Boston Handmade Downtown!

Boston Handmade is set to open an 1800 square foot retail gallery in Downtown Crossing, Boston. Grand opening will be on Black Friday, Nov. 28th!!! What a great day to open! The City has some scheduled festivities set to start that day in the same area.

Check out the website Boston Handmade Downtown for more information on exhibitors and directions! I hope you all will make this your shopping destination for this holiday season! I will be working every Thursday from 3-7pm along with a couple of Saturdays and some other shifts scattered throughout the duration. The actual store hours are November 28th-December 28th Thursday-Sunday 11-7pm. Stop by whenever you can! And please stay tuned here for more information on our renovations and setting up shop.

Tomorrow we will be painting the walls!

Small Works Show at Gallery 9

GALLERY 9 at custom art framing
SMALL WORKS SHOW

opening reception
Friday, November 14th from 5-7
& Saturday, November 15th from 11-3
light refreshments will be served

GALLERY 9 is showing wonderfully petite pieces
at perfect price points from now through year's end.

Select a piece for yourself or as a wonderful gift
while supporting local artists and small business.

It's the season to BUY ART and GIVE ART!

Want more information?

679 Washington Street, Norwood, MA
(right near Perks Coffeehouse in downtown Norwood)
781-762-3300
www.customartframing.com

Hope you can stop in!

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The above announcement was taken from Frame of Mind Thanks to Kim Weineck for writing this up!
I'll be there!

More cherry blossoms

I just can't help but saw/pierce out these freeform twigs and blossoms.
I am not totally sure yet what these will become, but I am thinking bracelets and pendants. I will keep you posted! Sorry for the crappy picture, but these make me so happy that I can't wait for a good picture to show.

And I have a better picture of the previous pendant to share...

Can you tell that I am obsessed with cherry blossoms now that winter has almost arrived? I love winter, but it's totally apparent that I am a spring baby.

Cherry Blossoms

I am loving making these tab style pendants. This is my newest version. A single branch of a cherry tree with a couple of blossoms.
Pierced from sterling silver sheet, totally freeform.


This one is 9/16" wide by 1 5/8" tall (15mmx42mm) not including the bail. I think I'll make some smaller ones.

A glorious end to a wonderful week

It's been an incredible last few days. There is something churning in the city of Boston that I want to shout about from the rooftops, but I think I will save that for later until more plans are in effect.

I had a fantastic time at my 'First Friday' gallery show. I made some sales and chatted it up with some friends, and made a few more.

I think mine was the first 'First Friday' that Dave attended (not totally sure, but he was a prominent guest at my show). Here he is with my mother early on in the evening. Later on, she was still in his charge, but was oblivious to his head being in the small trashcan all night.

I think everyone had a good time, we drank some wine and schmoozed it up.

After the show, I went home and got Rusty and went over to Japisuze for some pasta and sauce and some beer...a great end to the evening.

Also, today I just got my invitation to join Raverly an online knit and crochet community. I am excited to figure out how to use it to store patterns and my stash of yarn, and get to know the community. I have already found 3 people in Boston Handmade that are members, it should be fun!

Tagged...twice this time

Cristina and Lucie have both tagged me recently, so I thought I would do this.

The rules of tagging:
1. Link to tagger & display these rules on your blog.
2. Share 7 facts about yourself - some random, some weird.
3. Tag 7 people at the end of your post by including links to their blog.
4. Let them know they've been tagged by commenting on their blogs.

7 Random & Weird Facts About Nancy:

1. My dad wanted to name me Lucy Rosetta (after an aunt of my mothers), but my mom didn't. Guess who won?

2. I love avocados, but they give me a tummy ache so I avoid them.

3. I am an administrator on a jewelry artists forum.

4. I spend entirely too much time on the computer (see answer 3).

5. My car will be 10 years old in April and I still love it. I dread the day I have to search for a new one.

6. I'm finally accepting the fact that I can actually train a dog.

7. I have a secret crush on Alton Brown.


Since most of the blogs that I read on a regular basis have all recently been tagged, I think I'll spare them the extra tagging.

First Friday

I am the featured 'First Friday' artist for November at Custom Art Framing and Gallery 9 this Friday night!!



Reception will be from 5pm-7pm with light refreshments.
Please stop by and have a glass of wine with me if you are in the area!

679 Washington Street
Norwood Center

Get out there and VOTE!

Please be prepared before heading to the polls, the forecast for today is for record numbers of citizens getting out there to cast their votes.

There is nothing worse than watching the clock while you wait for a booth to open up. Believe me, in my smallish suburb of Boston, we have only about 25 booths and lots of people to use them!

