And The Winner Is....

Happy Spring, everyone!

The winner of my Spring Bling contest is:

Nancy Thompson!

(And, my sympathies go out to Anne and Mitzi, who tried unsuccessfully to stuff the ballot box. The odds were definitely in their favor.)

Nancy: please email me your snail mail address and I'll send the earrings right out to you. There's a link in the sidebar to the right. Congratulations!

I'm sorry I'm posting this late in the morning, but all of my electronics are acting wonky today. I'll be so glad when Mercury goes direct. Two more weeks....

Messy but Productive

If you remember, in a previous post, I said that I was going to stockpile pieces ready to be fired, so that I can include them each week when I fire student work and save wear an tear on my kiln. This is what I've done in the last couple of weeks. Our first two weeks of class we work with copper, so I guess I'd better put the silver away and make some more copper pieces. A new order of CopprClay arrived on Friday.

Mercury is retrograde, so of course I've been having problems with this 6-year-old laptop. *Knock wood!* It looks like I might be needing to replace it soon, which is a total bummer both financially and getting a new one set up the way I like it. Let's hope that it's only the planets affecting this poor thing, but lately my mantra is "BACK UP, BACK UP, BACK UP!"

It took me awhile, but I think I've got everything packed and ready to take to Main Street Gallery in Blowing Rock (our other co-op gallery) tomorrow. We're going to open for the season on Thursday and things need to be cleaned and arranged after being closed all winter. We have a member meeting that afternoon and a Hands Gallery member meeting that night so it will be a busy day. At least I'll only have to drive to town once.

Don't forget to make a comment on any blog post to win these earrings:

I've decided that the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. So, keep 'em coming! I love hearing from everyone, anyway.

Have a good week!

A Bit of a Disappointment

The hype started at the end of last week: A big snow storm was coming. Meteorologists agreed that it would all depend on timing of moisture and cold air, but we were all getting excited by it. Our local economy depends on the ski slopes and we haven't had much natural snow this winter. With it coming on a holiday weekend it could be a really good thing if we got the 10 inches that was possible. Personally, I just wanted to sip hot chocolate or tea and watch it come down. I felt fortunate that I didn't have to go anywhere. 

This morning I woke to only about three or four inches, and as soon as the sun hit the snow in the trees, it looked like a winter wonderland. It was so beautiful and these pictures don't compare to the real thing. It's about 45 degrees this afternoon, so it's nearly gone now.



This is "get with it" time for me. I sure have enjoyed my hibernation, but it's time to cross stuff off the list and get ready for a new season. (And time to PUT DOWN Angry Birds!!) I have a new class starting in about a month and I want to re-design it so that it flows better and we can do a second week with the more inexpensive copper clay before progressing to the outrageously expensive silver clay. Taxes need to be completed. Main Street Gallery in Blowing Rock will be opening for the season soon. Lots to do and I'm actually looking forward to doing all of it.

While thinking about the changes I want to make to the class I had a brainstorm (did you hear the thunder where you are?). My repertoire of jewelry consists of things that need to be fired under vastly different conditions. Copper needs to go in a firing pan filled with carbon. Silver containing glass has to be fired at a lower temperature, etc. Since I need to fire my kiln every week for student's work (the University STILL will not buy me a kiln, but that's a whole 'nother subject), I like to include as much of my own work as possible. Call me crazy, but I just like to fire a full kiln rather than an empty one. Sometimes two or three shelves full. My idea is to make things and get them to the point that they're ready to be fired, then store them in flat snap-top dishes until the appropriate firing schedule comes around. Then I'm not scrambling and trying to fill a kiln in a week, pushing the firing to the end of the week. That makes me nervous because what if something happened to the kiln? (God forbid!) It just amazes me sometimes that I can still come up with a brilliant idea!



