Matt at the majestic Mount Rushmore and here's Sara at the world famous Wall Drug in South Dakota! (with another cowboy!)

Remember how wonderful and proud it felt to get a new box of beautiful crayons? ... "Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up."...Pablo Picasso
Wouldn't it be nice to just take-a-day-off and "color"?

Portland, Oregon!

My son, Matt, is in his second week of Clinical Internship in beautiful Portland, Oregon! He is at the Shriner's Hospital for Children. I am so very proud of him, and always have been. I miss him. I know he is doing great and important work there at Shriner's...They are fortunate to have him there and he is lucky to be doing an internship with them. I'm hoping to go out and see him in July. Isn't this a beautiful picture?

Chevron Bracelet...

This Chevron Bracelet was fun to make. There are two different 4mm Czech Firepolish and two different size 11 Miyuki Japanese beads used along with additional 4mm Czech round beads used in this bracelet. The interplay of the different colors is unique to this bracelet composition.

Click on the above picture if you would like to see more detail...

"Mad About Plaid"...

I have had repeated requests for my "Mad About Plaid" bracelet, so I am going to teach a class in May at Bead Haven in Cedar Rapids. It's a fun colorful bracelet that reminds me of the "Madras" blouses and shirts that were so popular in the 60's and 70's. Groovy...

People that have the gift to gab, never seem to know when to wrap it up...

I went to the movies today with Matt and Sara. We went to see "Blades of Glory." ...fun movie. It was so nice spending time with them.

They also set up my patio furniture today on my deck - so snow is officially over, isn't it?

A New Way To See A Wonder...

The Grand Canyon Skywalk - 4,000 feet above Grand Canyon! And...a glass floor! Awesome - I want to be there!!

Go Cards!

It's Opening Day or rather "Opening Night" for the St. Louis Cardinals! St. Louis hosts the New York Mets, tonight 7 pm - see it on ESPN. Chris Carpenter starts!

Many Gracious and Talented Beaders...

This above photo is just one bead quilt that will be auctioned off this year at the Bead and Button Show in Milwaukee. The squares of the quilt are contributed from the hearts of many talented and gracious beaders. It is part of the Bead-It-Forward project for the Breast Cancer Auction. Jeanette Shanigan coordinates the creation of the beaded quilts that will be auctioned off at the Bead and Button Show to benefit Bead Artists Against Breast Cancer. As of March 26, Jeanette has received 255 butterfly squares! She sews 30 squares together to form a bead quilt - seven quilts are now completed and she is working on the eighth. She fully expects to have ten or eleven bead quilts for the show auction. Jeanette is an amazing lady and beadwork artisan from Alaska. I have been honored to have taken a class from her at a past Bead and Button Show. You can always go to: www.beadandbuttonshow.com/bnbshow/ if you'd like to know more about the show. At this site, you can find all kinds of wonderful things about the show. You can even see a couple of videos concerning the show.
Gracious contributors for the above amazing quilt include Jean McElhaney, Sue Smith, Jeanette Shanigan, Barbara Todd, Deanna Ward, Karen Palmer, Jeannie Steedle, Kaye Lervick, Penny Round, Christin Travers, Kathy Wilke, Pat Sohns, Liz Thompson, Renate Hotchkiss, Crystal Fox, Molly Rice, Lyn Johnson, Rosalyn Warg, Pam Davies, Trevor Davies, Karen Durnian and Kate Hoohuli.

Well, I didn't "celebrate" National Cleaning Week today like I thought I would...but tomorrow is another day! I think this gal has just "celebrated" a little too much.......

It's a very rainy day today-and looks like it might be that way the rest of the week. I took a needed break away from beading today but I'll be back at it tonight. Did you know this is National Cleaning Week...I'll celebrate tomorrow.

Even The Squirrels...

Even the squirrels are loving the past two beautiful days!

Happy Monday...

Freeform Embroidered Cuff...

This is a bead embroidered cuff that I recently made. A metal bracelet blank is sandwiched between the embroidered top and the Ultra-suede bottom. A decorative edging is done with Miyuki size 11 beads. The top has assorted cabochons of dichroic glass which are beveled in peyote stitch. (Click on the above photo to gaze into the beauty of the dichroic glass and see greater detail.) I also incorporated Czech faceted glass, Japanese drop beads and assorted sizes of Miyuki seed beads. I love doing the freeform pieces because I never know for sure how the bead arrangement will evolve and where the design will take me...

It's "rain gear" for today!

Have You Ever Seen This?

Try to read the paragraph below, then consider what it actually says. The brain is a wonderful thing, isn't it?

Aoccdrnig to a rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in waht ordre the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoetnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porbelm. Tihs is bcusease the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe and the biran fguiers it out aynawy. WOW.

