Erin Bowe - Metalsmith

Where to start?

2010-04-30T20:22:00.007-05:00

I'm back! I have a house! It's spring!

The last 10 months seem like they could have been a dream. Or nightmare, depending on which day. One that I don't know if I want to re-live here, although my intention was to use my blog to document the whole house-building process.

Living without "stuff" for 10 months makes a person wonder why she needs so much of it. I basically lived out a duffel bag -- maybe 7 outfits, 2 pairs of shoes, toothbrush, shampoo. Now faced with endless boxes to unpack, I question every item. But at the same time I think I missed my "stuff" and feel more like myself now that I have it back.

How about you? Are you a minimalist? A hoarder? Does your "stuff" have meaning or is it just there? What things do you treasure the most?

Forms and Footings

2009-10-19T06:00:00.002-05:00

Photography on Etsy

2009-10-18T14:51:00.002-05:00

By complete chance I was able to snag a treasury this morning. I always seem to end up going with photography. Check out some of these fabulous photos available on Etsy!

Holy septic system batman

2009-10-03T12:52:00.001-05:00

So this is what a drain field looks like. Had to remove a few trees, but we were able to keep the huge Oak on the left.

Well, well, well.

2009-10-02T08:57:00.002-05:00

A view of part of our driveway and the well-drilling equipment being set up.

Haba na haba hujaza kibaba

2009-09-29T13:02:00.000-05:00

Little by little, fills the pot.

It took awhile, but our wonderful excavators broke apart the ledge, and finally! Here we are -- in front of our pet rock, standing below what will soon be our front entry.

The cliff in our basement

2009-09-27T08:59:00.003-05:00

This is where our basement should be. They discovered we have rock. Not rocks plural. Just rock. A rock. One rock. One BIG rock. I believe it is most likely connected to the center of the earth.

Jackhammering first. Hopefully not dynamite. But two things are certain - what was supposed to take a day or two has now turned into a week or two. And this is going to be one big EXPENSIVE rock!

P.S. These photos are from earlier this month, so I do know how this turned out, but thought I'd post the play by play anyway. :)

Progress!

2009-08-30T19:21:00.005-05:00

All permits obtained. Financing received. Perfect weather ordered.

Hopefully we'll have a basement within a couple weeks!

And a new piece for fall, which is also included in my 25% off sale!

Too soon for a Fall sale?

2009-08-25T14:46:00.016-05:00

I miss my Mac!!!

Without having access to my beloved Mac, I also do not have access to my beloved iPhoto. So I'm limited in the photos I have at my disposal. That's why I thought I'd let you all know about the sale I'm having in my little shop. My oak leaf items are 25% off!

Your piece will start as a blank sheet of metal and be carefully cut by hand to produce a rustic reminder of fall that you can wear year-round.

I'm Back

2009-08-22T13:32:00.009-05:00

Wow -- the last few months have been a blur. We sold our house and had to be packed and moved quickly. We didn't have a place to go, so we stayed with various family members. I went through computer withdrawal. I was able to get my studio set back up. There's a possibility we may break ground on our house before the end of the month. That about sums it up!

Actually, it's been quite an adventure and I wish I had regular access to a computer so I could blog daily. Even if no one reads it, I'd really like to be able to look back at this some day and laugh.

The photo above is a little frog I saw one night on the door of my studio. It was dark so I couldn't see him very well. I was surprised when I loaded the photos onto my computer to see that he was looking right back at me. I've leave you with a couple photos of our progress, and a few things I've learned so far:

Coyotes can be extremely loud.

Mud is slippery. Very slippery.

Mice like cashews.

A toaster requires a lot of wattage.

Some days are better than others.

Closing soon!

2009-06-05T17:54:00.015-05:00

I finally sold my house! It's not a done deal yet, but the closing is just over a week away and we are running around getting packed and such. So that's the good news.

The bad news is, I will be without a home and studio for a bit. I don't have a place to live yet, but I do have a place that I can set up my studio temporarily. I will still need to remove any custom/made to order items from my shop soon, and then close it temporarily--probably from June 17th through July 1st.

So if you've had your eye on something, now's the time to buy! :)

Black-Eyed Pea Masala

2009-06-01T21:32:00.010-05:00

I love this recipe. Could eat it breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Have eaten it breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And very inexpensive to make!

(Ingredients and simple instructions are at the bottom.)

First thing you need to do is soak your black-eyed peas for at least 4 hours. Dump your 2 1/2 cups of dried black-eyed peas into a bowl that seems too big for that amount and fill it to the top with water. I will do this before I go to bed and put them in the frig. When I get home from work the next day they're all ready to go.

After they've soaked, you'll notice they're taking up a lot more space in the bowl now! I usually don't drain them unless there is a lot of water left.

So now you can get your garlic, onion, and ginger ready. I am not really the gadget type, but I do love my onion chopper & mini food processor. Makes this go so much faster.

Saute the onion for about five minutes. You can use oil, butter, ghee, or even water. Just so that they start to soften. Then add your garlic and ginger and saute for another minute or so.

