Growing Up

My little furbaby is starting to look like a real dog. Just when he grows out of the cute puppy stage, we will have a new one to 'awww' over. Monty's prospective little brother is about 3 weeks old and has just opened his eyes. It will be great when there are two of them, and they don't need quite such undivided attention from us. Monty is definitely an attention leech. :) I have a few new beads waiting to photograph, and its market week this weekend. The beads for this new bracelet were inspired by Fox Glacier, that I was lucky enough to visit in January.

More new work...

I spent some time today updating my Etsy and Artfire accounts. I really want to get some momentum behind them, and I realise that I need to do a lot more on the promotions front. Participating in the forums for the sales venues is apparently a good start, so I've been getting my feet wet today.

Anyway, I intend to post quite a bit of new stock over the next couple of days - here is a bead set and a bracelet that went up today...

Spring has sprung...

... well, in my glass it has - and all my American glassy friends are talking about the slightly warmer weather (although some are still getting snow!). But I made some purple 3D flowers last week which have just gone up on Etsy, which are definitely spring-like.

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Unfortunately, we are a long way from springtime here in Melbourne, although we have had some lovely Autumn weather lately. I only have 2 days before I am back at work, so I might have to make some more time to torch this weekend - I think some more flowers might be on the agenda.

Artists Spotlight on 'Heather's Ramblings'

My good friend Heather has included me in her weekly Artists Spotlight on her blog Heather's Ramblings . Heather is another glass beadmaker, jewellery designer etc and also writes a blog on skincare where you can get all your questions answered! I wanted to return the linky love with a heads up to Heather's Artfire store, where she has a range of beautiful goods, from lampworked beads to hand died silk ribbon, including this lovely necklace, Purple Fantasy.

Ups & downs

I've been on holidays this week, so life is at a less hectic pace at the moment. I've even managed to torch several times in the last few days, and I'm intending to tomorrow as well. I'll also make some time to take some photos of some new pieces, so I'll have new work to post later in the week. I made a set of 3D flowers today that I'm quite happy with....

The last few days have been a bit of an emotional roller coaster. I've spent a bit of time with a very close friend of mine, which has been a joy. Not so joyful is the fact that she is moving to the UK for a couple of years on wed, so we've been packing for her, having farewell drinks etc. It's been quite weird, to have so much fun, and then feel so miserable at the end of it. I don't want to pull her down, it is such an exciting trip for her to undertake, but its hard to feel entirely positive about it when I know how terribly I am going to miss her.

It reminds me of when one of my bridesmaids moved interstate 10 years or so ago... I was so distressed to have my closest friend move so far away, and while we can pick up where we left off when we get together, there is years in between each brief visit. I think a part of my mind is assuming its that final - that I'll hardly ever see her again. But I know she will be home in a few years, with some wonderful experiences under her belt - that is my wish for her anyway.