I've completely wasted time...

that I should be using to write a paper or study for a final by making a wish list on Amazon. I've always shied away from the idea, but whatever, here goes.

Don't feel obligated or anything, since no one probably reads this anyway, I just thought I'd share my excitement. Of course, it's practically all books... surprise! That wasn't predictable or anything. The books recommended by Amazon for me are a bit light on the academic/political side, because I bought most of my school books through my husband's account.

Week 28 - Offtheme (as usual)

So simple it doesn't really deserve to be part of the FSOJ project, but it's one of the few things I have pictures of at the moment. I've recently sent a pile of new things (that actually involve wirework and that I didn't get pictures of!) off to a gallery in Houston, so at least you can imagine something involving wirework! Comments welcome, of course!

Shy Violet

Week 29 - Offtheme

This necklace is peridot chips, freshwater pearls dyed a lovely green, and sea green serpentine with small sterling silver beads and a Hilltribe silver pillow centerpiece. All comments welcome.

Shy Violet

Week 30 - All in the Details

Freshwater pearls dyed a lovely cranberry color, sterling silver beads, and a pendant I made of sterling and fine silver wire with more small sterling beads. I really like making these pendants - they look really dressy with just a simple strand of something to accent them, and they're relatively quick gratification, too! All comments welcome as usual.

Shy Violet

Week 31 - Ceramic, Onyx, Silver Bracelet

Another ceramic and onyx bracelet. The ceramic beads are from Peru, I think, and of course bali silver and silver wire/clasp/etc. comments always welcome!

Shy Violet

Week 32 - Turquoise

Turquoise, sterling silver, and Hilltribe silver. It's pretty small (it's actually my size!), so whoever buys it will probably want me to adjust it for them.

I haven't been making much jewelry lately. It's the last two weeks of the semester, and grad school is kicking my batootie. I have another 45 or so pages to write on two term papers and then I'm jetting off to DC for a 10-week internship and then visiting family and THEN Guatemala for three weeks for Spanish study. Talk about craziness! I'm catching up a little bit on the project in my next few posts, but I'm still several weeks behind.

Deepwood Art Challenge Entry

Here's my entry in the Deepwood Art Challenge, using lampwork beads and hand dyed cord by glass artist Fran Lizardi of Deepwood Art. The frame is handformed sterling silver coiled with hairthin fine silver wire. The glass beads are accented by handmade sterling silver faceted beads. The clasp, not pictured, is an s-clasp that I handforged from sterling silver. You can see the other entries here as well as vote for the one you like best. My entry will be available on my website in the next few days. If it's not up and you're interested, just email me.

Held - Natalie Grant

Lyrics for Held, by Natalie Grant. It's a beautiful song, if you haven't heard it, from the album Awaken.

Held
Two months is, too little.
They let him go.
They had no sudden healing.
To think that providence would
take a child from his mother while she prays,
Is appalling.

Who told us we'd be rescued?
What has changed and why should we be saved from nightmares?
We're asking why this happens
to us who have died to live,
it's unfair.

Chorus:
This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
and you survive.
This is what it is to be loved,
and to know that the promise was
when everything fell we'd be held.

This hand is bitterness.
We want to taste it, let the hatred know our sorrows.
The wise hands opens slowly to lilies of the valley and tomorrow.

(Chorus)
This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
and you survive.
This is what it is to be loved,
and to know that the promise was
when everything fell we'd be held.

Bridge:
If hope is born of suffering,
If this is only the beginning.
Can we not wait for one hour watching for our Savior?

(Chorus)
This is what it means to be held.
How it feels when the sacred is torn from your life
and you survive.
This is what it is to be loved,
and to know that the promise was
when everything fell we'd be held.

FSOJ - Week 26 - Celebrate Different Cultures

The theme this week was Celebrate Different Cultures. My hubby worked forever on this photo, and we're still not happy with it. Gr! The bracelet is sterling silver links, a handmade sterling clasp, nephrite jade, black onyx, and handmade ceramic beads. The brownish coin shaped bead has a Chinese proverb (something about a flower opening) on the side showing and a brown and green flower/leaf on the other side. The picture doesn't show the colors well, but the nephrite jade is a gorgeous deep green - it kind of deepened into black. The round bead on the lower left is supposed to be green!

Available at Shy Violet.

FSOJ - Week 24 - Atlantis Sunrise

Since the Four Seasons of Jewelry project is through the Creative Wire Jewelry forum (at Delphi), this bracelet is a little out of place, being strung and involving no wirework whatsoever. BUT, I did make matching earrings that use a minimal amount of wire (no photo yet), so I'm going to count it anyway!

