Design This – Necklace to Match Bracelet, Part 2

It has taken me a bit longer than I had intended to find time to write/fit in the second part of my “Design This – Necklace to Match Bracelet” post. If you need a refresher on this challenging project, please see Part 1.

I was excited when my order from my supplier arrived. One of the rose quartz pieces pieces seemed perfect to compliment the soapstone bead of the bracelet and what was even more exciting to me was that one of the filigree beads that I had ordered as a possible companion to the large filigree bead in the bracelet actually was flat and delicate enough to serve as an accent on the oval piece of rose quartz, much like the silver decoration on the soapstone bead. The other filigree bead was perfect for spacers between sections of the necklace.

I laid out a design and asked my customer to come back and check it out. She suggested a couple of changes and asked about the possibility of a pair of earrings using some of the same components as in the necklace. Now that we had a final design, I got to work putting together the different sections and joining them together. I sent a photo of the almost completed necklace for approval. When that came through, there was just one thing left to do, come up with the perfect length.

My customer came back for a “fitting” and we decided that the best option would be to make it adjustable. I didn’t want to just add a standard extension chain however since my customer planned to wear this with mostly uncollared shirts. I didn’t want the clasp to look lopsided on her neck in the shortened position, so I came up with a double clasp extension chain that would allow the clasps to be symmetric at any length. Since I still had a bit of work to complete the necklace before it could leave and my customer was really excited about her new jewelry set, I sent the earrings home with her then. Soon thereafter she was able to pick up the necklace and wear the completed set.

Since the bracelet that I was trying to match was so complex and a necklace of similar complexity was desired and because I had so many matching materials, it was very helpful to be able to accomplish part of the design process of this custom order in person. Don’t let this stop you from contacting me though if you have a piece of jewelry or an outfit that needs a special companion piece and you haven’t been able to find it anywhere. Most of my custom orders have been easily handled by email, including photos at various points during the design process.

Fabulous First Day of Winter

So you might be asking, "How do 'fabulous' and 'first day of winter' go together?" They might go together for you if you are into winter sports or love the cold weather, but neither of those reasons is why I say that the first day of winter is fabulous. The first day of winter, the winter solstice, December 22, 2011, marks the shortest daytime and longest nighttime in the northern hemisphere this year. The daylight portion of each day starts getting longer from here. That is fabulous in my book! So if no one else has wished you a wonderful winter solstice, let me be the first. I wish you a fabulous first day of winter and a wonderful winter solstice.

As we round out the year, there are other, more celebrated days and I wish you Happy Holidays for your remaining 2011 celebrations as well as an early Happy New Year for 2012. And since today has the shortest daytime of the year, you will get to enjoy all of them with a little more daylight. Yippee!!

Thanks for the Treasuries - November 2011

The Holiday craft show season has pushed this post back a week, however there is still time to shop for holiday gifts with these wonderful Etsy sellers that featured me in a treasury of theirs. And as the card in the center of the image below says, "Have a Berry, Merry Christmas".

Five different Etsians let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during November. Six November treasuries, that treasury makers let me know about, included one of my items. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during November. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 5 Etsy shops that let me know that they featured at least one of my items, as well as an item from their shop that I like.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

CorkyCrafts
Corkycrafts' unique wine cork wreathes and cork crafts make the perfect gift for the wine lover.

DecoHearts
Find heart shaped items and items that will touch your heart at DecoHearts.

IntoTheLight
This jewelry artisan creates beautiful fused glass jewelry and accessories.



LaughingFridge
Find magnets with colorful, funky, OOAK designs at this shop.

MothersAtelier
A great assortment of kilim (rug) pillow cases are found here.

Handmade Holidays - Arts, Crafts & Vintage Marketplace

I am very excited to be a partner of 817ArtsAlliance LLC and a leader of Etsy817 as we launch a brand new all handmade and vintage shopping opportunity. Handmade Holidays will be held this coming Friday (noon - 7pm) and Saturday (10am - 4 pm) at the Maverick Activity Center on the UTA campus.

In addition to shopping for unique items such as handcrafted glass, Southwestern, gemstone, hand painted, wire wrapped and other jewelry, photography, crochet, home decor and so much more, there will be entertainment in the form of fashion shows and music. For more information about this show, including some of the vendors that will be there (I will be.), please check out the Handmade Holidays web page. There is also a great write up about the show in the Shorthorn.

This will be a great opportunity to complete your holiday shopping list with unique, handmade or vintage finds.

