Weekly Wrap UP 10/22/21-- Scarecrow festival and stain glass project

  Every year our little town holds a Scarecrow festival for the entire month of October.  This year there are over 200 Scarecrows all over town, some are recycled from last year but there are many that are new.  I always take a few pictures of some of my favorites.  I don't find any of them particularly scary but you always get the Debbie downers of the town throwing a fit about this festival saying the scarecrows are disturbing or scary.  Seems like you can't do anything anymore without someone having a complaint about it.  oh well 

Lots of theme ones this year for the local high school 

Raggedy Anne and Andy

Dorothy from wizard of OZ 

a toilet spider outside a plumbers building

an entire skeleton family just enjoying the day 

This one reminded me of Mrs Potato head

there were several groups a scarecrows

This one is appropriate for outside our local Barbecue restaurant 

The Scarecrow festival is also in the month of the towns local celebratory weekend.  Last year it was cancelled but this year they are determined to hold it, even though our area is still reeling form the increase in hospitalizations.  While the county has a mask mandate our local Knuckle-headed mayor has decided not to enforce the mandate so we will be skipping it this year:(!

I started working on a new project.  I bought a pattern but am modifying it slightly.  It will be the Yggdrasil tree of life.  This will be my fall/ winter project.  

I have spent about three days so far (approx 14-16 hours) on this so far.  

I have had a few people contact me about doing commission pieces whether they come through or not is still pending as I gave them the price and they now aren't sure.  I keep telling people glass supplies are expensive and the prices of copper foil, solder and zinc just went up at supply shops.  This usually makes people reconsider lol.  Oh well I will just keep making them for myself!

Weekly Wrap up 9/24/21 -- Stain glass projects

 I finished a couple of stain glass projects that I had been working on over the summer.  I had hope to get one more done before school started but with the family coming down with covid it just wasn't possible.

I finally completed the second lamp for our bedside table.  This one goes on my husband's side of the bed


This was the one I made for my side of the bed almost 2 years ago.

Next I have been working on another musical panel for my husband.  I just need to frame, add the details and patina it when I took these pictures.

It is always fun to finally see a piece of work with light behind the glass-- it is here where you can see any mistakes or be amazed at your glass selection.  

And a picture with no light behind the panel

My husbands plan is to hang it on the wall in his home office.  

Now a picture of the panel completely finished with framing and details.  Need to wait a few days before we can hang it up in his office.  

Now my Husband wants another panel of a pianist,  But I told him he needs to wait a bit as I got some projects I want to do!

My next project is The tree of life - Yggdrasil from Norse mythology 

I have all the glass selected and the pattern cut just need to start cutting glasss

Weekly Wrap UP 6/25/21 -- odds and ends

A couple of weeks  ago my husband and I visited a local winery.  My husband guitar instructor was playing there.  It was an absolutely gorgeous day.  

Music was good

the scenery was great and the weather was perfect.  

To be able to sit out in a a crowd and not worry was wonderful.  I forgot how much I enjoyed people watching.  We were there about four hours and really had a nice visit.

I have been enjoying my time in my glass studio!  I have been busy working on a few projects.

I made a simple piece to hold my air plant for my kitchen window.  

Still working on my dogwood lamp.  All the piece cut and fitted now to copper foil them all and start soldering.

I was super excited as I have another commission piece requested.  This time by a local music store.  They wanted a guitar lamp completed.  They gave me an old 12 string guitar and after a couple weeks of consulting on patterns and price I am working on getting it done.  

Initials are for the store -- an idea of what it will look like with light behind it

almost all cut out and ready to assemble

Over the summer I will be blogging a bit sporadically as I plan on doing my stain glass hobby, visiting my mother (helping her move into her new home) as well as just spending time with my family.  I will be back to regular blogging for Mariofan's Senior year sometime in Aug/Sept.  

Hope you have a fabulous summer!

Weekly Wrap UP 5/28/21 -- couples trip away

 This has been the first trip for my husband and I in over a year!  For Mother's day my husband promised me a trip to Kokomo Glass studio and we went last weekend.  We also stopped by Indianapolis on the way home.  We were only gone for two and half days and it was wonderful to get away just the two of us.

First stop was to Kokomo.  We spent about 3 hours inside as I looked for glass.  My husband was very patient and encouraged me to buy whatever glass I wanted.  I stuck mainly to my list for my summer project for the most part;)

Some of my glass haul which cost nearly $400! I found everything I wanted for my future projects!  

I just realize I didn't take any pictures inside the warehouse, because I was so busy hunting for glass.  There are over five large rooms filled with glass of all colors.  It was a bit overwhelming.

The next day we drove down to Indianapolis and spent the day there.  We visited our 12th president's house, Benjamin Harrison.  He served only one term.

They had lovely peony's in the garden.  

His home office which was surrounded by the many gifts he received as president.  At this time period presidents were allowed to keep all the gifts they were given 

His very large bookcase which still houses several first edition prints.

