l.a. in october

I spent the weekend at the L.A. fashion mart for work, viewing spring styles for ’10, and I’ve been scrambling all week to catch up! Amazing what kind of craziness can happen when you slip out of your world for three days.

In between appointments, I did get to spend time with my friend Brook, who is lucky to live in this land of sunshine and flowers. We took a walk down the beach before dinner on Sunday, and I enjoyed the nautical compositions that trace a line between sand and water. I can see them all as bracelets, or pendants, or rings, and I’m home in the cold rain now, dreaming of seaweed in silver…

new

My new pieces are up on etsy! I'll be posting more this week...

handmade nation

The Handmade Nation documentary will be out on DVD November 3, 2009. I can’t wait! You can get your own copy here.

applefest

Thanks to everyone who stopped by my booth at Weston’s Applefest this weekend. I am so grateful for all of the support and positive feedback about my work. I’ll be posting new styles from this show on my etsy site this week.

Many, many thanks to my family who let me borrow tables and a tent, helped with last minute display preparation, transportation, set up and takedown and general maintenance of my frazzled little mind. You all kept me sane!

Weston, MO is such a fun little town. We enjoyed a break in the rain, and even some sunshine on Sunday. My booth was close to the stage, and while it was incredibly loud, we enjoyed the entertainment. I have to admit that the bouncy banjo sound is delightfully contagious. My favorite group from the weekend was The Prairie Acre, a bluegrass band from Lawrence Kansas.

I didn’t have time to explore the stores, but did enjoy a lovely cup of tea at Artemis, and a tasty vegetarian squash stew of sorts from the Vineyard Restaurant’s booth.

We spent Saturday night at Saint George Hotel (the building in the front right of the photo), an historic site. The space was clean and comfortable, and after our very long Saturday we enjoyed a drink and live music in the wine bar, complete with ghost stories. Our room is apparently haunted by one of Weston’s ladies who, um, ‘worked’ the hotel. If we were visited in the night, I was too exhausted to notice!

small stones

Three weeks to go before Weston’s Applefest! Little plastic bags filled with finished pieces keep pilling up, and I took time this weekend to play in between soldering and hammering to-dos.

The lovely little beads above were born of scrap silver. I squirrel away filings, destroyed creations, and any extra pieces of metal as I work. These little bits were piled into a well in my charcoal block, and heated until they melted and pooled together.

It was delightful.

…until I had to drill the holes, which demanded deep breathing and zen-like cursing. (Do zen masters curse? I would.) Eventually I was able to line them all up into this row of uneven, textured beads, each like a small stone. I can’t explain how incredibly happy they make me.

Below are two of the beads decorating a simple, curved earwire.

new book

Need an end of summer read? I have a new addition to my bookshelf, The Zamler’s Last Stand, a first novel by our friend Matt Caldwell. Finishing a book is a seriously cool accomplishment, but most importantly, Zamler’s is a wonderful coming of age tale. The story is complex and human, mixing friendship, baseball, and mystical Judaism against the New York skyline.

ps22 makes me happy

This makes me seriously happy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h0FPZolbYns

NPR interview with Mr. B, ps22's teacher: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=112336166