The Round Robin Birthstone Doll

My Birthstone Round Robin Doll is on its way to Colorado to visit and be beaded by someone else. Before she comes home, she will have also visited Florida and Australia. Pretty cool, I'd say. I am wondering why she didn't invite me along. I've never been to Colorado or to Australia.

My birthstones are pearl, moonstone, and alexandrite. Since I couldn't find a definitive explanation of what alexandrite was like (other than very expensive and named after Russian Tsar Alexander II), I decided to use pearl and moonstone.

After a certain amount of dithering (described here), I decided to stick with the light blue color scheme. I'll use the peach, white, cream and gray beads for something else.

Here she is from the front:



And here she is from the back:



She is about one-quarter beaded.

Note: No bloging tomorrow. I'm going to Chicago to "The Dumpster Diving Place." More on that this weekend. Please, somebody hold the rope tied to my foot as I go in!

Attitude of Gratitude Award

Pam T nominated me for the Attitude of Gratitude Award. I'm humbled, and I've taken a while to meditate on what that means. I was surprised to discover that all my pages in this year's Bead Journal Project represent things for which I am grateful.

I realized that my gratitude for the things in my life grew as I faced and reflected on a scary time. That scary time is shown in my October page, Not Quite Pink. It also shows the first thing I am grateful for--good health.

I could not do without family and friends, my pages for March and February. I am glad that I have enough so I can share with others (November).

I am grateful that I can find the sparkles in the dark night (December) and resilience (January) in facing problems. I am grateful that I can choose to grow (April) and that I enjoy new adventures (September). I am grateful that I can maintain order and I am grateful that I can let things just flow (coming in June).

I am grateful for music that makes me want to dance. And for time to learn and create. And for the opportunity to help others. And for chocolate. I am grateful to be happy.

And I am grateful to have met some wonderful people through the BJP. I nominate Sandy for the Attitude of Gratitude Award because she is so generous, thoughtful and kind, even when she had stressful times in her own life. She saw where help would be welcome, and she provided that help. I admire her. And she does some really great art!

Here are the rules of the Attitude of Gratitude Award. I hope you will accept it, Sandy.

Rules of Accepting and Sharing the Attitude of Gratitude Award
Put the logo on your blog or post.
Nominate a few bloggers that show an attitude of gratitude.
Link to your nominees within your post.
Comment on their blogs to let them know they've received this award.
Share the love and link to this post and the person who nominated you for the award.
Tell us how you've come to have an attitude of gratitude.

Weekend in Wisconsin, Part One: Race for the Cure

We spent a long weekend in Madison, Wisconsin, visiting our daughter. We timed the visit so we could participate in the Komen Race for the Cure. When I hit the 5-year mark, our daughter, who had never been a runner, revealed that she had been training for several months to run in the Race for the Cure. We have been participating ever since. She runs, we walk.

We left her house on time. Many other people left their houses on time, too. But we all got stuck on the exit ramp of the Beltline. There was nothing to do but to sit there waiting until it was our turn to exit. Well, except for the guy who was a very determined runner. We saw him get out of his car (apparently driven by someone else), run up the ramp, across the bridge, and on to the Alliant Energy Center.

Eventually we arrived, although later than anticipated. This meant that we had less time to spend out in the drizzle. We also missed the Survivor picture. Worst of all, the pink plastic superheroine capes were gone by the time we got to the sponsor area. Drat! I spent the rest of the morning with Cape Envy. It still stings. With a pink plastic superheroine cape, I could have walked very fast. Very, very fast. This is what a cape looks like. Very cool, isn't it? And very powerful, I'm sure.



The weather was cool and drizzly before the race began. By the time it started, the drizzle had stopped, and it was overcast with just a few minutes of sunshine. I borrowed a long sleeved shirt from my daughter to wear under my race shirt. This was our fastest walk ever. To start with, we were closer to the front of the masses of walkers. There were more than 11,000 runners and walkers and more than 900 Survivors. Once we got past the strollers and wagons (who were supposed to be in the short walk), we kept passing people all along the way. Our daughter, who had finished well before us, found us as we approached the finish line. She and I were able to run across the finish line together, as we did last year. (Photo cropped to protect the innocent.)



I was honored to walk in celebration of Pam T, a Wisconsin online beading buddy who will soon complete her treatment. She is an amazing and brave woman and she deserves to be celebrated. She must have her own superheroine cape. To Pam T., I say, "You go, Girl!"



But I still have Cape Envy.

Indigo Dyeing Day

Today was Indigo Dyeing Day. Jennifer Gould hosted an indigo dyeing workshop at her home for our Fiber Arts Guild and some friends. Jennifer provided the dye and the instruction, a variety of goodies, and perfect weather.

