nearing the finish line

The April BJP heart still isn't done. I'd forgotten how much work all the little details of putting together a wedding are and how time consuming it all is. I wouldn't trade it for anything though - it's been such fun spending so much time with the kids. The wedding is next weekend and then my time once again will be my own. I've signed up for 3 classes on joggles.com as compensation to myself for deciding my health just wasn't good enough to attend artfiberfest this coming fall and I'm really looking forward to them. Projects on the horizon include finishing the April BJP page, making the May page and then binding the hearts into a book. I'm also in the process of making a 3-D fiber/beaded gypsy wagon and possibly a project for the beaded book exhibition hosted by Beadwork Magazine. In the meantime, it was great fun to take advantage of a rare sunny day to take the hearts outside and take a picture of the 12 that are done all together.

I've just a bit more to finish on the April page - I've never had something go so slowly before - I just don't seem to have the interest in finishing it though I'm eager to start May.

Work continues

on the wedding dress. It's not quite how I want it yet so I'll be going to the children's house to work on it again this weekend. I could probably finish it if I had it at home but I'm worried about the puppy somehow sinking his teeth into it so it stays safe and sound in a dog-free apartment. I did however get a picture of one of my grandkittens helping me sew last weekend. Also here is a shot of the beading I'm doing on the shrug that goes with the dress. The dress is strapless, the bride has many tattoos so we're using the shrug for some of the more formal wedding photos (like the ones that will be sent off to grandparents). The wedding dress work was quite frustrating this past weekend as the dress looked amazing until I hemmed it and then the hem was all wobbly no matter how much steaming I did - In the way olden days (who remembers this?) we used to buy little weights that we'd sew into the hem of jackets and dresses when we had this problem - the women at the fabric store looked at me like i was insane when I asked about them. So I've found some wonderful beaded trim to apply to the hem to give it a little weight - I'm thinking this will do the trick however hand sewing trim onto a bzillion inches of dress hem isn't my idea of a way to spend a Sunday afternoon but it's once in a lifetime - right?

i'm still plugging away on my April Bead Journal Project page. I've never been this tardy with a page before - I worked on it for a while last night and I'm thinking just a few more hours and it will be complete. Here's the work up until now. The women at Wynwood Beads in Pt. Townsend gave me those little white fish beads so I had to work them into the page somehow.


Mr Zakk the puppy is not getting very big which is a very good thing - in fact, he's much smaller than any of the other dogs. Of course he's only six months old but it doesn't seem like he's really going to grow all that much larger. He's getting better about not destroying too many things while we are at work but he can't resist my shoes and is determined to get to them no matter how securely I think I've stashed them - this boy can open closets and drawers! As I've said a million times, it's a good thing he's cute.

It's been a few weeks

Since my last post. Upon return from ArtFest I suffered a flare of my arthritis and fibromylagia that - to put it bluntly - kicked my butt. Couple that with the wedding dress I'm making for my son's beloved and the regular ups and downs of daily life and I was left with little time to attend to my blog.

I am feeling brighter now (or perhaps it's that it appears that spring may have finally arrived in the Pacific Northwest) and have been working on the April BJP page. I decided to try something new this month and am attempting a landscape of sorts - the landscape being that shore at Fort Worden where ArtFest is held. The working title of this piece is "The Rocky Shore". I'm not overly excited about this piece as, once again, my fingers are not doing what my brain wants them to but I am plugging along because this project was really meant to be a learning experience for me.

The next Bead Journal Project begins this September and I encourage you all to participate. This has been the best learning experience for me, in the virtual company of a few hundred beading folks for support and advice. The information is here. Check out the rest of the website while you are there.

Hopefully I'll have a finished page as well as a finished wedding dress to share next week.