This Week 28th July 2012

It's counting my blessings day - time to add up all the times I said "thank you" to the Universe this week and to share a few of them.  Counting my blessings makes them bigger and stronger, their influence on my life greater - I hope they inspire you to do the same.

1.  One way and another I've spent quite a lot of time sitting at my computer this week, and I have been thinking about how this technology has changed life for the better.  I know it can make us "busier" if we let it, but it also expands our horizons beyond belief.  I'm old enough to remember when to find a picture of something, or to get some technical information I would have had to go to the library and spent half a day searching through books, and as often as not come away disappointed.

It's not that I don't love books...I can't imagine a life without them, it's just that searching for anything on the internet cuts the time and workload down and increases my options a hundredfold.  

2.  I love Facebook!  It keeps me in touch in so many ways - from sending messages to my niece who is getting married in Fiji this afternoon to having a chuckle over the lastest funny or an "aah" over a goofy animal picture.  And this week I've even managed to talk the Toy Boy into setting up a page for his toys - Golden Bay Toys.  Take a look - the toys are such fun.

3.  This is the final week of my Website Sale, and I've been blessed with a busy week.  Thank you for your wonderful support of my creative juice!  It's all over on Tuesday at midnight - if you see something that takes your fancy just enter "BUYBEADS" in the discount coupon box and you will have 20% deducted from the price.

4.  I'm exploring setting up an Etsy store - it seems such a simple and user-friendly option.  I've been thinking about doing this for ages, however I always seem to mull these things over and over - some would call it procrastination, but I prefer to call it the creative process! 

On a more personal note, Princess illy is doing OK - so far so good.  She is (reluctantly) taking pills and using eye drops four times daily and seems a bit more comfortable.  She's booked in to see the veterinary opthalmic specialist when he visits Nelson in a few weeks, but we're sincerely hoping that her eye will be better by then and the make the surgery unnecessary.

This Week 21st July 2012

I've been rushing around like a mad chook towards the end of this week - why is it that our lives get so "busy"?  Do we fill it up with more and more  of the little stuff so we can feel like we are living a full life?

I've had dramas with a sick wee cat this weekend and had a mercy dash over the hill to our favourite veterinary hospital in Nelson.  That's the trouble with having been a vet nurse for a few years (in another life) - I know enough to know that I know very little.  Miss illy has problems with her one remaining eye - we have our fingers crossed that she will be OK.

Before all of this happened I was counting my blessings for the week - for some reason I've been noticing the physicality of my daily life - what makes me feel good and trying to practice that.

1.  I've come to realise that yoga is a very important part of my well-ness regime.  I've always enjoyed informal yoga and used to do a class which I loved with a local guy.  No-one since has been able to replicate that calm experience till I found out about a woman called Shiva Rea through my friend Andrea Schroeder - creativity goddess at ABCcreativity.  I have the DVD Shiva Rea : Daily Energy - Vinyasa Flow Yoga which I have used so much that I must have almost worn it out!  I love the format of selecting an opening salute/warmup, a 20 minute session, then an entry into post practice meditation. 

You can also do longer sessions, but I find that I mostly use the half hour routines.  I have also bought her Flow Yoga for Beginners to check out my postures so I know that I'm getting the maximum benefit from the stretches and not doing any harm to my body.  I gather that lots of lampworkers have issues with sore bodies brought on by the intensity of the work, and I'm so grateful that I have learnt how to deal with this.
2.  I've always enjoyed gardening, and used to do dainty stuff with a small fork at other places we have lived and was quite overwhelmed when we first moved here with the sheer scale and energy required to tame this wilderness.  However, I've come to realise that gardening here has become another important part of my exercise and well-ness regime.  "Every cloud..." as they say... Today I have aching hamstrings and a huge ivy hedge mulched and in the trailer ready to go to the landfill.  Look at the gorgeous little stone wall we found underneath all that rampant growth!  We had no idea that little treasure was there!

