i know now...

as i was looking at my etsy shop today, i realized it has been 1 year since i put up my first listing.  wow...and have i learned a lot!!  not just about the etsy world but about behavior of molten silver, toxic chemicals, and... power tools, and so, i thought i would share some of the pearls of wisdom.  for starters, i learned that the stench of liver of sulfur hangs in the air for several hours after using it, so it goes without saying, don't use it right before guests are ringing the door bell.  it can be tricky convincing people you are not serving them sewage soaked rotten eggs for dinner when the kitchen reeks like that.  i know now!  you know the adage "measure twice, cut once"?  well it applies to metalsmithing too.  i learned to always look at an order twice (or 4 times) before irreversibly stamping letters into the precious metal.  did you know there are exactly 21 different ways to spell katelyn...or is it caitlin?  i know now!  what i have always known since my "shop" days back at central junior high school is that safety glasses, although not fashionable, are necessary when wielding high speed rotary tools.  however, i learned that a hair clip, bobby pin or even a pencil is needed to prevent that wayward lock of hair from becoming tightly wound on said rotary tool...oops!  the only pain from this incident was the humiliation of looking at myself in the mirror with a dremel knotted in my hair like one of those feather extensions, but a lot heavier!,  i know now...

peace,
k

wordy wednesday...

from a fellow etsian...

go for the gold...or the bronze...

wow!  where did this past month go?  can't believe it has been that long since my last post, but it has.  i can blame it on my kids, right???  they have been keeping me busy with everything swim followed by squeezing a summer's worth of fun and games into the last 2 weeks before school starts.  in all honesty, i wouldn't have it any other way and i am sure you all feel the same way when it comes to your kids.  our nights have consisted of watching the olympics and staying up way too late and then our days have started way too late by sleeping in.  it will be very painful come wednesday morning when the alarm goes off at 6! no regrets though because i love the summer games and the usa really showed the world some great competition.

despite all of the general summer busyness, or maybe i should say, laziness, i did find some time to play with metal clay and create some fun new combinations in my designs.  mixed metals are fun and have a bohemian, earthy kind of look and feel. i have oodles of pics to sort through before i can post here, on facebook and on etsy.  i really like the copper clay, bronze is great too, and with the price of gold, i found my new metals of choice.  have no fear though, i will always have silver in my line because nothing compares to the beauty of fine silver.  i will get things rolling on here again once the kids are in school.  until then...

peace,
k