Blog Candy #6 - More Beads

I've been cleaning out the bead box again, and have one large lot of beads on offer for blog candy. To enter the drawing for the beads, leave a comment in this post by Friday night. I'll draw one winner from everyone who leaves a comment to send the beads to. There's enough beads here for a few charms or a couple of scissor fobs or something else, so I'd love to see what you dream up for these.

As with all of the other blog-candies, I'll draw from all of the comments equally, so it doesn't matter if you're a regular visitor or this is your first visit.

Blog Candy Tomorrow.....

I picked out the next offering of blog candy tonight - I'll start the official post and put up pictures tomorrow.

Stampede's Over....

The 2007 version of Stampede wrapped up last night, and it's strangely quiet here. I live next to the fair grounds, so I get the full on version of the fair. I get 10 (or maybe 11) days of fireworks, fair food, rodeo, concerts, parking hassles, non-sober people and all the rest of it. On the final Sunday, I always know I'm going to miss Stampede, but I'm glad it isn't on for any longer than 10 days.

Thanks for all of your great comment on the new beads and on the fireworks. Ipicked the colours for the new beads based on a shirt I had, so I can't really take credit for the colour combination. And I took about 50 pictures of the fireworks, and those were the best three, so I can't really take credit for good fireworks pictures either.

I'm thinking about taking a jewelery class in the fall, and toying with taking the credit version of the class. The calendar says I can sign up based on a previous degree or by discussion with a department head. I really don't want to put a portfolio together to take the class - it seems like a lot of work for very little benefit. I'm also signed up for my usual dance classes, and I'm trying to keep the number of activities I'm involved in down to a minimum, so I'll see how this all works out.

2007 Stampede - the fireworks

These pictures were taken off of my balcony. Someday, when I don't live here, I will miss this.

It's Stampede!

I know it's been quiet on the blog, but I've been Stampeding! Calgary's annual rodeo and fair (and the greatest outdoor show on earth) runs for 10 days starting with the first Friday in July. It's always a great time, but super busy. So far, I've caught the art buyers night, the preview of the grandstand show, the parade, a rock concert, a pub crawl, several volunteer shifts, the rodeo, the chuckwagons. I've also eaten way too much beef on a bun and too many hot dogs. And that was just the first 6 days!

I did manage to sneak in a few new beads (no stitching though)....

I know I probably shouldn't...

but I thought I would share the bracelet that was made from the beads I posted over the weekend. A couple of the beads had to come out of the grouping, otherwise it would be *way* too long. And the beads did get etched between the weekend and now - they're much less shiny. I'm pretty happy with the overall result.

More Beads....

I forgot to show off my door prize from the beads show a couple of weeks ago - it was a strand of off-centre glass beads (the top strand). Normally I don't buy or make that many of one bead, so it's a nice treat to have a whole bunch of beads to do something with. I've started making what I think is going to be the end product, which is the beads with some blue and green lampwork spacers of my own (the bottom strand). I'm not too sure how to put these all together - perhaps crocheted with some funky fibre. If you have suggestions, be sure and leave them for me in the comment section - I'd love to know what you think!

Happy Canada Day and Beads

It feels like forever since I've had new beads - but here is the haul from the weekend. It's supposed to be a long weekend for Canada Day, but it's our financial quarter-end next week, and we get Friday off for a local holiday, so I'll be working tomorrow to try and get everything done. I'll have a couple of days off the following week, so it's not entirely bad.

I was trying to match a shirt I have with a couple of the beads - it's a black western shirt with hot pink and gold oriental fabric for the trim. I'm not sure I was entirely successful, but at least now I know what some of the ideas look like, and I can try again. I also re-made a set I sold a while back - I think I might etch the beads, as I think they'll look better matte than as the shiny glass. The fourth set was me experimenting - a few beads to see what a new colour looked like (the white beads) and a few to see if I could get a raku colour to work. The raku is supposed to look like the oil-slicked pottery glaze, but mostly it just looks brown here.

Hope everyone is enjoying the weekend!

Pay it Forward - Round #2

I thought I'd open up another 5 spots in a Pay-It-Forward, if anyone is interested. For those that sign up, I will hand-make them something - likely stitched or beaded, but it could be anything that catches my muse at the time I'm making it. I'll try and complete all of the Pay-It-Forwards by the end of the year. I know summer will be busy for me, and so I'd ask for your patience on this one.

