This Christmas season I participated in my first ever online "Secret Santa" game. I was assigned someone that had given no extra information. So I turned into "Stalker Santa" and looked her up online. I googled her name and came up with an interview she had given and finally some extra information so I could make something just for her. So I designed a bead to match her love for Stephen Kings' Dark Tower series and I also sent along some really incredible catnip for her two cats, Roland and Cuthbert, named after two of the characters in the books.

About that catnip... It was sitting in a sealed container, in a bag on top of the television, about 5' off of the floor. Our cat walked into the room an started sniffing the air. She then proceeded to jump up onto the narrow ledge beside the television and climbed up next to the bag with the yummy smell.

I put her back on the floor and gave her a little pinch from her own container :)

Happy Holidays!

In our neighborhood Santa comes to visit with a fire truck. The first year we lived here we came home to the fire truck and a bunch of guys all scattered up and down the side walk. My heart fell as I tried to figure out who was on fire. Of course there wasn't a fire just Santa :)
When Sparky naps he means it. I took about three pictures of him like this before the red light from my camera got to be too much. he snorted and moved to another spot. I felt sooo guilty~
Claude just opened his eyes and gave me a tired dog look lol... poor baby.
Gloria (glo is what we call her around here :) she is a french kiss snatcher pro. Bend down to tie a shoe and you better watch out because she'll give you a fast and sloppy kiss right on the lips.
I couldn't get a picture of Reba. She is camera shy and vacuum shy and stranger shy and just because you have been five hundred times doesn't mean you know her shy!! lol... seriously Sometimes I wonder what happened to her before we got her. She was just a puppy and we have only shown her love and kindness. She fears things and I have no explanation I am just glad she is in our house and not a less understanding and loving one. She is my "other girl" :)
Speaking of girls we have an unwelcome visit from the flu and my real girl is sick and sleeping on the couch. Poor sweetie, she is such a trooper. I hope she feels better in the morning. She hates missing school.

Big olive shaped hollows~ It has been sooo cold everywhere lately. Matt set up the heater in my shop last week so I can at least keep my buns warm while I work :) I have one more custom order to finish up this week and then I can relax a bit and just be creative for a couple of weeks.
I purchased the cutest snowpeople here: http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=8435259 Glasscat is a fellow member of the EGA and I can vouch for her well made adorable and quickly shipped items. I just hope the recipient loves them as much as I do!!
Ready for Christmas? Matt and I are going to finish up this weekend I think (hope)
I seriously can't stand the mall and the crowds umm... ever not just at Christmas time.
i am an early up get in get out kind of shopper~
Have a Great Day!!!

A couple more of our spoon bracelets. This one is stamped "eternally yours" inside. I am sure that is the name of the pattern~ How romantic is that?And of course I saved the best for last but that is only my opinion. I will always have a "thing" for seaweed sparkle glass and its tiny bits of inner sparkle~ and the spoons on this one ahh... :)
Things only my camera can see!!! phhh See the bits of hemp fuzz on this bead? I have great vision and didn't notice them with my eyes until after I had taken the picture and loaded it for resizing etc...
The bead is lovely and I am really pleased with how it turned out. The other five pictures I took of it have no fuzz in them :)
Snow, no snow, then some more snow. We went for a walk this morning because it was snowing. I dropped everything, had my girl bundle up quickly and we walked in the falling snow. I try to make the most out of it because you never know how long it will last here. Usually it melts off fairly quickly in a day or two at most. I am not a fan of driving in it and usually just won't period. This morning I drove to the Post Office in a rush and left a package that has to be in the mail in the morning and that was it. Now looking out at the solid colored clouds I wonder if we will have more tonight. It sure looks like it. Another walk is in the making I think :)

New spoon bracelets are in stock now. I have been busy adding them to my shop: http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=51507Tangerine~
Lilac and Teal~
Silver veined organic~Probably my fave :) Next to the green one I'll show later, oh and the one at the top!
I love these and should make myself a whole wardrobe of them :) they are one of the most comfortable and unobtrusive pieces of jewelry I have ever had the pleasure to wear.
More to see in the coming days!

More greyhounds~ I am working on adding these to Etsy so everyone can get their Christmas shopping done in a timely manner :)
The colors really pop in this glass when it is sculpted in the flame.

and I really love the green one! How come I am not out in the shop yet this morning? Wind and rain with potential power outtages. I don't want a kiln full of beads if the power goes out. So I am waiting a bit today before I go out and get started. I guess I can get caught up with the laundry while I am waiting. phhh... Where is the laundry fairy when I need one?

Have a great day and stay warm and dry wherever you are!

"Warning Battery Exhausted" Flashed up on the screen right before I was finished taking photos this morning. I have a lot to do and my battery is pretty exhausted lately as well. The weather has been blech!!! I still haven't asked Matt to set the heater up in my studio again so I have to bundle up when it is cold brrr... I went to see the Doc on Wednsday and she is testing my thyroid etc... because well my body and mind (eek!) have been doing some odd things for about the last six months and it was time for a check-up anyway. I am exhausted a lot of the time among other things and it sucks because I am usually busy with something or other...

