Merry Christmas!

Arwen and I would like to wish all of you a very Merry Christmas! Hope you get to spend time with family, good food and lots of smiles :)

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes

Oh yes, things they are a changin', which is partly the reason for the lack of posts lately. I am having my website re-done by a pro, this blog is getting a makeover (hopefully also by said pro!), my packaging is getting a makeover, almost everything is changing around here! Please be patient while I renovate, I am trying to streamline things so that everything is much cleaner, easier to navigate and (of course!) purchase from my various stores. While I want my blog redone by a professional, I am tweaking things myself to see what I like, what works, what doesn't. You'll notice first of all that I am getting rid of Project Wonderful. While I think it is a great idea, I am sick of having to reject the pornographic-site idiots that insist on trying to advertise here, even though I have made it VERY clear that this site is to be (as much as possible) ALL AGES. NO PORN, thank you very much! So I am going to offer advertising privately on my blog, starting at just $1/month. Yes, you read that correctly, just $1. I think it will be a bit cleaner-looking, and I know that anyone with a spam or porno site sending me emails will get blocked by my spam filter, so everyone wins :)

I also have some REALLY cool news in the realm of personal fitness which I'll try to share in the next few days as well.

In the meantime, if you have any questions, comments, suggestions or applause, please let me know, I want to make everything easy for you to move around in :)
Have a great weekend!

Happy Thanksgiving!

A Happy Thanksgiving to all of our American friends! Keep in mind that there are many vegetarian and vegan options for your Thanksgiving feast, and that there are even organisations that have turkeys to adopt, just in case you want to save a turkey instead of eat them! Here is a link to Adopt-a-Turkey Project's Website: http://www.adoptaturkey.org/

(photo from Natinal Geographic here: http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/wild-turkey/)
Have a great day!

New Celtic Knotwork Drawings

A long, long time ago I posted photos of a drawing I did, with the phrase "Siochan Leat" (meaning "Peace Be With You) on it and a myriad of Celtic knotwork. Today, I wanted to show you that one again as well as a new drawing that I have finished, and one that is in progress! The one above is about 8-1/2" x 10-1/2", done in pen, pencil and waterolor pencil. I didn't use water over the watercolor pencil as I had already done the gold pen on it and I am afraid it will smudge...For now I am not making jewelry as I have boxes of already made jewelry that I have decided must sell before I go and make any more. The sale is still going well in my Etsy store, check out the new items here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleStudioJewels
Lest I drown in jewelry (I am sure there are worse deaths), I am taking some time to go back to my drawing roots:

Here is another one I just finished, a Green Celtic Knotwork Circle. I used pencil, pen, ink and watercolor pencils. I painted the watercolor pencils to give depth to the knotwork and border. It is about 8-1/2"8-1/2".

Here is a closeup of the knotwork. I used gold pen in the center to give light to the middle, like sunlight shining through the center.

Here is my newest work in progress, a Celtic Cross done in knotwork. Here you can see the pencil drawing, and I have started to go over it with pen and when that is done (I have already done about 3/4 of it now at this posting), I will start to go in and color each part of knotwork and background of the cross. I am contemplating what to do the background of the whole piece...do I do grass and sky, or just leave it white? What do you think?

Another question arises...what do you think I should do with these drawings? Should I make blank greeting cards with them? Would you like to purchase or receive a card with something like this on it? I am interested in opinions, so please join in the discussion :)

On the exercise front, I am (sort of) plugging away at it. I'm trying to do yoga everyday, but with the weather changing, I am finding my fibromyalgia pain is coming back. The good news is that when I do yoga, the pain almost instantly lessens or goes away so that is absolutely fantastic. I just need more cardio...I went for a walk with Arwen yesterday (she says hi!) and that was wonderful. I need to get out there more with her and also ride my stationary bike more. Anyone know a really good company for doggy rainsuits and boots? Arwen needs to get some as the roads are wet and I now have half the dirt road on my hardwood floor...hmm...maybe I should go and clean that up...

See you soon, and please, let me know what you think of the drawings and what I should do with them!

Saturday: The Sale is Still Going Strong, and So Am I!

The Sale is still going strong in my Etsy shop - more items have been added so be sure to check out all of the great deals.