Now add your spices. The amounts can be done to your taste. I don't like to add too much garam masala, especially if it's a mix with a lot of cinnamon. Stir that up and let it saute for another minute. It will look very, uh, appetizing, like this:

Then you can dump your tomatoes in, fresh or canned, pureed or chopped, whatever your preference. I stir this around and let it cook a few minutes and then add the peas along with 4 cups of water. I'll usually add some salt at this point too. Bring it to a boil and then reduce your heat, cover, and cook for about 2 hours or until the peas are done.

Once it's done you can fold in a can of coconut milk, or I prefer to use unsweetened coconut to flavor it (canned coconut milk just tastes funny to me). Buy a package of unsweetened coconut flakes from the cooking aisle. In a blender, combine 2 cups of coconut flakes with 2 cups of boiling water. Hold the lid on tight, using a pot holder so you don't have boiling water flying in your face, and blend. I let that sit while the peas are cooking. When I'm ready to add it, I strain this through cheesecloth and use the liquid in place of the coconut milk.

That's it! Eat as is, or serve over brown rice, quinoa, buckwheat groats, or barley. So good!

CliffNotes

2 1/2 cups dried black-eyed peas, soaked

8 garlic cloves, minced

1 large onion, diced

1 inch ginger, minced

5 tsp. curry powder and/or garam masala

2 1/2 tsp. tumeric

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 cup chopped tomatoes or a can of diced tomatoes

salt, to taste

4 cups water

coconut milk

1. Soak peas in water for 4 hours.

2. Saute onion, garlic, and ginger for about 6 minutes.

3. Add spices and saute 1 minutes.

4. Stir in tomatoes and cook 1 minute.

5. Add peas, salt to taste, and 4 cups of water.

6. Bring to boil, reduce heat, and cover.

7. Cook 2 hours or until peas are done.

8. Fold in coconut milk (or combine 2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes with 2 cups boiling water, blend, let sit, drain through cheesecloth and use that liquid)

I heart my tumbler

2009-05-28T18:46:00.015-05:00

One of the last things I do with almost everything I make is to tumble them. Jewelry is placed in a tumbler with water, shot, and a burnishing agent and it comes out harder and shinier and gives your pieces a nice "finished" look (if that makes sense). I have a single barrel Lortone.

And I use 2 pounds of stainless steel shot that has a mixture of shapes. I think the little pin shapes are important for getting into tight spaces, but some people say they leave little marks on flat pieces (I've never had that problem). Stainless steel is good so that it doesn't become a rusty mess, and I think the easiest way to store it is in water.

So I pour my shot into a sieve and then pour it into the tumbler barrel. Put your jewelry pieces in and add water so that it just covers the shot.

Make sure that the lip of the barrel is completely dry.

Everyone has their own favorite burnishing agent. Dawn is popular, but I think you have to use the original Dawn, which is really hard to find. You can also purchase burnishing compound. I personally like to use flakes of Ivory soap. I just use a cheese grater to shred it into a container so I have it on hand. I put in probably something around 1-2 tablespoons of shavings.

Now making sure that the lip of the barrel is dry, fit the inner lid so that it sits snugly into the barrel. If the area where these two pieces touch is wet, you're not going to get a good seal, and you'll most likely have leaking.

Fit the outer lid on, making sure it's pressed all the way down.

The washer goes on next, and then twist the little nut on. Not too loose, or it will work its way off, but not too tight or it will distort the inner lid and break the seal.

That's it! You can tumble for any length of time, depending on what you're tumbling and what you're trying to accomplish. I tumble almost everything overnight. Then you just drain your shot and admire your jewelry!

So here's an earring that's done. It's hardened the ear wire portion so that it's still flexible but not flimsy, and gives the whole piece a nice polished, smooth look. It's especially nice for my hand-sawn pieces so that the edges are perfectly smooth.

Tumbling is NOT a final step and is not going to do major finishing work or take out scratches. It WILL harden your pieces, give them a nice shiny glow, and make your jewelry look better. After tumbling, I do my final finish on the piece. I use progressively finer grits to sand them and then progressively finer polishes. If the final piece is to be shiny, then I'm done. If I want to do a matte, satin, or brushed finish, that actually happens after I bring the piece to a decent polish to be sure that there are no scratches. Just because a piece is brushed doesn't mean I want a scratch lurking in there!

Definitely a must-have for any jewelry studio. :)

The FURminator, Part II

2009-05-26T18:42:00.007-05:00

Last week I posted a review of the FURminator after using it on Lars. I was shocked at how much fur came off of him, since he's not usually the one who sheds. That would be Wilson. He apparently has been genetically-engineered to propel hair up to 12 feet in order to make sure I arrive at work with some on me, despite my best efforts to avoid him in the morning.

He's also a little high-strung, often ornery, sometimes elusive, and always defiant. And he hates to be brushed. So I decided to introduce him gradually and used the FURminator on him for just a couple minutes each day. A week later, I have a pile of hair and a surprisingly tolerant Wilson.

And he's not only tolerating it, but I think he's also liking it!

Lars had to examine my haul.

So, to sum it up...

