Practical Magic Post and Drawing

Cackle, cackle, cackle, hoo, hoo, hahahahahah ...

Sometimes, I like to dress up like a witch. Not a real witch. A fake witch. You see, dressing up like Elphaba is the best way we REAL witches know to throw off any suspicions of our craftiness.


Unfortunately, it is not like the ending of the movie Practical Magic where you can come out and everyone supports you. There are truly vicious, mean, evil witch hunters out there and we ALL know what witch hunters do to witches. The most disappointing, but eye opening, vacation memory for me was visiting Salem and The Salem Witch Museum. Salem is like witch Disneyland. Everything is for show and there are an awful lot of fake witches there. And The Salem Witch Museum reminds us, in a very cheesy way, why we witches must pretend it is all pretend and cheese it up. Nobody wants to to end up like Joan of Arc.

So here is my favorite fake "witch" memory. Me and my sister-in-law wearing our disguises for Halloween at our first annual Halloween Hullabaloo, which ended up being the only Halloween Hullabaloo.


And last night I finished a series of witch in disguise ATC cards. These will be incorporated into soldered pendants and sold in my Etsy shop.


Before I forget, follow my blog and comment that you are so I can enter you in a Practical Magic drawing. The winner will receive one of my soldered pendants with their choice of my ATC witches! Tell me in your post which witch is your favorite - the witch at the cauldron, the owl, or the Jack-o-Lantern witch.

Have fun visiting other parties and thanks for stopping by!

I love this treasury!

Diana with Crop Circle Clay has curated a beautiful treasury. When I saw it and read her words, I was deeply moved. A lot of times I feel I need to be more mindful of certain feelings and thoughts that I allow to occupy my mind for longer than they should. When a situation concerns me or a person upsets me, I think about it A LOT. I analyze it and waste way too much time on it. What I need to do is spend more time releasing those thoughts and feelings from my mind. My life is full of love and beauty. Static caused by insignificant others can float on.
Thank you, Diana for including me in this warm and mindful treasury!


Diana makes gorgeous pottery. A current favorite of mine is this mug! I put one of Diana's mugs on my birthday list. :o) Visit her shop to see more of her wonderful work.

Studio Jill Recycled Snippets of Wearable Art

East Valley Artisans member, Jill Helms, created this delightfully cute treasury she calls "Lots-O-Dots." Jill is a very talented artisan and featured my polka-dot pendant in her lovely curation. She also featured several other EVA members, including:
Cocomi
JeansBeads
MudHandChan
Thanks, Jill for making an awesome EVA filled treasury!

Jill creates earrings and artwork out of recycled aluminum can snippets. She currently has several pairs of earrings available in her Etsy shop. I have a fondness for blue, so I am really liking her Blue Energy Recycled Can Earrings. Visit her shop to see more!

Home from Telluride

We're back! We got home from Telluride on Sunday night. No matter how amazing the place is, it is always so nice to get home and sleep in your own bed.

The Sugar Thieves played two hours Friday night at The Llama in Telluride. It was a night time event on a side stage at The 16th Annual Telluride Blues and Brews Festival. The baby was tired from the car ride and needed to get back to the hotel, so my teenager and I only got to stick around for three songs. The band sounded and looked phenomenal for at least those three songs. Ha ha! The Sugar Thieves are a really amazing band. I am not just saying that because I am the bass players wife. He has been in bands I don't like and I if I don't like it I don't say anything at all. But, they are so much fun to listen to. Meridith has an amazing, amazing voice! Mikel writes some really wonderful tunes, plays some funky guitar and has Tom Waits style vocals that compliment Meridith's sultry sound perfectly. Then there is the band to top it off. They are all extraordinary musicians! I love how Jeff looks like he is always having so much fun while playing with this band. Next year, we are looking forward to being on the main stage at Telluride Blues and Brews.
On Saturday, we were in and out of the festival. They were serving lunch and dinner backstage so we made sure we were there for feeding time and caught some of the other bands playing. Of course I was checking out all of the vendors to see what crafty things were selling. Perhaps I will put in an application for next year since we will be there anyway. As usual, they were selling festive tie-dye and Eldon got a blue tie-dye hat to protect his bald little head from the sun. Perhaps he will get more use out of it than his festival Onsie we bought him earlier this year that is already a wee bit snug. Even though we were enjoying the festival, it is just too hard not to do some exploring in a place that beautiful so we left the fest and took a ride on the gondola and walked around town checking out the cute little houses. Good times with the family!

The Sugar Thieves take on Telluride

We are getting ready to head out for Telluride Blues and Brews Festival. My husband is the bass player for the Sugar Thieves and they are part of the amazing lineup at the festival. I am so ready to take in some great music and the gorgeous scenery of Telluride, CO! Oh, and 65 degrees sounds like a wonderful retreat from our 100 degree September days here in the desert.

The the last weekend in September we are off to Lake Powell to listen to some great music in a natural amphitheater! I think my son's (and me, too) are so lucky to experience some of the best music there is in some of nature's most beautiful places. What a way to develop an appreciation for music.

Here is a snippet of the Sugar Thieves playing at the Riverside Blues Festival in St. Mary's, Ohio last weekend. Enjoy!

Weekend Treasuries

YAY!! A few of my items have landed in Etsy treasuries this weekend.

