I'm in LA...B & W Charms

I am in LA now, working. I found a nice place to stay about 4 miles from work! I've only found Aaron Bros. Art Mart near by, but I have a Mall , Sees, Target and Trader Joe's close - Tito's Taco's is 1 mile and next to it is Johnny's Pastrami -what more could i ask for! Beach is about 2 miles - evenings are nice and breezy and cool, and my roommate is a delight! I can only blog periodically, as work is all consuming, and once i start shooting (next Tuesday) i will use all of my spare time to sleep!....but if you email me personally I will answer you - just not immediately.
I finished some Black and White Charms for a swap with Amber Dawn. Not my best work - I had a hard time with the resin i used. I coated both sides and let them dry days in between, but when I packed them into baggies and took them to LA with me to enclose on cards and put rings on then mail, some of them flattened a bit and lost the high gloss shine. They look ok, just not to my satisfaction. I also, for the life of me, could not get my hand to cooperate with opening the split rings I wanted to attach, so i just made steel rings and included a separate split ring so that swappers could attach it if they wanted to. The charms are 2 sided, mostly eyeballs and pregnant women, but a few other images are thrown in because the other eyeball ones had the epoxy distorted too much.
I also have some mica charms due soon, so i will plan them today and make them next weekend. I'll post when they are finished.The Charms.....Art Cards to go with them (yikes! sorry for the blur)

AMAZING DISCOVERY - who knew?

I was blog hopping and went to visit artist Moon Willow and came across the most amazing discovery she made. Thank You Thank You Thank You! You may already know this, but I did not. Ya know how when you use the aluminum foil the roll always jumps out of the carton at the wrong time and then it tears uneven or gets smashed on the edges and then you've ruined the roll? Well there is a tab on either end to LOCK IN THE ROLL! Yes it's true. I read this out loud to my DH and he said "No way - I would have seen that!" so we went to check-and sure enough - there ARE tabs that lock it in - and they are on the saran wrap too! (but not the wax paper or the parchment) How could we have missed this? why don't the advertise it? is it new? who reads the ends of the box? (obviously in all of my AND my DH's years years years of working with this stuff - we have never).
ok the bad news. My DH took the roll of foil that was already out of the box and separated from it's carton. First he had to tape the box up again - this happens when the roll falls out and you attempt to catch it, but instead break the box, either by accident or frustration. Anyway, then he put the roll back in and pressed in the two side tabs. VOILA - the roll now did not come out! Unfortunately, he put the roll in upside down, so now it won't roll and the darned tabs won't come out so we can't free it so it will release the foil...... Sigh.

A Day at the beach and Stone Angels

Gorgeous, yes?
Today I went to Kealia Beach. I know I've posted pictures before of my favorite beach - but i couldn't resist - it was a spectacular day! I packed a lunch of cheese and strawberries and orange slices and iced water and had a wonderful time. i usually start my beach day by taking a walk up the mile and a half stretch of beach. Almost no one was there and the tide was out a bit. I found a bevy of small 1" or so shells where the tops were missing - and I thought - I wonder if i could use these as bezels with resin? So I gathered them all up! If I have time to play with them before i leave for LA I will post some pictures....
...The water really is this blue - several shades of deep cobalt.....
While beachcombing I saw a large blue shell - shiny, baby blue, and ...now this happened in seconds....I reached down to pick it up, but it was in the sand deeper than I thought ... and i had to dig down to pull it out...and when I did, it wiggled, and I dropped it! It was a crab- maybe about 5 inches across. Later i found a small one and was able to photograph it:Below is a man o war jellyfish. This one is about an inch across. They have a tentacle that can extend 10 inches, and their venom is still potent even after they are dead. If you step on one and you get stung, vinegar is what the locals put on to counteract the stinging pain! I've only ever seen them on the south side of this beach, which is part of my walk - but I swim and picnic on the north side, and there aren 't any there. Today I must have seen about 20 of them, most were only 1/3 of an inch or so. The one in this picture has his "sail" full of air and his tentacle is not extended. They just fascinate me....they are purple and blue....Just a few more pics..........interesting driftwood....
Across from the beach is an old Cemetery. I always drive by it, but I've never stopped. It has a beautiful stone angel that is bigger than the other stone markers, and I've always meant to stop....but it just seemed sacrilegious or something to stop. But today i decided I would go and visit anyway, and be as respectful as I could ...there are no keep out sign or anything...but i still felt a bit ill at ease.....
This is the entrance....
...This is how it looks back towards Kealia Beach....and here are a few of the gorgeous angels...
The cemetery was so beautiful and diverse. The "tomb" that is there, had a statue of Jesus laying down and a plaque with a dedication of the cemetery, established in 1934. There were stone markers, concrete markers, marble ones even some wood ones! Oh - there were many crosses made from PVC pipe! Here's a slide show with more pictures. I spent a lot of time here - it was so peaceful and inspiring!

On another note, Susan in Germany received my "Art in a Carton" I sent her. Here's a link you can click on to see what I sent her:
http://art-in-a-carton.blogspot.com/2008/05/hint-of-hawaii.html

LEAVING AGAIN!....my prize, newer hair, and newest earrings

Well, I took a new job in LA. I start work on May 20th, and finish on Sept. 12th - if all goes well! I will be working on "Starter Wife" a new series with the same cast as the mini series that was on TV last year. This is the first show I've done in ages that is shooting over the hill - as in Culver City, or the west side of LA. I leave in less than 2 weeks and still have no idea where i will be staying. I'll probably be with my boys until I find a room to rent or a house to sit near the studio....I know I will hate making the commute over the hill everyday if i have to permanently stay in the "valley". So keep me in your prayers that this works out!
On another note, my friend Angie (click on her name to check out her fun blog!) had a blog giveaway for beautiful journals - all you had to do was list something quirky about yourself. My quirky thing was my collecting of - er, um, roadkill pictures. Angie randomly drew three winners and I was one of them! Today i received my beautiful prize, and a postcard from Angie that she hand picked just for me:
Isn't that a hoot? Yes, that is a postcard! Where did she ever find it? Ha!ha!
OK. remember last week when I had my hair recolored after almost a year? He couldn't put the highlights in it then, it needed to "rest". So i went back on Thursday - i wanted something different - but no blond this time. He rally worked on reconditioning it too. Here are some pics - i am very pleased! Amazing how new hair can make you feel SO good!
...and here are some earrings I made. They are pretty simple - i patinaed and sealed the birds , then strung them on fine silver wire with amethysts and swarovski crystals. I am also working a a miniature rosary, but i was 2 swarovski crystals short, so I had to order more...what a bummer....Hand is doing better - still numb, but I am able to ride my back again and lift weights. Gotta get back in shape and build up my stamina for the job ahead.
Here's an update on the Pink Artist "Love Squared" doll (the doll made for Breast Cancer Research covered with 2" squares of art by hundreds of artists). Click here to see how you can win her in October.
She will be featured in Art Doll Quarterly this autumn.