tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-230366872023-11-16T11:37:01.902-05:00Bead InspiredBead Inspired pretty much says it all... I'm constantly inspired by bead weavers & bead looming artists. There's so much that I see and thoughts go through my mind as to what I can do to create something like it, but quite differently. I am into all sorts of fibre arts that include bookmaking, book-binding, papermaking, casting, thread art, non-traditional quilts to woven tapestries. All of us artist are very simply inspired to do what they do by whatever inspires the mind, the body & the soul.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.comBlogger29125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-88664252891782528482008-10-28T01:06:00.005-04:002008-10-28T02:44:50.226-04:00Busy, Busy, Busy....I cannot believe it's been since June since I've posted. Time just whizzes by and before you know it, it's nearly winter (which I despise). <br /><br />Health-wise, I'm doing much better. I will soon have an MRI appointment for my right arm and neck. I have had bursitis on my right shoulder for years. This year I've had a combined total of four cortisone shots. I was so beyond bummed that none of the shots worked and it usually works very well. Right now it's so bad that I cannot even lift my hand up to my ear without experiencing blinding, sharp, piercing pain. I baby my shoulder so as not to aggravate it further more. Hopefully my doctor will find with the MRI readings something and treat it. I'm absolutely terrified of having any surgeries done on the shoulder. My hands, my arms, shoulders are my life. The thought of not being able to use my hands, arms, shoulder does scare me. We'll see what happens when I know more. I will report it so you know. <br /><br />I have decided it was high time I get a job! I'm working part time for the time being and absolutely </span> <span style="font-style:italic;">love</span> my job! I've been working since 28 of August. It is a challenging job to say the very least. However, with a very cool head, sharp & very alert eyes and especially being way ahead on wits, things are fine. I work in a 'host' home. A Host home is a residential home with 1 to 2 residents who cannot live independently. A Group home is 2 or more residents in a home. Currently at this time we have just one resident in the house. I thoroughly enjoy working with the resident and with the employees. It's a lot of fun. Then again, there are times when the resident's behavior changes that can be very challenging. However, all in all, it's a lot of fun for the most part! <br />The major drawback to working is that I want to work a lot more hours and right now I am not able to work more hours because I'm what they call a "PRN" It basically means if a full time staff isn't able to show up to work, they'll ask one of us "PRN's" to work. There is a drawback to this. You cannot work full time like the staff who are working full-time can. I am going to wait a while to see how long I'm going to remain a PRN before I make any decisions. It's very important that I work now that we have to take care of two homes. <br /><br />My husband as most know was relocated to Atlanta, GA due to a job relocation back in 1996. The place my husband worked at has permanently shut its doors with the last day being 26 of September. To our unbelievable surprise, exactly 4 days after my husband & I made the final decision as to where the best decision to relocate, we received notification via Fed-Ex that my husband has been hired to work where it was our first choice! That is quite unusual! We at least had two-weeks at our house in Atlanta to get things done around the house and what not. My husband & I left Atlanta October 9 and spent the night at a hotel I think in Columbus, Ohio. We then left the following morning and drove up to the far Northeast of Ohio. We saw just one apartment that we liked and moved in Monday, October 13. It was quite instantaneous! Currently I'm still in Ohio. I've been out here 2 weeks now and should be flying back home sometime next week. <br />We really like the people we've met thus far. Even though it's an extremely small town, the people we've met couldn't be any nicer. The weather up here is absolutely bitter cold and that's something we are not at all used to. I do not own a single jacket and out here, a jacket is an absolute must. Because I won't be out here every day, I've decided that a jacket just isn't worth it. I miss the warm weather and look forward to returning to the warmer weather. We're supposed to get upwards of 3" of snow. I'll believe it when I see it. I remember when we lived in NY when the meteorologist said it would snow and it didn't! I rarely believe meteorologists. What I see on the news in terms of the weather, I pretty much come to my own conclusions and that's that. However, as far as snow goes, I will truly have to see it to believe it. I just don't like the cold one bit. I don't like how it gets right through you and it hurts everywhere. I really shouldn't complain! I'm so very grateful that my husband is working. <br />It does disturb me that so many people are out of a job. It really does disturb me. I can't even think about the fact many of our hard working Americans cannot even collect enough money to make ends meet. It's very difficult. My heart really does break for our Americans. I'm sure it's just not our Americans who are suffering the extreme downfall of economic times... Our allies, Australia, Europe, etc are suffering just as well. I'll tell ya, I truly cannot wait until election day arrives. I really can't! It's unthinkable that we even have to be in a state of a recession. The hardest part is a lot of children and even adolescents simply cannot grasp the enormity of what's going on and yet what they want, they want. I hope this is a time for when parents can really sit down with their child and say look.... things aren't looking good in America and elsewhere financially. There's a difference between Want and Need. I always used to ask our children when they came to us with something they asked us to buy for them. I used to ask them is the item a want item or is a need item? They would then have to explain why such and such item is a want (or) need item then my husband and I would think about it and either get the item or hold off for a while and get it at another time. It always worked with our children who are now young adults in their 20's. <br /><br />As far as beading goes... boy I've been beading here and there and in between, if you know how that goes! However, since I've been in Ohio, I haven't beaded once. When I sit down to bead, something comes up that I have to do. It never fails. I guarantee you one of these days I am going to find myself a nice cabin out in the middle of nowhere or even right on the beach where I'm guaranteed no one can bother me, and just bead to my hearts' content. I would like to do this for two to three weeks and then go back to society! lol. I'm quite serious about this though. It's just next to impossible to sit down and bead. During the time when I am getting everything set up, no one bothers me at all.... however just when I'm sitting down, how is it that whoever comes to me knows I'm just about to bead? Does this happen to you? By the end of the day I see my work neatly spread out but am so discouraged that I have to clean things up and try again the next day or so. It's maddening sometimes. Seriously it is! <br /><br />I've taken a couple of classes at a different place and really enjoy this place. I have had no trouble understanding instructions and the instructors themselves. It's been really nice! A very dear, close friend of mine has been giving me instructions over emails and that I have to admit has been my personal favourite of mine. <br /><br />Currently I have several almost completed projects. A couple that will take me a while to complete. And one that I will complete whenever the mood strikes. <br /><br />I just cannot believe how very busy the end of the summer up until now has been so very busy. Now that my husband is living in Ohio and I'm living in Atlanta, it's going to be extremely different for all of us. We'll have a lot more bills to pay, a lot of flying back and forth and sometimes I'll be driving out to Ohio so our labs can see 'daddy'! All of this will take getting used to for a while. I believe in a few months or so, it will be quite difficult for me to travel out because of the snow.... I've lived up north over 32+ years and used to ski all those years and lived for the snow... drove in snow, etc... However since my illness, the cold does hurt and really aggravates a lot of the symptoms that I have. We'll see whether or not it'll be a doable thing for me to drive out to the far north east of Ohio... <br /><br />Well.... it's been a long time since I've been up this late... I'm a night owl but not the past few weeks or so... I'm normally out like a light anywhere from 9 to 10... The moment I learned we can 'move' the laptop to where I am right now has me quite happy! I'm still trying to learn how to use this computer since it's so new. It's nice though! Smile...<br /><br />I'll try my very best to post more often and when I can, I will post pictures once I figure out how to do that. I cannot figure out how to create a layout that I want. I do not want to use the layout that I currently have. However, for the time being, I simply have no choice whatsoever. I'll take what I've got! No complaints! <br /><br />Till then my friends.... Keep smiling.....Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-77376591329835706822008-06-04T01:57:00.001-04:002008-06-04T02:01:11.319-04:00Long time, no speak...<span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">Hello my friends... It's been a long time since I've added anything to the blog... things should soon start changing though. I haven't been beading for quite a long time. Whatever I do bead, it's for a very brief period of time. I am just so easily wiped out. My latest test results show that I'm in remission which is excellent news! I am finishing my last dosages of chemotherapy Thursday 5th of June! You can guarantee I'll be celebrating that! Walking down stairs and then walking back upstairs to me is like having been in a marathon. I'm told I should start feeling better once I'm finished with chemotherapy. Let's hope so! I am noticing my hair is growing back... I have no idea how long it'll take for me to have a head full of hair so that I will not have to wear my biker's cap. </span><br /><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I'm currently working on a project that is by <a href="http://sandfibers.blogspot.com/">Carol Dean Sharpe</a>... she is an incredible bead artist. I have always admired her work and imagine my extreme delight as well as excitement when I found her in <a href="http://www.stepbystepbeads.com/sbsbeads/">Step By Step Beads</a> magazine... not just one issue, but in three issues thus far. I think she's going to have another project again for the July/August magazine. I absolutely detest Southwestern zigzag designs... I have never liked such designs. My husband loves that design as does our youngest daughter, Nicole who will be 21 on the 25th. Carol has a Southwestern zigzag or abstract peyote pattern in the March/April 2008 Vol. 6, NO 2 issue on page 39. I swore I would not make a bracelet like that. Well was I ever wrong! Nicole out of the blue decided to get her wrist, (yes the top of her left wrist) tattooed. Why on earth she decided to do that, I'll never know. She has to have it covered whenever she works. Her sister warned her not to get it on her wrist but what can you tell them at that age? They're gonna do what they're gonna do with or without our blessings. Well... the tattoo isn't small like she said it was going to be... it's a little over 2 inches in width... so I have to make her a bracelet so she won't have to wear her "Heads" sweats wrist band all the time. </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">I copied the pattern and put it behind a peyote graph but it ended up confusing me even more so... the cuffs that Carol makes is absolutely perfect in width for me, but for my daughter, I have to make the cuff wider so her tattoo cannot be seen on the job and when she's interpreting which is a major distraction. I have never used a graph before and am trying to figure out how to make the cuff wider and keep the design neat. I thought about doing a mirror image but it will look awful eventually. I haven't purchased the <a href="http://beadtool.net/">Bead Tool</a> program. I know purchasing that program will be a huge help. I wouldn't even be able to use the pattern on the program without the designer's permission, in this case, <a href="http://sandfibers.blogspot.com/">Carol Dean Sharpe</a>. I need to make it at least 47mm or maximum of 2 inches in width. The length is something anyone can do... What I think I'll do is email the designer of the pattern and ask her if she has a program to extend the design of the pattern to the width I need. Or I'll ask her if I could please have her permission to play with the same design after I purchase Bead Tool and go with the width I need. I just hope <a href="http://beadtool.net/">Bead Tool</a> won't be all that difficult. I cannot believe how swiss-cheesed brain I am over this one little thing. I keep thinking if I make the 2" width with extended zigzags, it's going to look wicked, busy and just tacky... The whole design is just one I don't like at all. I'm very much into spirals, circles and anything with soft edges... nothing rough, cut, sharp, harsh lines, harsh edges... I'm going to be using different colours. After I make her this bracelet, I'll make different designs. </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">There is another pattern that I actually like that Carol designed... it's in <a href="http://www.stepbystepbeads.com/sbsbeads/">Step By Step Beads</a> Vol. 6, NO. 3 on pages 20 - 21. It's a nice, lovely design and much softer. I've never done a 3-drop peyote stitch before... so it'll be nice to do this after I complete the bracelet cuff for Nicole. The spirals, dots and whatnot is being saved for another time. I don't want to get ahead of myself too much and then end up having UFO's all over the place. I've got several UFO's around the house... I'm so desperate to complete just one thing but must pay an additional 'lovely' $45 to a teacher who taught the stitch... I cannot for the life of me figure out what I did wrong and I just cannot justify having to pay $45 just to ask her to look at it to tell me what I did wrong... There's a place further out north east that automatically help anyone for free so I'll bring it there when I'm feeling up to it and see if someone can figure what I did wrong and get me back to where I need to be so I can finish it. It's the one piece I'm so anxious to finish because of the colours. I absolutely the bracelet but not the way it is right now. It's in front of me and every single time I look at it, it frustrates me because I cannot figure it out. Soon I'll have it taken cared of and I'll be wearing it proudly! </span><br /><span style="font-family:trebuchet ms;">For those of you who are not familiar with <a href="http://sandfibers.blogspot.com/">Carol Dean Sharpe</a>'s work, please do visit her at her blog and also at her <a href="http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=25439">Etsy</a> site. You'll see right away why I like her work very much. I especially like her personality... always positive and happy.<br />If I have Carol's permission, I will share my photos of the work in progress using her design. The only change that will appear is that it will be much wider than the cuff shown in her pattern. I personally like her size as I'm not big on wide bracelets... (I may accept some depending what it is)... Now if I do not have Carol's permission to share my work in progress, I am not going to do that. I will only show the final-finished piece. First I've got to figure out how to enlargen the piece & still make it look nice.<br />I am sincerely looking so very much forward to coming back with photos and whatnot! I miss blogging. </span></span>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-44810914488311335822008-03-17T20:22:00.002-04:002008-03-17T23:08:45.117-04:00It's been quite a while...<span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 204);"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">It's been quite some time since I've posted anything on the blog. I haven't been on the computer much at all. When I do log onto the computer, it's just to download email w/o reading it and go back to sleep. I'm still on chemotherapy (Cytoxan)... Now I'm on anywhere from 150 to 100mg. For a while my WBC count was out of control. In December it was I think 2.0, then it went to 2.6 but after that, things took a turn for the worse. I was not able to ward off such extreme fatigue and besides that I was constantly getting sick. The doctors thought I may have had another pancreatic attack... turns out it wasn't that! Thank Goddess for that. It turns out it was gastritis. My WBC even though it was dangerously low at 2.6 at the time I was admitted dropped much lower to 1.1. At least my stay in the hospital was only several days compared to a couple of weeks prior to this recent illness.<br />I do sleep an awful lot. I'm just constantly tired. There are times when I sleep a couple of days straight without getting up. I'm just constantly exhausted. Lately I have been doing everything in my power to literally force myself to pull myself together. I still have a lot of trouble doing much of anything. I will always have a lot of pain no matter what I do. But at this time, doing anything that requires energy on my part is all that it takes to wipe me out a lot longer than usual. I have to have a lot of blood work done. I cannot have blood work done via the port or PIC line anymore. I kept having infections. So it's right back to the constant prodding, poking, over and over until a successful vein cooperates and blood is finally drawn. Today is the first day since January that my lab results showed my WBC is at 2.2! It's about time! I am quite anxious to get my energy back. I have to work on several other things that are very low in count.