Olde Town Christmas Craft Fair & Holiday Lights Parade

If you are looking for a unique gift or two or three this holiday season, set your sights on attending the Olde Town Christmas Craft Fair December 2 – 3 at the Dottie Lynn Recreation Center. Shop on Friday from noon – 7 pm and on Saturday from 10 am – 3 pm. I will be back as a vendor for the second year with items from both of my online shops, EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic, and more. There is also still time to come by and talk with me about creating a custom item for that perfect, one of a kind gift.

More festive, holiday fun can be found Saturday night, December 3 in downtown Arlington. Come out and watch Arlington’s Holiday Lights Parade. A local, independently run team of Etsy shop owners, Etsy817, will be walking next to their parade entry to let you know how you can get your hands on even more great handmade or vintage goodies at their Handmade Holidays – Arts, Crafts & Vintage Marketplace, December 9 – 10. (I am a member of this great team.) After the parade you can watch the lighting of the Christmas tree at City Hall and/or get your picture taken with Santa at the Levitt Pavilion.

Here’s to having plenty of fun and enjoying the festivities of the season with the ones you love. Happy Holidays!

38th Annual Ladybug’s Christmas Collection

Last year I discovered a great little holiday store tucked into a workshop behind an artist’s home in Arlington, TX. I was really enamored with the whimsical polymer clay creations of one artisan in particular. Some artists/crafters that have their work on display at Ladybugs Christmas Collection have been there all 38 years and some like me, will be debuting their wares this year. Items from over 25 artists are expected this year.

I will be sending an assortment of my zipper pulls, gathering pins, matted photographic art prints, bookmarks, cards, CD clocks and wood items to add to the wonderful handcrafted gifts that will be on display. Exclusively during December, Eclectic Design Choices' zipper pulls, cards and matted prints featuring ladybugs will be found here.

A special opening night reception with light refreshments kicks off this year’s show from 6 – 9 pm, Thursday, December 1, 2011. The remainder of the show runs December 2 – 11 with store hours Monday – Saturday from 10 am – 6 pm and Sunday from 1 pm – 5 pm. Mark your calendars and be sure to make it in before closing on Sunday, December 11 before this holiday pop up shop shutters its doors for another year.

Alcon Holiday Craft Fair

I’m excited that I get to share with you, over the next four weeks, four different opportunities local to the DFW area where you will be able to see my work in person. I’ll have the chance to wish you happy holidays at three of them if you get a chance to stop by and say hi. (Look for my Eclectic Design Choices banner.)

The first of these four opportunities will be Alcon's 11th annual Holiday Craft Fair. It will be held on Wednesday, November 30, 2011 from 9 am - 6 pm at the Crowne Plaza Hotel across from Alcon in Fort Worth.

I will be limiting what I bring to this show to my photographic art items. I will have various sized matted prints, a few framed prints, note cards, holiday cards, gift tags, bookmarks and clocks that feature my photographic art. You can see a preview of some of the photographic art items that I will have with me in my shops EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic.

(Design This update: I had planned on writing part two of my recent Necklace to Match Bracelet post today, but I have found that I need to postpone writing it until after the holidays in order to have the time to do it justice.)

Garden Pond Clean Out

After almost a year of concentrated work on clearing out the plants that I will never recommend that anyone plant in their garden pond, ever, we had most of them pulled out of the pond. (See my previous blog post so that you can learn from my mistake.) In addition, the water lilies that had been growing for about nine years needed thinning so over this past Labor Day three day weekend and finally finishing the following weekend, the three of us tackled a major pond clean out and restoration project.

With most of the water clover and dwarf horsetail removed we could tell that either the 19 degree low of last winter, the plant overcrowding, some combination thereof or the fishing skills of the herons or raccoons finally did away with all of our goldfish. We still had several hundred mosquito fish that would need to be removed in order to drain and clean out the pond. We also anticipated a good deal of silt build up after nine years and lots of root mats created by the plants that I will never plant again. There had been a lot of silt that we had to remove from the waterfall “bucket” when we did the leak repair on the spillway about two years ago and the pond is hundreds of times larger than that, so this was no small undertaking.

Day one entailed removing the remaining “evil” plants as well as the water lilies and some other plants that I wanted to keep. We had many more water lilies than I would need to replant and a friend with a large natural pond that wanted them, so we meticulously cleaned the water lily tubers and roots so no stray “evil” plants would make the trip to his pond. These were stored in large buckets filled with the pond water and I had a bucket for my plant keepers as well as snails and a host of tadpoles that had just hatched.

