Work Table Wednesday

Happy Halloween!!!  With three minutes left, I thought I'd show you my latest thing that I've been working on...though by now, it's all been devoured. :)

I will be assuming my normal, non-edible, hobbies this weekend!  Hope you had a fabulous holiday, if you celebrate and if not, then a wonderful and safe week!

Belated Work Table Weekend

So, I've had an interesting weekend to the say the least.  My "smartphone" is now an expensive paperweight.  Thank goodness for DropBox, because otherwise, I would have lost over 1100 pictures  on my phone.

I have now downgraded to an older phone to get me through until I can renew my plan with AT&T.  The huge downside to having an HTC phone that suddenly has a hardware malfunction and is one month out of warranty with the manufacturer and two months away until I can renew my commitment plan. 

But, I digress!  The weekend was full of Halloween decorating, candy making planning and lots and lots of creating!  Yet, I failed to get any really good pictures.  Here are some older ones that I took as pieces were in progress...please forgive the poor quality and lighting.

 

A necklace that is composed of zebra stones, snowflake obsidian and assorted cut glass beads.  I actually changed this a few more times before I was really finished with it...I extended it by adding a few more detailed beads into the design and I added a magnetic clasp, rather than the barrel clasp.

A couple of pairs of earrings that I designed. One utilizing freshwater pearls and purple amethyst, along with a iridescent glass bead, while the other draws attention to the small charm with the black cut glass bead and red coral beads.

 I also had another fabulous mail day as my latest shipment arrived from Deb at CrysallisGEMS!

My betta also got a new home over the weekend.  I picked up some live plants and set up a larger, 5 gallon aquarium for him.  He would barely hold still long enough to snap a picture.

 The first apple pies of the season!  The apples were courtesy of someone from work and I could not wait to turn them into tasty pies. :)  

What did you do this weekend?

Also, for my readers along the Eastern Coast, please be safe as Sandy heads inland and do not take unnecessary risks.  I think we have lucked out here, except for showers and wind, but I wish you all a safe week and Happy Halloween!

March of the Snails

Well, I was going to have pictures of a necklace I made last weekend...or possibly some of the earrings that I have finished.  But, I forgot to take pictures AND I promised that I would show you the amazing work of ColtPixy again!

Meet Vadoma, the fortune teller snail.  Watch as she reads her tarot cards and gazes into her crystal ball (stored safely in a mushroom cap).  She will only have good things to tell you and will bring good fortune to all who seek her guidance.

ColtPixy has reached 100 snails and she is doing a giveaway of Vadoma to celebrate!  And it is also her Birthday, so head over to ColtPixy's blog to find out how to enter and win.  While you are there, wish her a Very Happy Birthday!

Then, after you enter, check out her Etsy shop for the latest fabulous snails that she has added for this special occasion!  These would make the perfect gifts for those you love this holiday season!

And many more!

Oh, and this is a sneak peek of what's on my work table. It just came in the mail yesterday and no, I won't tell you what is in these adorably cute boxes...but it's going to be contributing to my next project. :)

Work Table Wednesday

Wow, last week was very exciting!  I have now spent the last few days, sorting through my supplies and trying to figure out what direction I need to focus on next.  I have a craft fair that is coming up the first week of November and it was requested that I make more earrings, so I had to hunt down all of my supplies that I have not touched since May.

It can be amazing what you stumble across when you are cleaning and reorganizing your stash, like this white turquoise that was given to me.

If you ever want truly exceptional stones/gems/minerals to work with, then you simply must check out CrysallisGEMS on Etsy.  Deb has the most amazing pieces and is just a wonderful person to do business with.  I received these gorgeous Prehnite pieces from her last week and it made my day!  I am eagerly stalking my mailman for two more sets of Prehnite, as well as a couple of beautiful Lapis.  So, these currently sit on my work table, waiting for me to decide just how to accentuate their natural beauty. :)

They are just so beautiful and I could not get a good enough picture to truly do them justice.  They shimmer beautifully in the light and you can practically see through them and all their layers.

CrysallisGems has several wonderful items in her shop and you should definitely check them out.  Here's just a few!

Chinese Turquoise Oval Nugget

Kwun Yum Guanyin carved Ametrine Charm Pendant, how cute!  The intricate details on this amaze me.

And these stunning Brazilian Amethyst are just breathtaking!