I'm working towards having a small rose garden and I'm picturing a lavender hedge against these stones.  Look at all that ivy still clinging to the fence!
3.  I'm really trying to look backwards at all we have achieved since we have been here, and not forward to the work yet to be done.  Pulling this property into shape is a huge project and it will be so worthwhile - the location is simply stunning!
4. Today I am playing in my newly located office - I have moved into the sun and the view - I can see the ocean out one large window and the trees from the smaller side window.  What a difference that makes!  I don't know why I didn't do this years ago!  Now I make excuses to come and sit here, rather than trying to move my laptop all over the place in an effort to find some sun!  Sitting beside me I have a lovely little collection of glass earrings and a crystal necklace to put on the website soon.

I hope your week has gone well - have you thought about what has made you smile lately?

Follow the link to take a look at some other inspiring weeks through Liv Lane's Bliss List Links.

P.S. - It's the last week of the Website Sale - pop over and take a look - you get 20% discount on absolutely everything by entering the code BUYBEADS in the coupon code box till the 31st July!

This Week 14th July 2012

Pohara Beach in July!

Some weeks have their challenges, and others seem to sail through fairly unscathed.  This has been a relatively unscathed week - I've been toiling at my bench and finalized some pieces I'm rather proud of and have also had some lovely time to play and sort out my somewhat chaotic life!

 

1.  I had a day at home this week and moved my home office from a draughty corridor to a sunny spot in a window.  Why didn't I do this years ago?  It's so nice to "go" to my office rather than pass it every time I go to my bedroom, and it's just a so much nicer space all round.

2.  I always walk on the beach in the very early morning with a group of friends.  We rip up that beach like terriers and I'm puffing like a train by the time we get home.  My dear friend Tracey and I went for the other sort of walk during the beautiful sunny afternoon hours - it was truly  gorgeous!  There were little children playing (it's school holidays here), but it was so calm and peaceful - a real lift and a gift mid-week.

3.  It seems to have been a week for my old Dad.  He turned 86 last Sunday and we took him out for grown-ups afternoon tea (that means red wine and antipasto platter)  at Jellyfish Cafe in Mapua.  It was another of those glorious sunny winter's days...

4.  I had an oxygen bottle issue this week - my old regulators which have done 9 years of solid service - mostly outdoors - finally coughed and spluttered and needed a trip to the repairers. Now my Dad was an engineer and taught welding in his later years at Polytech and had accumulated an impressive and precious collection of antique welding equipment.  We've had a lot of it stored at our place and when the emergency struck (I WAS mid creative flow...) the Toy Boy rummaged around and found this lovely old regulator for me to use...

It works a treat and is actually much nicer to use than any other I have tried!  Gives and lovely clean, even flow - some of them pulse, some choke...My old one was pretty nice, but this old sweetie, though she doesn't look glamorous, certainly does a lovely job!

Do you know by now that I LOVE old things? I would generally rather re-use most things than buy new, so this totally reenforces all I think about old things and quality!

5.  Speaking of old things, in my clean up on my day at home, I found some old URBIS Design magazines from about 10 years ago, when I was studying interior design.  And, you know, good design is always good design!  Some of the technology advertising was a hoot - cutting edge cellphones with clumsy plug in cameras, mega expensive CD players, and some of it was still pretty sexist, surprisingly.  I'm still flicking through them and found these "medals" (brooches?) which were quite inspiring...

6.  And finally, one of my friends posted this picture on Facebook this morning - it's just so right on so many levels!

Winter tropical escape on a plate

So how was your week?  Did you stop to think about the good stuff?

 

The website sale continues - simply by using the code BUYBEADS in the box at the checkout you received 20% discount on anything on the site.  Sale ends 31st July.

Some Brooches and Fire Chakra Colours

Fire Colours Chakra Bracelet with silver trim

So here is the bracelet that Blogger and my images file was playing games with yesterday!

We all need a little fire on these cold winter days, something to warm us up and create a spark.