<br />When I am alert I bead whatever project I'm in the mood to work on... I of course read everything there is to about bead techniques and whatnot... I'm constantly fascinated with everything there is in regards to the topic of beadweaving, loomweaving, embroidery beading... I've been reading a lot about R.A.W (Right Angle Weave) and like so many other techniques, want to give that a try. I have been doing a bit of beading using the Ndebele technique, Herringbone technique and in conjunction I use the ladder & brick stitch with that as well as the peyote stitch which I almost forgot to mention. I am interested in seeing what I can do that is typically not done by beaders. I'm just one of those who do not like repetitions. The more unique the better for me. I just like art you are familiar with but just using it quite differently. It's a lot like David Chatt, he stands apart from the rest of the bead artist due to his style and his sculptures... He's an awesome inspiration to me. If he doesn't inspire you then I don't know who does. He truly fascinates me. Not to get off tangent, it was quite interesting reading about his travels overseas. I would be unbelievably honored to learn from David Chatt one of these days! Another artist that intrigues me is Margie Deeb. Her knowledge when it comes to colours just blows me away. I personally don't bead or do pretty much anything else without reviewing her book text-decoration:underline; "The Beader's Guide to Color". I am looking forward to her new book that's coming out in June. I could always use help when it comes to colours as I'm colour-challenged if that makes any sense. I even bring a small colour wheel everywhere I go. Sometimes I'll see something that will become an instant inspiration for something I want to do in regards to beading or other form of art... the colour wheel comes in incredibly handy when I'm jotting everything down... I might see rocks & stones strewn about... I'll take pictures of it and if I really like it, I'll start playing around with the hundreds upon hundreds colours of seed beads I have and colour the rocks and stones, etc and just keep at it until I come up with what I like. I tend to put my work down for quite a while and go back to it. I don't like jumping into something at the drop of a hat. I want to make sure I'm satisfied with the colours & the layout of the way I want the art piece to come out. More often than not, the work ends up surprising me because it comes out differently than I had in mind. That to me makes art all the more fun and certainly interesting! <br />When I have some free time, I would like to figure out how to make this blog a bit more presentable and personal rather than having someone else's layouts and whatnot. I especially want to figure out how to post pictures at specific areas of the blog. I'm a bit slow when it comes to learning how to do websites and whatnot. Technology in this sense isn't my forte! Nonetheless, I enjoy learning new things every day! <br />I will do the best I can to post a little more often. I wish you continued good health & much happiness always.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-37649007451503308052007-12-16T23:42:00.000-05:002007-12-16T23:55:33.890-05:00New lab results<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">I finally received my latest lab results on Thursday, December 13. My WBC count went up to 3.2 which of course is still low but excellent results! It still proves that I am not capable of fighting off infections. The best news is that Cytoxan has been working wonder for my lupus ANA count and the NEW count is believe it or not, down to 751! How good is that?!! From a count of mid 3000's, down to 2000's, to the thousands then the end of November it went from mid thousands to 937 to 751 in just TWO WEEKS! I can't ask for anything better than that! The doctor doesn't want to take me off of chemotherapy because things seem to be going in my favor. I do have to watch for my WBC, RDW, Neutrophils, lymphs, etc because the numbers have changed dramatically. So we'll see what the new results show in TWO WEEKS! I'm stoked I won't have to go through more needles just to find a vein for quite a while! It's a terrific two weeks I'm looking very much forward to!<br /><br />I'll write in another post how all of this has affected me... especially at this time with feeling 'blah' .... or just ah... I'm trying to think of a proper word to use here... 'out there' or even better, out of sorts... if that makes any sense. Whether it makes sense or not is not important. It just makes sense to me!<br /></span>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-23897057066262564292007-12-07T05:35:00.000-05:002007-12-07T07:03:07.055-05:00Incorrect information...<span style="font-size:85%;"><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">Hello! It was my daughter, Kiersten's 22nd birthday yesterday, December 6th! My husband & I just cannot believe she's already 22! We can remember the number of times when they were little how we used to discuss the fact we cannot imagine them being teenagers, let alone adults! Time just flies.<br />In as much as we miss the innocent days when the girls were just wee ones to their teenage years.... I have to admit it's quite nice now that they are adults. They are living here at home with us and it has been just fabulous having them home with us. When they were on their own for the time they weren't here, it was really good for them to learn just how rough it can be to manage all sorts of bills, auto gas, entertainment and whatnot! Now that they are living at home, they don't pay rent or anything.... (that will soon change though!).... I do want to say that they do pay "their" bills that have nothing to do with the house and food. However we'll let them have their financial 'freedom' a while longer! (EG).... seriously, they need to start contributing because there are times we certainly feel they have too much fun with what they can readily have on hand that they wouldn't be able to have if they were still on their own. Doesn't that sound familiar?!!! We are just so grateful they are very good young ladies. Thank Goddess they aren't into drugs or any other "inappropriate" behaviors that could spell trouble for them. They are truly well mannered, polite young ladies. Our relationship is just beautiful! We are very fortunate. I will definitely say I am so <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">GLAD</span> their teenage years are behind us! Ugh! I think teenagers are worse than two-year olds! Oy! I do not miss their outbursts at all! I never will miss it! lol!<br />We thought having 4 adults in the house (3 women, 1 Gentleman) would be challenging to say the least. Boy were we wrong! It's been just fantastic! We are enjoying the girls as long as they are at home with us. We know we are going to experience empty nest syndrome soon. We are enjoying and certainly appreciating as well as respecting one another. In spite of mistakes which is all quite normal, it is truly special to watch our daughters become even finer young women. :-)<br /><br />Yesterday I stopped at my doctors' office to pick up several things. One of them was my lab report. When my doctor called me a week ago, he told us that my WBC was too high at 13 thousand. We had no idea what the normal WBC ranges were. The doctor mentioned to me if my count goes to a level that doesn't improve, even by 5 counts, he's going to have no choice but to terminate my chemotherapy treatment. This terrifies me a great deal. For the very <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">FIRST </span>time in almost 3 years now, My ANA count is <span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">FINALLY </span>under the 1000 mark! Believe me I know this is dangerously high of a count but when you deal with ANA constantly climbing AND climbing, all you can think of is how much longer do I have before I am no longer here. I am totally not ready to leave mother earth. I have far too much to live for! When you have a life altering illness, believe me, life flashes right before your eyes. Everything you knew, everything you once thought all become a memory. Everything you see, everything you hear, everything you consume is far more precious and truly appreciated.<br />Back to my lab work.... My WBC count is NOT 13,000! I think the interpreter who handled my VCO call might have misunderstood the doctor. My doctor can talk as if he has a mouthful of marbles sometimes. My WBC is too low. The lab work was done on the 28th of November. I received the doctors' call on the 29th. I was very surprised the lab work was done so quickly. I thought I would hear from the doctor sometime earlier this week. Anyhow, my WBC is 2.8. Reference Interval is between 4.0 ~ 10.5. I asked what is the difference between a low WBC (White Blood Cell) count and a high WBC... low WBC simply indicates that the body is unable to fight infections. High WBC indicates (if I remember correctly... please correct me if I'm wrong) that the body has an infection. The nurse did mention to me that chemotherapy can frequently lower one's WBC.<br />Under the test of CBC With Differential/Platelet, my WBC is low, RDW is high, Neutrophils is high and Lymphs (Absolute) is low. The nurses were trying to find out what RDW is but nothing showed up in the reference books. I also have no clue what the others mean. I'll have to research it later on.<br />My Comp. Metabolic Panel (14) shows that my Alkaline Phosphatase is very high, AST (SGOT) is high, and ALT (SGPT) is also high.<br />My protein is positive whatever that means.<br />My ANA (Antinuclear Antibodies Direct) count of course is high. (Normal count is 100 to 120).... BUT, BUT and a big BUT.... this is EXCELLENT news for all of us... It's at 937!!!!! Believe me, I've been doing the happy dance the entire week!<br />I really started to worry a great deal last year in the spring of 2006 when nothing was working. How much chemotherapy can the body take after so long?! My ANA count just kept climbing higher and higher and finally I had a break from chemo the end of September & October of 2006 which is when I was hit with pancreatitis and hospitalized several weeks. Believe me, pancreatitis is no fun. The doctors didn't want me to start chemotherapy for a while for fear I might have another flareup of pancreatitis... during the time I was free of treatments for lupus, my ANA count was spiraling totally out of control.<br />My doctor said he wanted for me to have my blood work done which I had done yesterday... I am quite honestly very nervous about the results. I am very nervous if my WBC dropped any lower, then I'm truly done for in terms of chemotherapy. I have no clue what else will help control my ANA count. I have been trying to put a very positive front on this with my husband who is an absolute saint (I'm dead serious, he's an absolute saint!) and my daughters because I really don't think they need to know just how unbelievably nervous I am of the results. I've been thinking (which can be a dangerous thing with me sometimes!!!!) if cytoxan ends up being ceased, could I go back to methoextratate and just deal with the side effects? I had enormous pain from methoextratate....<br />Even though I lost all of my hair with Cytoxan, I did well most of the time... but became quite ill the past weekend and still feel quite ill... I am constantly nauseous and back to 'living' in the bathroom. I went to the doctor's yesterday to pick up some stuff... the ride there was torture... I just wanted a bathroom very close by... yesterday certainly was a rough day... I am currently feeling very nauseous and have taken Zofran which to my absolute, complete surprise is not even helping. Zofran normally helps me instantly. I don't know why it isn't helping me now. The nurse did mention that it is normal after being on Cytoxan over a period of time to start feeling this way. She said not to be surprised if it gets worse. Just what I need to hear. I don't want another sick Christmas. I'll never forget how sick I was from chemotherapy in 2002. Never again. Or at least I thought. We'll see how things go. I will post an update when I find out the newest lab results. I am hoping my WBC has at least improved. BTW, when I was out yesterday, I wore my surgical mask without taking it off. In as uncomfortable as it is, I wouldn't risk removing it at all. I am a little paranoid with viral germs right now simply for the fear if I do get whatever viral germ it is, I may not be strong enough to fight it off. So... the surgical mask has to be worn to avoid any illnesses. I really can't afford that at all.<br />Will keep you posted when I find out what the new lab results are.... two things... hope for improvement in WBC count and more of a drop in my ANA count!<br /><br /><br /></span></span>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-8524461561824943882007-12-02T03:18:00.000-05:002007-12-02T03:45:54.885-05:00One more post... "Goodbyes"<span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">(I wrote a new blog underneath this song).</span><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">This song is extremely personal to me. I can't imagine and don't want to imagine any women having to experience what I've experienced. My experience is what made me into who I am today. However for those of you who may have not heard of this song by Celine Dion, please read the lyrics. It says everything & more than I could ever say. </span><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;">"Goodbye's (The Saddest Word)"</span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: trebuchet ms;font-family:Verdana;font-size:180%;" ><span style="font-size:85%;"> Mamma<br />You gave life to me<br />Turned a baby into a lady<br /><br />Mamma<br />All you had to offer<br />Was the promise of a lifetime of love<br /><br />Now I know<br />There is no other<br />Love like a mother's love for her child<br /><br />And I know<br />A love so complete<br />Someday must leave<br />Must say goodbye<br /><br />Goodbye's the saddest word I'll ever hear<br />Goodbye's the last time I will hold you near<br />Someday you'll say that word and I will cry<br />It'll break my heart to hear you say goodbye<br /><br />Mamma<br />You gave love to me<br />Turned a young one into a woman<br /><br />Mamma<br />All I ever needed<br />Was a guarantee of you loving me<br /><br />'Cause I know<br />There is no other<br />Love like a mother's love for her child<br /><br />And it hurts so<br />That something so strong<br />Someday will be gone, must say goodbye<br /><br />Goodbye's the saddest word I'll ever hear<br />Goodbye's the last time I will hold you near<br />Someday you'll say that word and I will cry<br />It'll break my heart to hear you say goodbye<br /><br />But the love you gave me will always live<br />You'll always be there every time I fall<br />You are to me the greatest love of all<br />You take my weakness and you make me strong<br />And I will always love you 'til forever comes<br /><br />And when you need me<br />I'll be there for you always<br />I'll be there your whole life through<br />I'll be there this I promise you, Mamma<br /><br />Mamma, I'll be<br />I'll be your beacon through the darkest nights<br />I'll be the wings that guide your broken flight<br />I'll be your shelter through the raging storm<br />And I will love you 'till forever comes<br /><br />Goodbye's the saddest word I'll ever hear<br />Goodbye's the last time I will hold you near<br />Someday you'll say that word and I will cry<br />It'll break my heart to hear you say goodbye<br /><br />'Till we meet again...<br />Until then...