Tuesday, December 29, 2009

A Little Randomness aka "the Stolen Meme"



I am so far behind on my reading of other people's blogs - it's redonkulous! So I am randomly going through blogs and picking random old posts and checking stuff out and while I'm at Dances With God I find this gem of a meme. It's usually one of those things that you do and then "tag" someone to do it also. Well, I'm not tagging anyone, I just thought it was fun. But hey, if you wanna, you sure can do it too!
(Thanks Pastor Sharon...by way of Reddirt Woman, who also has a lovely blog!)


1. What's your favorite article of clothing? An oversized black baggy sweater with pockets. I wear it all the time so even though it's relatively new it doesn't look like it anymore!

2. Who was the last person you hugged? The hubs.

3. What's your favorite dinner? Pizza. No- Mexican. No, wait! Italian. No...wait! Um...too many things to decide. Depends on my mood.

4. What's the last thing you bought? This bag. In red. (On sale, at least) I'm a junkie. Someone help me!

5. How's your head feeling right now? Ok. My back now...that's a whole different story...

6. What's your favorite weather? Late spring, when it's warm but not too.

7. What is your least favorite season? Winter. I'm so not a cold weather person! (S.A.M. is, but he's ca-ray-zee!)

8. What's in your purse? Oh my gosh. Everything. My wallet, emergency makeup, gum, cell phone, iPod, antacids, Tylenol, gum, old movie ticket stubs (go see Sherlock Holmes, awesome!), more gum, coffee stand cards...and I'm sure about 47 more things I've forgotten.

9. Say something to the person who tagged you. Well...since I stole this, I guess this one doesn't count!

10. What is your favorite dessert? Gobi. Oh wait, that's 2 s's, i'nt it? (Ha!) Well, I'm not much of a dessert person, but I would have to choose either Key Lime pie or pumpkin pie.

11. What did you want to become as a child? Not so much a what as a who. I seriously wanted to be Shirley Jones.

12. What do you want to be now? A full-time artist. ...sigh...

13. What is your favorite song? Oh goodness, I love all kinds of music, I don't know if I could pick just one. But some of my faves are "And Dream of Sheep" - Kate Bush; "All Will Be Well" - Gabe Dixon; "Consolation Prizes" -Phoenix; "Cobrastyle" -Teddybears; "Feel Good, Inc" -Gorillaz; "My Divided Falling" -3.

14. What is your favorite country/state? I would have to say USA. I haven't been to a lot of different states so I don't know if I would prefer one over Washington. I need to travel some more and get back to you on that.

15. If you could go anywhere in the world in the next hour, where would you go? To see my parents. Or Machu Picchu.

16. What are my most challenging goals right now? Figuring out how to make my business/art work profitable.

17. What is your five-year plan? Getting my business/art work profitable!

18. What is your favorite sport to watch? Uh...sport? What is this "sport" that you speak of? Oh, um, if I have to watch sports it would be baseball.

19. What show would you be a cast member of? Fringe. Or Sanctuary. Or CSI (the original one).

20. What is your most prized possession? Material possession? My laptop. It has all my artwork on it.

21. Name a favorite childhood memory. When I was little, maybe 3, my parents took me "ice skating" down a street next to the lake near our house. I remember them holding my hands, one on each side, as we slid down the street on our shoes, in the cold.

22. What is your favorite movie? Field of Dreams. A Walk In the Clouds. Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

23. What is your favorite quote? "You can't have a light without a dark to stick it in" - Arlo Guthrie.

24. What is your favorite book? Yah...how much time do you have? Okay - Anything by Sherri Tepper. Dean Koontz's "Lightening". Stephen King's "The Stand". And about 400 others.

25. What sport would you compare your life to at this time? Mountain climbing!...but I'm gettin' there!

Friday, December 25, 2009

Ronald Reagan Christmas address 1981

Is there some way we can clone this guy or bring him back?

Anyway, this is the best Christmas address by a President ever.
(It takes a minute to load, but it's worth the wait. Merry Christmas, pt 2...)



Merry Christmas everyone!
May God bless and keep you and yours, and may you have a peaceful and prosperous New Year!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

I'm Yelling from my Soapbox Today

So the Senate Democrats passed a "landmark health care bill in a climactic Christmas Eve vote that could ... usher in near-universal medical coverage for the first time in the country's history."

The only good news is that all our Republicans voted no. I, personally, liked Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-Ky.) comment: "they wouldn't be rushing it through Congress on Christmas Eve" if the measure were worthwhile.

