Life with Nologic

Mini Bead Retreat

2011-08-02T20:49:00.000-04:00

This past weekend I was lucky enough to be with some wonderful friends who share my love of beads and beading. We had a mini retreat at Carolyn's house. Wendy was there as was Carolyn's daughter, Sherry. Genny was on a whirlwind tour of the Carolina's that included a stop at her daughter's. Since she was so close, we grabbed her for a couple of days to teach us some new wire tricks. We talked, giggled and admired each other's newest creations.

Genny taught us how to make a Tree of Life Pendant. They are going to be like potato chips, can't make just one.

Wendy's Tree of Life

Sue's Tree of Life

Sherry's Tree of Life

Carolyn's Tree of Life

Genny made a pendant as she taught us, but I didn't get a picture of it. Genny also taught a chain maille bracelet called Olivia. It is based upon the Byzantine weave. Below is the example Genny brought to show us and Wendy's bracelet. I didn't get pictures of Carolyn's or her daughter's.

Genny's

Wendy's

While they worked on chain maille, I made earrings by the pattern Antique created by Nadine Dedefleh.

It was a fun weekend that ended too soon.

Beading through the Summer

2011-07-04T07:20:00.000-04:00

I have finished a few pieces this spring and early summer. I think the hardest part of beading is taking and editing the pictures.

This glass pendant was made and wire wrapped by Annette. The only thing I added was the spiral necklace.

I love the colors and design of the pendant.

I choose silver seeds and black fire polished crystals to make Jaycee's Camelot bracelet. There are some other color combinations that I want to try in this pattern.

It is a fun, slinky bracelet to wear.

This is another bracelet that is slinky on the wrist. It is simply a Peyote stitch.

I first saw this combination of bugles and seeds at a bead retreat.

This is RAW Beauty from June, 2001 Bead and Button magazine. It is a fun, easy bracelet to make. I love thinking of possible color combinations. The crystals along the center add just a bit of bling.

I love the combination of dark aqua and black. It is a great color combination for this bracelet called Pulsera Paris from the blog of Quienlodira Creations.

The pattern called for crystals in the middle diamonds of the bracelet. I liked this one without the diamonds. I think my bugles were a bit bigger than what the pattern suggested.

Mom knows how to fix it

2011-04-20T22:01:00.000-04:00

There is a web cam on an eagle nest in Decorah, Iowa. It has two eaglets. Someone managed to record and post a short video of some drama that occurred one day. Dad was on the nest watching the bobble heads. He bends his head down close to the little ones. Thinking food is coming, one eaglet reaches out and manages to bite dad's face around his eye. The sharp bite startles dad and he shakes his head causing the eaglet to fly out of the center of the nest. The center of the nest is a small, deep bowl perfect for brooding the young eaglets. These eaglets are too young to be able to wander around the nest and they still need the warmth of the parent. Dad is at a loss. He really doesn't know what to do. The eaglet is out of the center of the nest, and he is too to small to climb back into the center. Fortunately mom comes back fixes everything.

Ready for a close up

2011-03-26T16:43:00.000-04:00

Eaglet pile up in the nest at the Norfolk Botanical Garden. The three range in age 13 to 9 days.

New season of Eaglet watching

2011-03-24T08:24:00.000-04:00

It's spring and Bald Eagles across North America are laying eggs and raising eaglets. The nest at the Norfolk Botanical Garden has three eaglets that are keeping mom and dad busy and I am having fun watching them on their live cam. They were hatched March 13 15, 17. All three are thriving and growing each day. Right now mom spends most of her time on the nest with dad bringing in fresh fish and occasionally relieving her. As the eaglets get bigger dad will spend more time on the nest.

The images below are screen captures taken from the live feed from the cam at the Norfolk Botanical Garden nest.

A very amazing dog

2010-10-21T23:16:00.000-04:00

Remember

2010-09-11T09:06:00.000-04:00

Feel Good Friday

2010-07-16T08:00:00.000-04:00

Check out the Best Bead Give-A-Way Ever!

2010-06-27T07:13:00.000-04:00

Denise Yezbak Moore is offering the Best Bead Give-A-Way Ever! on her blog.Now that I have let you know, I have to go back and finish reading her blog's past entries.

Below is a necklace I made with a lamp worked bead that has been in my stash for years. I could never figure out what I could do that would be substantial enough for the heavy glass and still match the heart. Many of my beady friends have been playing around with the netted rope and I realized it was perfect for this heart.

This made me LOL

2010-06-23T15:45:00.002-04:00

Two more bracelets completed

2010-06-21T09:22:00.000-04:00

I've completed two more bracelets from patterns by Jaycee. The first is Called Rainbow Lace.

And this one is Savanna Storm

I really enjoyed making the Rainbow Lace and have another color combination that I would like to use for the pattern. The Savanna Storm makes a nice, heavy cuff type bracelet. I like the end result, but it was tedious to bead because first a base is made, then the top is embellished and a third pass is made with more embellishment for the edges. She has designed a necklace that goes with the bracelet, but I will need more beads to do that to match the one above. I wonder if the pattern will be as pretty using size 8 or 6 seed beads in a hex shape instead of the 3 mm fire polished crystals.

And just for fun, here is a picture of a Clematis seed pod.

The flowers are beautiful, but I really like the seeds.

Beading on a Loom

2010-06-17T11:10:00.000-04:00

I recently bought the Versa Loom. It's a neat little loom that is adjustable in length and designed to avoid having to weave in the warp threads. It works!

This is the first bracelet woven on the loom Herringbone. It was designed by Lisa Criswell and I found it at The Bead Coop.

I like the way the pattern repeated so the actual length of the bracelet was not important to the design. It was a great pattern to try on the loom. Lisa has some other loom patterns that I want to get for the loom.

The second pattern I tried on the loom was Grapes and Cubes designed by Rita Sova, the designer of the loom. It was a fun pattern in that it used 4 mm cubes, 11 triangles and 11 seed beads. I did it in two different color schemes.

This one was blue and purple.

The one above has green color lined cube beads, rose triangles and blue seed beads. The fact that the green cube beads are color lined means they really do not show up. They seem to reflect the blue seed beads making the whole thing look blue and pink.

I like the Versa Loom and want to make more things on it. Using a design that is a certain length will take some planning. The loom is very adjustable, but knowing the exact length needed for the beads used in the pattern will be important. It would be frustrating to get to the end of the bracelet and discover there is another quarter inch left or needed.

Bet this makes you cry

2010-06-12T12:19:00.000-04:00

Part one

Part two:

I wish they all could come home.

Three eaglets have a fish snack

2010-03-15T19:55:00.000-04:00

All three eggs at Norfolk Botanical Gardens have hatched. Mom and dad eagle now have the job of making sure they are fed. In the picture below the three little ones are looking up at mom waiting for her to feed them the fish she has under her left talon. At this size a fish goes a long way. For a video of mom feeding the little ones go here. The littlest one is hiding on the far side of the other 2. At about 2:40 into the video he moves so you can see him.

Eaglet video

2010-03-12T09:43:00.000-05:00

Below is a video someone pulled from the live feed on the morning of March 12, 2010 of the Norfolk Eagle nest cam. At first you see mom on the nest looking very wet. She calls and calls. At about one third in she gets off the nest and you can see the new eaglet pop up. Her little head is so heavy that she kind of bobbles as she looks around. That is where the term 'bobble head' for the newly hatched eagles came about. Since the camera is tightly focused, on the nest you do not see dad arrive, but you do get to see him get into the nest bowl and settle down. If the video is unclear look for the original here.

New Bobble Head

2010-03-11T15:01:00.002-05:00

All day today the mom eagle at Norfolk Botanical Gardens has been restless and looking down at the nest a great deal. At 1:10 PM EST she got off the nest and visible in the front of her was half of an empty egg shell. The eaglet isn't really visible, but you can see some gray fluff just behind the shell.

Since then she has gotten off the nest several times and the young eaglet is visible in the the nest. She is still very attentive to the activity underneath her. There are still two more eggs to hatch, but it may take several days as they are younger.

There is a short video of the event at the VDGIF/Norfolk Botanical Gardens Eagle Blog.

More Eagle Cams

2010-03-07T09:04:00.000-05:00

More of the eagle pairs that have live cams on their nest have eggs. Three of the nests are listed below.

The two eagles at Sooner Lake in northern Oklahoma have built a new nest in a tree and are sitting on 3 eggs. This nest cam supported by the Sutton Center. Of the three eggs last year, one hatched and successfully fledged.

The pair worked on the new nest over the winter while still doing a bit of repair work to the old nest on the platform. No one was sure which nest would be used, so cameras were placed in the new nest tree while leaving the cameras at the old nest. Below is fun a short video someone captured from the live feed. It shows both eagles on the nest. The female s in the center on the eggs. The male has arrived to take his turn, but she will not leave. He leans on her, shoves her with a foot and leans a bit more, but she refuses to leave her eggs. He finally flies to a near by branch.

Both the male and female eagle has a brood patch on their breast, but the female's is larger. She usually spends more time on the nest with the eggs. If you want to chat with others while watching the nest, visit the TV station KJRH website.

The pair near Sidney, British Columbia have been busy restoring their nest over the winter. They have been together for a long time. For the past 2 years they have raised 3 eaglets to fledgling. The female laid her first egg on March 5. Hopefully more are to come. Here is a video someone recorded and edited from the live stream. It shows much of the interaction between the pair. It does not show them brooding the egg, but that's not a problem at this time.

The cams for this nest is supported by the Hancock Wildlife Foundation. For more information and pictures, visit their forum.

There is still one more nest I am watching. No eggs yet, but both eagles are active in their nest at Hornby Island. This nest has been observed for years by Doug Carrick who lives on the island. He first put cameras in the nest in 2004. There is a website with good information and a forum with more information and pictures.

Below is a video of the eagles returning to their nest. They spend part of their year migrating and following the salmon runs. The video shows the pair begin their work on restoring the nest in preparation of this years eaglets.

And don't forget the pair at the Norfolk Botanical Gardens. Their eggs should begin hatching this week.

Bungalows, Hearts and Moons

2010-03-05T10:29:00.000-05:00

I love these bracelets.

Bungalows

Hearts of Many Colors

Many Moons

They are all available at Sharon Solly's Etsy Store The combination of the textured polymer clay on top of the copper is wonderful. I also like the way each bracelet has an unique clasp. She creates beautiful things and is always exploring new techniques, materials, and colors. I am lucky enough to own several of her pieces.

Angel of Hope

2010-03-02T11:09:00.001-05:00

Someone has moved into my craft room. Do you see her?

