1) Log ceramic sculpture by pfleghaar, 2) Sparrow fine art print by urbandesign, 3) Agent Dale Cooper doll by Purrr, 4) The owls are not what they seem. necklace by tefi, 5) Red curtains by DNDYDesign, 6) Dresser drawer knobs by LeilasLoft, 7) Organic fair trade coffee by downtownroasters, 8) Saturday Morning Stroll painting by StudiZen 9) Smell those trees cross stitch by thegreatnorthern, 10) Canyon Waterfall photograph by TheDapperLlama, 11) Vintage percolator by MostlyMadelines, 12) Cherry Pie ACEO by tamaragarvey
America has lost its mind. I speak of the highly important current event known as So You Think You Can Dance. Don't get me started on why the cute-but-miniature Evan is still in the running. But why oh why did Ade get voted off? It's complete insanity. He is one of the best dancers the show has ever had in its 5-year history. He's phenomenal, he's funny, and he wears a pick in his hair. He's sort of like a Nubian god. I mean, just look at him fly: 
One of my childhood fantasies (other than wanting to be Olivia Newton John) was to be a dancer...a Solid Gold dancer. I even put my fantasy to paper back in 4th grade (circa 1984): 
Needless to say, SYTYCD is the best contestant show ever, and now its best dancer is out of the race. Like I said, America has seriously lost its mind.
For my first Mother's Day, Jason bought me a new closet (basically, my old one collapsed and imploded - loooong story) and this t-shirt here to the left. The Golden Girls kept my sanity intact during those early weeks of motherhood. Thank you Dorothy, Blanche, Rose, and especially Sophia! Now it's his turn. His first Father's Day is just around the corner and I couldn't help but give him his gifts early. I know, I know yeah whatever - he wanted them! So in addition to a new set of much-needed headphones and a Cat Steven's Best of CD (including the song "Father and Son"), I got Jason a little something snarky I knew he would love. 
These upcycled bottles of Leninade soda by YAVA Glass were the perfect Father's Day gift. They also sell beer and vodka bottle glasses, too. I wish I could have one of each!
So here's to you, Pops. Let's raise a glass of Leninade to all the dads out there!
No, I'm actually pretty stoked. See, I've been selected to shuck up $100 bucks and 75 promo items to go into swag bags at the next MTV Gift Lounge. Now, I don't even know what the MTV Gift Lounge is yet - I will research, I promise! - but I do know that it's a place where 60 celebs, 10 press people, 3 charities, and 2 displays get these swag bags, which will include Tefi's needlefelted Shaken, Not Stirred olive hairsticks. Whoa nelly! 
the adorable Anne Heche wearing handmade swag at the 2006 MTV Style Lounge So thanks to Allison at The Sampler for selecting me, and pre-thanks to my mom and Jen who have enlisted themselves to help me package these little guys! Oh, and they're due in a couple weeks.... Do these celebs know what we crafters suffer? 
Why, hello there Detective Sandoval...
Thunder, faulty microphones, and ad-libbing. Greatness. Missed it? Ah, too bad. In the changer: a mix of Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet, naturally
Here, listen to this: My sweet little HP Pavillion laptop is working again!! After two weeks of being unplugged from my little guy we are back together again, thanks mostly in part to Matt (shout out! whoop whoop raise the roof!) After a two hour system recovery - during which I painted my toenails, watched Lil Bush, bathed Oliver (finally!), and did a load of laundry - my laptop was ready to go. So what's the first thing I did? Did I check my files to make sure they weren't corrupt? Did I get straight to work on all of the inventory sheets I've yet to fill out? Did I prepare my second shipment of jewelry for Shambhala Body Gallery? Oh, no. No, I did something much more important.
You see, Netflix sent me the third disc in the Freaks & Geeks series and, well, I just had to watch it. All three episodes in a row, in fact. It's probably the best TV show I've ever seen, after Gilmore Girls, naturally. Makes me long for those messy high school days when the worse things I had to worry about were which concert tee to wear - Depeche Mode or P.I.L.? - and what my locker combination was. Good times.
Seven years ago was when I took the leap into teaching. Then I met Jason. Then 9-11 happened. Then Jason and I moved in together and began a new phase in our lives. I suffered a miscarriage, semi-adopted Ketchup, then later adopted Oliver. My grandmother died, my stepmother died, my grandfather died. I spent four years teaching in the public school system and lived to tell. Each summer I watched episode after episode on my newly delivered GG complete season DVDs (thanks, Amazon). Jason and I went to Colombia and he met my family. I began a new career as a grant writer and later launched my own jewelry design company. I bought a house. I watched seven years of Gilmore Girls.
Those close to me know that on Tuesdays nights I am out of pocket. They know I don't answer phones, emails, doors, smoke signals, or SOS's. They know that if I do happen to pick up the phone during commercial breaks, I'll simply say, "Watching Gilmore Girls," and hang up. They know not to take it personally.
So ends an era. I've got all the DVD box sets on call, ready to feed my addiction - to give me the jolt I need when I feel an emptiness on Tuesday nights. It seems silly, but when a ritual ends, whatever it may be, it's a loss that is felt deeply and immediately. It's just really sad.
Aaaaaanyway......*sigh*
Supplies
Cardstock, pencil, scissors
Craft knife
Polymer clay
Industrial strength craft glue
Acrylic craft paint in gold and black
Eye pins
Assorted beads
Soft Flex wire
Crimp beads
2 jump rings
Necklace clasp
Needle nose pliers
Directions
Cut a strand of wire long enough so you can double it to be at your desired length. At one end, holding two strands of the wire, feed on a crimp bead. Loop the wire ends through the crimp bead to make a loop at the end so you can attach a jump ring later. Use the needle nose pliers to flatten the crimp bead.
Begin to add the beads on the double strand of wire. When finished, close off the other end by repeating the crimping process. Add a jump ring at each end, and the clasp.
To make the initial, cut a piece of cardstock measuring 1-1/2-inch square. Draw out the letter in the square and cut out. Take gumball-sized piece of the clay and flatten it (about the thickness of a pancake). Place the cardstock template on it and use the craft knife to cut out the shape of the letter. Use your fingers to smooth the edges. Snip the eye pins to about 1/4 of an inch and insert them at the bottom of the letter. Add an eye pin at the top of the letter. If you have a letter that is open at the top (like a K), glue one on each side, or glue a jump ring to the back of the necklace later.
Bake in oven according to package directions. Let cool. One at a time, remove the eye pins, add a drop of glue and insert back into each hole. Repeat for all the eye pins. Let dry.
Paint the letter gold, let dry and lightly rub on black paint around the edges. Use your finger to rub in more gold, so it has an antique finish. Use more eye pins to add dangling beads to the eye pins glued at the bottom of the letter. Add a jump ring to attach the letter to the strand of beads.
NOTE: Credit for the original design goes to Jennifer Parrish of ParrishRelics.com. The Stoneham, Massachusetts jewelry designer made and supplied the faux pearl embellished necklace for Ugly Betty star, America Ferrera .