Friday Foto 2/3, Miscellaneous

• This is to remind us all of what it looked like in February of last year. Yesterday was Groundhog Day and it doesn't really matter if the rodent saw his shadow or not. If we get six more weeks of winter like we've had so far, it's fine with me! We've had a few little snows, none more than 3", and none recently. Both last winter and the year before I was constantly checking the weather reports and comparing with my schedule. It's been nice knowing that I can get out any time I want to!
• If you've been reading for awhile, you know that I've been on sabattical from jewelry making since the beginning of the year, and that's been just what I needed. I'm enjoying "piddling" (Which I read in this month's Southern Living Magazine is a cause well worth a lifetime of study.) and not feeling pushed to do anything that I don't want to do. It's described as "The act of passing time, without waste or regret". All the art supplies have been living on the dining room table and I've been dabbling with that whenever I feel like it. I don't have anything to show for it, as most of what I do is Art Journaling and therefore I'm not willing to share. However, I do have a large blank canvas that's been taunting me for some time, and I may start laying paint on it any day now. I'll share when/if that's ever done.
• The yearly house/studio purge has been going well. I have two closets and most of the studio sorted. I got rid of lots of stuff - some to Goodwill, some to other people and quite a bit to the dump. I finally went through my Mother's jewelry box and decided to sell some of her pieces. I put all of her Wedgwood jewelry up in my Etsy Shop and sold some gold pieces at a local gold buyer for a very good price. This is all to help finance my trip to the PMC Conference in Cincinnati next June where I'm looking forward to meeting some of my "imaginary" friends in person!
• I do have jewelry ideas that are knocking at the edges of my brain trying to get out and I've sketched some so that they don't get forgotten. I don't think it will be too long before I'm back to working with some metal because I'm starting to get excited by that prospect instead of thinking of it as "work" or a "chore". This is good.
• The next big thing to work on is taxes. Ugh. Not my favorite thing, but I can usually have everything ready to go to the accountant in just a few days once I get going. I just need to move all the paints and brushes off the dining room table first... or maybe just bring in another table temporarily?

Whatever's going on in your world this week, I hope you have a good one and I'll be here just piddling along!

Friday Foto 12/30

Actually, several photos today.

Between all the holiday "stuff" I actually finished some pieces that have been on my bench for quite a while. The the toggle/pendant below was one I made the first time I worked with Bronze Clay and finally put together when I found the right shade of seed beads to go with it.

And this one is a conglomeration of several copper charms and connectors that I'd made and had stored up. I decided it was time to do something with them. I put them together with some copper chain and some etched jasper beads.

And, a silver ring that was an idea in my head for a long time finally came to fruition.

So, that's it for the year, folks. I'm not going to be working on jewelry for awhile because the season is over and sales won't pick up again until the tourists return in late spring. Our Blowing Rock gallery closes for the season (it doesn't pay to heat the place) and I can put that inventory in the Boone gallery.

It's not like I don't have enough to do - the projects are all crowded in my head - more to come on that subject soon. I hope everyone has a happy New Year!

Cyber Monday

Click here to go directly to the listing on Etsy.

We're done with "pre-Thanksgiving" and "Black Friday", so I think today is the last day with a label until we get to "Last-Minute Shoppers". Gack! I'm really sick of pimping my work so that maybe one of you gazillions of people that are online today might buy something. I'm not sure that my little reminders are getting through all the hype and hoopla created by the big chains anyway.

So, y'all know by now that I have an Etsy Shop, right? That's where you can buy my work online. I have a lot of new pieces of jewelry there, as well as a lot of stuff that I've cleaned out of my studio. The "Studio Stash" is listed at incredible prices because I'm selling it for what I paid for it. And silver has gone way up since then. Today only you can get 10% off of anything in the shop by using the code BLOGREADER. After today and until December 15, get free shipping by using EMCFREESHIP. So, if you haven't maxed out your credit card on Amazon.com by now, I would appreciate it of you would consider a piece of hand made silver jewelry to give to someone this holiday season.

Black Friday Foto (Edited)

Click here to go directly to the listing for this necklace.

Jumping on the shopping bandwagon, here. This piece is available in my Etsy Shop and you can get a 10% discount if you enter the coupon code BLOGREADER. Sorry! This one has sold, but there are a lot more new listings! And the coupon code works on any of them.

I hope you had a happy Thanksgiving and got to spend time with friends and/or family. Mine was quiet. I went to a buffet restaurant with a friend and ate way too much, but that's part of the holiday experience, right? I'll be nibbling on baby carrots today while I work at Hands Gallery. I hope that people will shop in our small co-op today instead of the big box stores! Happy holiday weekend to you.

