HERE'S MY HEARTS

Last Saturday a woman from Beads of Courage visited our Arizona Polymer Clay Guild meeting.  The Beads of Courage program is our charity that we support. Beads of Courage Needs You click here to find out more about the program.  Every child who goes through a procedure like chemo, or giving blood or surgery gets a necklace and they get a bead for every procedure.  Most large city hospitals have this program so you should check with your local hospitals to see if they need donations.  If not, contact the Beads of Courage on the web site.

The picture on the top is of polymer clay heart pendants that I made to donate.  They aren't exactly beads but the heart pendants are going to be given to some of the mother's and to the nurses who are involved in the program.

 The second picture of heart pendants were also made with polymer clay but then I covered them with Pebeo paint and Magic Glos.

This was another heart that I made and gave to my friend for her birthday.

I have been looking all over for the new Premo clay.  The only place I found them was at Sunny Day Crafts http://www.sunnydaycrafts.com/ and I get most of my clay from them because of the price, and I usually get my shipments in 2 to 3 days so I know it hasn't been sitting on a hot truck in Arizona for 4 days before I get it.  Their shipping prices are reasonable and they really package it well.  Unfortunately, they are out of the new clay colors right now but keep checking with them or ask them to send you an email when they come in.

The outer edge of the pendant on the left is made entirely of Premo White Glitter Clay.  This was an experiment that I did.  When you add glitter to clay and try to cut it, the blade usually drags and you are taking a chance of scratching your pasta machine depending on what type of glitter you use.  This clay does not drag, it works easy in the hands and the results to me were great.  The other thing I did by accident was mix some with another Premo color and I was left with beautiful purple glitter clay so I can make my own colors and add this clay to it.  In the top picture there is a black swirl heart.  That has a little of the new Premo Opal, white glitter and yellow glitter in it.  The opal clay does have pieces in it so you need to be careful how you cut it and use it.

I love this clay.  I sanded and buffed both of these pendants and the colors didn't change in the glitter clay.  The pendant on the right has Premo Yellow Glitter Clay in it.  I also bought Premo Rose Glitter which is so pretty in the package I can't wait to use it.  It looks to me like the base of the clay is translucent with a special glitter that is dense and sands and buffs really well.

If you find out some where else where the new Premo clay is being sold let me know.

BEADS OF COURAGE

Our clay guild here in Arizona donates beads and pendants to the "Beads of Courage".  It's an organization that helps children and their families going through serious illnesses.  Every time a child has a procedure (chemo, x-rays, MRI, blood transfusions, etc.) they get to pick a bead.  They are originally given a necklace to put their beads on.  The families also get to choose items for their necklaces.  You can read the whole story here.  http://www.beadsofcourage.org/

  If you would like to donate finished beads you can send them to our clay guild.  Contact me and I will give you the name and address of the person to send them to.  They need to be bright and colorful and well done.  They need to have a 2mm hole in order to get on the necklace.  Or, you can contact the people at Beads of Courage and send them directly to them. 

Just wanted to show you what I was so busy doing last week.  Here are the ones I made.

 

 

I like the cat with two different color eyes.  I put Swarovski crystals in the eyes of all the animals.

 

 

 

These were done by my friend Evelyn.

 

 

A whole bunch of ice cream cones.

 

We heard that a young boy at the Phoenix Children's Hospital had a 7 foot necklace.  I just can't imagine a child going through all that.

 

 

My last thought this morning is "Let's pray for the people in Oklahoma" and I've very thankful that our good friend Penni Jo Couch and her family are safe.

 

BIRD HOUSES, BOOKMARKS AND BEADS OF COURAGE

Tomorrow is our monthly clay guild meeting and we are doing a book mark swap.  Somepeople are doing those big paper clips but I decided to "dance to my own tune".  I bought some metal bookmarks and made birdhouses to put on them.

There are only 8 of us in the swap this time so I decided to make my own little bags to put the bookmarks in.   I bought some beautiful paper in the scrap booking section at Wal-Mart for $5.00 for 50 sheets.  It worked great.  I had some but it was too heavy.

This paper worked great and I made labels with my name on them and a picture of Booboo sitting in a box.  These are easy to make and look better than a plastic bag.

BEADS OF COURAGE

Every month we have a different theme for our Beads of Courage collections.  This month it's "Everything Girls".  I didn't have a lot of time because I was working on the bookmarks and the things for the goody bags for our Prescott retreat and Jane's earrings.  I did get a couple  beads done.

The roses and the butterflies are made with Penni Jo Couch's molds, which I love.  Next month is anything boys and sports.  That should be interesting.  Got any ideas, let me know.