To participate, send me an email at caycay at shaw dot ca. If you sign up, please "pay-it-forward" by including an offer on your own blog to craft something for 5 other people. If you have questions, please feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email.

Have a great weekend!

The best "really cute" pose.....

It's always great when the cats in your life synchronize.

Blog Candy #5 Winner

Is Suzanne. I did a random number generator in Excel this time (I didn't feel like cutting pieces of paper up tonight - it's been a long week), and Suz's number came up. Congrats! Please email me your addy, and I'll pop them in the mail to you.

More Epoche

I didn't get tons done since I last posted, but I did finish off the first page (actually page 2 of the pattern). It's starting to look a little more egg-shaped than blob-shaped, I think.

Just a reminder that blog candy closes tonight - there's still time to add your comment to the post below.

Blog Candy #5 - Beads!

I've been cleaning out the bead box again, and have two lots of beads on offer for blog candy. To enter the drawing for the beads, leave a comment in this post by Thursday night. I'll draw one winner from everyone who leaves a comment to send the beads to. There's enough beads here for a bracelet or a couple of scissor fobs or something else, so I'd love to see what you dream up for these.

As with all of the other blog-candies, I'll draw from all of the comments equally, so it doesn't matter if you're a regular visitor or this is your first visit.

Progress Update

This is "La Epoche Nouveau" as of tonight - it's going to be really, really sparkly!

Finally Back

I didn't disappear totally, although it probably seemed like it. I had a quick business trip to Ontario, which required a lot of pre-work, and it feels like I've been doing that forever!

I received this gorgeous scissor fob from Carol this week as a birthday gift. She's so sweet to even remember that it's my birthday, let alone send something to me as a gift.

And one of my last two pay-it-foward's made it to its final destination. I was playing around with making tassles, and this silver one went to Missy Ann.

I'm making good progress on this summer's exchanges - I have the recipient of my freebie exchange already, and so have almost finished the stitching. I'm still not exactly sure how I want to finish the piece, but if you have suggestions on how to finish something heart shaped, be sure and let me know.

Continuation of the bead set

I needed a few more beads in the set I shared last week to make what I had planned, so here's the complete set, now at 15 beads. I like the way that most of them turned out, and I adore the copper coloured crystals, so now it's just left to me to make something out of them.

The weekend wrap up

I spent most of my stitching time this weekend working on La Epoche Nouveau. I've started this once before, and just wasn't happy with it, so have re-started it. I've decided to try and complete as much as I can in each section before moving on. It's very, very sparkly - the picture shows some of the sparkles, but there's lots more going on.

I also finished both of my last two PIF gifts, and they should be in the mail tomorrow! That wraps up this round of Pay-It Forward. I'm thinking of starting another one for July to December, so stay tuned for details!

The Final

I watched game 2 of the Stanley Cup final last night with some friends. It was a pretty uneventful game for the most part - the only goal came late in the third period. We had a good discussion on who we were cheering for though - Ottawa's the Canadian team so most of us thought our loyalty should lie there, but Anaheim is closer, and has more Canadian players, so we had a good arguement going on who should gain our loyalty.

It was a great night last night - one of those spectacular summer evenings that are best enjoyed on a patio and enjoying a beverage, so I guess we all won, no matter who won the hockey game.

Ball, Traffic and everything else.

I was going to indicate that this post had something to do with "Tuesday" in the title, until I realized that the last two Tuesday posts had the word "Tuesday" in the title, and I figured I'd shake it up a bit.

First of all - thanks for all of your lovely comments on the beads and on the chain mail! I loved both, and it's so nice to hear that there's lots of you out there that like the same thing. I haven't stitched in ages, so it's nice to hear that the things I do besides stitch are appreciated. I'll have to get back to stitching soon - I've got at least 3 exchanges on the go this summer, and I know I'll need some prep time for each one.

Tonight was ball, and I'm really enjoying this year's team. I've played rec ball for the last couple of years, but I'm still terrible. It's a bit of a different format than in past years, so I'm still adjusting to the new style. Traffic was a beast getting to the ball diamond tonight. It was fairly close to an area of the city that I used to live in, and they've completely changed the traffic flow in the area. Not just a little bit - completely! It was terrifying to try and figure out.

I think that's it for the update - the rest of the week is completely uneventful in my calendar, so I'm hoping that there's some stitching (and beading) time in there somewhere.