Harrison's dinnerware.  the outer portion is corn and wheat  which represents the state of Indiana 

The front of his home.  The home remained in the Harrison's family until the 1930's and then purchased by a school which turned it into a girls dorm.  However the school was very good about protecting the interior of the home so not much had changed.  A lot of the furniture from Harrison's lifetime was stored in the attic so it was is fairly decent shape.  It was a beautiful home.

In the afternoon we drove down to the canal which we had been told was beautiful.  It was!

We found the Indianapolis memorial

The shipped was torpedo after delivering the 'bomb' and sunk leaving about 900 sailor in the water where they were attack by shark.  only 300 men were rescued about 5 days later.  It is quite a story!

It was so peaceful sitting by the canal and there is a lovely paved path around the entire canal with bridges that crosses over at varying sections. 

We walked a small section of the canal

Then found some chairs in the grass and sat down to just enjoy the outdoors and people watch.  

At one point we saw a gondola on the canal!  

It was such a lovely afternoon.  The next day we headed back home feeling relaxed and like the world had returned to normal once again for us!  Can't wait to get home and start cutting my new glass!

Weekly Wrap UP 5/21/21-- Stain glass hobby

 Since school is wrapping up and I am starting to get a little bit more time to myself I am beginning to tackle some larger projects for my stain glass hobby.  I have several projects lined up for this summer

I am working on my second Tiffany style Dogwood lamp. This one will be going on my husband bedside table.

I have just the background to do, looking forward to seeing light b behind it.

I have also pulled out a couple of patterns I bought a years ago and plan to complete it this summer. 

 The Live Oak tree, but it reminds my husband of the Tree of Life in viking mythology

Dream catcher window 

I will be working on another panel for my husband for his new office downstairs.  

A once again asked Randy from my stain glass group to help me with the pattern.  He is amazing with these types of panel pieces and he helped me with 2 other panels that my husband wanted done  Neil Peart, and Jimi Hendrix.  Can you identify who this is?

Lastly I finally ordered a few molds to do some stepping stones for my garden.  I am looking forward to making these with some of my scrap glass:)

I bought two sizes 12 inch and 8 inch.  

For a late Mother's Day gift, my husband is taking me to Kokomo Glass studio and shop this weekend so I can pick out some glass for my new summer projects.  I am very excited to be going there as I have never been before and have heard wonderful things about this location!

Weekly Wrap UP 5/7/21-- Family news odds and ends

 It is official the entire family has had two doses of the Vaccine!!!  No one had any side effects from the vaccines. Two people had Pfizer and Three had Moderna (I am counting my Mother in here). We have all reached the necessary 2 weeks after the vaccine so we are over 90% protected.  I have to say it was such a relief to us to be protected and now that summer is just around the corner we hope to be able to get out of the house and possibly travel.

This past weekend we pick up Firedrake from college!  We are so happy to have her back home for a while.  My how she has grown up and become more independent than ever before. One thing remains the same however, her dorm room was a mess just like her bedroom at home, lol. 

Cleaning up her dorm before heading out

We had two cars so we easily fit in everything in the cars with room to spare.  There were a few things never even opened so we can pared down next year:)

Lots of parents were helping their kid move out and we even saw a moving truck in front of the dorm!  that did make us laugh but maybe the family had twins or picking up several students to take home.  We never saw the people using the van so we don't know the whole story:)

My mother has sold her home this week and is moving in with a friend who is also a widow.  They are looking forward to having some companionship.  Both ladies are very independent and enjoy similar hobbies so it should be a great match up.  Since I live so far away I will be happy to know she has someone near by who can assist her until I can reach her if it is ever needed.  I wasn't able to help her pack out of her house and say good bye to the house where my Mom and Dad spent their last 15-16 years and that was very sad for me.  I will be traveling up soon to help her move into her new place as soon as it is ready.  It has been too long since I last saw her.  We do talk nearly every day but it just isn't the same. 

We had a little bit of a scare with our old cat, Elvis.  He had been throwing up his food and dry heaving quite a bit.  We took him to the vet to have some blood work done and try to figure out what is going on.

We found out he has a mouth infection (he is allergic to his own salvia, which the vet said was not uncommon in older cats) and shows the beginning of kidney disease.  He is now on steroids and antibiotics.  The vet also recommends that Elvis gets fluids every other week, so I went in this week to learn how to do it at home as it is much cheaper to do it ourselves then pay the vet to do it every other week.  According to the vet he is not in any pain and once we get the infection under control should bounce back quickly.  Since Elvis is older we don't want to prolong his life if he is in distressed.  So we are going to be closely monitoring him with the vet.  

oh my that was a bigger needle than I thought it would be.  you can barely see in his shoulder  blades.

He needs 200ml every other week.  It has only been a couple days and we can already see a difference in his eating:)

Elvis was super calm at the vet, hope it is that way at home but I doubt it.

I made two Cthulhu sun catchers and just got them finished up this week.  One is patina black and the other one is silver which I think shows the wings off much better.