CMA Gift Rings in Cowboy Hat Gift Box

TrinketsNWhatnots' Shop Announcement

Now is your chance to own the same gift that the biggest names in Country Music own! 20 LIMITED EDITION Swarovski Crystal Rings are on sale now. Get them while you can, once they are sold out, that is it.

Our Swarovski Crystal Rings will be showcased on display at The Artisan Group's exhibit, and these Swarovski Crystal Rings will be gifted to the biggest names in Country Music backstage at the CMA Awards. This event will also be attended by over 25 media and press outlets.

http://www.etsy.com/shop/TrinketsNWhatnots?section_id=5478521

Watch LIVE on Nov. 1 at 8p/7p Central on ABC

 

 

Lots of colors.  Check the site now.  Only 20 available.

Exciting Times

I’m spending more time working with clay.  I have tons of new ideas for these mostly sculpted pieces.  Some will be the small totems. I do love working on these.  Other things will be more free form and very conceptual.  Some can be made into jewelry and some just sit and inspire.

I’ve always been very precise in my work but feel that it is time to explore more ‘unusual’ and impressionistic ventures.  These are exciting times for me.

 

 

Old White Faced Wolf in Ragged Moss Cloak  is my latest.

 

Now all I need to do is to take some decent pictures

Food for Thought

It has been brought to my attention that perhaps having shops that look like someone having a yard sale just might not be the most efficient way to attract buyers.  Of course, my shop fits the 'yard sale' mode.

I'm truly trying to focus more on specific catagories and move away from some of the more random works but it's slow going.  I'll never get down to just one thing.  That's simply not in my nature.

What in the world will I do with all the miscellaneous finished items to say nothing of the mountains of supplies I have acquired?  A daunting task, indeed.  Need to ponder this a bit.  The seed has been planted, Katie. 

Say Good-by to the Feathers.

Miss True, Prima Ballerina

Introducing:  Prima Ballerina "Miss True"

Miss True has appeared as the featured artist in many private and public performances.  She takes her work seriously and works hard to hold the interest and focus of her many fans.

True's human Mom is an Occupational Therapist and Miss True is her assistant.  True's job is to motivate clients and patients to participate in their therapy which some are reluctant to do. 

She engages them in games of skill.  In one, she gathers the strewn contents of her purse, trying to get all of her items tucked in before the patients can gather theirs.  She is so determined to win, that, I'm sad to say, she often gathers some of the patient's items and tucks them into her purse as well.

There are also festivities at the clinic where, as you can imagine, True again shines.  One such event is coming up soon and I'm sure True will be more than ready.

Farewell to Abby

We had to say good-bye to Abby this morning. She had liver and pancreatic issues and nothing could be done so we gave her the last gift we could and let her go peacefully and without pain. Abby was born in Scotland, April 4, 1997.


Abby left us with lots of memories. She was a rehome and had been a very well-known competitor in the high level Border Collie Herding Trials with her former owner. We got her when she was 9 years old. She had been a kennel dog but adapted to being a house dog right away. She liked having two meals a day, sleeping inside, getting treats and a never ending supply of ear rubs.

I trialed her a bit on sheep, geese and ducks and she earned several Herding Championships. She was horrified that I would ask her to herd DUCKS, but ever the lady, she humored me. She was too pushy for geese and they hissed at her. Quite comical. We even ventured into the arena with Cattle a few times but I didn’t like being afoot in an arena with steers and Abby was too brave for her own good and I was afraid she would be hurt so we stopped that. She never felt she was getting older and slower.

Abby’s herding skills never left her and she would go around the house counting noses. She preferred that everyone (dogs and people) stay in the same room so she could keep track of them. Herding dogs are control freaks you know. The other dogs were boys so Abby was the reigning queen of the pack.

Abby is best known to my Etsy friends as the dog who ate all the trimmings off a dozen of my Medicine rocks then denied having done so. However, what goes in tends to come out and we were pooper-scooping turquoise nuggets, carnelian and citrine beads as well as random small shells and fibers for days after. (She never did admit eating this stuff.)

Abby was kind to her stock and got along well with other dogs. She loved having company and greeted each visitor as though they were long lost friends.

It was hard saying good-by to this dear girl but she will live on in our hearts.

Here's Hootie...

Here's Hootie....

Hootie is the newest member of our family.  He is a 6 year old Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie) who was the companion of my sister who is suffering from Alzheimer's and has had to be placed into Care. 

Hootie (Hoot and he is one) is fitting in very well around here except for one dog who keeps wondering when Hootie will be going home.  Fortunately,  all the dogs are easy-going and we have minimal squabbles.

He came to us very overweight and has lost 10 lbs already.  He's quite active but the excessive weight did do some joint damage.  Hopefully, that will improve as with the weight loss, he has become more active.

I managed to get his toenails down to normal length and scaled his teeth so now he has a great smile.

Hootie has a very dense coat and was so matted that my niece had a groomer come in and shave him.  He looks like a little lion.  The hair is starting to grow back now.