PROS

Removes a lot of hair

Gentle, well-tolerated

Quality, heavy-duty

CONS

Price

Potential for bald spots if you're not careful

I'm pretty picky and generally unimpressed by most products, but this is one that got by me. :) I'd definitely recommend it!

Piercing

2009-05-25T17:31:00.020-05:00

I started on a new earring design the other day and thought I would try to take some photos of the process. Some of them turned out better than others. :)

So first I draw my design on the sterling silver sheet. In this case the outer shape was pretty simple, so I just wanted to get them both cut out first without worrying too much about the design.

Using the first one I had cut out, I traced the outline for doing a second one. Using a jeweler's saw, I cut that one out as well.

So now that I have both earring blanks, I cut out the portion of both to create the posts of the earrings.

Now it's time to drill the holes. In each space that needs to be removed, I use a flexshaft to pierce a tiny hole. I like to tape the piece down on a scrap piece of wood to keep it stable. I usually dip my bit into the pro-cut in the photo, which helps maintain the life of your bit, lubricates, and makes the hole easier to pierce.

So now that I have my holes drilled, I remove the blade of my saw from the upper portion of the saw frame and thread the blade through the hole.

After re-fastening the blade to the frame, I saw out the portion that needs to be removed. You might notice I changed my design from what I had drawn at the beginning. :)

I repeat the process to pierce out all of the pieces of the design. I then draw the design on the second piece and do it again.

Here I have both cut out. You maybe can't tell, but the one on the left has had some initial sanding done. You can see that the edges don't look quite as raw and sharp as the one on the right.

Here's my helper, Lars. Stay tuned for their trip to the tumbler.

Lars vs the FURminator

2009-05-19T19:48:00.008-05:00

As promised, I'm letting you all know what I think of my new FURminator. For those of you who don't know, this is a "de-shedding tool" that is supposed to REALLY get rid of a lot of hair on your cat or dog so that shedding is reduced. This is good, because we do not have carpeting in our house, and so hair tumbleweeds are extremely obvious on our wood floors. The stairs is where it really seems to accumulate--I think we may be cultivating new species there.

Anyway, Lars is not the primary suspect in all this, but he is more easy-going than Wilson and likes to be brushed, so he was the first test subject. You can see from the pix below that he liked being brushed with it, and it removed a lot of hair. Too much, in fact. My vet had warned me not to brush too long in one place, and there's something about that in the instructions too, but I guess I wasn't balancing my brushing time well enough. So poor Lars has a little spot on his shoulder that's pretty sparse, reminding me a little of a sickly possum. But overall, he feels thinner, he looks thinner, and his coat is softer and shinier.

Now the real challenge will be Wilson. Stay tuned...

Scones, Morels, and Picture of the Day

2009-05-16T22:22:00.013-05:00

The farmer's market in Madison, Wisconsin, is a great place to people-watch. It's always fun to see someone going the wrong way, probably swearing to themselves about how rude people are. I wonder how long it takes them to realize that they're the only person walking clockwise.

My first stop is usually Sugar River Country Bakery for one of their almond scones. I swear I remember them being 50 cents, and now they're a dollar. Saying that makes me feel old, as in "In my day, a hamburger was a nickel" old (I'm not that old). But they're my weakness; had to have one.

Someone was passing out warm donut type things with powdered sugar on them to advertise a new New Orleans bar/restaurant. Then I topped that off with half of a bison jerky stick.

There were a lot of morels, and they actually looked pretty good -- not the old dried-out ones you usually see. We are lucky enough to have a free source, which is good since according to farmer's market prices we've consumed hundreds of dollars worth of them in the last week.

Dogs aren't allowed to join the zombie march around the square, except if they're not really a dog.......they're a bundle of cuteness with aviator glasses. Not sure who this guy is, or if he realizes he has an unusual growth, but he didn't mind me taking his picture.

Live Every Day

2009-05-15T21:02:00.025-05:00

I love this Etsy Shop, and I think you'll like it too!

Like me, Bonnie says that she's always felt a strong connection to animals and nature. She enjoys capturing their beauty in everyday surroundings--often what you can see if you take a minute to just stop and look around. And she doesn't digitally alter her images--what you see is what she saw. I feel at home in her Shop!

Bonnie enjoys helping other people, using her talents to make their lives easier in some way. In addition to her inspiring photography, she also provides creative and technical services like website design, quality reviews, custom photography, and project assistance. You can learn more about her at www.bonnieboden.com.

All digital images and photo prints copyright Bonnie Boden.

How I See It

2009-05-13T23:54:00.010-05:00

What possessed me to wait for the treasury to open this morning around 1 a.m.? I don't know. But I'm pretty happy with the results, despite being chronically sleep-deprived. Click here to take a look! :)

(And if someone could tell me why I'm seemingly unable to attach links to images that would be great :)

FURminator?

2009-05-11T18:13:00.008-05:00

With the sale of our house pending, we may soon be moving into a much smaller space. Having two cats, my husband recommended shaving them or getting a FURminator.