The theme this week was Atlantis Sunrise. I'm actually inspired to do something else on this theme, so I might revisit it later. But for now, this is what there is. It is Baltic amber, faceted black onyx, and faceted sterling silver beads, finished with a sterling silver toggle clasp.

As usual, all pieces are available at ShyViolet.

FSOJ - Week 25 - Off-Theme

Obviously I'm a bit behind on the Four Seasons of Jewelry. I'm posting this in week 25, but I'll be catching up on the last *counts on fingers* um.... 6 weeks in the next few days, I hope. I'm waiting for my hubby to finish the editing, etc. Since he does it (and I don't have to!), I'm not going to complain when things get a little slow!

This is blue lace agate and crystal quartz with sterling silver beads (bali) and my first swirly clasp, made of 16 gauge sterling wire and then hammered. I LOVE the matte finish from hammering. All comments, criticism, etc. are welcome as always.

Available at ShyViolet.

Procrastination again

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have low extroversion. You are quiet and reserved in most social situations. A low key, laid back lifestyle is important to you. You tend to bond slowly, over time, with one or two people. Conscientiousness: You have high conscientiousness. Intelligent and reliable, you tend to succeed in life. Most things in your life are organized and planned well. But you borderline on being a total perfectionist. Agreeableness: You have high agreeableness. You are easy to get along with, and you value harmony highly. Helpful and generous, you are willing to compromise with almost anyone. You give people the benefit of the doubt and don't mind giving someone a second chance. Neuroticism: You have medium neuroticism. You're generally cool and collected, but sometimes you do panic. Little worries or problems can consume you, draining your energy. Your life is pretty smooth, but there's a few emotional bumps you'd like to get rid of. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is high. In life, you tend to be an early adopter of all new things and ideas. You'll try almost anything interesting, and you're constantly pushing your own limits. A great connoisseir of art and beauty, you can find the positive side of almost anything.

The Five Factor Personality Test

So this week I'm reading about Liberal/Normative Theories for International Law, Genghis Khan for Military Strategy, amazing amounts of stuff for Political Islam, and a bunch of stuff for International Politics Theory and Practice. Lots of stuff to do. AND I'm working the walk that we've organized to benefit a girls' school in Kandahar, Afghanistan. I'm really hoping we have a lot of people show up - we have a radio station coming and everything, so it would be terrible of no one was there! I've actually enjoyed this more than I thought I would, and I'd like to be part of it next year too.

Arg... gotta get back to work.

I am soooo good at procrastinating...

that I took another silly quiz. It was all about animals, actually, kinda fun. I DO want a white tiger as a pet!

The Keys to Your Heart

You are attracted to those who are unbridled, untrammeled, and free. In love, you feel the most alive when things are straight-forward, and you're told that you're loved. You'd like to your lover to think you are stylish and alluring. You would be forced to break up with someone who was ruthless, cold-blooded, and sarcastic. Your ideal relationship is lasting. You want a relationship that looks to the future... one you can grow with. Your risk of cheating is zero. You care about society and morality. You would never break a commitment. You think of marriage as something precious. You'll treasure marriage and treat it as sacred. In this moment, you think of love as something you thirst for. You'll do anything for love, but you won't fall for it easily.

What Are The Keys To Your Heart?

My birthday was yesterday, and my parents are getting me a dremel tool so I can rivet and drill and stuff for jewelry. Hubby's parents sent me some money and blondies (vanilla-nut) and fudge and some superfuzzy Clemson socks. I think with the money I'll get a jeweler's saw and blades and liver of sulfer so I can start antiquing my new creations. I am so excited about it! I wish I didn't have so much work for school - I don't have as much time to play (read: any time) as I want. I'm going to start more serious metalwork - working with sheet silver and copper. Someday (when we're not in an apartment!) I want to get a torch and try reticulation and other such fun things.

FSOJ - Week 19 - Off Theme

Well, it's not on theme, but I like it anyway! The blue ovals are gorgeous blue kyanite, with freshwater pearls and handmade sterling silver beads. The links are of course handmade, which for some reason took longer than usual on this necklace. The kyanite is a bit funny to work with, it scratches easily, so you have to pay attention where the ends of the wires are waving. The clasp in the back that you can't see is a sterling s-hook.

Shy Violet

More Time Wasting

Your SAT Score of 1510 Means:

You Scored Higher Than Howard Stern You Scored Higher Than George W. Bush You Scored Higher Than Al Gore You Scored Higher Than David Duchovny You Scored Higher Than Natalie Portman You Scored Lower Than Bill Gates

Your IQ is most likely in the 140-150 range

Equivalent ACT score: 34

Schools that Fit Your SAT Score: California Institute of Technology Stanford University Princeton University Yale University Harvard University

What Does Your SAT Score Mean?

