Pretty as a picture

I started doing bead work about three or four years ago when Anna showed me the project she was working on. I was tempted to take it away from her and I must confess I did whenever she brought it around. She got the directions from a place called Unique Beaded Jewelry.

I recommend you check it out. I am still amazed at the beautiful things I find there. I started making my own patterns and weaving small flat panels and doing the show and tell thing at work. The comment  from Jamie was, "Well Sherry those are lovely but what can you do with them." That pissed me off just enough to get  the wheels turning and a week later I presented her with my first useful bead weaving project a BIC lighter cover.

 Afterwards I found I had not invented the wheel there are tons of patterns for lighter covers and other things on-line if you just look. Anyway she was impressed and I felt vindicated. I was not just making pretty pictures with beads. The lighter cover led to the idea of covering pen barrels.

 

Everyone got one for Christmas that year and I got a beading tote and some beading instruction books, which I took it as a sign that I should continue and I have.

I graduated to these cute little beaded boxes.

and my bead people.

 Meanwhile Anna took on another related hobby lampworking the art of making beads from rods of colored glass. I found out that my sister was also making glass beads. They have made some really lovely beads and I whenever I can I get my hands on them and tuck them away thinking I could do something special with them. Well inspiration came from a pattern I found in Bead and Button the June 2011 issue (thanks Anna). 

I present to you "Under the Sea"

The first of my framed bead pendants. The fish bead is one of Anna's creations. The unique finding is from one of my favorite places to shop, Beading Elements, a local bead store.

A Fresh Start

As I sit here with fingers on keys the first big question is do I try and fill the gap between August 2008 and Jun 2011? The big decision . . . why bother. I have decided to make this a place to catalog some of the things I have made over the years and to ponder new endeavors. The second question is where should I start? While it is not one of my most recent projects I think it deserves the honor of being the first of what I hope is many and it was created in the gap perviously mentioned.

So I give you the Beer hat. My dear friend Jamie invited me to a party she hosts every spring and the one requirement was to make and wear a hat. Some 30 odd beers later (my wonderful husbands contribution) I came up with this beauty. It is made entirely of aluminum beer cans. The inside of the brim is lined with red felt and red and blue ribbon trim give it a little charm.

In the pondering category I am working on two projects I have started beading again and am working on framing some of the very lovely lampwork beads my daughter and sister have given to me. Pictures to follow. I am also sewing I have decided to make some things and see if Etsy and I can make a little extra spending money.

Let's try this one more time

My new banner

My new banner was inspired by Mrs. Fox, sometime ago she wrote a series of poems this particular one was titled "Stream of Consciousness V". I reference it often and have a stanza of it by my computer at work as a constant reminder that all things are possible. It gives me chills because in it she captured my soul and everything I tried to instill in her and Maverick as they were growing up. Here is a photo of the complete sculpture hope you enjoy.
Thank you my dear sweet daughter for all you have become. Love Ama

Breakfast anyone?

I never was a big breakfast eater. a quick piece of toast and a cup of tea as I ran out the door for work. Even now it is not my favorite meal but I feel it need a more balanced diet now that I am on the mend.

Everything I do is quite a task and for simplicity sake when I have to fend for myself I have taken to cooking and then eating right in front of the range. The other morning I was sitting there thinking how boring breakfast can be and remembered something Mrs. Fox used to do for Maverick.. Maverick in many ways is like her mother you see we both need a push from time to time. Mrs. Fox often kindly provides said push. In this case I am not sure where she got the idea, but what she did was make something she called, “sunny side ups”. She took a slice of bread and cut out the center with a small glass buttered the edges and the cut out put both in a frying pan and fried an egg in the hole. What you get is a cross between French toast and fried egg and toast. I googled it and actually found a recipe at cooks.com http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,185,149160-242198,00.html the name is a little different but there it was. So this morning instead of boring bacon and eggs I made myself a sunny side up. It’s amazing how packaging can change your whole outlook.