I am still exercising as per my pledge on Chatelaine's Fresh Start Contest. I did 40 minutes of yoga on Monday, 30 minutes on my bike followed by 40 minutes of yoga Wednesday morning and then another hour Wednesday evening, and I rode my bike for 30 minutes yesterday morning, followed by an hour of yoga in the evening - woo hoo!

Have a great weekend!

HUGE 50% Off Sale in My Etsy Store!

I need to make room for all of the creations I want to make, and to do that, I am selling almost all of my jewelry for 50% off! Why not get your holiday shopping done now, and have some money left over to buy something for yourself? See the sale section here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/littlestudiojewels
Happy shopping!

New Photo, Pledge Update and Glass Bead Demo!

Here is another photo of our rings - yes I had sapphire blue nail polish - I couldn't just go with traditional French, lol!

As for my Chatelaine pledge: Yesterday evening I rode my stationary bike for 30 minutes, and then did 40 minutes of yoga - feeling some serious exercise bliss and so proud that I did it instead of watching a movie and probably eating mindlessly (even if it is usually healthy stuff, it is still mindless eating - and I avoided it!). Woot!

Tomorrow I am going to watch a glass bead making demo with my friend Louise from Fireseed - we are going in together to see a woman make glass beads that look like the inside of an aquarium. I can't wait to see the demo! I am going to try to remember my camera to take some photos for you all :)

Have a great weekend!

I Am Taking the Chatelaine Fresh Start Contest! And Other News

Ok, Ok, before I get to that, some of you asked for some wedding photos so here is one - I have to go slowly, lol. Thank you all SO much for your congratulations and well wishes, you made us smile with each comment.

Also, praise God, all of those miners are either out of the mine, or are on their way out right now in Chile. Praise to the rescue workers and God be with the miners and their families as they recover from such a scary ordeal.

Now for the Chatelaine contest - I have blogged in the past about trying to exercise regularly, and usually I do it, but here is a cool incentive, in a contest from Chatelaine, called the Fresh Start Contest. Basically, you make a pledge, sign up on their site and then follow through with emails each day from them filled with encouragement. There will be prizes and I hope I win!

After just getting married I realized that it isn't just for me that I need to be healthy and exercise - I need to be healthy to support my husband too, so that we can have a happy, healthy marriage for "as long as we both shall live". Therefore, I am pledging to exercise at least 3-5 times per week and I will post (pinky swear) each time I do. My page is here: http://freshstart.chatelaine.com/entry/3318699

Today I spent about an hour shoveling and moving large wheelbarrow loads of soil around my yard. That was hard! Later on I will be doing about 40 minutes of yoga to make sure I'm not too sore from all the soil-moving. Yay! I did it! You can sign up too, and make all sorts of pledges at Chatelaine's website at: http://freshstart.chatelaine.com/home

What's your pledge?

Have a great day!

I'm Back!

One of the 3 blankets I crocheted as wedding gifts for my wedding. Design by Dorothy Warrell.

YAY! I'm back and boy have I missed everyone in the blogosphere! On September 10, Brennan and I finally got married in a teeny tiny (8 person) ceremony in Kemptville, Ontario. We were so blessed to have nice weather and our immediate family around us. I was doubly blessed - September 10 is my birthday, so I got to get the man I love to be officially mine on my birthday :)

The photos here are of a project I've worked on for a year (I'm still working on one for Brennan and I now, but I managed to get the others ready by the wedding, phew!). I purchased 4 blanket kits from Herrschners.ca a year ago and got them all the same to give to our parents and my friend who was taking our photos. It is an Aran Nosegay pattern and WOW! was it time consuming (about 70 hours per blanket), but SO worth it. Everyone loves them, and I can't wait to finish mine. They are about 4 feet by 5feet 7 inches and so incredibly toasty warm.

Here's a closeup of one of the panels

Each blanket takes 12 panels, and I had never done a blanket before, so it took me a while to figure out the stitches (thank God it was crochet and not knitting, I'm so slow at knitting, I'd probably still be on the first panel of the first blanket!), but I did, and now I have to say I am HOOKED (no pun intended, well, ok, a teensy pun intended!). I LOVE making blankets and I have already ordered a different kit for when I am done my current one. You can never have enough blankets, and I figure, if the next one goes well, I'll order another kit of that one and give it as a Christmas or birthday gift next year :)

The blanket kits came with labels for me to personalize the blankets. I put our initials and the year.