While the dye was being prepared, we soaked our fabric and yarn. Then it was time for the dye pot. Here is Jennifer pulling the first product, her yarn, out of the dye pot. We left each piece in the dye for only a minute. When we pulled the fiber out, it was green. Once in the air, it quickly oxidized and turned a dark blue.



Here are two pictures of our fabrics and yarn drying. Notice the amazing pseudo-clothespole holding up the rope. It was created from two ladders and some concrete blocks by Jennifer's friendly neighbor. Many of us tried some shibori. We stitched and tied the fabric and the thread or string acted as a resist to keep the dye from that part of the fabric. You can see some of the fabric tied together in the first picture.



In this picture, you can see some of the fabric after the stitching or tying has been released.



And these are the fabrics I dyed. I hope to use them together to make a vest. For the piece on the far left, I pulled up little bunches of fabric and tied them off. For the second piece, I gathered the fabric in wavy lines. For the third piece, I gathered parallel lines. This was the first piece I did. I realized quickly that I would have to use a different method if I wanted to get all my fabric done. For the fourth piece, I tied little stones into the fabric. For the fifth piece, I pleated the fabric diagonally and tied it every couple of inches. For the sixth piece, I scrunched the fabric diagonally and tied it.



And here is a little something extra that I found after I got home. The dye went right through my shoe.



Thanks, Jennifer, for a great day!

What To Do? What To Do?

Well, I'm in a quandary. What to do? What to do?



I decided that I would use moonstone as my birthstone, and I found some beautiful jewelry using blue moonstones. Extremely expensive. But blue moonstone--just the thing for my doll, I thought. I made and stuffed the doll. Then I made the face cab and painted it a lovely light blue. She has a minor scar on her cheek, so I put the project aside for a couple of days while I contemplated plastic surgery or a total face transplant. Hey, lots of time till June 15.



Then Thursday, I stumbled into, er, made a special trip to, our not-quite-local bead store. I was feeling flush, with a pocket full of crumpled dollar bills and quarters. I had been reimbursed for supplies by participants in I workshop I had just taught in that town.

Then I saw it: A tube of beads labeled "Moonstone Mix." They were cream, white, peach and grey. I was smitten. The perfect colors for my birthstone doll. And then there was a coordinating tube of satin Delicas also labeled "Moonstone." I was beyond smitten. I was in love!




I went into meditation mode, trying to keep myself under control. I spent half an hour looking at every single bead in the shop. Twice. And then I purchased. Woo-Hoo!

Now I have to decide if I will use the little blue doll or change my color choices and make a new one. Lucky for me, I don't have to decide right away. I'm going an indigo dyeing workshop all day tomorrow so there will be no beading.

Don't worry, Little Blue Doll. Mommy loves still you.

It's All About Control! Or Is It?

I thought it was going to be about the challenge, but it was all about control. Or was it?

I mentioned earlier that I am not an orange sort of person. But I decided that I was ready for the challenge of the orange beads. So I started beading.

The orange beads became obstinate. Obnoxious. Ornery. I was outraged!

Let me be clear: I did not expect obedience. I was looking for collaboration. A melding of our muses. The orange beads and I would create art together.

What I got were teenagers who knew no limits. And we all know where that will lead. To no good end.

So I took control.
There was a clear goal: Orange beaded art.
There were definite limits: Only rectangles.
There were guidelines: All lines would be straight.
There was collaboration: The beads and I would decide together how large the rectangles would be.
There were opportunities for developmentally appropriate choices: The beads could choose who they were next to.

And this is the result:



Technical Details:

The foundation is Lacy's Stiff Stuff sprayed with orange Memories Mist.

The beads are 15/0s, 11/0s, 8/0s, and 6/0s. There are three different colors of cubes and some Toho triangles. No bugles at all.

The entire piece is done in the backstitch.

This piece is 2.75 inches by 2.75 inches.

I used tan C-lon thread.

What I Was Thinking:

I really wanted to focus on meeting the challenge of the uncomfortable orange beads. But I couldn't let them go wild. The color orange has so much going on. To me, it's hyper. The only way I could appreciate the beauty of the beads was to limit the movement in the design. For most of the beading I thought it was about control. But then I realized it was about showing the colors, shapes and textures of the beads without distracting from them with an elaborate design.

Issues That Came Up:

Am I a control freak? (Please say no...)

I am surprised I like this page so much. Orange isn't all that bad.

I finished the bobbin of tan C-lon. I still like Nymo better, but I did get used to the C-lon.

I know lots of people use just basic colors of thread--black, white, tan--when they bead. But I do like the match the thread to the beads. I guess I've spent too much time sewing.

How in the world did I get so many different kinds of orange beads? Ok, I did buy some especially for this piece. But not all of them. I won't need any more orange beads for quite a while.

Local Update

On Saturday morning I went to the fabric store, and this is what I saw:



Then I went to the library, and this is what I saw:



And then I came back home, and this is what I saw:



I must have forgotten to put the sign on the door.