Zibbet finds of the week - Snow again

I have talked about snow and snowmen before and I brought some lovely snowy items as finds of the week.
What can I say? Winter is on its way and while some of my friends had the incredible "luck" of having ten inch of snow or more already, I have been shocked by snowfall twice so far (when writing this). It just dusted over the cars and roofs, but after eating two strawberries from the garden only a week ago - and they were good and sweet, too! - I was speechless when seeing snow.
Yes, I don't like it, you already know that. Nothing is going to change that. Don't fear, I will not tell you about my childhood trauma again. Instead I will give you snow that even I like. Have fun!

Primitive snowman tree ornament by Stitching Time Boutique

Ruby red crystal snowflake earrings by BRADA Jewelry

"Little girl in the window" greeting card by Elinor Sethman

Vintage sheet music "Frosty the Snow Man" at Scrap Pantry

Sun catcher Snowflake and Ice by Dancing Rainbows

Oldies but Goodies - Man up

When I saw the topic for this week's Oldies but Goodies Challenge at the Jewelry Artisans Community, I thought this one was not for me.
I don't know why, but a lot of us jewelry artisans seem to struggle with making something for men. That doesn't mean we don't know how to go bold and big which is what most of us probably connect with men's jewelry. It's just not "man" bold and big.
Was there really nothing to show? Of course not. Just give us a little time to dig and we'll find something after all as you can see here.

So, you guys out there, why don't you tell us what you like and give us some inspiration?

1 Jewelry Art by Dawn
2 Violetmoon's Corner
3 Cat's Wire
4 RioRita
5 Galadryl Design
6 The Crafty Chimp

Time management ...

... lack of motivation, being motivated at the right time, making time, motivating yourself, kicking yourself, pushing yourself, stopping yourself because it's the middle of the night, closing the door behind the dirty dishes, opening the door to the supplies, going through drawers to find the right component to inspire you, to motivate you, closing a drawer, giving up for today, this week, this month, taking a time out, feeling the urge to create so much that your fingers tingle ...
I could go on like that for a while, I think.
This month the blog carnival at the Jewelry Artisans Community is about time and motivation.

Let's start with time management because it will be shorter.
It's simple. I work part time due to health reasons, three days a week. On these days being creative is a bonus. It usually doesn't happen because I fall asleep, wake up again at a weird time and it just doesn't make much sense to even pick something up. There is no time that has to be managed.
My weekend, however, has the time, but no rules at all. Other than having to be up in time for the delivery of my veggie box on Fridays, that is. And to make time for the 500 times my cats want to eat, snuggle, play, be silly, sit on my lap and claw my knees. And of course I won't do laundry in the middle of the night. That's it, though. Everything else is completely open.
If you come to visit me, you have to be aware of that. I might be all wrapped up in wire or I just dropped the loom to spontaneously mop the kitchen. I'm a free spirit! My Swabian grandmother would probably have found a different word for it .... ;-) In case you don't understand what that means, Swabians are (in)famous for their homemaker qualities, at least the older generations.

Now let's talk about motivation.
We talked about creative blocks before, but what if you have a whole book of ideas, even a whole library, what if your brain is buzzing with patterns and you are still not able to lift a finger to bring them to life?
In fact that's the situation for me right now and it pretty much came from one minute to the other. It was like my whole system just went down like in a blackout. Pow. I have a portrait on my loom, I have several bead colors laid out for a challenge piece and a vague pattern for it in my head. Maybe it would be time for some wire playing, but my wrist can't take crocheting right now.
What do you do to get your motivation back? I used to think it would come back if I pushed a little, loomed a row or four, just enough to see progress and bring me back on track, but experience showed me that I usually have to loom fourteen rows counting the repeats of the ones I had to rip out again.
Ever since I haven't been worrying about my motivation so much. I found that sometimes I do need that time out. And sometimes it comes back within minutes or hours, triggered by, well, I honestly don't know what, but then I know now things are going to work out much better. 

Elevator music ...

Yup, guess what. My motivation came back and my challenge piece is finished. I wish I could pinpoint the moment when it happened and why, but no, it's a mystery.
Maybe it helped just writing about it.

I am completely aware that this post didn't help you much now, except in learning a little more about me. Perhaps knowing that you are not alone with your own experience helped you, and perhaps that is just the little push you needed. If not, enjoy that time out a little more. Do other things you feel like doing and who knows, your motivation may be just around the corner having a party with your muse, almost ready to go back to work.

Do you want to know what other JAC members have to say about this?

Violetmoon's Corner
Jewelry Art by Dawn
The Crafty Chimp 

Oldies but Goodies - Bridal jewelry

Here comes the bride, all dressed in ... white?
When you think of bridal jewelry, what is it you think of?
Pearls. Diamonds. White. Silver. Delicate. Orange blossoms. Dainty.

Were you dressed in white on your wedding day, ladies? I was dressed in black velvet with silver accents myself.
The Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge this week shows that there is more than just classic and simple white for such a day.

1 RioRita
2 Cat's Wire
3 Galadryl Design
4 MC Stoneworks
5 Violetmoon's Corner
6 Jewelry Art by Dawn

Quote of the week

Just a quick one today. One of my favorite Jerry Lewis scenes ever!



Cinderfella, USA, 1960

Oldies but Goodies - Jungle

"In the jungle
The mighty jungle
The lion sleeps tonight
In the jungle
The quiet jungle
The lion sleeps tonight"

Admit it, reading that you sang along, maybe in your head, maybe out loud (the story behind the song is really interesting, by the way).
This week the Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge was about the jungle. Believe it or not, no entries showed a lion. We got birds, however, lovely butterflies, wild cats, a great snake and elephants!