Gem Show Goodies

I drove down to Asheville yesterday to the gem show at the civic center. One of only a few opportunities I have each year to buy supplies in person versus through a catalog. It's time to stock up so that I have enough supplies this winter, when I produce most of my work.

I bought a lot of silver chain. Some by the foot and some finished snake and rope chains. I was extremely low on chain due to the high silver prices recently, but it's come down a little in the last few weeks and I was desperate for chain. That's an expensive pile of loot you're looking at!

Which makes this pile of copper things I bought all that much more appealing. I've been increasing my copper stock recently since people seem to be a little more interested in purchasing copper jewelry than they used to be. I've been enjoying working with this rich, warm metal more, too. I made several things from copper clay during the first two weeks of my recently finished class, as I had to fire student copper pieces anyway. I've also done some things with 16 gauge wire that I'll show you soon.

I also got this little pile of beads. From top to bottom, some lapis, rainbow moonstone, some gorgeous faceted aquamarine and some pearls. I just wasn't into buying many beads after I spent so much money on metal.

Now that shows are over and my schedule has eased up a little I'm starting to think about next month. I'll be gone for about half of November and, since I'm mostly a hermit, there's a lot of planning to do around that. Again, more on that coming up, so stay tuned.

Earring-a-palooza

In the past week or so I've made 31 pairs of earrings. Earrings are my LEAST favorite things to make, so when I do them I do a LOT of them all at once. I make the silver parts all along and when earring inventory starts to dwindle I sit down with all my silver bits and beads and ear wires and do a batch of earrings. Some have beads, some are plain silver. Some are oxidized, some are shiny. This should replenish my stock for the rest of the season and now all that needs to be done is to match up the pairs, put them on cards and price them. Whew. Now I can move on to the fun stuff.

Finished Pieces

Here's a few of the finished pieces from that kiln load in the last post. First, some dichroic glass goodies:

And, a couple with dangly beads:



And some of my signature "Toggle/Focal" pieces:

It will be awhile before I can get these listed in my Etsy Shop and the "Toggle/Focal" ones are destined for the Little Art Gallery in Raleigh. Apparently, Raleigh ladies love this design. In the meantime if you see another one above that peaks your interest just contact me and we'll make a deal!

Whining's Over, Let's Move On

I've been working on filling up this kiln shelf for almost a month. For some reason I like to have a full shelf before I fire the work, and maybe I'm being over efficient, but that's just how I roll.  And, it's so satisfying to not have any leftover clay in an opened package. It just all worked out perfect this time. Kind of like having just enough chips to finish the jar of salsa, you know? The firing is done now and it's time to tumble, patina, polish, assemble, price, inventory and photograph. All that should keep me busy for the next week or so. I haven't felt like working in my studio for a long time, so this feels kind of new to me. It's nice to feel productive again. It took me a month to fill the shelf because I still can't work for long periods at a  time.

I only have two packages of silver clay left. If my class that starts in September gets enough students enrolled to make I'll have to order more then and I'll get extra for myself. In the meantime I'll just keep my eye on spot prices and hope the government gets its act together before the metal speculators put me out of business. I was freaked out two years ago about $16 silver prices. I never imagined it would ever get over $40 like it was yesterday. Unfortunately, the price of my jewelry has to increase, too.

I've still got a lot of stash in my Etsy Shop. Pieces and parts and things I've made that I'll never use. Go see if there's something that will work in one of your designs. I've listed them for what I paid for the silver, so there are some incredible bargains.

Lola's showing off her jewelry today. See the gold cuff bracelet on her arm?

