Artisans' Collective Part 2

We are still on our late winter holiday.

I have to admit that I'm getting a bit antsy

to return home and hit the bench.

(No future in nature photography, but I snapped this outside my folks' place)

Vacation means lots of activities for my girl,

which equals long, long naps during the afternoon.

This gives me a chance to email, network, tend

to my shop, and blog.

For today's nap time blogging, I present the next 9 members of

Artisans' Collective, a smashing new team on Etsy.

1. Cutiepie Company

2. Duende

3. Dvora Schleffer

4. Eclu

5. Elin

6. Emma Lamb

7. Fink

8. Gillian Bates

9. Go Monkey Design

One Down, One To Go

Week one of our late winter vacation has come and gone. How can that be?

If anyone knows how to slow down time,

just let me know, OK?

Here's a little peek at our first week in the Sunshine State.

a yummy pina colada

yes, I'm sketching at the beach

insane weather one evening.....

tornado watch, we are just slightly north of Riomar

little toes with sparkly nail polish and sprinkled with sand

Beach, Burn, and Cupcakes

Away from the bench and cold we are.

Ahh....

Nothing like a break from the long, gray New England winter.

Of course, first thing we did was play in the sand and collect seashells.

And yours truly got a rippin' burn.

I'll never learn.

Even though we are miles and miles away from the studio, my Etsy shop is still open.

And I'm doing business as well!

Also, a Quench piece has also made an appearance on Craftgawker.

And lastly, a sweet treat.

We happened upon a cupcake shop today called Frostings.

Oh heavens!

Vintage candies, homemade cupcakes, old-fashioned lollipops....

my girl was thrilled to get her own for dessert!

Vacation is good!

This Week's Doings

Ah, chipping away at the to-do list! Finally, I shipped this consignment order to OOP! in Rhode Island. Now, I am working on 2 custom orders, more inventory for my next show, and squeezing in a bit of yardwork here and there. Be gone, cursed crabgrass!

A impromptu trip to Peaks Island on Tuesday proved to be a much needed mini adventure for our family. We enjoyed a pleasant ferry ride, a hearty lunch, cold beers, and scenic views of Casco Bay on the veranda at the Inn on Peaks Island.

We hope to explore our Maine some more this month before school starts!

Vacation, Circus, and Mums

For students and teachers in Maine this past week, it was the cherished April vacation. Without April vacation, schools would be a vast wasteland of wishful thinking daydreamers and irritated teachers. As with every April vacation, we make the trek to my husband's native land of Long Island, New York...and the very best leg of this journey is the ferry ride across Long Island Sound. We were blessed with light breezes, calm seas, warm sunshine, and a happy, rested child for our cruise...and as you can see from the picture, a light load of passengers...we had this side of the ferry to ourselves!





Once back home here in Maine, my sister and I treated our little ones to the Kora Shriner Brother's circus. While part of me abhors the circus (namely the rumored inhumane treatment of the animals), the mother part of me delighted in my daughter's face as she absorbed the sounds, sights, tastes (she did not care for the cotton candy, but ate a whole box of popcorn herself!), and smells of the circus. I think I watched her more than I watched the show at hand!!

Lastly, I have these pendants progressing towards completion fro Mother's Day. I should have them listed by tomorrow afternoon. Simple and handmade with a touch of filigree for the mums out there who take their jewelry with less bling.

Home

Ahhh. Home. Yes, our time in Florida was magical and invigorating, but coming home to our snowy state, warm home, and daily routine is so very comforting. Many thanks to our hosts, Nannie and Grampa! Here's a photo summary of our vacation!

Feeding the giraffes at the Brevard Zoo

Food and spirits!

The Fun Fountain

Patio Night lights

Gator seeking on the Stumpknocker Tours

Back to the studio this week to finish a few commissions and start NEW WORK! I have a sketchbook bursting the bindings full of new designs and collections. I also picked up some pearls and fossil coral from a dealer....I'm very excited to incorporate these lovelies into earrings!

5 things I'm loving right now:

~home

~a safe flight

~clean sheets

~a sleeping child

~my Florida memories!

Relaxing...

The sun, breeze, surf, and sand has renewed my soul. The temperatures are chilly in Florida, but not as frigid in our home state of Maine (we decided that we really miss Daddy and the dogs, but not the below zero days!). Days have been filled with playgrounds, walks, beaches, and naps. Nights are spent chatting in front of the fireplace with a glass of Shiraz followed by a hearty meal.

Quench Metalworks has been busy, too! Urged by friends and family, I opted not to put my shop on vacation mode. Quench has been on a bit of a roll as of late...closing my shop would have put a stop to that!! I packed all my pieces, postcards, and business cards into my carry-on and successfully passed through airport security. Was it worth it, you ask? YES! I had several sales this week!!! I also discovered that one of my rings is in the Over $100 Etsy Gift Guide. Things are good. Very, very good, indeed!

24 hour vacation

Providence is lovely, especially in the fall. Ornamental grasses with their full furry flowers, leaves scattered on the sidewalks, brilliantly painted Greek Revival homes (much like my friend's where we stayed) adorned with pumpkins, mums, and kale. Ahhh...

24 hours later, I'm back home. Refreshed? No, as the trip is 4 hours, one way. Refueled? Yes. Old friends, good conversation, and great food (I had ALL my favorites...starting THE diet today). However, the highlight of my 24 hour vacation? A phone call home. My 2 yo daughter told me with bubbling enthusiasm about her day with Daddy. I caught all the important words in her babbling run-on sentence: apples, wagon, horsies, neigh-neigh, yee-haa! Piecing them together, I concluded that they went apple picking at an orchard and got a horse drawn wagon ride to boot! To finish our conversation, she told me that she missed me and, in her adorable pronunciation, wuv you, mama. ~sigh~

Before I left for my mini vacation, I introduced my girl to watercolors. She loved the process of wetting her brush and swirling in the paint, wetting the brush again, swirling in the paint again, wetting her brush...you get the idea. Even though very little painting was done, she was still mastering a skill, a tool, that will aid her in the painting to come. She delighted to discover the water changed colors as she swirled and wetted her brush. Of course, I changed the water several times in order to avoid that unavoidable murky gray concoction.

When I sit down at my bench today, rather than cranking out finished pieces one after another, I will choose a technique and work to master and explore that technique. Today will be less about production and more about discovery. What will you discover today?