1 and 3 MC Stoneworks
2 and 7 Cat's Wire
4 and 6 RioRita
8 Violetmoon's Corner
5 and 9 Jewelry Art by Dawn

And because I have been a little stressed this week, I completely forgot to add this scorpion from Violetmoon's Corner in the collage .... duh.

Zibbet finds of the week - Fall

We are in the middle of fall (we meaning the Northern hemisphere of course). The trees are dropping their leaves, some of them still seem to be on fire like the young maple tree just outside of the station where I change trains.
We have all heard about Vermont and the Indian summer and I am sure I am not the only one wishing I could visit the gorgeous colors there.
Today my finds are a little different. You are used to a mix of handmade and vintage, arts and crafts, useful and beautiful, from baby shoes to paintings, from shawls to unique dolls, from antique ornaments to miniatures. This time I stayed within one category because I was just blown away by the colors.
Enjoy fall, my friends, it's a wonderful time of year.

"Tomorrow Afternoon" by Purrpledog Studio

"Passing Storm" by Budan Art

Autumn Vines" by Thoreau Fair LLC

"Bridge at Coon Creek" by Butterfly Bay Design

"Vine covered farm house" by Wonderland Photography

"Landscape autumn trees" by Luiza Vizoli

"Tree" by One Of A Kind Mosaics Gallery

"Fall tree" by Carolyn Cochrane Photography

"Falling For You" by Jenn Art Designs

Quote of the week

The other day a co-worker and I talked about retirement. He asked me if I couldn't retire soon and I asked back how old he thought I was? I loved the way he hurried up to say "40?" I'm not weird about my age. I'm 50 and don't have a problem with that, by the way.
The little talk reminded me of today's quote, though.

Marlena, senior partner Shirley Schmidt's granddaughter, has voted in the primary although she's only 17. Shirley asks her colleague Carl Sack to represent her in court.

Carl: Straight probation, six months, and you take your instruction video off YouTube.
Shirley sighs in relief.
Marlena: No.
Shirley: Wait a minute, did you just say no? They're willing to let you go, Marlena.
Marlena: This is more than just me, Grammy. I am a movement. Millions of kids ...
Shirley interrupts her: Oh, give me a break!
Marlena: I would think you of all people would understand being a former suffragette, that sometimes you have to stand ...
Shirley interrupts her again: The law is black ... Did you just call me "a former suffragette"?
Marlena: Aren't you?
Shirley: How old do you think I am?
Marlena: I don't know, erm, 80?
Carl closes his eyes looking as if he's hurt.
Shirley: Please leave now. And take the window, it's faster.

She should have tried "40" instead ;-)

Boston Legal, USA, 2004 - 2008

Tackle that stash - The little hand

I have been thinking I should add a new category "Experimenting" to my blog. It might be interesting. Maybe a little creepy, sometimes frustrating, and possibly making you raise your eyebrows from time to time.
Experimenting is mostly about my wire crochet sculptures. A little face here, an eye there, a glove, an animal - the latest ones being two hands. A bigger one and now a smaller one.

Where is the stash coming in, you will ask. In the form of a beautiful blue bubble lampwork bead. See for yourself.

I already posted this picture on Facebook. You have no idea how difficult some wire creations are to photograph.
I'm not completely happy with the proportions yet, but after all this was a first attempt in this size. I'll be getting there, so stay tuned.

Oldies but Goodies - Stormy

This week's Jewelry Artisans Community Oldies but Goodies Challenge was inspired by power failure. This time our admin who usually picks the topic couldn't post the challenge because she was without power due to the weather. She asked if one of us other admins could start the challenge instead and in the end that inspired the topic "Stormy weather".
As always the entries were very creative. We had storm clouds and we had some wonderful items in the color of storm clouds. I may never look at a labradorite or a grey pearl the same way as I did before.
Hope you'll like them as much as I do!

1 MC Stoneworks
2 Violetmoon's Corner
3 Jewelry Art by Dawn
4 Cat's Wire
5 RioRita
6 2 Fab Fristers

Quote of the week

What is it about minibars? I can understand cravings in a hotel room in the middle of the night when you don't feel like shopping (IF there is even a place where to shop in your neighborhood) and going for that expensive pack of peanuts (also a quote from this show).
Or is it because it is something out of the ordinary for you to be in a hotel? Does the appeal go away if you have to stay in hotels a lot?
Is it the miniature size of the bottles? Two shops in my town, both long gone, had those cute miniature bottles of brand stuff that was so incredibly expensive compared to a big bottle, but so perfect as a little gift.
I remember one time in a hotel when I didn't feel like going out for dinner with my ex and his colleagues because I knew they were going to talk physics and engineering and whatnot. I regretted that pretty quickly (even though it was the night when I saw my first X-Files episode) because I was so hungry, and I kept reading the menu up and down, but room service, really? That was the only time ever when I treated myself to some nuts from the minibar. Desperate measures, my friends, desperate measures. Afterwards I was hungrier than before.

Jane: How many people are actually coming to this thing?
Lisbon: Nobody knows exactly.
Jane: Okay.
Lisbon (close to tears): How did this happen? This is not what I wanted!
She sighs.
Jane: Well, I like the sylvan theme.
Lisbon: We should have just eloped like you said.
Jane: What about your family?
Lisbon: Ah, they wouldn't care. I just talked to them at the hotel. They found the minibar. They're like cavemen arguing over a dead antelope.
Jane: Well ... let's run. Huh?

You may just ignore my thoughts about minibars. Actually I finally wanted to quote from one of my favorite TV shows which happens to have one of my crushes star in it.
On the other hand, what is really about it them? Maybe you'll tell me after all what you think.

The Mentalist, USA, 2008 - 2015