Finally - New Beads!

I haven't been on the torch in *ages*, and even then I didn't really like much of what I did, so I haven't had new beads to share in ages. I finally have some this weekend! I got new frit in last week (small bits of coloured glass), so these beads are a brown base with Heirloom frit on the top. I liked the way they turned out, and am off to make more to get a full necklace together. The crystals used as spacers are Swarovski copper, and I just found out they make the crystals in a ring shape! How cool is that! I'll have to try and get my hands on some for a necklace.

The winner and Bead Show

I closed off the stitch marker drawing, and the winner is Faith Ann! Once I get Faith Ann's info, I'll send them off to her.

This weekend is the annual bead show here in Calgary. It's a pretty small bead show, and so there aren't as many vendors as some of the bigger shows, but it's not a bad one. I picked up a number of seed beads to make tassles or something with, as well as a chain mail bracelet kit. I finished the kit last night, and am pretty happy with how it turned out. I've posted two pictures - one of the whole bracelet and one of me wearing the bracelet. I think the one of the whole bracelet looks tiny, but it actually does fit me quite well. I love making my own chain mail, as then everything is just the right length. I also picked up some glass and a chain for my neck, so I'm well stocked (and just a little poorer) at the moment.

The Tuesday Files

I'm recovering from a holiday weekend - nothing too exciting, but I did get a new matress, which has left the house in shambles while I re-arrange furniture to accomodate it. The old mattress, which was in the main bedroom is going into the spare room, which doesn't have a matress. The desk that was in the spare room is going into the main bedroom until I can find something smaller to replace it with. I've not yet moved the desk, so there's furniture everywhere.

I did finish one of the Pay-It-Forward gifts this weekend, which I think is looking fantastic. I'm almost done the other one, although the finishing wasn't co-operating with me, so I may have to try a different approach. I like both of them, so I hope the recipients do too!

Oh - and the monochromatic exchange is open at the Robin's Nest - if you feel like a small summer exchange, be sure and stop by.

Knitting Blog Candy - Blog Candy #4

You might have seen that I've shut the Etsy store down. I've been busy with commissions for a while, and don't really have the time to stock both a store and keep up with the rest of my life.

That being said, there's a few things from the store that I will be offering out as blog candy to clear them out. The first one is two sets of knitting stitch markers - one with larger loops, and one with smaller loops for socks or lace.

To enter the blog candy, please leave me a comment at the bottom of this post, and I'll draw from all of the entries on Friday, May 25. As with earlier draws, there aren't any other rules - just leave me a comment, and I'll put your name into the drawing.

The reveal - of being stressed out and too busy......

I've been blogging for a while about "something" that I was busy being stressed out and too busy doing, and I thought it was finally time to share, especially as the whole thing is wrapped up and finished.

I was looking at a job overseas, in the UK. A posting came up at work that was too junior, but it got me thinking. It was in a department I'd consider working for, and a city I'd consider living in. And then a posting came up in that department that was at the right level, but only short term. And then a posting came up that was in the same department, but permanent. So I applied.

Moving from here to somewhere not here involves a lot of work. I did this in the late 90's to move to the Caribbean, and it took a lot of work then, and it would still take a lot of work now. Plus there's the added fact that the real-estate market here is one of the hottest anywhere - prices went up 60% last year, and it looks like they'll be up more this year. I'd have to somehow balance a place here with a place there, and it all seemed very complicated.

I'm also keenly aware of the fact that living somewhere is different from being on vacation somewhere. Being on vacation means you get to see the sights, hang out with whomever your with and pay all of the bills when you get home. Living somewhere means that you spend more time at the office, on your commute and at the grocery store, the drycleaners and the drugstore than at some fabulous tourist attraction. I lived in the Caribbean for several years, and made it to the beach about once a month, and it was only 10 minutes away.

It would have been nice to go though - weekends away to different countries, a change of life and a chance to live in a truly big city.

It turns out that everyone came to the right decision in the end - I'd decided to not go at the same time they decided that they'd prefer a local candidate, so I think everyone came to the same decision in the end.

Trip to the farmer's market

I went to the farmer's market here in town for some flowers on the weekend for my mom - I think they did an awesome job considering this started life as 4 random bunches of tulips. I loved the arrangement they did with them. I also picked up some veggies and fruit, none of which I've had time to use yet, but at least the thought was there.