<br />Goodbye</span></span><br /></div>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-17625535822770406542007-12-02T01:59:00.000-05:002007-12-02T03:17:53.963-05:00Time flies....It's been more than a couple of months since I've posted. I wanted to keep things very quiet until we had more information, options and whatnot. It's been a while things have changed and it's now time I'm ready to let the cat out of the bag if you will. <br />As many of you know, I have Lupus that pretty much affect every organ and especially my joints. I often wonder if I have early stages of Alzheimer's because my memory (short term) toys with me every now and then. However, it's not Alzheimer's. Thank Goddess for that! That's been officially ruled out. Although lupus is NOT known to affect the pancreas, it affects my pancreas which is indeed quite rare. I must watch what I eat. I don't ever wish pancreatitis on anyone. It's the most painful feeling to go through. You know if you have this, you are living in the hospital for quite some time. <br />My lupus flare-up started of course when I had pancreatitis last year in September through October. My ANA (Anti Nuclear Antibody) count just kept creeping up month after month to the point I was close to the 3000 range. I was very apprehensive about starting chemotherapy all over again. I mentally knew that I was just not physically strong enough to go through what I went through a few years ago with chemo. It was as bad as it can get as those of you who go through or went through chemo know. The doctors mentioned to me in August if I do not cooperate and start a 'different' chemotherapy treatment, they can take me to court. I wanted no part of that. I started methoextratate September 5th with absolutely no ill side effects of any kind. I didn't even lose my hair! Unfortunately blood tests constantly showed my ANA count kept creeping up and now to the mid 3000 count. For those of you wondering what the normal ANA count should be, it's 100 to 120. It is common for those afflicted with Lupus to have a much higher ANA count. However having a count even in the thousands is quite dangerous and can be fatal. The doctors terminated treatment of methoextratate on October 29th. On October 30th, they started me on Cytoxan. Cytoxan is another chemotherapy drug. I do have side effects from this chemotherapy which I'm still on.... complete loss of hair, extreme and I mean extreme exhaustion, always tired. I sleep all day long, sometimes two to three days in a row. In as much as I want to get myself out of bed, I'm knocked out again. I just don't fight it anymore. I just go with the flow. <br />I had my first 'late' blood test November 28 and received a call from my doctor November 29th.... I was very disappointed to learn my WBC (White Blood Cell) count is over 13,000 which is way too high. What this means is I basically have no ability to fight off infections. On the plus side, my ANA count for the first time in months and months is 996! It's about time it went below the 1000 mark! The doctor said he's no longer concerned about my ANA count but far more concerned with my WBC count. He wants me to continue with Cytoxan for the rest of the week and have a blood test next week. We'll see if my WBC count went down or went up. I'll be so disappointed if my WBC goes any higher. It's the first time the doctors finally found 'the' medication that actually lowered my ANA count. I have been wearing my surgical mask everywhere I go. I'm not at all sure why it even went up. I do not wear my surgical mask at home, when I go to the mailbox and when I need to bring my daughter to/from work or wherever. I stay in my vehicle and just come straight home. Maybe it's because of that... I have no idea. I have always known I've never been very good at fighting off infections but this count is just too high and too dangerous. I'm thinking positive though. That's all that I can do! <br /><br />My 20 year old daughter had a very bad fall at a food store which caused her to have herniated disks in L4, L5, 5,1 (whatever that means).... She had two treatments directly in the disks and after that she had 2 months of 3 to 4 times a week intensive physical therapy. Towards the last few weeks of PT, things started to take a turn for the worse. She was experiencing electrical jolts, unexpected violent left hip to toe spasms... we went back to the specialist and he said he's not going to give her anymore injections because she's just going to have the same problem once the medication wears off. We went to the Neurological Surgeon with all medical records in hand as well as her MRI films.... it was quite apparent the damage from the fall was quite astronomical. She had her surgery November 27th (Tuesday)... I spent the night with her at the hospital.... it was just incredibly difficult to see your child (she's an adult but to me, she's my baby) in pain that's indescribable. It's officially Sunday at this time... yesterday I removed the gauze, etc... the cut is certainly not a simple 2 inches like the doctor stated. Oh no! I was incredibly surprised to see how invasive the cut was. I used to have the stomach to watch surgeries on television so as long as it never involved plastic surgery and liposuction... ugh! ... anyhow... I just no longer have the stomach for any of that stuff. It's especially different when it's your child. She'll have the stitches in for 2 weeks.... she's walking a little better each day... she walks downstairs (13 steps) so she can go outside for fresh air and then come back in and back to bed to lie down and watch television. She's very bored. They are very young and want to be anywhere but home! Believe me I know how she feels. The plus side to all of this is that several friends come to the house and spend several hours with her so that's always nice. <br /><br />It was my birthday yesterday (well.... Friday).... I'm still thinking it's Saturday, when it's really Sunday right now... It was a terrific day for me! My oldest daughter (she'll be 22 on the 6th of December!).... however, she made me breakfast which was just so sweet of her to do! She made dinner... originally she was going to do a rump roast but it was taken out of the garage freezer a bit too late in the day... so we'll have that for dinner tonight. Instead we just had taco's which was just delicious! She made the most unusual and gorgeous card for me... she made oh goodness I can't quite tell... but numerous pieces of origami which she absolutely loves... she made many of them and glued them onto the front of the card and wrote inside of the card. I love the card so much! She also knows how much I love listening to Seal's music and Fergie's music and got me those CD's. That's what I listened to most of the day! Did you know Seal also has Lupus? He's had lupus since he was a child. He's such a kind hearted gentleman. He's married to Heidi Klum who is on Project Runaway. <br />Nicole & her boyfriend got me a poinsetta plant and a card which was so sweet and so thoughtful! My husband is letting me get a limited edition bracelet kit which I'm not going to announce until I make sure I purchase it first before it's gone! (smile!).... He also is letting me purchase a software program that will allow me to create my own designs for loomwork or any other beading techniques. I don't like the idea of using someone else's pattern when I can very easily create something myself. I can't wait till I order the two things! I think maybe I'll order it early this week... I'm never in a rush... I'll take my time! <br /><br />As far as beading goes.... I have not done any beading at all. (hardly at all).... I have just been far too exhausted. When I do log on, I just want to get off just as quickly because I'm so exhausted and want to just crawl into bed and sleep. Thank Goddess for my husband. He has been such a saint throughout the years I've had health problems. When my health problems ended in 1992, I thought I was on top of the world and could do everything and anything.... but boy did a building fall on top of me and change my world upside down overnight in September of 2000. The most important thing is that I have my family. We have each other. <br /><br />We really don't hear much from my husbands' family. They don't call much. When we email them, they are busy and don't have much to say. We didn't even know about dad's health until several days later.... My husbands' two sisters live very close together with mom and dad. Mom & dad can see them as well as our neice's and nephew as often as they want... they do go on cruises, or non-cruise vacations every now and then... We live over a thousand miles away and haven't seen mom, dad, and the rest of the gang in several years. They know our house is always available to them. We were flying up north or at times driving up north and my husband said enough is enough... family can visit us... so... it's been hard for my husband. So as long as he has his cigars, his golf buddies, and time to go golfing that's all that'll make him happy! I am going to surprise him with a flight ticket to see friends of ours (his) he's not seen in person for quite a long time. It's time he go on vacation and enjoy the men! <br /><br />I am so looking forward to 2008 coming along. 2007 was quite a year for a lot of things. Our daughters are both living at home now and it has been just so beautiful having them home! Be very thankful for your family. I lost my *entire* family December of 1989. Be thankful for your family. Listen to your children, tell them how much you love them regardless of their mistakes. They have to learn on their own! Make sure you hug your children every single day and tell them you love them and how appreciative you are of them. Not a single day goes by we go without hugging one another and telling one another how much we love & appreciate them. To this day and age, the word 'bye' is FORBIDDEN in our house. When the girls call or email or IM one of us, they never, ever say bye. Bye is too permanent of a word. I always end a conversation with 'Okey Doke, TTYL!" the girls constantly tell me.... Mom you just don't say that! lol! Your children will be home for the holidays from college real soon... enjoy them while they are home! Enjoy all the noises! <br /><br />I will do the best I can to write more often. I hope each and every one of you are all doing well and in excellent spirits!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-35376621222754330322007-09-03T01:08:00.000-04:002007-09-03T02:11:25.102-04:00PLEASE just let me bead!Hello there! Hope all is well with you all! As I have mentioned in my previous post... I have been extremely busy this entire summer and have not been able to bead. When I try to work on my BJP (JUNE), I can only work on it for a very short time. About 45 minutes or not even that long. Someone or something will walk in and then I must stop what I'm doing. It's very frustrating. Sunday was the very first day I have stayed home the entire day. I was just so exhausted and kept dozing off the entire day. I decided to just not push myself and do what I love doing which is of course beading!... I decided to just take it easy the entire day. It's really nice to have one of those days where you can just do absolutely nothing and be real lazy. That was the day I had yesterday. <br /><br />When I have been able to work on my BJP (June), I've become quite frustrated with it at times because the tracing that I did, appears to be disappearing. What I will do later on today is use a chalk marker and try my best at finding whatever hints of trace I can see and go over that. I thought of putting the wax-free tracing paper back onto the fabric and then trace over it again... when I did that a few days ago, the face was a ways off from the actual drawing. So if I trace over this... it's going to really mess up the work. I'll just have to do the best I can and find the lightest hints of trace I can and go over that. It's the best that I can do. The face was the very first thing I started on and realize it's the hardest to do. I wanted to remove a line of beads that I have at the neck area.... the neck area I have two rows of beads that were done horizontally. I want to remove the 2nd row because it just doesn't look good... problem is if I remove the 2nd row of beads, it might very well mess up the first row of beads and the vertical rows around the face... It's my first bead embroidery piece I've ever done. I think the hands and feet will also be just as difficult. I wanted to try to give the face a slight shadowing... but cannot figure out how that's done. The face I'm doing is not the front view but a side view. <br /><br />If anyone has any tips, that would be much appreciated! <br /><br />I took a class August 7 and learned how to do Byzantine chain... I had fun with that.... since I've been so unbelievably busy, I haven't had a chance to sit down and finish it. It's a very easy thing to make... so it shouldn't take me long to finish it at all. <br /><br />On August 18, I finally took a class I've been wanting to take for quite some time... I finally learned how to make woven treasure bracelets. The drawback with this very particular art is that it can be outrageously expensive to do. This is *the* class that made me decide that we have got to make our own lampwork beads. I purchased 32 lampwork beads (8mm - 10mm)... I experienced a huge sticker shock once I learned what it cost... but I needed that to make the woven bracelet. I not only needed that... I needed another set of glass beads, I purchased gorgeous chalcedony faceted glass beads (8mm) and bought quite a bit of spacer beads and lots of Swarovski bicone crystals (4mm). That turned out to be my most expensive purchase just to make a bracelet. <br /><br />When I came home I was quite excited and wanted to show Marc & the girls what I've done thus far in class... I thought I showed them all of the lampwork beads I purchased. I was ready to get back to work on it the following day.... this is something I could bring with me on the road and when waiting for one of the girls, I could work on this... but I couldn't find the beads... Marc & I literally stripped the master bedroom apart, our large walk-in closet which is basically a room in itself... and I ended up going into the bonus room and tearing through everything to find the lampwork beads. We couldn't find it anywhere. I was in tears! They weren't cheap and the thought of calling the store and asking the gal to make 32 more of the same thing as best as she can was not sitting well with me... I couldn't see spending that much money again... well... I finally gave in after looking for the beads 4 days... I called and a very dear friend, Becky didn't even let me say, "Hi Becky!" How are you.... she just said Oh... you left your lampwork beads here! Oh my Goddess.... I could feel my heart burst! I was numb! I couldn't believe I left them behind. My heart was truly thumping.... I told her that I was about to ask the owner's daughter to make me another 32 set of lampwork beads... I'm so relieved I didn't have to go that route! Marc & I went to the store on Saturday and of course us bead addicts can't leave such stores without buying more beads and whatnot! Marc came into the store just when I was about to make the purchases... all I could think of was drats.... how am I going to get myself out of this one.... Becky looked at me and said her husband hovers over her just as well.... I wanted to tell her to leave things behind and I'll get them another time but Marc was watching me and making me nervous! I just kept telling him... honey... I'll be right out... Just put the AC on and when I'm in the car it'll be nice and cool... but that didn't work... I just looked at him and he knew what I was thinking and I knew what he was thinking and he just said ok, go ahead! lol! Do you have that problem? I don't care what Marc buys... he's into golf major time and this is not a cheap sport... I'm constantly purchasing him golf shirts, shorts, etc and he'll take care of clubs and whatnot... I don't care what it costs just so as long as we take care of the bills, taxes, etc... but when it comes to me making purchases, then it's a completely different story. Grrrrrr! He really makes me nervous when he hovers over me when I'm at the cashiers. Eventually he'll just tell me to slow down because I've got enough beads and don't need anymore.... he doesn't understand! I don't expect him to understand.... but oh well... he'll just have to put up with me! <br /><br />I am in hopes that later on today when we wake up, there won't be any surprises. If there aren't any... I'm staying home and will be working on my BJP (June) piece. I do know it will come out beautifully even though it's the very first bead embroidery piece I've done. I will most likely take breaks in between and work on the woven treasure bracelet. (Thanks to Robin Atkins for making this such a popular thing with so many of us!!!) If you aren't familiar with this... you can go here to learn more about it. It's real easy to make!.... <br /><a href="http://robinatkins.com/books.html#BT"></a> This book cannot be purchased at your local bookstore. You might be able to purchase this book at your bead store or directly through Robin. I buy directly from Robin because I usually end up purchasing her rings. The rings are great for a lot of beaded arts. Speaking of the rings, Swarovski now has their Cosmic rings out. They are quite expensive. Most distributors only sell them individually. I found one distributor who sells them by two's. They are great for that extra special beaded project that will be in the artist collection or in a private collection. <br /><br />I will be going to one class just to keep the instructor busy! The instructor is a terrific gal and anything you learn from her, you *know* your piece is going to be super special. I truly wish she would consider sending her work to several magazines... it's that good! Hopefully she'll consider it one of these days and hopefully sooner than later. I thoroughly enjoy her presence and we do have a real good time. It's only a Tuesday evening class that's a couple of hours.... So I'll go to that one and then there will be no more classes for me for quite a long time. I want to focus entirely on catching up on my BJP projects. I have 4 months worth of work to catch up on. I won't be able to catch up on any of my work if I continue to take classes I'm interested in. The classes will always be around another time... but this project is much too important for me to miss. It's quite special for me to be part of this project. The project I'm involved with is at this site and you can learn a lot more about it... <br /><a href="http://robinatkins.com/new.html#bjp"></a><br /><br />It's been a while since I've posted, hence for the long post. I'm truly hoping things will slow down this month and I won't have to do so much driving around. I know the next two weeks will be quite busy in terms of driving around... there's no other choice... oh well! That's not a problem! Life goes on and so do we all!!! Be happy!