Why Do I Have to Work When I Only Want to Create

J O B. sigh.

I am currently trying to come up with this grand idea of how I can make enough money to pay all my bills while designing jewelry insteading of having to go to my J O B. I just such enjoyment from being in my studio, and just being left alone so I can get my creative juices flowing. It seems so far and few between that I can actually do it. Lucky me, I will get to teach a class at the upcoming Paper Cowgirl Retreat in June. This will give me something to look forward to. I am even getting out of the house this weekend and going on a "quest". Antique stores, here I come. Planning on heading out to Canton the following weekend.

I am currently designing a pocket watch collage to be donated to "The Ark" a shelter for physically and sexually battered individuals. They are having their big fund raiser coming up, and like last year I will be donating some pieces of work.

I just read about a lady and her family of four trying to live the rest of the year out on $1500 for their groceries, personal items, and their medical co-pays. She has two toddlers, and for a year their milk alone is $611.00. I have actually subscribed, or RSS'd to her blog. I figure if she has time at home to find all the bargains, coupons, and deals...I'd be dumb NOT to read her page from time to time. You can find her at: http://www.livingon1500foroneyear.blogspot.com/

There is more to this story as to how they are doing it, but I will let you read up on that.

Changes changes changes

Ok...my life is constantly in a whirlwind lately. The short of it all, after seven long years of being a college admissions advisor I took a job with an oil company. HUGE change I know. When you have accomplished all that you planned to do in a career then it is time to move on. I am the type to shoot for the stars.

I will be in Dallas this weekend at the Susan G. Komen Walk for a Cure. We have a team of about 13 people all walking to support the fight against breast cancer, and all walking in memory of my sweet little sister, Cynthia. (Picture below with my mom

Paper Cowgirl update........girls I am buying glitter, and ribbons, and STUFF. I am working on "THE BOX". I was in awe of all the rolling boxes filled to the brim with "treasures".

One more thing I will be at the Texas Country Reporter Festival on Oct. 25 at Waxahachie (feels like I have been there before). I have been working like a warhorse designing beautiful pieces. Some I find to be very unique an different, but I am not one to be complacent.

(This beautiful piece is made from a rose colored watch. I happened to have a 12kt gf gorgeous metal rose and designed this fun chain. It is going to my mother in law)Have you ever made a piece and are torn as whether to keep it or sell it. This is one of those few pieces. I just LOVE this one. An old glass brooch from the 30s-40s, hooked to a handle of an old spoon, an a small glass blue button (from my grandmother) place on the bottom.

This fun, unique, one of a kind piece is my big smile right now. I recycled an old locket and had a very old Kodak camera for the early 1900s. I dismantled the optics piece to this camera and added it to the locket. You can actually look down into the optics and see the images through it. More pictures are on my flickr with details.

http://www.flickr.com/charlattecreations

NEW FLICKR GROUPS

ONE more thing. I started to new flickr groups: Creating Pink for Awareness. It is for anything that you make that is promoting awareness of breast cancer. There is about 60 members in it now. http://www.flickr.com/groups/creatingpink/

The other group was created because of the Paper Cowgirl retreat. I have seen the groups for etsyDFW, and the Dallas Mafia, but there was no group for Texans as a whole. I love networking with other locals (yes that means Texas). I designed Artistic Texans as a place for Texans to show off their work, post marketing ideas, post up coming shows, weekend classes, art shows...etc. You get the idea. I would love for you to join. I would love for you to pass this information on to other Texans too. See you there. http://www.flickr.com/groups/artistic_texans/

My Jewelry Booth

I have been working for months on my jewelry for this one month. I have been scouring garage sales, auctions, antique stores, flea markets, and retail stores for the past year all leading up to this month (I'll try to make it sound like it was a REAL chore ....... NOT!).

Everything up until now has been for the Texas Country Reporter Festival in Waxahachie the last weekend in October. I felt like I needed a test run with my booth (since I have never set it up), and a test run with my jewelry displays. I have dug through all the flickr photo galleries for craft booths ideas, and finally settled on what my heart loves best, romance. I figured with all the of the shabby chic decor in my studio that I could also incorporate that into my jewelry booth and therefore save some money. I must say I have very economically found enough displays, lace curtains, table drapes, etc. just by always keeping my creative eyes open at all times.

Some of the ideas I have had for displays: candlelabras to hang necklaces, old ornate lamps for necklace displays, a womans bust (found on 90% clearance in the garden center) for a single necklace display, old siver plates and bowls filled with either rice or black pebbles for ring display, an old window frame that still has it hinges and add tea cup hooks for necklace displays, just whatever I can grasp my little mind around. Ok, well that is my ten cents worth.

I am converted

This past weekend I was able to attend a Paper Cowgirl Workshop. Now, if you have seen my work you know that I am a jewelry/metals person. Paper has never really grabbed me.

I took two of the workshops. FUN FUN FUN! My sweet and precious (cough* hack*) cousin, Kristi was forced to volunteer to be my "paper partner". We had a blast. I am a true convert. I love paper. This workshop reminded me of vacation Bible school when I was a kid. Glue. Scissors. Stamps. More glue. and lots of laughing (we even got cupcakes). The worst part of all, is getting your palate wet, and then being put in the most wonderful scrapbook store I had ever seen, and knowing you couldn't buy everything you wanted. It's like a kid in a candy store. I even came away with a bumper stick for my (soon to be bought and new car-hence the wreck last week) "I know Jan Thomason". I feel so special now.

Update

My television piece aired on Texas Country Reporter this past weekend. Some people were able to see it, some (such as myself) had their DVR set up to record TCR and got an older version of one of their other shows. I am not sure if the DVR "knows" that I wasn't home since I was taping it, and therefore will have to buy one of my shows.lol. Just seems to me, that anyone that wasn't home, and DVR'd that show, got an older show taped. sigh. Anyways, the piece was fantastic. The camera shots were fantastic. I have a huge gear clock that all the gears move. I kept trying to move the gear clock, I felt it was in the camera man's way. After seeing the finished piece (at my cousin's house) I understand why he wouldn't let me move it. It will be on www.youtube.com later. They have alot of their older shows on it. The show highlighted my pocket watch collages, and how I make them. It was very flattering for me.

Reminder

I will be in the September 1, 2008 issue of Belle Armoire. Let me know what you think.

Summer is Slow

Wow.....as busy as I am, summer is slow for me. I am so busy doing everything else, I seem to have little time for my jewelry right now, which only puts me under more pressure knowing I need to be focused on that. I will eventually get it all balanced out again.

I have almost everything ready for the Texas Country Reporter Fair to be held October 25 in Waxahachie. I am going with a shabby chic theme/roses/antique/silver (slash slash slash) lol. I hope it will look great. I see the picture in my head (scary thought), but I am confident it will all be fine. I have a great team of friends and family that have volunteered to assist me that day. Now I have also heard that some of my volunteers are planning on shopping too, not sure how that is gonna work out, but I have some duct tape and rope packed if the situtation calls for it.

I have this massive check list for the fair, once I find that massive check list I will be able to add more items to take, and keep all things in order. I am beginning to think I need to put the check list on my computer that way I will know where it is at (wink).

I am kicking around some other art fairs. If you know of any, please shoot me an email.