Birth Announcement

On February 18, one of the followers of this blog gave birth to her first born, a son, named for his father. Although I have never met her in person, she is one of my facebook friends, so I was able to see the newborn pictures as well as follow the events of her pregnancy. I am grateful for this blessed event and will enjoy the development of this little miracle child as Mom is a blogger, too.

So smile and feel the happiness and love because the world is a better place. We need good news. I welcome comments regarding your positive life events and accomplishments.

Technology and Reading

I recently purchased a paper-white kindle from amazon. I like the non glare screen, and being able to read in the dark because the page is lit. That's something I always wanted to do as a child. The kindle fits well in the molded case--of course, purple was my choice of color. It is a bit heavier than I thought, but I'm used to holding bead work in my hand.  I also like that it remembers and turns on to the page I was last reading. It really downloads fast and books are easily purchased using wifi connection. It even asks if the new book was purchased by mistake! It is a touch screen, and I'm still learning to tap the right spots. It's registered to me, so I just get an email with my purchase data, the same as for MP3 purchases, except downloading music to my phone or computer from the Cloud takes a while longer.

Another thing I really like about the kindle is my books will be stored on the device. My house is full of books, some I'm not sure why I purchased them or if  I will ever read them. So I see this as an opportunity to donate books and clean up the clutter. It will also make moving easier when that occurs.

You can preview a generous sample of the books, too. It allows the reader to determine if the writer's style and topics are suitable. So far I have purchased two books on art business. They cost about $10. One is about selling paintings in galleries. It was written about in The Craft Report magazine two months in a row so I really wanted to read it. The best quotes were in the magazine.....  The latest one is about setting goals, organizing, promoting, etc. written about experience gained in running a non profit gallery and moving to earning a living from her studio art only while raising a family. The author mentions having a variety of income streams which is something I need to explore. Also has a few pages about dealing with rejection which was very helpful and timely as I am receiving the results from applications for 2013 Art Fairs.

My local library has Nooks loaded with books for patrons to check out without a fee, so if your financial plan doesn't include a reader, call your local library. You just look at the list of books the Nook is preloaded with to determine which one you want to check out.

Cobalt Blue Button Bracelet

These are photos of my latest bracelet creation, Cobalt Blue Button Bracelet. I always take a near vertical shot and then try to get the bracelet to stand up straight which neither of these is quite as I would like.

The button is a Czech glass 1.25 button which is heavier than most of my bracelets. I made the bead loop a little longer so I could wear it at 6.75 inches, but would be best for a 6.5 inch wrist. I will alter the loop to the smaller size now that I know how the bracelet feels. I try each new style on to help me understand the purchaser's experience.

The stitch is called brick stitch. I made two groupings of beads which are repeated which can best be seen in the first photo. The beads are mostly size 8 seed beads, round and hex with crystal clear 4mm and cobalt blue 3mm Czech glass rounds with the edges alternating increase/decrease rows. I used light sapphire and crystal clear beads to match the rhinestones on the button.

If you would like to try to bead your own bracelet, it is a repetitive stitch which for me takes longer than peyote stitch but has a similar alternate spacing like a brick wall. It's the one bead at a time thing that takes so long.  I found a couple sources for Czech glass buttons and would like to try a smaller (.75 inch) button with a narrower width bracelet.