Progress Updates

I created my first beaded tassle this week from Robin Atkin's book. I took the colour scheme off of a skein of Wildflower's thread, and I'm pretty pleased about how it turmed out. I liked being able to "practice" with a tassle, as there were a couple of things I will do differently next go round, but overall, I'm pretty pleased with the result.

I also made a good stab at Alhambra. I'd really like to purchase (and start!) Chatelaine's Egptian Garden, but have made myself promise that there will be no Egyptian Garden until Alhambra is done.

It's so hard to be little......

I've been tagged.....

I've been tagged a couple of times to participate in a meme, so the results are below.

I was also asked by Stitchingranny what a "Pay-It-Forward" is. A Pay-It-Forward is something nice you do for someone else, in the expectation that they pay the favour forward to another person. The "Pay-It-Forward" offer that many people had on their blogs earlier in the year involved making something hand-made for 5 people. If someone wanted to receive one of the hand-made gifts, they would volunteer, but had to make an offer of 5 hand-made things to other people. I have sent 3 of my 5 items out, but haven't yet completed the other two items. They are spoken for, and I have picked the item and the colour scheme for each of the two remaining items.

On to the meme - I've been tagged by at least 4 people - Suz, Susan, Missy Ann and Sara

1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names
4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

My random 8 things:

1) I just discoved that Haagen-Daas makes a Sticky Toffee Pudding flavour ice-cream, and have inhaled a carton this week. Sticky Toffee Pudding is one of my favorite deserts.
2) I hate carnations - they look like something has been shredded to me.
3) My favorite colour is blue, although I wear more black.
4) I am exceptionally picky about stationery supplies - if the office doesn't have what I like, I'll buy my own.
5) I love the smell of fabric softener, especially Bounce
6) I used to work at a bead store, which may explain how I got so many.
7) I haven't had breakfast yet, but I'm craving perogies, which appear to be a uniquely Western Canadian breakfast food.
8)I have 2 packages in the mail to me, and two to send out.

I'm going to skip tagging people, as I think everyone out there has been tagged already.

Blog Candy Part 3 Winner is.....

Congrats go to Erica, who's name I drew out of the blog candy box. Congrats - just send me your email and I'll ship out the threads to you.

I'll try and do another Blog Candy soon - I have two Pay-it-Forwards to finish up first.

I've also contacted Robin about setting up a single colour (monochromatic) exchange on the Robin's Nest BB. If you're a member there, make sure you watch out for it, as I'll try and offer up a goodie draw for those who participate.

Happy Dance

The Robin Atkins book arrived today, so now I can use my new threads! The book looks fantastic, so I'll be glad to use it.

I'm heading out for dinner, but will wrap up Blog Candy when I get back. And Shannon - I stole the idea for blog candy from someone, so you're more than welcome to use it in your own blog.

From the Tuesday Files...

** Just a reminder that Blog Candy is open until tomorrow night - see the post below for details **


I don't know who's worse - us Canadians, who feel the need to discuss hockey in the Parliament,(see my weekend rant) or the US Secret Service, who decided that a special Canadian quarter was some secret attempt at Canadian espionage.

The quarter has a red poppy on the front, in commemoration of veterans, and was Canada's first coin with colour on it. The "red" in the poppy was sealed in with a compound to keep the colour on. Apparently the Secret Service decided that the sealant was "nano-technology" and filed reports on what it might be used for.

I'm a little frustrated today - I ordered a new beadweaving book by Robin Atkins, and some thread that came highly recommended for the weaving. The thread showed up today, but the book (which is coming from Canada) has yet to appear. Hopefully soon! I still have two more pay-it-forwards to make, and I was thinking of incorporating some of the techniques from this book into one or both of them.

Blog Candy - Part 3

This is actually part blog candy and part de-cluttering, but I have a selection of threads from "The Dye Shop" that I haven't used, and though I would offer up. The threads haven't been used, but the shop is out of business, so there's a slim chance of being able to obtain more. On the positive side, there's a wide selection of colours, and they're all hand dyed.

If you'd like to participate in the Blog Candy, leave me a comment below. I'll draw a name from all of the comments received on Wednesday night. It doesn't matter if you're a regular reader or if this is your first read of the blog, just leave me a comment, and I'll put it in the drawing. (If you're Blogger profile isn't attached to a Blog, it would really help if you left some way of contacting you - either through a blog name or something else- Thanks and Good Luck!)

