But It's Really All About Ali Ali...

This was Marigold when we brought her home almost two years ago.

And here she is today, a mother and a milk cow.

 Ali Ali has watched the goings on of the past few days with unabashed disapproval. Why, he asks, is this silly cow getting all the attention? Why are my people spending all their time with her? After all, it's all about ME, isn't it?

Once they got a whiff of the fresh warm milk, Ali Ali and Otis both decided that perhaps there was something to all of this cow foolishness. Now if Claui would just set that pail down so a dog could get his face in it . . .

Now She Is a Cow

On Tuesday, Marigold the heifer gave birth, thereby becoming a cow! Bubba's a healthy little bull --who looks like his Devon sire.

These two pictures are from Wednesday -- and the first milking.

Below is a slide show of the birth with captions, for those who might be interested. A little earthy, perhaps, but that's how birth is...

For A Lovely Fall Wedding

Just heard back from a VERY special customer that I've been working with for the better part of a year now. It started with her commissioning me to make a number of floral sticks for herand her bridesmaids bouquets. They turned out lovely, but WAY more difficult to make than I ever thought they would be. I will know better for next time. Then she entrusted me to make her a set of jewelry for the big day, necklace, earrings, and bracelet. And finally I was honored to make her hair ornament. Her dress is so lovely, and I just can't wait to see pictures of it all put together. It will be a beautiful Fall wedding for sure.

Halloween Tree

I'm starting to get in the mood for Halloween!!! YEAAAAAAA!!! So for at least the last five years I have been wanting to make a Halloween Tree so then I would start making some Halloween ornaments. But... then I get busy and I forget to make one. I just found this really great tutorial on the DIYnetwork. Hopefully if I place it on my blog then I just might remember to get to it this year. I'm not promising anything, but if I don't get to it then at least I can live vicariously through the video.

Pop Tart Thieves

Annie & Aslan

Blog Tour - Fourth Stop

Fourth and next-to-last stop on the Day of Small Things whirlwind blog tour. I'm doing an interview over at Blind Pig and the Acorn -- Tipper Pressley's wonderful down home take on all thing Appalachian.  I'd be proud for you uns come along, if you've a mind to.

It won't be up till around 7 AM -- US eastern standard time. And there will be another drawing for a copy of the new book.

AT LONG LAST!!!

Huzzah!!! It's out!  Birdie's book hits the shelves today!

Like any anxious mother, I hope the world will be kind to my latest creation

I have pansies to plant . . .and the corrected and revised manuscript of Under the Skin to return to my editor.

I won't see it again till it's in page proofs and I'll read through one more time, hopng to catch every last typo.

It's one of the many oddities of publishing that now, as I begin visiting book stores and libraries to talk about The Day of Small Things, it's Under the Skin that is fresh in my mind.

My heartfelt thanks to those of you who've suffered with me through the borning of Birdie's book. You have kept my spirits up when thing were difficult and you've been kind enough to follow me as I go roving to post on other blogs.  

A thousand thanks -- you all are great!  

Off to the Ball

I give you the very lovely, and talented Suzanne. She commissioned these pieces to accent her gorgeous gown, which she customized herself, to go to the Dickens Ball. An account of the evening can be read on her blog, as well as how she altered her dress. Her latest Victorian steampunk novel will be released next year, and I can't wait to read it.

Blog Tour - Third Stop

I'm off to the third stop on my Book Blog tour.  Today I'm at Meanderings and Muses, talking about Fierce Old Women I have known.

You all have been so good about commenting on my guest stops -- know that I appreciate it from the bottom of my heart. 

And yes, there'll be yet another drawing for a fresh copy of The Day of Small Things. Leave a comment  over there to be entered.

A Real Man

 

Not original -- but it gave me a giggle when someone forwarded it to me. I did take the picture of the moon though.  

Natural Dilemma

A Monarch butterfly, struggling in a web . . . Of course I released it . . .

 But then I felt bad for the hungry spider. . . 

Sometimes it seems that the beautiful people get all the breaks.

l
 Click to biggify slide show and see captions!

