It's been a few days...

All I can say to even try to excuse myself from my lack of blogginess is that work is madness at the moment and I've really been feeling the stress. Publishing has 2 levels, thumb-twittling and die-hard. Right now, we're in die-hard. Plus 10. Times infinity. The GOOD news is that today we got some of the load taken off our backs FINALLY after months of pleading and trying to explain the impossible nature of the task that has been handed to us in the amount of time that is allotted. So that's a bit of a weight being lifted.

AND I'm leavin' on a jet plane heading to the beach on Sunday!!! I am in dire need of some sun and relaxing...possibly a bloody mary or 2. I also get to see the family and hang with them for a few days, which is always nice!

Whislt I've been busy not blogging, I managed to make a few new goodies that are ripe for the purchasing in my shop. The one above is quickly becoming a personal favorite. The pendant is recycled from a necklace that my friend gave me when she was purging some old jewelry and thought I might be able to reinvent it. And so I did! And I adore it. It's so simple and fun and...yes...whimsical. I hope someone out there gives it a good home. (I've named the ladybug Layla...it's a weird quirk I've had since I was little...I feel the need to name things. Especially things that look like animals...or insects, as it were.) You can rename her when you buy her, if you wish. My feelings won't be hurt. I can't speak for Layla though, she's sensitive.

Anywho...I also made this little gem with these DEE-LIGHTFUL little robin's egg beads I came across on etsy. It's so beautiful and if a necklace can be breezy, then that's just what this is! Check it out in the shizz-op!

Other than all the work and creating, the boy and I managed to find a new bar/restaurant that I'm very intrigued by. It appears to be owned and operated by a group of about 7 or 8 friends roughly my age, possbily a bit younger, who have decided to just serve great beer and food for ridiculously cheap and have a classic video game chill out room in the back. Now, you're thinking..."That's rad! Where do I sign??" And yes, it is extremely rad (can I pull off "rad?"..hmmm...perhaps not) At any rate, great beer: CHECK! great food: CHECK! but the staff seem far more interested in hanging out than actually running a serious business. They are uber-nice, but no one was manning the front of the restaurant, the chef rotated between cooking and playing a game of chess in the front near us (granted, it wasn't terribly busy) and our waitress, while sweet and not a screw up, had clearly never waited tables before.

I hope they can pull it together because I think they're on to something great. I mean, I played Guitar Hero with the manager last night!! That's pretty kick-ass!

Well, I suppose I've taken up enough of your time this evening. Sweet dreams blogland!!

What a Day!

So, work (real work, that is) has been crazy hectic with deadlines out the WaZoo and today was of course no exception. BUT, my day was made infinitely better by the fact that I made 5 sales this morning!!! Yep, you read that right, 5 whole sales! I'm still excited about it! Very cool.

Now I've got some re-stocking to do at the store. I spent all last night posting all of my rainy day creations. You know, all those pieces I had ample time to work on due to the crazy Texas rains we were having. The first picture is a bracelet that I am now in love with. I was going to make it a necklace, but I stopped midway and thought it would look great as a bracelet...and it DOES!


I've had these little strawberry beads sitting around for a while wondering what I would do with them. So I made these little earrings. They look so cute on! I'm pretty happy with them!

So, in summation, it's been a busy few weeks. Now, I think I'll get back to working on some items to list in the shop. Maybe I'll spark up the torch and make some new glass bits! I haven't been on my torch in FOREVER it seems. I need to get back to it and stop letting real life get in the way. *Sigh* Ok, first ice cream, then creations!
Have a good evening out there in the blogosphere.

It's Flooding Down in Texas

Yes Stevie Ray, it IS flooding down in Texas. I'm quite sick of it, in fact. When we moved here almost a year ago, I was under the impression that the Lone Star State was, how you say, a little more hot and dry. Ah well.
So, here are a couple new creations. These pictures are less than good. I'll have to wait for the boy to get home to take some decent ones for the store. I made this amethyst, tiger eye, and quartz necklace last night. I was in the mood for something purple and all these beads just seemed to fit so well together. Come to think of it, all this rain has been pretty good for working on jewelry. I find myself completely undistracted by going to the park or the pool or any sort of outdoor fun. :-P (I'm really not as bitter as I sound.) But it would be nice if it didn't rain out any chance of seeing fireworks tomorrow night. I do love me some fireworks!

