Black Friday to Cyber Monday Sale!

  To help you get started on your Christmas shopping , or perhaps to treat yourself with a little holiday bling, I have 15% OFF EVERYTHING in my shop! From now until 10:00pm, MST, Monday, Nov. 29!

Use this coupon code -HRSALE2010-  to get the discount at the  checkout process.

(P.S ...Looks like I am back online, for now anyway!) Pin It

Too much free time

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I am writing this post from my iPad, and as of today, I have been 7 days without email access and Internet service. I am hoping to get into town where I can go sit in a Starbucks, and post this to my blog. I don't know what the problem is with our service this time, my husband spoke to our Internet service provider, and they are supposed to get back to us....so we are waiting. Satellite service sure does have it's problems! This is the second time since August, that our service has had something go wrong. Anyhow, I have had some extra time on my hands, since I have not been blogging, reading blogs, Facebooking, or posting items in my Etsy shop, no surfing the Internet, no online shopping for beads, or emailing friends. What have I done with all this extra time, you ask? Well, I have been preparing for Christmas! Hey, it's extremely cold and snowy here, so I figured what the heck! So far, I have managed to get all my Christmas cards written, the main floor of my house is decorated, and our artificial tree is up in our living room, also fully decorated! ( We usually have two trees, the second one being a real tree, that we will get later in December). Oh yes, and all my Christmas shopping is complete.....even the stocking stuff! I know....you all hate me. I will be relaxing during the month of December, wrapping my gifts, while enjoying a glass of red wine. Who knows if this Internet thing goes on much longer, I will have all my baking done too!
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Support your local artists!

Remembrance Day, on Nov. 11, usually signifies the start of the Christmas shopping season here in Canada. This past weekend, I was one of the vendors at a local art and craft show that has taken place for 33 years. I did OK at this show, covered my booth and made a little extra, however, I know that many fine artists and talented crafters at the show did not get the sales that they had hoped for, and they won't be returning to this venue next year. First let me say that these artists works were certainly not overpriced, and we had great weather for bringing the shoppers out. There seemed to be a fairly good turnout of people coming to the show, but they were hanging tightly onto their purse strings!

Now, I know the downturn in the economy could be to blame, however, my husband had to stop by one of the big malls in the big city to pick up some groceries, and he said the mall was packed, and had difficult time finding a parking spot. So the malls seem to be getting the shoppers already. My friend mentioned that she knows people that have had jewelry parties, and have had hundreds of dollars in sales in one evening! However, these parties are from those big companies that mass produce their designs, (often from China) and they seem to have taken over, from the independent jewelry designer, who used to sell well at these intimate affairs. Eventually, if unsupported, our local talented artists will disappear. So this season, when you are planning your shopping gift lists, stop by your community Christmas art sale, and try to include one or two gifts that were made by one of your locally talented artisans. Your support will be gratefully appreciated by the artist, and you will be buying a unique one of a kind gift for the recipient.

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Knock, knock on my door.........

One more big show to go this weekend, and I am finished for the season. I have created some great new pendants and necklaces to add to my Vintage Collection for the Fall shows, and they make great  gifts for the females on your list. Each one is designed with a vintage brass hotel door plate! Each beautiful brass number plate is different and certainly must have some interesting history! Oh, to be a fly on the door........ 

An accessory that is also a conversation piece! Every one is different, some incorporate vintage chains, keys, chandelier crystals and beads and upcycled jewelry parts, while others are adorned with  handmade art glass beads, semi precious stones or Swarovski crystals.

Because they are created with brass and copper, I have kept the necklace prices reasonable, selling between $40.00 and $65.00, which is a great price for handcrafted one of a kind art!  

I will be at the Kananaskis Country Christmas Show, in Redwood Meadows this Friday night, Saturday and Sunday, Nov 12-14. Over 70 vendors will be in attendance, so come out for the day and get started on your Christmas shopping with some unique handcrafted gifts! Pin It

Nothing wasted here!

The deer visited our front yard yesterday, and were enjoying the Jack O' lanterns, that we had put out on the driveway out for Halloween. This doe was really feasting on the pumpkin!

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Halloween Weekend

I hope you all enjoyed your Halloween weekend, ours was certainly action packed. We had our two granddaughters here, and we kept them busy with Halloween crafts, baking and pumpkin carving.










We did manage to have some down time and watched the Marmaduke movie on Friday night, and we roasted some wieners for a hot dog lunch on Saturday.






Our son is only a couple of years older than our eldest granddaughter, so all the kids enjoy each others company, and makes coming to Grandma and Grandpas house even more fun! On Saturday night, I did the make up for our eldest Granddaughter, who was off to a party. She thought it was fun trying to bite Grandma!




Last night our son dressed up as a strange type of hippie, to go trick or treating. It was a fun weekend!

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Happy Halloween!

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The Beyond Artisan Marketplace was a success! I had a super weekend, sold a lot of jewelery, met some wonderful new customers, and was thrilled to see returning customers as well. I was lucky enough to be surrounded by some wonderful  artisans, and we had a lot of fun chatting and getting to know each other, in between clients. This year I have changed my booth design to reflect the vintage styles of the jewelry that I am creating. I went for a look that recreated a womans dressing table, circa 1950's, and was pleased with the results.

You only have a few seconds to grab peoples attention, as they saunter past your table, so you have to stand out amongst the competition! Jewelry is always a tough category, as there is usually a fair amount of jewelry artists at these shows and they all have beautiful merchandise. Here I am, next to my table, you can see how everything looks from both directions.

 I am exhausted, and my feet are sore, and I have a lot of catching up to do on my poor neglected house....housework, laundry, etc. etc. I have a few custom orders on my plate, and a couple of interesting projects in the works, that I will fill you in on later! I also want to spend time this week getting caught up with all my blogging friends, and see what everyone has been up to over the last couple of weeks....I am so behind on that! I have less than three weeks, before my next big show...whew!

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Calgary Reads Silent Auction

This weekend at the Beyond Artisan Marketplace, be sure to take the time to check out the silent auction table of items donated by participating artists. All proceeds will go towards Calgary Reads, a literacy program that assists young readers in grades 1 and 2, and their families, in Calgary and area schools. You can read more about this valuable program at www.calgaryreads.com. So don't forget to put in your bid!
Hot Rocks is donating this glass and crystal, gold, raspberry and plum bracelet for the auction.



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The perfect alternative to the shopping mall!

Not too big and not too small, BEYOND is the perfect alternative to the shopping mall...

From Oct. 22 to 24, Calgarians are invited to visit the Blackfoot Inn to find something for themselves or the loved ones on their holiday list.

BEYOND will offer an enormous array of handmade and socially-conscious gift ideas, eight full weeks in advance of Christmas. Admission is just $5, and the parking is free.
 Click here to print off a discount coupon for admission to the show!This show features the  handcrafted wares  of 50 local artists from Calgary and the surrounding area.  This Fall, the show and sale has expanded to two rooms, the Ballroom and Heritage room at the Blackfoot Inn. Hope to see you there!  Pin It