Well I just got an Amazon rewards certificate in the mail today (for using my credit card), so I thought I'd use it to buy a FURminator before I come home to "naked" cats one of these days.

So has anyone ever used one of these things? I hope they work!

What if we just took the paneling down?

2009-05-05T19:18:00.018-05:00

Awhile back I posted some photos of what our kitchen looked like when we bought our house eight years ago.

It was sold "as is" so this is actually what it looked like when we moved in.

We had no intention of doing anything but painting the paneling and cabinets and doing something about the floor. But the countertop (what little there was) and tile backsplash had a little bit of a retro feel that we could live with.

Fast forward to the remodeling we did on the rest of our house. We had removed paneling from a bedroom and that went pretty well, so my husband thought he would do the same in the kitchen. Yeah....that didn't go so well. So as we stood there staring at the exposed lathe and chunks of plaster falling off, we went over our options. Spend a bunch of money fixing the damage we'd done. Or spend a little bit more and get a new kitchen.

So here's what we ended up with.

Five years later, we are trying to sell our house and I'm glad we re-did the kitchen since now I know what I will want and not want when we do the kitchen in our new house.

Wild West

2009-05-04T22:45:00.014-05:00

My most recent pierced work......a custom request.

Using my jeweler's saw, I cut the pendant from 18 gauge sterling silver sheet. I then soldered a small piece of sterling silver tubing to the back for the hidden bail.

I did a lot of sanding around the edges to remove any saw tooth marks and to smooth over the sharp points. I then tumbled it overnight to further smooth the edge.

I used Liver of Sulfur to create a dark patina, and then removed most of it while applying a matte, scratched finish.

I was really happy with the end result -- what do you think?

Giveaway Winner!

2009-05-01T20:14:00.020-05:00

And the winner of

the sterling silver

stacking rings

is...

ANGELA!

who liked my sterling silver MOONDANCE necklace. :)

Thank you to all who entered! I'd like to offer all of you FREE shipping on your first order from my shop. Just convo me so I know to refund the cost.

Angela, I didn't see a way to contact you--please e-mail me to claim your prize!

Trapped

2009-04-30T11:54:00.006-05:00

Isn't this a great photo? This was taken in the woods near where I grew up. He was caught in the barbed wire fence. How he managed that, well, no one said they are the sharpest tack in the box. But they are beautiful. A pliers and a pair of welding gloves later, he was free. Reminds me of the story about the lion with a thorn in its paw and the mouse (I think?) who took it out.

No hawks, humans, lions, or mice were harmed in the making of this story.

Don't forget to enter my GIVEAWAY below! Tweet, facebook, or otherwise spread the word, and post that link in the comments to earn TEN extra entries!

Birthday GIVEAWAY!

2009-04-26T11:14:00.011-05:00

Today's my birthday. To celebrate, I thought I would do a giveaway!

You'll receive 3 SLICES -- my slender sterling silver stacking rings --

custom-made just for you in whatever size you'd like. If you'd rather have copper (or a combination), or if you'd rather have a dark patina instead of a shiny finish that's cool too -- it's all up to the lucky winner. :-)

So I guess now I have to figure out what you need to do to enter....

1. Well of course you should visit my Etsy Shop! Take a look around and leave me a comment with your favorite item and why.

For a second, third, and fourth entry, tell me...

2. what styles and types of jewelry you usually wear, and

3. what goes into your decision to purchase a particular piece, and

4. Is most of the jewelry you buy handmade? Why or why not?

I'll draw some time later this week, so hurry up and get your entries in! Check back to see who the lucky winner is!

Be.

2009-04-19T21:31:00.021-05:00

The peonies are pushing their way through last year's remnants.

I love watching all of the perennials come up. I think about how old these peony bushes might be. My guess is they are easily 50 years old; they could potentially be 100 years old, outliving the person who planted and tended them.

Take a closer look at the second and third photos. Do you see it?

He's very well-camouflaged! The leaves give you a little bit of a scale, but it's still hard to tell from the photos how small he is. He would have fit in my hand. I think a rogue cat riled up a nest, and they scattered throughout our yard. Funny how the cute little baby makes me smile, but the grown, garden-eating one doesn't.

My husband chased the cat out of our yard -- I don't know if his hunt was successful or not.

Life is fragile. Life can change in an instant. Live every day.

ETSY Artist Feature

2009-04-14T20:12:00.026-05:00

I'm excited to share this fabulously quirky Etsy shop with you. Etsy has a lot of pottery to choose from, but take a peek at Ena's shop, and I think you'll find something fun and different.

Her mugs, bowls, candle holders, pitchers, and vases all feature little monsters to keep you company.

Ena says "The monsters often reflect my state of mind when I created them. After all, I am a bit of a monster too. Aren't we all?"

She also does cute little engraved cherry wood boxes, bookmarks, and more.

I love functional art, and I love that her pieces remind me to not take life too seriously.

Spa Day

2009-04-13T22:14:00.016-05:00

Madison WI ISTHMUS Online Feature

2009-04-08T15:57:00.007-05:00

I'm featured on the ISTHMUS website today! Thank you to Megan Larson for her kind words....a little sample below, or click here for the whole story.

