Who Wants to Attend The 2012 Tuscon Gem and Mineral Show... FOR FREE???

Artbeads.com is offering an AMAZING giveaway!  The are offering a chance to win a trip for two to the 2010 Tuscon Gem and Mineral Show... including round trip airfare and 3 nights accommodations. 

According to the giveaway website:

Prize Details
Enter to win a trip for two to Tucson, Arizona to attend the 2012 Tucson Gem and Mineral Show! The prize package includes round-trip airfare to Tucson, Arizona and 3 nights accommodation. You will attend classes with well-known beading instructors and have access to the biggest shows! Spend 3 days in Tucson surrounded by gems, minerals, fossils, beads and other bead lovers just like you.
Prize Eligibility
Only persons residing in Canada and United States who are at least 18 years of age can enter.

Sweepstakes Starts
January 18, 2011 @ 12:00 am (PST)

Sweepstakes Ends
March 16, 2011 @ 11:59 pm (PDT)

Need more Details?

Read the Official Rules

You've got to enter this giveaway.  It is awesome!!!  Maybe it will give someone who wouldn't normally be able to attend a chance to attend the show. 

Kell

I am Humbled

Sometimes, the generosity of people renders me speechless and completely humbled.  In the news, we hear about all of the bad in people.  We hear about robberies, scams, murders, car accidents, etc...  Today, I want to share a story about kindness; about the good in people.

On December 18, Amy of Spyder Jewels hosted a beaded ornament giveaway.  I had been following her blog as she created more and more amazing ornaments, and was drooling with desire, so I entered (you should really check her blog out.  She does things with seed beads that I can only dream of doing!).  After never winning a giveaway, I actually won this one!  I waited excitedly for my ornament to arrive (I even got to pick the colors and what style I wanted).

Then, unfortunately, I had to leave town suddenly for a family emergency.  When I returned home, there was a HUGE box waiting for me!  When I opened it, the most gorgeous ornament in the world was inside

That was enough to make my day, my week, my month... you get the picture.  But, as I said, it was a HUGE box.  There was more inside.  She had included the book Enchanted Adornments and a HUGE lot of beads for me as well.  I almost cried because I was so touched by her generosity. 

Check out this bounty!  A new book, 2 vials and 3 hanks of seed beads, bugle beads, 2 packs of fringe beads, a cabachon, rivolis, flower and leaf beads, and 2 sets of special beads.  I don't even know how to express how greatful and thankful I am that someone who I have never met would be so generous to me!  Thank you Amy!  I wish I was more eloquent so I could show my appreciation!

Scattered

Boy, getting myself together in the new year is more difficult than I expected.  I have so many great ideas, and I want to start them all... so I do.  Now, I have a bunch of started projects and no finished projects for the new year.  Every time I get involved in a project, I get bored and want to switch to something else. 

Is anyone else feeling as scattered as I am?  Is this new year difficult or is it just me?  Boy, I usually don't have a lot of focus, but I have more than this.

Do You Want to Join the Sisterhood of the Travelling Beads?!?!?!?!

Okay, if you've ever seen the sisterhood of the travelling pants, you know the premise is that 4 friends share a pair of pants that magically fit all of them... Well, this is about a bazillion times better.

The sisterhood of the travelling beads is a group of artists who are sharing a HUGE (let me say it one more time... HUGE) box of beads with one another.  The beads travel to one sister at a time.  While with the sister, she can take out any beads she wants as long as she replaces them with beads of equal value.  She is then responsible for holding a drawing to identify the next sister and send the box to her. 

Why is this better than the sisterhood of the travelling pants?  Well, first, it's BEADS!!!  And, I don't know about you, but I like beads way better than jeans.  Second, you get to keep some of what you find.  Third, you get to meet and network with some awesome artists who you may not yet know.  Fourth, the included beads are worth more than $400!?!?!?!? Can you imagine $400 worth of beads showing up at your door for you to oogle?

The current sister is the lovely and talented Cindy Gimbrome AKA the Lampwork Diva.  For more information about becoming the next sister, check out her blog.  As I said, she is lovely and talented, so you should also check out her website full of beautiful glass pieces.

If you like beads, you should definitely check out the sisterhood.  It's a great way to meet other creative minds, get some awesome new beads, and destash your own beads!