These beads are all made on a transparent base which brings light to the colours.  Red, orange and yellow represent the first three chakras - the base chakra is red - low and slow, reflecting our base security - home comforts.  The sacral chakra is orange - big and pulsing - that represents our passion and creativity and the the solar plexus (surprise!) is yellow - shining like a shield at our mid section.  This represents our strength of will, our self protection - our adrenal system.

To if you've been feeling a bit lack-lustre and need a shot of energy this may give you a lift!

Oh, and $180 becomes $136 in the website sale!

Large Transparent & Dove Grey & Red Lace Brooch

For something completely different, this transparent gray based bead is overlaid with soft dove gray, then highlighted with bright red in a lace pattern.   

Perfect for your winter coat or jacket. $75 becomes just $60 using the 20% discount via the Website Sale!

 

Medium Black and White Lace Bead Brooch

Black and white is always good in winter - pop this on your favourite cardi and you're dressed!  

$65 becomes $52 this month.

 

Large Dark Ivory & Turquoise Round Dotty Brooch

Add a "pop" of ivory and turquoise to your teal with this organic looking brooch. 

$75 becomes $60!

 

Small Round Light & Dark Pink Flow Brooch

I love a bit of pink - it's so girly and feminine and soft. 

This little brooch reduces from $55 to $44 in the sale!

Small Round True Red Raku Brooch

And finally a shot of Red Raku - just a little one, though!

This style goes on almost anything with its lovely organic colour - there's a little bit of blue, beige, brown, black...and $55 becomes only $44 in the sale.

And let me know if you need any help choosing - perhaps you would like to see another photo or talk it over - I'm happy to help - email me or give me a call.

This Week 6th July 2012

How was your week?  It seems that Mother Nature has been busy creating havoc in lots of parts of the world, with storms and bushfires in the United States and floods in Australia.  I hope you were all safe.

1.   Just apropos of nothing I got an envelope full of love and glitter from one of my sisters!  A hug in the post!  Photographing the envelope, complete with its stamp made me think how little we use the regular postal service these days, but how very special it is to get really personal mail.  I have made a “note to self” (a regular occurrence) to send more personal mail!

2.      I’m excited about the Website Sale – I’m offering 20% discount on absolutely everything on my website – it’s been fun to hear from old friends and new.  You have until the end of the month to shop, but it’s probably a good idea to get in before the pieces you have your eye on are gone.

      A little reminder of how to do it...Just sign up for my email newsletter on the "News" page , then select your pieces, proceed to the checkout and enter BUYBEADS in the discount code box.  Simple!

3.     I’ve finished some lovely work this week – I made the Chakra Lotus Flower Necklace and bracelets that I showed you earlier in the week, and I have finished a red and grey necklace for someone and am in the middle of the design process of another two necklaces for people – one orange and red and the other of brown based CanCans.  This is when I think I have the best job in the world!

 .4.  There has been the most amazing full moon this week.  I love a full moon – I know that some people find them unsettling, but I feel enlivened and in touch with the elements when the moon shows all her glory.

5.   I had a small brainstorming session this week with the fabulous local artist, Robin Slow.  I just love his work – he paints using kokowai (paints mixed from ground local stone used in traditional Maori art), soot and acrylic paint and his beautiful earthy toned artworks have a distinctly Maori flavor. 

Here’s a little taster, but if you want to see more go to www.kokowaiartist.co.nz

I’ve been looking at symbols, talismans and amulets lately and thinking about the things that are of my world and that I understand.  I learnt so much in that short time!

This is the symbol for Aroha - the Maori word for love

6.    The poinsettia plant that grows outside our bedroom window is flowering madly, despite being hacked down at ground level last summer because it scratches against the wall when it blows around.  It was planted as a pot plant after Christmas one year and just grew and grew, till now it becomes a large shrub every year.  I’m not a big fan of them, but how can you not love something so vigorous?

Inspired by Liv Lane's Bliss List.

Juicy New Chakra Lotus Flowers - and the Website Sale

Chakra Lotus Flowers Necklace Whole Chakra Colours with Silver Trim

Do you remember those beads I showed you hanging around my jewellers bench a week or so ago?

I got them finished, took their portraits and here they are.

