Lilyweeds: March 2012

When I was a little girl, I wished on stars all the time. Lying in bed, looking out my window... sometimes lying in the grass outside on a summer night just as the stars were first blinking. I wish I may, I wish I might... It was fantastic and hopeful and sent me to sleep with a new excitement for the next day.

As grown-up girl, I find I still wish on stars... but as an afterthought. Isn't that sad? I was such a happy kid. In recent years, I have increasingly yearned to be that person again. Knowing that my life was much easier when I was that little girl and wishing again for a way to get back to that place of more hopeful thought, a Wishcasting Wednesday post from Jamie Ridler Studios caught my eye.

So beginning this week, I am casting my wishes upon the waters. They will come true... they always do... I just have to make sure that I have the courage to wish them in the first place.

This week I am wishing for a renewal of spirit and a measure of grace. That's a good start, don't you think?

Through rain and hail and sleet and.... well, you know the rhyme.
Although for me and mine, it's been Hell as well as hail and we've yet to see sleet and snow.
(Sssshh! Diana!)
I excitedly signed up for the 5th Bead Soup Blog Party because I wanted to challenge myself.
Little did I know the challenges would be external
and have nothing in the world to do with my beading skills.

As I'd made my sketches and had the components configured,
I received word just last Friday morning that my sweet, funny 21 yr old nephew
had been in a traffic accident on his way to work and didn't survive.
Levi thought me being an artist was 'cool'.
I had told him about what I was doing and he said, as he always did, "can't wait to see that!"

Well, baby boy, here it is.
I am proud I got something done at all.
More proud still that I got something finished that I will wear.
I thought about wrapping the focal stone, but I like the weight of it
and the 'cool'ness as it lays on the top of my hand.

My bead partner, Ann Sherwood, chose beautiful stones and beads and a clasp that I absolutely love.

I used copper wire in 20 gauge, 24 gauge as well as copper and gunmetal finish jumprings.

The bracelet wraps twice with the focal bead and the clasp close so they lay together when worn.

I have plans to go back and add more of the tiny pearls to the links,

and make earrings from the leftover soup.
This is a keeper. Thanks, Ann!

Also visit Ann's blog to see what she did with the lace agate focal bead
enclosed in Delicas that I sent her...
http://ann-sherwood.blogspot.com/

She and I seem so alike... right down to the wire girls... I like that about her.
It means she runs at life headlong just like I do...
with an enthusiasm for filling, or over-filling, her life to the brim.
Take on everything because you don't want to miss anything.
I think if we sat down over a cup of something
- soup, I am sure, is too tame for the likes of us -
we would find a friendship.

Coming late to the party because of a nasty storm that flew through Kentucky last night,

I am just happy to be online again and on my way to the blogs!
You may notice little X's on some of the thumbnails in the LinkyTools below...
click there anyway...
not sure what I did, but there are awesome treasures hidden in the boxes!
Join me, won't you?

Hostess, Lori Anderson

Special Book Sneak Peeks, Cindy Wimmer

1. Adlinah Kamsir (Kingdom of Bahrain) and Hajer Waheed (Singapore)

2. Adrienn Lukacs (Hungary) and Agata Grygiel (Poland)

3. Agi Kiss (Hungary) and Carolien Muller-Genger (the Netherlands)

4. Agnes Asztalos (Hungary) and B.R. Kuhlman

5. Alesha Conklin and Becki Mendivil

6. Alice Peterson and Carol Dillman

7. Alicia Marinache (Canada) and Dita Basu

8. Amanda Dittloff and Brandy Thomason McNair

9. Amanda Tibbetts and Andrea Trank

10. Amy Freeland and Kay Mallery