Erin Bowe makes her jewelry look effortless, a true mark of talent. A quick peek into her Etsy Artisan Jewelry shop reveals a collection of beautiful and unique jewelry. A longer look reveals an artist that is truly dedicated to her craft.

Each piece is handmade, whether it is sawn, forged or pierced, with meticulous attention to detail. Her Goddess necklace reveals the many layers of care and effort put into her jewelry. Bowe has textured the copper, hand-sawn the design and completed the pendant with a lovely old-world patina. I love that the surrounding shape is square, making it feel even more unusual.

If you have an interest in trying your hand at making jewelry, Bowe also sells handmade supplies through Fundamental Fragments, an Etsy shop with the same attention to detail as her eponymous boutique. Read more about Bowe and her jewelry on her blog, and see her in person at an Etsy Trunk Show being held at Thorps Barbershop from 5-9 p.m. on Friday, April 17.

Life is what you make it.

2009-04-05T12:10:00.009-05:00

If you don't smile when you watch this, then well....I can't help you.

My favorite parts:

0:50 - runaway sheep

1:36 - you're in the wrong place

2:08 - big finish

Treasury

2009-04-03T21:40:00.010-05:00

Thank you to slinkymalinkicat for including me in her treasury today!

I just listed the trio of rings on April Fool's Day. I was very happy with how the set turned out. When using Liver of Sulphur as a patina on sterling silver, the results can sometimes be unpredictable. The largest one has been brushed after the patina to show off its texture. I left one of the bands very dark, but polished it just a little bit with a brass brush. The third band has the brushed texture I've grown fond of, and I left it for a very short time in the solution, resulting in a lovely chocolate, almost iridescent color. The silver sphere on that one I polished to a shine.

Don't forget to check out slinkymalinkicat's shop - she has some fabulous vintage prints!

P.S. To those fluent in Spanish, please correct me on my title so I can change it. I think it should be Tres Bolas??

TIME

2009-03-25T20:56:00.005-05:00

Why does time go faster the older you get?

Because the younger you are, each day is such a significant percentage of your life so far? And as you get older, this percentage becomes less with each year so days increasingly become insignificant?

Because as children, we live in the moment, because we don't know there's any other way to be? As we get older, we're wrapped up in too many things to be in the present moment, and days pass without you really realizing it?

Because we get into a routine and do the same thing day after day and they all seem alike?

Have you arrived at a point in your life where you've realized and decided that life is too short, and you need to start living differently? Did something instigate it or was it gradual?

What did you change?

Blue Skies

2009-03-19T00:37:00.006-05:00

Must. Get. Sun.

I miss summer.

Here's a couple lovely reminders I took last summer at the capital building in Madison.

After the Flood

2009-03-15T01:12:00.018-05:00

I didn't realize until after I took this picture

that the bark spelled my initial.

You can see how high the water was -- it washed out this bank

and exposed the rocks and tree roots.

The flood carried huge rocks down the creek,

so there were a lot of new fossils to look at.

And a feather. :)

Trunk Show!

2009-03-12T22:33:00.003-05:00

I just ordered the posters (finally!) for my show that's coming up in April. What do you think? Even though I can't make changes at this point, I always appreciate constructive criticism!

During and After

2009-03-09T20:54:00.032-05:00

So here was what the bathroom looked like when we moved in:

The wallpaper actually wasn't too hard to get off -- super heavy-duty stuff that just came off in big sheets. I'm pretty sure that was the only part of our entire house remodel that was easy.

As you can see, it was a lovely shade of pink underneath. And seeing how there was only a bathtub....

...in this next pic

you can see our lovely solution to that -- it was quite interesting, but it worked. And it was only supposed to be temporary.

Eventually, we rented a dumpster and gutted the whole thing. Since we were living in the house at the time, we sealed off the door with tape to try to keep the dust out of the rest of the house. We filled up buckets with plaster and lathe, crawled half-way out the window, grabbed the bucket, and climbed down a short ladder to the ground. The bathroom is on the first floor, but the window was high enough off the ground to make the whole process very difficult (not to mention extremely amusing to our neighbors). Oh, and did I mention there was quite a bit of snow/mud/slush on the ground too?

You might be wondering why the room is completely gutted, but our shower curtain contraption is still up. Yeah....this was our only bathroom, so we needed to continue using it! If the room looks a little bigger, it's because we tore down a wall to combine the old bathroom with a closet and old stairwell behind it.

In this photo you can see that we installed the new bathtub where the old closet had been, and the new closet is framed in.

Yay! Old tub getting removed and original wood flooring pulled up to save for another purpose.

Fast-forward quite a bit, and we have it almost completed in the next photo. Just need to put doors on the laundry area. You might notice our cabinet has a big crack in it. That's called character. :) We bought an antique cupboard and dropped a sink into it for our vanity. The overhead light fixture is also vintage.