More Miscellaneous Stuff

• I'm continuing to clean out the studio and list things at bargain prices in my Etsy Shop. I have so many things there now that I realize I should have opened a separate shop for this stuff. Oh well. If they don't sell by time to renew the listing I'll take them down. It will be obvious by then that no one wants them. I can always scrap the silver.
• I had to do an emergency house cleaning yesterday morning. I had asked a friend of mine to give me an estimate on pressure washing my house and sealing all the wood and his wife called to say they were coming over so he could look at things. If it was just an ordinary contractor I wouldn't even let him inside the house. But these are friends and I couldn't let them see how I normally live! That's OK - my sister is coming to visit and I would have had to do it eventually anyway. It's not that I live in squalor or anything, but housecleaning is not at the top of my list of things to do. It's usually just me around here, so who cares?
• I've actually spent a little time in my studio over the past week. (Gasp!) I've had a couple of ideas I want to try out and sales in the co-op galleries have finally started to pick up for the season. I realized that I have a "mini show" next month, then rather large ones in September and October. Better crack that whip and get back to work. 
• My garden is getting ready to burst into all it's beautiful awesomeness. Too bad I haven't felt like keeping up with it this spring because the weeds are pretty impressive, too. There's so much that needs to be dug and divided and I just don't have the energy for it. We've had a rain storm nearly every day for the past month, so everything is lush and green and gorgeous. THIS is why I endure the harsh winters here!
• My hives are still around for no reason. They get better, then they get worse. Today they're pretty bad and I feel a little sick. It may be time to check out a local homeopathic practitioner. It's about the only thing I haven't tried yet.
• It seems like I've had to deal with a lot of idiots giving me the run around lately. It makes me feel like an old curmudgeon. I don't have a lot of patience, especially because this is an issue that's been hanging around for several years. Every time I think it's resolved it rears its ugly head again. So frustrating.

Well, that's about all the news from the lane. I hear thunder in the distance so I'd better get this posted and unplug the computer. What have you been up to?

Listing, Listing, Listing

I've been spending lots of time listing all the studio treasures in my shop. For days now, I've been listing. I hate that it takes so long to photograph and list each item. For this Great Studio Clean Out and Stash Purge I'm not worrying too much about taking Grade-A pictures. I just want to get the stuff up there so it will find a good home. A few things have been mailed out today, but I'm surprised that this

 hasn't sold yet. C'mon! You can't get a better deal at $20.00 for a sterling silver bracelet. I actually have four of these.

This carnelian stone set into a cast sterling silver pendant is still around, too. This one is only $35.00 and is ready to hang on your own chain or cord.

I've listed about 20 things so far and I'm not even half way done, so go see if you can find a bargain or two for yourself! It's never too early to shop for Christmas, you know.

The Great Studio Clean Out and Stash Purge

I got up early this morning and started going through boxes and drawers in my studio. I'm really excited about this and I found SO MANY things that I'm going to put in my shop to share with you. So far I've found and cataloged nearly 50 items that will be included - some of them individually and some in groups - and I'm not done yet. A small sample is shown above, just to get you started. It was raining this morning and I had to wait for some light before I could take photos. I'll start listing them tonight and continue until they're all up there. I created a new Shop Section called "Components, Studio Stash" and everything will be there. There will be something for everyone - pieces and parts for those that want to make their own jewelry as well as some finished jewelry and pendants that you can put on your own chain or cord. And, you won't believe the bargains! Let's get this party started!

Extra days and the Stash Purge

Pinks from my garden

OK, so my schedule on paper and the one in my head are all out of sync this week. I had written down that I was supposed to work in one of the galleries last Sunday, but it turned out that I was not on the schedule for that day. I have no idea why it was written in my personal calendar, but I was happy that I didn't have to go in and work. Then, I did work on Wednesday of this week (yesterday). I like to sign up for Thursdays if I can, so I went about thinking yesterday was Thursday all day because I was at the gallery, and I woke up this morning to realize that THIS is Thursday, so I've gained another day. It's like that "Groundhog Day" movie, except I'm going to be doing different things today than I did yesterday.

This orchid started blooming last January (see the snow on the ground outside the window?). It STILL has lots of flowers on it!

This has been a strange time for me in that I've not been producing much, if any, new jewelry. The health stuff and the family issues have thrown me for a loop, and I have a pretty good inventory right now. (Mainly because people aren't buying much silver jewelry, but that's a whole nother story.) And, with silver so frikkin high I don't want to be buying any supplies right now. So I tell myself I'm on sort of a sabbatical, but in the meantime I'm not bringing in much money. THEREFORE...


