More Very Expensive Bracelets

These are three-wrap bracelets, using 4mm Czech fire-polished beads.  The bracelet on the left I call "Easter Eggs", and the one on the right is "Gulf Coast".  I have decided I like the color chunk bracelets better than the mixed-bead bracelets, because depending how you put them on, you get different color looks, and look like stacked bracelets.  I went to open beading at the bead store today for one last time and just happened to buy quite a few of the 3mm and 4mm bead strings plus leather...fun days ahead!  I have a two day car trip ahead of me, but I am thinking that beading might not be a good way to pass the time.  I have some socks that I am knitting for Carl's birthday (two days ago, whoops!) so that might be my car craft.  If I don't have anything to distract my attention, I tend to bug the driver, and that isn't a good thing.  Talk to you when I get back home! Jerilynn 

Want to Buy a Bracelet?

We are still at the beach and alone once again.  The kids flew home this morning and it is a bit quieter, but the wind has arrived, so that is filling in the silent gaps.  Katie and I enjoyed our class at Buttons, Bangles, and Beads, learning how to make the wrapped beaded/leather bracelets.  It is fairly time consuming, but not hard at all.  Especially with a beachy, fruity, drink on hand.  The bottom photo is the one I just now finished.  It is a five wrap, with 3 mm Czech fire-polished beads.  Cost for the materials: $17.00,  not including the gas driving down from Northern Wisconsin, Beach front condo in Florida, bar bills (especially at Bongos), class fees, or bead purchases that fit in insanely small bags.  Include those, and you get a bracelet that approaches the $198.00 one in the first photo, from Sundance Catalog.  Well, not even close.  Want to buy a $4,000.00 bracelet?  Jerilynn

Beach Blanket Bingo

No, I didn't suddenly just get another grandchild.  The bottom photo is from Ravelry and it is a picture of the Mix and Match Motif blanket by Linda Permann.  I bought her book, Little Crochet, and this is the first project I have made from it.  I am not a perfect crocheter; in fact, I would consider myself a beginner, but I thought this might be a fun, quick, easy project.  I remember when our three year old grandson, Ben, was just a little guy and he would love playing with little blankets.  Peek-a-boo, dragging them, wadding them up and plopping down on them.  Now Addy, age 11 months, is doing the same thing and I thought I would make a little circles blanket for her.  I didn't do all of the fancy circles, mostly just plain blocks, but I still think it looks like she will have fun with it.  It is made out of the same Dishy cotton yarn from Knitpicks that I have used for the other knit afghans I have made.  Again, not heirloom yarn, but machine wash and dry.  I learned quite a bit as I made the 36 circle squares, and I may get other yarn and make a bigger blanket.  I might use a bigger crochet hook, and I think a washable wool yarn would be gorgeous.  I also may do a fancier border...picots would look funky-fun, don't you think?  Bingo! Jerilynn  P.S.  Our favorite beach bar, Bongo's, is just two sand-walking buildings away.  They have the best Zombies, Cubans, and live  music.  So maybe this beach-finished blanket should be called Beach Blanket Bongo. 

Presto, Change-o

You may recognize the top photo that I have previously posted.  It is a bracelet I made using some of Sarah Moran's beads (http://zbeads.wordpress.com/).  Although I love the beads, I found the bracelet too clunky and the beads were not shown to their best advantage.  That is the wonderful thing about beads - you can make something, and change your mind!  So, I took apart the bracelet, and added some black, matte seed beads, and some African Christmas beads...soo...a new creation!  I have been noticing that the younger set are wearing longer necklaces, wrapped a couple of times around the neck.  While I was making this necklace, (looking over the white sandy beach, btw), Carl asked if I was perhaps making a jump rope.  It was rather long.  Yesterday evening we stopped for a cocktail at a local beach bar.  I had on a white tank, tan capris, a plum drapey cardigan sweater, and my new necklace.  Quite fetching for a senior citizen.   Our waitress, a cute, young, tan, peppy gal, spied my necklace and said she "LOVED" it!  Cool.  We came back to our place and I made two more "jump ropes".  Life is good.  Jerilynn

Beach Baubles

One reason I love coming to St. Pete Beach is Buttons, Bangles, and Beads, a shop owned by my friend, Sally.  Over the years I got to know Sally by going in to her bead shop.  She not only is just adorable, she is consistently patient and nice to all the "snow birds" who visit her shop in the spring.  After I few years I casually mentioned that we had just bought a cabin on a lake in a small town in Northern Wisconsin.  "Oh, which lake?"  "Beaver Dam Lake in Cumberland."  Shock face.  "My daughter has a place on Beaver Dam Lake and we are building a cabin on their property next summer!"  Small world, isn't it?  So, not only do I get to see Sally at her bead shop in Florida, but I get to see her in the summer around our fire pit in Wisconsin.  I have been trying to talk her into opening a bead shop in Cumberland, just for the summer, touristy months, but she says she likes to just relax at the lake.  I guess it is very much like it is for us snow birds when we fly south...we just want to have fun.  My first "creation" of this trip is the necklace above - it is made using memory wire with beads and rubber tubing.  It just hooks around the neck and stays there.  Heavy beads are not a good choice, so I used some paper beads and some lucites.  I am looking forward to a wrap bracelet class next week. For some time I have looked at the wrapped leather and bead bracelets in the Sundance  Catalog.  You know the ones, they cost $200 to $300.  Maybe I will find out the reason for the price once I start the process.  Stay tuned.  Jerilynn

Does Anyone Really Know What Time It Is?

We traveled from Madison, WI, to Chattanooga, TN, a week ago Friday, a ten/eleven hour drive. Somewhere right before Chattanooga we crossed from Central Time Zone into Eastern, losing an hour. The next day, Saturday, we drove another ten/eleven hours to our destination, St. Pete Beach, Florida, on the Gulf Coast. Quite by accident, we chose "spring ahead" as our travel weekend, thus losing another hour. So, I lost two days in a car, and, two hours ... where are they? Years ago I traveled to the Eastern Time Zone on "fall back" weekend for a training week. On Monday everyone was talking about their extra hour. Because I lost an hour in travel, and gained an hour with the time change, it was net zero for me. No gained hour. I felt cheated! I know, this doesn't really matter, and does anybody really care, but I just wonder why this whole time change thing twice a year is necessary. Arizona doesn't change times, and they function just fine. Soooo, we are here at the beach for a couple of weeks, and I finally am used to what the clock says. On the drive down, I worked on the lap afghan for my mom, and finished it shortly after we arrived. I gave it a machine wash and dry and the cotton "Dishy" yarn is now soft, squishy, garter-stitch fun. I think she is really going to like it. I should put it in a box and mail it off to her, but the rainbow colors are wonderful to look at in this temporary home. It may get delivered to her in person on our trip home. We will gain an hour just north of Chattanooga. Jerilynn