I've also started to crochet washcloths and some fingerless gloves for myself, and a friend of mine is going to help me knit my first pair of socks - how addictive yarn is! I'll try to keep you updated as I go. I'm really slow though, so be prepared for sporadic updates on those!

Additionally, I am starting to (finally) write my gluten free, low allergy cookbook. It will be slow going for a while - I have to have people to test the recipes in their kitchens and that takes time - but I am excited to be finally working on it!

My jewellery stores on Etsy and Artfire are still going strong, and I have updated and relisted a few items over the last couple of days, keep checking back for more great items!

Thank you for all of your patience with my absence, I was really worried that I would lose all of my followers. I will be posting more regularly now, I promise :)

Have a fantastic day, full of happiness and blessings,

Soulful Sunday: Happy Stats

Inspired by The House of Mouse blog (http://lifecraftinessandeverythingelse.blogspot.com/) I thought that maybe each Sunday I should relate some happy things that went on in my life, to bring the happy back into a world that is sometimes not-so-happy. Between news reports of natural disasters, political instability and environmental disasters, it's easy to forget the little things that make each day worth living. So here goes my first attempt:
Happy stats:
-Finding an organic veggie garden a 10 minute walk from my house, full of the most delicious (and affordable) produce I've ever had (aside from home grown, of course), and run by very friendly people.
-Discovering that I do, in fact have one tiny pumpkin starting to grow after being worried that all the blooms I had previously found were male (ie, not pumpkin-producing). Now, if hte weather holds out, I'll have at least one pumpkin to bake with, mmmmmm pumpkin :)
-Making progress on the wedding gift front. I can't show you yet, but I will, and I hope it will be worth the wait.
-Using Arwen's shedding brush on her every other day, and thinking that she must be part sheep, not sheep-herding-dog, after all of the fur I got out of her. It's amazing she has any fur left!
That is all for now, I'll see you all soon. Arwen send you her little kisses (she has good breath I promise, I brush her teeth regularly!), and I send you all happy thoughts and prayers for a great week,
and Arwen

August's Charity of the Month

Oh holy wow, I can't believe we are halfway through August already! Arwen was kind enough to remind me that I haven't mentioned the charity of the month yet, so here it is:
This month 10% of all sales before taxes and shipping will go to the Arthritis Society of Canada - http://www.arthritis.ca/ to donate directly, follow that link.
If you would like to see my jewelry for sale, my Etsy shop is here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/littlestudiojewels I have many items for sale, more to be listed, and I ALWAYS love to do custom pieces!
That is all for now, see you soon :)

A Wonderful Gift

A quick apology: I am sorry I am not blogging much right now, I am getting ready for my wedding and though it is a small wedding, it is amazing how much of my time it is taking up with all of the preparations. I will get back to more regular blogging (God willing) as soon as possible :)
Arwen Sniffs the Large, Mysterious Package
A few months ago, I purchased some beautiful vintage pins from my good friend Jen at Epic Farms (http://www.epicfarms.etsy.com). While purchasing them I mentioned that Brennan and I are getting married in September. Well, she then said that she had a little something in mind and that, as I wasn't in a rush to get the pins (I'm using them in my wedding, details below and to come), she wanted to do a little something to go with them. Now, I was thinking a little something to be just that, but I wasn't thinking it would be this wonderful something. I want to share with you one of the most wonderful gifts I have ever received. Upon getting the package from the post office, I noticed it was rather large. When I opened it I found...
The "Bliss Box", and its Beautiful Poem
...An absolutely beautiful box! On the outside it was decorated with beautiful paper, reminiscent of Italy, and the front had a label saying "Bliss Box" and on top was a poem:
"The Bliss Box
In this box when you are joined together,
place joyous memories to cherish forever.
Your wedding announcement, a special note,
a flower, some ribbon, a thoughtful quote.
And on the papers of pink and blue,
write a loving word or two.
Then set it aside in a special place,
secure it with ribbon or tie it with lace.
When you are down and feeling blue,
pull out this box and look it through.
In times of struggle, it times of trial,
inside this box you'll find a smile.
Remember why your love is true,
encourage each other and find joy anew.
Keep God as your center, your focus heavenly,
for marriage does not take two but three.
Jen Crowe, Feb. 2010"
Isn't that beautiful?? I've already said that she should make more, similar ones to sell in her delightful Etsy shops (epicfarms.etsy.com and wysiwigs.etsy.com), as I am sure more people would want them. I thought that would be all, and to find my little pins inside, but I was wrong...
A Handful of Envelopes
...A pack of envelopes! I wasn't sure which ones to open first, but fortunately I opened the orange envelope first and found...
Some Envelopes
...a delightful card from Jen. I then opened the pink envelopes and found...
Gorgeous Scrapbook Die Cuts From Jen
...Some incredible die cuts for my wedding scrapbook! I just went out today and got a scrapbook for our wedding photos (okay, okay, I like to be prepared, lol), and thse are going to be perfect! There is a little couple, gold hearts (the gold doesn't show in the photos, sorry), gold interlace rings, doves and hearts and heart labels and so much more, including a set that reads "Our Wedding". They are gorgeous, you need to see Jen's shop for these and more.

