The partner companies JRDSteam.com and ColoradoSteamin.com sites are impressing people and I'm finding ideal website clients through referrals. The sites also impress steam shower customers nationwide.  It has been a win-Win-WIN situation. 

Working in their steamshower showroom gave me great insight into the showers and how they help our bodies.  And my customer service background helped make it easy for people to decide on the best model. 

And if dreams can come true, I will have my very own steamshower before cold weather hits. After 23 years, 2008 is the LAST YEAR I plan suffer from this Denver Dry Cough.  Can't sing if I'm coughing!

New schedule is 3 days working straight outside the home, but not 11 hour days.  Seems decadent to work just 6 or 7 hours then go home to work on computer stuff. I can take breaks as needed instead of planning each bathroom trip with major plotting! (Hard to leave Kiosks!)

The rest of the week is freelance web and now that gives me at little time for silver.

I really missed you, shiny smooth wonderful silver!

Had dropped my bead case last month. (yeah, lovely moment that was.) Had the day to put it back in order and it was a beautiful thing seeing each bead one by one again.  Happy transfixing color gazing.  Ah...

Figured out the silver heart solutions.  The experimenting of last attempt told me what didn't work.

1. Got teeny but brilliant stones that FIT this time in the small heart.
2. Got Cord that seems dependable and really looks good.
3. Will change size of clasp holes to fit the new thicker cord.
4. Changed the way of attaching silver heart to cord- added a new type of bead to the design. Otherwise the silver bead hole is too small for other options and I hate jump rings fiercely.

Will wear a new necklace in the shower for a few months and see if the new cord is TRULY color-fast.

Stuff is still week to week full of uncertainty.  Have unpredictable commissions and web clients. But this month is ok and I should be able to make some necklaces. We'll see!  Everything goes nuts the minute I attempt finishing a project.  At least today, though, I HAD A BLAST.

My Dad had commissioned some hearts so I will fill that order on my next free day.

Isn't it Gorgeous!  I've got to get me one of these steamshowers. Can't stand another winter of the darned dry Denver cough.

Colorado Steamin - Modular and Custom Steam Showers and Walk In Tubs

http://www.coloradosteamin.com/

I reduced my hours at one part time job to have more time for the freelance projects.  The second part time job lets us use the internet (slow store on weekdays) so I can create layouts AND mind the store!  Is that not brilliant?

This means I got NOTHING done for the week.

And totally missed Valentines' Day.  Oh well, it helped focus the design development.

I've got tiny lab created stones to add to the next batch of Silver Puffy Hearts.  The micro dicros weren't micro enough.  And couldn't pick the colors.  

I wore a plain silver puffy heart to work and my manager just about lost her mind.  She wears everything silver and hearts.  I don't even have an extra one to sell to her! But there is hope I will be able to get there some time.  I have all the parts now...

DID get a cool tool to help make letters in new designs. 

To summarize, all is chaos but finally things are looking up Up UP!

Ordered stuff last week to complete the pieces. The 5mm dicros were too big. Ordered something else 3mm and they are teeny.  pooh.

One more order is coming in and it better be JUST RIGHT.

The linen cord turned out to be way too thin but HAPPY ACCIDENT it will be great for other projects. It's a solution I was looking for last year.

Worked 3 double shifts in a row. Rode bike as transportation.

NOT in the mood to make more silver today.  I'll just waste it if I can't concentrate.

I do have a large piece ready to fire from last Wed.  It looks wonderful.   The 2nd piece cracked in an unfixable spot as it dried. Dang.

I spent days off learning the process for my new job.  It will be great!  But tired from all the learning. Keeping the other 2 jobs since they are only 26 hours a week.

C

Best pieces I've made yet.  I want to keep all of them!  Dang! Recording music is easier cuz I get to keep a copy.  

4 of the pieces are already sold via commission.  I never take commissions because there are too many things that can go wrong and delay a piece.  But this is for a family member.  Anyway, will need to make more THIS week to replace those items and fill up the collection.  And didn't want to fire them all at once just in case the new design has problems. 

Colorado dry winter air really makes it tough to form the pieces. These designs aren't flat so working in a plastic baggy didn't help like before.  The first design from a fresh packet of clay comes out perfectly in a few minutes; the last design takes 40 minutes to compensate for the crumbling.  I am using airtight things to hold the clay, but the time it spends getting cut out from a design then moved back to the airtight container is all it takes to dry right up.   

Moving slowly today. Slept in late from a long, long week.

Can't hurt to try.

Anyway, they will be made in clay today, dried tomorrow and fired at night. Sanded probably Wednesday.  Then will experiment with the new cord supplies.

Napped all day yesterday after a full week including 3 eleven hour days. Totally worth for nothing except eating chocolate and comfort foods. Got some Colorado sun for a precious half hour before the wind stirred up. Watched 6 episodes of House on DVD.  Woke up feeling wonderful today. 

If all goes well, will practice the Silver Butterflies in copper.  The wire costs too much in silver to make mistakes.  Sigh -- I love to make them but Mistakes are my middle name!  I need an UNDO button for that wire!  But got the dangly beads for them ages ago and the butterflies are begging to be made.

 C

My goal is to make lots of goodies for Valentine's day.  If I miss that sales deadline, that's ok, since the designs are great all year long. It's just a very nice event to focus upon.

Funny, for the last 23 years I never wanted Vday gifts from my guy. But I also didn't have much access to much handmade jewelry before.  Loved visiting the artist's displays in New Mexico on holidays, but stopped going when my family moved away from that lovely state. Machine made stuff bores me.  If I had known about the handmade art available online, I would have batted my eyes for a month just to get something like that as a gift.  (I can hear it now; Honey, is there something in your eyes? ha ha.)

Ordered waxed-cotton cord (thanks Jenelle!) and different leather cords.  Will be testing them on myself thru showering and stuff to see what lasts best.  I betting leather, since it lasts forever with Allen's Alaskan made jewelry.  But the question is can I find a good supplier for MY stuff.  I bet most stuff available is cheapy. Time will tell.

Speaking of showers, we are STILL out of a working hot water heater. To use a "point of use" water heater, we need to change our old house's electrical box from 100amps to 200amps.  3 companies came out to do an estimate last week. We only heard from one so far and they listed an estimate of $1,900 bucks.  crap. Gas "point of use" heaters were going to cost us even more cuz of the crawl space needing a venting system.

Let's see how long I can hold out for a good hot water heater. For the last 15 years I've totally regretted the lousy tank heater we had. SUCH A WASTE to heat water all day for 2- 20 minute showers.  (Our other appliances heat their own water when needed.)

Until then, heating water on the stove.  Yep, my hair is kinda wild these days.

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oh yeah, also ordered silver and molding supplies.