Victorian Halloween Terror-iums- Re-blog from DIY Craft

This post is a re-blog from Diy Craft . I just love this idea so so much, and exactly what I was looking for, for my next project.

Large glass terrariums were a part of many Victorian homes. The glass around the plants allowed them to flourish even in cold fall and winter months, and they were quite the curiosity when they first became popular. Brilliant San Francisco-based floral design company Studio Choo created aptly-named terror-iums for popular blog Design Sponge.

This spooky version of the terrarium is perfect decor for a Victorian Gothic Halloween party since it imparts that subtly eerie vibe youll want to achieve. Plus, you have the option of keeping your terrarium after the party, replanting the plants outside, or giving away the terrariums to party guests as prizes or favors, depending on how many you create.

We suggest taking this idea and simplifying it by choosing locally available plants that can be repotted in your yard, since the carnivorous plants they used require special environments and treatment to continue growing.

Heres our take on the terror-ium:


Supplies
large glass cloches or round bowls
easy to care for plants - mini ferns, grasses and mosses
dirt
Victorian-era embellishments like old lockets


Directions
Step 1: Purchase a mix of large glass cloches and round bowls to use for housing and displaying the plants.

Step 2: Visit a local nursery or greenhouse and ask which kind of easy to care for plants will survive well in a terrarium, and can be replanted outdoors in the spring.

Step 3: Purchase a mix of interesting looking plants for the terrariums, including mini ferns, grasses, and any unique mosses.

Step 4: Be creative in building your terrariums, and finish off the look with gray or black reindeer moss (can be purchased at Save-On-Crafts.com) over the dirt. For the Halloween party, add in extra Victorian-era touches like old faux lockets, ajar pocket watches, and cleaned chicken bones (be sure to boil the cleaned bones for a long time to avoid any rotting or smell).

*photo credit to Studio Choo via Design Sponge

How to Make a Gravestone Rubbing

Temple or gravestone rubbing is believed to have originated with the Chinese, around 30 0 B.C. Originally, it was used as a method of communicating governmental decrees, a forerunner to the printing press. The government’s laws and messages were carved in stone then transformed to parchment by rubbing with colored wax or other permanent dye material. More recently gravestone and momument rubbings were once very popular, and a common field trip activity for schoolchildren. For me they are just really, really cool to frame and put in your living room, especially for Halloween. There are much more complex methods for achieveing a proper gravestone rubbing, but this one makes a great image and easy to do.

Things You'll Need:
• Conte crayon, or pastel
• Drawing Pencils
• Pencil Sharpeners
• Tracing Paper
• Crayons
• Masking or Painters Tape

- Remember to always be respectful in a cemetery. Always check with the proper authorities before attempting any type of rubbing activity, regardless of whether the object is on private, or public properity. If you are going to do rubbings on actual headstones or monuments, be sure to check the laws in your state before you start. In many states, like New England, it is against the law to make rubbings on gravestones. In the UK, there are centres set up specifically for making rubbings, using replicas of the original monuments and plaques. Always best to do a little research before you start to avoid getting anyone upset.

- This method will work only on gravestones that have raised or sunken letters. If you can't feel anything when you rub your fingers across them, they won't show up on a tracing.

-Hold the tracing paper over the front of the stone or marker. You may want to use masking tape to prevent your paper from moving.

- The trick to this is finding the right drawing implement that woks best for you. Try out your technique at home first, and practice a little bit. If you're using a pencil of any kind, hold it almost horizontal against the paper as you rub. If you're using a conte crayon or pastel, rest it flat against the paper. Pressing gently, rub over the image until an outline starts to appear.

-Usually, the image will not turn out completely crisp. You might want to go back in and alter it a little bit. If you're using a pencil, you can use your kneaded rubber eraser to remove shading in small areas, and create a more distinct image. Also you can move the rubbing while you’re working on it slightly to create a 3D effect. Complete the rubbing in the basic color then move the paper slightly to one side. The next step is to go over the highlights with a contrasting color giving the image a highlight or 3-D effect.

- Roll up your rubbing carefully, and when you get home spray it with a spray fixative to make sure it is protected ( make sure to do any alteration to the image before using the fixative). And there you have it a perfectly spooky image for framing.