This was all several years ago. Just recently we decided to put our house on the market (you know, because it's such a good time to sell :), so we made some revisions. We replaced the vanity and light fixture so that we could use the antique ones when we build our new house. So the last photo is our official "after" pic I guess. This also shows some of the original oak woodwork that we removed, refinished, and put back up. Overall, we were pretty happy with how it turned out, especially considering its humble beginnings.

Before

2009-03-04T20:29:00.016-06:00

We bought our house "as-is." Besides personal items being removed, everything else was left in the house...from the towels in the bathroom to the can of coffee in the frig. Here is what the kitchen and bathroom looked like when we moved in:

Wow, right? Which do you like better, the carpet in the kitchen or the wallpaper in the bathroom?

Ohai!

2009-03-02T22:19:00.009-06:00

I wish this pic would have turned out better, but I love how his head looks really big and his front legs look tiny. Reminds me of the dancing cats on the Hallmark e-cards.

This is my Wilson. He's a miracle cat who received wonderful care from the kind vets at Companion Animal Hospital in Madison, WI, several years ago. Dr. Pagel and Dr. Kay saved him (with the help from their surgical-specialist friend). After it being touch and go (he had to be resuscitated once, his bladder burst twice, and he had three surgeries) he recovered enough to rip his IV out, and we finally took him home with a bladder the size of a pea (no pun intended). But apparently it stretches over time, and the doctors encouraged us to get a "pet fountain" to entice him to drink more water. The cats were a little confused at first, but they now love it, and my guests love to make fun of it. Good times all around.

The smell of bread baking

2009-02-28T20:56:00.008-06:00

I haven't felt like cooking lately, and my husband has kindly been keeping me fed for the last several months. We had some visitors on Saturday and he put together a lunch menu, for which I was asked to make homemade rolls. He says he's a yeast-killer.

I could survive on bread alone. Growing up, my mom would make a double-batch of these rolls and I would usually try to eat at least a half-dozen while they were still hot from the oven.

EASY ROLLS

2 cups lukewarm water (110-115 degrees)

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup melted butter

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 pkg. yeast

1 egg

6 1/2 - 7 cups flour

Mix together the water, sugar, melted butter, and salt. Add 2 packages of yeast, stir until it's dissolved, and then let it sit a minute. Add 1 egg. With an electric hand-mixer, beat in 3 cups flour until smooth, then work in 3 1/2-4 cups more flour with your hands. Knead it until smooth - not sticky, but not too dry.

Put in large covered bowl and let rise until double in size (about 2 hours). Punch the dough down and shape into buns. I usually get 16 from this recipe. Place them in a jelly-roll pan (the cookie sheets with sides) so that when they double in size they will be touching. This way they help each other up while rising. If you put them too far apart, they will still be fine, but won't be as tall. Cover these (I use a clean tea towel) and let rise another hour.

Bake at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes. You want them to be golden brown on the tops and bottoms. I usually use two different pans so that I can cook one fully, and then I cook the other one so that they're almost fully cooked but not browned (8-10 minutes). That way I can have fresh rolls the next day by just popping them back in the oven to heat them through and brown.

For the sandwiches, we just put some boneless, skinless chicken breasts in a crockpot with a couple onion chunks and cloves of garlic. Once cooked, remove the onion and garlic, shred the chicken, and add barbeque sauce. I put a little cheddar cheese on mine. :)

Precious Cora

2009-02-21T09:12:00.007-06:00

Having just blogged about my niece's first birthday, it was that much more heart-breaking to read about Cora Paige last night. I don't know this family but I can't stop thinking about their little girl, who passed away just 3 weeks after her cancer diagnosis, just shy of her first birthday. Their blog is not easy to read, but their strength is inspiring.

Please consider supporting The Cora Playground Etsy project. Over fifty shops are donating their time and creations to help this family build a legacy for their beautiful little girl.

Click here to read their story.

Click here to see the listings.

Yeah, he's that old guy.

2009-02-18T20:33:00.013-06:00

Okay, it took me longer than a minute to get to this story, but cut me some slack - I'm trying to work two full-time jobs here!

Anyway, that's me in the photo below, holding a 10-minute-old baby in a hospital nursery in what I hoped was period-dress from the 1920s-30s.

When my sister went into labor on the 15th of February last year, I was there for her. I was also the designated dog-letter-outer. As the night progressed (or didn't progress, as it were) I went to let her dog out and ultimately decided to spend the night there, since not much was happening and my sister had plenty of people attending to her. With my cell phone next to my head, I attempted to get some sleep. After a couple hours of that sleep where you never really feel like you slept, I decided to get up and get ready. There was an open call for movie extras that day that I had planned on going to.

The next morning, with my hair appropriately curled, I walked into the small-town hospital in my vintage dress and coat. Instead of my uncomfortable heels that went with the outfit, I just slipped my birkenstocks on. After getting weird looks from the receptionist I headed toward the elevator and greeted my sister's doctor as I saw her head toward the stairwell. She didn't really acknowledge me. Strange.

My brother didn't recognize me when I walked into the maternity wing waiting room, and when the doctor saw me again, she still didn't realize who I was. Guess I looked a little different than I normally do!