Off to get motivated~ hmmm Coffee is my friend :)

I had an item mis-listed. In other words I sold it at a show and somehow managed to reactivate it in my shop without having it in my hand!!! I am sooo much more detail oriented than that. Of course I didn't discover my mistake until someone purchased it. I was completely mortified and offered to make her a similar one. She said it didn't have to be the same color as the orignal so I asked her preference and made some beads for her to choose from in the colors she listed. The beads on this leather bracelet are the ones she liked. My favorites out of the bunch~ I am happy to have had the opportunity to create a custom bracelet for her. I hope she loves it!
The snow threats have started already. We were supposed to get some last wednsday night but nada. The local weather service is talking about two consecutive storms headed are way. A cold snow that won't last long followed by wind and temps in the 50's.
Oh Mom I bet you wish you were in Arizona now :)

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Originally uploaded by mattskiss99

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!
Getting to spend Thanksgiving with my mom and stepdad Milo was a rare treat, they are usually already in the warmer climes by this time of year. Milo is fighting a winning battle with prostate cancer. Due to his extended medical treatment they are still in the area for Thanksgiving and mom's Birthday! Although they are both anxious to be "outta here" and headed for Sunny Arizona and their cozy little spot. I am glad they are in the Pacific Northwest with us a bit longer this year :) so Happy Birthday Mom! You guys look lovely together~
Kris

Here it is~ The hollow puffy Lentil I was talking (gushing:) about last week Another View~
The sunrise was cold and beautiful this morning
I forgot about how hard those hollow beads are to clean!!!! Long ago I read about using a waterpick to clean out the last of the bead release but I never had to resort to that until now lol... Luckily I have one and I have to say it worked like a tiny bead pressure washer! Dreamy~
The sunrise was a bonus. The whole sky was lit up like a coral flame. I drank a couple of cups of coffee to get myself good and warm for the torch time I needed to put in today. It gets sooo cold in my studio in the winter sometimes. We haven't set the heater up yet this winter so I bundle up and take something hot to drink with me.
Well now it is time to get busy and get some Turkey soup on.
Warm and full of veggies yum :)

I have something in my kiln that I can't wait to see!!! It is a largish round hollow that I flattened a bit. It looks like a puffy lentil. I have wanted to make a bead like this for some time. In fact it was the inspiration for the hollow cubes I made a while back. I adore the way the light shines through them. Trying to keep the corners square and crisp was another thing entirely. Molten glass behaves much like slow moving water. It wants to be round and will continually try to become round until it cools enough to stay in the shape you like.

I will post pictures soon~

Oysters on the half shell? Not what I intended but a nice effect just the same.
Glass reacts to glass because of the different chemical properties of each color (I hope I am saying that right) Different things happen between different glasses. That is probably the thing that keeps me interested the most. I can try to duplicate an effect but it usually doesn't happen the same way.
Then there are glasses that are reactive all by themselves like Terra, R-108, Z-99 and a host of others.
Then to really spice things up you can also add metal leaf and foils in copper, silver, gold and palladium oh and wire too~ Burn them off in the flame or not :)

A little Terranova show and tell!
Some Silver Plum in all its wonder!
A little more Terranova. I really enjoy the subtle hues in this glass. Greens and purpley burgundies into gorgeous blues mmm nice...
Monday night I was surprised by my old friend migraine. I was busy doing some work on the computer and I realized part of the screen was missing. I was seeing "the hole" Part of my vision just fills in with a blank for lack of a better description. I used to have migraines often in my mid-twenties and I could always tell one was coming on for sure by running and looking at myself in a mirror. Part of my face would be gone from my field of vision. The next thing to come would be "lights" out of the corner of my eye, kind of like looking at a lightbulb and then away. From there it just gets more fun, numbness in various body parts and sometimes words don't make any sense. I usually just shut up and lie down.
So Monday night I squinted one eye printed what I needed and went to bed at about 6:00 pm. I dozed and awakened feeling better at about 8:45 pm I was surprised that I felt better so I got up had a light snack and then it started again!!! First the hole then the lights. Never have I had two in a row like that I still feel a little out of it and It is Thursday two days later.
I have things to do I don't have time for migraine prison right now dammit!!!

Have you checked out our Holiday Gift guide yet? Lis our fearless leader, neverending source of ideas, wonder girl came up with this. It is a lovely collection of easy (uncrowded) holiday shopping if you ask me :) Don't hesitate everything is handmade high quality artisan glass!

I'd much rather have a stack of beads than a stack of pancakes :) This shape has been my favorite lately and I have seriously drifted away from my usual petite bead sets. I have become a focal makin' fool. I used to test combos on small round beads but lately these have become my "test beads" The shape is superslim and they feel so cool in my hands. Like a worrystone, they are soothing and beautiful to look at too.