This is so true.

What little of it they have made the general public aware of sounds good on paper.
"The legislation would ban the insurance industry from denying benefits or charging higher premiums on the basis of pre-existing medical conditions, beginning in 2014 in the Senate version, and 2013 in the House measure. The Congressional Budget Office predicts the bill will reduce deficits by $130 billion over the next 10 years"... BUT they are going to do it in part by implementing massive cuts to the citizens who need it most: senior citizens, by cutting Medicare benefits. And that's just to start!

As House Minority Leader John Boehner says"Sen. Reid's health care bill increases premiums for families and small businesses, raises taxes during a recession, cuts seniors' Medicare benefits, adds to our skyrocketing debt, and puts bureaucrats in charge of decisions that should be made by patients and doctors."

What most people don't realize is that this is intentional. Why do you think "they" are cutting health care for senior citizens? Because they are "on the way out" and the Dems don't want to pay for them. Why do you think "they" are saying that women don't need mammograms until they are 50? Because a lot of women will die from cancer that was undetected, and "they" won't have to pay for their health care then.
You think I'm being extreme? There are Democrats who are all for euthanasia, especially for the elderly and for babies born with birth defects. They just keep it hush hush because they don't want you to know. Seriously! The liberal left in my own state passed such a law, and it's not a very big step from assisting elderly or terminally ill patients in dying to mandating it for all terminally ill, or "defective" infants, or people who have injured themselves to the point they are not "productive citizens". Sound like a sci-fi movie? Well, you just wait.

I am serious. Do you think Joe Blow down the street, who's working a minimum wage job (at least he has a job and isn't on the dole) can afford to buy health insurance for his kids? What are "they" going to do - put him in jail? Fine him? Yah, that's productive.
Do you think McDonald's can afford to give their workers health care? Do you think ANY restaurant can?! Really? And how's that going to jack up their prices? You'll have to make over $150,000 a year to buy a Big Mac! (Okay, I'm exaggerating, but you get the point...)

Our health care should not EVER be in the hand of the government. They can't even run this country correctly, appropriately, or productively! What makes you think they can handle your health issues???!!!

And you know what the real kicker is? What no one is telling you unless you really dig, and know where to look? ALL THE GOVERNMENT TROLLS ARE EXEMPTING THEMSELVES FROM THE HEALTH CARE BILL!!!
So how "good" can it be!!??

"Government of the people, by the people, for the people" has become "of the few/rich/powerful politicians, to screw the people, for the money the few/rich/powerful to put in their pockets." You think the people pushing for this have not figured out how to get kickbacks of some kind from all of this? Right...

So Merry F*'in Christmas from your Government, everybody.

Maybe I'll be in a better mood tomorrow.

Monday, December 21, 2009

More Logos

In an ever expanding search for more opportunities to make money...my dear hubs, Secret Agent Man, has found a website called "Worth 1000" for me. As in "a picture is worth a 1000 words..." This site is great for people who want to brush up on their Photoshop and Illustrator skills. There are photography contests, photo manipulation contests, illustration, and my personal favorite - corporate logo contests. There are even contests for writers! (Hey, Otin, you should check it out!) Some of those are really fun to read.

The majority of the contests award points, which you can use to "buy" credits so you can enter more contests. I haven't looked into them closely enough, so I don't know if you actually win money or just credits. The contests vary from beginner to expert.

The logo contests are sponsored by companies who are looking for logos because they either don't have one or they are re-doing their websites or images. The companies pick a winner and there is a cash "prize" for the logo, which they then own the rights to. The entries are also voted on by members, which may or may not have any bearing on what the company chooses.

It's worth checking out if you are interested in such things. There are literally hundreds of contests all the time.

I have been entering the logo contests, because I love logo design, and because they pay actual money. I haven't won anything yet, but it's good practice at the very least.

So far I have entered for a real estate company called "The Home Spot":



and a science laboratory product called "Titan":



I just entered one for a legal search firm called "Moses Legal Search" but I can't post those until the contest is over. So you'll just have to wait.

Still working on jewelry, too, but you know...it's been a hectic couple of weeks, what with work, Christmas, the in-laws coming, the cat having to go to the "v-e-t", my car breaking down, and...well, you get the picture.

Sigh.

I hope you all are doing well and set to have a Merry Christmas. And here's hoping for a better New Year!

Hugs to all!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Monkey!

