Beaded cap remnants...

That is what is written on the tag. I found this little box at a local "Antique Mall". This place is HUGE - 12,000 square feet huge.

I pass by it at lease twice a week going to/from my son's house driving on Highway 30. I never stop and I am not sure why - I love looking through those places for little treasures. This past weekend I found a little treasure. I found this little box, opened it and found a tangle of beads with a crocheted band. I was instantly drawn to the beads, they were obviously old and very pretty. Then I checked the tag and the contents were described as "beaded cap remnants". I bought it.



When I arrived home, I opened the box again and began to untangle the bead strands. Most of the strands were broken and the little bit of material that was still attached to the crocheted part disintegrated when just a tiny bit of pressure was applied. It's okay, I really only wanted the beads. All the beads are beautiful, but I think the red are my favorites.



As I started taking the piece a part, I wished it could tell me its own story - like why and for whom it was created. How many have worn it? Was it for a special occasion? A party?



After separating all the loose and still strung beads, I left the band piece in one piece with the beads still attached. The piece is a little dirty and obviously warn, but all the beads on it are in tact and still firmly attached. I could not bring myself to cut it up. What to do with it now - I am not sure yet. Any suggestions?



On another note - it is finally warming up around here and I could not be happier about it! A couple of other residents are pretty happy with the sunshine too :-)

Oops, a little late...

So, I had these photos ready to post and ... well, I got distracted and forgot. Here are the few beaded Christmas creations I worked up toward the end of 2009.

I guess my bead work (if it could talk) would say it was Lisa Peters kind of holiday.



First up is a star raku shank button in festive blue and gold. My only wish is that the colors would show up as brilliantly on your monitor as they do in person. With the addition of the vintage sequins and Swarovski crystals, it truly sparkles. Make sure you click on the photo for the full impact of colors in the enlarged version.

Here's the back - I attached the Ultrasuede backing with a beaded whip stitch. It measures almost 2 1/2 inches around.



It is just not Christmas without some kind of tree. This little pin was my only Christmas tree in 2009. And while small in size - it is perfect for me! The tree is a 2 hole, sew through raku button by Lisa. The little star on top is some kind of dyed stone or maybe it's glass? I'm not sure. I have a bunch of them in various colors.



It is backed with dark green Ultrasuede which is attached with a beaded whip stitch. It measures just over 2 inches tall and is about 1 1/4 inch at it's widest point.




Last is probably my favorite tree this year. Lisa sent this big cab to me not long ago and I could not decide if I thought it looked more like a bush or a pineapple - that is until I glued it down, and prepared to bead it. Then all I saw was a tree.



Even as I started beading, I knew it had to go back to Lisa as an ornament.



It was way to big for a brooch. It measures a whopping 3 3/4 inches tall and 2 1/2 inches wide - BIG.



I glued Swarovski crystal flat backs to the surface of the 'tree' where there were little ditches, added a few bugle beads for the tree trunk and a pearlized star for the top.



There is also a beaded hanger attached at the top. Dark green Ultrasuede completes the back with a beaded whip stitch.




Now - a little break from the beads to show off our Persian cats. Both are rescues and the sweetest cats. The gray one is female and is named Katrina, but we call her mama.



The white one is male and is named Jerry Lee, he goes by J.L.



It almost 2 years since we adopted them from Animal Care and Control. Both were left in a night drop at the pound on a cold winter night. We did not know it at the time, but the Katrina was pregnant. They really are two of the best cats ever. If you thinking about adopting, please consider checking with your local animal shelter - you might just rescue a wonderful companion.

March BJP

It seems I haven't been able to get away from a weather theme. Every time I attempted to veer off in a different direction, I always came back to the weather or more accurately the cold.

I have never been so cold for so long.

I really wanted it to be spring when I was working on my March page, but there were so many days it was freezing and/or snowing - so my thoughts of blooming flowers turned to colorful snowflakes. Thankfully we have some warm days in the forecast for the weekend and I could not be happier! I'm finally spending more time outside. Soccer season has begun for my grandson and baseball season is right around the corner. HOORAY!



I added a couple of photos taken in different lighting and the back of it as well. If the fabric looks familiar to you, it's because it is the same fabric I used for my BFAC project - this beautiful fabric was a gift from my friend Kathy.



I don't believe I have posted about the impending birth of my third grandchild. She (all indicators point to a girl anyway) is due on May 23 and I'm thrilled that I will be here for her birth - it will be a first for me. I was clear across the country for the birth and early years of the other two.

And speaking of birthdays... for anyone that has wondered about our little surprise baby kitty born last year; he turned 1 year on April 16. He has become quite an entertaining little - or should I say BIG guy. His mother weighs in at almost 7 pounds and he's tipping the scales right about 12 pounds or a bit more now.