Day two started with filling another large bucket with pond water and beginning the great mosquito fish harvest. We also began draining the pond with our pond vacuum and removing rocks so that they could be cleaned and silt could be removed from the liner. I had really wanted to be able to put the mosquito fish back in the pond by the end of the day so we continued to work by shop light on the first level of pebbles before we called it quits on day two. By then we had a bucket full of hundreds of mosquito fish, many of the rocks removed, cleaned and some replaced but lots of works still ahead as can be seen in the second photo taken before work started on day three.

You will find part two of the clean out saga by clicking here. (Images enlarge when clicked.)

Thanks for the Treasuries - October 2011

Four different Etsians let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during October. Three October treasuries, that treasury makers let me know about, included one of my items. One additional treasury included an item from each of my shops. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during October. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 4 Etsy shops that let me know that they featured at least one of my items, as well as an item from their shop that I like.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

IntoTheLight
This jewelry artisan creates beautiful fused glass jewelry and accessories.

LoveStar1
This crafter makes handmade banners and bunting, including custom requests for your decorating needs.

MarasFabric
Fabulous fabric yo-yo embellishments and quilt squares abound in this shop.

OliveBranchOrganics
Find organic coconut wax massage candles & body butter at this shop.

Design This – Necklace to Match Bracelet, Part 1

When a previous custom order customer mentioned to me earlier this year that she had a bracelet that she wanted me to design a necklace to match, I told her that I’d be happy to see what I could come up with. I love a good challenge and eagerly awaited what was in store. I must admit however that I was initially a bit intimidated when I got to look at her bracelet (and I don’t intimidate easily). It was a beautiful bracelet, but very complex and it included a pretty dark gray macramé section that I wasn’t sure at first how I’d complement it. I don’t think I let my brief bit of uncertainty show and said I’d go home and pull out materials that I had on hand to match the components of the bracelet and start to work up a design.

After sleeping on the challenge, I realized that some gunmetal chain could be a good stand in on the necklace for the dark gray macramé on the bracelet. After pulling out a large pile of materials that matched or complemented the other components of the bracelet, I was still a little unsure of where to start. Did I mention it was a very complex bracelet and that the pile of materials was large and varied? In addition, I was unsure which components of the bracelet were most important to echo in the necklace and which materials of mine that my customer would like best. (If you haven’t checked them out, click on the images of the bracelet and the large pile of materials to enlarge them for a better view.) I decided that the best course of action would be to ask my customer to look over the materials in person instead of just in a photo.

This turned out to be a good plan. My customer was able to identify which components of the bracelet were most important to work into the necklace and set aside my materials that didn’t interest her. We were then better able to focus on the smaller pile that was left. I had a strand of small mixed gemstone spherical beads that made the cut with several containing good color for use in the necklace. (Not pictured, I thought of them after I took the photo of the pile.) My customer seemed to have a good time picking out the beads that she liked and arranging them. This gave us a good starting point. We brainstormed what to do with some of the other elements. Unfortunately, I did not have a good companion for the large pink soapstone bead or the filigreed silver elements of the bracelet, so I searched for materials from my suppliers and ordered some beads to see how they would work into the necklace design that was starting to come together.

Part 2 describes how the necklace design evolved and what the finished necklace looks like. If you have a custom project in mind, simple or complex, please contact me to see what I can work up for you.

Texas Native Plant Week

Even with the extreme heat and drought of this past summer, the few fall rains that we have had are bringing out some welcome color via some Texas native wildflowers in my back pasture. Many native Texas wildflowers are even suited for the home garden where they require much less care than most nonnative nursery plants. I have several currently in bloom in my gardens including this native lantana.

To help bring awareness of the many benefits of native plants, the Texas legislature passed and the Governor signed a bill into law in 2009 designating the third week of October as Texas Native Plant Week. This year it is October 16-22. Now is one of the best times of the year to establish a native plant garden or meadow. Texas Parks and Wildlife has what sounds like a very comprehensive and very reasonably priced resource to help you start your own native plant area. I was so impressed with the description that I have just ordered the DVD to add to my gardening library.

Some Texas natives even managed to bloom unattended during this past long, hot summer. On a trip this past August, I was surprised to see a field of purple just off the highway. We were still in our 100 degree plus streak and I just had to go back and see what could be holding up so well. It was not a mirage, it was a field of Texas bluebells. They were gorgeous!

If you get a chance, how about giving a Texas native plant a try in your home garden to celebrate Texas Native Plant Week? Nurseries are getting better at stocking native plants and some even specialize in them. Two examples from my garden that I dug, with permission, from pastures and brought home to my garden are the liatris and big bluestem as seen in my Texas Stars photo album. (Note: Not all of the plants in this resource are natives, some are just adapted to our climate.) Another great resource for native plant information (and purchases at their native plant sales) is the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. GO NATIVE (plants that is).