There she is, on top of the bead shelves.

Angel of Hope came from Woodland Wanderings

She is beautiful. I am hoping she will help me organize the rest of the room to be as functional as the seed bead shelves are. I also wouldn't mind a bit of help with my creative muse. She hasn't been here long, but I find her presence to be calming and reassuring. The wonderful fragrance of lavender probably helps. Woodland Wanderings has an Etsy store, Whimsy Hollow where she sells handmade soaps and balms. It is worth the visit.

Angel of Hope and Woodland Wanderings were part of the One World One Heart project created by Lisa Swifka. This was the fourth year of OWOH. Over 1,000 bloggers from 40 countries signed up. Each blogg on the list agreed to give away at least one item to another blogger who left a comment on their page. On Valentine's Day the winners were randomly selected. Even though the give away is over, the list of bloggs is still available. If you have a few minutes, stop by and visit a few. They are all fun, creative, and enjoyable.

Morning after the snow

2010-02-14T20:06:00.001-05:00

It snowed from Friday afternoon to early Saturday morning. We woke up to over 8 inches of the fluffy white stuff. I know this is just a flake compared to the amount of snow most of the country has had, but this is the South. We don't get snow that often. Below are some pictures for our snow.

First the artsy photos.

Now for the fun. The dogs had the zoomies.

The Eagles Have Landed

2010-02-13T11:24:00.000-05:00

There are several places in USA and Canada that have cameras looking in on eagle nests streaming live to the world wide web. The eagles on the east coast have already laid eggs. The constant winter snow storms have been brutal for the eagles, but the season is early and those that lost eggs in the storm can lay new ones.

One of my favorites nest to watch is at Norfolk Botanical Garden. This pair raised 3 eagles last year.They have 3 eggs and have stayed on the nest through each storm. The first egg was laid January 31, the second was laid February 3 and the third egg was laid February 6. They should hatch around March 9-10.

Below shows dad tending the three eggs.

Mom on the nest.

Dad is staying strong during a snow storm.

There is a cam in West Virgina about 75 miles from Washington DC, on the campus of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' National Conservation Training Center. This nest has had a very hard time because of all the snow. She was laying eggs in last weeks snow storm and lost them due to the weather. The nest became completely covered in snow except for the small space where the female diligently stay on the nest. Now there is less snow. Both eagles have brought new sticks and grass to the nest trying to build it up again. I know she has laid at least one new egg. This camera has sound.

It's hard not to place human emotions on these birds while watching. I have to remind myself that this is their world and I am the visitor. They have been dealing with adversities far longer than I have. The bond between the female and male eagle is wonderful to watch. Right now the mom spends more time on the nest, but dad does take his turns. It is fun to see one rearrange sticks on the nest and then the other puts them back. I hope you enjoy watching the eagles as much as I do. I have a few more nest cams on my list, but will save those for another day as the eagles are not in the nest yet.

It's Snowing

2010-02-12T17:37:00.001-05:00

January Bead Journal Project

2010-02-07T16:38:00.005-05:00

Once again I am participating in the Bead Journal Project. This is the third year for the project and my second year to participate. I managed to get 7 of 12 months finished the first year. I skipped last year, but felt drawn to the project this year. With 287 members, there are three different group blogs. One, Two, and Three. Photos are not suppose to be posted on the main blogs until April, but there are many links to current work.

Below is my completed January page. It is the Woman in the Moon on a 4 by 4 inch square.

I was having a difficult time deciding upon my theme this year when I realized that December 31, 2009 was a Blue Moon. The moon has always fascinated me. As a child growing up on the high plains in the panhandle of Texas I remember staying out at night with my girlfriend watching the moon rise and gazing upon all the stars. The skies there were clear and there was little light pollution, so the Milky Way filled the sky. So the first piece had to show the Milky Way. I know most think of it as the Man in the Moon, but throughout history the moon has has more connections to the female. It seems fitting that it is a Woman in the Moon.

I think it is going to be fun to explore the moon through bead embroidery. I have a list of my favorite songs that feature the moon. I'm not sure where I'll go after that, but I do know I have the moon to inspire me.

A Winter's Day

2010-01-27T10:23:00.009-05:00

Western North Carolina has been in a drought state for several years. The weather patterns changed this fall and ample moisture from the gulf has found its way to the area. Once again the little streams are flowing with beautiful, clear water. This one comes down the mountain and flows into our pond.

While walking around the pond we saw some interesting white dots in the water. It was shallow water. I think they must be some kind of egg, but I don't know what. I know they are not frog or newt. Could they be salamander?

Here is a close up of one.

We found this hornet nest in a small Tree of Heaven. The Tree of Heaven is a noxious weed tree that will take over an area. They were introduced from China to the United States in the late 1800's.

It was easy to cut the small tree down to get a better look at the nest.

I have always wanted to see one of these up close. A very complex creation.

Flowers in winter

2010-01-16T10:11:00.010-05:00

One nice thing about winter in the South is that flowers bloom most of the season. During the last week of December I took my camera out to the garden. I found several camellia bushes blooming.

This pale pink one is a favorite. I love the multiple petals that swirl around. It's very full and kind of messy.

One bush was full of buds just beginning to open.

And this camellia has never had blooms before. When I took the picture it was full of tightly closed buds. I can't wait to see what they look like opened. I think the flowers survived the recent cold weather since the buds were still so small.

My little violas were also blooming. They are such a happy flower that blooms all winter. I was afraid the recent 2 week spell of freezing weather had harmed them. They looked very sad until the warmer temps came back this week.

It was fun to see this rose bush trying to show off. Unfortunately the freezing temps killed the rose bud.

Finished projects from the retreat

2009-12-30T20:56:00.006-05:00

I have finally finished the projects from the retreat that was held the first of November of this year. I think I took almost every class offered as they were all wonderful.

My favorite has to be the Russian Leaf necklace taught by Carol. I have wanted to learn how to make a Russian Leaf for a very long time. They use a version of the Peyote stitch and there are many different versions of the leaf. I love this one. I also liked the necklace the leaves are on.

This is Jan's Garden Bracelet. I used all leaves. It is a fun bracelet to wear. I want to do another with summer flowers.

Genny taught us this Inverted Round Chain maille bracelet. There are 4mm crystals captured inside the bracelet.

Kassie taught us this wavy Herringbone bracelet. I love the Herringbone stitch as it feels so soft and flowing. I really like this pattern. It was such fun to walk around the room and see all the different colors.

The retreat was a great deal of fun as they all are.

It Snowed!

2009-12-22T10:29:00.018-05:00

The recent snow storm that moved up the East coast leaving much of the area covered in white left us with rain. I have had lots of fun looking at snow pictures on the web, but really wanted to see real snow. With that thought in mind, we ventured up to our property in North Carolina to see snow!

This was the first view of the snow as we approached the North Carolina boarder.

And here is one of the roads near our property. They were all fairly clear as plows had been along the road at some point. There was the occasional abandoned car to dodge along the way.

The view of the private drive to our property. Hmmm No tracks on the drive. The neighbors were either hibernating in their homes or had gone to town for the duration.

We did start up the drive. It is a narrow drive that curves and changes elevation often. It had rained during the night. The snow was packed and more ice than snow. Even though the truck had four wheel drive, we were slipping on the steep, curvy portions. We had tire chains that would have helped, but there was no real reason to drive all the way. It was fun to walk on the road and see how everything looked covered in snow. We saw the tracks of the animals like those of the deer below.

The pond was beautiful with snow all around.

This is one of the streams.

The deck at the over look.

Our neighborhood bear had wandered through sometime after the snow. Our game cameras showed us that he wandered around the night of the major snow fall. He came on to the property near the pond.

He wandered around the pond and headed toward the neighbor's property.
They have put out food for the raccoons in the past. He was probably hoping for a midnight snack.

I later found his prints where he had come back on the property. The last tracks were heading down the mountain. It was fun to follow his path. The prints seemed huge, but that might have been due to the way the snow melted away from his imprint. I guess this blows the theory that the bears hibernate during the winter in the South.

Snow makes the woods look so different.

More tracks in the snow. I don't think the tracks between the tire tracks were deer. The deer seem to cross a road or path while these tracks went right down the middle. Perhaps they were coyote.

It was a fun adventure.

A seasonal favorite

2009-12-15T14:13:00.002-05:00

This is one of my favorite You Tube Christmas videos

Bandit Released

2009-11-22T12:36:00.001-05:00

Video made by someone attending the release of Bandit.

Ida delivers 6 inches of rain

2009-11-20T08:44:00.010-05:00

The tropical system Ida passed through Western North Carolina in early November, dropping lots of rain in a short time period. The pond filled to overflowing as the rain continued to fall.

Several days after the rain, the pond was still over flowing.

Run off was still coming down the mountain to the pond.

Beautiful, clear water flowing into......

and out of the pond.

Porter's orginal song

2009-11-17T07:57:00.001-05:00

This is Porter. Not my dog, but I love his musical abilities.

Eaglet Bandit to be Released

2009-11-16T11:11:00.004-05:00

Bandit is the eaglet in British Columbia featured on the Hancock Wildlife web cam from the time he was in the egg to when he jumped out of the nest due to being startled by a branch falling. I shared some pictures of him here. An organization called O.W.L. (Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society) has been caring for him in preparation for the time he can be released into the wild. The time this coming Saturday. He is healthy and flying. Also important, the eagles have returned to the area from northern fishing grounds. Soon the salmon will be spawning in the local rivers and there will be abundant food for him.

The release date is November 21, 2009 at 3 P.M. The place is Sandpiper Golf Resort in Harrison Mills, BC. The Fraser Valley Bald Eagle Festival is at the same location on November 21-22. It would be great fun to attend the festival and to watch Bandit take his first flaps to freedom. He has been strong enough and mature enough for release for several weeks. But there were no other eagles in the area as they had all gone to northern fishing grounds. The best chance for Bandit's survival requires other juveniles and adult eagles to be in the area. He will learn from them.

One of O.W.L. volunteers was granted special permission to film Bandit in his flight cage. The video shows where Bandit has lived these past weeks. It also shows the ingenious design of the flight cage. The cage is long with staggered partitions that encourage flight development. It also allows the eaglets a way to get away from the people that enter the cage to feed and clean. It is important for their survival in the wild that the eaglets do not become accepting of people.

Wildlife around the pond

2009-10-31T09:44:00.006-04:00

We've had the game camera recording the action around the pond this weekend. The pond is a popular place with all of the local wildlife anytime day or night. I've uploaded four short videos taken from the camera.