She's a doll isn't she?
Matt and sam and I took Alena down to his grandparents for the annual apple harvest. They pick all of the apples at the end of the season just shake them out of the trees,
pick them up from the ground and box them up. Then they took them around to the front where the cider press is located.
Grandpa seemed to be having a great time :) He was probably just happy to get the apples picked so the bear quits coming around at night! Yes they have had a bear prowling for apples in the last few weeks so it's a good thing they made them into cider.
Matt and Dave are getting the cider press ready to rock and roll~
Miss Alena having a bit of quality time with her great grandma.
Does making cider and spending the day with beloved family members count as a day off? Well for me it does all I really did was wander around with a baby on my hip and a camera in my free hand. I don't know how I ever got anything done while my babies were little!!! I stand amazed that some of the people I know can accomplish so much with children underfoot :) I know I got things done when the kids were little. I guess I have forgotten how lol...

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Originally uploaded by mattskiss99

Something sweet and tranquil to look at until I have more time for a real post~

Amazing... simply amazing the tricks I was shown today~ Finally there is hope for my pictures of red things...
just a ray of hope...
I still have to figure out how to implement some of the wonder picture tricks I learned today. I am so on it!! Marlo was a great teacher and my classmates were a lot of fun as well. I am still in disbelief that I actually went so far out of my "safe bubble" lol. I live in suburbia and it is comfortable for me. I would be most at ease with directions that end in "turn left at the really big stump" Of course the directions would have to first come with a great reason for me to go there in the first place. So driving all by my shy self into the middle of a majorly huge city like Seattle lol... I want great pictures what can I say? I got lost after I got into Seattle but I realized it fairly quickly and didn't waste much time calling for help. Marlo, my fabulous teacher got me there in one piece and after class I followed another southbound student to I-5.
All in all it was a terrific day and I hope I can do my teacher justice :)

Taking a good picture of items you are selling online is soooo important. I still don't quite have it down. Even though I love trying :) Sometimes my backgrounds turn colors other than what they are. A lovely shade of yellow ivory is my least favorite~ blech... So this Sunday I am taking a class in Seattle and hopefully it will make all the difference in the world. I am excited to be included as the class size is very small. I can't wait to see what I can learn!
On making wine stoppers I wish I was more prolific but they take a lot out of me when I make them. After I complete one my left hand will sometimes shake like I have the tremors!!! Not good for making the small detailed beads that I prefer. I have decided that I need to get an armrest of some sort so that I have good support while I am waving that big blob of glass in the flame.
And then there is always the desire for more glass. I have discovered glass that I had previously ignored because I didn't want to have yet another type of glass *rolls eyes* Well it turns out that I really love this glass a LOT. It isn't listed on my suppliers website... I hope they still have some. I am going to have a busy weekend I can tell :)

I promised myself I wouldn't watch because I don't want to cry today. Somehow I find myself in spite of myself watching Oprah with her terminal guests today and among them is Kris Carr http://www.crazysexycancer.com/
What an incredible outlook she has.
Wow we could all learn a lot from her.
I was having such a crappy day and it looks so much better now.

Well I told you I would come back and let you know what happened with the storm. My son now has a rather large hole in his roof and is in the process of moving to a different apartment. Part of a tree snapped off and dropped through his roof right over the babies room!!! Thankfully none of them were home when it happened so nobody was injured. He is lucky to have so many family members close by to help him move. Matt went over and helped on saturday and T.J.' s dad is helping them finish up today. What surprises me about the whole thing is there is a gaping hole in the roof, the rain has been pouring in and the apartment owner/manager hasn't even tarped the hole???!!!
The temperature really dropped after the winds moved through and we had thunder and lightning friday night. Cold temps and thunder always seem wrong to me. Anyway I have a lot of things to get caught up on so this is just a quick update so you guys know we didn't blow off the edge of the earth :)

Catching up... Does that ever really happen? I have a lot to do on my days "off" this week. Bottlestoppers and beads. A windstorm is coming in from the Pacific even as I type this. I am hoping the power stays on!!! Wish me luck with that the trees are still heavy with unfallen leaves~ I will let you all know what happens:)
Have a great day!

A view of the gloriously warm Atlantic ocean from our condo. Sue and I were raised around the Pacific Ocean which is icy cold in comparison. The first time I dipped my toes into the Atlantic I couldn't believe how warm it was. Look what I found in the parking garage! At first I thought it was dead but then the little guy moved and boy did I jump back hehehe... :)
A sea of Silk Road Collars! http://www.silkroadcollars.com/ I was over at The Sand Palace shoved back in a room in dark corner under the stairs!!! Needless to say the set up came down Saturday afternoon instead of Sunday morning. Greyhounds "cockroach" when they are relaxed. This girl does it on command to get her pretty pink tummy rubbed :)
Ahh home at last~ The sunrise from my first morning back was absolutely stunning!! I am glad I am an early riser and I was up to see it. Even where we live, surrounded by other homes, early morning is an amazing peaceful time. I love to go outside and take a few deep breaths of the crisp cool morning air. Yay Home!!!!