Burning CDs

I have discovered that the middle of the night is an ideal time to burn CDs, print their labels, and slap those puppies on - while simultaneously browsing Etsy (i.e., Temptationsy.) I could spend a gajillion dollars on that darned site.

I have this obsession with finding the perfect ring to wear. Me. Who doesn't wear rings. Who takes them off when I DO wear them because they feel weird. But if I found the perfect ring, it would be perfect and I'd wear it nonstop. Right?

But I digress. Here's the CD label I designed. I'm happy with it - simple, easy to read, and streamlined.

And here are some of the rings I covet...

From June:
If you're a regular reader of this blog, you've already met our crazy dog, Winston. Yesterday I picked up a $3 stuffed duck from Big Lots, and gave it to him last night. OMG. He is obsessed with this stuffed duck. Last night, while Jill and I were trying to work on Bead & Button stuff, he was putting the thing on our feet, wanting us to throw it for him. Over and over and over. And over. It got to the point where he as panting for breath, but he would not quit. Over and over and over.

When we tried not throwing it, he and Mr. Duck would jump into one of our laps without warning. And I have a tray in my lap with over a thousand dollars of 2 mm crystals that I'm counting out. By this time the duck is completely wet and slimy with Winston saliva. Not only would he jump on our lap, but then, he would try to climb up so he could put the duck IN OUR FACE. "What's the matter Mom, can't you SEE the duck that I need you to throw for me? It ain't gonna throw itself, you know."

When I went to bed, he climbed up into bed with me - with the duck of course. Winston never sleeps in bed with me. He has a bed next to mine and he almost always sleeps in that. But no. In bed. With me. And the duck. And periodically through the night he would start squeaking the damn thing. I guess it just made him happy.

Today Winston is STILL OBSESSED WITH THE DUCK. This is just crazy! Does anyone want to come to my house and throw a duck for a while?

5am - time for bed!

I gotta say, the Bead & Button Show may just do me in this year. I am making so many kits. And I am so tired. And there's only 22 more days until the show begins. That may seem like a long time to you - but I'm barely a quarter of the way through the kit making. As a matter of fact, most of my humongous supply orders won't arrive until next week! But I keep slogging away at it, and I do see glimpses of progress here and there.

You guys know how I love to bite off more than I can chew for the fun adrenalin rush I get from panic, right? So guess what we decided to change about our kits yesterday? (And please note: this was a joint mother/daughter decision, so I can totally blame Mom for leading me down this path. Well, her and Marcia DeCoster and Nikia Angel. More on that in a moment.) The big announcement is....we're going to move to providing the instructions on CD instead of paper copies. No more printing reams and reams of paper! Farewell burning through laser toner cartridges like nuthin' at $200 a pop!

Hello new set of challenges! Like figuring out how long it's gonna take me to burn all those CDs. And designing labels for the CDs. And printing the labels for the CDs. And figuring out a new storage system for the CDs.

Honestly, I'm excited about the switch. In the long run it will be more cost effective and more time effective and certainly more storage effective. Plus you've got to keep up with the Jones'! Or in this case, the DeCosters and the Angels.

It all started a few days ago when Marcia posed a question to all the fellow kit makers out on Facebook about we each make our kits. It was an interesting thread for me to compare my ways with theirs, and in the mix I discovered that I was coming late to this instructions on CD party! I asked Marcia if she got much dissent from her customers over the CDs and she said very very little. Nikia Angel (Buy the Kit) says she's in the process of switching over all her kits to CDs. Since that's the way the trend is going, I think it only makes sense for Tapestry Beads to jump on the bandwagon too.

At Bead & Button next month, we'll have mostly CDs, but will still have some paper copies for those who would prefer the instructions the old fashioned way. It's going to be a bit of a test market for us. But I do see us moving to all CDs in the future unless there's mass mutiny at the show. Don't get any ideas, you rabble rousers who read this blog and will be attending the show!

My work for the day is done. Time to recharge. I'll be dreaming of burning CD after CD after CD....zzzzzzzzzzzzz

No fun without photos

As I've been reading through all the various blogs I follow, I realized how stingy I've been lately with photos! But here's the thing: first off, I haven't been beading! No new designs in ages. I do have a bunch of ideas and partial bits and pieces floating around, but until I spend a few days beading, I got nuthin'. Secondly...um, how do I put this? I can't find my camera's batter charger. You've met me, right? So you KNOW that I'm cluttered and chaotic and frequently put things down in a "safe spot" never to be seen again. I know it's here. Somewhere safe. Very very safe. And as soon as I find it, I'll get you some photos. In the meantime, here's a teeny tiny monkey.

One bead...two beads...

My life has become a massive assembly line. For the next 27 days, I will be consumed by the myriad of mindless tasks that constitute kit assembly. My brain gets a workout only as I'm trying to calculate how much of what goes into which baggie, and trying to make sure everything is getting done. I've barely left the house in a week. There's something rather Kafka-esque about the whole predicament - something along the lines of "be careful of what you ask for!"

