Friday, April 18, 2008

Tiny Treasures
I just completed 5 more bitty rings for a friend. Aren't they the sweetest things?
kayaking T&M
At a family campout a couple of years ago, we tried kayaking and loved it so much that we have been wanting to get into it. We finally bit the bullet and bought 2 kayaks. We figure each will hold one adult, one kid and a dog or picnik basket. Bring on summer!
Waiting her turn
M waiting her turn in the kayak. She loves it.
Kayaking T&C
C and Daddy enjoying the geese, river and scenery of the Deschutes.
soccer M 1
Moriah is competative and loves to run. She is doing really well playing soccer her first year. Both kids have soccer games on the weekends right now so we are staying very busy with that.
caleb throws
goalie caleb
This is C putting his goalie face on. He loves to play soccer as well. The first game of the season was extremely cold and it snowed. Last weekends game was sunburn weather. It was nearly 70 degrees with bright sunshine. Shows you how diverse the weather in Central Oregon can be.

This weekend I have a Precious Metal Clay class so Todd will be baching it with the kids and all their activities so I'd better be done with this post and go get everything ready for him so this weekend goes smoothly.

Bye for now!
Tulip

Tuesday, April 01, 2008

Shiny Metal Things

I'm afraid I'm doomed for another month to being very sporadic blogger. I have 4 more weeks of my metals class. I am not complaining, it's the greatest thing ever. It just means I will be a little quieter on the web.

M has finished up basketball and now both kids are in the middle of soccer practice. They both have there first game on Saturday and I can't wait. I am, I must admit, one of those obnoxious parents that stands on the side line and very loudly encourages my kids. However, I am still not as loud as my mother and father...ehem. It's just so much fun to watch them. It's probably a good thing I don't know enough about the games to be able to say more than "get the ball" or "great job".

T is still working hard. Don't know what else to say about that. He is leading AWANA's Sparkies at our church and loves those kids. They seem to think he is very cool as well.

We just finished up spring break and are getting back into the swing. We went to Portland for a couple of days and met Leanne and Billi for a short visit. It was nice to see them and as always, we made fun memories. Billi treated us to Corteo which is a Circe de Soleil show. It was wonderful.

M also got to enjoy some time with her best friend who moved to Beaverton last year. We had a lot of fun joking around with her. It's fun to watch two girls who have been great friends since 1st grade grow up. Mylie Cyrus is what they are all about right now. They are growing way to fast I'm afraid.

Me? Well, I've continued taking metal craft classes and am finishing up my year this month. I had my first metal surfacing class this morning and will have a weekend class that will tackle PMC - which is silver clay that can be sculpted. I have LOVED taking these classes this year and have learned so much. I'll post some pictures of my work at the end of this entry so you can get an idea of what I've been doing. I am beginning to design a few pieces to sell and have gotten good response so far. I have to have some way to support my passion for metal...

So here are my pieces. The first one is for sale and can be stamped with what you would like on it. They are miniature rings made from sterling silver and stamped with my kids names. They measure 1/4" high and 1/2" in diameter. They are meant to wear on a chain or chord around your neck. I am asking $23 for them.
Mini Ring Pendants

Here are some photos of several other pieces that I've made. There is a student art show coming up in the next couple of weeks that I am hoping to have several pieces in. That would be really great!
Sterling Silver Topaz Ring This is my first lost wax cast piece. It is a sterling silver ring that has a london blue topaz set in it. The stone isn't set just yet so I carefully placed inside the bezel so you could get a general idea of what it will look like by the end of the week. I learned so much doing this piece and am excited to give it another try with something different.

Sterling/Copper Enameled Pendant
This is may all time favorite piece to wear. It is a pendant made from 2 domed discs. The top one is made of copper with peacock blue enamel. It is striking and terrific to wear.
Poppy Pendant This is a poppy pendant is etched onto copper and then enameled with a clear enamel. The etching came from a photo I took of some poppies last summer. It has a bracelet that goes with it. Currently I am still searching for just the right thing to hang it from. Right now it is hung from two ribbons, black on top of copper.

Poppy Bracelet Lastly this is another poppy like the one above only it has had a patina put on it and the it is mounted on a piece of sterling silver to make a bracelet. The links are made from square wire and have 3 different diameters. I am looking forward to wearing this one when the weather gets warmer.

I hope you are all having a lovely spring.

Love,
Tulip