Mollie of RoughMagicCreations included my resistor necklace in her "Unplug your duck ..." treasury. It is a wonderful collection of upcycled, recycled, altered and repurposed items.
And Rose, Waterrose on Etsy, included on of my butterfly soldered shadowbox pendants in this treasury full of delightful items.

Then tailorbee on Etsy included my red and polka dot on black soldered pendant in an lovely "Autumnal Display" of items.

All three curators are members of the Etsy Project Embrace team. A giant THANK YOU to my teamies for including me in their terrific treasuries!

Here is a glimpse of what can be found in their shops. Just a few of my favorites. :o)

Embrace a gorgeous wedding dress. Vintage glamour. Size S.
by tailorbee


Handmade Gemstone Pearl Shell Bracelet Entre les Etoilles
by RoughMagicCreations

Necklace Hand Embroidered Queen Annes Lace Textile
by Waterrose

A Slice of Black

Rose, Waterrose on etsy, who is also an Etsy Project Embrace member created a wonderful treasury which includes my Red Dichroic Fused Glass Soldered Pendant.  I really get a thrill out of being included in treasuries. :o) I love the name and theme of this one. Thank you, Rose, for including my pendant!

Rose has many delightful embroidered items in her etsy shop. Today I will have to say that this embroidered cuff with vintage buttons is my favorite.  But honestly, it is really hard to decide since there are a lot of lovely things to look at!

A BIG announcement!

Trej ♡
Before I get to my big news, I would like to thank AdroitJewelers on etsy for making my leaf pendant part of this wonderful treasury. She picked some very stunning leaf designs and added me to the collection! I am honored to be part of her picks. She has some very pretty items in her shop, including a leaf listing of her own.

Simple Silver Leaf Earrings by AdroitJewelers

Now on to my big news ....

When I was younger, I used to write poetry. Prior to putting my pen to paper or fingers to a keyboard, I always felt like there were tiny bubbles inside of me that were waiting to be released. I stopped writing poems, and for the past eight years I have been accumulating more and more bubbles. They just keep multiplying, yet I haven't felt like writing a poem and giving myself a much needed release. But lately, my fingers have been tingling and my head swimming in an overwhelming fog of bubbles.

I was feeling especially anxious this morning and a touch on the angry side. I am certainly no bear, so I was not sure what was happening. I couldn't find my pocketbook as I was trying to get out the door and my anger began to escalate. My heart was racing, my vision began to blur and my head felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. I quickly recognized that this is not like me. What was happening to me? I sat on the edge of my bed for a minute and started asking myself why I was feeling like this. (Sigh) I know what is going on in my life and what has been going on. Unfortunately, I have been trapped in a situation I have no control over. I often feel like windshield wipers in a blizzard, constantly trying to keep my mind pure and happy when there is nothing I can do to completely eliminate the issue that has been one huge ongoing obstacle to my happiness. The feeling of being powerless is continuous. While sitting on the side of my bed, I recalled the location of my pocketbook. When I stood up to get it, a notion quickly entered my mind and I knew what it is that I am to do. I believe the reason for that I haven't written poetry in years, is because what I have growing inside is me greater than poetry. My first novel is about to flow from my fingertips and release me from my emotional prison. When it is done, I will be wearing a sly grin and finally feel like I have my power back.

Trej ♡

I have been featured in two recent treasuries made by Etsy Project Embrace members. Kristin, of loveartworks on etsy (and also the leader of Etsy Project Embrace), created a treasury of "strangers." Strangers, just meaning people she hadn't included in a treasury before. She included my Cat Eye Pendant. Thank you for including me in this beautiful collection!

And tailorbee on etsy, also an Etsy Project Embrace member, created an interesting treasury of pale backgrounds that are splashed with color. She included my Polka Dot Soldered Fused Glass Pendant! Thank you to you also, tailorbee.

Kristin, loveartworks, creates some wonderful clay pieces! It is hard to pick a favorite, but I think this is ONE of the ones I like the best!

HAPPY TRAILS - Dr. Seuss Funky Flower Quote Cup

And tailorbee's shop has some really fun upcycled and vintage clothing! I am really in love with this dress. Too bad it is not in my size, YET!

Upcycled clothing. Blue cotton dress with hand embroidery and eyelet lace. Size 8

I dream of Blue even when it is not September

I had no idea today was September 1st and the day is almost over! Well, it is my birth-month, but my birthday isn't until the last day of the month. But it is the month of gorgeous blue sapphires. Blue is my absolute favorite color. My husband would always ask me if he could buy something and tease that he would "get it in blue." Once, he bought a dumpy old diesel truck and promised to paint it blue so I would like it. Then one year, he bought me a set of fancy Maglite flashlights for my birthday. What woman wants flashlights for her birthday? I dunno, but he was certainly thinking of me because they were, indeed, blue.

I posted a couple new items in my etsy shop today. All of them in blue. :o)

Hollow Lampwork Bead Pendant

Cosmos Lampwork Bead Pendant

Atmosphere Lampwork Bead Pendant

Resistor and Capacitor Necklace #2

Lastly, I thought I would post the keychain I made for my father's 60th birthday. I gave it to him along with a wooden box my father-in-law made. He makes some wonderful items. We have shelves, a dresser, and a toy box that he has made. Well, here is the soldered keychain with a picture of my sons. The other side has a photo of my twin nieces. He loves that it has all of his grandkids on it.