So a lovely Etsy seller, "2nJoy" contacted me a while back about my "M is for Monkey" alphabet print. Her son likes sock monkeys, apparently, and she bought a digital file from me to use on a mug for him.
It turned out way cute!

I have to say I never even thought of doing something like that...I might have to look into that a little further. In my opinion, you can never have too many coffee mugs! Especially cute ones.

Anyway, she agreed to let me put a picture up on my blog:




Also, while you're at it, check out her shop. She makes jewelry, too, completely different from mine. It is very pretty. I love these earrings!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

Tuesday and Home Sick


While I am waiting for another shipment of promotional stuff from Artbeads.com to play with, I am going to rant. I have been absent for over a week, and here's why:

It's been hell week here. Secret Agent Man came down with something nasty about half-way through Thanksgiving Day and now I have it, so I'm home sick today and blogging.

On Thanksgiving we had my brother here, with his wife and 3 kids, and one of SAM's single friends from work. It was a nice day, but goodness! I think the dishes multiplied when we weren't watching.
(It sounds so bad...but I think we finally got the dishes all done last night...)

Then Thursday night SAM says his throat has been hurting. By Friday morning he was down for the count. He felt well enough to go to work yesterday but was going to come home early -however, it was not to be. Too many meetings and TPS reports...
And about half-way through my day yesterday...I thought I had just talked to one too many crazy persons and was starting to get a headache, but no...by the time I got home my throat hurt and by about 8pm I knew I had "it"...whatever "it" is. So I'm home today so I don't spread the love to everyone at my work.

On top of all of this fun stuff, it has come down the pike that the Government (which has turned into the nastiest of 10 letter words in my book) has decided they don't want to pay for the contracts they have with SAM's company anymore. They want to take the jobs from the guys who actually know what they are doing and give them to low-paying government flunkies instead. So they are eliminating hundreds of jobs. I'm sure they will count the jobs they give to their government guys as "new" jobs that "they" have created, and never mind the guys they just put out of work.

(As an aside, did you SEE the story on the news about how the Government (recovery.gov) HAS FLAT OUT LIED about how many "jobs" have been created (a little bit of an "accounting error" my ass) and that their numbers are off base by THOUSANDS but they are NOT GOING TO FIX IT!!?? What a crock of reindeer dung!!!)

So anyway, SAM's been dealing with a lot of crap over the past couple weeks. His shop is undergoing pretty big changes, not the least of which his job is being eliminated.
!!!
Yep. So, he's either going to take a demotion, including a big pay cut (thanks so much Mr. Obama), and then demote his guys on down the line, or have to take a job elsewhere in the company, which will still be a demotion and pay cut, most likely.
Merry Christmas, eh?

But I am thankful that he still has a job. For now. Who knows what will happen once the Government really sinks it's teeth into companies like this. You need to start paying attention to what's going on around this place...they are not only messing with things like health care and education, giving away money and houses (yes, they are!) to illegal aliens, screwing the American-born-job-holding-tax-paying citizens right and left, taking money out of our pockets to give to the uneducated (often by choice), drug-using, welfare abusing, lazy layabouts, but they are also making this country one very unsafe place to be by messing with our military and our contractors like SAM's company, who do stuff you can't and don't want to know about, to keep us all safe in our beds at night. It makes me shudder. And maybe throw up a little. (Although I'll admit that could be my cold...)

So we're feeling a little overwhelmed here.

But -
-we have tried to put things into perspective. At least SAM has a great education and would be able to find another job somewhere, if all else hit the fan. And we have played the "what if" game and done that "what's the worst thing that could possibly happen and what would we do" thing...and figured that we would be able to survive it regardless. So it's ok, I guess. I still don't understand how we, as a country, got to this place, that thousands of people are losing their jobs right and left and the economy is going into the toilet and still so many people are wearing their blinders and ignoring the real problem: Our government sucks. I don't care what party you think is to blame, or what party you back, or what you are "for" or "against". We are in some real trouble here, folks, and it's only going to get worse.
Wake up! Before it's too late. We as a people, need to figure out some way to get back on track. If anyone has a great idea, especially a feasible one, I'm all for hearing it.

In the meantime, hope you had a nice Thanksgiving. I hope you and yours are happy and well. Thanks for letting me rant. And if you've read this far, I promise I will be funnier, nicer, and/or more artsy tomorrow.
Really! :)

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Gypsies, Tramps and Thieves....