See EDC at Martin High School Craft & Specialty Sale

The holiday craft show season kicks into gear for me this coming weekend with the Martin High School Craft & Specialty Sale. For those of you that live in and around the DFW metroplex you can see my products in person in Arlington at a venue easily reached from I-20. This show runs October 15 - 16 at Martin High School. Come out and say "Hi" on Saturday, October 15 from 9 AM - 5 PM or on Sunday, October 16 from noon - 5 PM. Adult admission is $2.00, children under 12 are free and parking is free. (Click images to enlarge.)

You will find my handmade items from my EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic Etsy shops on display in addition to many pieces of jewelry, accessories, home decor and photographic art that are not currently listed. I look forward to seeing you. I will be sharing my booth with a friend, Nancy Tuttle Custom Designs, who sews wonderful purses and totes. Look for my Eclectic Design Choices banner to find us in the maze of vendors. You will find us in gym B.

After this show, I have a bit of a break from local shows until the end of November and into December. Stay tuned for more information on these upcoming shows or subscribe to my newsletter to keep up with where to find me next. (My short monthly newsletter usually comes out on the first Friday of each month.)

Thanks for the Treasuries - September 2011

Two different Etsians let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during September. Three September treasuries, that treasury makers let me know about, included one of my items. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during September. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 2 different Etsians with active shops that let me know that they featured at least one of my items, as well as an item from their shop that I like.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

CorkyCrafts
Look no further for gifts for a wine connoisseur who happens to appreciate unique hand made items. A few noncork holiday items are available too.


StarFlyCreations
This artist has a great selection of original paintings, digital art and stationery.

EDC at the Arlington Museum of Art

From October 5 - November 13, 2011 EclecticDesignChoices will have two pieces of artwork on display at the Arlington Museum of Art. Each matted and framed photographic art print will demonstrate a range of variations on one of my original photos. One series is based on a photo of a Jacobean Lily and the other on a photo of a Gulf Fritillary butterfly resting on Red Flowering Autumn Sage. Both of these original photos were taken in my garden and then digitally altered to create a variety of new looks. (I’m including a photo of each work of art so that they are easier to spot among the pieces included in the Community Art Showcase at the museum.)

If you are in the area and get a chance, please stop in and take a closer look. These framed prints will be available for sale as well. If you would prefer a single image, please contact me to inquire about sizes and availability. In addition to prints of my altered photos, custom digital alterations of your photos as seen in this "Design This" blog post can also be arranged.

Etsy817 Sponsors Crafting Fun 10/15

The local independently run team, Etsy817, that I am a member of is sponsoring a make & take craft table at the Cowtown Indie Bazaar. The craft table will be open from 10am – 4pm on October 15, 2011. There will be a choice of two crafts and a take home coloring sheet (designed by one of our team members). One craft uses new or recycled paper to create small origami wreaths. The other craft recycles a variety of cardboard tubes as the basis for snowflake ornaments. Etsy817 team members will be there to show you finished examples of each craft and assist you as needed as you create your own work of art to take home with you.

While you are at the Cowtown Indie Bazaar at Will Rogers you can also browse aisles of handcrafted merchandise, listen to local musicians and see artist demonstrations. In addition to meeting Etsy817 members at its make & take craft table, some of our Etsy817 team members will have booth space at this show as well.

Etsy817 is also sponsoring a show, Handmade Holidays – Arts, Crafts & Vintage Marketplace, later this year. Save the dates, Friday and Saturday, December 9-10. It will be held in the MAC at UTA. I will post more information for shoppers as we get closer to the dates. In the meantime if you are a vendor, as of this post, we still have a few spaces available. If you are interested in finding out more information about participating in Handmade Holidays, scroll down the page at the previous link to the vendor FAQ.

Thanks for the Treasuries - August 2011

Three different Etsians let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during August. Four August treasuries included one of my items. One of those items was featured twice. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during August. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 2 different Etsians with active shops that let me know that they featured at least one of my items, as well as an item from their shop that I like.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

CactusFlowerWomen
This shop carries cute girl's t-shirt dresses and sundresses along with a few quilts.



CorkyCrafts
Look no further for gifts for a wine connoisseur who happens to appreciate unique hand made items. A few other darling goodies like this shelf sitter show up from time to time as well.

Meet My New Flying Pig Model

I’d formally introduce you, but she doesn’t have a name yet. You can help with this, more later.

