Welcome new kitties!

I mentioned in a previous post that we had to put one of our cats to sleep about a week ago. Well let me introduce our 2 new family members! That's right 2, I just couldn't bring one alone home from the shelter, there were so many cats that need homes. First is Rex, a senior kitty, who is so sweet and a lap cat. I saw him before; he came in to the hospital where I work for some surgery. So I already knew how sweet he was. Yes, he only has one eye, the other had to be removed.

And then my husband, Benn wanted to look at younger cats, so we got Achilles. He's just a year old, (and wild still), he might be a handful, but very cute and sweet! Now we're back to our original numbers of 3 cats, one young, one middle, and one old.



I haven't had a whole lot of time to devote to my jewelry lately, but I did manage to make this "Cranberry Twist" necklace today. It consists of Vintaj Natural Brass, silk "fairy ribbon", and polymer clay beads made by Heather Powers of "Humble Beads".
A little about Heather and her beads:She graduated from art school with a bachelor's degree in Fine Arts from Kendall College of Art & Design.
Her work is inspired by the colors and textures of nature and influenced by art history. Her work has been featured on HGTV's That's Clever, PBS' Beads, Baubles and Jewels, in bead magazines and books.
About the art beads: Each color is a separate layer of clay, skillfully placed together to form the intricate designs. These designs, called 'canes' are applied to each bead by hand. The beads are very durable, the colors will not wash off or fade.
You can find her beads on Etsy or her website: http://humblebeads.com. I also follow her blog. (see side bar)


I also made this bracelet for myself with one of Heather's beautiful beads.


I did buy a bunch of her beads, so you'll see more soon. BTW: The Cranberry Twist necklace (hopefully has been entered in Vintaj's Autumn Splendor Challenge. The deadline was today, and I just emailed it to them. Hope it goes in. I guess I'll know tomorrow, because I think voting will start then. We'll see.
I did also want to mention that I'm really becoming fond of working with brass findings and components. Although I am a silver girl myself, when I polish up the brass before making a piece, it is just so pretty and shiny. It almost looks like gold, with a lesser price tag of course. And it doesn't have to be all vintage looking jewelry either as I am discovering from playing around with findings, beads, and wire myself. But I do like the filigree, kinda gypsy-like feel to it. And that's more like me.
Don't forget to check my Etsy shop on Saturday for SNS (Saturday Night Specials) as well as my October sale that I'm having. Enjoy your evening!