Another Bear visit

2009-10-23T11:03:00.004-04:00

You know, it is hard to tell one bear from another. They don't have spots or any distinguishing marks. The guy below visited the camp site on October 19. It is the only capture from that day. I don't know if this is one of the twins that visited earlier. Or momma to the triplets. Or a different bear.

The next night these two were back. One is behind the table and a bit hard to see. It had been a month since these two were last captured by the camera.

One thing we noticed was the water jug on the table was not disturbed during either visit. Last month the same jug was on the table, but it was covered by a black trash bag. Both sets of bears investigated the jug and knocked the jug off of the table. We wondered if it was the black bag that attracted them. Since the jug did not have a bag over it and they did not bother it, it seems the bears associate the black trash bag with goodies.

Osceola, the Hang Gliding Eagle

2009-10-19T10:14:00.002-04:00

I love this video and story of Osceola, a bald eagle who lost a wing as an immature eagle and was able to return to the skies 13 years later. John Stokes tells the whole store here. Enjoy the video and visit the site to learn how this all came about.

Oh My--back for another visit

2009-10-15T20:43:00.009-04:00

This past week there was an opportunity to retrieve the SD card from the game camera on the WNC property. And guess who had paid a visit.

But, doesn't this one look a bit smaller than the other two? The game camera was moved because the bears were able to get to it and knock it. It is in a different tree and higher up. So this could be the one of the two bears that visited before. Wonder where the other one is?

There's the second one.

Uh...three? So these probably are different bears. Are they old enough to be away from their moma? Where is moma? Do I really want to know?

We have never had the bears visit while we are staying on the property. I'm not sure I want to be there when they visit, but it looks like it will now be a possibility.

No Lions or Tigers, but---Oh my!

2009-10-10T08:17:00.011-04:00

We keep game cameras up on our property in Western North Carolina. It's fun to see the various wildlife that live in the area and visit the property. We have captured pictures of turkey, deer, and raccoons. I know there are coyotes in the area, but they stayed away from the camera lenses.

Black bears live on the mountain. Our neighbors have reported seeing a 'baby' black bear, so we knew we had a chance to capture one on the game camera. This does not look like a baby to me! The camera uses an infrared flash to take pictures in the dark so the animals do not see a white flash. That also means the picture is black and white.

They visited 3 nights in a row.

Our neighbors feed the raccoons which is why there are now bears in the area. They are not happy about the bears visiting. We pointed out if they stop feeding the raccoons, the bears might stop coming. They said they would continue to feed the raccoons.

Of Honey and Bees

2009-10-02T08:56:00.009-04:00

My hair seemed to be a bit dry, so I thought a SMT might be the ticket to add some moisture and shine. What is a SMT? Snowymoon's Moisture treatment--named by the creator on a long hair forum that I visit. The treatment involves taking 4 parts of a hair conditioner, preferably without silicone or protein, 1 part honey, 1 part clear aloe gel. Heat in the microwave about 30 seconds and mix well. Make sure it is just warm, not hot enough to burn. Put on dry or wet hair, cover with a plastic cap. Leave on for about an hour. Rinse well. I have to lightly shampoo or my hair seems coated. But the treatment seems to work.

The honey is a humectant and will draw in moisture. Everyone's hair is different and has different requirements. The great thing about the treatment is that it is easy to tweak to individual needs. It is also cheap as I use Suave brand Naturals conditioner.

I mix my SMT, glop it on my hair, cover with a plastic bag, and a bandanna. Now--what to do for an hour or so while the ingredients work their magic. The yard needs mowing---why not.

I head out to the back yard, pull out the mower, fill it up with gas and then look for my work gloves. Found them---sitting on the edge of the screened porch.

I grab a glove and it buzzes! I carefully look inside to find that a carpenter bee has turned my glove into a cozy bee-bungalow. Not cool. Carefully putting a stick into the glove thinking the bee will climb on the stick and I can pull him out. Nope. The bee retreats farther into the glove.

See the yellow speck far in the glove. It's the bee.

A little closer look...

And a bit closer. He is really hiding in there.

Here is a picture of a carpenter bee on some blossoms. Carpenter bees are huge--about 3/4 to 1 inch in length.

Want a closer look?

The bee was not leaving the glove. Perhaps the bee was hungry. I place the glove the bush with the blooms and wait for him to crawl out. Not going to happen. Admitting defeat, I mow the yard without gloves. The honey and conditioner mixture start dripping out from under the plastic and bandanna wrap. At one point I wondered if I should see if the bee would climb out of the glove for the honey in my hair. But the loudness of the buzz coming from my glove convinced me to leave the critter alone.

Carpenter bees are neat critters. They do not live in hives like other bees. They will drill into wood and make little tunnels where they lay their eggs. Here is a neat site explaining all about carpenter bees.

End of Summer

2009-09-12T10:26:00.014-04:00

This time of year I am always looking for signs that summer is ending and autumn is near. One big one seems to be the size of the pond.

It is depressing how the lack of rainfall shrinks the pond. While the drought is not as bad this year as in years past, the area is still over 10 inches short of rain. But there are late summer flowers everywhere.

Beaded Bezel Polymer Clay Cab

2009-08-31T09:49:00.006-04:00

I have a very beautiful cab that I wanted to bead around, but was unsure what to do after the initial beaded bezel. So I tried a Peyote ruffle. I love the ruffle, but did not like the way it looked on the cab. So I cut it off and tried something else. This time I went with simple embellishment with crystals.
I like it better. But does it need more? How about fringe? I'm never sure when it is finished. I'm working on the necklace for the cab right now. It is a simple 3 sided twisted herringbone out of matte black, shiny black and a black silver lined bead.

The cab is made of polymer clay by Sharon Solly who has a shop on Etsy.

Bugles and Tassels

2009-08-25T08:21:00.007-04:00

This bracelet is from Bead and Button magazine and available here. I was lucky enough to be able to spend some time with beading friends during a recent weekend. This is one of the projects we worked on during the time we had together.

Friday Birdy Funny

2009-08-21T23:11:00.000-04:00

Update on eaglet Bandit

2009-08-04T10:48:00.018-04:00

As I noted earlier, I have been watching an eagle's nest in British Columbia via web cam. My favorite eaglet is known as Bandit. His nest is located in the district municipality of Delta, a little south of Vancouver, B.C., Canada, not far from the Tsawwassen Ferry terminal. The nest tree is an old black cottonwood that has many rotten branches and overhangs a busy road. It's been a cozy home to Bandit who was hatched May 13.

On Thursday, July 30, 2009 Bandit was enjoying his morning breakie when a large branch cracked and fell from the tree. The noise and movement of the branch startled Bandit who did the responsible thing and flapped away from the apparent danger. Unfortunately Bandit was not ready to fledged and ended up, unhurt in the grass next to the tree. He was on the road side of the tree, which was not the safest place to be. Below is Bandit right before the limb broke.

There were no other trees in the area as his tree was in a farmer's yard. He could flap, but not fly. Left on his own he might have climbed nest tree, if he could have gotten back over the fence. But he could have also wandered into the road or face many other dangers including coyotes. He was not in the best situation. Fortunately there is a local rescue organization, O.W.L. (Orphan Wild Life), five minutes from the nest. They were called and promptly arrived at the nest tree. They were able to find and capture Bandit. He was taken to the facility where he was evaluated. He will live there until he is strong enough to fledged.

He weighed in at 3.8 kgs or around 8 pounds.

He was very polite during his physical.

Got some temporary bling so he could be identified while in the facility. He will be banded with a permanent band before he leaves. Just look at that talon.

It turns out Bandit's small nest has not been the best for exercising and building flight muscles. The physical revealed his muscles are underdeveloped for his age, but he is a healthy eaglet. Bandit was placed in a large enclosure with a "Buddy" eagle that is at O.W.L. growing out flight feathers. This enclosure has different branches so Bandit can practice grabbing them and build up flight muscles by flapping his wings. This is the first time Bandit has had a branch small enough to wrap his talons around.

The buddy eagle provides companionship for Bandit, but Bandit thought he might be a stepdad. When a meal was brought into the enclosure, Bandit squawked to be fed from Buddy. Buddy declined the offer. Bandit will be in this enclosure until his chest muscles are strong enough for flight. He will then transfer to a very large flight cage where he can practice his new skills. When he is strong enough he will be released near where he was captured.

Ground reports from the rescue of Bandit said mom was nearby during the rescue. She watched the rescue, commented, but did not interfere. Over 24 hours later I saw dad arrive at the nest with a morning meal. I guess mom hadn't informed him that Bandit had left the area. He arrived with breakfast in a talon and panting from the trip. He stayed on the nest for about 30 minutes.

Looking all around, but never called. He eventually flew off, taking the breakfast with him.

Nobody can really say what the parents think. They may believe the eaglet has fledged. O.W.L. is close enough they may hear Bandit call from his outside enclosure. Last year this pair had 2 eaglets in this nest. One fell from the nest when he was around the same age as Bandit. He was rescued by O.W.L. The other eaglet fledged from the nest. It was reported that the parents did stay in the area until after the younger eaglet was released from rehab. Eagles in this area travel north to the salmon runs in late summer and return to the Delta area in late fall, early winter.

This is the nest where dad brought a teddy bear to the nest last year--2008. Click to see the video. It may take a few seconds to load

Here is a spliced 2008 video of this nest to show the younger eaglet's fall from the nest, then the older eaglet's fall from the nest and the climb back in.

The last eaglet did fledged from the nest. This last clip shows mom back in the nest to grab a large fish she had left for the eaglet.

Just in time

2009-07-31T08:12:00.006-04:00

I finished the necklace and earrings shown below in time for a wedding this weekend. They were easy and quick to finish. Swarovski bicone in Indian Sapphire and gray pearls are the main beads used. Both patterns used right angel weave to create the design.

The necklace is Elegant Expression by Noriko Romanko. I found it in Bead and Button magazine published in October, 2006.

The earrings are Boleyn Earrings by Deborah Roberti. I found them on her website Around the Beading Table. I love Deborah's patterns as they are fully diagramed along with written instructions. I need the diagragms more than the words, so to find a pattern with such complete diagrams is fun.

Cellini Spiral

2009-07-27T18:51:00.008-04:00

Pushing other bead work aside, I finished this Cellini Spiral on Sunday. The spiral is an odd count Peyote tube using different sized beads. This one has size 11, 8 and 6 seed beads.
This stitch is perfect for watch my favorite eaglet on his nest. This is a screen capture from the web cast of the nest.

Can you believe that 73 days before the above picture, this big guy looked like this:

Visit this eaglet here, but hurry as he is due to fledge the first week of August.

