Have a Heart For Tanya!

If you are a member of Facebook, please join this group;
http://www.facebook.com/ahleman?v=feed&story_fbid=297946811054#/group.php?gid=254827023429
This group is for Tanya Boden ( Aardvark Silver from Facebook)
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Aardvark-Silver/216451340044?ref=search&sid=1709793312.3098199118..1
She needs surgery for a life-threatening heart condition.She can't have the surgery until she can pay the costs first and she has only 2 weeks until she has to have it.
HERE IS THE LINK FOR DONATIONS: http://pledgie.com/campaigns/7593
PLEASE GIVE, EVEN IF YOU CAN ONLY SPARE $1, EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS!!!!

Here's the link: http://pledgie.com/campaigns/7593

Artist Being Sued to Overturn Copyright

"Imitator Sues Me to Overturn Copyrights: Please Help Defend My Art"

John T. Unger is currently being sued by an individual whom is selling knockoffs of his original art. This individual wants to continue selling the pirated art and is now suing John in order to have the copyrights overturned. If this happens, I believe it could affect all artists, please help spread the word and donate to his case if you can.

"I need your help. My original art has been copied by a manufacturer who is now suing me in federal court to overturn my existing copyrights and continue making knockoffs. I have a strong case, a great lawyer and believe that if I can continue to defend myself, the case will be resolved in my favor. If I run out of funds before we reach trial, a default judgment would be issued against me and could put me out of business. I don't believe my opponent can win this case in court and I don't believe he really intends to try. I believe his goal is to use strong-arm litigation tactics to force me to keep spending money or risk losing my copyrights — not by true adjudication, but by default if he is able to outspend me."

Go to http://www.johntunger.com/legal-defense-fund.html#2 for all of the details of this case.

3PD Christmas Ribbon Beaded Cuff

This is the latest project I completed and was inspired by the holiday ribbon we used on our Christmas tree last year. It is a beaded cuff using 2-drop Peyote stitch. This is only the second time I have used the 2-drop technique and at first I wasn't sure I was going to like it. It was a bit tough to bead up as the pattern kept changing and I really had to pay attention... not watch t.v. and bead at the same time like I usually do. Now I am working on another original 3 Peeps Design with shades of pink and slate grey and it is going a lot faster.... This 2-drop Peyote has really grown on me. I haven't decided if I am going to list this pattern online for sale, what do you think? I am going to list the cuff for sale once we get to Arkansas.

Well, the movers are here and packing up our stuff. So far it is only a two person crew sent in to pack up the things that I haven't packed up in the past 6 months... mainly clothes and frames and Jay's bar collection of glasses and liquor. We are living out of my master bedroom closet and bathroom for the time being. Hopefully we will be on our way to Arkansas by Thursday, it all depends on how long they take to pack and then load. Our belongings will be in storage while we get to know the new area and find our next house. Thankfully my parents are taking care of the kids and dogs, although my son will be here for the loading of the truck. I just wanted to thank everyone for their support and positive thoughts over the last several months. It was a long ordeal and I think we really did a good job with staying positive and proactive, not wallowing in the self-pity. We have had two offers on the house, finally, and hope to have things hammered out and accepted within the next week! My fingers and toes are still crossed for a good ending to this chapter of our lives!

Projects

Its been a busy time with projects and homeschooling. The kids are putting together their portfolios for their evaluations. I have been busy with misc. beading and jewelry making. Here are some photos of everything that is going on.

Three sets of earrings based on a pair in my shop called Spring Has Sprung. These were put together for a friend to represent a group she started, called 3 Strong.

These are earrings that I put together after doing the earrings for my friend. Its been a while since I've had all of my supplies out because of the house being on the market. I can make a mess when I'm in the "zone" and if I don't finish, I hate having to put everything away. It felt good making an exception.

This is another dog in my dog series. Its peyote stitched with Delica 11/0 beads and it is a Boxer. This one I gave to my realtor. Soon I will upload my pattern for sale at my ArtFire shop.

Here are my sugar skulls. I came up with the pattern and have a couple of different sizes and color variations available. I won't be listing the pattern for sale, I will only be selling the completed earrings in my ArtFire shops.

I have also been making my beaded paw prints. I had one order for over 50 paw prints! I've been making them as earrings, magnets, pins, and just paw prints to be used for all kind of things. I actually have more to make.

I had one customer sew my paw prints onto an outfit for a doll. The outfit was for a school fundraiser and the winning bid was for $165!!

I also listed one of my framed pit bulls for a fund raiser. I was a bit late and ended up not selling it so I will be listing it in my shop with the money still going towards a bully rescue. (See the picture in the last post.)

I have a heartline bear pattern in the works, a paw print cuff in 2-drop peyote, finishing up a beaded cat amulet bag, and a bulldog amulet bag. And then maybe I will work on the portraits of my kids! Whew! And of course I need to actually list some of these items in my shop, not my favorite thing to do... I need an assistant.

