This and that.

LeeAnn of Mint Basil and The Cherry Stem and I recently discovered that we both have a crush on yellow at the moment. Naturally the next step would be to do a swap! Since LeeAnn has received her goodies, I can show you the beaded things I sent her.

This necklace is made of oxidized sterling, yellow chalcedony, and a vintage enameled flower. I really, really wanted to keep this for myself!

As one of my "just for fun" items I made her a beaded flower and framed it.

I think those little frames are perfect for the beaded flower. I also sent LeeAnn a tea towel, a tea cup, some notecards, candy, and preserves from a local orchard. It was a lot of fun to find and make things for her!

When I was recently catching up on Melissa's blog, I discovered that I needed to add something to my Amazon wish list!

I love Cynthia's designs and her blog. I'm sure this book will be beautiful.

And now I'm off to get ready to go to the zoo with N.'s class. Should be a fun day! Well, except for the bus ride. Buses never seemed that bouncy when I was a kid.

And the unicorn love continues.

Here's something I worked on while I was away from the blog. Stitching it all one color worked out really well for bringing it with me to the hospital when I visited Mark's grandma. It's part of a French sampler pattern.

I stitched the horn with size 15 seed beads. I'll show you the framed version when it's completed.

Hello, hello!

After what seemed like the longest winter ever, things are finally blooming here.

We had a lot of rain this week. One morning we discovered some new friends.

N. was enthralled with the slugs and did not want to go to school. Once things were dry the slugs took off.

Today we are busy planting. Mark went to get more dirt. I'm supposed to be planting some vegetables right now. Sshhh! Don't tell him!

I'm happy to be back after that small break. All three of us were sick with upper respiratory infections and we are all on the mend. In other news, Mark's grandmother had a stroke while in the hospital being treated for something else. We did not think she would make it and were called to the hospital more than once to say our goodbyes. She surprised everyone by pulling through, though now she has a lot of rehabilitation to do. We are so happy she's made it this far.

And now I'd better get those vegetables planted before Mark comes home and finds me slacking off!

Be back soon.

Sorry to have gone missing for a week. I was sick and Mark's grandma is in the hospital.

I'll be taking a short break from the blog. Oh, but before I go, this clasp is handmade with a vintage button. I'm not sure what I'll use it for yet, but I couldn't pass it up.

See you soon.

Squared.

I found these silver rectangles in my local bead shop. They are paired with honey topaz and sterling silver findings.

I hope your week is off to a good start.

Seed beads.

I have been going back and forth between projects and not getting very far on any of them. I went to the bead store last week to pick up some seed beads for a cross stitch project.

I don't really need to start something new, but at this point I need to just accept that that's how I operate. I always have three or four books going at a time and it's the same with other projects.
I don't think I'm going to take any classes at the Bead and Button Show this year. Instead I've been eyeing a class at the local bead store. Now I'll have to decide if I am going to make the trip up to Milwaukee for the shopping portion of the show.

Easter goodness.

I've been saving these beautiful eggs to show you. I won them on Nikki's blog giveaway! I enjoy reading her blog; she does beautiful beadwork and loads of other things. My original plan was to hang them on the tree N has in his room, but I was too nervous they'd get broken.

Blown out eggs always make me think of my mom and my aunt making jewelry with egg shells. I can remember my mom blowing out the eggs at our kitchen table. I always thought it was so neat that she could do that without breaking the shell. I've never tried to do it myself.

I love the patterns on Nikki's eggs.

My mom made us some Easter cards this year. This one is N's.

And this one is ours. I wish you could see them in person to get the full effect.

And a very happy rabbit, drawn by N. He's working on background and foreground lately. He's doing a good job.

I hope you have a nice Easter, filled with family, candy, and lots of smiles.

A story.

With all those capital letters, it looks like I was yelling very loudly!

The Hancock Observatory.

Yesterday we had no plans, so we decided head to Chicago for the day. Our destination? The John Hancock Center.

The weather was clear, but still chilly, making it a good day to check out the Observatory. While we were waiting in line N. was fascinated by this Lego version of the building. He's hoping to get the smaller version one day soon.

The elevator ride is only 43 seconds to get to the observatory on the 94th floor. Our ears were popping! There is a self-guided tour to listen to, which was recorded by David Schwimmer. It was interesting. I'll show you the view from each direction.

Here we are looking east over Lake Michigan. We could just see the shores of the state of Michigan. Navy Pier is the long, narrow strip. We'll be there several times this summer, I'm sure.

Next, we looked to the south. The Sears Tower is the tall building on the right side of the photo. (In June, it's name is supposed to change to The Willis Tower, which is not making Chicagoans very happy.) We were also able to see Gary, Indiana from this vantage point.

The view to the west/northwest. Wrigley is out there somewhere, I believe. If I was into sports I might be more sure of that statement.

And to the north. Here's a view of the some of the beaches and Lake Shore Drive. We can probably see Wisconsin from here, too.

After our tour, we ate dinner at Water Tower Place. We didn't see Oprah Winfrey there. One year Mark was there with his friends for dinner and they swear they saw Stedman Graham.

We waited for the bus across from the Chicago Water Tower, one of my favorite buildings in the city.

Some people were there handing out free hugs.

I wonder if that happy looking lady just had a free hug?

Etsy Favorite: Skylark Studio

It's been a long time since I posted about one of my Etsy favorites! Skylark Studios is a very recent addition to my list. Karen also has a wonderful blog. Clicking on the photos below should take you to the listing in her shop.

OK, let's get to it! I love Art Nouveau and big hoops. I'm really wanting these earrings.

This peacock feather necklace is so different.

I love cherry blossoms!

I think I've told you that we decorated N's nursery with bumblebees. He thinks this necklace is pretty cool.

I really like the pattern of these earrings.

This pin is very sweet.

Karen's photos have a nice contrast between the dark wood and bright silver. She has many more wonderful things in her shop. I had a hard time deciding which pieces to feature.

Let me know what you think!