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-40300806795651353432007-09-02T23:55:00.000-04:002007-09-03T01:07:29.887-04:00Where does the time go?....It's been quite a while since I've posted. I am in "hopes" September will start slowing down for me. This has been one very busy summer for me. It's still quite busy. Not a day goes by I don't think of beading. It's an addiction, an obsession... you name it it is! I wake up thinking of my work and hope that I can get at least a good couple of hours to just bead. I go to bed pretty much discouraged that I haven't had time set aside to bead. It's been like that all summer long. School out here started early in August... so I have to pick up my daughter at noon, then have to bring my oldest to work and pick her up... this goes on every day. Sunday my husband will usually take our oldest to work which is a nice break for me. Today was the very first day I have been able to truly stay home and not worry about appointments, schedules, etc. I was unbelievably tired today and couldn't just wake up. I woke up but kept dozing off... the entire day was like that. All the running around catches up to me very easily. It's no fun to constantly be worn out from such every day mundane things... There are times when I do get frustrated with this wicked disease. I just cannot allow myself to stay frustrated for long. Life goes on and so do we all. So that's that! <br /><br />Nicole had her MRI over a week ago and on Thursday the results came in. She has a herniated disk at L5, S1. Rather than going into surgery which frightens me a great deal for her.... she had a steroid injection in the region on Friday. I was not allowed in the room because of the X-Ray and I saw that it was a small room. I watched the entire procedure from a window.... I just felt so bad for her and wished I could take her place so she wouldn't have to deal with the pain that she has been going through since her accident. (She fell down where there was a spillage... she and her friends didn't see it and she fell... the following week she went to work and lifted a 40 lb bag that instantly threw her back out and from that moment onward she has had nothing but pain and several doctors giving her pills after pills)... She absolutely detests pills, alcohol, of any kind. The pills did nothing to calm the pain down. She ended up trying a knee brace which helped. The moment she would remove the brace, she would have a lot of pain. She felt more comfortable with a lot of pressure on her leg. <br />Kiersten used to go out with a very nice young gentleman whose father is a very well known Orthopedic. We are good friends with the family... so we stopped by his private practice and he doesn't do muscle/nerve related issues.... he gave us a referral to a physician who works only on muscle/nerve related issues.... I never heard of such a doctor... he's a physiatrist (fizz ee at' trist).... Physical medicine & rehabilitation (PM&R) physicians or physiatrists are specialists in diagnosing and treating problems of the musculoskeletal system. They are able to find the source of your pain, injury, or disability, even when standard diagnostic tests don't reveal specific problems. <br />We were extremely relieved when we saw the MRI results. It was very clear a few of her discs are kaput and the one is herniated. When she had her injection on Friday, she received the photo of the actual needle in (I guess) her herniated disc. If she is feeling better by Wednesday and can walk normally, then she won't need another treatment this coming up Friday. The doctor does only upwards of three injections and no more than that. The only other solution if the injection doesn't do what it should hopefully do, then surgery is the last resort. I'm hoping that will not be necessary. <br />So there have been a lot of running around for tests, etc. We'll see by the 3rd week of September how things are with her. I just feel really bad for her. I cannot imagine any parent watching their child in pain. That is the worse thing ever. <br />I will try to scan her MRI results and see if it will show up on the computer... if it shows up, I'll post it during the week. I will also scan the picture she was given when the needle was being injected into her herniated disc. The needle was 7" or 180mm! That's one very large needle! The thought that went through my mind was crike that thing is huge... but I didn't know that the needle could literally go in as far as it went in... there was oh I would have to say at least 20 to 25mm of the needle sticking out... I guess our spine is not right where we touch it but further in... probably in the middle of the back and stomach... It was interesting to watch though. I just don't have the stomach for cutting skin. I love helping people but the part of opening up their skin, tugging, pulling, etc... that can be left for those who have no problems with that! <br />I'll keep you all posted as to how Nicole is doing over the next few weeks.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-39997483124959155662007-08-12T22:37:00.000-04:002007-08-13T00:55:43.077-04:00Hi there!! Can't believe it's the end of the weekend already. Kiersten left this morning with a good friend of hers to vacation. I'm sure she's having a great time! Nicole starts school tomorrow where she will complete 1.5 credits. She will be finished in November and then she'll start college hopefully in the spring of 2008. <br />It's so nice having the entire house to ourselves without the phone ringing off the hook, the strobe lights flashing like crazy... it's been a very nice and QUIET day today! We went out Friday to meet with friends that my husband hasn't seen in 28 years. What a reunion! Seemed like old days! Except they have 4 children and we have 2 and of course we are all much older now! LOL! We'll most likely go down to Florida this winter because I particularly want to go to a very specific Island that's almost unheard of... we have a lot of friends in Florida so it'll be the perfect time for us to just take off for a while. Right now we cannot do that with Marc working all the OT he's been working. Kiersten has no car and I have to take her places. So going away for us is just not an option right now. Hopefully she'll have her car eventually and she can take herself places once more! <br /><br />On Tuesday I went to a class to learn how to make Byzantine bracelet. It looked real easy but actually making the bracelet was a whole different story. I had a lot of fun in this class. The instructor has been teaching wire techniques over 40+ years. She is excellent. I am not fond of wire wrapping jewelry. I only want to learn this so I can make a bracelet for Nicole. She likes this kind of stuff. So why not surprise her with something different than beaded work when the holidays come around. She will only wear silver. The piece I'm making is for me. When it is completed hopefully this week... I'll drop it off at the beading store and throw it into the tumbler and put it away so Nicole cannot see it. I found a great online source where I can purchase uncut SS coil for a lot cheaper than what I paid for it. I bought 50 6mm SS jumprings (cut) for a whopping $11.50. I needed 2.5 bags so ended up buying 3 bags of them. I wasn't too happy having to spend that kind of money. At least that was the first and last time I've learned my lesson. I wish I looked at the jumprings the day I signed up for the class. I didn't and that of course will burn me every time. It was a 2.5 hour class for $40 so it all does add up. You know my terrible addiction with books... I of course had to get a book... <br /><br />If you haven't gotten Heidi Kummli & Sherry Serafini's book "The Art of Bead Embroidery" Technique, Design & Inspiration... I highly recommend it! It is FANTASTIC. They have covered absolutely everything. It's one of those must have books in your library! Just don't let your husband see this!!! Every time my husband learns I got a new book... blah blah blah.... I'll tell him to go golfing and we're even! It always works! But seriously, my addiction with books on this subject is really insane! LOL! It is a book I truly recommend for anyone who is into bead embroidery! It is FABULOUS!<br /><br />I just spent time writing a review on Amazon and then clicked submit... they wiped it out because you have to personally purchase the book from them in order to write a review I guess. I'll write a review here... <br /><br />The book is from Astounding to Stunning...<br />I have been attracted to Heidi & Sherry's work for years. I can never get enough of the jaw dropping work they do with their own projects! I have many, many books on bead embroidery. Of all the books I have, I always had questions that I still couldn't find answers to... In this book, every question you have will be answered! If you have a question and it isn't answered, I would be very surprised! The colors to pictures in the book are absolutely fantastic! The book of course starts out with a foreword, then Sherry & Heidi's introduction and author's note. Chapter One is based on Technique... Starts out with Tools to stitches, foundation, lining, backing, adhesives, finishing to fringes... Each person has their own page of how they do stitches, etc... <br />Chapter Two is based on Design and it includes Inspiration, design, color & Texture. Chapter Three is based on Projects. There are 12 Projects that are from Vintage Button Belt Buckle to Ancient Spirals Collar.... Then in Chapter Four is based on Inspiration and then their gallery of their breathtaking work. I'll tell ya... there are absolutely no secrets left behind as far as this fantastic book is concerned. They give it all and more. They are obviously very generous with everything they know about their art. It's a book well worth having! It will become the one and only Real & True Bead Embroiders Bible! It sure is mine! <br />It is a very well thought out book, very well designed and very well put together. <br /><br />Tomorrow (Monday) I will focus working on my embroidery piece... I think I'm going to focus on the face first then the hands & feet because I need to use size 15° for the flesh. Then I'll just bead wherever it takes me. It's very difficult to bead this piece when it gets dark. I can only work on this piece during the daylight hours. I am not happy at all with any of the tracing papers available out there. The only tracing paper I was able to find was Saral® Wax Free Transfer paper sampler. They are the absolute worse tracing papers I've ever come across. I remember in the old days when we were still using typewriters we used carbon paper between original and copy papers and it worked like magic. The package the papers came in states it's great for decorative & tole painting, quilting, etc... I traced the copyright free design using White transfer paper. You can only see the image without the light hitting it. When you look at it away from light, you can't see anything. I use my OTT-Lite for everything. The OTT-Lite just doesn't see the traces well at all. I cannot bead when it's dark. I'm blind enough as it is and don't want to have more of a mess with my eyes if I start beading in the dark. This project will just have to be done during the day in natural sunlight without OTT-LITE even though OTT-LITE is supposed to act like natural sunlight... I just don't understand why it doesn't work with this specific trace... It works with absolutely everything else! <br /><br />If you get Heidi & Sherry's book, please let me know if you like it. I would love to know. There will be pictures up this week of my very belated June project up... I'll take pictures of it tomorrow outside so you can see how light the trace is on Hoffman's quilt fabric. I wonder if anyone else who does bead embroidery has this problem and if so, what solution do you have for such problems? Pictures will be up soon.... <br /><br />Have a FABULOUS week! Let's hope we have a week of 90's and not another 102° plus this week!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-74669283245974725242007-08-09T18:55:00.000-04:002007-08-09T23:43:29.989-04:00Hello! Hope this finds you in good health & good spirits as well! Can you believe this heat or what?! I actually prefer this heat than the cold weather. What I don't like is when we are ready to leave the house, the simplicity of opening the door to get into the garage is stifling! When the remote opens the garage door, you can just feel the impact of the heat just wipe you out. It is very hot out here. This would have been a fabulous week down at St. Simons Island! If you haven't been there, it's such a very lovely, quaint place. What I like about it is that it's quiet and certainly not commercialized at all. It's our favorite vacation spot. It's just beautiful swimming with the dolphins all around. We love looking for sand dollars. If you don't know how to find them, it's very easy... when you are in the water and you feel something underneath the arch of your foot, DO NOT MOVE YOUR FOOT!!!! If you have someone with you nearby, have the person go under the water and slide the sand dollar out from underneath the arch of your foot. They do NOT hurt at all. When you see the sand dollar, don't be surprised if they aren't like you normally see them... Let them dry outside and in the sun for as long as it needs to be dried... (They are a very ugly gray when you first get them)... After they are completely dry, you then add clorox/water (you can do 50/50 if you want or 30/70... you'll just have to play around with it until you have the desired color you want)... soak it for several hours to several days... that is up to you... Of course rinse the sand dollar very well in cold running water and again, leave it in the sun until it is completely dried through and through. St. Simons has just about every imaginable shell for the area readily available for you to find. At the pier (there's only one pier there)... you'll find lots of conch shells, etc. Just be very careful at the pier because that is where everyone fishes. You don't want to step on hooks and any sharp object. <br />We rarely if ever drive there. We just ride our friends' bicycles... we have friends who live there. Marc is a golf fanatic so friends of ours live on the golf course and they spend the day a couple times during the week golfing the entire day... it's just spectacular! It's not a place to go to for children... they wouldn't like it there very much as there's really not much for them to do... it's geared for people who like quiet places... they do have a lovely little playground for toddlers/children... parents can sit and watch the sun set... it's lovely! <br />If you want to know more about St. Simons Island, please feel free to email me or ask me anything you would like to know. If I don't know the answer, I'll just give our friends a call and provide you with the information. <br /><br />Next post I'm going to write will be about the BJP I'm working on... (Believe it or not... JUNE's project!!!!) I know... I know... It has been a very busy summer. <br /><br />I feel like putting all kinds of shells that I collect from when we go to Savannah (Tybee Island to Florida) on the site... I do love shells! I know what some of you are thinking... Been there, thought of it and will do it! I will incorporate shells into embroidery beading once a design comes to mind... right now what I have in mind isn't quite coming out the way I would like for it to. <br />I saw someone's work on Deviant Art done with RAW and another stitch... (maybe the square stitch if I remember correctly)... it was truly one of the loveliest beaded necklace I've seen.... If she sells her patterns over at Sova's or is it bead-patterns? (always get the two mixed up). I will get it regardless what it costs. It is a very beautiful necklace. If I find it, I'll post it on here if I have her permission to do so. If not, I'll just list the link. Pearls aren't my thing... but that necklace is something I wouldn't mind wearing at all. My oldest would probably snatch it from me because she's into pearls in every sense of the word... If I make that, then she can actually snatch that one from me! <br />Don't you ever wonder where your bracelet, tweezers, phone, etc have 'disappeared to'?.... If you have girls, more likely than not, they have managed to snatch it! lol! But seriously... all chit chat aside... I will ask the gal if I could display her necklace that she made. I'm trying to remember her name and only remember her online name.... hmmm... One way or the other I'll let you know... it is truly a stunning piece. This woman does NOT follow any patterns. She made a couple of beaded bras and they are truly jaw droppers... her work is incredible. She obviously has quite rare skills to bead anything off the top of her head without a pattern. <br />A friend of mine is like that as well... she has always been drawing life forms and whatever she draws, she incorporates that into lampwork bead... stunning work! Speaking of lampwork... I'm still trying to convince my husband that this is a really *good* hobby to get into.... I think what is making him turn the other way is the fact we would need vents, etc... I wonder if anyone who does lampwork beads makes it in the garage or on the deck? Do you have the whole kaboodle set up for lampworking? It gets extremely expensive buying lampwork beads after a while.... I am especially quite attracted to the electroformed lampwork beads. I think that's what it's called.... I also like beads etched.... not so much that it starts to look like beach glass.... I am seriously thinking of adding this onto my to-do list.... I can either tell him we'll save money (wink) or I can tell him I'll just have to buy more for the woven bracelets/anklets/necklaces... will keep you posted! But if you can share ANYTHING from torches to vents... anything in the field of lampworking, I would be forever appreciative! <br /><br />Will post my BPJ that I am finally just getting started on... (JUNE's project!!!!).... I'll also post what I've learned in class on Tuesday evening and actually had a lot of fun! <br /><br />Stay cool!