A Novel Idea

I think the time has come for me to get serious about writing my novel. "Um, what?" you may be thinking. "I thought you were a crazy craft lady." Well, I am. But I'm also a crazy words lady. I've been writing a novel or trying to write a novel on and off for the past ten years. My most solid attempt was long and complicated and set on a farm in early 1900s Iowa (don't ask this Jersey girl where that came from). This time around, I'm going to write a simple story about what I know, no research required. But I'll keep up with the blog. If anything, it's all this blogging that has whetted my appetite for writing fiction again. Writing these little posts has become something of an addiction for me. I find myself scribbling stray thoughts on scraps of paper at the weirdest times, storing them away until the moment when I can type them up for your reading pleasure. That having been said, writing this novel will be a slooooow process, the kind of thing I chip away at during odd hours to assuage fits of guilt about too much online shopping. I probably won't say too much about the process on the blog. Although I will reveal that the title will be ten times better than the sorry cliche of an excuse I used for this post. Now that I've gone all public about this, I guess I better get the heck started . . .

Spotlight on Arts and Crafts Necklaces

Green Arts and Crafts Necklace

Hot Pink, Orange, and Yellow Arts and Crafts Necklace

Black and Yellow Arts and Crafts Necklace

You may have noticed that I've been gradually moving my Arts and Crafts necklaces to the new Made to Order Necklaces section of my Etsy shop. (I've also been including photos of me modeling them, as I think it gives shoppers a nice visual of how the necklaces look on.) I made the move because I want to start wearing these necklaces myself and have never been comfortable with the concept of selling gently used items, even if they are my own creations. By making these necklaces made to order, I get to "keep" them as well as offer them to my customers. Because I hand craft the magazine beads, each made-to-order necklaces will still be one of a kind. Best of all, I don't need to worry about feeling depressed about sitting on huge chunks of unsold inventory. Who knows. I may even start marketing my totes this way.

Movie Moment: A Few Words About Death at a Funeral

Last Friday night I suggested renting a movie. Bent over my Carnival Princess Necklace with the bf's beloved Discovery Channel droning on in the background, I was in need of some comedy. If you've been following this blog, then you probably already know that nonfiction television (the news included) depresses me beyond measure. To me, it's the equivalent of spending a sunny Sunday in a musty old museum. Or maybe even the equivalent of Sunday afternoons themselves, as I don't much like those either. But I digress.

We narrowed down our movie choices to The Bounty Hunter, Hot Tub Time Machine, Date Night, and Death at a Funeral. Well, I narrowed it down. If I'd left the bf to it, then we'd be dealing with secret missions and gratuitous bleeding. As it were, Death at a Funeral was the only option he could stomach at the time, so we went with that. Based on a (reportedly stodgy) British film of the same name, Death featured an all-star cast including Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Tracy Morgan, Danny Glover, Loretta Devine, James Marsden, and Luke Wilson, among others. The trailer had been hilarious, so I expected to be choking on hiccup-induced laughter. But it didn't happen. I think it was one of those cases of too many big stars in one movie. Also, all of the best jokes were revealed in the commercials. (Don't you hate when that happens?) What was left was a lukewarm jumble of confusing plot twists. That having been said, Tracy Morgan was the one standout. He just has that comic gift of getting all upset about the pettiest, most ridiculous of situations to the point where everything coming out of his mouth is hysterical. James Marsden was another high point, as I'm never one to knock him going shirtless. Even if he was the (sort of) bad guy in The Notebook.

Something New and Sparkly: Carnival Princess Necklace

Carnival Princess Necklace

This latest installment in my carnival necklace series, the Carnival Princess Necklace, may be a little too much, even for me. For some time now, all of my necklaces have featured asymmetrical accents. So, when I started this one, I thought, why not get back to basics and put the pendant and other adornments in the center where they belong? I think this would have worked better if I'd skipped the four over-sized rhinestone beads and put the ribbons right next to the pendant. But no matter. I still like this drama queen of a piece. I think I'll try it out with a plain black dress.

Enter to Win Something Adorable From Tracey Knits!

EtsyNJ artist TraceyKnits is having a giveaway! Up for grabs is -- wait for it -- a $30 gift certificate! Tracey offers an exciting array of hand-knit items including enchanting golf club covers like the one pictured here, kids' football helmets, and fashion accessories. I have two of the golf club covers (Yoda and Philadelphia Phillies), and they're even cuter in person. Intrigued? Then head on over to Audrey's Giveaway blog (the host of the giveaway) to try your luck!

Something New and Sparkly: Carnival Critter Necklace

Carnival Critter Necklace

Feast your eyes on this! (Hey, you knew it was coming.) So, I had a bunch of pompoms and googly eyes just hanging around and thought, why not incorporate these into a carnival necklace/corsage necklace hybrid? I decided to forgo the candy-colored Faux Show pendant (I've been using at least one in each Carnival Necklace creation), not wanting to detract from the enchanting eyeballs. I'm thinking this would look its dramatic best against a hot pink tee. (I realize I pictured black here but am thinking about changing that, at least for my Etsy listing).

New Etsy Buy: Masterpiece Earrings by StringsnTings

Goldfinger Solo Teardrop Painted Canvas Earrings, StringsnTings

Remember that awesome Albert Einstein decoupaged bangle I bought from EtsyNJ's own StringsnTings a couple of weeks ago? Remember how I wrote that I loved her earrings also but didn't have pierced ears? Well, I was so smitten with this hand-painted Goldfinger Solo Teardrop pair that I bought them for my sister, who is always getting little surprises for me. I gave them to her at our mom's ice cream party last night, and she put them on immediately! (As luck would have it, she wasn't already wearing earrings.)