Happy Sunday.

Good Morning! *Yaaawwwnnnn.

Today I have a lot lined up. So much to do before I leave Saturday morning for the Bead Cruise! Keep in mind, I won't be around for a whole 7 days. I'll blog about my trip when I get back home. I plan on keeping a journal while I'm gone so I don't forget to tell you all the fun things I did while I was there.

I have to start packing my suitcase. I have to find my sunscreen. and a beach bag. and a sun hat. I have to pack some tools. some beads. can I just bring a suitcase full of beads? Yea right. I have to look cute, so I HAVE to bring clothes. I got some really awesome summer clothes at Old Navy yesterday. Little bathing suit coverups and a nice bright and colorful button down shirt, and some awesome polka dot jammies.

Also today, I have to type up some jewelry tutorials to hand in tomorrow- hopefully it won't be too late. If you ever decide to submit to magazines, let me warn you. It's not a fun process. It's work. I always procrastinate because it's time-consuming. I want to blog about this more but am afraid I'll say too much. I tend to be an open book, but I always like to keep things positive on my blog. Not that this topic I want to discuss isn't positive, it's just truth and sometimes truth hurts. Another day maybe I'll get into it. Not today though.

I have to color my hair today. The grays have taken over. Yes. I have grays. I hate them. Little buggers. It's gotten to the point where I can no longer pluck them as I see them. I would run out of hairs on my head real fast if this was the case. lol

I also have to package up the earrings from yesterday's swap! I want to say thank you to everyone that participated! I was overwhelmed at how quickly the spots filled up and the nice response to this little contest. I am having another round this afternoon so that the blog readers on the west coast have a chance to play along too. So check back in at 4pm (eastern standard time) - I'll be posting 6 more pair of earrings for a swap. Remember this is mostly for the west coasters. If you live on the east coast, let them have a chance first. If spots don't fill up by say 1am est. then go ahead and snag a spot.

I have gotten quite a few beads in the past few days. I wanted to share some pics with you. One of my beloved customers contacted me several days ago and asked me if I would be willing to swap a few of my jewelry designs for some artisan beads, and other beads she had in her stash that she wanted me to have. I said YES, send them along and I have to say, I was quite shocked when the large Priority box arrived on my doorstep. I put all the beads in bins and here is what she sent!



Here is a closer look at each bin. There are all kinds of goodies in here. It's an understatement when I say that Tami HOOKED ME UP. Thank you Tami if you're reading this. You are such a wonderful, generous heart. xox!

I also received a few beads from Pam Ferrari. You can find her lampwork at her etsy shop: FerrariOriginalBeads. These are gorgeous, and I can't wait to put them into some designs.

And I got these beads from April Larson. April's lampwork shop on etsy SharplineDesigns, is chock full of glass beauties. April and her husband also sell Green Girl Studios pewter beads at BeadLady.
April sent me these beads so I could check them out in person before purchasing. It was sweet of her to agree to do this, and she really sent me some gorgeous beads. I will probably order some more from her after I get back from my trip.




I am going to have Free Shipping this week in my Etsy Shops, starting tomorrow Monday 2/23 through 2/27. That includes Jewelry, Mom's apron shop, and my Bead store. So take advantage of that. Also, I've marked down a few more pieces- you can find them in the Clearance section of my shop.