Smokey's Auction

I am participating in another auction. This time its for Smokey. Smokey is a pit bull puppy recovering from what appears to be chemical burns down his back. Now before I get too emotional again, here is the link for the auction; http://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=173303432455&id=125117232853&ref=mf you do not need to be a friend to participate in the auction. There are a lot of great items available including art, jewelry, dog toys, and other doggie items.

And here is the website that tells more about him; http://www.smokey-the-pitbull.webs.com

Dog Beds

I finished the new dog beds a couple of weeks ago. They came out great, the fabric is super durable and the dogs seem to like them - even Mojo the kitty likes them! In fact, it seems I will be making some cat beds too because Mojo and the dogs like them so much! There just isn't enough room for 2 large dogs (Charlie is 70lbs and Apple is 80lbs) and the kitty. Buffy still prefers the top of one recliner or the seat of the other recliner.

A Note

Sorry I haven't updated my blog lately, I just haven't felt inspired lately and have been too busy. Then yesterday afternoon I received the best note ever! About a month and a half ago I participated in the 48 Hours For Larry silent auction and donated 5 things to be auctioned off. Well, slowly but surely I have received the names and addresses of where to send the items, actually, a little slower than I would like, but I didn't have any control over that. Anyway, I sent out my beaded Cat Dream Catcher to Bob this past Friday and he had it by Monday. I was surprised at how quickly the post office delivered it, especially since it went all of the way to California! I love creating stuff, but am still not entirely comfortable selling my creations. I love giving my things away as gifts, but selling them just opens a whole can of worms that I don't necessarily want to deal with. What if someone gets it and hates it? Or what if they think it looks like a kid made it? Or it isn't as described? Or what if the post office loses it (currently facing that problem)? Anyway, I opened his email and was totally floored by his wonderful and kind words! I've never met him and yet, he made me feel as if we were friends or at the very least, someone I want to meet! He made me feel warm and fuzzy and happy that I had put my piece of art out there into the world.

I will always treasure his kind words; "I will be showing it of to everyone and raving about your fantastic craftsmanship – probably even a blog post coming, it’s that yummy! It was going to be a gift, but now that I’ve seen it, it’s ALL MINE and will be gracing our wall here at home :)"

Thanks Bob!

Photos, memory lane, and beaded portraits

I was up til the wee hours of the night last night working on a couple of beaded patterns that I did of my kids. I ended up giving the completed beaded portraits to my in-law for their birthdays. When they visited last December, they really liked them. Or I should say, my father-in-law really liked them. And since their birthdays were rolling around and Jay could not decide what to get them for their b-days, I volunteered to give them those and redo them for myself. And then Jay's dad said he didn't want anything for his birthday, for us to just send a card. So, last week we just sent the cards and then Sunday we put the beaded portraits in the mail. I am hoping it really surprises them. I didn't include the frames, I figured since they renovated their home last year, that they would know what kind of frame, color, etc that they wanted. And I didn't want to worry about the glass getting broken in the mail.

Now I have a huge naked spot on my living room wall. I will have to figure out something to put up in that spot. Since getting the house ready for selling, I put away all personal photos and portraits except for those two. I was thinking of getting a clock to put up on the wall. I don't know, I haven't been in the shopping mood.

So now I am revamping the patterns. Changing out colors and bead finishes, playing with the sizes. I have them almost to how I want them, but next I am going to change the photos to black and white and see how I like them. Then I will get started on them so that I can have them done for whenever we move.

I also went through photos this morning... I can't believe how many we have. I also can't believe how many blurry shots there are, what a waste of money! I wish I could go back in time with my digital camera and retake the photos, less waste and more good shots. It was a fun trip down memory lane. I was looking for photos from my sister's wedding, which I thought I already gave to her but of course she says I didn't. Well, I don't have them and I can take that task off of my to-do list. She is the queen of all pack rats and one day she will go through her stuff and find them. One of these days I will find the time and space to finish the baby scrapbooks and put the rest of the photos in the photo albums. Some day!

In going through the photos, I was surprised at how many places we have lived, the different furniture, the ugly rugs, the number of blue bathtubs LOL, the different cats and dogs, oh my! I was also surprised at how much my son hated his photo taken when he was younger and how much my daughter loved it. She would pose and pose and pose. He would be scowling and crying and frowning in photo after photo. He has also changed so much! There were hundreds of photos of Danni getting undressed, she would strip all of the time at home, I am glad she didn't do that in public! The many faces of Danni are in that Rubber Made bin, the drama queen from birth! My son, the moody one, the shy one, but also the cuddler. And the photos of my husband, filling out, looking less like a boy and more like a man. Always smiling, such an easy, welcoming smile. There weren't many photos of me, thank goodness. I guess I am more like my son, I don't like posing for photos and I don't really like seeing how much I have changed. I wouldn't mind burning all of my photos LOL, I could really do without seeing them, but I figured one day my kids will enjoy going through all of these photos.

Ok I need to get back to work. I am also supposed to be listing some items to help out with the 48 for Larry silent auction. I have a few items in mind and just need to change the info in my shop listing, but I also have a couple of new items in mind and need to take photos and list them. Then send all of the items' descriptions to the admin for the 48 for Larry auction. I want to finish those this week.