Appreciation Photos

One of my favorite things in the world is when customers send me appreciation photos. The greatest complement is actually seeing the things I make worn by their owners. The first picture is of a customer who contacted me in a panic because she needed something special to wear to a military ball with her husband. I actually had to overnight express a couple of pieces to her, and she just looks lovely with the choker on. The second is a fellow Etsy seller,Crimsonvision who custom ordered a tiara from me with red crystals. I just love her fangs! They are gorgeous!

Niche Marketing

I was intrigued by this new appearance on the Marshall by-pass and stopped for a closer look. The cross made of horseshoes is pretty nifty.

And when I got home, Mr. Google informed me that this is a growing movement -- and I wondered, do any other countries have this sort of thing with churches directed to a certain segment of their population -- based on avocation rather than belief??  

I'm not trying to say this is a good thing or a bad thing -- I just find it an interesting phenomenon.

2nd Anniversary Selling on Etsy!!!!

It has been two years now that I have been selling on Etsy. My first sale was on September 21, 2008. At that time I never thought that anything I made would possibly sell, but it has and the satisfaction it has given me has been enormous. This whole week I’ve been thinking really hard what I have learned in that time, and what selling the items I make means to my life. To me the funniest thing is the real lessons I have learned about this whole experience have been about taking better care of myself physically, and emotionally. I guess because only through taking really good care of yourself can you continue to create. I never knew just how unorganised my finances were until I started running a business. That has been the biggest obstacle I have tackled recently. I also can’t really function anymore without at least taking a walk everyday to not only get exercise but as a way to recharge and clear the clutter out of my head. Along with cleaning out the clutter in my head has been scaling down and cleaning out the clutter in my life. The next thing I’m going to force myself to do is to start cooking healthier… I hate cooking. See none of this really has anything to do with creating and selling my work, but it all is the foundations of who I am. The person who does make the work so I guess it comes down to I have to be right with myself before I can create items for others. Listed below are excerpts from all over the web of advice that has helped me in this last year….

Kristen Jackson Fadich- 9-20-10 (Facebook)
“Don't wait until everything is just right. It will never be perfect. There will always be challenges, obstacles and less than perfect conditions. So what. Get
started now. With each step you take, you will grow stronger and stronger, more and more skilled, more and more self-confident and more...and more successful.” Mark Victo Hansen

Adele Elizabeth – 7-9-2010 ( facebook)
Sometimes I wake up in the mornings and think "What the hell are you doing?" It all seems so utterly meaningless and I wonder to myself why I ever became a creator in the first place... why I never studied law (or something 'sensible') instead of drama and the arts. So I glance out of the window into a world full of people who live their lives on autopilot. I see them every day out there on the street… merely existing… the living dead. So many sad, empty faces that were once so full of life. That’s when I look inwards and remember that I didn’t choose to do this, IT chose me and I live, breathe and bleed it. It’s all I know . And I remind myself that if I weren’t creating, I too would be truly dead on the inside… “ you see things; and you say why? But I dream things that never werem and I say why not”

Quit Your Day Job: redrubyrose (Etsy Blog)
There are always going to be practical reasons why you shouldn't make that leap, especially coming from people around you (believe me, I heard them all at the beginning of my illustration career), but it's amazing how resourceful you become when you believe in your work and feel the terror of the next mortgage/rent payment looming. It's a hoary old cliché but true to say: jump and the universe will catch you.

Quit Your Day Job: loopyboopy (Etsy Blog)
What do you enjoy most about not having a day job? Is there anything you miss?
Every morning when I open my eyes I love the fact that I don't have to put on a monkey suit and go anywhere: I don't even have to get out of my pajamas if I don't want to. I love that I am my own boss and the success I experience is completely within my power and the direct result of my efforts. If I want to take a day off and go to the museum or take a stroll through the French Quarter I don't have to ask someone for a day off to do so. I really can't imagine ever going back to a job where I am told what to do and when.