I’d been thinking about making myself a new flying pig model, possibly out of polymer clay, when I stumbled across this wonderful pig with wings in BrondyBlue’s shop on Etsy. Don’t get me wrong, I like my old model that I have used in my photographic art on my note, holiday and special occasion cards, clocks, cufflinks and bookmarks found in my shop, EclecticSkeptic. However it has its limitations. It is only partially 3D and I wanted a truly 3D model.

I plan to add shiny black eyes and then this flying pig will be ready for her glamour shots. However, with the holiday season fast approaching, it may be next year before she debuts in a new item on EclecticSkeptic, so stay tuned.

Now for the part where you can help, I’d love to have a name for my new model. I’ve decided to open up a naming contest. Submit your suggestions in the comments of this post and if I select your submission, I will give you a coupon for 25% off one item from my shop EclecticSkeptic or 10% off your total order from one or both of my shops, EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic (excludes shipping).

So, put on your thinking caps and submit your names below. You are welcome to submit more than one name.

Design This – Grandmother’s Necklace

My custom birthstone necklace has been ordered to represent mom and dad and the kid(s) as I anticipated, in addition it has also been used to celebrate close circles of friends. It was one of these customers who asked if I could modify the design so that it would work as a Grandmother’s necklace. She needed five birth months represented and didn’t just want them added to the central crystal section of the necklace.

I told her that depending on the necklace length, I was confident that I could do this and got to work. My customer wanted an 18 inch necklace made with silver plated findings and figaro chain. After a bit of experimenting so that the spacing between the sections was balanced and not cramped and so that all of the sections would show at the front of the necklace, I had a design. Actually, this request was not as difficult as many of the custom requests that I receive because my original design allows for a lot of flexibility.

So if my original birthstone necklace design doesn’t quite meet your needs, please feel free to contact me and explain what you are looking for. I’ll be happy to give you an estimate based on your specs for your own customized piece.

Baseball in Waco

Sometime during the first week of August each year, Little League baseball comes to Waco, TX. Waco is the headquarters of the Little League Southwest Region and hosts the Southwest Region Tournament at the baseball complex behind region headquarters.

I have just returned from spending a bit over a week in the record breaking heat in Waco. “Why?”, because my husband was invited to umpire at the Little League Southwest Region Tournament this year. I wanted to show my support of his accomplishment and help out when I could. The volunteers took good care of the players and umpires and even though the temperature was over 100 each day, none of them fell out from the heat. Fans were encouraged to stay hydrated as well and seemed to follow this advice. I was able to pitch in and help clean up the stands after each game.

The umpire assignments rotated them through the different positions during the tournament. My husband called the plate for the semi-final game between the Colorado state champions and the Texas East champions. (Texas is so big it has two “state” level tournaments, one for Texas East and one for Texas West.) The team from Texas East beat Colorado in an exciting and close game. For the finals between Texas East and Louisiana, my husband was assigned to rotate out with another umpire on the right field line. This is where he was at the bottom of the seventh inning and where some of the action occurred on the game winning play. (Little League tournament games are six innings. This game was in extra innings because the score was tied at the bottom of the sixth.) A clip of this play was uploaded to YouTube. The first minute of the clip shows the lead up to the last play, the final hit and my husband calling the ball fair. The hit resulted in a triple, but with an overthrow by Texas East at third, the batter scored the winning run. Louisiana now goes on to represent the Southwest Region at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, PA.

The fans really get into the excitement of the tournament. Fans of teams often have matching t-shirts, some had matching jewelry. I wore my baseball gathering pins several times and one fan wore an elaborate handmade hat to the semi-finals and finals. All in all, in spite of the heat, a good time was had by all.

Thanks for the Treasuries - July 2011

Seven different Etsians let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during July. Eight July treasuries included one of my items and one treasury included one item from each of my two shops. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during July. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 7 different Etsians that let me know that they featured at least one of my items, as well as an item from their shop or profile that I like.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

artefyk
This shop carries mostly jewelry and home decor one of a kind Polymer Clay and beaded items.

BellaVioletta
This shop owner does an amazing job of upcycling materials from everyday life and turning them into gorgeous goodies.

CarrotPatch
Unfortunately this shop seems to have closed up since I posted, but here is one of her sold items, a cute flat wallet or business card holder.


CorkyCrafts
Look no further for gifts for a wine connoisseur who happens to appreciate unique hand made items.

IntoTheLight
This shop carries a large assortment of beautiful, affordable fused glass jewelry & accessories.

LarkspurStudios
This fused glass artist "paints" with powdered glass to create unique fused glass pendants.

TexasHillCountryArt
Find Fredericksburg area wildlife & wildflowers, greeting cards, an occasional acrylic painting and some tropical vacation art in this artist's shop.