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-28974630180679351752007-07-16T00:35:00.000-04:002007-08-04T05:23:55.861-04:00Well I am going to start by saying how extremely excited I am by the very kind comments people have been emailing me about the Polka Dot fat book project I have done. <br /><br />When it comes to pretty much all forms of art, my confidence is at its absolute lowest. I never felt I had sincere, honest & true to form feedback from what I have done. The only time I can remember feeling proud about something is when I created a crewel embroidery piece for my biological parents when it was their 15th anniversary. (I believe it was for their 15th… it’s been years and years, so I cannot remember precisely right now) anyhow, the piece was professionally framed which of course thrilled me to no end. It was hung up on a wall so anyone who walked into the house could see it from where they were standing and just look at the top of the steps of the wall to see the work. The piece I did had a quote, “Happiness is being married to your best friend”… Every time I used to walk up the stairs, I would look at the work and it always made me feel good. Sadly the art work has been sent back to me. I still have it but will not open it up. It’s put away as I consider it bad luck to open it or give it to anyone else for fear things will go wrong. <br /><br />My biological mother is an absolutely excellent sewer. She has an unbelievable gift when it comes to creating whatever her heart desires. She creates her own designs and to this very day I have not seen some of the unique things she has made for my daughters anywhere else. I've seen thousands of what she does but nothing nearly or even close to how she creates it. Unfortunately at the time she wouldn't sell such stuff. I have no earthly clue if she sells such stuff or not since then. However she does just absolutely lovely work. Perhaps someday I’ll put the things she has made in the album or on the blog. It's been many, many years since I haven't had a mother. It's been since 1989 when I last saw my biological family. I’m sure you can understand & appreciate why I just cannot do that at this time. <br /><br />I remember the tension that I could feel building up in my biological mother when I asked on her on occasion if I could please use her sewing machine. She would usually say not now... another time... However, there was one time I was actually able to convince her to let me use the sewing machine. I made a Raggedy Ann doll and in my opinion I think the doll turned out beautifully for a first time sewer. I'm quite sure it could have been done much better per my biological mother's expectations. I do sincerely wish my mother would have had the patience to sit down & teach me how to sew. <br /><br />I’m fully aware of the fact that I can always do better and this is precisely the issue I have been dealing with for years and years. I am not able to jump in with both feet and just go for it and start creating what I have in mind. Whatever I have in mind ends up stressing me out because I am always researching ways to improve on what I have in mind which in effect delays what I need to do! <br /><br />Art has always been something I have had a burning love & desire to do for as long as I can remember. If anyone puts me in a state where there's nothing but artists all over the place (if there's such a place) I would be in heaven... I really would. It would just be very difficult to remove me from such a place! I'm the same way when I'm at Borders or at Barnes & Nobles. I live for book stores! Do you have any <span style="font-weight:bold;">IDEA</span> what it is like to have to wait for a true bead weaving book to come out? Argh! I usually see books on stringing which isn't quite my forte. <br /><br />I was so happy to receive such lovely comments about the Polka Dot fat book project or as some others call it the "Dotty" project.... I was a true train wreck not just at different times... but every single second the entire project was going on. I know some people have been doing what I've done just for the first time in my life, they've been doing for YEARS and YEARS... and are a hundred times better than me in every which way because they have practice and tons of wisdoms of how to do and whatnot to do under their belt... I of course worried myself to the point I was like block of ice. I was very stiff the entire time I worked on the project HOWEVER.... I truly enjoyed everything I did. As I was working on the project I kept saying to myself... I know no one is going to like this... I concerned there would probably be way too many who are in the same project using buttons, stickers, wrapping papers with dots on it... I had to think of something completely different from 'the norm'... I guess I'm just one of those who seriously like to and have to be unique. I do not like copying at all. I depend on inspiration. I explained in my earlier posts how I become inspired and my how my thoughts stray about (in a positive & productive way). Straying about in thoughts sometimes bring several ideas to mind from things that I have seen and have been inspired by. I received a few comments... It's the few comments that really help lift my self-esteem a little more. Maybe I am not as bad as I think I may be? <br /><br />With just the few compliments I have received per the unique & strange project I have done with the Polka Dot Fat Book project, I am encouraged to aspire to the best that I can be & eventually be called a true artisan.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-56014354601264532872007-07-13T00:41:00.000-04:002007-07-13T00:52:39.127-04:00If you would like to see the pictures (66 pictures) of what I have done for the Polka Dot Fat Book Project Swap... please go to the following site... <a href="http://www.slide.com/r/TVm78dbL6T8LDaAC0pKkJOGiN89Gl2Qk?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original">http://www.slide.com/r/TVm78dbL6T8LDaAC0pKkJOGiN89Gl2Qk?previous_view=mscd_embedded_url&view=original</a><br />I am hoping this works. It's the first time I have ever done anything like this. It took quite a while since the site isn't quite user friendly. I just had to figure it out as I went along. Eventually I got it! Whew! <br /><br />I hope you enjoy the photos. As far as the music goes, I am HOPING it's decent music. I have no way of knowing. Both of our daughters aren't home. I would have asked them if it's decent. I just picked it only because I enjoyed the 'beat' of it... You can turn the music off. After I had enough of it, I just turned the volume off. I'm one of those that can only take so much and then I have to get away from it for a while. I don't know how musicians can listen to music 24/7! Anyhow.... please view the pictures and if you would be so kind, can you rate it just so I know if it was viewed. No names ever show up. Only the rates. For me it just tells me how many people viewed it. <br /><br />Thanks so much! I look forward to hearing what advise and suggestions or whatever wisdom you can share with me with some trouble you'll see that I had... I always accept suggestions! Learning is the only way to improve ourselves!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-15049498427088819792007-07-08T00:05:00.000-04:002007-07-12T03:44:47.007-04:00As I have promised, I will be discussing how I came to the decision to create the Polka Dot Fatbook Project and what I did that was involved in the making of it. <br />I have not quite decided just yet what I'm going to do with the pictures. I think I'll post two or three of them and see if I could figure out how to put the rest into an album. If I put them all on here, it's just going to be a bit too much and quite overwhelming. <br /><br />I came across Chrysti's blog at <a href="http://chrysti.wordpress.com/"></a> It was on her blog I saw her version of the Polka Dot book she did... I have always loved anything round, circle, and so on... This one was a bit more involved because it was about polka dots in the circle book kit. Look at her site, June 20th titled "Polka Dots a Plenty".... She stated somewhere in the post there's a Polka Dot Fatbook project that just started and I of course loving all things round signed up immediately! <br /><br />I was not fully aware at first that we had to get a kit. I thought we had to use heavy-weight paper... when I asked about the paper, someone emailed me back and said there's no paper involved... you have to buy a kit... As soon as I learned about that, I went ahead and ordered a kit. When it arrived a few days later, I was slightly disappointed because the paper was nowhere near as heavy as I thought it would be. I was hoping for heavier paper with rougher texture. But what I had, I had to make do with and get to work on the project! <br /><br />My inspiration for this project came from Cloth, Paper & Scissors Magazine Issue 12, May/June 2007. Due to Copyright laws, I cannot copy the picture to show you what the inspiration was for those of you who do not have the same magazine. You can go to <br /><a href="http://www.clothpaperscissors.com/cpsmag/toc/cps12.pdf"></a> and look at the very upper right hand corner where you'll see painted & embossed hardware by <span style="font-style:italic;">Julaine Lofquist-Birch</span> <br />I also received inspiration from a different issue which I cannot find right now. It was a project; I believe a quilt project using scrim which I have never seen before. The second I saw how scrim was used, I instantly fell in love with it and knew I had to buy some so whenever I could find a use for it, I would use it! For those of you who aren't sure what scrim is... it looks almost like cheesecloth. However scrim has a sturdier weave than cheesecloth has. Scrim is very soft but not as soft as cheesecloth is. It really does make a difference with your work. It provides texture and visually it's nice. Do not even bother trying to make decent edges or even binding the edges of scrim. Scrim is meant to be naturally as is. You can see the scanned image of what a scrim looks like below. Go to the bottom of May 24, 2007 post. You'll see it underneath the Circle Book Kit.<br />If you cannot find scrim, you can use cheesecloth in place of scrim. You will need to dye the cloth and go from there. <br /><br />Now to explain what I have done from start to finish.... I purchased 10mm & 22mm flat hardware washers. I also purchased thin black rubber washers in approximately the same size as the flat metal washers. I unfortunately was not able to use the thin black rubber ring ‘washers’? I am not quite sure what it's called... I just know the ring is used to help prevent leakage and to make sure whatever the appliance is... that it’s airtight. I have scanned the washers, rings, etc that I found in Marc's cabinet in our garage. <br /><br />1. I put the metal washers, etc into a bowl of water with some dish detergent and wash it that way... I was quite surprised how dirty it was. I gave it several washes until I saw clear water. <br /><br /> 2. I used a Dremel tool using a metal sander. (If you would like to know specifically what I used, go ahead and just email me and I’ll email you exactly what I used.) <br />In order to prevent my fingers from being burnt and especially from having my fingers plastered with remnants of metal particles during sanding I used the end of a toothpick... You want for the toothpick or whatever you prefer to use in the open center part of the washer to allow the metal hardware washer to spin rapidly as you're sanding it with your Dremel. <br /><br />I have numerous step by step photos that I will post so you can see what I've done. <br /><br />Originally I started out by hand sanding the metal washers using sand paper for metal. I also used the dreaded steel wool. I dread those blasted steel wools. (Even though they always end up doing a magnificent job!) The metal particles never fail to embed itself into the skin of my fingers and boy does that hurt! I wear gloves though when I use steel wool and it helps. My fingers just don't like the steel wool. I was not satisfied with the job I was doing by sanding the washers by hand. <br /><br />3. Then I applied Gesso on each one of the washers. I did not apply Gesso on the flat (bottom) side of the washer. I applied the Gesso on the top side where it’s very slightly rounded but still flat. When you apply Gesso on pretty much anything, it dries pretty quickly. I used the liquid Gesso for this. <br /><br />The reason why I used Gesso was purely to prevent paint, etc from chipping off. <br /><br /><br />4. I applied various colors of “Grumbacher” acrylic paint on all of them then I used embossing stamp and used a pinch of embossed powder of many colors which deemed right for the washer and used the heat dryer to give the swirled effect and melted, embossed effect. <br />The pictures you'll see of the washers were the last bits I had and the worse ones I wouldn't put on the papers. <br /><br /><span style="font-weight:bold;">Note Bien<span style="font-style:italic;"></span></span>: I wanted to rubber stamp polka dots and emboss them but that ended up taking forever. I decided I just really was beyond exhausted so I just bought cheap spray glitter in champagne and in gold... I will never use them again. You have to be very fast with it and lightning fast speed isn't enough because it will still cause the spray painted glitter to trickle down... I put a towel on top of the dryer and laid the sprayed papers on top of that to let it dry rather than having them lean against something. I proceeded with the rest of the circle kit the same way.<br /><br />5. After all of the washers were finally completed, I then finally focused my attention on the scrim. The scrim did not want to work cooperatively with me. I then decided it might work better if I use a fabric stiffener. Went to the store and bought a bottle of it... came home and poured the stiffener in a Pyrex glass pan, put a large piece of scrim in it and swooshed it around until it was all covered. I then took it apart to lay it flat on a laundry rack. It would have dried fast, but I put a bit of extra stiffener on it so it took longer to dry. I did the same with two or three other scrim and let that dry overnight. I took the back cover of the circle kit because it's a very sturdy cardboard. I then put it on the scrim and cut it around the circle cover. I also cut one dollar coin size circles. When that was done... I put the washers on the paper. Both sides of the paper had to be used. So I just put them on randomly. <br />I also used the smaller dollar size cuts I made and put that over the washer and sewed around that. I did the same for the other side... I then used the dollar size circle scrim on the large circle scrim purely to give it a better effect. I used variegated thread and put the large round circle scrim on the round paper from the kit... I sewed zigzag stitches around.<br />I personally found in the middle of the project that it was better to place the washers in very specific areas of the paper because you needed to use the 2” round polka dot scrim over the washer and sew on the edges of the scrim on the paper. <br /><br />I also learned halfway through that adding the washers on the scrim and sewing it to the paper was not a wise idea. It looked messy to me. It looks a lot nicer, cleaner when I glued the washer to the large scrim and put a contrasting color of 2” round scrim over the washer and sewed around the edges then positioned it on top of the paper with washers already on the paper… I wanted to make sure it wasn’t clashing and that you could easily see the washer underneath the scrim… you could also see the washer that was sewn on the scrim. I really liked it this way the best. <br /><br />But different strokes for different folks! There is certainly no right or wrong way to do a project like this. You go with the flow. Whatever feels right to you, don’t change it and whatever feels could use some change, go for it! You’ll eventually find what feels just perfect to you! <br /><br />6. It was absolutely impossible to use (I guess a screw nail) that goes into another thing... I have no clue what it's called. It is a screw that ‘binds’ the book together. Now if there were 3 of them, it would maybe work, but being the fact it was a circle book, you could only quite obviously use one ‘screw’ for the book so you could easily open/close it. My book ended up being a very fat book. I decided to leave the front and back cover entirely blank. <br /><br />This is one project I will never repeat again! It ended up taking more than a month and half to do. It seriously took a long time. <br /><br />It was however a lot of fun and entertaining to do and it did give me more self confidence with the sewing machine. <br /><br />I sincerely appreciated the help that Kiersten gave me for an hour or so when I was just so exhausted. I also appreciated Nicole’s help when she was able to help. They knew I was just beyond exhausted. <br /><br />I did go into this project thinking what can be so difficult?!! HA! Lots! The work involved was rather extensive. I know for a fact I will never do another project like this again! I’m the kind of artist who cannot repeat a project twice. I’m strictly a One of a Kind artist. That’s another reason why I got into beading. There’s never, ever two alike. There may be exact patterns, but the final piece will differ because you’ll end up finishing your piece quite differently than how others finished their piece. I think it’s thrilling to create OOAK art work. OOAK art work is always going to jump out at that one particular person who just says their work screams at them and that’s who it’s supposed to be for! <br /><br />I do not like anything regardless what it is in life ‘half-assed job’… if I start something, it isn’t going to be half-assed; it’s going to be from start to finish. I was raised from when I was a wee child that anything started is to be done from start to finish and the right way. For instance, in a bathroom, you just don’t clean the sink and counter top… whatever is in the bathroom is to be cleaned. I’m quite grateful I was instilled with this valuable life lesson. <br /><br />The only time I am overwhelmed is when it comes to my own art supplies, beads, (which I have thousands and thousands and more of), Hundreds of art-related magazines and hundreds of books not on just the arts… However, I am indeed quite overwhelmed with my own personal clutter and once I start, I start to panic because I don’t know where to start and also I have so much and I know that… but I can’t part with it because I’m one of those who actually end up going right back to magazines for inspiration, instructions, and reference. I have found supplies I haven’t touched or used in years and ended up using! I’m so glad I haven’t thrown them out. Art is not a cheap thing to be in at all. I am an extremely firm believer again from what I learned over the years of growing up is you get what you pay for. Quality pays… How very true! I truly and very personally believe that quality is the secret to everlasting masterpiece. I know and am almost sure there are many wonderful artists who would politely disagree with me on this and that is OK too. I will someday share why I believe this to be true. I’m just not quite ready to share it right now. Perhaps soon. BTW, I don’t buy everything in one fell swoop! I buy things over a period of time. However when it comes to Miyuki, TOHO™, AIKO™, and other Japanese seed beads, I am out of control! They are very addictive! I especially enjoy very unique glass artists who make unique beads. I’m not at all interested in the same old every day beads you see… if something is different, then more often than not, it will attract my attention and I’m a dollar or two or more short! But isn’t that the case for all of us artisans?!! <br /><br />I truly hope with this being my first ever swap and a non-beaded project that those who are very familiar with this kind of work and far more experience than I, that they’ll <span style="font-style:italic;">hopefully</span> enjoy it. Every moment I worked on this book, I kept wondering if the receiving participant will like this or not. I always hope they will. I truly didn’t want to do buttons, wrapping papers, etc with dots on it. I’m not into cutesy art and never will be into that. But, all in all, I did eventually have fun with this project! Like the saying goes, there’s a first and last for everything you do! T<br />here’s so much for the world to go round and round and round! (Pun intended!)Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-58234796909578052622007-06-29T17:00:00.000-04:002007-06-29T17:01:01.747-04:00<a href="http://sparkpeople.com/resource/quotes_translation.asp?id=154"><img src="http://assets2.sparkpeople.com/assets/quote_images/quote_154_b.jpg" border="0" target="_blank"></a><br /><br />Sometimes holding your tongue can have benefits, such as avoiding hurt feelings or an unnecessary argument. Other times, however, silence can be a negative thing. Don’t just stand by and be a passive observer of something that you don’t agree with. It is important to speak up and let your voice be heard. If you say nothing, people will either think that you agree with what is going on, or that you are too scared to speak out. They will, however, remember that you were silent on something that mattered. So, don’t be afraid to let others know what you think. They may or may not agree, but all involved will become better educated after having heard other sides to the argument.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-41402447100479611262007-06-26T02:29:00.000-04:002007-06-26T03:11:41.512-04:00It's been a week since I've posted. I would much rather post a few times a week rather than wait a week or so. It's easier to keep my blog shorter and simple at that! <br /><br />I have never posted a YouTube video before and had quite a challenge with it. I ended up somehow having TWO of the same video on this blog. I couldn't figure out how to remove it. It was easy to add it but for some reason the title I wanted didn't show up. The title of the video is: <span style="font-weight:bold;">Women in Art</span> I hope you enjoy it! I enjoyed the music and especially how the faces kept morphing into another woman. It's amazing how talented people are with this stuff! <br /><br />As you can see new pictures of Kiersten & Nicole as well as our chocolate Labrador Retriever has been put up on the right side. My husband & Nicole at her favorite restaurant for her 20th birthday, then Kiersten at a tea party at her apartment she used to live at or someone else's apartment, then a picture of Nicole when she had longer hair. Nicole is growing her hair for sure! I don't like any of the pictures that were taken of me so I'll have one of the girls take some more and I'll put the one I like up soon. My hair has grown quite a bit for the first time since 2002. My hair was extremely short. But not anymore. I absolutely hate my hair the way it is now. But I'm letting it grow out and we'll see what, if there's anything that can be done with it. If nothing, then it's going back to the way it used to be. So it needs to grow a few more months. We'll see! <br /><br />It was Nicole's 20th birthday yesterday! I cannot believe our baby is already 20! Where does the time go? Time just flies. I guess when you have children, you sometimes cannot wait until they are old enough and on their own! But now that they are old enough and have been on their own, they are home now. I think it's a lot better that they are at home. It's just too expensive out there. I'm back to being the taxi mom for the girls. It isn't so bad. They are older and most of the time they go with their friends. I just have to drive them to and from work. Sometimes it does get to me. I decided to tell our oldest daughter she has until August to get herself a car because I can't keep driving her to work all the time. I do feel bad saying that but if I keep driving her to work, she will eventually get so used to it and not focus on taking care of things she has to take care of. We also told our youngest daughter she has got to get a job because she just cannot stay home and expect things handed to her. She also has to focus on her priorities. <br /><br />You know, I had "images" of how things would be when the girls are older. Nothing of what I imagined happened. That's OK though. The positive thing is that they are decent young ladies and they are still quite young to do things that I hope they will do so they are set for the future. Education is extremely important. I truly believe that. Without a college diploma, there's not much out there that pays well without a college diploma. If there is something out there that pays very well without a diploma, I certainly am not aware of such. Today young adults quit their job faster than you can blink. It's a shame how much the times have changed. Like all parents, we all hope for the very best and nothing less for our children. <br /><br />I will be posting later on in the day what I did with the Polka Dot Fatbook project. I will also post just a couple of pictures of the Polka Dot Fatbook and the rest I will have in a photo album. I am not sure which photo album just yet because there are so many of them out there. I just want one with a slide show so anyone who wants to see pictures that I've taken can just use that rather than clicking on pictures one by one and then if they want to backspace, they won't have to backspace forever to get to where they want to be at.<br /><br />I would like to end this with a card that I got for Nicole's 20th birthday and write what it says....<br /><br />For a Precious Daughter<br /><br />"When your daughter is small, <br />you carry her in your arms.<br /> When she is grown,<br />you carry her in your heart."<br /><br />Daughter, all your life you'll be part magic and part mystery,<br />because you have ideas, thoughts,<br /> and wishes all your own...<br />And where it counts, inside the heart,<br /> we've grown together, not apart,<br />through challenges and changes<br /> as the passing years have flown.<br /> Your loveliness begins inside<br />and brings such happiness and pride,<br /> it isn't easy to express<br /> in simple words and phrases<br />how beautiful you'll always be<br /> in ways the heart alone can see,<br />how much you mean, how dear you are,<br /> how well deserved this praise is. <br /><br />Well that was what was in the card. I loved it. It was perfect for Nicole. Smile. Well... it's very late and I just want to get a bit of shut eye. I'll be back in a while to write about my project as I said I would! Thank you for visiting my blog! SmileSnowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-60806365409266993542007-06-25T18:23:00.000-04:002007-06-25T18:25:25.090-04:00<object width="425" height="350"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/nUDIoN-_Hxs"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/nUDIoN-_Hxs" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="350"></embed></object><br /><br />I'm still here! Seems like an eternity since I've posted. End of May and June have been quite interesting to say the least! Couple of hospitalizations that were completely unexpected. I'm OK though! I do need to find a new doctor again because my ANA Count is in the high 3000's... not good at all. I used to be on Plaquenil to try to control the count. But Plaquenil made me so severely ill that I ended up living in the bathroom around the clock. That's how sick it made me. It got so bad that I couldn't throw up anything and apparently my body wanted to throw up. It was just horrible. So far nothing is keeping my count at bay. I'm just very worried what the next step may be. If I have to go back on chemo, I don't know how I will handle it. It's more than I can tolerate. I am finally showing a great growth of my hair and it's currently ugly at this time. It still spikes a little bit but not as much because it's a little longer. I'm hoping my hair will grow and stay that way for a good while. It really feels nice to just see a head of hair on me and not the spiked hair I'm known for everywhere I'm seen. I used to go to a lot of conferences (aromatherapy) and people who never knew me in person and met me for the first time said they never pictured me as one with the hairdo I had! Lots pictured me with a lot more hair and heavier. Heavier is something I could do very well without! The medications I'm on now (23 different medications)... have a role in my weight which is not good but truthfully so as long as I eat well I'm just fine. I used to be a real health nut but as my health went downhill, so did my quest for being a health nut. I just make sure we eat a very balanced meal and unfortunately it does include meat this time. We have been vegetarians for many years. Nicole was anemic for several years. None of us wanted a thing to do with meat. But after everything we have done to try to get Nicole back to being energetic... she was continuously anemic. Nicole was seen by a couple of holistic practitioners and 1 conventional doctor. One of the holistic doctor felt Nicole would do better if she went entirely vegan. I explained to the doctor that we were indeed vegan for about 14 months and Nicole was much more lethargic and unable to focus her energy on anything. She was constantly cold, always sleepy, etc. The doctor felt we weren't doing enough and wanted her to take more supplements and strip her of all dairy products (Organic which is the only thing we buy to this day)... he wanted to strip her of all wheat, whey products, and more. This was too radical for Nicole. She did not want to go vegan and for the rest of the family, we felt veganism was just much too radical of an approach for us. So we went back to vegetarianism where we incorporated dairy products and no poultry, meat, fish and anything that contained such, i.e., sauce with meat, worchestire sauce with anchovies, etc.<br />The other holistic physician did numerous tests on Nicole and found she should try incorporating some fish in her diet. We all weren't too sure about this because we were quite strict vegetarians at the time. Well, then the traditional doctor did blood work and found she was lacking some things that she would get naturally from meat, poultry and fish. So we ended up starting very slowly with poultry, beef and then fish... we have been eating meat, fish for a few years now and it has been quite a change for all of us. We do feel a lot more energized for eating such. We realize that vegetarianism just isn't for everyone. Then there's vegetarianism and veganism that is for some people. Regardless, we have the utmost respect for everyone all around. We have friends who eat only raw foods and have friends whose diet consists of only nuts and fruits. They don't like being called Fruitarians. They just like to eat only nuts and fruits and that doesn't bother us.<br />The only thing we miss is our Kosher kitchen. We used to have a kosher kitchen but now that we eat meat, etc it's no longer kosher.<br />As far as Nicole goes, she continues to suffer from anemia deficiency. She continues to take Iron supplements to this day and so far it doesn't do any good for her. She often cannot donate blood because she's so anemic. When she can donate, she's thrilled to no end. As a matter of fact, she went to donate blood not too long ago only to find out she cannot donate blood because she had a tattoo less than a year ago. If anyone has been tattooed they have to wait a year before they can donate blood. I never knew this. She was bummed when she learned of this.<br />Kiersten alternates between the two, eating meat and going vegetarian. She goes vegetarian anywhere from a real short period of time to a month but when she has that urge, she'll eat meat. Speaking of Kiersten, she just left about an hour ago with friends. They are all heading to Manchester, TN which I think is about 2.5 hours to 3 hours from us in Atlanta. They are all going to the Bonnaroo Fest. You can look this up at: <a href="http://www.bonnaroo.com/">http://www.bonnaroo.com/</a><br />They'll have a terrific time!<br /><br />Next post is going to be entirely about my Fat Polka Dot Project book that I did and what I haven't been able to do and especially what I have completely forgot to do! Ugh... I am so forever thankful that <a href="http://kiwiellen/">Kiwi Ellen</a><br />reminded me about the Bead Journal. I cannot for the life of me believe I completely forgot about this project! I have got to find me some UltraSuede since it is precisely what I like to work on. If I can't find a source for US, then I'm going to use quilting fabric which is super nice and a heck of a lot nicer than what ordinary fabric stores provide. We'll see... but I have to decide real soon because July is just around the corner for me to start a new page. If you know of a source for UltraSuede please if you would, share it with me. I would be forever appreciative of that. Thanks so much!!! :-)<br /><br />Be Happy! Life goes on & so do we all!!!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-73556215292474095522007-06-14T00:28:00.001-04:002007-06-14T00:28:29.752-04:00I'm still here! Seems like an eternity since I've posted. End of May and June have been quite interesting to say the least! Couple of hospitalizations that were completely unexpected. I'm OK though! I do need to find a new doctor again because my ANA Count is in the high 3000's... not good at all. I used to be on Plaquenil to try to control the count. But Plaquenil made me so severely ill that I ended up living in the bathroom around the clock. That's how sick it made me. It got so bad that I couldn't throw up anything and apparently my body wanted to throw up. It was just horrible. So far nothing is keeping my count at bay. I'm just very worried what the next step may be. If I have to go back on chemo, I don't know how I will handle it. It's more than I can tolerate. I am finally showing a great growth of my hair and it's currently ugly at this time. It still spikes a little bit but not as much because it's a little longer. I'm hoping my hair will grow and stay that way for a good while. It really feels nice to just see a head of hair on me and not the spiked hair I'm known for everywhere I'm seen. I used to go to a lot of conferences (aromatherapy) and people who never knew me in person and met me for the first time said they never pictured me as one with the hairdo I had! Lots pictured me with a lot more hair and heavier. Heavier is something I could do very well without! The medications I'm on now (23 different medications)... have a role in my weight which is not good but truthfully so as long as I eat well I'm just fine. I used to be a real health nut but as my health went downhill, so did my quest for being a health nut. I just make sure we eat a very balanced meal and unfortunately it does include meat this time. We have been vegetarians for many years. Nicole was anemic for several years. None of us wanted a thing to do with meat. But after everything we have done to try to get Nicole back to being energetic... she was continuously anemic. Nicole was seen by a couple of holistic practitioners and 1 conventional doctor. One of the holistic doctor felt Nicole would do better if she went entirely vegan. I explained to the doctor that we were indeed vegan for about 14 months and Nicole was much more lethargic and unable to focus her energy on anything. She was constantly cold, always sleepy, etc. The doctor felt we weren't doing enough and wanted her to take more supplements and strip her of all dairy products (Organic which is the only thing we buy to this day)... he wanted to strip her of all wheat, whey products, and more. This was too radical for Nicole. She did not want to go vegan and for the rest of the family, we felt veganism was just much too radical of an approach for us. So we went back to vegetarianism where we incorporated dairy products and no poultry, meat, fish and anything that contained such, i.e., sauce with meat, worchestire sauce with anchovies, etc.<br />The other holistic physician did numerous tests on Nicole and found she should try incorporating some fish in her diet. We all weren't too sure about this because we were quite strict vegetarians at the time. Well, then the traditional doctor did blood work and found she was lacking some things that she would get naturally from meat, poultry and fish. So we ended up starting very slowly with poultry, beef and then fish... we have been eating meat, fish for a few years now and it has been quite a change for all of us. We do feel a lot more energized for eating such. We realize that vegetarianism just isn't for everyone. Then there's vegetarianism and veganism that is for some people. Regardless, we have the utmost respect for everyone all around. We have friends who eat only raw foods and have friends whose diet consists of only nuts and fruits. They don't like being called Fruitarians. They just like to eat only nuts and fruits and that doesn't bother us.<br />The only thing we miss is our Kosher kitchen. We used to have a kosher kitchen but now that we eat meat, etc it's no longer kosher.<br />As far as Nicole goes, she continues to suffer from anemia deficiency. She continues to take Iron supplements to this day and so far it doesn't do any good for her. She often cannot donate blood because she's so anemic. When she can donate, she's thrilled to no end. As a matter of fact, she went to donate blood not too long ago only to find out she cannot donate blood because she had a tattoo less than a year ago. If anyone has been tattooed they have to wait a year before they can donate blood. I never knew this. She was bummed when she learned of this.<br />Kiersten alternates between the two, eating meat and going vegetarian. She goes vegetarian anywhere from a real short period of time to a month but when she has that urge, she'll eat meat. Speaking of Kiersten, she just left about an hour ago with friends. They are all heading to Manchester, TN which I think is about 2.5 hours to 3 hours from us in Atlanta. They are all going to the Bonnaroo Fest. You can look this up at: <a href="http://www.bonnaroo.com/">http://www.bonnaroo.com/</a><br />They'll have a terrific time!<br /><br />Next post is going to be entirely about my Fat Polka Dot Project book that I did and what I haven't been able to do and especially what I have completely forgot to do! Ugh... I am so forever thankful that <a href="http://kiwiellen/">Kiwi Ellen</a><br />reminded me about the Bead Journal. I cannot for the life of me believe I completely forgot about this project! I have got to find me some UltraSuede since it is precisely what I like to work on. If I can't find a source for US, then I'm going to use quilting fabric which is super nice and a heck of a lot nicer than what ordinary fabric stores provide. We'll see... but I have to decide real soon because July is just around the corner for me to start a new page. If you know of a source for UltraSuede please if you would, share it with me. I would be forever appreciative of that. Thanks so much!!! :-)<br /><br />Be Happy! Life goes on & so do we all!!!