Confessions of an antiBLOGite

My first encounter with the “BLOG” concept was during an online course I was taking. My first opinion was, “What a waste of time! One more tool for corporate America to publish propaganda for the foolish mortals to suck up and take as the word of the almighty CEO.” I was positive that I could not be bothered with such a silly idea, and told my fellow students I saw no value in them what so ever. You ask, why the sudden change of heart? And I answer quite proudly, there are two, Tea With Mrs. Fox and Maverick, the works my two wonderful and creative offspring. They have shown their rather stubborn and opinionated mother that quite possibly there is a reason for Blogs to exist. I must say that I still find the term repugnant, and if I were in charge they would have been given a much more positive and flowing acronym.

Now that the confession is there for all to see I feel it necessary to explain how I have found the time and courage to make own “you know what”.

Wanting to save a little money, gas being so high, I spoke with my wonderful husband about riding my bike to work, after all it was no more than a two mile ride. His answer was not a good idea: too hot, too many q-tips on the road (a term of endearment for the vast number of very elderly drivers on the roads down here), the two schools I had to pass and their quotas of student drivers to run me over. What he did suggest and ultimately got me was a beautiful brand new shiny navy blue scooter, 200 cc’s of zoom, zoom, zoom! I was so excited I went online and got the drivers manual and started studying for my test. Aced the written portion and set about practicing for the road test. I had a couple of coaching sessions with my wonderful son-in-law who has ridden motorcycles most of his life. Time was of the essence as the State of Florida had decided to change the policy concerning motorcycle licensing. As of July 1, 2008 you would have to go to an outside source pay $300.00 and take a 4 day class. I was not real happy with the fact that I would have to pay for the class or that I would be required to use one of their motorcycles which would mean I had to learn how to change gears (My lovely scooter has an automatic transmission you see). With permit in hand and test date scheduled I rode to work everyday rain or shine and just about everywhere else I could find to go. I found a practice test site at one of the schools near by and went there as often as possible.

June 26, 2008, TEST DAY!! I ride to work and it rains all day and I am sure the test will canceled. It is still cloudy but the rain has stopped so I go anyway. I arrive early and as suspected the tests have been suspended. As I am making another appointment they decide it is OK to resume testing. I really did want to get it over with so I stayed and watched the first guy fail, he couldn't manage weaving around the cones. The second guy does OK until he has to do a quick stop. His bike skids and it goes to the left he goes to the right he is OK but fails (bad omen). The next person is a girl she passes her test just fine. Then its my turn: I weave and turn with grace and am told by the person scoring the test I have not missed a single point perfect score, and then comes the quick stop. I feel confident even if I did see that other guy fall I have practiced it many times. I position my bike at the starting point and take off. I apply my breaks at the appropriate spot, the rear wheel hits some loose gravel and 200 pounds of pretty blue scooter lands on my right knee and time stands still for about 4 days. I do remember begging the paramedics to just get me to my daughters car and not take me to the hospital. I do remember getting an IV in the ambulance for pain. I do remember the inept guy that rammed my gurney into a big cart in the hall, after I kept telling him he was going to hit it. Past that I am told I did a lot of screaming, cursing and shivering.

Total damage: torn ACL (repaired), fractured the inside top of fibula (I now have a metal plate and 8 pins) crushed outside of upper fibula (reconstructed with what amounts to human cement) and pushed the meniscus an inch into the crushed fibula (removed). The doctor later tells me that any one of the four would have been a serious problem and that having decided to do them all at once would mean two to three months no weight baring.

Needless to say I have some time on my hands. I always knew I had a special family and my wonderful Maverick and her Hubby have proved it. They been a constant support and help there is no end to the debt I owe them both. When someone even if they are family without hesitation helps you with the necessities of life (potty etc.) you know how much you are loved. It is my Maverick that set up my computer so that I could read hers, her sisters and some other interesting "you know whats" from my bed which is pretty much my world at this point. Everyday I would log on and read the new postings and then go to my account and look. First I set up a profile (toe in the water) then I read some of the other profiles (in to the knees) and then finally to day I am an official "you know whater". With a whole new prospective on life.

We will have to see where this leads!!!