I had a hankering to make a really strong but transparent set of Chakra Lotus Flowers - the colours are mostly the deeper tones and the base colours and spacers go this way too.  I wanted to anchor this piece with silver rather than crystal to make it really robust looking - a statement of colour.

The bracelet is the same.  The beads in both pieces are not that large - it's really just a good pop of positive colour!

Chakra Lotus Flowers Bracelet Whole Chakra Colours with Silver Trim

The fantastic news for you is that these new works are included in the Website Sale, so if you order them online you can get 20 percent off the price.  That means that you get $70 off the necklace, bringing the price down to $280, and $36 off the bracelet, bringing that down to $146!

Turquoise Chakra Lotus Flowers Bracelet

I've also been toying with the idea of using natural gemstones and was drawn to turquoise.  This bracelet is based on aqua blue glass (blue being the colour representing the fifth chakra), making this a piece based on communications of all kinds.  It still has the chakra colours represented, this time including both heart chakra colours, green (for healing)  and pink (for love).

There is another Fire Colours Chakra Bracelet to come, but I'm struggling with the images today and Blogger is making things difficult!  That leaves me something to show you tomorrow!

Annual Website Sale

Annual Website Sale

 This must be the coldest day of the year - we have snow on the hills and its raining cats and dogs out there!

So let’s grab a cuppa, turn on the heaters and the kiln, turn up the jazz and get into it!

Chillis with Silver Necklace $400

 So just like last year, I have included a promotion code in this newsletter for you to use to receive 20% off all items on the website (excluding postage).

If you enter BUYBEADS into the coupon code box then follow the prompts, you will receive 20% discount on any item on the site, excluding postage. 

Yes, that’s right – until the end of July, if you go onto the website and order any item, then enter the promotion code as you checkout, you will receive a 20% discount.

That means that you save a whopping $70 off one of my glass bead necklaces, $36 off a glass bead bracelet or $11 off a pair of glass bead earrings!  The sale applies to the Swarovski Crystal jewellery too – in fact every single little thing on my website is reduced by 20%!

This offer is only open to people who have given me their email address and have signed up for my newsletter, so if you tell your friends about this, they must first register their email address, which they can easily do via my website http://www.glitz.co.nz/contactus.php

                                                                                               

Payment can be made by credit card using Paypal on the website – www.glitz.co.nz or if you live in New Zealand and prefer, please contact me for details to make a direct bank deposit.

New Styles and Designs

There have been lots of changes over the past year.  Becoming settled into our new space Traders of the Lost Arts, in Commercial Street, Takaka has been fantastic and has opened up lots of possibilities and inspiration.  Murray and I share the workroom space where he finishes his handmade pull along wooden toys – Golden Bay Toys – and I have my torch, kiln and workbenches and do all of my glass and crystal work.  You’re always welcome to come and watch us work and have a chat!  The workroom is always war, even on the coldest of winter days.

I’ve been making lots of new Swarovski Crystal designs and there have been some cool new glass series coming through.  Having the daily inspiration of people passing through has been energizing – thanks to everyone who pops in when they’re “over the hill” and the lovely local community.  It’s a privilege to live in this amazingly supportive and beautiful environment.

True Red Raku Spice Cubes with Transparent Gray Spacers Necklace - $350

    Transparent Pink Heart on Rose Swarovski Pearls - $135

Purple Violet Tiger Beads Necklace - $350

Turquoise & Teal Candy Stripe Earrings $55

Chakra Bracelet with Silver Spacers & Charm $180

Denise Fire Opal Bracelet $80

As always I’m happy to resize pieces for you if they are too big or too small.

Facebook

Please come and visit my Facebook page  (Glitz Art Glass) – there are links to the Blog there and I will update day-to-day information, especially around show time of year.

Please “Like” the page – that way I can keep you posted – and I promise not to bomb you with lots of spam!

So what's been on your wishlist?  

It's a good time to act - you have until the end of July to take advantage of this opportunity to purchase something really special at a very special price!

HAPPY SHOPPING!