A Jumble of Letters Makes...
The next envelope contained a jumble of letters...what did they make? I will admit, it took me a while to figure it out (yeah, brain wasn't working well, the envelope said it all, lol). Brennan and Meghann in beautiful opalescent paper, with a beautiful green tree with matching green crystals attached to it.
The Final Two Envelopes
The final two envelopes had more stunning cuts, including a little car and sign that says, "Just Married" and letters in a little plastic envelope that say Just married as well ( I didn't take them out as they are delicate). The final cut is a beautiful cake with gorgeous pink flowers and a small pink crystal on the top. Okay, I admit it, I cried happy tears when I saw the cake cut. I don't know why, but for some reason that one made me realize I'm finally going to marry the man I've loved for almost 9 years. But STILL the package wasn't done!
Vintage Bits and Bobs
Jen also included some beautiful vintage pieces of jewelry for me to play with. I've already got some great ideas for these, let me tell you!
The Vintage Pins for My Wedding
Finally I got to the package I had ordered (seems funny, doesn't it? LOL!). These are the vintage pins I'm using in my wedding. They are silver plate with faux pearl and rhinestones on the left, and the flower one has rhinestones and some sort of mother of pearl in the petals. Here is what I'm doing with them:

Handmade Ribbon Bouquets
I ordered a bunch of ribbon from a great Etsy seller a few months ago in blue, pink and white, the colors of our wedding. I then made bouquets of ribbon roses - one for my bouquet to hold, and a small one to put in my hair (I'm wearing my hair half up and half down, so it will go where the elastics/pins will go). But where is the flower pin?

The Bouquet with Pin, and the Bliss Box
Why, the pin went on the bottom front of the bouquet I'm going to hold. It sits just below my hands, so it will add some beautiful sparkle - plus, as the bouquet will never die, it will eventually become an ornament in my bedroom! I now have filled the Bliss Box with my bouquets, as well as the jewelry I'm wearing (I'll show you that later!), and the jewelry I'm giving to my mom, soon to be mother-in-law, and friend doing my photos. After the wedding, I am looking forward to filling it with things from our marriage!
Oh, and the second pin? I'm wearing it on my dress, I'll post photos when I get married ;-)
The big day is September 10, my birthday (Brennan chose it, not me, as he says he'll never be able to forget it, lol). I'll keep you up to date with other things that are going on as I'm able to...some things I'm giving away and I want them to be a surprise, so I'll photograph them and post them after the wedding :)
Thank you for sharing in my Wonderful Gift, I hope you have a wonderful gift of your own soon!

Time to Celebrate My 2 Year Etsy-versary!

It's been 2 years to the day since I opened my shop on Etsy, LittleStudioJewels - http://www.etsy.com/shop/LittleStudioJewels - and to celebrate, everything in my shop will be 20% off before shipping and taxes! I'll refund your discount through PayPal after you've paid.

What a great deal! Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Happy shopping :)

Fantastic Friday: A Few of My Favorite Etsy Dresses

Here are a few of my favorite dresses from Etsy sellers - please visit their shops for more delightful creations!

1. Tuileries Linen and Cotton Dress - Indigo, by TortillaGirl

2. Red Polka Dot Strapless Summer Dress by emilyelizabethcoutur

3. Perfect Little Audrey Dress Your Choice of Any Color by audreyandgrace

4. Hand-draped red silk cocktail dress by CoutureDivine

5. Roses and Creme Ruffle Dress by amandaarcher

Aren't they all just divine? From a simple dress for running errands to a silk concoction worthy of a gallery-opening, these dresses have you covered - in sexy, pretty style!