Hey Booboo, today at Wal-Mart a lady tried to give me a coupon for free cat food.  I told her you were probably eating fresh caught fish and bonbons now.  She gave me a funny look.  I couldn't tell her you liked TV dinners, she would have thought I was nuts.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

As I mentioned in a post a few weeks ago, Cindy Lietz at  http://www.beadsandbeading.com/blog/  did a tutorial on making bird house beads.  A week later there was a nest across the street of baby wrens.  Every morning there are two doves that wake me up at 5:30 (who needs a rooster)?  Tuesday on the golf course there was a quail family, mom, dad and four little hair balls with feet all running all over the place.
I live in Arizona and right now every bird in the U.S. is visiting here (except most of the snowbirds have gone home).  The snowbirds from the mid-west I call "snow-blowers".  Not all of them think that's funny but it's ok for them to call me a Cheesehead since I originally came from Wisconsin.  Is that fair????  NOT

Anyway, back to my bird house story ( I tend to wander or is it wonder).  I had some little pieces of left over clay and a new leaf cane and made a couple of bird houses.  Next thing I know I'm making more bird houses.  Some ladies at beading saw them and wanted them so I have to make more.  This is really off the beaten path for me.  It's more like sculpting.  I'm more of a "Roll A Bead" girl.  The more I do, the more I want to do.  Sort of sounds like my shopping problem with beads and clay.  Anyway, here they are.

Those spotted feathers came from a little bird that was sitting in my window yelling at me.  Pulled them right out of his back side.  Just kidding, I bought those.

Click on picture to see them up close.  Some have Swarovski flat back crystals in the door hole.

I think these would be great for the kids at Beads of Courage.  I'll make a bunch and donate them.

TWEET TWEET

Miss you my beloved Booboo

NEW BAG - BEADS OF COURAGE - CUTE DOGS

About 30 years ago I bought my first Coach bag.  It was the brown leather with the long strap and it weighed about 20 pounds with nothing in it.  I carried it all the time.  Finally one day my shoulder started hurting and the doctor told me I might as well carry a bowling ball on my shoulder.  He couldn't believe how heavy that purse was.  I put it in the closet and looked at it for 5 years and finally gave it away.

Well, my friend Judy's husband travels a lot and is gone for 5 or 6 weeks at a time.  Every time he goes away he sends her a Coach bag.  It's just something he does which I think is awesome.  My husband buys me Good and Plenty for special occasions.  Anyway, I was teasing Gary that I thought he should get me a Coach bag since I "BABYSIT" for Judy while he's gone.  Easiest babysitting job I've ever had.  Yesterday Judy came over to pick me up and gave me a bag from Gary.  I was speechless (that doesn't happen often).

This is my new Coach bag.  I usually go to Ross and buy a knockoff so this is going to be my "GOING OUT SPECIAL BAG".  Thank you Gary.

BEADS OF COURAGE

 As you know our clay guild is working with The Beads of Courage people down in Tucson.  We collect beads every month and send them to Tucson to be used for the kids and their families.  These are kids going through major illinesses.   They get a chain or necklace and every time they go through a procedure such as chemo, radiation, giving blood, surgery or what ever, they get to choose a bead to put on their necklace.  There are many glass bead makers and polymer clay artists who have been donating to this cause.  In January I did 50 beads which were bears and dogs and animals.  This month I am working on more animals and some special hearts.    I just finished these.

If you are interested in donating, please contact me and I will let you know where to send them.  They like large, bright items and must have at least a 3mm hole.

BIRTHDAY FRAME

A friend asked me to make a frame for her friend for her birthday.  She has three really cute dogs so I made the frame and put all the dog's names on it.  She just sent me a picture with the dogs in the frame.  They are so cute.

SUNSET IN ARIZONA

Last night we had a gorgeous sunset.  It's been in the 80's here this week which is great golf weather.  I went out and took a picture of the sunset and the colors make me want to do clay.  But, everything makes me want to do clay.  I'm obsessed.

HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY



AHHH-CHOO BUTTONS AND BEADS

I made myself a promise that I would have 100 animal beads done for The Beads of Courage program.  I wanted to turn them in this Saturday to our rep at our clay guild meeting so she could send them in.  Well, Sunday night I got a nasty cold truck hit me and have been on the couch for 3 days.  It's been couch, cat, hot tea and Law and Order for 3 days.  I do have 50 animals done so I'm half way there.

Before that nasty cold truck hit me I was experimenting with some little buttons.  Thanks to Marie Segal, she told me I could bake the buttons as long as they were Jesse James.  Once again she was right.  Here's a little cat with a mouse on him and a little dog with a bone on him.  They baked just fine.  Thanks Marie.