Today I am going to start working on the Great Studio Clean-Out and Stash Purge.  I've been reading Kate McKinnon's and Andrew Thornton's blogs and they're the ones who inspired me to do this. I have so many bits and bobs and pieces and parts that I know I will never use. Some I made and some I bought, but it's all good stuff. I'll start today going through things and photographing them and then I'll list them in my Etsy Shop in the hopes that someone else will put them to good use. I've been hoarding some of these things for a long time and if I list them for what I paid for them you'll be getting some really good deals compared to what they would cost you today. Watch this space for previews - I'll be posting photos here and on my Facebook Fan Page as they're listed.

Finally! Some new jewelry.

I made this ring as a custom order for my friend Lyn. I hope she likes it - she's been wanting one for a long time.

While I was in a ring making mood, I made this fancy ring with four amethyst cz's across the top. It fits me and I might keep it. Or, I might wear it for awhile and decide it's not my style. We'll see.

This necklace is a toggle with a lapis cabachon set into it.

And the necklace part is lapis and sterling silver beads:

The pendant below is another in my flower series.

And it hangs from a hand forged sterling silver chain:

I'm still having a hard time getting into the groove. I just can't seem to find my muse for jewelry. We have another week coming up with predictions of snow for several days, so I guess I'll give it a shot. Sometimes it helps to just get out the material and stare at it and see what emerges. I hope it's something interesting!

The Last Week of the Year

Whew! Christmas is over, and what a whirlwind the last couple of weeks have been. Here's a few random thoughts of what's been going on with me:

I started experimenting with polymer clay, and it's not as easy as I thought it would be. It's so totally different from metal clay, and even after watching videos and reading about it, I still don't have anything worthy to show. One thing I discovered was that I was just not using enough of the clay. It's not expensive, so I don't have to be stingy with it like I do with silver clay. Another thing I've discovered is that although there's a lot of information out there about polymer clay in general, there's not much about polymer clay jewelry specifically. Of what I have found, there's only a few people doing exquisite work. Most is cheap and cheezy looking. Liz Hall sure sets a high standard!

I went to Raleigh on Christmas Eve and spent it with my Dad, Sister and Brother-in-law. In the three years since my Mom passed away and my Dad sold the house we grew up in, we've been trying to keep traditions alive as best we can. We gather at a friend's house and cook standing rib roast and Yorkshire pudding just like Mom did. It's always nice and we all get along fabulously, but it's just not the same without Mom. I got to see my step-son and his family while I was there, too. My two granddaughters just get bigger and more beautiful every time I see them.

On Christmas Day I drove up to Lynchburg, VA to spend time with my step-daughter's family. There was a huge snow storm predicted for most of NC and VA and I arrived just as it started coming down. They only got a couple of inches of snow in western Va - enough for her two boys to try out new sleds and snow boards - but the whole east coast got slammed, including Raleigh. I had originally planned to come home on Sunday, but knew that it was going to snow here at home so I extended it to Monday. Then I got word that there was a blizzard here, so I ended up staying until Tuesday and I was glad I did. The roads were clear and I got to spend more time with some fabulous people.

I ate lots good food, played many video and board games, and gave and received lots of nice gifts.

I decided to place an order for supplies today so that I could include it in this year's books. Silver is so freaking high that the total bill took my breath away and my poor credit card is groaning under the weight.

Etsy sales were good this holiday season, but there were a lot of glitches with shipping. I was offering free standard USPO shipping and a couple of packages didn't arrive. One was returned and had to be re-sent Priority Mail. I had to send out a replacement order for the other one. And, with the horrible weather, it was hard for me to get to the post office on time. I'll have to re-think this next year.

I have no plans for New Year's Eve. My neighbors will inform me that the year has turned over by setting off fireworks and shooting guns. I'll probably wake up, tell Lola happy new year, and go right back to sleep. I really don't like being out on the roads with a lot of drunks.

I now have a head cold (from being around a lot of people, especially children, I'm sure). And, as my grandpa used to say, a "hitch in my get-along" from sitting in the car too long. I'm ready to go back into hermit mode and get some jewelry made.

I hope you have a happy, healthy and prosperous 2011!

The Shop is LOADED

Click on any item above to be taken directly to that listing in my shop.