Christmas Gifts -- Revealed

Between the end of the semester and Christmas, I was busy creating jewelry for friends and family.  however, I haven't displayed the pieces here because not everyone had received their gifts (yeah... I finished the pieces in plenty of time, But somehow I just couldn't get myself to deal with the crowds at the post office pre-Christmas).  So, here is a peek at the handmade pieces I gifted for Christmas.  I hope you enjoy them!

This bracelet and earrings were for my brother-in-law's girlfriend.  I don't usually create things that are so "girly" because I'm a bit of a tom-boy, but she's a girlie-girl and I really wanted to make something she would like and wear.  I don't know if she likes pink and purple, but the piece seemed to suit her, and it just kind of came to me.  I bought the charms a while ago because I really liked them, but then I never found a way to use them.  Somehow everything fell together into this really cute charm bracelet.  The earrings were created using a chandelier finding and attaching Swarovski crystals to it.  I know she received the pieces the other day, and I hope she liked them!

I created this necklace for my friend Katy.  I wore a similar necklace (in red) to a concert we both attended and she really liked it.  I decided to create one of her own for her.  She really likes black, white, and grey so that is the color pallet I stuck with.  To give it a little "wow" factor, I added some smoky grey crystals and the lucite beads with a vintage pattern printed on them.  I haven't given it to her yet, but she saw pictures of it and I know she likes it!

Inspiration

This is a picture I took of the peacock that lives in my neighborhood.  I think he is beautiful and inspiring.  I hope you can all take inspiration from him as well!

Introducing Myself

As I was reading the blogs I follow today, I realized a few things...  The blogs I like the best and enjoy the most are ones that are not solely dedicated to beading.  I like to feel like I know the people who write the blogs.  I want to feel like a friend or confidante.  The other thing I realized is that although that is what I like, I rarely let people in.  I don't really let out many personal details.  I write a lot without ever really saying much of everything.  So, here is an attempt on my part to introduce myself... to become more of a person and friend and less of a automaton.

1. Right now, I'm unemployed.  That's hard for me to admit.  I am a very type A personality.  I want to be perfect and admitting failure is difficult for me.  But, I failed... there it is.  I took a huge leap, and it backfired on me.  I applied to and was accepted to work on my PhD in Chemistry.  I left my stable job and went for it... but after 10 years away, I just didn't have it anymore.  I try to candy coat it, but plain and simple, I failed. 
2. It's easy to hurt me.  I pretend to be tough, but my confidence is very fragile.  It doesn't take much to break it.  I believe in people and let them into my heart... and often they don't deserve it.  I pretend I don't care what they think, but opinions matter.
3. I have created an AMAZING family for myself.  The family I was given hasn't been very good to me, but I have made my own family that is beyond belief.  I have a husband who I love more than the world itself.  His entire family has accepted me as if I was part of their family rather than an "in-law".  They often call me their sister/neice/daughter rather than -in law.  I also have great friends whom I consider family.  Although my PhD career was short lived, I met the most amazing group of friends.  It was like "love at first sight" except with friends instead of romance.  I immediately clicked with each of my friends and felt like I fit in.  I've never found a group that I truly belonged to... until this group.  I call us orphans because we are all far from our families.  Now we are our own family.
4. I love animals more than just about anything in the world.  It hurts my heart to even think of an animal being harmed... to the point that it will bring me to tears.  I think of animals the same way I think of people... and if animals aren't cherished, I become very upset.  I hate seeing dogs chained up outside without food or water, I hate the way show animals are treated, I want to cry when I think of a dog being lost... I think animals are people.
5. I don't know what I want to be when I grow up.  When you are 5, it's easy to believe you can be anything.  When you are 30, its a little harder.  I want to find something I'm really good at, but I'm really average at a lot of things... and that makes it hard to find your calling.  Despite not knowing where my future is, I'm still searching and trying things out.  I haven't given up hope.  30 isn't that old... I still have a lot of good years to find my passion and follow it.
6. I love to travel.  I didn't really travel until I was 25, but I warmed up to it quickly.  In the last 5 or 6 years, I've been to Belize, Italy, Greece, Australia, China, Malaysia, Thailand, Fiji, Yap, Palau, Pohnpei, and Hong Kong.  So far, my favorite place is Sydney, Australia, but I can't wait to find a new favorite place.  My next trip will be to Africa.  I want to visit Cairo and see the pyramids... then, travel to the south and go on a safari!

Well, that's all for now.  I will try to include some anecdotes and personal information in all my future posts so I don't become one of those bloggers who only wants to promote her business.

Oh, yeah, in an attempt to open up a little more, here is a picture of the "real" me at the Great Wall.