2009-07-19T08:43:00.006-04:00

I don't often think of cool and July in the same sentence. Yesterday the words met. It had been several weeks since I had visited our property in western NC. Road Trip! It was so nice to open the car windows at the bottom of the mountain and discover cool temps---in the 70's. The drought in the area was declared broken sometime this spring. There has been summer rains, but not really enough. The official status is 'abnormally dry'.

The pond is losing water each day. The springs that feed it are not running right now. I'm hoping for some tropical system to bring in the needed moisture.

The pond completely dried up during the end of last summer and through out the winter. It was distressing becasue we really loved all the frogs that called it home. We hoped some survived under the bit of damp earth that was left. At least a couple of frogs did survive. As we walked around the edge of the water we saw little hippity hops heading for the water. This one was nice enough to pose.

Here is a closer look.

He was around 3/4 of an inch long. The newts have been active in the pond since spring. It is nice to see that the frogs have returned.

Life is not a Disney Movie

2009-07-07T09:55:00.004-04:00

Remember this pretty little momma bird? She built a nest outside out bathroom window and had two eggs. It was fun to check on her throughout the day. But on Sunday morning I went to look at her and found an empty nest with only a couple of egg shells.

It is really sad. Yes, I cried. Yes, it is nature. Birds like this one have multiply clutches of eggs a year because so few make it to adulthood. It's still sad. A lonely Blue Jay feather on the nearby ground makes me think that is what got the eggs. I've left her nest for now. I know she will not be back in it, but I still look at it occasionally. It is a beautiful nest.

Blog Roll

2009-07-01T11:39:00.013-04:00

A forum I frequent has started a Blog Roll. With a new topic or question every week for all to discuss, it is going to be fun to read the different responses.

The first question is: What's the farthest you have traveled for food? Did you fly across the country just so you could have the perfect bowl of clam chowder? Did you cross the state line just for a scoop of ice cream? What was it, how far did you travel, and was it worth it?

Luella's BBQ in Asheville, NC is about 45 miles from where we stay when we are visiting North Carolina. If I were to measure the distance to Luella's from home, it would be a 316 mile round trip. We often ride our motorcycle in the beautiful mountains and back roads of North Carolina. Including Luella's in the itinerary is perfect.

Meat is at the heart of a BBQ place and Luella's has a big heart. Their selection of meat includes pork, beef, turkey, ribs and more. Perfectly seasoned, the meat is always moist and tender.

Hubby likes the ribs which have a St. Louis style seasoning.

I like the pulled pork sandwich with slaw, of course. Sometimes I am in the mood for the Sweet Pisgah Sauce. others times, I pour on Scooter's Famous Vinger Sauce. Yes, the meat is really piled that high on the sandwich.

Or, you can get a plate. I love their hushpuppies. Adding collards to the plate makes it look so healthy. I like to get a side of fried okra. Hey, underneath that crispy breading, okra is green!

It has always been worth the trip when we visit Luella's.

Look who moved in

2009-06-30T10:59:00.005-04:00

We have a new family that just moved in. Actually, I am not really sure when they moved in, but I found them on Sunday. Do you see her?

How about here?

This is the best that I can do for now. She is really kind of shy.

I know this one is really fuzzy, but it is hard to catch momma bird off the nest and I snapped this one quickly. There are two eggs in the nest.

My book says incubation last 12 to 13 days. I really do not know when the eggs were laid and can only watch each day to see signs of hatching.

A little bit purple

2009-06-26T20:22:00.007-04:00

I can no longer say I never win anything. Back in April I was cruising through some of my favorite beading blogs when I came upon a post at Grace Beading entitled Faces. Grace was giving away a beautiful kit full of goodies. I won!

The feature of the kit is a beautiful face cab by Jen Martian of Graphixoutpost. It is a wonderful color of purple with great details. Grace included a piece of stiffen felt to mount the cab for beading.

There is a piece of ultra suede for the back of the finished cab. She even thought of the needles and thread for the project.

And the beads! There are some beautiful coordinating beads just waiting to be used. Everything was securely tucked inside a deep purple velvet pouch.

Projects such as the Beading for a Cure necklace have caused me to push this one aside. Finally I am ready. I have mounted the face on the felt, threaded the needle, and paused. Gee, I hate starting a new project. Once the first beads are places and the beads begin to say where they want to go I am OK. It is those first few beads that cause such stress.

I cruised over to Graces blog to gain some inspiration. She has mentioned Beading with Cabochons by Jamie Cloud Eakin in her blog. I have that book and it is one of my favorites for beading around cabs. I even have my beading books on one bookcase where I can find them. I spent a wonderful afternoon going through the book once more. And I have the first beads sewed around the cab. There is a good chance that I may do the frog stitch with those beads, so there won't be a picture just yet.

I just did a quick search to find a link for Jamie Cloud Eakin's book and discovered at her web site she is giving away a free book! Serendipitous. I also discovered some beautiful beaded work by Jamie.

Thank you Grace for being so generous.

It is finished

2009-06-24T17:21:00.011-04:00

I finally finished my project for 2010 Beading for a Cure. The auctions for the items beaded will be held in March, 2010 which is National Colorectal Cancer Month. The name of this necklace is Delta Nights.

I spent many hours beading this necklace while watching a web camera focused on on an eagle nest located in the district municipality of Delta, Britsh Columbia. Hancock Wildlife Federation is a non-profit organization that has mounted web camera on several eagle nests in British Columbia.

The nest is in an old cottonwood tree in the yard of a farm house. Sheep and goats graze underneath the nest and children's voices are often heard. This pair of eagles are young at around 8 years. It is their second year to nest here. Last year they successfully raised two eagles It has been amazing to be able to follow this family and other eagles around North America. It is not a Disney movie and real life can be harsh. Orginally there were two eaglets in the Delta nest, but one fell out one night and did not surive the fall. Each day is a small victory. The eaglet in the Delta nest is also about one month younger than the other in the area. I don't know why this pair mated so late in the season, not do I know how it will affect this eaglet who should fledge around the second month of August. I do feel honored to be able to watch the eaglet grow each day.

The techniques I used to create the neclace came from two sources. One is Diane Fitzgerald's Shaped Beadwork. The other is Geometric Beading by Glenda Payseno. Both books taught me a great deal and allowed me to pull together the vision of the necklace.

Capturing the beauty of the necklace is difficult, so I've offered photos on two different backgrounds.

Who is looking at Me?

2009-06-23T10:14:00.003-04:00

This is a recording from the Hancock Wildlife Foundation's Sidney Cam located in British Columbia. These three eaglets were hatched April 8, April 10 and April 14 of 2009. They are close to fledgling and are busy exercising their wings and hoping about the nest. One eaglet is flapping around the nest when she discovers the box holding the web cam. A very thorough examination follows. Be sure to have your sound turned up. Click here to see what the eaglets are doing right now.
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Robbinsville Bead Retreat

2009-06-18T09:08:00.042-04:00

Every few months I load my car with beads, wire, and food and head to a house where I will meet friends. We spend the next four days sharing, laughing, and beading. The June retreat was located in North Carolina at vacation rental house near Robbinsville.

It was a beautiful home with breath taking views.

The meals are always wonderful at our retreats even though we do try to focus on the beads and keep food preparation to a minimum. Everyone helps with the meals so no one person is burdened. Mornings were always greeted with homemade biscuits among other wonderful treats.

We teach each other and have an easy schedule of two classes a day.

The first class of the retreat was taught by BeBee. We learned to bead around mini gourds. The selection of the perfect mini gourd was the first step. They were all perfect.

Netting was the stitch used to encase the gourd.

Peyote stitch was used to work up the neck of the gourd.

Next we added fringe on the bottom of the gourd.

Lunch was salads and deviled eggs.

Genny taught a class on wire work making a very pretty bracelet.

You get the idea. We bead and we eat.
We also had a visitor from a resident of the farm.

More beading.

Annette taught her Friendship Circle.

More food.

Mmmmm, blueberry crumble.

I taught a class on tubular netting also known as Russian Netting. This was my first time to teach a class and everyone was so nice. It is an easy stitch to do with the beginning being the hardest part.

After that, I am hungry. What's for lunch.

The afternoon's class was cold connections with Harleen. I had enough trouble with wire work, so I took the opportunity to check out a not too distant bead store. Those that took the class created some beautiful pieces, but this is the only one I got a picture of.

We had mini classes including sculptural RAW with Harry.

Carol's Peacock bracelet.

These are the goodie bags.

Each person has a bag and you can put a little something in each bag or not. It doesn't matter what or if you contribute. It is fun to go through them at the end of the retreat.

We had a special guest with us this retreat. Her name is Sasha.

Normally dogs and spouses are not encouraged to attend, but Sasha was special. She was the sweetest dog who took her role of hostess very seriously. She seemed to know who would appreciate her attentions and enjoy a snuggle. If dogs can have old souls, then this one does.

It was a wonderful four days that past all too quickly. I'm already looking forward to the next one.

ball and rope

2009-06-06T08:43:00.005-04:00

Sky's favorite toy is the ball. Chasing the ball is pure joy to Sky and something she can do for hours.

Cody thinks it is funny to run by and grab her ball when she is not looking, but when it comes to playing, he prefers a good game of tug. He doesn't like to tug hard. He also likes to prance around the yard with his tug-rope in his mouth.

More flowers

2009-06-03T10:00:00.013-04:00

More pictures from my garden and a couple from my sweet Mother in Law's garden.
I gave my blueberry bushes an over due trimming last year and the berry production for this year is suffering. I do have a few that are just beginning to get a bit of color. Now the real trick is going to be to get the ripe blueberries before the wonder dog Cody does. Cody loves blueberries and will pick only the sweet, dark blue ones. He even stands on his hind legs to get the berries.

I love dahlias and have a few that are already blooming.

They come in so many different varieties and colors.

This is a gladiolus blossom that is just beginning to open.

A rose.

A lily.

A day lily.

This one is from the garden of my Sweet Mother in Law. She has hydrangeas all along the back of her house that are in full bloom. Some are the pretty blue. Some have a pink tint as she added lime to the soil.

This is from her butterfly bush. I love the deep, vibrant color.

More from the garden

2009-05-26T11:38:00.007-04:00

Yesterday I showed you pictures of the balloon flower before it completely opened. Below is the fully opened flower.
This is a day lily. The blossom is huge this year.

I have tomatoes on my big tomato plant

and the grape tomatoes are growing.

The bell peppers have set small peppers.

From my garden

2009-05-25T20:10:00.007-04:00

Just a few flowers that are blooming right now.