But the good news is that I have the new Netflix disc that turns your Wii game console into a instant streaming DVD player. I'm not sure that's what my brother had in mind for the Wii when it was this year's Christmas gift, but hey! Now I can go back and watch all the seasons of Dexter while I work away, among other things.

Been there, done that

I'm home! Since we last talked, I flew off to Denver and arrived in the middle of a seriously lousy spring storm. My favorite part was when the rental car lady sent me to the LAST car in the LAST row for my own vehicle as 35mph winds and driving rain pelted me in the 34 degree temperatures (can't even imagine what the wind chill was.) I was hauling two suitcases, one with a broken wheel. And I might have said some very bad words in that moment, but they were necessary and appropriate to the situation.

Luckily, things got better from there. I was still dragging from having been ill last week so my energy level wasn't what it usually is, but let's face it - when you're at a bead show, it's hard to not have a good time! The Rocky Mountain Bead Society puts on a heck of a show with great vendors and demos and classes and door prizes. I'll definitely be back next year!

So now I'm home again, and facing the BIG ONE. Yup. The Bead & Button Show is just 36 days away. (I've been having a lot of fun torturing the other instructors with a daily countdown on Facebook.) The volume of kits I'm needing to make is staggering and it will quite literally take an entire month to do it. Thank goodness I'm the freaky kind of personality who doesn't mind the monotony of kit assembly tasks. And I know I have a large group of beady friends here who are willing to step in and help when I need it. Right now the biggest task is simply getting the beads and supplies ordered and here.

Speaking of Facebook, are you my Facebook friend? I'd love it if you'd friend me!
http://www.facebook.com/jill.wiseman

Bye Miami - Hello Denver!

My weekend in Miami went by MUCH too fast! The good news is that I get to go back in December, but I'm getting ahead of myself with that.

This was certainly one of the more interesting shows I've attended in the last few years for a number of reasons. First, my booth was right next door to the lovely, sassy ladies of the South Florida Jewelry Guild, and they are a riot! Each day a new group arrived to spice things up and rustle up more laughter. We got along like peanut butter and jelly, and I'm happy to say they are letting me come back the weekend before Christmas for three days of classes. And giggles. Beads and giggles always seem to go together, don't they???

I also got to spend some quality time with the amazing Anna Draeger, a fellow seed bead designer, and one of the editors at Bead & Button Magazine. Anna and I have known each other in passing for years, but never really had time to get to know one another. In Miami we quickly rectified that situation, and cemented our friendship with a crazy fun night on South Beach, dancing the evening away... Her brand new book, Crystal Brilliance, has just been released, and it's a winner! So many new projects I'm dying to tackle. Sigh. Where is the TIME??

Monday was a rushed trip to the airport that almost left me missing my flight home. I was literally in the security line hearing them page my name at the gate that was just beyond. I begged a few folks to let me cut in front of them, and managed to sneak on board with seconds to spare. No, don't ask why I was running that late.

By the time I got home 3 hours later, I realized I was getting sick AND had an eye infection coming on. AGH. So since then I've done very little but sleep. I fit in a quick trip to the doctor earlier today because the eye isn't getting better on it's own fast enough for me. Especially since I'm leaving again Thursday - this time for Denver!

Yup. Denver and the Rocky Mountain Bead Society Bazaar, here I come! Last year was my first time at this particular show and it was just wonderful. Really great vendors, and a good crowd of folks. Many amazing classes. So pretty please, come visit if you're anywhere nearby this weekend!

After I get home again Monday, the plan is for non-stop Bead & Button Show prep for the next four weeks straight. But maybe I'll sleep for a solid day first. Yeah. And a massage. And THEN kits.

Miami madness

And the show hasn't even begun!

I flew to Miami with no troubles on Wednesday night, and man do I feel lucky! Everyone I know who flew in on Thursday had delayed planes, missed connections, and all sorts of traveling mishaps. My biggest issue has been that I managed to leave my toiletries bag back at home. AARGH. Walgreens and CVS have perfected the art of building on every few blocks, however, and saved the day.

So my main mission today was simple: retrieve the boxes I shipped ahead from the hotel and lug them to the convention center that's attached to the hotel by way of a stroll through a wholesale merchandise mart, filled with more purses and glittery faux jewelry than I've ever seen in one place. Get the table set up. And then bead for a few hours as there are samples I need to mail off next week that need finishing.

Got all that first part accomplished, no problem. But then it all went nutty. I had to make a run to the bank. Got caught in traffic when President Obama landed in Miami and they started closing down streets for the motorcade. I talked with friends for a while, then had to go pick up a lost and wayward traveler in from the Ft. Lauderdale airport. Rounded out the night with a great group of friends parked in the hotel lobby bar.

There's always tomorrow for that beading....