Nothing much had progressed, and it was determined that a c-section was going to be necessary. My sister was a little scared - I told her it didn't make sense for her to worry too, since I was already doing that for her - that she should just think about meeting her new daughter.

We were told that we wouldn't see her for awhile afterward, and when we did she would be groggy and tired, so my parents urged me to go to the casting call. I didn't want to go, but I finally did. Before leaving town, I stopped at Wal-Mart to develop the pictures I was taking to the casting call. Just as I was finishing up, I got a call to come back to the hospital.

My sister was in recovery - everything had gone well and her new daughter was in the small nursery right in the maternity wing since there were no other patients there that morning. My mom handed me my niece - barely 15 minutes old. I'd never held a baby before. I later saw the photo my mom took of me at that moment with a look on my face like "um, I don't know what to do with this thing!"

My sister was finally brought back up to her room to be with her perfect little girl. After lots of smiles and photos, my sister needed her rest, and I headed off toward Madison.

From the hospital, it was going to be about 1.5 hours to Madison. The casting call ended in about 1.75 hours. Plenty of time. Except for the fact that something was going on at the coliseum that was causing traffic to be backed up at the same exit I needed to take. I took what I thought would be a shortcut, which didn't really help. Okay....I still have 7 minutes to get there - plenty of time.

And then there was a train. Aaak! What are the chances? Sitting in traffic, waiting for the train to pass, my minutes were ticking away. I finally pulled into the parking lot about 1 minute before the call was scheduled to end.

Well, they did pull me into the "you're worth a second photo" group, so I was hopeful, but sorry to say -- you will not see me as an extra in Public Enemies with Johnny Depp. I guess acting just wasn't in the cards for me. Well, I didn't need to not be chosen as an extra to know that, but who would give up a chance to potentially meet Johnny Depp??? They actually ending up filming some of their scenes in the same town that my sister lives in!

So, I now imagine telling my niece this story in 15 years or so, and she's going to say "Who's Johnny Depp? Is he that old guy that was in that pirate movie you watch?" or something to that effect. And I'll feel old, but happy, because this is one of those memories that I won't ever forget.

Who is Johnny Depp?

2009-02-15T19:59:00.007-06:00

A year ago today at this time I was crocheting baby booties in a hospital waiting room. And no, I don't normally dress like this...I'll post the story that goes along with this photo in just a minute...

Check out these Etsy shops!

2009-02-08T12:51:00.029-06:00

I've been neglecting my blog because I've been so busy with custom orders for Valentine's Day. So I thought I would feature the work of some other Etsy sellers. Enjoy!

MakingPaper

A brand new Etsy shop with cute cards and fantastic prices.

jamieshelman

Another fairly new shop with art that will make you smile.

mystiqueisland

Unique and colorful photographs.

justingeer

An assortment of items, including this CD - 'Songs From a Piano'.

aggieray

Quality handbags with fun fabrics and great prices.

Summertime in Chicago

2009-01-27T21:55:00.025-06:00

Everyone around here is knee-deep in ornery. It's that time of year. We're sick of the cold, the snow, the gray........maybe not consciously, but it shows. Things we normally don't pay any mind to annoy us greatly, people we normally like to be around annoy us greatly.......well, you get the idea. It's a strange phenomenon, really.

So it got me thinking about a little trip we took to Chicago last summer. It was HOT. And you know what you primarily do in Chicago....walk. But I didn't mind because we had so much fun -- it's just a great place to be. I'm trying to channel that heat as I sit here in my layers.

Giveaway

2009-01-23T05:40:00.008-06:00

This weekend, I am being featured by Tanya on her blog, Sunday Baker, and you can enter to win one of my pendants!

She said my jewelry stood out from the other submissions because it is unique and different. Thank you, Tanya!

Please check out her blog at comeandpeek.blogspot.com. You can sign up to win Lily, a hand-sawn copper pendant, and check out the rest of her blog too - she is a fabulous writer!

First Impressions

2009-01-14T21:55:00.009-06:00

What was your first impression when you saw these photos?

When I first joined Etsy and lurked in the forums, I'd constantly see threads about treasuries. I wasn't sure what the big deal was, and wondered why people called them addicting. My first impression was, wow, that seems like a waste of time.

Well, I also used to think that blogging was a waste of time, but I've found value in it. Regardless of who actually ends up reading it, if anyone. I've also found value in creating treasuries. Searching through the shops of other artisans and compiling treasuries like the one above actually reminds me to be grateful and appreciate every day that I have. I named the one above "It's all around us."

Winter Grilling Tips

2009-01-11T12:55:00.014-06:00

So you're lucky enough to live in a place where you can enjoy the change of seasons and not be bogged down by pleasant, sunny weather every day? Me too.

Next week our highs are going to be in the single digits, and I think we're on our way to breaking the snowfall record that we broke last season. Because no one wants to have to wait until April for charred chicken wings, I will pass along my most useful winter grilling tip: Have someone else do it.

Other than that, I've got nothin'. Well, except for this awesome recipe for Blue Cheese Dressing to go with your spicy chicken wings. And do yourself a favor and get Maytag cheese. You'll thank me later.