Beading for a Cure

2009-05-20T10:19:00.013-04:00

It has been a long time since I posted any of my beadwork. I am currently working on my entry for the 2010 Beading for a Cure The 2009 entries are currently being offered for auction a few at each week at Ebay Here is my 2009 entry:

It was offered the first week the auctions began. I am happy to say it earned a few bids. I had nightmares of my item not getting any bids and having to beg someone to bid on it.

I like this year's color pallet much better than last year. Included in the kit this year is a beautiful lampwork bead by Laurie B. Smith. I think she had to make over 80 of the same bead. It was generous of her to offer her time, talent and glass for the cause. All other beads in the kit came from Stormcloud Trading Co. Below are some pictures of the beading tray containing all the kit beads.

I'm using geometric shaped pieces for my entry. I have had a ton of help from two wonderful artists. Glenda Payseno and her book Geometric Beading and Diane Fitzgerald with her book Shaped Beadwork. Both books are about using the Peyote stitch to created dimensional shapes. It is fun and challenging.

The offical deadline for the project is July 15, 2009. I am almost finished and hope to have it in the mail by the end of June. The auctions will begin in March 2010.

Swimming Lesson Part 2

2009-05-04T20:05:00.010-04:00

Sky had another swimming lesson on a recent warm weekend. She is doing lots better in that she is swimming. Here she going for the ball and no feet are touching mud.

At this point the turn is looking pretty good.

But those pesky back legs are sinking to the bottom looking for mud.

Extra effort with the front legs combine with some splashing.....

and she is smoothly swimming once more.

We need to work on keeping those hind legs moving while swimming.
Oh, a click on a picture will open it up in a larger format so you can really see the determination on her face.

Colors of spring

2009-05-01T09:00:00.015-04:00

Deep red is not one of the colors that comes to mind when I think of spring colors. The light green of new leaves, bright yellow of Forsythia, yellow and peach of Daffodils, pinks and whites of Azaleas, soft pink of the Cherry Tree are some of the spring colors that I expect to find. While wandering the woods of Western North Carolina I find the deep red of the Paw Paw tree.

Then there is the Sweet Shrub, also known as Carolina Allspice.

And the Toadshade.

I really like the leaves on the Toadshade.

There are some pastel and white spring flowers in the woods, but spring in the woods is not nearly as colorful as fall.

Eagles, hawks and humming birds

2009-04-27T19:43:00.006-04:00

A pair of bald eagles are raising their on eaglet under the watchful eyes of viewers from around the world at Sooner Lake in Oklahoma. One of the dedicated viewers put together a slide show from web shots showing the progress of the baby eagle.

2009 Sutton Eagle’s Nest http://www.suttoncenter.org/eaglecam.html

The three eagles in Norfolk, Virginia are about the same age as the one above. They were banded recently. Here is the link to the live cam. This one will show the view from the nest on banding day. Finally this is a video from the local TV station.

In British Columbia an eagle has just hatched and there is one egg left in the nest. The site has sound.

In Portland Oregon a pair of red tailed hawks have new babies. This site has a good, close view of the nest, but you have to watch a short commercial before the live feed begins.

Finally I have found two hummingbird nests to watch. A black-chinned hummingbird and a Channel Island Allen hummingbird.

I know their are many more bird cams to find and watch, but if I do that I never get anything accomplished.

Swimming lessons for Sky

2009-04-20T21:18:00.029-04:00

As mentioned before, Sky doesn't swim. She never seems to mind getting into the water as long as her paws are firmly on the mud. We have been trying to think of ways to get her to swim. I know much of the dog paddle is instinct, but I think it good that she try that out before an accidental splash makes it a necessity.

So we came up with a plan. We needed something in the water enticing enough to get her in over her head. The answer was her rubber ball. Sky will retrieve a ball for hours.

The first toss of the ball was close enough that she could keep the paws on the mud.

Second toss was a bit further. She starts out after the ball.

Then we get the 'look'. "You do realize that is a bit far, don't you?"

Look who is swimming back with his stick.

No problem, Cody can handle the stick and the ball.

Another toss of the ball with a bit more success. I really think she is swimming.

She grabs the ball and puts her whole body into the effort.

The turn for the dry land. Look at the bite on that ball.

At this point I think she has her back legs sinking to the bottom.

She gives herself a big push off.

And splashes down.

Mud is under foot! Can dogs grin? I think she is grinning.

Success! Look at the water flying off the wagging tail.

Maybe some competition with big brother will provide a bit of motivation for Sky. We throw a ball way out into the pond for Cody, and one a bit closer for Sky. And it seems to have worked. Sky is swimming.

Going for the grab.

A little submarine action.

The turn for home with eyes shut tight and a death bite on the ball.

Here's Cody snagging the ball. He's a bit smoother, but then he has been doing it for years.

The turn.

Headed back to the bank. Cody is smooth.

Over all Sky's swimming lesson worked out pretty good. We will try again on the next warm day. I do think she likes splashing in the shallow water better.

Polymer Clay Retreat Fun

2009-04-15T10:49:00.021-04:00

Before showing you some of the fun things we created at the Clay Retreat I wanted to show off the beautiful cabin we stayed in. The following two pictures were take looking down from the loft to the kitchen and great room area. It was a beautiful room full lined with windows that let in wonderful light. What you can't see is the beautiful view seen out the windows.

This is a Retro Cane that was fun to make.

Some of Aryd'ell's beautiful goddesses and stamped clay.

This is called Brain Cane.

A craft knife covered in the cane.

The next three pictures are of Annette's pieces. In the first they are out of the oven the first time. Then liquid clay is applied, baked and heated with a heat gun to the final result of a beautiful, shiny finish that I didn't do a very good job of capturing.

Many other techniques were tried resulting in lots of pretty pieces. It was a fun weekend.

Retreat at Hope Circle

2009-04-10T09:09:00.015-04:00

The first weekend in April I was lucky enough to join 9 other women for a retreat at a wonderful cabin high in the Western North Carolina Mountains. It was to be a weekend to learn how to work with polymer clay. The setting was beautiful.

This the view from the deck of the cabin looking down to a fast moving creek. Fortunately there were stairs all the way down to the creek. The trip down was an easy walk.

Before I went too far I found a couple of violets. They were so pretty popping up among the brown leaves.

Finally, at the bottom of the valley where the creek was. It was beautiful flowing over rocks and under downed tree trunks. The sound of the the water running over the rocks is so magically.

Could these be Oconee Bells?

Another small, white wildflower. So pretty.

Now for the walk back up to the house.

That picture does not do the house justice. It was a bit plain on the outside, but inside was beautiful wood, vaulted ceiling, stone fireplace and windows.

One warm spring day

2009-03-28T08:58:00.025-04:00

On a recent day in March we visited the property in North Carolina. Thanks to the recent rains, the pond had water. Cody was so happy to see the water. Cody loves water, loves to swim, and loves retrieve sticks (since there aren't any ducks).

Sky does not like to swim. She doesn't mind the water. She will wade in until the water is high on her sides, but she always has her paws firmly on the mud. Thinking the main point of the game is to bring a stick back, Sky looks for a stick bigger than the one Cody is carrying.

Another game Sky plays is to wait for Cody to come back with the stick, grab it from him and bring it the rest of the way back. She then drops it before she gets all the way out of the pond. It means there is a constant search for a new stick to throw.

Cody really doesn't care for this game.

Staying in deeper water does help to keep little sister away.

But she can be very determined.

They had great time that afternoon. After all the romping in the water the two found a sunny place to stretch out. It didn't take long for the sun to dry them off.

A day in the life of a Raptor

2009-03-14T11:03:00.014-04:00

Over the years I have enjoyed visiting nesting raptors. Eagles, falcons, osprey all are being spied upon by web cams. Fortunately they do not seem to mind. I thought I would share some of my favorite Raptor Web Cams with you. Please note that I have saved images from the cams and uploaded them from my computer, so not to take bandwidth from the sites.

These are two fluffy eagle hatchlings from Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The same site has an osprey cam, but as of today there is no activity.

The Sutton Center Bald Eagle Nest Cam originates in Oklahoma. There are two cameras on the nest giving a great view of the activity. As of today there are 3 eggs in the nest. It can take a few seconds for the web cam to load, so please be patient.

In downtown Portland, Oregon there is a Red Tail Hawk with a nest in a fire escape

An Eagle cam is located on the campus of The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services' National Conservation Training Center located in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, along the Potomac River. I could not get the streaming cam to load, so the link is to the still camera that uploads a new image every 15 seconds.

Three eggs are in the nest of an Osprey located at Hilton Head, SC. The picture quality isn't that great. It is a still picture uploaded every 5 seconds.

Two Great Horned Owls are nesting in a man-made nest in central New Mexico. Look around the page as there are archived pictures and more information about the owls.

There are several Eagle cams in California. I think the one below came from the Pelican Harbor CamThere is a Channel Island Forum that has a great deal of information about the eagles. I found four cams in the area. The Pelican Harbor listed above, West End Cam, Two Harbors Nest Cam, and the Seal Rocks Cam (which was off air when I posted this).

I know there are many more cams available, but these few will allow you to spend hours of enjoyment. I'll try to post more later and would love to know about your favorite cams.

Winter Flowers

2009-03-03T10:31:00.008-05:00

One of the nicer parts of living in the South is that flowers bloom all winter long. They make the cold bearable. I guess many would not consider the winter temperatures here cold. When the temps do drop below freezing the blossoms wilt and fall. A long period of sub-freezing temps can cause leaves to turn brown. Some how the tightly packed flower buds are protected and fresh flowers open again when the days warm.

Flowers of early late fall

2008-12-17T22:00:00.004-05:00

Camellias are a special part of late fall and winter in the Southeast. Camellia Sasanqua bloom in the fall. The bushes are over 10 feet tall and full of buds. A hard freeze will destroy the blooms, so some years the display gets cut short by the weather.

Dogs know how to have fun

2008-12-15T15:48:00.009-05:00

2008-11-17T17:37:00.009-05:00

I finished a necklace that I started a couple of months ago. The pattern came from Bead and Button, April, 2007. It is a Russian St. Petersburg chain with a bezeled square Swarovski crystal. The colors aren't really showing true in the picture. This was my first St. Petersburg chain. It's a fun stitch and one I want to do again.

This is a cuff I made from a mixed bead collection that I got from Annette at the recent bead retreat. I used size 8 seed beads in a 2 drop Peyote stitch for the base. Then added all the other beads using size 15 seed beads.

I recently had the opportunity to buy some David Christensen glass beads. I'm not sure what I am going to do with them, but I do have fun taking them out of their baggie and playing with them.