Progress Pic - Alhambra

I've been slowly working at this - not much progress, but I was hoping that if I posted I would feel more motivated to work on it.

I feel like I haven't blogged in forever.

I know it's only been a couple of days, but they've seemed long, so I thought I'd try and get a post together this afternoon. Part of the problem with putting together a blog post is that there isn't that much going on - I went to work, I went to the gym, I went to dance class and to the grocery store - all pretty mundane routine things, and nothing that interesting happened.

I have lots of things to be cranky about, but I suspect that everyone would stop reading my blog if it was all about cranky and nothing else. The city is trying to turn an interchange near me into a seven metre (21 foot) overpass. This, of course, isn't sitting well with anyone in the community. They held a community open house this week, and I popped in to see what's going on. The good thing is that there's no funding at the moment, and that a large number of people from my community were there and none of them seemed to like the idea. The thought behind this overpass is that it will alleviate people cutting through another community in town, but far more people from my community showed up than the other one, so we'll se where this ends up.

Far too Canadian...

I'm really curious what the rest of the world must think of Canada right now - tomorrow, the head of Hockey Canada and hockey officials are being summoned to parliament to defend the choice they made for captian of Canada's hockey team. Apparently the current captian made some remarks about French officials a few years back, which got some politicians upset, and so now the whole thing is being taken to parliament.

Mind you, in the last Olympics we let a guy play who'd killed a team-mate in a car accident, and allowed another player who'd just about ended an opponent's career with an illegal punch. But apparently we've run out of things to discuss in parliament, and so we're terribly worried about who's going to be in charge of the hockey team. And so tomorrow, Canada will discuss hockey in parliament.

Sigh....

Blog Candy 2 Winner is.....

The winner of the second round of blog candy is Sara! I picked a set of grape-y purple beads along with some of the new purple velvet crystals. Just to prove that there is a draw, the second photo is of all the little slips of paper with everyone's name on them in a tin. I haven't decided on how to host future blog candy drawings - if you have suggestions or ideas, drop me a comment and let me know what you'd like to see.

I stitched a little bit on Alhambra over the weekend, and I'll try and put up another progress post later in the week.

I think I *almost* have closure on one of the other big items in my life. It's not the direction that I was originally hoping or thinking that things might go, but I'm pretty happy and comfortable in the way that things turned out. Once all of the dust has settled, I'll explain more here, but for now, I'm keeping things quiet.

Mystery Exchange for Angi

I made this little needlecase for Angi as part of the mystery exchange at the Robin's Nest board. Since it was a mystery exchange, I decided that I could stretch the needlework category to include seedbeads stitched in a peyote stitch pattern. This is a similar technique to the "Pyra" bag I have been working on. The Japanese Kanji on the front of the case means "forever", which I thought was appropriate, considering that most of us would like to think that our needlework will continue forever.

The pattern is from the "Beaded Favors" book by Jennie Might which I picked up a couple of years ago when I was at Shipwreck Beads in Washington State. I've been meaning to make something out of the patterns for a while, so I'm glad that this exchange came along and I could use one of the patterns.

The blog candy contest in the post below is still open until tomorrow night, so I'll draw names then...

Blog Candy - Part 2

I made it to the weekend (finally) and thought I'd offer up a blog candy draw. If you're not familiar with how blog candy works, I'll draw a name from all of the comments I receive in this post on Monday night, and send the winner a treat. I'm not sure what's on offer yet, but I have new Swarovski crystals, new findings and time to do some lampworking this weekend, so I'm sure it will be a good prize.

The "rules" are simple - the contest open to everyone - if this is your first visit or your seventy fifth, you're still eligible. You can enter if you've stumbled across the blog or if you're a regular reader - just leave a comment, and I'll include it in Monday's drawing.

Another exchange received!

I received this gorgeous pin-keep from Svenja as part of the Mystery Exchange at the Robin's nest. I love the design that she chose for it, and the sparkly extras were a big bonus too!

My Spring Exchange Parcel

This is my spring exchange parcel from the Rotation BB - from Marjean! I love all of the extras that she put in it - the tin even has sugar cookies inside. It was a great surprise at the mailbox.

Spring Exchange is Home....