Come on, people! Sing it with me!
"Gypsys, tramps, and thieves
We'd hear it from the people of the town
They'd call us Gypsys, tramps, and..."
No?
Well, you are no fun at all.

That's ok, I'm gonna show you a "pretty" anyway. 'Cause I love ya. And that's the way I am.

This is a lovely "gypsy" bracelet I made for a friend of mine.
I used some of the great Swarovski crystals I got from Artbeads.com that I had left and some dyed pearls. Then I added two "raw" rubies for luck, one on each end.

She needs the luck, since she recently fell off a ladder and broke her back! Augh! But she's mostly better now and back at work with me, so it's all good.

It's really quite festive! I may have to make some more...


(And, apparently, now I have to disclose that I "received the 'products' free of charge from Artbeads.com and that I am honestly reviewing the products and have not been paid for my endorsement as it pertains to the products received." Hmm, yah, well I'm okay with that! I still think it's great they found me and asked me to participate!)


Sunday, November 15, 2009

Christmas Cards I'm Working On

I know it's a little early...but I may put them for sale on Etsy.



Thursday, November 12, 2009

An Unexpected Call


Wednesday morning, aproximately 9:30.

Me: “Crime Check, what are you reporting?”

Heavily accented Indian male voice: “Yes, my name is Sanjay*. I am calling to you from Mumbai* about your advert.”

(*I couldn't understand what he actually said...)

Me: “I'm sorry, I think you have the wrong number. This is a non-emergency number for the police department.”

Caller: “Yes. I am calling to discuss with you a possible proposal for marriage.”

Me: “Sir, you have the wrong number. This is Spokane...Washington State?”

Caller: “Yes, I know I am calling to Washington. I am calling because I like what I saw in your profile on-line and would like to talk to you about possible proposal for marriage.”

Me (trying to be patient): “Sir, you have the wrong number.”

Caller: “Yes. My friend gave to me your number and I look up your profile and your picture, and I like what I see. I want to know if you would be interested in meeting at some future date.”

Me: “Sir, can you understand me?”

Caller: “Yes, yes.”

Me: “Sir, this is the po-lice department, in Spo-kane, Washington. This is not a dating service. I think you have the wrong number. What number are you trying to call?”

Caller: “I don't know, my friend in California gave to me this number.”

Me: “Well, sir, I'm afraid he is either playing a joke on you or you wrote the number down wrong; this is the police department in Spokane.”

Caller: “Oh! Well, I am afraid that someone maybe has been putting me on! I am so sorry! This is the number I was given to call. Who are you? You have been so nice to me, what is your name?”

Me: “My name is Tera (because we are required to give it if people ask)" and for good measure: "with 911 and the police department in Spokane, Washington."

Caller: “Is there another number that I can call you at for maybe a later time?”

Me: (pause) “...I'm sorry?”

Caller: “Yes, I would like to call you for another time to discuss a possible proposal for marriage.”

Me (not trying too hard not to laugh): “I don't think so. You really have a wrong number, sir. I need to hang up now.”

Caller: “Yes. Thank you. I am sorry. Have a nice day.”

click


***Keep in mind this is an abridged version of the conversation. It actually took about 15 minutes. I couldn't understand him at all at first and it took a bit before my ear figured out the accent, plus I was trying to sort out what kind of emergency or issue he might have. I almost got a translator on the line until I figured out what was going on. Then there was about twice the amount of back and forth while he talked to me about the "website profile" and the "proposal of marriage". The sad thing is, I think he was serious! ...maybe I should have asked for a picture first!?




Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Veterans Day 2009


Thanks to all our past, present and future service members. We are forever in your debt.

Friday, November 6, 2009

New Stuff for November

So I finally got around to making something with some of those lovely Swarovski crystals I got from ArtBeads.com! Well, actually I made them last "weekend" (my weekend being Thurs/Fri) but I was also sick and by the time I got to feeling better I had to go back to work. I just got around to photographing them today.

I really, really like the briolette crystals. The color is called "Silver Shade", there is just a little bit of silver color to them and they are far more gorgeous than my photography can do justice to.

I made a set of earrings and a necklace with them, and the 5mm bicone crystals in Indian Sapphire (a nice, soft grey blue color) and Black Diamond. I wanted to make something that would look fancy when worn together but could be worn separately to dress up jeans and a sweater or something along that line. I wanted a sort of chandelier earring, but not too complicated. After two attempts I wasn't happy with I finally got something I really liked!
Here's what I came up with:




Then I also made a set of drop earrings and a necklace out of some Swarovski I bought a couple years ago. They are lovely fall colors. I used an olive green round, an olive and a lighter green bicone and some orange-y diamond shaped ones, along with a lovely olive green drop pendant.
I really like this set, too, and it is also one that looks much fancier when you wear the pieces together.