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-45592478870857940422007-05-24T02:50:00.000-04:002007-05-24T03:02:17.768-04:00<p class="MsoNormal">The photos I wanted to add underneath the previous long post I wrote couldn't be done. I can only post photos underneath the current post. So with that, lesson learned! Lots of what I'm researching is taking a lot of time... but I'm going to do what I have to do to keep my blog exciting for you all to stop by sit down with a nice cup of tea, coffee, wine, water or what have you... If there's ever anything you see on my blog that you really don't think belongs there, let me know why and what you think I could do to perhaps change it. I still cannot figure out how to do my own template. I know exactly what I want for a template but just cannot figure it out. If you know, please by all means and if you are willing to share it with me, I would be forever indebted to you. Thanks!<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"><br />Because it's very late and I'm real tired and ready to crawl into bed... I'm only going to post the book kit and the scrim fabric so those of you who don't know what scrim is, you'll see it here. The scrim didn't scan its true colors well at all. It should have shown a lovely Olive/brown or actually a Khaki/Olive color... it's really pretty. But when I scanned it, it came out in darker more brown color and it shows the scrim distorted. I'm not sure why. I'll take a picture of it with my digital camera to see if that works better. I can try to take a picture of the scrim with a white background. I'll fool around with it. I will cut the scrim later on in the day and take a picture of just one piece w/o the entire scrim fabric folded together. You'll get a clearer image of what a scrim is.</p><p class="MsoNormal">It's time for a better camera but that will just have to wait a while.<br />I'm going to post labels for my previous post and this post. I forgot to post labels. I normally do not 'preview' anything I write. I just type, and then add labels and then click publish. Believe me, when tired, stay away from the keyboard! I need to listen to that a lot more often!<br /><br /><br />I will take pictures with my digital camera as I go along with the process of creating my<br />pages. If anyone knows how I can stiffen the scrim without using Ultra Solvy™<br />Water Soluble Stabilizer, I would be most appreciative of your help! I do have the stabilizer but would like to know if there's something else I can do besides using Ultra Solvy™<br />So.... this is all that I can really share with you all... Just tune in for next week's<br />Part I of II finale of my Polka Dot fatbook swap! Part I shows you only what I have done. Part II shows all of the other artists work! I will not put the pictures on the blog. I will put a link in to direct you to the album where you can see everything. GRIN!!!<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal">In between working on the fatbook, I have got to do beading! I do not like the withdrawal of not beading after a while. May 24 is going to be an extremely busy one for me! I'll keep you all posted!<br /></p><p class="MsoNormal"> Stay healthy & safe!<o:p></o:p></p>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-66747037214626331912007-05-24T02:09:00.000-04:002008-12-09T01:24:58.425-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPSYULZobCD71wv9d-Y9BsQSfmwTV8vqlCmnwDXi-5JTvbLLBu02HKy7qgrgT3NgXOO6HPQ-AASAUrHYWBrsEcsXIn0sOlTES-Akg6RhmJJXKYSfB0sc4vJgepMw_VkpTIJHyxA/s1600-h/Polka+Dot+Circle+Book+Kit.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtPSYULZobCD71wv9d-Y9BsQSfmwTV8vqlCmnwDXi-5JTvbLLBu02HKy7qgrgT3NgXOO6HPQ-AASAUrHYWBrsEcsXIn0sOlTES-Akg6RhmJJXKYSfB0sc4vJgepMw_VkpTIJHyxA/s320/Polka+Dot+Circle+Book+Kit.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5068008799545344914" border="0" /></a><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 0, 204); font-style: italic;">Polka Dot (Circle book kit)</span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeMWi06hVD7VTyzc5vwmI4GuCtZtj7dPuAn5So3vd8w-W-7oSpfTxeuKK8ylyJo6dQ-LqUfTnDr8L7RHb_mVdGM7sJskPukiug05YPOvi4WDMjnm55MLs0YURdyRqxYGvGapylg/s1600-h/scan0003.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhyeMWi06hVD7VTyzc5vwmI4GuCtZtj7dPuAn5So3vd8w-W-7oSpfTxeuKK8ylyJo6dQ-LqUfTnDr8L7RHb_mVdGM7sJskPukiug05YPOvi4WDMjnm55MLs0YURdyRqxYGvGapylg/s320/scan0003.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5068008829610116002" border="0" /></a><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 0); font-style: italic;">Scrim (Should show a dark Olive/Khaki color) Scrim is a very loosely woven fiber</span><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-36349746388480615562007-05-24T00:18:00.000-04:002007-05-24T01:51:01.669-04:00Can't believe how quickly the day goes by. The day just goes too darned fast for me. I ended up sleeping much more than I usually do. When I do that, I just want to bop myself on the head because the entire day has basically and truthfully gone to waste.<br /><br />We finally had a really delicious dinner tonight. The entire process to make this incredibly simple recipe is minutes but you have to put all ingredients together, mix it well then pour it into a very well put together heavy duty aluminum foil, carefully put the seams together and fold it in accordion style, but in a back and forth motion... I do this with 2 very over sized Reynolds® Heavy Duty Aluminum Foil side by side and make sure it will become leak proof which isn't always easy to do... then one large piece that I stretch out to about 2' long and finally another piece about 2' long that I stretch out. I then put the briskets on the foil inside of a large roasting pan... In my case I used 6lbs of brisket and then added the marinade. I folded everything to make it leak proof and air tight. Put it in the ice box overnight and then the following day (Tuesday) I put it in the oven for 5 hours at 275° and then for 1 more hour at 350° When it was completed, I let it cool down but didn't undo the aluminum foil. When it was cool enough, I put it back into the ice box and then today removed it from the ice box and took one of the brisket and cut it very thinly and laid it on new aluminum foil on a baking sheet and then used BBQ sauce over the brisket pieces. I put the baking sheet into the oven for oh about 30 minutes, removed it and felt it could use BBQ Sauce on the other side.... so I turned the other side over and did the same thing then put it back into the oven for oh about 20 minutes. We had that with Baked potatoes that was outside on the grill and mixed vegetables. It was absolutely delicious! What I love about this very particular brisket recipe is that there is no fat at all. I normally do not like brisket at all. But when I had this many, many years ago I couldn't believe it was pretty much fat free. It falls off and the brisket itself stays nicely put and doesn't come apart at all. It was a really nice dinner. Even our fussy eater loved it! I used a vacuum sealer for the other brisket, labeled it and put it into one of the freezers inside the garage.<br /><br />I have been contemplating various ways of doing my Polka Dot Fatbook project. I have to figure out how to stiffen scrim. I have never worked with scrim before. I just know I have to stiffen the scrim in order for what I have in mind to succeed. The Scrim is going to be used on one side of the page and the original page you look at when you open or turn your page will be with completely different things. I cannot wait to post the pictures. I will post them May 30th or very shortly afterwards. It's the very first fatbook project I will ever have done. I am also doing a recipe swap with Cloth, Paper & Scissors Magazine. I forgot I had some things that are entirely kitchen related and will use those as "floaters"... I will of course take pictures of them when I'm done with it. To explain floaters for those who may not know what it is because I didn't know what floater meant until I read the entire article... You can make recipe card swaps by doing whatever you want on your post card size index card or your regular size index card... you then write down the recipe of your choice... after you feel it's almost completed, you then instead of using laminate, you use vinyl. I rarely, if ever step foot in Wal-Mart. But this time I did and decided to check the craft area only to be surprised at the vast collection of items they have for just about everything you can imagine. They had lots of clear vinyl in many different thickness. I of course picked the thinest vinyl I could get... it is wrinkled but you can very easily put a towel over the vinyl and take your iron and go over it and it will come out looking like glass. You sew the vinyl which the article explains isn't entirely easy to do, but gives you tips how to do that... and you slip inside the vinyl that hasn't been sewn, charms, buttons or what have you. I desperately want to join that swap! I just don't know if I can join because I am no longer subscribed to the magazine. I am waiting to subscribe to it. I'm just going to send it in in hopes they'll accept it even though I'm not subscribed to CPS magazine at this time. I was subscribed to it and still love it! If you like unique arts, Quilting Arts Magazine and Cloth, Paper & Scissors Magazines are *the* magazines to get! I am more inspired by each issue that comes to me. I love it! I am a confessed Magazine-aholic. I subscribe to Bead & Button Magazine, BeadWork Magazine at this time. I still grab Art Doll Quarterly Magazine every time a new issue comes out. I also like to get Belle Armoire ~ Art to Wear, Ornament (I love this magazine), Art Jewelry (I don't always get this), and I also love "The Crafts Report" magazine which has not been available since January 2007. I've been looking everywhere for it. Barnes & Nobles as well as Borders keep telling me they haven't had it since January. I hope they haven't stopped issues of it. It's extremely informative and it helps me gain more confidence should I ever decide to sell my art work. I make the world's worse sales person. I am so bad at it that I am happiest when I just give and my payment is seeing the person smile from ear to ear and their t hank you is my payment. That's all I need. But with this art medium I'm in now, it is cost prohibitive and in order for me to attend bead weaving or loom classes or even going to Gem Faires, Bead Fest which is coming up soon... the classes they offer is $275... Personally I can't afford it. So I'm just going to have to continue to practice my techniques until they are done correctly then if I have the courage to, I will try to sell them. I bought less than a gram of Delica seed beads which I fell in love with and the darn thing cost me close to $16.00! It's not cheap. I have to focus on getting more TOHO seed beads. I really like TOHO's. They produce a gorgeous draped effect for some techniques. I especially think they look grandiose on some loomwoven bead work. TOHO's are of course Japanese seed beads. They are not yet widely known like the Miyuki's and Delica's are known. A real quick lesson for those who don't know the difference... Delica seed beads are the bling blings for most of us bead weavers and those of us who do loomwoven work. They are cylinder shaped seed beads. Now Miyuki's are not cylinder shaped. They are very beautiful as well and come in shorter lengths and more round. The TOHO's are round and thicker and very beautiful as well. I will have to put the different beads on an index card and post it so those who are new can refer to it and see the differences. I used to buy lots of Czech seed beads by the hank. Czech seed beads come in every single color you can possibly imagine... they are very irregular in its shape... they are not uniform in size. Some of them are cut with a slant, some with a larger hole, some with real tiny clogged hole... they are not uniform but that's perfectly OK! They are terrific beads for one of many things. I wouldn't use Delicas on say my Goddess form art dolls. The Delicas are just too expensive for things like that and should be used for what I call fine art or art you know will end up costing more money... I personally don't think Delicas drape anywhere near as nicely or as elegant as Miyuki's do. TOHO's are slowly gaining momentum. I cannot wait for the AIKO seed beads to come out! They are really gorgeous and right now cost prohibitive for most bead weavers. If you are new to beading, just practice with Czechs and then work your way up to Miyuki's, etc.<br /><br />I'm going to scan what I'm going to use for my Polka Dot Fatbook. I will leave the items I'm using directly on each side of the pages excluded. I don't want to be unfair to others who are also in this swap. I just cannot wait till I receive my swap back. It will be so interesting to see what other's have done for their polka dot ideas. I was inspired by two things... but the scrim which I am letting you know is one thing I'm using was entirely up to me. I just have to figure out how on earth I can stiffen it and then apply it to the paper without it ruining the paper. I had hoped the paper would have been heavier but it isn't.<br /><br />I am currently very interested in learning more about bead crocheting ropes. From what I've been reading, I'm gathering it isn't at all difficult to learn. The one drawback is the thread I need to use is very expensive. What I'm going to do is use C-Lon 18-ply cord. If you have ever done Micro Macrame work before, then you'll see how thin the 18-ply cord is and the colors they come in are gorgeous! I think they are the best bet for bead crocheting. But to say that really is quite premature for me. I need to practice with different threads to determine which works best. There was a project in one of my beading magazines and the project was beading around crazy straws. I didn't even know the crazy straws were still made! I remember my daughters absolutely loved them when they were much younger.<br /><br />I have been buying more lampwork focal beads lately and I purchased lampwork spacer beads. I have been trying to find lampwork artists who focus more on lampwork spacer beads so I can use them in finger-weaving bracelets and necklaces. For those who aren't familiar with finger weaving can learn more about it at Robin Atkins website. She is a very sweet wonderful woman with talents that's beyond my scope! Her brother, Thom Atkins is also quite the artist himself. You can go to <a href="http://www.robinatkins.com">www.robinatkins.com</a>. You can learn a lot more about bead embroidery if this should interest you. You of course can read about her fabulous travels in search for beads (what else?!!!) lol! You can review her books and I have all of her books and love them all. I have read her books numerous times. Her latest and newest book is called <span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 0, 204);">"Beaded Treasures"</span> <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 204);">Finger Woven Bracelets, Necklaces, Tassels & Straps. </span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">I love the book. I do not get paid or any such thing for mentioning this. You can order directly from Robin by sending her a check. I had lots of problems ordering the book from Borders and from Barnes & Nobles. So I ended up buying this book from her like I bought the rest of them from her. I will take pictures of the Polka Dot stuff completely in it's new form and also will post the doll I'm working on so you can see how I work. I have no clue if others do the same thing I do.... but yes it's more work and takes time. It took me a month and half to figure out just how I want the doll done. The doll will be a series which I won't name for a while. It's going to take me quite a while to complete the entire series.<br /><br />I will be posting more frequently. When I have headaches, they are usually quite rough which explains why I haven't posted as much. But I'll post more frequently and of course with much shorter posts. :-) </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 204);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></span></span>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-68095533025990407472007-05-17T02:56:00.000-04:002007-05-17T02:56:45.264-04:00Hi there! First I would love to thank each and every one of you for visiting my blog! It completely inspires me to work on it more often. It also inspires me to keep busy. There are days when I just don't want to do any art work. So when I see that visitors are really stopping by, that is really a huge inspiration to me! Thank you so much! If there's anything you see that could truly use changing or editing, please by all means, share it with me. I'm open to suggestions for anything relating to the blog.<br /><br />It's currently 2:50 AM ET. I am fading very fast and just wanted to write a very quick note to thank you all for visiting my blog! I will be adding more features soon! I just don't think I need to add every single thing that's available for blogs. I have never liked sites that are busy or over the top. Right now the one post with my bead loom woven bracelet that's still on the loom is too busy for my personal liking. I do have a lot to learn! I'm not worried about it though. I'll eventually figure it out. I especially would like to figure out how to allow visitors the option of viewing, pictures or whatever in larger format. One of my major pet peeves is when people post pictures and you aren't able to see a larger format of the small picture. I wear glasses and my glasses isn't enough with the small thumb prints. I like the option of being able to view a larger photo.