I got word from Autumn that my spring exchange piece arrived! I really liked working on this one, and I hope she likes it as much as I do. The button in the centre is hand-made out of glass, and I realized it matched Vikki Clayton's Meadow thread when I made it. So.... a biscornu was made.

The comission I made for Belinda arrived and she's got a picture over on her blog. I forgot to take a picture before sending it off, but she's posted a picture on her blog. Belinda was also the recipient of my 3rd PIF, which I also forgot to take pictures of.

Our hockey team is out of the playoffs, and that's it for hockey here for another year. The series was only really remarkable for the slash that one of the goalies gave to another player in the closing minutes of game 5. He's their back-up goalie, and only plays when the other goalie isn't doing well or is hurt. I hear the team has some young talent coming up through the ranks, so I suspect that he'll be asked not to play nexr year.

I'm Back....

I was on vacation for the last week in New York - one of my favorite cities! I love the energy of the city and how fast it all moves. I managed to catch a Broadway show, a Yankees game and do some shopping!

I'm dead tired at the moment, but should have more updates tomorrow.

Ornament Finishing....

I finished this last night - complete with a couple of lampwork beads. It think I showed this in the planning stages, but here it is completed.

Progress Updates

The Blog Candy winner is in the post below - congrats Jules! I have a couple of stitching updates to share. My Spring Exchange piece at the Rotation Stitchers Board is in the mail, as is my "Mystery" exchange piece at the Robin's Nest.

I've also posted updates on Pyra, Alhambra and Watergarden. Pyra is entirely stitched out of seedbeads - one connects to the other with thread. It's not hard to do, but is time consuming. It's also a little tricky, as the pattern is in full colour without any symbols. In order to keep the lines straight, the pattern includes a template to isolate the current line of beads, but when you put the template over the pattern, it can be hard to distiguish between all of the different colours of beads. I think I've figured it out now, although there are a few fudges in the design.

And the winner is....

The original prize is on the right, but I decided to give both beads away. They were just a little too small to make into fobs, and I wasn't sure what else to do with them. For the contest, I cut up lots of little slips of paper, threw them all into the nearest container (which happened to be a measuring cup) and drew out Jules name! So congrats Jules - just send me your address (caycay at shaw dot ca) and I will put these in the mail to you.

Wow!!

I never though I'd get the kind of response I got to Wednesday's post. The contest is still open, so leave me a comment in the post below, and you'll go in the drawing.

Blog Candy...

I haven't run a contest in a while, and I have one bead I *love* but just can't figure out what to do with. So I thought I'd run a contest, and the bead is now officially the prize. To win it, leave me a comment in this post between now and Saturday (April 14). It's open to everyone - if this is your first visit or your seventy fifth, you're still eligible. You can enter if you've stumbled across the blog or if you're a regular reader - just leave a comment, and I'll include it in Sunday's drawing.

It's Hockey Night In Canada

It's that time of year - spring playoff season! The Flames made it into the playoffs this year, and it's a big deal in town. The first game of the series starts tomorrow, and you can already feel the excitement in the air. Of course, I live across the street from the stadium, so sleep is somewhat at a premium this time of year, but it's all for a good cause.

Happy Easter and Pyra Update

I've been working a bit on Pyra from Amuse Ink lately. She's made out of Delica seed beads and is a peyote stitched amulet bag, and is coming along well. The stitched work is a bit deceiving, as the back of the bag is worked at the same time as the front of the bag, so it sometimes looks like I've only got half as much done as I really have. I'm almost at the half way point in this project, but I really like the way it's turning out.

**Edited to clarify a couple of things**

Happy Good Friday

I honestly don't know where the week went - it wasn't especially busy, but it went fast! I haven't really stitched much this week, and haven't really got anything that I can show from the torch either. I did finish up one beaded commission completely, and need to get that mailed tomorrow.

There isn't much else new - most of the activities that I have on a regular basis are taking a spring/easter break, and it was nice to just chill for once. I haven't quite decided what I'm doing for spring - I was trying not to over commit myself, but it looks like I'll have two softball leagues, a couple of dance classes and who knows what else, so it looks like I'll be as busy as ever.

It might be the snow in Calgary that's put me in this kind of mood. I read a poll recently that most Canadians are actually not that upset with global warming, especially if it means less winter. It's been snowing on and off all week, and I'd love to see the backside of the snow.