Blogthings - A New Way to Procrastinate!

You Have a Melancholic Temperament

Introspective and reflective, you think about everything and anything. You are a soft-hearted daydreamer. You long for your ideal life. You love silence and solitude. Everyday life is usually too chaotic for you. Given enough time alone, it's easy for you to find inner peace. You tend to be spiritual, having found your own meaning of life. Wise and patient, you can help people through difficult times. At your worst, you brood and sulk. Your negative thoughts can trap you. You are reserved and withdrawn. This makes it hard to connect to others. You tend to over think small things, making decisions difficult.

What Temperment Are You?

FSOJ - Week 18 - Oriental Express

The theme this week was Oriental Express. This necklace is large white freshwater pearls and black barrel-shaped cloisonne beads. Simple, but dramatic... I think so, anyway! All comments welcome.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 17 - Leaves

It's a bit late, but better than never. Here's my take on the Leaves theme. The pendant is Thai hilltribe silver, accented by freshwater pearls dyed green and gold. It also has matching earrings, not pictured because the bust/neck seems to not work with French hooks. The holes for the earrings are photoshopped out because I thought it looked silly for there to be holes with no earrings in them! All comments welcome, as usual.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 16 - Spring Maiden

And I'm finally caught up! This is Spring Maiden in the Seasons Collection, sold over Christmas break while visiting family. It is an 18 gauge sterling wire frame coiled with 28 gauge fine silver - accent swirls are 22 gauge sterling with 28 gauge fine silver coiled over it. Beads are pink Peruvian opal, rhodolite garnet rounds, white opal chips, and sterling 2mm rounds. It's pretty substantial, about 2 inches from top to bottom. There's also some criss-crossing fine silver wire on the back to stabilize the Peruvian opals a bit more (they're held in through holes, but they just seemed a bit loose). It's quite stable now, even though it looks very lacy. I'm very pleased with how this turned out.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 15 - Shadow

The theme this week was Art Nouveau. This obviously is not Art Nouveau - It's a pretty simple strung necklace: sardonyx, black onyx, and sterling accent beads. It has matching earrings that are not pictured because the neck/bust doesn't seem to like french wires very well at all.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 14 - Saisons

The theme this week was Hint of Winter - This necklace is actually the original piece in my Seasons Collection, so it's a little bit of every season! Freshwater pearls (potato and rice), garnets (faceted rondelles and diamonds), citrine (buttons and chips), and peridot (chips). It doesn't look quite as lopsided in real life as it does in the picture - the color changes are asymmetrical, but the pearl section doesn't really look so thin in comparison to the peridot section.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 13 - Willow

The theme this time was Second Thoughts - The pendant is an 18 gauge sterling wire frame coiled with 28 gauge fine silver and sterling beads. Then I made the necklace to go with it - african jade and golden jade (both probably really serpentine - those are trade names, but I don't know what they really are, serpentine is a guess). Now I'm not sure if the pendant and the necklace even look okay together at all!

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 12 - Regal

The theme was Simple Yet Elegant - This lariat is faceted rhodolite garnets, faceted onyx, faceted sterling silver beads, and a handmade sterling drop accented with two little rhodolite garnet cabs. The closeup shows the faceting much better.

FSOJ - Week 11 - Rio

The theme was Native Spirit - Peruvian ceramic beads (painted round, red and blue tubes), turquoise, onyx, sterling silver wire and accent beads. The ceramic beads are from a local bead store, and although their other prices are decent (not great, but decent), the ceramic bead prices are a steal - I'll definitely be back! All comments welcome, as usual.

FSOJ - Week 10 - Sun Dew

The theme this week was "critters." Well, there are no critters in this, but it is part of the Garden Collection, so maybe there might be some critters in the garden? This one is called Sun Dew, and it's citrine nuggets and buttons, peridot rounds and chips, bali silver, crystal quartz rondelles, and 28 gauge fine silver wire coiled over an 18 guage sterling wire frame.

Shy Violet

FSOJ - Week 9 - Glade

It's late, but here it is. It's called Glade, and it's part of my Moonlight Collection. It's an 18 gauge sterling silver wire frame coiled with 28 gauge fine silver, bali silver beads, faceted and round fancy jasper, and round and oval moss agate.

FSOJ - Week 8 - Moss

I'm back! The semester is over, I can finally breathe/eat/sleep/make jewelry/photograph jewelry/etc.! This has been done for a while and is actually already sold, but here it is anyway.

This is Thai Hilltribe silver, bali silver, sterling silver wire, moss opalite, sea green serpentine, and black onyx.

Shy Violet