Holiday "Snow"

What a very busy day this was. 

First of all,  I spent the morning loading up the jewelry cases at the MT SYLVAN COFFEE HOUSE & MERCANTILE.  They are now fully stocked and ready for holiday shoppers!  While there I just had to take a few photos to share of a really ingenious and quick way to create a winter wonderland.

In need of some quick decorations for a special event a few evenings ago, proprietor, Denise Warren, piled shredded documents on cabinets and displays to create a wintery environment.  It is amazing how much the piles of white paper strips resemble piles of snow.  What fun!

I love simple ideas that work!

Thawing Out

I've been a little too serious lately...too focused for wreckless abandonment, too grown up for awe and wonder.

It snowed here two days ago.  I love the way most Texans react to freezing white stuff. It is such a rarity for us. A few flakes on the ground and we're trying to build snowmen (sometimes tiny ones) and pulling out whatever we can find to use as sleds.  Our family has been known to use trashcan lids and small plastic swimming pools. The children of a good friend use their boogie boards. Everyone runs to the store to "stock up" and then we run home to "hunker down". Then the snow melts, usually within a day or so, and the temperatures climb back up as quickly as they fell.

Normally I would have been the first one to throw a snowball at some unsuspecting family member.  Instead, I sat in my chair by the window and watched.  I enjoyed it but something was off.  I wasn't sad or grumpy, I just wasn't engaged.  I didn't even take any pictures, which is unthinkable for me. 

I owe a big "thank you" to my children.  Yesterday they got me out for a walk in the woods which, of course, ended in a snowball fight.  It felt good to be silly...to run and laugh and scream.  I'm so glad I got out and played in that beautiful landscape before it melted away.  In the aftermath of our childlike romp, I realized how much the concerns of this world have been weighing me down.  I know I am missing out on some amazing blessings because I am tired and distracted.

I'm not quite sure what to do about all of this.  I can't just ditch my responsibilties and play all the time, but surely I can find a better balance.  I've had it before.  I want to find it again.

This morning I went for a walk and took pictures of the snow that remains.  Much of the snow has melted, but it turns out that snow is just as beautiful when it's melting as it is when it's falling.  Our drippy, melty woods is quite lovely in its own way.  Even now I can hear the steady dripping of melted ice falling from the trees hanging over our tin roof, a reminder of how quickly things change...an encouragement to embrace this day before it melts away.

Bird Invasion

We have been inundated with feathered friends this past week and I am much inspired to create some jewelry in their honor.
I began by collecting little bird figures from around the house.  They are a great visual reference for different ways to stylize wings, tails, etc.  Today I lined them up on the windowsill to watch the snow come down.  (Yes, we are getting more snow!...very unusual for our area.)

I have also been doodling little bird and flower motifs lately, so I pulled those out, as well.

The bottom right picture above became this delicate little pendant.  I love that the leaf swings freely...that really makes me happy.

I haven't hammered and soldered the earwires for these tiny little sterling birds beads yet, but I love the length.  The birds dangle so sweetly from their elongated perch.  These I will keep for myself, however, because I've discovered I need to make an adjustment.  In order to keep the birds facing forward, I need to make a fixed loop on top instead of using headpins through a hole.  I will like the look of the fixed loop better, anyway.

I've already started another pair and love that the birds I'm making today have a different personality from the first. Even birds need their own identity!

Narnia in Our Backyard

My mind is still reeling from all the things I learned and experienced at my silversmithing class last week.  I love the feeling of all that newness and possibility.  Maybe our snow day last Friday was symbolic of all that "newness" I was experiencing...new friends, new skills, new inspiration.

I have yet to photograph the jewelry I made, but I will say I have definitely found a new love!

Until I get some jewelry pics posted, here are a few snow photos for you to enjoy:

Our day started early, since we knew the temperatures were expected to rise quickly.,  My kids began making snowmen at 7:00 in the morning!

Dakota Joe was beside himself with excitement over all that white stuff.  (We all were, Texans that we are!)  Our overgrown puppy must have eaten his weight in snow.

I loved seeing the woods transformed overnight.  Just for a day we had Narnia in out very own backyard.

All Over Again

Some days are just so amazingly wonderful that you just wish you could wake up and do it all over again. I knew it would be just such a day when we woke up to a dusting of snow.  Now I realize that to many of you, a "dusting" of snow is not noteworthy, but for us it is a real treat.  If you look very closely at the photo below, you will see what a small amount of white stuff it takes to get our attention. 

To make the day even better, I was headed to day 2 of a 4-day silversmith workshop held at Beulah Land, a local B&B.  (http://www.beulahlandranch.com/ ) This is my first experience in silver jewelry formation and I am loving it! 

Our instructor, Mr. Dan Haga (http://danhaga.hagaweb.com/ ) is a gifted artist and teacher and our hosts, John and Sue Carlson are nothing short of wonderful.  As we worked on our projects today, I had a hard time not gazing at the snow that continued to fall, but I did manage to finish a pair of earrings and a bracelet.  I'll post pictures in the next few days!

Finally, as if this day wasn't great enough already, the snow began to accunmulate as temperatures dropped this evening so I ended the day with a snowy walk in our woods with my son.  What could be better?

I am a happy girl tonight and do you want to know the best part?  It's still snowing and I have two more days of silversmith classes left, soooo, tomorrow I get to do this wonderful day all over again!  Now...if only I could sleep...