Selling for a Good Cause

Tomorrow is April 1st (and DS#2's 11th birthday), but that's not really the reason for this post.
This is no April Fool's joke either. It's a great sale for a good cause. What more could you ask for. The entire month of April, I will be holding a sale in my shop. 10% off all purchases will benefit Culver School and their efforts to raise money for the purchase of an electronic sign.
If you've read my bio or learned anything about me over the years, its that education is one of my passions. I have been very involved in the school for 9 years now. It's no secret that times re tough and money is tight. Schools, especially in our area (taxcaps) are feeling the pinch more than ever. Every cent needs to be spent maintaining programs and providing quality opprtunities for all of our kids. Communication with families and the community is an everpresent concern. What better way to get out important messages than an electronic marquee. How to pay for such an addition to the communication arsenal is another story. Thus, the birth of this fundraiser. The extra benefit of seeing so many groups and people come together for a common purpose, building teamwork and enhancing realtionships is just the icing on the cake.
So, here goes!
Make a purchase and simply write the word "Culver" in the note to seller section. That's it! Done! 10 % of your purchase will go to the school fund for the purchase of the sign. It doesn't get any simpler than that!

More you say? You want more? How about this?! Etsy, being the great, supportive community it is, has seen several other artisan shops step up to the plate and join in. They too are offering great deals in their shops and supporting this fundraising effort. How cool is that?! Just out of the goodness of their hearts, they have similar deals available for the month of April. So, be sure to check them all out. You're sure to find something that tickles your fancy, and again, just a note that says "Culver" is all it takes to help the school. No extra $$ out of your pocket. You just get to enjoy a beautiful new trinket and we will enjoy knowing we are doing all we can to keep the lines of communication open.

The following shops will donate 10% of all purchases. All shipping fees will be refunded and items hand delivered.
kjbeads
ohsewhannahThe following shops will donate 10% of all purchases
ErikaPrice
The following shops will offer free shipping to you AND donate those shipping fees ($2.00-$10.00 per purchase)
yoboseiyo
theplushiefoundry
cameraforkitty

and thank you for your support!!!

A Vacation from my Vacation

One week sure can make a difference. I put my shop on hold and took the family to Washington, DC for a week. No blog posts, no new listings, not checking in and boy, I seem to have just disappeared.
Truth be told, now is when I would like to disappear. I would like to run and hide from the pile of laundry that will make up my next few days. I would like to hide from the pile of work that has accumlated with looming deadlines. Most of all, I would like to hide from the reality of my age. The sore feet, the blisters, the shin splints and aching hips. You see, walking on a beautiful, sunny, crisp spring day surrounded by blooming Magnolias and towering remebrances is joyous but after 6 days of sleeping in the hotel double bed with a squirming 10 yr old, a tiny shower and miles and miles of blooming magnolias, I have begun to feel my age.
I feel the tight Achilles tendon up my right calf, the blister at the botom of my small toe on the left foot, the shooting pain in my hip, the headache of a 12 hour drive home and that big pain in my ass? Yep, huge bruise from sitting on the arm of the chair accidently. Damn! I knew that was gona smart when I did it.

All in all, it was worth it. We really do have a beautiful Capital! Monuments, memorials, traditions and history that can overwhelm at times. It was a fantastic trip, full of adventure and brimming with memories. I think I will spend the day in my comfy chair, editing photos and drinking decent coffee.
It's good to be home. Stay tuned

Stress should be Tax Deductable

Does the government reimburse for brain transplants? I may need one. Mine is beyond fried! A long, rainy, windy, crazy weekend full of stressors has my head weary. I thought tackling the mountain range (not just one peak)of filing last weekend was "The Big One". I should have known it was just the molehill in the grand landscape of my week. I really should try follow tat sage advice of appreciating what you have. I think I would take a dozen molehills of filing (as much as I dread it) over the Mount Everest known as taxes (insert Dun, dun, dun music here), and I don't even do them. I just prepare all the paper for another unlucky schmuck to conquer. To think I was once an accounting major and considering a lifetime of tax hell is inconceivable. For those that do it, love it and are burried in it right now, I tip my hat. Better you than me is all I have to say.