I've put everything I can imagine up in my Etsy Shop. The gallery above is not even everything that's up there! It's time to promote, market, advertise, and nearly spam you poor people to death, so that you'll think of me when you're making out your holiday shopping list. I apologize. It's exhausting. And, I hope not too annoying for you, but this is what has to be done in order to be at the top of the lists when people are googling for jewelry. This is how I make my living.

Yesterday was "Black Friday". When (and why) did we give the day after Thanksgiving a name? I suppose some advertising guru determined that it was the start of holiday shopping and therefore retailers would be "in the black" (making a profit) for the year. And then we were told that we had to go shopping on this day. The idea of standing out in the cold in the middle of the night in front of a big box store waiting for some kind of incredible bargain on an item made in China just totally escapes me. A man in Buffalo, NY was trampled yesterday, for God's sake!

Today was "Small Business Saturday". I like this idea much better. I'm told that if you spend $100 at a small local business, $45 of that will stay in the community. Of your $100 spent at Walmart, or some other large chain, only $13 stays local. And small businesses provide between 60% and 80% of new jobs.

I worked at Hands Gallery (one of the cooperative galleries I belong to) yesterday and we had a very busy day. We didn't open until our usual time, 10:00, and we've never had a sale. Everything in the store is made within 50 miles and it's ALL HAND MADE. Here. In the USA. We surely didn't make as much money as Target did, but we had a very good day. And 85% of the profits are returned to the artist members who make the merchandise. 60% to consignment artists. Now, don't you think this is a better idea?

So, I think tomorrow is "Come To Your Senses Sunday" and then on Monday when everyone goes back to work it's "Cyber Monday" when people buy online what they didn't get over the weekend. I hope they shop at zoenelson.etsy.com , because, like I said,  this is how I make a living.

Don't forget that you can get a 10% discount by entering the coupon code BLOGREADER.

Ramping Up the Etsy Shop

Just a few of the things that I've added lately to my Etsy Shop so you can start your holiday shopping right now! You can click on the photos above to take you to the listing, or the widget to the right scrolls through all the items and you can click on the ones you like to take you directly to that item in the shop. Let's get this party started! Tell your friends! I'm adding new things every day.

The Valle Country Fair!

What started out as a church bazaar 32 years ago has grown into one of the best festivals in this part of the state. It's always the third Saturday in October - the time of year when the fall colors are always at their peak.  The Church of the Holy Cross in tiny Valle Crucis, North Carolina sponsors the event and is responsible for distributing the proceeds to local charities. There are 135 fine art and craft booths and one of them will be mine. There's always good music and lots of fresh apple butter and cider and other good food.

Held in a field surrounded by mountains showing off the glorious colors, it's a draw to the "leaf peepers" and there's always a huge crowd.

I look forward to this show, and I think that even afer I quit doing all other shows (a direction that I'm definitely moving toward), I think that I might still like to do this one. The weather is supposed to be perfect this year, which is a real blessing. I've been there some years when it snowed on us and it was so cold that I thought my nose would snap off. Last year was a mud fest after weeks and weeks of rainy weather. (And, if you've been reading this blog that long, you'll remember that I had an infection from a botched root canal that day, too.) In any kind of weather it's always a good show.

This year I'll have all of my amazing new work and I'm also going to do something different. I recently went through all of my inventory and found some things that are really.... well... old. There's nothing wrong with them, and in my opinion they're beautiful and I don't understand why I haven't sold them yet. I feel like I need to clear out these old pieces because they wear me down. I want to concentrate on finding new directions. So, I've polished them all up and marked them down and I'll have them in a basket for customers to go through. Hopefully, people will look at this as treasure hunting for a great deal.

My good friend Kimberly will be coming from Charlotte on Friday to help me and we always have a great time visiting. After last year I think she's a glutton for punishment, but she volunteered to do it again, so I'll take her up on it. I usually see a lot of familiar faces and several of my fellow co-op members will have booths there, also. The organizers always put us close to each other so it can turn into quite a party! To top off a fun but exhausting day, the Valle Crucis Elementary School does a fund raising dinner on Saturday night. Fried chicken, slaw, green beans, mashed potatoes, biscuits home made dessert and sweet tea. The ultimate comfort food before going home and collapsing.

So if you happen to be in the area, come see me. This event will not disappoint.