Winter Grillin' Blue Cheese Dressing

1 cup crumbled MAYTAG blue cheese (4 ounces)

1 cup mayonnaise (NOT miracle whip)

2/3 cup evaporated milk (5 ounces)

1 TBS red wine vinegar

1 TBS lemon juice

1/4 tsp garlic salt

1/4 tsp celery seeds

Mix it all together and see how those hot wings are coming. This will keep for up to a week in the frig, but I don't think you'll have any left.

Oh, and did I mention that my husband is awesome?

It's not a coffee maker...

2009-01-06T22:37:00.009-06:00

...it's a "brewing system."

So my husband was the recipient of a Keurig Mini Brewing System this Christmas, and we are now eagerly awaiting our shipment of K-Cups (since the 10 that were included were gone in 3 days).

Initially I was rolling my eyes about this whole thing -- we don't drink a whole lot of coffee, I don't like clutter, I'm not really a gadget person, blah, blah, blah. Well then he shows me how to use it. Ya know, just in case I get tired of rolling my eyes and want a cup of coffee.

And now I have to admit that, yes, it is a neat little toy. I will spare you the actual details of the brewing, but if you're interested, you can find them here. It's all very exciting.

When we went to their Web site to order more K-Cups, they were sold out of their variety packs, but it did give me the opportunity to see that it's not just a coffee maker, it's an empire. Good lord. You can get a Keurig Milk Frother, a K-Cup carousel, a travel bag so you can take your "brewing system" anywhere, etc., etc.! Oh, and don't forget to join the Coffee Club.

Lars

2009-01-03T14:17:00.012-06:00

Lars needs his greens. If it's green, he'll try it. Mmmmm.....christmas tree needles....ouch...mmmm....ouch.

My husband had brought me home a single rose one time (that makes it sounds like it was the only time he ever has, but he brings me flowers too often - I tell him to quit it), and I had it in a vase on the kitchen counter. I wasn't home at the time, and for some reason, he thought he would put the vase on the dining room table. He then left for an auction, and was about a block away when he realized that the flower on the table was probably not the brightest idea. He turned around and drove back to the house. Walks into the dining room (elapsed time since vase had been put on the table = 90 seconds), and sees the vase tipped over with water streaming out, and rose leaves nibbled on. Lars was hiding in his room, a little freaked out that his sampling had resulted in a loud noise and water exposure.

What is it with this cat?! Did he see my husband put it on the table? Can he smell green? Am I depriving him of some vital nutrient?

So today he was able to peacefully graze on some oat grass, grown especially for him. He seemed very happy - "I have oat grass, and all is right with the world. "

Sweetness

2009-01-01T15:08:00.013-06:00

I bought these from an awesome Etsy shop the other day and she is mailing them directly to my little niece for me with a card and everything!

I have a confession to make. Sometimes I ask a lot of questions. There's nothing wrong with that, right? But sometimes people seem to get a little irritated that I want to know more about their product. Not Amy! She was so sweet answering all of my questions and then some. I loved their shop and quality craftsmanship, but ultimately I decided to purchase from littlealouette because of their great customer service.

More than once, I've checked out at the grocery store or some other place and the cashier didn't give me so much as a glance, let alone a "hi" or "thanks." The last time was at Staples. She was busy talking to another cashier and didn't even notice I was waiting. She checked me out, the whole time her back was toward me as she continued her conversation. I paid with the little credit card swipe thingee, and grabbed my bag while I waited for the receipt. She tore it off and without turning around, just set it on the counter, without missing a beat in her conversation. I took the receipt and said "thank you." At this, she turned around and gave me a look like I had two heads!

Anyway, good customer service goes a long way, as does just being nice in general. As for my ornery self, I'm going to try to put a whole lot more good karma out into the Universe this year.

The Birds

2008-12-30T20:24:00.011-06:00

So driving home today, cresting a hill on Highway 14, I caught a glimpse of what appeared to be a bunch of birds flying overhead. As I got closer, I realized they were geese, and there were a lot of them. No, I mean A LOT of them.

What had initially appeared to be one large mass was actually many small groups (you know, the "V" they fly in) flying together. As I got closer still, I realized just how many of these groups there were. Not 10 or 20 or 30 or even 50. I lost count, and at 70 miles per hour I thought I had better return my attention to the road. There were literally hundreds of Vs (is there a scientific name for that?) amassed into one large flying brigade.

When I used to take our dog to a park frequented by a lot of geese, it was hard to keep her away from the goose poop. I mean, who DOESn't love goose poop, right? So I imagined her looking up at this spectacular event and salivating. May she rest in peace.

I gave away the last of the rescue dog supplies today - a big huge box of milkbones. After Buckley's long adventure with us, my husband was a little frayed. We had brief custody of Dixie, and then decided that it would be best if we discontinued our fostering. I would love to keep doing it, but my husband....not so much.

The woman who gave Buckley his new home was just the absolute perfect match for him. I have no doubt that he would not have been adopted from the shelter he had been in, because of his, um, "energy" so I'm glad we were fortunate enough to give him a new life.