Again, these are not the best pictures; I am not the photog in this relationship! But I kinda sorta really dig this little necklace. I don't have any blue jewelry myself and this is just so subtle and cute. Hopefully someone out there will see it the same way I do and snatch it up!
Well, I suppose I should go continue to catch up with my backlogged Harry Potter reading (another good side product of all this rain) if I don't want to be too terribly surprised by the forthcoming movie! Happy 4th! "=-

Sales, Updates, and New stuff

I figured I should up date the old bloggin before any of my readers decided I was just a flash-in-the-pan one time poster. It's been a crazy-hectic week at work. I really realize why they call them DEADlines. (FYI, I'm an editor for an educational publisher here in Texas and as such, deadlines are my life) And just as a quick disclaimer, I may be hyper-grammar queen on the clock, but here in the old blog, I let things slide. I find it far too mind-numbing to bring the office home with me and apply it to forums such as this blog. Here, it's all casual, all the time!

That said, here are some beautiful lavender jade earrings that I just listed in my store last night. They're very girly and dangly and I'm so happy with how they turned out! And can I just say, I love taking pictures of my earrings on this white soup mug. I think it looks so cool! My uber-talented boyfriend usually takes most of the pictures for my store (which is why they all look sooo tasty!) But I actually took these and I think they turned out quite alright!



Above is another creation I added to the old store last night. It's the first bracelet that I've listed. I just love those agate medallions! Speaking of my store, I just made my second sale today!! It was such an awesome feeling! I've been selling on etsy for about 2 weeks and I've had 2 sales. May not sound like much to most people, but it takes a lot to be singled out on etsy for even just 1 sale, so I am optimistic! There's more hard work on my part to get my name out there, but I'm more than willing to put in the effort! :-)

Well, I think that's all I have in me for my 2nd post. I hope everyone has had a good week. Catch you on the flipside!

Saturday Endeavors

Since I'm up and about so early on a Saturday, I figured it was time to get my blog up and running with it's very first post. (Woot!) I've gotten my long awaited online store up and running. So, ok, it was probably only long awaited by me, but if you'd like to give it a look, you may do so here: http://www.distinctleigh.etsy.com or by clicking on my "etsy mini" on the right of this page. I will be blogging here about some of my pieces, store updates, creative processes, general life affirmations, etc. So check in with me from time to time. The piece you see to the left is a necklace I listed in my store this past week. I love the black glass with the hint of lavendar jade. When it was finished, it reminded me of something a bookish person (like myself) would wear...perhaps at the library. I'm not sure why, I can just picture someone wearing this while reading Jane Eyre. Hmm...maybe I should read Jane Eyre.



The little guy above is absolutely one of my favorites. He's in my store as well, so go visit him if you get a chance!

So it's a lovely little Saturday and I'm trying to come up with some fun things to entertain myself with today. A trip to the bead store might be in order so I can continue to stock my store with tasty goodies. I always have way too much fun in those places. We have 3 that I frequent here in Austin because they each have their strong points selection- and price-wise. I can spend almost as much time in a bead store as I can in a bookstore and my poor, yet good-sport of a boyfriend gets dragged to both places on a regular basis.

Speaking of books, I'm reading an excellent one called The Wild Trees by Richard Preston. It's a beautifully written non-fiction about this whole other eco-system in the canopies of the California redwood forests. Apparently it has only been explored by a select few and there are animals up there that have never even seen, let alone touched the actual earth. I think that alone is fascinating. These little squrriels were born 350+ feet in the air and they're completely unafraid of humans because, well, they've never even seen one and don't know to be afraid. Get this book and read up! It's so amazing it's virtually indescribable. (But trust me, the author does a great deal of describing, so you won't be disappointed!)

Hmm...perhaps before I head off to get beads I'll drop by the pool for a swim (how's that for stream of conscious thinking). That sounds perfect for a lazy Saturday morning, eh? Have a great weekend kiddos!