Enough snow already!

Kansas has been right in the middle of back to back blizzards over the last week, but Wichita took the light side of the hit yesterday as the heavy snowfall went a bit south of our location.  It was a beautiful snow though and it won't stick around long enough to get cabin fever.  I've spent my time working on the web site so actually enjoyed the down time.

This is a view out Faron's front door.

After this short break I'll be heading into some packed weeks of teaching new projects.  Here are a few of the ones scheduled.  

Cacti Country

The desert shares it's beauty with us.

Mark spent several afternoons at the Tucson Trap & Skeet club.  He even ran into old friends that had lived in Wichita.

More soldering with Kate Richbourg in her ring class.

I have 2 more classes tomorrow and then we are heading out for home.  

Lots of samples packed in my bags and lots of info packed in my book.  

13 down 3 to go

Classes that is.  We have hit about 20 of the shows and I think I'm at saturation this time around.  

See some of the treasures we have purchased to bring back to the store.  

JOGS Tucson Bead Show

Green Opals, Druzies, Moonstone and more.

Amethyst Slab

Fire Agate

Real plated leaves.

Can you guess what these are?

I just love fossils and this is one big daddy!

As I was waiting to pay for my last selections of the day, my eye was caught by a sign "vintage".  The jeweler had recently relocated from 5th Avenue, NY City to New Jersey.  His family has had the business there for over 80 years.  As they were cleaning out the basement for the move, they uncovered many a treasure from the past.  This is a strung group of glass mirrored buttons.  It was one of the first shipments that came out of Germany after the war.  I'm not sure how these will be used, but I can just imagine the bustling clerks and customers that were moving about the store in the late 40's.  I'm so glad this selection was left untouched just waiting all these years for me to come rescue them.  

Teachers at work.  

My work in process.  I'll have to finish at home with my polishers, patinas etc.  

Traveling about Tucson

                                                                                                                                                                 

Classes continue.  I started this early class but had to leave before finishing as I overlapped booking a couple of the classes.  OOPS!

Twinning Basket

 Mark made this spinner ring with Patti Bullard...

Spinner Ring

 and continued making Slinky Links bracelet.

Slinky Links

I took several classes from Lorri Scott dying and silk felting. 

I made fast friends with Lorri and my classmates. 

Classes continue

We were woken this morning with a frantic phone call from our friend Cat that was watching after our pets.  An inattentive driver ran a light and T-boned our car she was driving at full force.  We are so lucky that the impact of the hit was at the post between the front and back doors.  The car is totaled, but the girls escaped with whiplash.  Unfortunately their dog was in the back seat.  All the windows broke out of the car and Missy the dog leaped out the back window.  This was Monday morning at the corner of Woodlawn and Douglas.  If anyone is reading this posting and lives in east Wichita, keep your eyes out for a 55 pound black and white dog.

All our friends and family are helping out taking care of things back home.  We couldn't do anything else to help, so off to class we went.  I started out doing a wire wrapped bezel with Rhonda Chase.

Work in progress.

After lunch I continued my classes with Jeff Fulkerson making wire twisted bangles.   He gave us so many more ideas to try at home.  I can hardly wait to get home and try some of the designs.

The evening brought us to the Old Pueblo Grill. 

Mark keeps trying to snatch a fresh orange.

Are we in Madagascar or Morocco?

Sunday found us perusing the tents of the bead show.  We visited mostly the African markets.  It is like walking through the rabbit hole into another land.  The language, dress, foods, crafts and of course beads from that region on display under the tents made you imagine you were walking the streets through one of their villages.  We purchased trade beads, some African porcupine quills and lots of ammonites.

We had such a nice treat as we were finishing up our shopping at the To Bead True Blue show. 

 There in front of us were our buddies Paula and Teresa at the Paula Best booth.  We had dinner 

together and had so much catching up to get in.  The night ended all too soon with us promising 

each other that we wouldn't let this much time go between visits.  

room 213

Headquarters for our stay is room 213.  Of course I came in and rearranged the furniture before Mark could even come up after parking the car.  I have to get it all set up for my stuff and projects.  Oh yes and for sleeping too I suppose.  Our fist official day I attended 2 classes with Eva Sherman.  She is the featured artist on the cover of the now releasing Art Jewelry magazine.  What a delight she is and everyone in the class was great to meet.

http://evashermandesigns.blogspot.com

projects from my first 2 classes.  Will add some more wire and leather to the cuffs I think.

Hatch, New Mexico - home of the giant weird stuff

On our way to Tucson to attend the bead - gem - mineral show.  Our poor little car is packed to the overflow as we load for a long relaxing stay (for us at least) and all our tools to take classes.  Since we got a late start out, no surprise we stop at 2AM in Amarillo Texas.

Day 2 we enjoy our drive marveling at the beauty of the mountains.  Maybe it's because I live my life in the flat lands, but they just always amaze me.  Do we ever really stop an enjoy the blueness of the clear sky?

As the day passes and finds us getting close to our destination we approach Hatch, New Mexico - home of the Hatch chile.  We actually found it to be home of the weird big advertising people and
animals.  This small town only a few miles long with a population of 1600 has their main road filled with these figures.  It reminds me of a Christmas town where each neighbor tries to out do each other by adding more lights and decor.  There isn't even a particular reason some of these pieces are at the street.  They aren't advertising anything for the most part, they are just there.  I guess they have to be somewhere so it might as well be Hatch, NM.