echo basin

we camped here this weekend. at the top of echo basin road, at the base of hesperus mountain. so beautiful! by all reasoning, the camper should not have made it up that high. but we were meeting our dear friends dan, rachel, col and rose up there so we persevered and now we know that louellen (lily?) is a total badass.

our dutch oven meal for this trip was an amazing italian dish with sausage, noodles, zucchini, onion, lots of cheese, sauce and wild mountain chives. with a side of garlic bread thank you very much.

we love the camper! when the girls climbed down from their nest, they snuggled me for a bit.

this was the view out the window.

hazel took this picture.

june took this one.

this australian shepherd (which hazel named "hearts") was our companion all weekend. she had one solitary sheep that she was responsible for. we thought she had been abandoned and she seemed starving, so we spoiled her a bit, only to discover that she was playing us all along.

daisy came along.

and molly! we haven't had room for her to come with us lately, but now with the camper, she gets to come. she can't go too far anymore, but she loves to be up there with us.

oh how i love where i live!

i've been working hard on the camper. she is starting to look so great. here i am buffing off the old paint and giving the aluminum a nice brushed finish, just like my silver. i am using an attachment for my drill that is just like what i use to buff my silver.

and here i am riveting a "patch" on, to cover up a particularly ugly spot.

i am getting very excited for my little trip this week. i leave for santa fe on thursday. i was planning to bring lily (okay, yes, i think it's lily.) and was really looking forward to it. however, i have spent so much money buying her and getting her road ready that now i can barely afford to go at all! i realized today that my little car uses about TWICE as much gas when it is pulling the camper than it does when it is not. pretty crazy. so, i think that i am just going to take my car and a tent. oh, well. next time. it will still be fabulous and i can't wait. i am bringing my mountain bike and also plan to do some hiking, as well as check out the galleries, which i really haven't been able to do during my last two visits.

i have to say i have been kind of enjoying taking a break from etsy and even from my studio. it has been so wonderful to be able to camp so often, and to work in the garden (we had our first salad tonight made strictly from the garden) and to swim in the river and to ride our bikes. summer has just been flying by so fast and i am determined to spend what's left of it outside and with my kids. so i apologize for the lack of new stuff, but it will come, i promise.

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!