I took them on a trip to the Grand Canyon :0).

MAKING MOLDS

A couple of my molds (old ones) cracked (not my new ones from Penni Jo Couch, her's are great).   I decided to try some new mold making material from Terry Morris at http://epoxyjewelry.com/2-part-supplies.html.  It's called Simple Silicone and comes in 2 parts.  On his website, he has a video tutorial on how to use the product.  I've made 3 molds with it so far and it works great.  You can find his ad on Polymer Clay Daily, click on the box and it will take you right there.  They can be used for polymer clay, resin, chocolate, candy, wax, soap, etc.

BEADS

This is a bracelet that I finished Sunday before I got the bug.  It's going to a friend of a friend who has breast cancer.

Hope this brightens her life a little.



BEARS AND DOGS AND HEARTS AND A PRAYER

As I told you in my last blog, I'm making little animal beads for Beads of Courage.  I wanted to have 100 done by April 14th so I can send them to our clay guild meeting.  I won't be there this month, I'm going on a bus trip to Palm Springs, CA. to see The Follies and take a tram ride and visit some stars homes.

When I first posted I had 13 bears done.  Now I've got 44 bears, 2 dogs and one heart done.  I love PenniJo Couches flexible molds.  I'm not much of a sculptor so these really help me with the animals.  Here is her website http://www.bestflexiblemolds.com/.

Here's the latest:

I found some cute buttons but they were plastic so I had to glue them on later.  See the bear with the football.  I also gave some of the bears babies, they are soooooooooo tiny and cute.

The little guy on the bottom left has mittens on.  He has big hands :0).


PLEASE SAY A PRAYER

I just read on Marie Segal's blog that her best friend had a double mastectomy yesterday.
http://mariesegal.blogspot.com/

Susan sounds like a wonderful woman.  Let's say some prayers that she makes it through this safely.

Time for a cure for this dreadful disease.  Pray for that too.

I wonder if the Beads of Courage people would be willing to start the same program for women who have breast cancer.  You know we love bling and beads.  Time to get that show on the road.

LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW, LET IT SNOW

An amazing thing happened here in Sun City West, Arizona today.  It SNOWED.  It lasted about 30 seconds but it snowed.  I've been here 8 years and I've seen hail but not snow.  I'm from Wisconsin so this was kind of fun.  It's colder here than it is in the midwest right now.  This is the cloud that dropped those 2000 pieces :0) of snow on us.

I love it especially after the 4 months of over 110 degrees this summer.  We were going to run out and buy a shovel but changed our minds.  I just played golf 2 days ago.  This is strange.

BEADS OF COURAGE BEARS

I decided that I'm not going to make any resolutions this year.  Every year it's the same old thing, lose weight, spend more time working out, eat less sugar and blah, blah, blah.

This year our Arizona Polymer Clay Guild is going to get more active with the organization called "Beads of Courage".  Please go to the website to read the entire story http://www.beadsofcourage.org/.  Children suffering with cancer and other serious diseases tell their story through their milestones with beads.  Every time they get an injection, have chemo, have a test, come back to the hospital, what ever the task is, they get a bead to make a necklace or chain of beads.  The last one we were shown was over 6 feet long.  I just can't imagine a child having to go through that.

Our guild has been donating polymer clay beads to this organization for many years.  This year we decided to make an even bigger effort to find out what they need and this is where my resolution or lack there of comes in.   We were told the kids love brightly colored beads, animal beads, girl beads, boy beads but pretty good size beads.  The beads have to have at least a 2 or 3 mm hole to fit on the cord or necklaces that they have.  Two years ago I donated 50 purple hearts.  I was told that when a child is done with their program, they were given a purple heart.  I don't know if that's still true but makes sense.  Anyway, I decided I was going to make 100 bears by the middle of January.  I started yesterday and I have 17 done.  I have a beautiful bear mold that I'm using and I'm putting Swarovski crystal flat backs in the eyes and I'm using powders and glitter to spruce them up.  I have 5 boxes of clay leftovers and wasn't sure what I was going to use them for, now I know.

These little guys are being coated to protect their glitter and powder.  The first orange bear got his nose crushed in and I didn't notice till after I baked him.  I'll just tell them he had Botox that went bad.  I've had a couple glitter explosions (and it's only the first day).  I ordered some new bear molds and some baseball bats, hat and ball molds for the boys.

Will let you know when I get the 100th one done.

Hope you have a Happy New Year and a Healthy 2011.