I really wish I had more time to do jewelry, I really enjoy it. I'm going to try to do more soon. I still have a lot of lovely stuff from ArtBeads.com (thanks guys!). I think I'm going to try and make a colorful bracelet for a friend of mine who likes "gypsy" jewelry.

-----------------
I have also been busy with some new art. I'm trying a new style, something a little more "loose". Sketchy.

I call this series "Laundry Cat". 1, 2 and 3:



Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Still Wicked

Hey, remember this?


Well I got an email today that I am she is being featured on an extremely cool website! Check out TotusMel's Wunderkammer. She has all kinds of really cool steampunk stuff and other things from Etsy. Definitely worth a look-see.

Friday, October 30, 2009

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Awesome Bumper Stickers

There seems to be a rash of political bumper stickers hitting our town lately. Most of them are really negative and nasty, although a few are kind of funny ("You keep the change, I'll keep my money" being one of the few I like). I really hate most of them, regardless of what side they are on.
What I really enjoy are the clever, witty and sometimes sarcastic ones I see, but rarely. I have decided I am going to start documenting some of the ones I really like and a couple times a month (you know, when I remember) I'm going to post them. Maybe they'll give you a chuckle.

Are there any out there you like?


I need one of these for my car!

For Trekkie cubicle grunts:

Secret Agent Man saw this one the other day; it's my new favorite!

And this one was just nice to see:

Saturday, October 24, 2009

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

It's Secret Agent Man's birthday today!
Yea!

Happy Birthday, Honey! I love you!



Thursday, October 22, 2009

I have this phone...



...that I really hate. But, as is the way with cell phone companies, I'm not "eligible" to get a new phone until next October. I may have to accidentally on purpose lose mine in a lake or something.
It is one of these, and they look fun, and they look stylish, but it is - in actuality - a giant pain in my patookis.
It is a touch phone.
This means that every time I touch the screen (digging it out of my purse, setting it on the counter, trying to make a phone call, pretty much any time I'm anywhere near the damn thing) I accidentally activate something I don't mean to. Sometimes it's a program I didn't even know was on the phone!

This includes the camera feature.
Why do they set the button for the camera right where you always (always!) put your thumb when you pick up the phone?!
Consequently, I have numerous accidental pictures. I discovered these a couple days ago when I was looking for one I actually intended to take.

What happened to a plain old cell phone that makes/receives calls? That's another thing! This phone, for whatever reason, often does not ring, so I get all these voicemails from people wondering where the heck I am that I'm not answering my phone...when it's been sitting right there next to me. And then when I grab the phone to find out who called, I take more pictures! Yea!
So anyway, I thought I'd share with you some of my accidental photography, while I'm still trying to finish up some earrings.

I think this is my laptop.

One of my bead boxes?
My bathroom floor.
My car.


(While I was trying to figure out how to email these to myself, I discovered that I have a "task" feature on my phone. ? I don't even know what this is! I may have to investigate further...)

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

A little personality goes a long way...


Sorry I've been MIA lately...I've got way too much on my plate it seems, and I just can't keep up.

I had a class for work all week last week. It was about personality types (and this chart is really interesting...), learning what your type is (I'm an "expressive", go figure) and how to figure out who the idiots are work with other types ("driver", "analytical" and "amiable") and how to convince everyone else I'm right resolve conflict. I think what I actually learned is that other call centers (we had several participants from around the state) have similar issues and we all love/hate our jobs.
And that all the other expressives in my group wear a lot of jewelry, have their nails done and flip off other drivers in traffic - just like me!
(Although, I probably shouldn't flip drivers off in traffic when I have a Jesus fish on the back of my car... sends mixed signals, don't ya' think? "Jesus loves you, asshole!" Ha!)

Anyway, done with that and back at my regularly scheduled work day.

I have been trying to get some jewelry done since Artbeads sent me all those lovely crystals, but it's not going so well because I just don't have enough time! I need at least 4 more hours to my day. If anyone has some spare time I will gladly take donations, preferably in the form of winning lottery tickets.

