while my lunch was baking--having blown up the microwave earlier this week--I swept the kitchen floor.  After lunch while waiting for my daughter to be ready to leave I swept the living room and put a load of laundry in the dryer. Actual time spent--probably less than ten minutes.

One of the reasons that I try not to worry is that it is extremely bad for my creative processes.  After I stopped worrying about having to decide if the cat should be put down, how we were going to pay the ensuing vet bill, and if we were going to be able to eat and pay the bills, I put together this pair of earrings.  They are called "Flights of Fancy".  I have had the butterflies for a while and the idea for some time.  These are mostly a prototype.  I'm checking them for wearability--marginal--they like to hang up on my clothes (wearing them with a hoodie might not be the best idea--a sleek little top would be better).  I'm trying to decide if I want to add more chains and maybe add some crystals.  I don't want them too heavy as they are very light right now.  Brightly colored feathers are another idea that I'm thinking about.  Of course, I want feathers from molting birds and not birds that are murdered for their feathers!

I also have to keep perception and perspective in mind when I design and make jewelry.  I have a tendency to constantly overestimate the time needed to complete a project.  One of the things I am going to do for myself is to start keeping a log of how much time I actually spent making a project.  This way the next time that I'm tempted to think a project takes too long or is too much work, I can look and see that oh, no, actually that entire project only took an hour...or two...or however many it actually took.

April Fool's

I have to say that the weekend finished up in a not-so-wonderful fashion.  I had great plans for getting a two week menu planned, so I could get groceries on payday.  I was also going to make cookies and do a little glass melting.  Instead I "wasted" my entire Sunday afternoon and my week's allotment of gas taking a cat to a vet that was not our usual vet.  One of the kitties had played tag with a car and gotten hit.  It looks like he will recover, but he has a broken leg and his pelvis was broken in three places.  I shudder to think of the final vet bill.  We've already paid almost $600 for this cat (yeah, yeah, I KNOW a bullet is cheaper!).

This brings me to a topic that I have long thought about.  I am an extremely talented worrier.  I can and do worry about all sorts of things, at all sorts of inconvenient times--like 3:00 a.m...For those of you whose faith is other than Christian, I apologize in advance, because I am looking at this subject from a strictly Christian slant.  I know that worrying is not good.  In Jesus' sermon in Matthew (Matthew 6:  25-34) He addresses the issue of worry.  He says that we are not to worry about ANYTHING.  But He doesn't leave it there:  not only are we not to worry, but we are to seek the kingdom of God first.

This is the question that I ponder almost constantly:  How does one go about seeking the kingdom of God first and how does one stop worrying?? 

Weekend Nonsense

This week I'm convinced that we got our entire quota of rain for the year all at once.  Not one day did we have this spring break without rain.  The up-side is that my studio is all painted except for the baseboards which are still sitting in a pile waiting to be cut to size.  I've started to move some of my things in.  I had a desk in there that was completely empty, so I have been busily filling it with all my sewing paraphenalia.  I'm so very delighted because I have not really had a convenient sewing spot since we've moved into our current home.

Although my studio is supposed to be a cat-free zone, I still managed to have four of them sleeping on the chair that sits in the corner.  They will be summarily banished when the torch is moved in and is being used.  No more barbecued kitties for me!

I'm hoping to get my glass set-up moved in over the weekend.  I haven't lit the torch in a few days and I'm beginning to suffer withdrawals.  Besides I have an idea for a new necklace that MUST be made.

Spring Break

 I am "privileged" to enjoy a weeklong unpaid vacation.  Although some relaxation is in order, I have made myself a to-do list covering a multitude of projects.  I don't want to come to the end of spring break and wish that I had used my time more wisely.

Among one of my projects to be finished is this necklace.  It is for a friend with a birthday coming soon.  My current dilemma to solve is how to package it for mailing so that the indiviual chains don't become tangled during shipping. 

Other things on the to-do list include completing the painting of the new studio--almost all done--and researching what needs to be done to open up the new coffee shop that I am contemplating.  I have been researching prices on equipment and saw a man about space just last evening.

Progress

Yesterday I down-loaded and printed the form to use to send to Beads of Courage.  This was the last thing on my to-do list that I had started earlier this year in an attempt to be more productive.  So...to date I have started a blog (oh, my), gotten my business Facebook page up and functioning (complete with pictures), I have gotten my first business cards (and handed out at least a third of them), and I am now ready to send off some beads to Beads of Courage.  Next...

I will be starting another to-do list soon.  I have a bunch of lampwork tutorials that I want to make and I still have to get my studio finished and moved into.  Moving into a studio with a closing door will make a big difference.

On the business end of things, I will be researching a new camera, laptop, and etsy.  Completely random and off topic--did you know that a commercial espresso machine sells for between $6,000-$8,000?  In a fit of never-failing optimism, I'm researching opening a coffee shop in town...

Emerald Hearts and Creativity

 This is one of my latest pairs of earrings.  I was actually quite happy with how they photographed.  The sparkly dichroic glass is visible in the picture--although not quite as sparkly as it really is.

I used to make silk flower arrangements for a local store years ago. After making arrangements for some time, I discovered that my creative inspiration would disappear.  I found this very disturbing both because the store needed me to reliably produce attractive arrangements and because my income depended on it.

When I began to make jewelry and then lampwork beads and also sell what I made, I worried that my inspiration would leave me.  And sometimes it does.  The best way I have discovered to counteract this is to do three things.  First I make something for myself.  Then I make something to give away.  And I make something for sale.  If I can manage to do all three of these I usually have more than enough inspiration (or I can revisit something I've done before).  I have the most difficulty remembering to make something for myself and I can always tell when it has been a while since I've made myself a new piece of jewelry.  That is always when it becomes hard to be motivated to finish filling my orders.  Somehow it seems so self-indulgent to just sit down and make a project for me.  I'm trying to change how I look at my own projects and view them as advertising--and not as something self-centered.  I still have a way to go...