<br /><br />This evening I got unusually distracted and ended up going to Preston's website. I ended up reading his Biography, portfolio, etc... It is un"BELIEVABLE"! You have got to see it to believe it. I am not even sure how I ended up at such a website. It's something I am not into at all. My eyes just about popped out... I'm afraid to even THINK of what the cost is..... I don't even want to imagine! Go to the site and enjoy it! It's very different! Let me know what you think of it.... Make sure you go to his Portfolios. Ay yi yi yi... MAGNIFICENT, GORGEOUS, VOLUPTUOUS, DELICIOUS, EYE POPPING, STUNNING, ASTOUNDING work of art.... This is a man of a rare gift.... unbelievable... <a href="http://www.prestonbailey.com/">http://www.prestonbailey.com/</a><br /><br />I'm fading fast and making more typos. It's time for me to get some shut eye. I will catch up later on with updates of my current projects I'm working on at the time being. Till then, always stay safe.Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-5098916534190577062007-05-12T02:41:00.000-04:002008-12-09T01:24:59.307-05:00<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxPxMiprIxJK-y8w7D2xahR5lPBFQgLcFGq8ZJwKB588gRUaYUqHXkPEN5026TLzIyHIF8TP_XLup9TFt4vbQMEspTYvfuqldAcCviN6f_fGdJ6NnFMyBrebMXINNkfHevtHJqA/s1600-h/scan0002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 162px; height: 311px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoxPxMiprIxJK-y8w7D2xahR5lPBFQgLcFGq8ZJwKB588gRUaYUqHXkPEN5026TLzIyHIF8TP_XLup9TFt4vbQMEspTYvfuqldAcCviN6f_fGdJ6NnFMyBrebMXINNkfHevtHJqA/s320/scan0002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063548828052678642" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnKpq9dHYEIOMxeeJgNrzkRNYL7-sqkB5Au_fK3ouVZ95X4PN-ffn7aIQKsNbHmth4YhnvQRJOtkO3jzXd9RZyoTrEk9l4QQ9MZzFqx1dImsYTQbJsxzYaif2rfLUMWBZ2H4mZig/s1600-h/Unedited+picture+of+my+1st+beaded+loom+woven+bracelet.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnKpq9dHYEIOMxeeJgNrzkRNYL7-sqkB5Au_fK3ouVZ95X4PN-ffn7aIQKsNbHmth4YhnvQRJOtkO3jzXd9RZyoTrEk9l4QQ9MZzFqx1dImsYTQbJsxzYaif2rfLUMWBZ2H4mZig/s320/Unedited+picture+of+my+1st+beaded+loom+woven+bracelet.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063546865252624354" border="0" /></a><br />Hello everyone! Hope you are doing well and in good spirits as you read this! As you can see and will continue to see, there have been additions and changes added to the blog. I still cannot figure out how to add pictures, ads, etc where I want them to appear on the blog. I don't want everything on the right hand side of the blog. The loomwoven bracelet I've made would be nice to have underneath this post. I cannot figure out how to do that. I'll eventually and hopefully figure it out in due time. I'm just keeping my fingers, toes and eyelashes crossed for that! (AH! I think I've got it figured out!!!!!!!) Here goes nothing.... YES, YES & YES!!!!!!!!!!!!! I did it!!!!!! Whew HOO!!!! I'm thrilled! Can't you tell?!!!!! YES!!! Whew! It's about time! lol! As you can see I used three different Delica color cylinder seed beads. If you like the colors, email me and I'll give you the colors I used. I have tiny wrists so I only made it slightly larger because I don't like anything snug fitting on me. It's 6 1/2 inches long. The width is 13mm which basically translate into nearly 1/2 inch wide. I have woven in the weft threads. Yesterday (Thursday) Kiersten & I went to the store and purchased several different buttons that would go best with the bracelet... problem is, the shank seems bulky so I'm not quite sure how to get that in between the tightly woven beads. I then would need to weave in the warp threads. Can't wait till it's done! I should also scan the buttons that would go best with this bracelet. I have to go with the gold which I usually don't even wear... the silver just looks horrid with the colors of the Delica seed beads. The gold goes perfectly well with it.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL9OmfNiOO-iC2-OSSz3eHJGtyK7pc18YjkJBfarIx3j2UWBxlS19pTNnwDJleXmiLVA1Z_JNP5Lqqfcji7jXVH_kDVSqE04Ufd73kkXBuEJXsfWTMTd8ycIEt3Z56KstLw54DrA/s1600-h/buttons1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiL9OmfNiOO-iC2-OSSz3eHJGtyK7pc18YjkJBfarIx3j2UWBxlS19pTNnwDJleXmiLVA1Z_JNP5Lqqfcji7jXVH_kDVSqE04Ufd73kkXBuEJXsfWTMTd8ycIEt3Z56KstLw54DrA/s320/buttons1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063554445869901842" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFGnHVDUPcbf6lHcS4Xf4yLbpWqLH6XTk0ppYHvwS1YPe0ROYGweX2VMivwNqBtPFu5npr9uZ5DMhj1eg28UgBvdGheibUerFncso9yVMb5mLA6Jztnxmp9kTtXg3S1cPjgx4HQ/s1600-h/Buttons+for+1st+loomwoven+braclet.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 237px; height: 178px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQFGnHVDUPcbf6lHcS4Xf4yLbpWqLH6XTk0ppYHvwS1YPe0ROYGweX2VMivwNqBtPFu5npr9uZ5DMhj1eg28UgBvdGheibUerFncso9yVMb5mLA6Jztnxmp9kTtXg3S1cPjgx4HQ/s320/Buttons+for+1st+loomwoven+braclet.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063554450164869170" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8cf3xZs6EBjDS4pwImzr0gDoT16Z4_SCHnJmbp3WxFbSz-K6ZMN3sheC9y-KUb07BO-_7f4RqeImu-8WLFc8jcNjcXypVYeyx_IK5D9aZ9aK823of1LPKcc1mpYZzzTZUqdvL2A/s1600-h/buttons2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8cf3xZs6EBjDS4pwImzr0gDoT16Z4_SCHnJmbp3WxFbSz-K6ZMN3sheC9y-KUb07BO-_7f4RqeImu-8WLFc8jcNjcXypVYeyx_IK5D9aZ9aK823of1LPKcc1mpYZzzTZUqdvL2A/s320/buttons2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5063554445869901858" border="0" /></a><br />I have no clue if you can zoom the scans in or out. I hope you can. The scanned buttons do not look great at all. It's so much prettier in person. The spiral ones have a frosted or brushed look to it... and the buttons on the right, the interior of the square button is a opalescent shell I think or something like that. The outer edges of the opalescent is just gold edgings. It's really pretty. They both fit the bracelet thankfully! I'm literally smiling from ear to ear that I can finally put pictures in! About time! Whew hoo!!!!<br /><br />Well tomorrow, (Actually later on today) is the Deaf Expo in College Park.<br /><a href="http://www.deafnation.com/page.php?id=444">http://www.deafnation.com/page.php?id=444</a> My oldest daughter, Kiersten moved back home from college. She's had quite a whirlwind couple of years at school and it's really nice having her home. She's able to just slow down which is something she's not entirely used to but has been doing extremely well. She no longer has her car so being without her car has been difficult. She has however been handling everything with grace. We were actually a little concerned having her living at home because we just have been so used to the peace and quiet around here. When she would come home, it was a place for her to more or less let off steam and it wasn't pleasant. However since she's been home, she has surprised us a great deal. She does her thing and keeps herself busy doing whatever she wants. She has been removing weeds from our front yard of the house. That has shocked my husband & me. We used to beg and plead with the girls when they were in their teens to please help around the house and they wouldn't have anything to do with it. I guess it's true as they get older they really do appreciate the finer things in life. It's starting to look lovely outside.... I miss working outside a great deal. I do have those moments where I just want to get out there and be with mother earth but then I immediately know of the consequences if I do that. Lupus is not a fun disease to have. It's wicked to have to deal with limitations. I was never like that. I lived an extremely active life until I was hit with unimaginable pain that was blinding, searing, binding and really just excruciating. I learned over the years doing the most mundane things such as going out for a few hours will wipe me out the following day and all day. Sometimes it will wipe me out more than just the following day. If I do the slightest things as laundry, vacuuming, whatnot, pain sets in very rapidly and quite viciously. So I have had to learn how to avoid pain. It did take me several years to get it in my stubborn head that I just cannot be like most people can be. It's not worth the consequences. I especially make sure I stay away from stress. Stress can truly create havoc for those of us afflicted with lupus. It will be a real nice day to have the family together this weekend! I enjoy it when the girls are home and at the same time I truly enjoy it when they leave for a while with their friends.<br />Anyhow...<br />Yesterday (Thursday to be politically correct)... I'm still on Friday's time even though it's almost 1 AM. Kiersten needed to do something which gave me a chance to run some errands. I like it when one of the girls go out with me. It's nice.... I wanted to have my hair cut today but Kiersten fussed and said, "Mom, you <span style="font-weight: bold;">need</span> to let your hair grow." I have very, very short hair that spikes on the top. It's very short on the sides and in the back it tapers nicely... so my hair stylist ended up agreeing with Kiersten! (Grrrr!) She said that I should let my hair grow for another 3 (yes THREE) months or so and then something nice can be done with my hair. I don't know how I feel about it at all. I have such incredibly thin hair and DEAD STRAIGHT hair. When it gets long, it's lifeless. There's not a single thing that can be done to keep curls, etc in it. I used to have perms moons ago and every single time I had perms it would come out that very day. I would always have to go back one to three times within one to two weeks to have it re-permed. I just have dead straight hair. So this short spiked style works best on me. So for the sake of Kiersten and the hair stylist, I will do my best to give this a go and see what happens. After the salon, we headed out to <a href="http://www.joann.com/">http://www.joann.com/</a> where I needed to get some items to do my "Polka Dot" fat book project. I also stopped at Lowe's to get some items for the project. I don't want to reveal too much here because there are a lot of participants in this project. We all have to submit our project to the host no later than the 30th of May. I am just so incredibly anxious to get started on this project! It's nice to do something different than beading. I need variety when it comes to the arts. It keeps things interesting!<br />I have purchased watercolor pencils. I guess I just do what I want and rub some water on it. I've never heard of watercolor pencils before. Regardless, I'll have fun with it... I'm going to practice this on Strathmore™ Watercolor cold press 400 series professional paper. The website is at: <a href="http://strathmoreartist.com/">http://strathmoreartist.com/</a> I wish I could tell you what else I'm using for an object but if I say anything, it could easily ruin the excitement and others may use the idea as well. I was inspired to do what I want to do with one of my subscription magazines.<br />Since I have been out of it most of the day today (Friday), I haven't gotten anything done. We'll be leaving by 9 in the morning to go out to eat breakfast with a bunch of our Deaf friends and then head on over to the Deaf Expo. Fortunately we learned a lot of new things from back home in NYC... friends of ours in NYC informed us of new things and we signed up for the new things before others get wind of it here in the good old south. Home for us will always be New York. We moved here in Atlanta due to a job relocation my husband had to do. Where he used to work in Westchester County, NY closed. So we were given several options as to what we wanted to do. We of course had no choice but to choose Georgia. The important thing was that he kept his seniority, etc... He has been working for the same company exactly 28 years. He started May 9, '79. So it's officially 28 years now! Long time to work for the same company. So many people just easily quit their job after just a few years or so. It's just rare to hear of anyone staying put at their job for good.<br />We do like the weather here in the south as opposed to the weather back home. I just couldn't handle the cold weather. When you have Raynauds, it is extremely painful when you are exposed to the cold environment. Your body stiffens up and feels like you're an ice sculpture that cannot move at all. It's very painful. So the weather here in the south is just perfect. The hotter, the better. We do not like the south for other reasons. One is for it's religious way of life. The other is people (our culture) very quickly recognize you as an outcast if you do not side with them religious-wise. Our belief has always been and always will be, whatever your beliefs are, we support you so as long as you don't impose them on us. Religion is such a personal matter and we prefer it to be a personal matter. The worse thing I think is when anyone compares or finds criticism with something you say... so the best solution is to simply NOT discuss religion at all. I'm a very religious person in a very free way... Nature, Mother earth, the ocean, lake, pond, river, stream, waterfalls, woods, trees, you name it is my religion. To me that says volumes.<br />Kiersten came home... Now I'm waiting for Nicole to come home. She lives in Atlanta proper but is home for the weekend with us... the girls are very anxious to go to the Deaf Expo... it'll be a nice day! It's very RARE when we go out as a family since they are adults. So it'll be nice! I'm hoping Sunday will be equally nice outside. If it is, I would <span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-weight: bold;">love</span> to go to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens, <a href="http://www.atlantabotanicalgarden.org/home.do">http://www.atlantabotanicalgarden.org/home.do</a> But we'll have to wait and see.<br />While I'm waiting for Nicole to come home, I'm going to start fooling around with a little bit of watercoloring and see how it works! It should be fun... I'll take pictures of whatever I'll be doing and post it! (Glenda... I'll email you soon. I haven't forgotten you!!) smile....<br />Well... you all continue to be in good spirits! Yours in whirlwind of beads, ~Snowrose~ _\m/Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-73199043549972979662007-05-08T22:16:00.000-04:002007-05-08T22:42:34.933-04:00Can't believe it's already past the first week of May. Where does the time go?! As you can see, you have seen a little more changes on here. I am still struggling with some things. I cannot quite figure out where to add images, Ads, etc. I cannot figure it out. I just hope to eventually figure it out in due time.<br /><br />I have signed up for 3 things. I signed up for the Polka Dot Book that's due May 30th. I will need to complete more than 20 pages of work involving Polka Dots... I'm looking forward to that! It'll be the very first time I will be receiving an entire book back from all others who have joined for this fun project! I of course will add the pictures after the book arrives. I cannot post the pictures of my work until after the project is completed and we receive our new book back.<br /><br />The 2nd thing I signed up for is Robin Atkins project that will take one year to complete. The project is to let the individual who signed up bead one page a month for one year and then turn it into a book. It's a journal... If you are interested in joining, you can go to <a href="http://robinatkins.com/new.html">http://robinatkins.com/new.html</a>. You can read more about it and sign up if you would like. It will start in June. I'm looking very much forward to this monthly project! I will be doing postcard size journals. If I do anything larger, I will never get it done on time to start on the next month's journal. The more who sign up for this, the merrier!<br /><br />And finally, I saw in Cloth Paper Scissors Magazine, <a href="http://www.quiltingarts.com/cpsmag/cpshome.html">http://www.quiltingarts.com/cpsmag/cpshome.html</a><br />on page 42 - 45 there is a recipe card swap. There is one recipe my uncle's wife's late husband's mother (got it?)... is very well known for her famous plethora of dessert recipes as well as many bread recipes... this one recipe decided to make was just a bit too rich for my liking. I did not like the chocolate used. I'm sorry but I detest American Chocolate. It just isn't anywhere near as good or as heavenly as European chocolate is. So with several modifications I've done over a period of a few years, it became the biggest hit. I'm always asked to bring it to showers, weddings and parties. When I bring the dessert it's gone and not once have we been able to succeed in bringing even a spoonful left of it home or give it to the host of the party. So, I'll be swapping that recipe out and whoever gets it will definitely be the lucky one! I will have fun creating this recipe swap. I will have to figure out where on earth I can get vinyl as that is what is used to cover floaters. I'm not sure if I'm going to use floaters. I've got some time to think about this! I'll post pictures up when I'm done!<br /><br />So... as you can see, besides bead looming, I'm keeping myself busy with other art medias as well. It's all in good fun!Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23036687.post-34135884526314759832007-05-04T16:29:00.000-04:002007-05-04T16:32:14.441-04:00<span style="font-family:arial;">As you can see, the blog template has changed. I have been working tirelessly the past week on updating the blog. I will discuss what has been happening the past 4 months when I have done as much as I can to get the blog looking good and making sure that I put in sites that I frequent. I do not just put in any sites that look good to me. I put in sites that are quite inspirational to me. I do not know many of the artists personally. There are several of them I know personally and they are a constant source of inspiration that I simply would not get anywhere else. You all know who you are and I thank you from the very depths of my soul. Smile<br /><br />Well, it's back to work on the blog! The blog is not going to be completed all at once. There will be changes, additions, etc. as I go along. I do get bored easily if I don't change things around every now and then. I do hope to see more templates than the limited ones blogger has at this time. I would love to put seed beads in the background, or really all of my art obsessions in a collage and have that in the background. Thing is, I have no earthly clue how to go about that. If that can be done I will figure out how to do that. It will take time though! I will post a lot more frequently and none of the bi-weekly, monthly and delayed postings anymore. (Unless there's personal emergency in the family).<br /></span>Snowrosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05152933434050833308noreply@blogger.com1