Wednesday, November 25, 2009

thisweekendisSecondStorie

The second show I am in this weekend is Second Storie's Indie Market at VSW. This is the best Holiday arts sale in Rochester. Vendors come from all over the eastern seaboard and inland to sell the most original unique and wonderful art. I just cpompleted the purse pictured below. There is only one like it - get there early!

Monday, November 23, 2009

Busy Bee

FRIDAY NOV. 27 & SATURDAY NOV. 28

10 AM-4 PM

SATURDAY, DEC. 5 & SUNDAY, DEC. 6
10 AM–4 PM

I have been working like crazy. Hardly eating, rarely showering and getting up super early to hopefully have enough merchandise for all the sales in which I am participating. It is amazing how much harder one works when when one is working for oneself. (I like the word one! Because that one to which I am referring is me - just me). I am selling work at two sales this weekend. More Fire, Rochester's wonderful glass hot shop is having their annual Holiday Open House and sale. You should not miss this one! It actually runs two weekends, but come this Friday, get there early and get the best of the offerings of hand made glass at low prices and each piece is completely unique. If you make jewelry there is no better time and place to get glass beads. Elizabeth and Jen spend weeks preparing the Gallery and making beautiful ornaments. At $20 each they are a steal. Also there will be demonstrations of Glass Blowing and bead making. Kids will love love love this show!

I have a number of quite wonderful items in the sale if I do say so myself. This choker has copper green glass beads that I made, turquoise, pyrite and green Czech glass beads all together on knitted silver wire. Below is a bracelet that has amethyst, turquoise, pearls, pyrite and amazing purple and copper green glass beads that I made on knitted oxidized silver wire and black silk thread.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

vintage & handmade







I have been posting to day on Etsy. These vintage buttons are so cool and I have a few more pairs of gloves too. I am trying to take advantage of those Holiday shoppers out there who are looking for unique vintage and hand made gifts. Please be aware of your shopping this year if you have not been in the past - buy local, buy hand made and better yet make it yourself!

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

1991


Allen and I were married in March of 1991, I assume these pics were taken right around then. I found them while attempting to organize this most disastrously unorganized house. I knit the sweater Allen is wearing for him and the one I am wearing was a custom piece for a dear friend and Art History Professor. We had just gotten our tiger kitten and named him Garth after the Garth in the movie Wayne's World. I am now going to knit some fingerless gloves while watching Roseanne on the TV land network. The more things change, the more they stay the same.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Hi Ho its off to Work I go

I have been posting quite a few new items to both of my Etsy shops. There are lots of new fingerless gloves at secondseed and some other interesting pieces at secondseedinstitches. I am beginning to go through my vintage button collection, but it has been difficult for me to choose any to sell, but I have forced myself. But don't cry for me, I have plenty of vintage buttons to keep me happy.

Monday, November 9, 2009

congratulations


I watched Sesame Street all the time as a child. Even when I was 21 years old, I remember returning home from Rome after being abroad for six months, and the first thing I watched on television was Sesame Street. It was such a warm and friendly reminder of my roots. Change is essential to growth and Sesame Street has been criticized for creating the short quick pace that led to generations addicted to adderall and MTV. But I believe that the consistent, exciting and new information provided by Sesame Streeet created extraordinarily talented and creative people. Google came out of it, along with a number of innovations in technology, film and education. Congratulations Sesame Street, and thank you for being there for me and my children. I look forward to watching with my grand children someday.

Saturday, November 7, 2009

Starting off fast and furious


I have been featured in a treasury on Etsy. Check it out - The colors are so much what I need right now!

out and about

This is a picture of the office I have left. (No one can actually enter through these doors, no, I have to walk through the disgusting cafeteria and down half a mile of hallways before I can get to the actual entrance of the office). It looks pretty nice from the outside, doesn't it? No one would know from just looking, that inside this room is really a black hole of boredom that impels anyone who enters to their lowest low and destroys even the hint of potential into a million little pieces.

When I started this work I was a fifth grade T.A. and I honestly, enthusiastically thought - "I'll be getting paid to help children all day!" As a stay at home mom, I had been helping my own children and their friends every day for ten years and never got paid for it. I probably shouldn't share this with the world - but in my misguided brooding I believe it is important for the world to understand that people who work in our childrens' schools are treated unbelievably horribly.
(Maybe this will help remind you to give them those Starbucks cards any chance you get!)...

...After all the taxes, union dues and NYS retirement monies are taken out of my pay, I take home $46 a day - if I am lucky enough to work five days a week - do the 3rd grade math, that's right, $230 a week. (This is after 5 years of 3% raises.) And I only work 187 days a year. Granted the benefits are fantastic, and the work atomosphere for most school workers is amiable. But I think now, finally, I have resolute clarity in my decision that I need to do something more with my life.
Kudos for me!

Monday, November 2, 2009

Fabric Fetish

True Up is really pushing me to get a high paying job. I am dying to order fabric! I may attempt to make this purse designed by Jessica Levitt even though I don't can't afford the gorgeous Windham fabrics...I also want to make dress made out of this Vera Garden fabric, inspired by vintage Vera textiles, (The Vera Company, owns the extensive library of prints, original artwork, scarves, and the trademarks and copyrights of the late, iconic American artist, Vera Neumann). Dooce wrote a nice piece on her, you can read it here.And I am loving this pumpkin color in Riley Blake's new line-