But, maybe you don't have time to make anything with these gorgeous items.  Well, Deb has that covered with her other shop, CrysallisCreations!  Here, you will find some of the most beautiful jewelry and wire-wrapping that I have ever seen.

Her eye for colors and combinations create some of the most unique, one of a kind pieces that you could ever imagine.  Click on any image to go directly to her shop page on that item!

Have you ever...

seen snails that are so adorable, that you want to snatch them up and take them home?  You haven't?  Then, obviously, you have not ventured to ColtPixy's Etsy shop or to her blog to see her latest work.

Here is one adorable little snail that steals my heart

Bubba the snail, with his little brown jug

At the moment, amazingly enough, he is the only snail listed in her shop.  This is because every time she posts a snail, it sells within minutes!  Twice, I went to buy a snail she listed and it was gone!  That is how amazing her sculptures are and how popular they have become.  She keeps herself very busy with custom orders.  Below are just a few of her amazing snails!

ColtPixy is working very hard to have several snails added to her shop next week in honor of her 100th snail that she has made.  She will be doing a giveaway on her blog, so definitely check it out as well as all of the new snails she will be surprising us with in her Etsy shop! 

Check out the latest creations on her blog:

 Sally and Tommy Snailsberg...look at the tiny little glow worm doll and the pet frog!!!

She doesn't just make snails though.  She also specializes in adorable owls, unique fantasy and beautiful egg sculptures!

The Results are In!!

We made it to the Fair and had a blast!  I buy our tickets early so we get a discounted price, but it can still be expensive, so you want to make the most of your time there.  We paid a little extra for parking, but it was worth it since we were right across the street from the fairgrounds and everyone was SO nice!

Of course, you have to sample the fair food...in all of it's fried glory.  One of our favorite vendors does amazing cheese sticks/cubes/melty goodness.  Here is a jalapeno pepper jack with jalapeno ranch dressing.

So worth the calorie count!  Followed by Italian sausages and more fried foods.

After the food, we decided to walk off all of those calories by checking out some of the livestock exhibits.  Look at the adorable bunnies!

We finally made it to the Handicrafts and Hobbies exhibit.  To my shock and amazement, every single entry won a ribbon!

Here are the results!

My acorn egg won First Place AND Best of Show for the egg decorating competition.

My pumpkin egg won a Third Place ribbon among some beautiful entries!

My Gnome Sweet Gnome house also won Third Place in the decorations division.

As did my hermit crab :)

My miniature Koi Pond received a 2nd Place ribbon in the Miniatures category!

I am so thrilled that all of my entries earned a ribbon of some form.  We also had a great time and won some stuffed animals at the balloon dart toss, as well as the ping pong ball game for goldfish.  I refused to bring home any fish, so the lady let me have a stuffed one instead :)

We also did a turkey shoot for the first time!  My boyfriend did a much better job than I did (his two targets are on the right, mine are on the left and are less..holey) :)  We would have won, but one guy was just a smidge closer to the crosshairs. It was still an amazing time!

All five entries...

Here are all five of my entries together:

And for those that don't remember, my fifth entry is the tiny koi pond I was working on a few weeks ago.  Here are some updated photos:

 

I will follow up with a post tomorrow, detailing the results of the fair competition.  :D

Work Table Wednesday

One more day until the State Fair opens and I am very excited!!!

My largest piece was "Gnome Sweet Gnome."  It started out with a mushroom house, which you might remember from previous posts...this grew into all sorts of fun as I tried to think of all the different little miniatures I could fit around the house.

In the end, I decided on a small wishing well, complete with "water," and a laundry line. 

I mean, gnomes have to have clean laundry too, right?

An aerial view of the gnome homestead.

Heigh-ho, Hermit the Crab

As you might have seen in previous posts, I also dabble with hermit crabs.  I have always loved the real animal and for years, I wanted to sculpt in a real shell.  I collected shells for several years, but never could build up my nerves to actually make one until a couple of years ago.

He turned out perfect.  He was also quickly given away to a friend and I began making many more.  I don't work with them as much as I used to..but I always enjoy picking out just the right shell to match the right crab. 

Often, I try to sculpt the crab from a chosen shell, only to have the crab "decide" that it wants a different shell to match it's personality.  Yes, I'm odd.  :)  You know this little guy just wants to crawl home with you.