Mocha Java Joe

He was born all white (photos linked in the above paragraph), but quickly began to show Siamese type coloring. As with Siamese, he seems to get darker all the time.



We waited until he was about 8 months to get him neutered - we were hoping his non-descended testicle would drop (sorry - that may be a little too much info for some, but hey - it happens). It never did drop so when we took him in, the vet was not sure how far 'in' he would have to go to find it, so they shaved him halfway up his belly. The hair there is still growing back and thankfully, the vet ended up not having to go far to find the missing part. All this just to explain this photo - showing where belly fur is so much darker than the rest.



If you have an affinity for cats - check out my little guy playing 'fetch'. His 'ball' can be anything that he can fit in his mouth, but he prefers one similar to what you see in this video. It's basically a felted ball made from his mothers hair after her combing. This is part of our daily routine and it never ceases to bring on the giggles...


Stuff I'm working on... the Pieces of Friendship swap and a couple of fun beady things - I'll post about all in the near future. In the meantime - I hope you are keeping busy and finding many reasons to smile!

Kitten update

(April 16 - birthday - photos are clickable for a larger view)
My precious little kitten is 19 weeks old now... oh they grow up so fast! Several people have asked me how he and the mama kitty are doing, so I thought it time for an update.

(19 weeks old)
First - we changed his name. Originally we called him Jet, but it just didn't seem to fit - his name now is Mocha. I call him Mocha Java among many other cutsie little names that no one should use as an adult - I just can't help myself. Because of the lighting in this photo he looks more white than is true, he's actually getting browner every day.

Mama kitty came to us named Heidi, we have since changed it to Katrina because she does resemble a hurricane a bit in her ability to clear a room just by getting close to it.

(March 2008)
When she first came to us, she had been shaved - we were told she was flea ridden and very matted, she looked pitiful!

She now has the most beautiful thick soft coat. She becomes sweeter every day and it's such a pleasure to watch her become acclimated to her new home.

She has been the best mom and a joy to witness with her baby, but she did go into heat twice before the kitten was 8 weeks old. So, we took her in to be spayed when Mocha was 8-9 weeks old. She was still lactating when we took her in but within about a week her milk dried up. After her recovery from surgery and she was reunited with her kitten, he kept trying and trying to nurse. We kept stopping it, but once we understood it wouldn't hurt her we let nature takes its course. He STILL tries to nurse, especially when he's tired. Mama is mostly tolerant and lets him, but he's now almost as big as her and she's finally protesting when he tries it - although I did manage to snap a photo of them yesterday when he was at it again.

Life springs forth!

I know it has been awhile since I posted - so I have many photos with updates. Note - you can click on all photos for a larger view.

I have been so busy with my day job that I have had little time for beading and even less time for blogging (both writing mine and visiting the others I enjoy so much).

For those that have asked about the kitten - it's doing great, getting chubby and oh so cute. It is now two weeks old. These photos are from 7 - 10 days old. It's eyes are just starting to open now.

The body remains white, but it has a black nose and 'tips' - ears, legs, and tail. Mama is diligent and extremely loving. She is 6 pounds of ferocious hairball when we let her out of the 'nursery' to mingle with the other cats - she has been exceptionally violent toward one of the neutered males. Probably a good thing she doesn't have claws as I don't think he'd have a face left if she did. He tries his best to run from her, but she is relentless. That part of it has been a bit unsettling for me.

The baby also has dark paw pads. It's so cute I just want to squeeze it! When stress arises in my day, I sneak off for a peek at the kitten as it always makes me smile.

We are finally experiencing some spring time weather, tulips are starting to bloom and the daffodils are about gone. Unfortunately we have unseasonably cold air coming with temps expected to get down into the 20's and freeze warnings tonight.

Come along on a tour of small bits of our yard...

Tulip

Daffodils

Johnny Jump Up? They are all over the yard

Bleeding Heart

I love bleeding hearts...

I imagine it's apparent that this is one of my favorites!

And what would a post be without a little beading??? In February I was on a business trip to Las Vegas. While there I made several bracelets in this same style and this is the only one I did not take a part. This is a herringbone stitch and I think the stitching is a bit loose. That's why I took a part all the others - they were just too loose for my taste.

I tried thread (C-Lon and SoNo) and I tried Fireline - all of them broke in the middle when I attempted to get the tension tight. This is the only one that survived. The lampwork bead is one I found on Just Beads - someone was downsizing their stash and I love these colors. The seed beads are size 8 - just to give some perspective.

The biggest thing I'm looking forward to right now - a road trip! On Thursday I am driving down to Indianapolis to pick up 3 friends, then we will continue our drive to the hills (Appalachian) of Eastern Kentucky for a little retreat as well as a memorial of our friend Lonnie - he passed away last December. I will be gone from May 1 - May 11.