So, paperwork 90% complete feels like a huge accomplishment to me right now. In addition to bead shopping, filling a big order, scouring for silver I can't seem to locate (big stress), a desire to head back to double my bead purchase of last week, a house to clean, 4 inches of rain and now, thanks to "The Gonz", carpet shampooing to do, I find myself revamping this blog, posting a much overdue update, lsiting new items and yearning for breakfast. Yep, I think I will definitely rename it Procrastination Mountain. Not for the weak heartted.
There shoudl be a huge warning sign posted at the foot that reads
Caution: Brain fry may occur. If you experience symptoms of headshaking, hand wringing, confusion, lack of focus or short temper, please discontinue climb and treat with copius amounts of alcohol. Massage may help alleviate symptoms that persist for more than 24hours.

Hot and Cold

I seem to be running that way this week. Good days, bad days, hot and cold flashes, sales and no sales, time to kill and crazy jam packed moments, then again, what else is new.

Well, this is new. SonniandBev are not to be missed. They have been in the jewelry making business for decades and I have had the pleasure of being their booth neighbor for about ten of them. Veterans of the Chicago area art and craft show circuit, they have sold their wares at the Merchadise Mart, Michigan Avenue and throughout the suburbs. I hear they will be traveling all the way to New York City this fall for the One of a Kind Show.

If you don't live near one of these areas, not to worry. They have made their on line selling debut this week on etsy. After much discussion (and prodding), they ahve tested the waters and are wading in more and more each day. We spent the day together recently in a cram session of etsy basics. Listing, descriptions, shop set up, etc. , not to mention lingo. Steampunk, upcycle, recycle, repurpose, destash and many other bits and goodies. Little do they know, it just scratch the surface of etsy's layers of fun and excitement. They'll be addicts like the rest of us in no time. Who knows, before long, even Bev will be a computer guru.

So check them out and even drop them a line. If you get a chance to see them in person, make a point of it. The truth is SonniandBev is just one of many layers of the onion that is, LeBouton. Vintage inspired pieces, antique buttons, brooches, buckles, watches, snaps, game pieces, even pool balls are known to have become phenomenal pieces of artistic jewelry in their hands and are a lovely complement to the unending array of Swarovski crystal pieces, as seen on etsy.

So, join me as I raise a toast; to Sonni and Bev, here's wishing you all the best on etsy and elsewhere

One of Those Days

Oh, man, I'm having one of those days. I feel a little jittery and my head is foggy. It seems I can't do anything, at least not easily. No matter what I try to concentrate on, someone interrupts me and I lose it. No patience because I am having such a difficult time with myself, I really don't need others making me there go to person.
Seems like I have to stop what I'm doing every few minutes and pee. I hate days like that! Just another interruption i don't need. When I do start making a little headway, of course I have to stop midstream for something (pick up kids, make dinner, phone ringing, dog needs out, you name it)
It actually took 4 tries to get this done. I don't know what I was doing wrong or wat I wasn't finishing but Jeesh! That was insane! I was about to give up but new I needed to do something all the way through today and that was going to be it.
Now, I walk away.

end rant (Thanks for letting me)

New is Good

I admit I like vintage, I Love antiques and there's nothing like a story that reminisces about the "good ol' days" but this week is true testament that new is good too.
I don't think it any longer needs to be said that my week was busy. By now, that's pretty much understood. This week has however been full of new. New customers, new listings on etsy, new adventures being planned and even some new "old" music being played.

