So what have I been up to?

Here I am, sitting waiting for my class to start. It's actually every afternoon this week - and yesterday was really good. With all the stats classes I took, SEM wasn't one of them.

I have been making beads - like crazy! I'm doing a trunk show at Nomadic Notions in July, so I've been torching, torching, torching. Probably cranking out 6 to 8 sets every weekend. During the week, I try to take an hour after Tony has gone to bed and make materials - twisties, complex cane, encased case, etc. - to use in the weekend's work. It might not seem like it, but this saves a LOT of time when it comes to actually making the beads. People at bead shows invariably ask, "How long does it take to make a bead?" Well, once all the parts have been made, not very long. But a single complex cane or twistie can take 15-20 minutes to make. And, if I'm lucky, I get enough usable cane to use in three or four beads. Maybe.

This weekend I'm going to concentrate on focals. I've got a few goddesses, a few thimbles, but absolutely no bluebonnets and very few other type focals. So, tonight I'll probably start pulling the encased case for the bluebonnets. I use three or four different blue (basically very light to very dark) color combos on each bead to mimic the bluebonnet colors; I've also got to make a complex striped cane for the stems and leaves. And then the canes for the background paint brush. I'll be busy!