Monday, March 28, 2011

Cancer Sucks!

My Dad, Tony, is a silly guy.  He likes to play blues and write goofy songs. He's a 65-year-old retired airline mechanic and he's literally a mechanical and construction genius.  I get my creativity from both parents.  The vision and aesthetic talent comes from my mom, but I get my keen sense of how things work and my  "making" skills from my Dad.   Whenever I grab a beer and cloister myself in my studio, it always reminds me of my Dad and his garage. 

A couple of months ago, he started having these weird episodes where he would lose his voice.  And he had a cough with no medical explanation like bronchitis or pneumonia.  Finally, he was diagnosed with Metastatic Thymic Carcinoma, a very aggressive tumor of the Thymus gland.   This cancer is so rare that they have no research or true frame of reference.  They do know that it is incurable.  It will really be a matter of keeping a watch on it.  And he will never get his voice back.  The tumor has pressed on his vocal chords and permanently paralyzed part of them.  He joked, "There goes my singing career."  That's my Dad.  Always goofing.

He had his first chemo treatment this past Wednesday.  My heart is breaking for him.  No one that is so hard-working and energetic should have to go through this.  I pray that it will be very successful and that he will have a long and healthy time before he has to revisit this nightmare.  

My reason for writing this post is that I want to help my parents out with the cost.  My Mom, Patty, owns and operates a beautiful tearoom.  She is just starting to bring in real money, so banks will not refinance her building yet.  That's a bummer because she knows that consolidating will greatly help their finances.  We all know that bank regulations are stringent and that the struggling economy has tightened everyone's purse strings.  We've been throwing around some ideas.  The customers at AntiquiTea know my Dad well.  He was a big part of the rennovations to the West View location.

Anyways, I'm looking for ideas on how to do a fundraiser that incorporates mine and my Mom's businesses.  Any suggestions and ideas would be greatly appreciated.  Thanks, as always, for reading.  Here is a photo taken last summer. 

Friday, March 25, 2011

Well, It's Spring!

The calendar says, "Spring", but the weather says, "Not yet!"

Here are a few of my items that may help you to think warm, Springy thoughts.  Click on the caption to view each item in my shops. 

A fun tea infuser to brew your favorite Spring tea!
Fabric Flower Clip
Hand-Embellished Gift Box
Thanks for reading!

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Stinkbug Madness

Who isn't sick of stinkbugs?  They're part of my life now, and I'm used to them, but it would be nice if there weren't 37576238500 of them in my house.  Maybe I'm exaggerating.  Maybe I'm not.  Lol.  I don't want to know what lies behind these walls.  When this epidemic started, I was afraid of them.  I'm a big wuss when it comes to bugs.  I think I owe them something for helping to cure my phobia.  I supposed exposure really is good  therapy. 

There's one above my head on the ceiling right now.  It's so funny because I smelled him (or her) right as I was doing an Etsy search for stinkbug things.  I have no idea what made me decide to do that.  It just popped into my head earlier today.

Weird, huh?

Here are some interesting things I found:
View it on Etsy!
View this item on Etsy

 

Friday, March 18, 2011

I Want This #2 - Exquisitry

Here are some of the most amazing and high-end pieces of art I have added to my favorites on Etsy.  The amount of work involved in these pieces is jaw-dropping. 

The first one has got to be my favorite thing in the whole wide world of Etsy.  The description, which I like to read over and over, blows my mind!  Worth every penny...if I had that many pennies.  :-)







Next I have an incredible coat made from recycled sweaters.  As you will see, every one in her shop is reserved.  Special orders, only...because they're that amazing!

Add caption

Finally, here is a scarf unlike any I have ever seen!



Click here to view it on Etsy!

Thanks for reading.  

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

I Made It! Market

I'm so pleased to report that I will be a vendor at the next big I Made It! Market at the South Side Works here in Pittsburgh.  This will be my second time appearing at one of their markets.   The show is on April 16th from 12-5.  I can't wait.  I did very well with my hair accessories and flower clips last time, so I am very glad that I have been recently focusing on that type of thing.  I have several projects in the works and this gives me an excuse to finish them all up.  Sometimes, I need that fire lit.  I also just sent an application for their two-day event in July.  I will be so proud if I get in because I used to look at the application and think there was no WAY I was good enough to show there. 

I made another trip to the new Michael's.  I'm such a flower fiend.  I loaded up on enough supplies to make at least 50 more clips for the show.  I've already sold bunches (pun very intended) to my girls at work, so I feel great about the Spring 2011 Fresh Flower collection. 

Ok, time to clean.  *blech*

Thursday, March 10, 2011

My Greatest Creation

I had the day off today.  Too many of my days off are spent on cruddy housework and such.  I promised Ivy that today we would get out and do something together.  I picked her up from school and we went to the Aviary.  My husband talked me into getting a membership a while back.  I am so glad he did!  It's such a lovely place to visit.  I love birds and wildlife so it is so extraordinary to get up close and personal with the Avian kind.  Each species is an inspiration in color!  It's a great place for kids and it's not so big that we have to use up a whole day there.   Ivy knows the place inside and out by now thanks to all of our visits.  Today she spent 15 minutes examining a bird that was almost as tall as her.  It let her get very close.  She was fascinated and so was I.  Haha.  

After that, we went to visit "Mum Mum Patty" at the Tearoom.  I can't think of anything I enjoy more than having lunch with Ivy there.  She's so well-behaved for a 4-year-old.  I am not just saying that because I'm her mom, I swear!!!

Here are a couple of photos and a video of our adventures:

 
Thanks for reading! 

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

In The Mouth of Madness...

It has begun...

The Spring 2011 "Fresh Flower" collection is currently under construction.  I had been holding off due to a severe lack of spare time.   But you know I will always make time for a custom order.  So when my co-worker, Brittany, a Fresh Flower addict, said she wanted one to wear for St. Patty's Day, the proverbial ball started to roll.

As a side note, I used her wishes as an excuse to visit the new Michael's in Settler's Ridge.  I could get into some serious trouble there, I tell ya...but I digress.  I did find some fun green goodies and managed to whip up several for her to choose from.

As I was making those, my hands just started reaching for other things and, before I knew it, I was knee-deep in flower parts.  As I have mentioned before, this girl loses all track of time once this process begins.  My husband was at the gym and my daughter was with her Grandparents...I was all alone with my flowers. 

Have a look into my madness...and my bliss...




Saturday, March 5, 2011

Fresh Flowers for Sale

I can spend hours tearing apart and reconstructing flowers and just lose all track of time.  It's very therapeutic.   I made and sold a countless number of them in 2010 and it's time to clean out the ones I have left in my collection.  This way, I can get to work on some new ones for 2011.  I went on a flower buying spree last week and I'm itching to start building.

Please have a visit to my Artfire Studio to take advantage of these ridiculously low prices.