So, here's a reminder.  A fat dog is not a healthy dog.  Keep that weight down.  Use low calorie treats, exercise and control the food dish.  My dogs think green beans are a fun treat.  Also, keep those nails trimmed or have your vet or a groomer do it.  When the nails start to curl under it causes stress on the feet and toes and your dog will pay for that down the road.  Finally, dental health is just as important to dogs as it is to people.  Keep the teeth clean and don't let the tartar build-up get out of hand.

Lambs

The early crop of lambs on my friend's ranch are now eating hay and will be weaned shortly.  That will be a noisy few days as babies and moms really don't like to be separated and spend a time calling for one another.

The lambs are very curious.  You can stand at the fence and chirp at them and they will come and take a close look at you.  Here's one brave boy who wants to check out 'Rooster'.  Rooster is my Shetland Sheepdog who competes in herding events.  A properly trained herding dog does not see the stock as something to chase or harrass but simply as creatures who need to be taken here and there at the direction of the person in charge.  He's okay with the lamb coming up to see him but he won't stand there long.  Too boring doing nothing for him.  He likes action.

This is the tiny twin who was shown in an earlier blog.  While small, she is sturdy and healthy.  They call her color 'red and white'.

Look at the greedy lambs actually in the feeder.  They are lots of fun to watch.

Not in Kansas...

I'm getting back into Polymer Clay.  I have some definite plans (which are continually changing shape) and am quite excited about this.  It has been many years since I've worked with the clay and boy, have things changed

I'm used to sculpting but not with the new materials and the new products provide unlimited creative opportunities.
Also, toaster ovens have gotten more accurate, temperature wise and convection ovens are available.

At Leah's suggestion, I got a convection oven.  I'd never used one before but liked the concept.

I tried it out the other day with a 'practice' piece of clay.  I carefully put my soft clay item on my piece of paper and a small feather and a tuft of dog hair (freshly clipped for the occasion), placed this in the convection oven and turned it on.

It looked like a tornado had touched ground in that oven.  Things were whirling around like mad.  Even the clay was bouncing!  I turned it off and stillness reigned.  It was truly a "Your're not in Kansas any longer, Dorothy!" moment.

Learned a lot with that little episode.  Now I use glass rather than the traditional paper and I'll glue in the feathers and fur (mixed media items) after curing.  Such fun!  I'm experiencing a learning curve for now but will post some pictures when I have some finished items.

The Cheetah Bead necklace is the first thing I ever sold in a gallery.

Busy Times

This has been a very busy time for us.  We have the Tucson Gem and Mineral Shows here that run from the last week in January through the second week in February.  This is a series of over 140 different events at different sites.

In spite of my Cataract Surgery last Wednesday, I was able to go to events starting the following day with the aid of my 'Seeing Eye Husband'.  My vision wasn't terrific but he did the driving and made sure I didn't trip over curbs on the way into the buildings so I didn't have to miss much.

I had hoped to take some pictures but the organizers of the events had signs saying that this was not allowed.

I saw many of my favorite people and met some new ones, most notably Christi Friesen, a talented and energetic Polymer Clay Award Winning artist and teacher.  I was so impressed that I signed up for one of her workshops on Super Bowl Sunday and had a ball!  This lady is a scream.  I did discover that my vision wasn't good enough for tiny detail work but I learned a ton.  Be sure and visit her booth should she ever be in your area.  Her things are fun even if you are not a Polymer Clay person.  Take a look at her one of a kind creations.   http://www.cforiginals.com/http://www.cforiginals.com/

No pictures of the big event though I could show you my empty wallet. 

I'm including a couple of 'new lambs at the ranch' pictures.  These are twins but the boy is huge and the little girl is tiny.  Maybe I should try to sculp them just for practice.

Goals Update

I reviewed my stated goals and feel that I'm off to a good start.  I've set up a system of keeping receipts organized for tax purposes.  I've increased and worked my circles.  I've been very active in the team promotional activities.  (Actually, I will be tied up a lot starting soon and going to mid-March so I want to get lots of promoting done now.) I've increased my items which will be helpful when I hit this busy patch which will include being out of town a lot as well as some minor but inconvenient surgery.

No progress on Google, tags or organizing my materials.  Still, a pretty good start.

Here is my newest item.

2012 Goals

My shop goals for 2012 tend to be functional in nature...things I wish I had done/known this past year.

I will learn more about Google, Tags and timing trends and then, impliment some of these skills.  The information is there thanks to the hard work of so many wonderful team members.  I WILL take advantage and learn.

I will organize my materials.  I can't find a thing!  I've purchased some containers and actually have an overall plan.

I will keep better records of receipts, inventory and sales.

I will increase the number of items in my shop.  I met this year's goal in this area but need to keep going.

I will tweak my circles.  I met my goals here as well but plan to increase numbers and pay closer attention as to who to keep and who to replace.

I will continue to be active in the threads and team activities.  Without the help and support of all my friends none of the above would be possible.

A thousand thanks to everyone for last year.  It was a blast!