My Studio Open House was not new. It's been around for about the last 7 or 8 Februaries, at least. However, it did have many new customers visit and that's a great thing. It took many a year and much prompting to get me to host such a show but I must admit I do enjoy it. More for the enjoyment than the sales, I think. I love the less hectic environment and being able to show all my customers just how much I appreciate them by providing refreshments and opening my house to them. I think it is important to take the time to really get to know them and spend time listening to their stories is inspiring.
Preparing for the Open House while working and juggling a multitude of other tasks left little time for new listings on etsy or handmadefuzion. Suffice it to say, this led to a slow storefront. Finally, with the arrival of some great NEW beads, this week saw some new creations and some new listings. Well, booya! sales followed and I did a little dance (privately, of course).
As if this wasn't enough new for one week or one month for that matter, I finished plans for a new adventure. It seems to be the right time for a family trip to our nation's capitol for so many reasons. A new era, a new president, a new hope for a better future (eventually) coupled with a graduating grade schooler and a budding middle schooler just seemed to scream road trip. I worked on DH and scoured more travel websites than any one person should and there you are. A trip for 3 of the 4 of us to see new things for the first time. Mark may not be thrilled but for a museum guru, he has no idea what lies in wait. It's only a matter of time until he stops referring the The Smithsonian as just another museum.
This sounds like a pretty full and exciting week, doesn't it? Well, let me tell you, the best tale is yet to come. An utter surprise that brought me a joy I would not have imagined in a really MOM kinda way. and yes, I'm gushing. and yes, I'm being nerdy and sentimental, and yes, I have no life but at least once in a while I have the little things. So, hold on to your poncho, have a seat in your over sized papisan chair and take off the huge, cushy headphones! I fostered a musical epiphany in my meanager! It was stupendous! The best President's Day I've ever had. Can you say that?
Kids off school and me at my workbench left the day wide open for possibilities. Seeking inspiration, I reached for the CD player, of course. A few discs and one saxophone practice later, Alex was looking to hear the entire Sgt. Pepper album from which his concert music stemmed. Low and behold, the deep dark depths of the basement coughed up not one, not two, but 3 large cassette tape holding briefcases. (the cornucopia of destroyed LP's by DH will have to be its own post someday). 8 hours later, my meanager, the one that barely speaks to me and definitely struggles to believe I am/could be cool found it in his heart to applaud my taste in music. Everything from Warren Zevon and Elvis Costello to U2, the Beatles and some Talking Heads. I would have to say, he lost his music virginity that day, possible to Chrissy Hines, or maybe it was Stevie Nicks. It doesn't really matter. I knew I had reached a common ground. A sacred ground in my book. We definitely have a common interest in our love of music. He thinks I have good taste and he looks to me for advice on a good tune. Hell, what more can I ask from a 14 tr old angst ridden stomach that walks

TGIF, I Think

So busy lately. I tried posting a few days ago and was so unhappy with my rambling that I just deleted the entire thing. Of course I had every intention of getting back here and then my life just kept happening. I am glad to see Friday arrive yet, I need to slow down time. With an Open House in two weeks, I need every second I can get. Unfortunately, those seconds also need to be chocked full of inspiration and that just doesn't seem to be happening lately.
I had hoped for some inspiration from a trip to the beads store and an afternoon with my goof friend Diane ( always a day of laughter and fun to get the juices flowing). Of course, I then realized it was the week of the Bead Show in Tucson and the shop would be bare. I am going to Tucson one year, I swear. It's on that list of business trips that includes Italy (HA!) I also have ideas that require supplies I am out of and don't want to use the time I have running for them, so I try to make other things. Truth is I need to make everything I can. I need to just bite the bullet and go. Get it over with and work in peace.
As if these obstacles are not enough, I seem to be compelled to register for more and more days of teaching. Great. We need the money. The DC trip will be here before we know it and teaching is a guaranteed paycheck. That doesn't negate the need for productive time jewelry-wise. Throw in IEP's, 504"s, committee meetings, Board meetings and a "to do" list the length of my arm and the pressure builds exponentially. Suffice it to say, this blog of ramblings just keeps getting knocked of the list. So, this post has done wonders for my stress level.