Tales of a Magpie

October 30, 2008 Lovely trip!

Hi!  I'm back from San Luis Obispo!  The classes were fun to teach; I had a great time!  Thank you to all that took classes from me!

I stayed at Avila Beach with a friend and had a wonderful time.  Since I stayed an extra day, we had some time to go out and about.
Here is the pier at Avila Beach.  It was quite foggy Monday morning as you can see.
But the sun was starting to peek through the fog.
We were taking the dog, Jack, for a nice walk to the other pier.
And look what we saw!  A boat manned by Pelicans! 
We went to Lina G's in Morro Bay.  What a fun place! It's impossible to see everything.  Unless maybe you were there all day.
Isn't the hat stand in the back lovely?
Here is a closer view.
Here's my bag of goodies.
I got this lovely organza flower pin.
And these little cuties.
Some ribbons.
Well, I promise, these things will be beautiful when I am finished with them.  I plan to make brooches out of them.
Here are some hanker chiefs and some appliques.  I plan to put the appliques on some t-shirts.
I got these mystery bags.  They looked like they had some nice pieces in them.
Wow, there were some very cool things in there!

It was a really fun trip.  And I will end this post with a photo of Jack, wonderdog extraordinaire.

October 23, 2008 I've finished!!!

Yes, it's true!  I've finally finished with the Pearl Challenge!  Very happy to have it done.  So, I'm late.  Honestly, I really think I could have finished in time had I worked on it like I should have.  But I got into sewing a few times and did some other things when I really should have been working on it.  But it's done so I suppose it doesn't matter.  I am leaving tomorrow for San Luis Obispo where I will be teaching at Naturally Jennifer's.  I think there are still a few openings for Fragments on Saturday and Wheel of Fortune on Sunday, so pop on in and sign up if you have a chance!  I have a lot to do before I leave so I will sign off for now and leave you with the photo of the pearl challenge! 
 

October 10, 2008

Good news!  The Pearl Challenge has been extended to October 15 for those of us that haven't completed our pieces.  I've come a long way with it, still a bit to go, but it's looking hopeful.  I have 5 more days to finish it.  Once I get the filling in done, then I will have the picot edging left and the clasp.  I dunno.  I'm teaching classes this weekend so there's no time to bead.  But I'll do a little here and there when I can, the way I've currently been doing it.  I think I will finish it.
I'll keep you posted!  Have a great weekend!

September 23,2008: Earthly Adornments

I recently ordered a few things from Earthly Adornments , an online shop with all sorts of cool vintage things you just don't see everyday.  Here is what I bought:
Since I am working on kitting up my beaded locket design, I was looking for some cabochons that might work on the front.  As you can see, I bought more than cabochons.  I especially like the robin's egg blue and mint green graduated glass strands, which I thought were very reasonably priced at $5.00 per strand.  I think the little rectangular King Tut cabs will work very well with the red locket.
Here they are up close.
And here is the back of the red locket.  The front is not complete so I have to show the back.
And here is the King Tut cab on the locket.  It will be beaded before it is attached.  I think it works.  It may be a little weird and the pattern and colors of this locket may not bring to mind anything remotely Egyptian, but the colors work very well with this locket, so why not?.  It has a nice 3D look to it.  I just have to check to see if I can actually get enough of these for kits, a problem sometimes when using vintage components for kits.

And you may be wondering about the Pearl Challenge.  Well, I really am thinking now that I may not be done in time.  And it really wasn't because I didn't have time.  I just didn't work on it like I should have to finish it.  But I got a lot done and it is looking really nice.  It's a very textured piece and is fun to do.  Hopefully I will finish it very soon.
See?  It's about halfway done.  But that doesn't include the edging I had planned.  Well, I shall see.  Maybe I will do some speed beading.  I only work on this piece in the evenings and weekends, not during what I consider my regular working hours.  Whether or not I finish in time, it is still a fun project to work on.  I've wanted to do a collar for some time so this was my chance.  I have until October 1, which will soon be here.

September 7, 2008: Third time's a charm!

I had to start over.  I just didn't like how my pearl challenge piece was coming along.  All the white just looked too "wedding" for my taste and I have never been into that.  So I started again and this time I really like it.  The stitch I am mainly using provides a lot of texture and is also done quickly (for beading that is).  I am thinking that there is a very good chance I can get it done by October 1!  Here is a photo of what I have accomplished so far. 
I will work on it a little bit today and hopefully a little every evening and on weekends.  I am really wanting to sit in the backyard and read today.  But I think I will work a little on this piece, read for a bit and then maybe get back to it.  That's what I did yesterday.

Currently, I am reading Tami Hoag's A Thin Dark Line .  I've read this book before and really liked it so I decided to read it again.  I tend to like murder mysteries during the summer.  I could probably finish it today if I just read.....hmmmm, quite the decision to make on a hot lazy Sunday.

September 2, 2008

I did manage to work a little on the pearl challenge yesterday!

As you can see, I didn't get a lot done, but at least it's a start!  When I started doing projects for Irene's challenges, my first thought was that I didn't have the time to do them.  But then I decided that, yes I did, because I wanted to make time for them.  And now I have a theory, that we do have the time to do the things we want to do, but we seldom make the time for those things.  And now that I have less than a month to complete this rather ambitious project, I shall be putting my theory to the test.  I will keep you updated on how I am coming along on this.

So after working a bit on the pearl challenge project, I decided to give in to laziness.  I didn't even read.  Instead, my husband, Asbjorn, made us mimosas from this champagne and we sat outside until it was dark, enjoying the evening.

Labor Day

Hi!  This is my first post in my tales of a magpie.  I hope everyone is having a great Labor Day.  I am feeling a bit lazy myself.  Thought I might start on the project for my friend Irene's (owner of The Garden of Beaden, Upland ) pearl challenge.  Seeing how it is due October 1, I've got to get cracking.  I've picked out my pearls and such.  Actually, I got started on it, didn't like what i had done and ripped it out.  So I am thinking of starting on it today if I can muster up a bit of gumption.   Setting up the beach chair in the shade and reading a book sounds more like how I will be spending my day.  But, I will let you know what I decide.