true blue balance and a path

i made some more new pieces this week. it is soooooooo hot here all of a sudden, so it is very difficult to be out in my shop during the daytime; i have to work at night after the sun has gone down and the kids are in bed. (the money that was supposed to buy me a swamp cooler for the studio bought the camper instead.)

a new "may peace reveal a path" ring

this just might be the most incredible crazy lace agate i have ever seen. check out that perfect bull's eye at the top, right where that path leads...

the colors and patterns are just amazing.

and i love the size and shape.

a "balance" ring,

with a gorgeous pale high dome periwinkle chalcedony

a "true blue" ring,

with a deep blue apatite. yum.

and a "rustic nuance" anklet,

with aquamarine

i hand-forged and hammered each link.

this is such a funny shot. try taking a picture of your ankle sometime; it is not easy!

also, june finally got the hang of riding her tricycle! she is so proud of herself.

so sweet.

and today we went to the municipal pool to cool off.

the girls had so much fun.

tomorrow we will camp again with the camper. maggie (whose brother i bought her from) thinks the camper ought to be called "lily" instead of louellen because she's a "lil' loafer". what do you think? i think i like it; i may have to change her name... harvey, a local welder who attached the trailer hitch for me, also got the wiring done for me yesterday so the brake lights/ turn signals work. i got a jack with a wheel that is mounted on the front of the camper so that i can actually hook and unhook her to and from the car all by myself. maggie helped me make new cushions for her and i have ordered the fabric for the curtains, which i will make next week. i have also started buffing the outside. i am thinking i want her to have a sort of matte look as opposed to shiny, like my silver. i will share photos soon.

i leave next thursday for santa fe. blind pilot is playing there and i am going to take the camper for a couple of days by myself. i am really looking forward to it! now if i can only get the hang of backing up with the camper...

custom rugged wedding band and a great weekend

a friend wanted the perfect wedding band for her soon-to-be husband, complete with their local mountain range, the la plata mountains.

this is what i came up with; i am now offering it in my shop as the custom "rugged" wedding band (as opposed to the custom "rustic" wedding band). folks can send me images of their mountains and i will put them on a ring.

when i first showed glenn, he was able to name each of the peaks in the range.

this is the actual range.

we gave her a very thorough cleaning and then we took the camper out for her first trip right away on sunday. it was awesome!

we made a delicious dutch oven breakfast with potatoes, eggs, sausage, cheese, and green chili

and ate it inside.

we also had our first swim of the season in the river. it is the perfect way to refresh on these super hot afternoons.

i hope you all had a good weekend as well!

introducing... louellen the lil' loafer

after doing the telluride farmer's market again yesterday, i drove the rest of the way up to montrose to buy my "new" camper! a 1963 aristocrat lil' loafer.

here she is, in front of the home of the lovely couple i bought her from.

she needs a lot of work, that's for sure.

but i only paid $400 for her!

the icebox

the sink

the stove/ oven

hazel and june are thrilled!

i can't wait to make new curtains and cushions. these fold down into a bed. there is also an "upstairs" bed for the girls.

this light still runs on gas; the others have been converted to electric.

please consider these the "before" photos. this will be such a wonderful project and i can't wait to see her transform. in addition to the cushions and curtains and other small repairs inside, i will most likely paint the interior. i've purchased a little buffer for glenn; he is going to bring the exterior aluminum back to a shine. i think we may actually take her camping tomorrow night!

girl time

so glenn's been gone for the past three days, on a backpacking trip. the girls and i have had a lot of fun. among other things, we hung out at the river in durango, went and saw the new cars movie, went swimming, had picnics, and played in a tub in the yard. (if that looks familiar to you, it's because that's where the baby chicks were living. is that considered "repurposing"?)

glenn went and climbed five mountains in three days. my good friend shannon commented that just as i can't just go see one concert like a normal person, i have to follow the band around the west; glenn can't just go climb one mountain; he has to climb five.

finally!

some new pieces for you...

the "just let it go" necklace

with a fabulous laguna agate

whatever it is that is weighing you down. you don't need it. it is only hurting you. shed it. just let it go. be peaceful and easy like the soft soothing colors of this stone.

(EDIT: i am just looking at this and realizing i look quite haggard in this photo! i guess i should tell you that i didn't sleep very well the past two nights. little daisy was partying all night in her cage in the tent...)

the "may peace reveal a path" necklace

with a really beautiful crazy lace agate

sometimes, if you can just be still, just find some peace for yourself, even for a few moments, a path will be revealed for you. a new path has recently been revealed to me! more on that in a minute...

a new resolve ring

with a fabulous flash

a strength ring

with a wonderful high dome turquoise

a pair of refrain earrings

with beautiful prehnite trios...

cascading from your ears...

and another with aquamarine and amethyst

and, we had a wonderful time camping in telluride this week. i did the farmer's market again yesterday so we all camped up there thursday and last night. it was great.

daisy (ahem) came with us.

we bought her a little leash with a harness and she had herself a fantastic time.

sweet little ellie still needs a home

(before junebug loves her to death)

and molly and daisy are getting acquainted.

now, back to my new path? so, lately i've been feeling super restless, unsettled. as i've mentioned quite frequently, my little trips to go see music have been a lifeline for me this last year. but they have also rekindled my wanderlust. prior to being married and having children, i traveled quite a bit, to see music, and just to go. doing the shows that i have done this summer has made me realize that i have inadvertently created a lifestyle for myself where i can travel, not just for fun, but for work. i know that a lot of people do not like doing shows, but me? i love them. and i've realized that i want to do more of them. i want to incorporate traveling to shows into my business, into my life. up until now, i haven't really done that very much. and the main reason is space. i simply cannot fit all of the things that i need to do a show into the car along with the family and all of our own stuff.

so last week i had a moment of peace and clarity and realized that the next step for me in my life was to find a little travel trailer so that i could start doing more shows. that way we wouldn't have to stay in hotels and we could cook all of our food, save on all of the expenses that add up when i do them now. we can choose locations where we'd like to go as a family anyway and plan trips around art shows. it makes perfect sense.

so then, as always happens when i am on the right path, a fabulous thing happened. i went to the post office and ran into an old friend who also works hard to manifest her life. i was telling her all of this and she got this really funny look on her face. she told me that her brother had just offered to sell her his trailer for a ridiculously cheap price. i called him. we talked. he lives about two hours away; he is sending me photos in the morning and i am going to buy one of these next week...

i cannot wait to see what adventures await us!