Pastels and jewel colors

Big beads

That's the beady stuff that I have right now.

The long, slow fall

2008-11-16T10:15:00.006-05:00

Some years the trees seem to change colors and fall off the the limbs in a weeks time. This year the colors are slow to change. This oak is holding on to it's green as long as it can. I love the way the red mixes with the green.

This maple has a wonderful pale yellow color with a bit of red. Leaves on the same branch are green with just a hint of yellow or red.

Looking up through the canopy the fall colors seem to be winning. Once a hard freeze hits the area I am sure that the leaves will tumble to the ground.

Muddy colors

2008-10-21T14:59:00.005-04:00

Fall is slowly coming to Western North Carolina. I don't think the trees are ready to give up their summer color just yet. I love how the tips of a branch will be bright red or yellow while the rest of the tree is stoic green. We drove along the Blue Ridge Parkway the past weekend to see the colors in the higher elevations. The day was overcast. Even along the parkway there was lots of green in the landscape. The yellow, red, golds were there, but muted. I think the long drought has had an effect on the fall colors, too.

Our poor pond is still a muddy puddle. At least there is some water for the wildlife.

Fall color peaking through the green

2008-10-07T21:02:00.006-04:00

The night time temperatures in the lower elevations of the Western North Carolina mountains are cooling signaling the trees and vines that fall is here. I wonder how the colors will be this fall with the low rain fall of the past summer. The few leaves that have turn stand out against the green leaves and dark trunks.

Sky's hurt paw

2008-10-02T22:54:00.005-04:00

Sometime Monday afternoon Sky tore her dew claw on her left front paw. I do not know how she tore it. She came inside around 6 P.M. and I noticed she was licking her left front leg a great deal. She let me look at it. The claw was at a funny angle and I could see the quick of the claw. Since it wasn't bleeding we decided she could wait until morning to see the vet.

We have a wonderful veterinarian who is part of a equally wonderful clinic. The vet we usually see was not in on Tuesday, so Sky saw another doctor of the practice. They gave her a local anesthetic and removed the damaged claw. She was a good girl and polite to everyone there. She was very happy to get home and relax a bit. She came home with her paw wrapped in a teal bandage with stars.

You could tell it hurt her. I really like that the vet always manages pain in our dogs. I think some neglect that. Animals tend to be stoic and not show when they hurt. That doesn't make the pain less. Pain medication was sent home with Sky. It seemed to help as she did not mess with her bandage much. It was wrapped tightly to stop any bleeding. The vet hoped she would keep the bandage on until morning.

Sky is a great patient and kept the bandage on and did not mess with it. We removed it and put a clean pad and bandage on. She is feeling better, but still isn't up to chasing her ball. The claw will grow back, but it is going to take some time.

All strung together

2008-09-29T20:07:00.013-04:00

I've been trying to play with beads in a different way since my hand is still healing from CTR surgery. To string beads together and get a pleasing design is far harder to me than weaving little seed beads. I have so much respect for those that string beads and end up with a pleasing creation. I have a hard time with taking balance, color, shape and getting them to play nicely. Below are three bracelets that I have been working on over the past two days. I know which one I don't like, but I'm still not sure I like the other two. I won't tell you how many I have torn apart. All suggestions on how to improve them would be greatly appreciated. (click on the picture and you will see a larger version.)

A few blue things

2008-09-26T20:35:00.008-04:00

My left hand is still healing from carpel tunnel release surgery. Bead weaving stitches such as Peyote, herringbone tire it quickly. I don't want to slow the healing process so I do those stitches for a few minutes at a time. That makes finishing a project a slow process. To have some fun I have made some simpler things.

This is the Fabulous Fifties pattern by Glenda Payseno. It's a fun pattern that can look so different depending upon the beads used. This bracelet is on its way to my sister for her birthday.

I made these to go along with the bracelet. I like using the same beads when I make earrings to go with a bracelet or necklace, but I like them to look different. I hope sis likes them.

Since I was having so much fun with the blue beads, I came up with this bracelet. It's a fun bracelet.

Summer's end

2008-09-23T10:21:00.002-04:00

The fall equinox has occurred and the days are slowly getting shorter. The seasonal change to fall in the South is slow and relaxed. This is my favorite time of the year. Late summer rains brought by tropical systems have encouraged fall flowers and a new green growth. I like the colors of fall. Even with everything still green the traditional colors show themselves.

The pond on the mountain property has a bit of water and a few frogs are about. The rain there has brought out fall flowers in abundance. Here are two of the tiny ones I found.

The nights are getting cool while the days are still warm. It is a good time of year to be outside.

The end of Summer

2008-09-22T21:52:00.005-04:00

The calendar indicates that summer is at an end. In the south the end of summer comes a bit slower than in other parts of the US. We have been luck to have rain fall in August and September that has brought new growth to the fall flowers.

Looking inside the Beaded Sphere

2008-09-15T07:21:00.005-04:00

I've had a few days to explore my new book The Beaded Sphere by Judy Walker. It is a nice large format (measuring 8.5 by 11 inches), hard covered book with 231 pages. Color photos and detailed, color diagrams are on each page. She has divided the book into 5 sections with the first describing the basic technique. The technique is detailed in words and color diagrams with the thread paths clearly marked. I am a visual person and do best with diagrams in learning a new technique. Judy's diagrams are wonderful. She uses a different color for each bead row, arrows to show the direction of the thread and the thread path is clearly marked.

Her descriptions are well written and are in terms that are easy to follow. I think someone with very little beading experience will be able to pick up this book and learn her technique. The second section of the book are variations of the basic shape from section one. Not only do you learn the hexagon shape, but also square, star, triangles, rectangles and many more. She describes how the shape is made so you can take this information and create your own shape in the size you want. She also teaches you how to make filled shapes. Once again there are plenty of diagrams detailing each step.

Section three has 13 projects that are made with the the techniques described in the previous sections. I really like the mixture of diagrams and photos that accompany each project. It is easy to see what the written word is describing. I am anxious to get my left hand working again so I can try some of these beautiful shapes.

The fourth section is a gallery of beautiful bead work made with these techniques. She has pictures of her work as well as others. It is inspirational to see all the variations in full color. The fifth section has basic directions for even and odd count Peyote and tubular Ndbele stitches. The type of beads used are described and resources for those beads are provided.

The book is a very complete one meaning that everything you need to know to make a beaded sphere or any project is found in the book. You do not have to have a working knowledge of beading in order to use this book. I think this is a wonderful book and a great addition to my library. I know it is going to get lots of use and will be opened on the work table most of the time instead of sitting on the shelf. To get a glimpse inside this book, please visit Judy's web page.

Remember

2008-09-11T18:43:00.004-04:00

The Beaded Sphere

2008-09-10T16:34:00.005-04:00

Look what was in the mail today!

I'm so excited to get this book! In early July I found that Judy Walker had a book sharing her amazing techniques almost ready for purchase. I have long admired her work and wrote to her asking to be notified when the book was available. She offered a pre-publication deal and has kept everyone updated with the book's progress. Five days ago I received an email letting me know the book was on its way from California to South Carolina.

It has that wonderful new book smell that reminds me of when I worked in the high school library. If you will excuse me, I've got some reading waiting for me. I love brand new books.

Ice Cube, A Bracelet and The BJP

2008-08-30T09:31:00.004-04:00

I finished my Ice Cube the other day. It is a pattern by Laura McCabe called Crown Jewel. I used 18mm Swaroski Rivolis in Crystal AB. Rivolis are fun to bead around and can be so many pretty things.

Below is a bracelet I recently finished. It is right angle weave with a 4 mm glass pearl in the center of each little square.

I've started thinking about my theme and page size for the 2008 Bead Journal Project. There are 260 members this year from 16 different countries. The project has 3 blogs to track the progress of the members.They are listed to the right. It seems that Blogger has changed its rules and now allow only 100 contributors to a blog. Creating 3 blogs for the project is a great way to deal with the numbers.

Beyond the Garden Fence is my theme for the year. Choosing a size is giving me more trouble. Last year I picked 7 by 7 inches and that was way too big. I know I am going smaller this year, but how small. One idea I have is to use the little Altoids tins as the page. I like the idea of opening the tin to see the 'garden'. I also want to learn about polymer clay and I could cover some of the tins in clay. The tin can also be covered in beads and fabric. The notebook created to write and sketch ideas for the project is getting busy with ideas. I just wonder if I am getting in over my head again.

The main complication is that I am going to have carpel tunnel release surgery preformed on my left hand. The right release was about 3 years ago. I love the result as the hand was waking me up at night with not only numbness, but pain. I would have to get up and put ice on the area. The doctor said the longer I let it go the bigger chance there was for nerve damage.

The left had doesn't get used as much, so I have been able to baby it along. But I took a wire working class this past spring. That really used the left hand and I've had to use the brace every night since then. It's not going to get better and there is never a good time to have the surgery.

Back to the BJP. I don't want to get too far behind because of the surgery. Since it is the left hand which I don't use it as much for embroidery as other bead work, I'm hoping I can start beading again three to four weeks after the surgery. I think I am going to do the first few pages in a size that will fit the tin and if I can to the project with the tins----great. If not, it is still a good size. I've already started on the first page-----but I'm keeping it behind the garden fence for now.

Let it Rain

2008-08-27T21:31:00.012-04:00

We recently spent a few days camping on our property in Western North Carolina. The weather was beautiful and much cooler than we expected. The area has been in some state of drought since the late 1990's. It is now classified as "Exceptional Drought" which is the most extreme level.

The picture is of a shallow pond on the property. This is the first time it has been this dry since we owned the property. There was always a small puddle for the deer to drink out of. Now it is dry enough to drive across. The pond used to be home to many frogs and newts. I hope a few of them are hiding in the bit of mud in the center of the pond waiting for the rain.

Rain did come the first few days of this week as the remnants of Tropical Fay passed by. I had really hoped she would move to the state sooner and leave a bit more rain. Instead she waltzed across Florida a few times. It seems much of the rain this time of year comes from tropical systems or weather systems from the Gulf of Mexico. Hopefully the fall months will bring more rain to the area.

Many of the trees are showing signs stress from the years of low moisture by turning yellow and dropping their leaves in the late summer before the temperatures cool. There are several trees dropping leaves. The tree in the center of this picture is a Sweet Gum with leaves that are brown and shriveled. It looks different than the ones dropping leaves. I am afraid it may not recover.

We never drive very fast on the mountain roads because they are steep with lots of switch backs and curves. Often deer are crossing the roads, which is another reason to drive slow. These two crossed the road in front of us and then stopped in the trees to watch. Can you see them? Below is a enlarge portion of the photo. It's kind of fuzzy, but hopefully you can see them looking at us.