Also this coming weekend is Secret Agent Man's birthday. I have his presents, and dinner reservations at a swanky restaurant we had Valentine's dinner at, in this hotel:
This is also the hotel we got married in, in one of their lovely ballrooms, so that's always kind of neat.

And my parents are coming to town. I am going to make a killer chicken recipe for dinner for them. (The recipe is "killer" not that it is made with a "killer chicken"! Wouldn't that be awesome though!) Secret Agent Man thinks I missed my calling and I should be a world-class chef. I'd probably hate it then, though. Or I'd be like that really angry British guy that has that restaurant tv show where he screams and cusses at everyone and makes them cry.

And then, on top of it all, I have to take Ms. FluffyButt to the pet groomer and the (shhhh) "v. e. t."
I think she may have feline diabetes. I feel like such a bad mom. I hope she's just fat and not that she's sick. (Not that that is a whole lot better...) She seems happy, though, so I don't really know what to think.


I have to share, too, that I was asked to partake in a giveaway by Midtown Girl when she re-vamped her blog. She wanted to give her winner a "makeover" as well, via a drawing by me of the winner. Like I did for Otin. A lovely girl named Ali, who has this blog, won! She is all about Carrie Bradshaw and fabulous fashion stuff, so I was inspired by one of Carrie's girlie-girl dresses and drew her like this.

It was fun, and she loves it, so it was a win-win!

While I was over at her blog today I saw she got an award for her "Over the Top" blog. It included a really neat one word answer meme. So I stole it. Here it is, with my answers. I'm not going to use it as an award, and therefore am not going to make anyone else do it, but if you like it you can certainly steal it from me, too! I thought it was another fun way to learn you a little about me. If you decide to do one, too, let me know!

1. Where is your cell phone? purse
2.
Your hair? short
3.
Your mother? soft
4. Your father? joker
5. Your favorite food? pizza
6. Your dream last night? weird
7. Your favorite drink? Pepsi
8.
Your dream/goal? travel
9.
What room are you in? work
10.
Your hobby? sarcasm
11.
Your fear? mediocrity
12.
Where do you want to be in six years? elsewhere
13.
Where were you last night? bed
14. Something that you aren't? tall
15. Muffins? sure
16.
Wish list item? Lexus
17.
Where did you grow up? Boringville
18. Last thing you did? work
19.
What are you wearing? sweater
20.
Your TV? big
21.
Your pets? spoiled
22.
Friends? great
23. Your life? better
24. Your mood? snarky
25. Missing someone? yep
26.
Vehicle? clanky
27.
Something you're not wearing? toupee
28.
Your favorite store? Nordstrom
29.
Your favorite color? black
30.
When was the last time you laughed? daily
31.
Last time you cried? movie
32. Your best friend? hubs
33. One place that you could go to over and over? Vegas
34. One person who emails you regularly? dad
35.
Favorite place to eat? home

Friday, October 9, 2009

New Crystals


So I got my new Swarovski Crystals from Artbeads.com. Remember? I agreed to blog about Artbeads and their products and they agreed to give me free stuff? I love me some free stuff!

I tried some different colors and sizes than I normally would, usually I use about a 4mm crystal (I found out the 3's are way tiny, after accidentally buying a bunch, but I'll figure out something to do with them, I'm sure.) But this time I thought I'd try some larger ones to use more like a bead than an accent, so I got 5mm ones. They are quite nice, and the colors are just like they looked online, so that's a bonus! I hate it when you order something on line, beads, shoes, sweaters -whatever- and they look completely different in person than they did in the catalog or online.
Well, these are great. I'm looking forward to having some time this weekend to make some stuff. I think I'm going to do earrings. I, personally, wear more earrings than I do necklaces. But we'll see where it goes. Sometimes I start with one idea and go somewhere completely different. My drawings often work that way, too.

I do have some time this weekend, too, because Hubby, aka Secret Agent Man, is off to Michigan visiting his folks. I couldn't get any vacation time, so I get to stay home and work. And clean house. And make jewelry!

Here's some pix of the crystals I got this week. They are colors like Indian Sapphire, Indian Pink, Rose, Peridot, Padparadscha, Blue Caribbean Opal (which is interesting and opaque, I haven't used crystals like that before), Jet,
Black Diamond,and Silver Shade. In a couple days hopefully I will be posting more jewelry.










And don't forget, all my posted jewelry is available at olivehue2 on Etsy! If you want to buy something, and you include in the message to seller that you saw it on my blog, I will give you a discount and free shipping!