What's the hardest part about running your own business?
Because art was always something I did for fun, it can be difficult at times to treat it as a job. Some days I don't want to make what I know will sell but would like to try something new. Some days I don't want to make anything at all. Creating art is such a joy for me, but when I feel forced to do it, a bit of that joy is diminished and it can start to feel like a "day job." It's still, of course, the only job I would ever want. Believe me, I'm not complaining, but I would say that was the hardest part of running my own business.
I also struggle with time management, but this is nothing new. I've always struggled with time management. I am easily distracted and I have to really force myself to stay focused on the task at hand. It's harder to do when there isn't someone standing over you. Sometimes a break is in order and I make myself get out of the house, take a stroll to the coffee shop or walk the dog. This usually helps me to refocus and I find I'm more productive if I give myself these little breaks.
Though at the time coming down with the disease and the financial burden that resulted seemed overwhelming and insurmountable, by going in the direction life was pushing me I eventually was able to overcome and get on the right path for happiness and some success in the field of art, which is what I was meant to do. I do believe that all of life is like this. We just need to learn to follow the signs.

I'll end with a quote from one of my favorite authors, Paulo Coelho:
“Trust and start walking. We are not alone in the dark; our path will unfold as we move.”

Quit Your Day Job: dolangeiman (Etsy Blog)
Lastly, work your tail off, but also remember to take a step back from everything once in a while. Go for a hike, do some yoga, spend the day cooking, whatever. It’s amazing how many times we’ve found ourselves going 100 miles an hour on something only to step back, reflect, and realize we need to change our direction. This perspective is not always easy to obtain so make sure you occasionally let your mind go to a place where new ideas and direction can float to the forefront.

Quit Your Day Job: kgarnerdesigns (Etsy Blog)
Take yourself seriously, even if no one else does. Be confident. When people ask me what I do, and I tell them “I make jewelry and sell it online," the typical reaction goes something like this: “Oh...that’s nice...good for you!...” They think it’s a cute hobby I use to keep myself from getting bored as a stay-at-home mom.
If I had listened to the people who never thought I’d sell a thing (including myself at times) I never would have opened my shop and my family wouldn’t be where we are today. If you think you can do it, go for it!
Stick with it, stick with it, stick with it! This takes a lot of effort and we’re not all going to start making regular sales overnight. I didn’t. Keep trying new things until you start getting the results you want.
Don’t waste the slow times. It’s easy to let yourself feel bad when sales are slow. Slow weeks or months are a great time to make and photograph new items, get your paperwork organized and stock up on supplies. Take the time to make a new banner and business cards or freshen your shop by rephotographing some existing items. You'll feel much better if you're doing something constructive!

Quit Your Day Job: timssally
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give yourself?
If I could go back in time to right after high school graduation and right before going to college, I would tell myself to major in something that interests me, like art. I remember walking through the art gallery on campus and being almost envious of those students. I thought I was majoring in something practical and where I could "get a job.” I figured out very quickly that my marketing degree was not going to land me that cool ad or writing job right after graduation. I eventually went back to school in 2002 and earned my MBA. After struggling once again to find that perfect job, that’s when I decided that I wouldn’t spend any more of my time in a job I hate. Enter makeup. Then in 2006, I went to art school and emphasized in painting. I was chipping away at it until last fall and decided I didn’t want to do anything else with an art degree that I wasn’t already doing. So, I’m taking an indefinite break and concentrating on my business.

The Sweetest Couple

I just love it when I find pictures of people wearing my items on the web. Here is the sweetest pictures of the cutest couple I have ever seen. The bride commissioned me to make her a lovely little pair of clock hand earrings with a little red crystal drop at the end. They just look so adorable on her.

It's a Silly Bandz Infestation

Surely you've seen them around.

They're hard to miss.

They're at stores...and on the arm of almost every elementary kid I've seen!

Silly Bandz.

My third grader collects them. 

The ones he doesn't like, he takes to school and trades.

He has army tanks and gun bandz, dolphinsand other animals and sports ones, and all kinds of shapes.

It's brilliant.

They can't cost much to make, and kids are crazy about them.

Why didn't I think of that?!!

At least they're not plotting to take over the world, like those Webkinz!
 

But, this one...I have no idea what it's supposed to be.