The deer almost always stop to watch us pass in the car. If we stop and watch long enough they will move on. As long as we stay in the car, they appear to take their time, but if we are on foot, they don't waste time moving away from us.

Warning: Four Paws Pimple Ball is Dangerous

2008-08-26T07:42:00.005-04:00

Dog owners need to know of the dangers of this toy.

It looks like a fun toy for dogs to play with. Round, bouncy, made of rubber. What could possible be dangerous? The problem is that the ball is small enough for the dog to put the whole thing in his mouth. The dog's jaws are powerful enough to bite down on the ball and squeeze it. When that happens the hole becomes a shape that allows the tongue to go inside of the ball and when the dog stops biting the ball the tongue is stuck inside of the ball. There is only one hole in the ball, so a vacuum is created and the dog can not get his tongue out.

This has happened to several dogs. Chai is a recent victim of the ball. Chai, a beautiful 10 year old lab mix got his tongue stuck inside this ball. His owner could not help him and rushed him to the vet. What follows is not easy to read. It does appear that Chai is going to recover, but his tongue did have to be amputated. Life isn't easy for Chai right now.

This should not have happened as other dog owners have documented this problem to the Four Paws company since 2005 or earlier. Please read Chai's story and write to Four Paws to request the recall of this toy . You can contact them through their web site that still shows the ball available. There is a small contact us button at the bottom of the page. Notice the ball is now a different color than the one that Chai had, but it appears to be the same, dangerous design.

I'm off to hug my two dogs.

Screen covered in sticky notes

2008-08-19T19:43:00.002-04:00

I used to have the little frame around my computer screen covered with little paper Post-it notes. They were there to remind me of birthdays, doctor's appointments, to get the dog's heartworm medicine and many other things. At some point I came across Stickies. They are little post it notes that are on the screen. I love them. I have been using them for years. I tried the Google side bar that had a little note section, but it was not big enough to show everything at one time. I would have to scroll down to see everything---if I remembered there might be more.

Stickies can be place anywhere on the screen. They have several font choices and formatting options. You can make them any size and even stack them on top of each other. It's a free program. Check it out.

Bead Journal Project 2008-2009

2008-08-14T11:06:00.003-04:00

Last year I joined the Bead Journal Project started by Robin Atkins. The idea was to create one page of bead embroidery each month for a year. Each person decided upon their own theme, size, and everything else to do with the project. Robin gave this statement

Our primary goal during this process, is to stretch our creative and technical limits. The BJP is all about visual journaling using any media and techniques, as long as it includes beading. We are free to structure our bead journal pages any way we want, as long as all 12 are the same size.

I had never attempted anything like this before. All of my projects of beading, embroidery, cross stitch, or sewing had patterns, diagrams, instructions. I would change bits and parts of the whole, but I had never designed following my own creativeness. It was scary to think of doing this project. It was exciting to think of doing this project. I jumped in, eyes closed, breath held, and surfaced a couple of months later. Some of my pages are in the archives of this blog.

I decided upon a theme of 'seven'. There are many sevens in my life and I thought it would be fun to explore them. My first mistake of the whole project was to decide the size of my page would be 7 inches by 7 inches. Very big, empty space to fill with creativeness. It was too big. Yes, I didn't have to cover every inch of the the page with beads, but that's what I wanted. I did compromise and used fabric as part of the page. I finished 5 pages and have half of the 6th done. Finishing 7 pages would have felt a bit less of a failure.

The good news is that there is a BJP for 2008-2009. If you are interested you can register to participate through August 15. Click this to find the information. I'm sorry that I have posted this so close to the deadline for registration.

I think you should dash over there and register right now. You can think about what you have done later. To be honest, I am disappointed that I did not finish the year, but I do not feel that I failed at the project. I learned so much. One of the main things I learned is that I can reach inside and find some form of creativeness that is my own. I even liked the pages I did. I now know that I don't always need patterns, directions, or guidelines. I enjoyed learning that about myself. I want to learn more, so I have signed up for the next project. Join me and the other 204 participants. If you want to see where all participants are from click this. It is most impressive.

The journal pages can be any size or shape as long as you use the same size and shape through out the year. Beads have to be part of the page, but you do not have to cover every inch of the page in beads. Look here to find some of the pages completed this past year. You can also spend a couple of hours cruising through the 2007 BJP Blog to see some of the creations. It is a wonderful , supportive community.

Summer Flowers

2008-08-07T10:18:00.012-04:00

I have sand for dirt around my house. Really---sand. Sand that you would find at the beach. There are areas near by where they dig up the sand, put it in huge trucks and sell it to places hundreds of miles away. It is not easy growing flowers in sand. It's hard to keep them watered and fed. I try to add organic matter to enrich the beds, but it is a slow process. Day lilies seem to like the sand. The main problem with day lilies is that they bloom for a short time and by the first of August they are no blooms to be seen.

Here are some of day lilies from this summer:

There are a few other flowers I can grown in the sand like this Stokes Aster.
Flowers that last the summer have to be in pots in order to thrive

I have tried to grow tomatoes in pots. I have learned that putting them under the pine trees cause the tomatoes to be covered with pine sap. I've gotten a few tomatoes, but cleaning the pine sap off is interesting. We have a friend who has recently bought some land and moved her family and horses there. Perhaps she will have some extra "organic" material to share. I plan to grab a small trailer full and cover the flower beds for the winter.

Dogs just want to have fun

2008-08-04T08:57:00.007-04:00

This is Cody who turned 8 this July. He's a Lab/Golden Retriever mix, but really doesn't care for retrieving. He does love to play tug with his rope. He also loves water. There is a small pond in the back yard and he will wade in the shallow end to cool off and get a drink. I was afraid that the pond had a leak because it was often an inch or two low. Then I realized that a dog will carry out a bit of water on his fur and figure it's good to add fresh water. There is one gold fish in the pond.

Sky, who will be three in September, takes the job of retrieving serious. She has several of these rubber balls hiding in the backyard and in the house. Cody will chew the cover off of tennis balls, so we don't use them. We know sky has a bit of Australian Shepard in her, but have no idea why she looks like a miniature German Shepard. When questioned about her breed, we often say Carolina Shepard.She also thinks the pond is a great place to get a drink. They have a huge bowl of fresh water available, but there is something special about the taste of pond water. Maybe it is the fun of standing in the water bowl that makes the pond so attractive.

Each day is a new adventure when you share your life with dogs.

Elegant Expression

2008-08-02T15:39:00.005-04:00

The necklace above is called Elegant Expression. It was designed by Noriko Romanko published in the October, 2006 issue of Bead and Button. The pattern used two needles. Usually two needles are not a problem, but that technique did not work for me with this pattern. Her pattern had wonderful diagrams, so it was easier to switch to one needle. The thread path was changed a bit. I did use 8 pound Fireline because of the crystals and to give the piece more shape. I really like the way it turned out.

Happy Mother's day to a young mother of an 18 month old. The center is a Swarovski crystal in some shade of Topaz which is the birthstone of the baby. The mother's birthstone is pearls. The pearls used were a freshwater pearl that had a faint mauve cast to them. They were drilled at a funny angle that worked perfect for what i wanted. The necklace is a twisted, tubular herringbone weave. I'm still not certain that I managed to combine the pearls and topaz in a pleasing manner. It's hard to tell from the photo.

Return

2008-08-01T11:01:00.003-04:00

Darn, these blogs are hard to keep current. I love reading blogs, but I never seem to find the time to up date mine.

A current obsession is collecting eggs from the dragon cave and then trying to raise them to adult dragons.

This is my first adult. To see all of my dragons and eggs visit my scroll. A word of warning, you may soon find your self with eggs to hatch and babies to raise. I have no idea why I am collecting dragons, but it is fun.

new beadwork

2007-11-05T15:29:00.001-05:00

This is how my sea dragon necklace turned out. I used a teal AB bead for the core of the spiral. The loops are black with a copper triangle center. I really like the way it looks. The lampwork pendant is by Jeff Welsh. I love his work.
The next two bracelets are from a pattern in the April, 2006 Bead and Button magazine. It is a fun cuff to make and fun to wear. I always receive compliments when I wear one of them. The copper one goes well with my sea dragon.

I have also been working on my Bead Journal projects. September was finished weeks ago, but I am having trouble getting a good picture of it. October is underway and November is still in the planning stages. The pages are fun to work on, but they do seem to take time away from working on other beading. Several of the beautiful Swarovski raviolis. I love looking at them, but really need to do something with them.

Sea Dragon loves Sparklies

2007-09-23T11:05:00.002-04:00

My sister has a birthday this month and I wanted to give her something special. Jeff Welsh makes beautiful lampwork pendants including this great sea dragon. Big sis loves dragons and the ocean, so the sea dragon is perfect for her. I made a simple necklace using the basic spiral stitch. Dragons love sparkly things so there are 3mm indicolite Swarovski crystals in the spiral. The two inch long sections of spirals are separated by 6 mm indicolite and 4mm black diamond Swarovski crystals. Now I just need to get him in a box and in the mail to her.

Sailing the Seven Seas

2007-09-22T14:40:00.002-04:00

Sailing the Seven Seas was a longer journey than I anticipated. I love water whether it is in puddles, swimming pools, rivers, lakes or oceans, so exploring the Seven Seas is a natural choice for a page. It is my August page of the BJP.

Once again seven being considered a special or spiritual number is behind the designation of Seven Seas. It was hard to find a definitive original seven seas. One reference on the history of the Seven Seas said that all seven could be found in the Mediterranean. I guess the identity of the Seven Seas depended upon the sailor and the waters in which she sailed. The Seven Seas of the modern age include the North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, Indian, Antarctic, and Arctic Oceans.

Another important seven in my life that relates to water is my 23 foot sailboat, a Beneteau First 235. All boats produced in the US will have a hull identification number molded into the fiberglass on the stern of the boat. Among other things, this identifies the boat’s manufacture, date of manufacture, and the serial number of the hull. The identification number on my boat says it was the seventh Benteau First 235 made in the US. Naturally, it had to be included in my page on the Seven Seas. If you want to see a real Beneteau First 235 visit here

As for the rest of the page, I have no idea why I chose to show the seas at night. Perhaps it is the longing to be on the ocean at midnight with the stars stretching out from horizon to horizon. Dolphins have always been portrayed as a sailor’s friend, so it they had to come along for the journey.

