A visitor to Ohio

Guess who finally made it to Ohio...Cutie Potato! She has been traveling all over the world and has made it here to Columbus just in time to go to MM&M with me. If you'd like to see the other places she's visited, please check out her blog here. Here is her picture with her new BFF Daisy. At first Cutie Potato was a little intimidated by the sparkle farkle around here, but she's doing much better.

I'm still working on my piece for the Artbeads.com challenge. You know as long as I've done bead embroidery, I've never made one of those big collars. So, that is my challenge. I like it so far. Sorry about this awful picture. I'm going to have to get Chris to take it as my hands shake too much to get a nice clear shot, but then I'm not done yet! It needs more embellishment. I did find the perfect backing for it. Don't laugh, but I bought this jumper at the thrift store which was 100 ultra seude in a nice rust color. It is about two-three yards of pristine fabric for only...wait for it...$7.40. I got it on Wednesday discount day. I think the rust will match well.



I'm going to MM&M in Shelbyville Ohio this weekend. Then a busy first of November. Fiona is going to see Dr. Miller & have her glucose checked. She's doing so much better & her fur is coming in red! She hasn't been red since she was 3 years old. I think it is the high protein diet she's on. Well, gotta run. I still have to pack, work tonight, and them pick up my riders for the big trip tomorrow.

For Andrew

I don't know Andrew Thornton very well, but I've been reading his blog for the past two months getting to know him and appreciate the beautiful soul he has & the art that comes from that soul. Andrew is facing lots of medical bills and the community of artist out here on the internet are helping by auctioning off piece of art to help Andrew. I have found over the years that no one has a bigger heart than an artist and the out pour of generous help for a fellow traveler is amazing. I want to add my voice.



I am offering any proceeds from the sell of one of my beaded beanie babies that was featured in the article I wrote for Doll Crafter and Costuming called Trash to Treasure. I found a bag of those mini beanie babies that were given out in fast food children's meals at the thrift store. Inside that bag were tiny little faces looking at me some of them still in their original plastic packaging. They were bound for the trash can, so I bought them all and decided to take my skills at bead embroidery and turn them into something that could be treasured. I would like to offer to the highest bidder my little beaded cat I named Snowball. She is covered with beads and has three crystals on her forehead as I just couldn't cover up that adorable face. I'm going to take bids through my e-mail until October 26. Please e-mail me at scotdog@wideopenwest.com with bids. I'll let the winner know on the 27th before I leave for Kentucky. All money made from this auction will go to Andrew. So please dig deep & help another artist.

October...where are you going?

I can't believe here it is the second half of October. What has happen...did someone wind up the clock too fast & everything is double time? I've lost track of weeks & weeks. Someone find them & send them back to me. I do have an announcement. I have a winner for the Pocket Monster give away. Congrats to Rachel Crisman of Dalai Mama. Now how did I pick her you wonder. Did I write numbers and pick one out of a hat? Did I use some sophisticated number picker? Nope...we were at Costco getting gas when I asked Chris to pick a number from one to twenty-one. Instantly he said 17. Within minutes the gas pump also clicked out $17 dollar of gas. So it was meant to be. Rachel wants a red one with pointy ears....I'm going to have to jump into that basket & wade my way through the monsters to find that one. They have been whispering amongst themselves as they heard that Cutie Potato is coming to visit real soon & are planning something. You know how those monsters are.

I was down for a week with stinking Vertigo again! Two weekends ago, Barbara came to teach our club Boudica. She stayed with me. I let her sleep in my bedroom when I "camped" out in the some day to be guest room. I must have slept wrong or blew my nose wrong or ate something wrong or just was wrong as I woke up two Saturday with that awful feeling in my head. Thank goodness I had drugs and it was a pretty mild case...until Monday when it go BAD! I felt like I had a tight cap around my head & the world was spinning. I had to call off sick & take some Phenergen. Chris said he thought I was dead as I slept for 16 straight hours. It lingered until yesterday but everyone at work enjoyed my staggering around...but hey! I did work!

I have been missing my Muse recently. I think after I finished Mother's Love, I've been in a limbo wondering what big project will come my way. I've been sewing a lot (ie, the Pocket Monsters and some pin cushions which are too horrible to picture) but I needed a big project to make my Muse wake up. Then Artbeads.com came up with a new challenge. Here is the write up about the new challenge:


"Artbeads is proud to announce our first ever ‘What Inspires You?’ jewelry contest! The theme of Artbeads.com’s first beading contest is to let beading artists share their inspiration with others. There are two categories, necklaces and other beaded designs for this contest. Voting will be open to the public to determine the top 3 winners in each category. A picture of the inspiration and design will allow the voters to see how each entry is represented.

The Grand Prize Winner in the Necklace and Beading contests will each receive a $500 Artbeads.com Gift Certificate, the 2nd Place winners will each receive a $250 Artbeads.com Gift Certificate and the 3rd Place winners will each receive a $100 Artbeads.com Gift Certificate.

This is a fun event to share with your blog readers, family, friends and fellow beaders. This is a contest of originality, design, and vision. All entries MUST be an original design. At least 50% of the beads and components in a submitted entry must be purchased from Artbeads.com. Participants must upload one picture of their design and one of picture of their inspiration, such as you see below in the banners. This contest is open to beaders worldwide, aged 18 and older.

I have provided two images and the HTML code below that you may use in your blog if you like. One is for the Necklace Beading Contest and the other for the general Beaded Contest entries."

SOoooooo...instantly I decided I needed to do this. At the same time Duchess sent me an e-mail asking if I'd like to blog for beads again...duh! So I sent her a list and got these...oooooo




DB0507
GCRD-OAM
TBRD8-514F
TBRD11-2110
TBRD8-2110
FPSMAME-GDR4




I began to bead, and bead and bead. Everything just started to click. I do have more pictures to share later, but I have to retake them because they are all fuzzy and even though I'm over most of my Vertigo, I can't look at fuzzy pictures or cars racing around on television. So here's a beginning. I've worked three days so far. I'm hoping to finish this by next week.


I had to eventually make myself stop beading & come upstairs to enter the "real" world. There waiting for me was Fiona. Here are a couple pictures of my miracle girl. She is doing so well with her new diet and insulin injections. I was so close to losing my girl, but with Dr. Miller and the techs at Worthingon Woods Vet Hospital, Fiona is happy & gaining her weight back. She'll be blind with those cataracts, but she's alive & letting me love her one more day.


I'll have more later. I have lots to share, but need to check on that Pork roast I smell cooking.
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Disclosure...As a reviewer of products at Artbeads.com, I receive the cab/seed beads/fire polish above free of charge. I have been asked to review these products and give my honest opinion of the products...positive or negative. I am not being compensated by Artbeads.com for my endorsement as it pertains to the products received and reviewed.