Here's a photo of our destination - we will stay in the 'Manse' behind the church. These buildings were built by the local community in the 1930's. Aren't they beautiful?

No TV, no radios, no road noise (except for a few 4-wheelers) no cell phone service. Complete and total bliss! All you can hear is the wind blowing through the 'holler' and the birds singing. There is a gravel road that takes us to our destination - here is a portion of it taken last fall

Queen of spayeds

When is a spayed not a spayed?

When you bring her home from the shelter as a happy little 'spayed' adoptee and find out she's really a queen, giving birth to 2 kittens 55 days later.

This first photo is Heidi, just getting to know her new home in late February. We were told she was heavily matted and flea ridden when she was relinquished by her previous owners, so Animal Control had her shaved prior to adoption.

While I have owned cats most of my life, I have never owned a pregnant one. Most of the cats throughout my life have been rescues and are usually spayed or neutered when they arrive in their new home or shortly thereafter. Nothing different about this last adoption, we picked up 2 cats to add to our cat friendly household. Both are Persian - a 1 year old male and a 1 1/2 year old female. It was noted the male was not neutered so we got that taken care of within the week. It was noted the female was de-clawed and spayed so she got a basic check up with our vet.

About 4 weeks into getting to know our new additions, I noticed slight changes in the female. Specifically her nipples seemed to be getting a little bigger. I wondered if she had delivered a litter of kittens before she had been 'dropped off' (in the night box no less) at animal care & control . She is also 4 paw de-clawed and by my way of reasoning I thought for sure any owner that would put a cat through that kind of torture would have them spayed right??? And certainly the vets at animal control would know if a female had been spayed? I had to be imagining things. I tried not to let my mind run wild with the 'what ifs'.

She is a small cat anyway - 6 pounds when we brought her home. It was obvious by last week that her sides were bulging out a bit more than would be probable, even after a big meal. She had also become obsessive about being with her humans and oh so affectionate in the last few days. Since we have other cats (3 being male) we closed her off in her own room so as not to feel threatened by the others - not that they are threatening, but they are curious and they all know something is happening.

Late last night her hard contractions started. Her little nose squished up and she cried when the contractions were really strong - I stayed with her, but realized she was in distress with the first kitten as it was taking far to long and as much as she pushed it didn't seem much was happening. About 45 minutes after her hard contractions started, her first little kitten came into the world, a little black tabby - still born. Rather than re-live that sadness, I'd rather focus on the happiness... she had another little one not long after the first one and this one is snow white and appears to be quite healthy. It's been about 12 hours now so I'm assuming she's all done, but I know kittens have been spaced as far apart as 36 hours. Heidi is a wonderful little mother seemingly wrapping her little baby up in furry hugs every chance she gets, it is so much fun to watch.

How does all this relate to beading??? I haven't any spare time to bead!

The cat's out of the bag...

and they LIKE crowns.

They thought it was fit for a couple of princes, I had to gently remind them it was made for a queen.



Okay, now seriously... now that Monica has posted about the crown (among other treasures) on her blog , I thought I'd add some thoughts and a couple of other photos of the crown for our Pink Artist doll - Love Squared.

I've been thinking about this crown for a good while now and stared working on it about 2 weeks ago. I did not have a plan other than the shape of it... I dug through my vintage sew-ons knowing there were some in there that looked like jewels. Then just started adding the jewels, crystals and beads.

As I started taking pictures of it - it dawned on me that, not only could it serve as a crown for the doll, it just might make a neat cuff for the lucky winner - I couldn't finish it fast enough. I was unsure how I might finish the edges and attach the ultra suede backing with all those dips and points around the top. But I was determined! Thankfully this is the second cuff I made and since the first was not all that long ago - I remembered some good lessons that helped me tremendously.

Here's a shot of the beginning... originally I added the cuff just as a size reference. It was at that point I began to think it just might make a fun cuff as well as a crown.


After I finished the beading, I attached it to the cuff with a little bit of glue (E-6000). While it was drying, I cut a strip of ultra suede that would be the backing. I used a tiny bit of glue to hold the ultra suede in place and beaded a whip stitch around the bottom and up one side.

At that point I was satisfied I could now cut out the dips in the ultrasuede without worrying about it coming up too short. It was challenging, but I successful in the end (big sigh of relief!). I really wanted it to be perfect for our doll.

Here's a shot of the crown just before I finished the beading.



Included on the crown are vintage sew-ons; fresh water pearls, vintage nailheads; Swarovski lochrosen around the sew-ons and Swarovski margarita beads (volcano in color) at the top of the crown. The majority of the seed beads used are Japanese size 15/0. I used a brass 1/2 inch cuff blank.

Now I don't wear 'big' jewelry, but thought I'd include a shot so you can see what it looks like on.