This was a fun page even if it did take longer than I though it should. Tearing out lots of beads several times slowed me down a great deal. I tried once to ignore the desire to rip out lines of beads because they were going I the wrong direction. That resulted in having to tear out more beads than I would have had I just gone with my first thoughts. I know what my September page of seven is going to be and it will continue the theme of water.

2007-08-31T09:49:00.001-04:00

Meet Sky, Cody's little sister.

She will be 2 years old this fall. Her hobbies include chasing her ball, herding Cody, chasing her ball, stealing Cody's toys, chasing her ball, getting belly rubs. She has asked for a herd of sheep to keep in line.

Sky is a wonderful mix of dog breeds including Australian Shepard. We really don't have a clue as to what breeds make up Sky, but she does have a strong herding instinct. She is smaller than Cody and weighs in around 50 pounds. Her markings resemble a German Shepard and we often refer to her as a "Carolina Shepard".

In the picture you can see the dull gray color of the grass. There were 14 days in August that the temperatures reach 100 F or above. It was easier to let the grass go into a drought dormancy than try to keep it watered. I did keep my container flowers watered in hopes of fall blooms.

This is one dahlia that managed to bloom during the one of the hottest days.

We have had several thunder storms roam through the last few days bringing relief with rain and cooler temperatures. The one yesterday afternoon brought a downpour with small hail and lots of lightning. The cable modem was off line from yesterday until this morning.

I caught this little guy searching for dinner on a Marigold.

I have a great picture of a garter snake, but I know many people do not like snakes. I won't post the picture here, but here is the link that takes you to a picture of him.

I'm working on my August BJP. Keeping with my theme of Seven, it is about the Seven Seas. Once again the idea that 'seven' is a magical or spiritual number is a major factor behind the 'Seven Seas'. Just which seas make up the magical seven depends upon the time in history as well as the location.

More about the seven seas in a few days.

More lessons learned, more to learn

2007-08-13T19:15:00.001-04:00

July’s BJP provided several interesting lessons for me. Some I learned better than others. I think it is finished but then again it may not be. I still want to do something in the sky, but I am not sure anything more is needed. That seems to be a sign to stop.

My first page was completely covered in beads. This one I chose fabric to be part of the design. I used clear beads with colored thread for the seven colors of the rainbow. Cody had his seventh birthday in the seventh month of the seventh year of the 21st century. Cody is an all black dog. It was difficult to show any real detail with beads. I used matt black beads to outline him and to line a few details as his mouth and the curve of his back leg. He has a silver lined brown bead for his eye. His ears are two layers of beads. His favorite red ball is at his feet. He is looking up at the Rainbow bridge where all of his furry friends are waiting. I wanted to represent some of the wonderful dogs and cats I know waiting at the Rainbow Bridge. I just could not figure out a good way to do it. I still have a few ideas that might work out, but for now I am moving on to August.

I thought you might like to see how Cody deals with summer heat. We have a wading pool in the backyard. He likes to step in get a drink and then lay down. He will stick his muzzle under water and blow bubbles with his nose. He has asked Santa for a full sized pool.

Here is a close up of Cody blowing bubbles. Just as it is not easy to bead an all black dog, getting a good picture of one is hard, too.

Among my flowers

2007-08-12T19:46:00.000-04:00

This time of year there are many baby green anoles cruising my garden.

I love watching the little lizards scrambling among the leaves looking for little bugs to snack on. The little ones seem to get used to me taking their picture. If I am lucky enough to find them two days in a row, they will stay in the open for longer periods of time.

That is a big help because I am not the fastest or best photographer around. Many times I get the little guy in the frame, focused and then as I slowly press the shutter button, they zoom away.

Somewhere over the Rainbow

2007-07-22T19:53:00.002-04:00

My BJP theme is sevens. With July being the seventh month, there were many possible directions to go with this. I chose my male lab/golden retriever mix Cody to be one of the main elements. Cody was born in July of 2000. As of the seventh month of 2007 he is now 7 years old. That would be a great representation of seven, but there is more to this month’s page.

Traditionally a rainbow is considered to have seven colors: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, Indigo, and violet. Rainbows mean different things to each person. They are very special to me because they remind me of the wonderful pets that have shared my life and are now waiting at the Rainbow Bridge. If you haven’t heard of the Rainbow Bridge, you can read the whole story here. I warn you it might bring a tear to your eye as it does mine every time I read it. I also found a nice Flash presentation of the story here (this one is not good on slow connections). Steve & Diane Bodofsky have rewritten the story into a true poem format here. I’m not sure, but I think I like the original better.

I added the rainbow to my July page as a tribute to all the wonderful furry friends that have been in my life and are now waiting at the Rainbow Bridge. Cody is watching the rainbow because he has a couple of very good furry friends waiting there for him. I'll tell you about them another day.

To make the rainbow I used clear size 11 seed beads strung with embroidery floss. I was afraid that I would not be able to find the perfect colors for the rainbow all in the same size of beads. The embroidery floss has the right colors. I used two strands of the six strand floss and backstitched two beads on at a time. After the row was finished, I used a thinner needle with one thread of floss and went back through the whole row to add more color and to smooth out the row. I had to use the thinner needle because the beads were already pretty full of thread. I really like how the rainbow looks. The picture is farther down.

The next element of my page is turning out to be much more difficult than I first thought. That could be because I really wasn’t thinking of how to do it, but how it should look. Cody is a black dog with a black nose and dark brown eyes.

This is the first picture I used to get an outline of Cody on black felt. I even cut out a extra pair of little front legs out to add dimension to him just as I had saw on the blog of The Lone Beader. I have to confess that she is someone I greatly admire. I follow her different bead projects on her blog which you can get to by clicking here. She is so talented.

You are probably way ahead of me by now. There is no easy way to show the details of a black on black on black dog with black beads on felt. Even using extra pieces of felt to add dimension weren’t going to make that pose of Cody work. Isn’t if funny how the mind plays little tricks and makes you see what really isn‘t there? After many lousy sketches, I finally settled on a side view of Cody sitting with his head looking up just a bit. Now I have an outline that looks like a dog and I am hoping the lines of the beads inside the dog will add enough detail to make this work. I still don’t know how I am going to get his eyes to show up. I may need to use the clear beads with white thread.

Below is what I have at this point. A beaded rainbow and a felt dog.

Actually I have started beading the dog but don’t have a newer picture. Every two beads goes on after much thought and with care. I have never beaded this slowly, nor I have ever been pushed this far out of my comfort zone. I want to add more to the page, but that will have to wait until Cody is finished. Right now I can’t seem to plan past the next two black beads.

Thank you to all who commented on my work. It is so exciting to read them and know others are looking at my work. I also enjoy looking at everyone else’s work and reading about the projects. Thank you to all who share the techniques they are using. I am learning so much. Even describing simple things teach me so much.

June Page is Finished---finally

2007-07-08T15:10:00.001-04:00

I had a feeling that using a 7 by 7 inch square for my BJP page was going to require lots of beads and lots of tiny stitches to cover the whole thing in beads. It did. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the back. This is the first time I have tried using beads in this way. It is a very textural piece and I like that. I can close my eyes and "walk" the labyrinth with my finger by using the stepping stones to find the entrance and the beaded walls to keep me on the path.

I surrounded the labyrinth with the things that I would want around my own labyrinth if I was lucky enough to have one. The sound of moving water is soothing, so a near by stream would be perfect. I love flowers and would want them close at hand. I also hate shoes and would want the whole area covered in soft grass or moss so I could walk barefoot.

There is a whole list of things I could have done differently. The colors are what I like the least. I used the same colored beads for the labyrinth path as the area that surrounds it. The main difference between the two areas is the texture created by the stitches.

I read on another's BJP blog that they were unhappy with parts of their page and had planned to put it away for a bit. I think that is a good idea.

July's page is not going to be all beads! I want to try the other techniques I have seen so many beautiful projects. The main theme of July has developed to be the dogs in my life.

How does this relate to a study of seven? Cody is the black lab (actually he is a lab/golden retriever mix) in this picture. He was born in July of 2000. So he is 7 years old in the 7th month of 2007. The other dog is named Sky and is a mixed breed with some Australian Shepard. She has their short tail and wonderful energy. She also keeps asking for a flock of sheep to herd., but happily herds Cody and balls.

There is more to the July page. I want to work with the fabric and beads and see what happens. More of this page will be posted as it develops.

Still following the path

2007-06-22T09:16:00.003-04:00

I really like the way the labyrinth is turning out. I find myself moving my finger along the path. The carpet of beads that cover the path have a nice texture and the walls are still higher than the path so it is easy to stay between them. I have a feeling I may have to finish this in such a way I can keep it on my desk. That way I can “walk” the labyrinth even though I don’t have a full size one. Once the page is finished I will take a proper picture instead of just scanning it.

A mixture of greens, gold and brown seed beads are used in the pathway. I’m not sure what I am going to do with the rest of the square. Everyone says is that their beads tell them what to do. I am hoping mine speak up soon. I do have some flat, round black beads in the stash that will make nice stepping stones leading to the entrance. There is a lot of fabric to cover with beads, but the work goes faster than I thought it would. I do have a small sample square that I have tried various stitches on before working on the actual square. I have never used beads this way and am learning as I go. I am also leaning so much by looking at everyone’s blogs. I am already thinking of the July project and have an idea forming.

A seven circuit labyrinth is not difficult to draw. Begin with a cross in the center. Hmmm actually it would be better to look here for the directions as they are nicely drawn out. Try drawing one of your own, it is easy. There are many other types of labyrinths. This is a good place to see some of them. If you want to read more about the history of labyrinths, check out this page. Want to read more?

I really appreciate all the comments that have been left. I love looking at everyone's work and the different blogs. It's fun how this project has lead many of us to venture into the area of blogging, while others have been doing it for a long time. The blog is another step outside of my comfort zone. Sharing my progress, ideas, and thoughts with others is a bit scary. I am old enough to still think of the world wide web as mysterious, wondrous, and magical. It is a way for me to have friends in places I will never visit.

From my garden

2007-06-17T18:10:00.000-04:00

I love flowers and try to grow them every summer. Over the years I have found the ones I am most successful growing. Below are a few of the ones blooming right now.

I have a huge, old rosemary bush. These are their very small blooms. I love to brush against the rosemary as I walk by to release the wonderful aroma.

These day lilies have been around forever. It is not unusual to see them blooming along the sides of roads.

A beautiful deep lemon color, the petals gentle curve downwards.

The Stokes Aster is another flower that is easy for me to grow. It provided a huge showing of blooms in June. If I am diligent about dead-heading the old blooms I get a few more in July.

Last one for today. This is a gladiolus. I remember them from my father's garden.