Bathroom's painted - bedroom's almost done

I've completely finished the spare bathroom, which for a 4 foot by 4 foot room is *way* more trouble than it's worth. I have just about finished the spare bedroom, which is where the computer and modem normally is. The desktop is in pieces in the living room until all of the painting is done, so I'm currently writing on my laptop.

It's Finally Friday!

I don't know why, but this week has felt like it's gone on forever. I'll be so glad to see the other side of it!

It's been very busy at work, and it's the kind of busy where you feel like you're never going to catch up. All of the documentation that we have needs to be updated or changed, and there's a lot of it. It isn't the most exciting work, which is why I suppose it's dragging on forever.

I've also got painting planned for this weekend - the spare bedroom and the spare bathroom. Nothing's been painted since I moved in 5 years ago, and the paint is the extra flat paint that looks fantastic for showings, so it's picked up quite a few marks and spots along the way. I'm also planning to clean the carpets in the spare bedroom, which should provide me with plenty of exercise for the weekend. Wish me luck!

My Amazing Mail Day

I was blessed with not one, but two special packages today! I finally got my biscornu exchange from Natty, who did a great job with the stitching. She guessed from my blog that I like cool colours, and picked out the blues and greens especially for me. I love the extras she put in - a couple of skeins of Six Strands Sweet and a Sweetheart Tree Chart

I also got a PIF from Katrina, who send a gorgeous scissor fob (with my initials on the back !), some very lovely quilting fabric, and some chocolate covered Altoids, which are devine!

I'm so pleased with both of them!

I finally have beads!

I finally got a chance to clean up some of my "treat" beads over the weekend. I've been in the middle of a custom order for a while, and I'll usually make one creative bead for each 5 or so that I make for the order. I'm *this* close to finishing the order as well - I have enough beads, but just want to make a couple of extra in case any break along the way.

Sunday Morning

It's Sunday morning, and while I've actually done quite a bit this weekend, there's not a lot I can show.

For progress - I just need to make a couple more beads, and then one commission is done, and I finished the beads for another. It's always nice when things come together like that, and I'm sure that the recipients will enjoy having their finished pieces. I also finished the bottom half of the "Mystery Exchange" over on the Robin's Nest, and started on the top half, but discovered that I mis-counted, so I'll have to start that again. I do need to finish a couple more PIF's, which I'm hoping to do by tonight.

I'm still waiting on a biscornu from the biscornu exchange over at the Robin's Nest. For whatever reason, the mail I sent to the Netherlands got there in a record 5 days, but my incoming mail (which I think is coming from the states) has taken over 3 weeks to get here. Sigh.

I think I'm off to the farmer's market this afternoon - I indulged a bit much this weekend, and feel the need to get some healthy veggies and other good food to make up for it.

Finally... Some sleep

I play on a couple of sports teams - volleyball Tuesdays and dodgeball Wednesdays. Both teams are organized through a large sports league here in town, and they rent gym space whenever they can get it. Unfortunatley, that means that some games are later than others, as was the case this week. On top of that, it's the last week of play, and we stopped for a couple of celebratory beverages after the games, so I've staggered home rather late this week. I took tonight off to get some much needed rest - I took a nap earlier, and am headed to bed shortly.

Tomorrow will be a big day - I should know more about what's going on shortly. If you have any good thoughts, I'd really appreciate them - I could use them right now.

The greatful reminder

Today was one of those days when you remind yourself how lucky you are - even if everything isn't perfect, or not everything is the way you want it. I am so greatful for good friends, a sane family, an interesting job, and a life I like.

I got good news today - and hopefully there's more to come. (This would be in relation to the thing I can't yet talk about). In the middle of it came the realization that my life is still good even if it stays the way it is.

The weekend was fantastic

I'd forgotten what a treat it is to be surrounded by mountains - they're only a little more than an hour away from here, but like most people from the city, I rarely go up there. Everything in the city is so fast paced that to spend most of the weekend going to the mountains seems like such a large deal.

It was snowing lightly as I headed back yesterday, and the mountains were at their best - the tops covered in cloud, with snow patches highlighting the valleys. I wish I could have stayed for another week.

Alhambra - March 17th

I finally got some stitching in on Alhambra again - I think I'm at that part of the project where you're not sure you like it anymore, but you just want it to be done. I am really liking how it's turning out, and can't wait for the beads....

Have a great weekend!

I'm so excited.....

It's the second annual dodgeball-team ski weekend! Last year's was in April, and it was one of the first entries I posted on the blog. How a year has flown!