I saw this at a "Jimmy John's" restaurant in Bettendorf, Iowa. My goodness what you can learn while eating a "Beach Club" sandwich!

Beachcomber Bracelets...

These beautiful bracelets were created by my friend Julie, who brought them to Bead Haven this evening...aren't they just stunning!! They have such great color and texture...so very cool. Click on the pictures to zoom in! I just had to share the pictures that I took tonight of these fantastic pieces of wearable art...

Flower Lariat...

This is my finished Flower Lariat necklace. It wasn't hard...just labor-intensive. Can you spot the grasshopper? ladybug? butterfly? and a bunch of other "Springy" things I threw in? Click on the above picture to zoom in! AND, can we ever have too much fringe??

Dobry Den! (Hello!).......

" Happy St. Joseph's Day"...but you Czechs out there already knew that, didn't you? It is-the wearing of the red today! Per chance, is there anyone from the Czech Republic visiting my site? My maiden name is Barta-there are lots of Bartas in the Czech Republic! Jak se mate? (How are you?)
...Today is also the "Return of the Swallows to Capistrano". Legend has it that the swallows took refuge in the Mission San Juan Capistrano from an irate innkeeper who destroyed their muddy nests. The swallows return each year, to the old ruined church on or around St. Joseph's Day, March 19, knowing they will be protected within the mission's walls.

Many of you know that my home is located facing a park...coming home tonight I counted 10 beautiful deer! What elegant and graceful creatures they are! 10!

Happy Birthday, Jerry Lewis...81 years young today!

Chevron Bracelet...

What a great group of creative beadweavers tonight taking the class at Bead Haven! The color combinations of Wendy, Julie, Shirlee, Terri, and Cindi were so beautiful and all so different! They are awesome. They worked so hard - no breaks for these gals. I wanted to take some photos tonight but they wanted me to wait till they were finished! So...okay, I'll wait. Part II will be next Thursday night, so look forward to the bracelet photos then!

Daisy Variations...

Thinking Spring? Daisies - my favorite flower! Simple Daisy chain variations will be offered in April at Bead Haven in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It's a fast, colorful stitch to do!

Strawberry Lampwork...

I've had these Strawberry Lampwork beads for a while...tonight they finally evolved into earrings.

Turquoise Pendant....

I acquired this 2 1/2 " slice of beautiful turquoise this weekend. It was screaming to be wrapped with 18 gauge sterling silver and incorporated into a simple necklace with a hammered sterling silver swirl at the bottom. Click on the above pic to see the stone's unique detailing...

This is my, "Yepeeeee-Yahooooo, It's 50 Degree Weather Dance" !!

What a Freeform Delight...

Yesterday I traveled to Bettendorf, Iowa to teach a class in Freeform Peyote. The class took place at Your Design, Ltd - a delightful and fun bead store located in Cumberland Square. The gals did such an impressive job developing their Freeforms! It was so great seeing what the gals did - I was impressed...and they were so much fun! Below you will find pictures I took of each person's beautiful work. (Click on the pictures to see closer detail.) Here is Marla, Chere, Cindyann, and Janice....

Marla's Freeform in Progress:

Chere's Freeform in Progress:

Cindyann's Freeform in Progress:

Janice's Freeform in Progress:

Lampwork Pendant...

Here is a pendant I made today using gold-filled wire and one of Melissa's beautiful lampwork beads.

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Question...

Did you know March is National Noodle Month? (I know you've been wondering.)

Chevron Flowers...

The Chevron Chain Bracelet is finished. It was my "work in progress" posted a few days earlier. I like the way it turned out. I chose 2 colors of 4mm Czech firepolish beads, 1 color of 4mm Czech round beads, and 2 colors of size 11 Miyuki Japanese beads. The 4mm round beads really interplay nicely with the 4mm firepolish beads. I had not done chevron stitch before so it was an interesting and fun journey seeing how the bracelet evolved.

What a nice time we all had at Bead Haven's March Madness! Cristina's PMC and Melissa's lampwork was just awesome! It was so nice to see old friends and share ideas. Hope you are one of the lucky winners of Cindi's cool prizes...check her website if indeed you are a lucky winner!

Work In Progress...

This is an example of a Chevron beadweaving stitch that I have been working on last evening and this morning. It needs a decorative edging yet and closure. Click on the pic to get a closer look. I think I need to get away from it for a while and come back to it with fresh eyes... I need to get some zzzzz......... It's not the greatest picture - my camera battery is fading, too...

It's Friday!!!

This Day in History...

Yellowstone, the nation's first national park was establish on March 1, 1872. Native Americans had lived and hunted in this region for hundreds of years before the first Anglo explorers arrived. Abundant game and mountain streams teaming with fish attracted the Indians to the region, though the awe-inspiring geysers, canyons, and gurgling mud pots also fascinated them. Yellowstone National Park is a favorite to millions of visitors each year.