Some friends and I are headed up to a local ski resort this weekend - I'm spa-ing, and they are skiing. I skied last year, and really regretted the opportunity not to spa, so this year I'm headed for a scrub and a facial. It should be a great weekend - the weather here is warm enough that it will be nice in town at the ski resort, and there's lots of good snow left for those who want to ski.

And we're back.....

to sunshine. It snowed most of this morning, and the view out my office window today looked more like a horrible January storm than March. But 5 hours later, we're back to sunshine, and the snow is melting again.

This city is so strange.

It was 64 degrees this afternoon, and now it's snowing....

The city that I live in has the strangest weather. Honestly - event the weather forecasters have a hard time with the city. It was 64 degrees (or 18 degrees, if you're Canadian) this afternoon - a bright sunny day, no clouds, just like March is supposed to be.

5 hours later, it's now snowing. Granted, it's a spring snow - wet, thick and coming down in clumps. But it's still snowing. I want it to be real spring - the kind that involves flowers and not snow.

Decluttering....

I'm having a bit of a declutter this afternoon, and I discovered that I had 3 scissor fobs that I was meaning to sell, but haven't yet done so. If you're interested in the scissor fobs, they're USD$15, and that price includes shipping anywhere in the world. Email is caycay at shaw dot ca, if you want to contact me about them or have any questions.

Welcome to daylight savings....

I have at least something to share this morning - I offered up a prize to get some interest in a local mailing list, and I thought I'd show it here before sending it off. It's a cell phone charm, and the bead is more of a light turquoise colour, but the backrgound doesn't really show that off very well.

I actually did get quite a bit of stitching done over the last two weeks, but not a lot I can show. I finished my spring exchange for the rotation stitchers BB, and started on the mystery exchange for the Robin's nest. I'm also hoping to finish up one remaining project shortly, which would cut my list of obligations significantly.

Thanks for all of your good wishes and good thoughts - they are appreciated! Just so you know, everything is good here, but there may (or may not) be a major change coming that I'm trying to prepare for. Again, terribly cryptic, but all I can say for now....

I have so much I can't say....

I know I've been quiet lately, but there's a lot going on, and not a lot I can share in public. Cryptic, I know, but to be on the safe side, I'll keep things quiet for now.

I might actually get to stitch tonight - I've been rather pathetic in my stitching efforts, and haven't stitched much lately. I have a little bit of progress on Epoche and not much else, but I think I might go back to Alhambra tonight - there's not a lot of confetti stitching in that one, so it's actually a pretty easy stitch.

Stitching Update

I finished up most of the stitching on a "Spring" exchange piece for the Rotation Stitchers Board - since I obviously can't show the finished piece, I thought I'd show the floss toss.

The solid purple bar down the middle is the glass rod used to make beads for one part of the piece. It was one of my "treasures" discovered yesterday when I went into a glass store that I hadn't been to in a while. The last time I was there, they had only a few beadmaking supplies. This time, they had *all* of the colours available, clearly labelled, and priced. It was heaven. (The other glass store in town doesn't carry the whole line of glass, doesn't label much of anything, and prices at the end of your purchase by pound. They're lovely people, but I think they've noticed a drop off in business)

Biscornu Exchange Made it

Judith let me know that the biscornu exchange that I sent her made it safely to the Netherlands. I only mailed it on Monday so it was a pretty quick travel!

I was at the glass studio one day, and fooling around with making some buttons. I ended up with a purple transparent button with purple and green spots on it. When I got home, I discovered that it went perfectly with SNC's Fairy Quilt Cottage - one of my favorite fibres, so I stitched a blackwork design with that. The fabric is Country Stitch in Merino. I really like the way that this design came together. (The back of the biscornu only has a regular (shirt) button on it - the shanks on the back of the glass button are a little too thick to use two of them for one biscornu.)

From the not so great idea files.....

A couple of Canadian politicians thought they should raise awareness about asbestos in children's toys - this is what they came up with.

Not this time....

In response to my Tuesday post - I was looking at an overseas move, which was just too perfect to be true. A similar position opened up a couple of weeks ago, but it was a little too junior. This time, the position was more senior, but only very short term. A longer term, and I could have re-arranged things here, but short-term would be hard to do. I appreciate all of the good thoughts over the last couple of days - I will keep looking and hoping that something will turn up.