Respect those in line behind you by being PREPARED, make some notes to bring with you if you have to, and get out there and cast your VOTE!

Nantucket Window

Some Kerry Hawkins type photographs of a shop window on Nantucket. Kerry has a great eye for window photos, and I thought I would give it a try. This shop had the most wonderful display of cast toys. It was closed when we were browsing the windows.




I love the last photo with the standing frog.

Scarf!

I finished my scarf last night.

It was actually a challenge for this experienced crocheter. I had never used true handspun yarn before, and this particular yarn had incredible fluctuations in the thick and thin. I found it very hard to keep my stitches loose enough and actually pulled the whole thing apart twice before I was happy with it. The yarn I bought from Knittydirtygirl is called Godzilla eats Pumpkins and it has incredible color and texture. My photos don't show the true vibrancy of color, the true color can be seen here or here.

What a great model!


I had a lot of fun tearing this apart and re-making it and in the end, I think I have a fantastic scarf. I only wish that I had enough yarn to make a hat, too.

Two skeins 80 yards each.

Happy Halloween!

Amy crosses the line...

Sarah didn't want to, but Amy did, 10 months pregnant no less.

I'm really going to miss Amy Poehler when she leaves SNL. You GO Mommy!!

Rusty's new toy

My friend Noriko from California sent this toy to Rusty, along with some chopsticks and chocolate for me!

I love my new chopsticks, and as you can tell, Rusty loves his new toy!
Thanks Noriko!!!

Some More Wedding Photos

Today, I was able to upload some pictures (last night I couldn't...go figure). I must have had a great time at the wedding because I didn't get any good pictures, but here are some anyway.

The table centerpiece.


Doug and Pam joining the guests for dinner.


Pam the bride in the foreground.


Paula and Scott enjoying tiny mint chocolate chip ice cream cones.


This picture pretty much sums it up.

Trouble

I am having trouble. I think it's time for a new computer.
I have been trying to upload some pictures all night to no avail. Damn! Plus, my computer crashes at will...whether or not I am in the middle of something. It doesn't care anymore. I still care, I am sad.

Time for a Mac maybe?

Nantucket

The weekend was amazing. We made so many great memories of wonderful times with friends. The island is gorgeous, I don't know if I totally captured the weekend in photos, but I tried...
Lunch on Saturday at the Rose and Crown Pub.

Some of my boys... Kevin, Andy and Scott.

Saturday afternoon...oops, I have camera shadow in my face. It's still a goodish pic.

It was so windy, but somehow the wedding went on and it was just beautiful.

The wedding was very small, only about 70 guests as you can see by this picture from the third floor balcony, after the ceremony, before they broke it down. (they broke it down very quickly, the next time I looked, the chairs were gone).

Breakfast on Sunday at the Fog Island Cafe.

Kevin, Andy and Eric just after our breakfast.

This is all just a taste of Nantucket, I have a bunch of great pictures to share, but I need some down time first.
It's really an incredible little island with a distinctive look in all the architecture.

Thanks for indulging me. I will post more to follow. I need sleep now.

Quick Update

It's been a crazy week.

Tomorrow is the last day for me to get last minute things done before Nantucket, and boy do I have a whole lot of last minute things. I have to deliver a special order, pack and mail an etsy order, go to the office for a bit, try to find a black slip, dye my hair, get dog food, get Rusty packed and ready to spend the weekend at Jape and Suzanne's house, and a slew of other things. I hope poor Raven can deal with him and his over activeness without going crazy.

Rusty has also been an issue this week. He had to go to the hospital on Tuesday for eating plastic and having diarrhea for 4 days. He is feeling 100% better now, but he is still on medication twice a day until it runs out.

I plan on taking lots of pictures of Nantucket. We are going there for a wedding, and I have never been there, so I am very excited. We also booked our spot on the last ferry boat of the day to the island, which is a bit terrifying to me.

Have a great weekend everyone! Pics to follow!

October 19th

Seventeen years ago on this date, I was dressed like a princess. Scott and I made people go to church and then had a party complete with a three tier cake.

We got married at the Church of the Covenant on Newbury street. The church completely dwarfed our small amount of guests, but we liked it that way. Then we had our reception in the Dome Ballroom at the Lenox hotel on Boylston Street, where we stayed the night in the honeymoon suite on the 11th floor.





Hmmm, we don't look that cute anymore.
My scanner is not working, and since we got married before digital cameras were widely used, we only have the proofs. I had to take pictures of the pictures, which didn't come out so good, but you get the idea.
Happy Anniversary Scott!

Abbey Art Auction

Nancy Bacevich lost her son Lt. Andy Bacevich, in Iraq on Mother's day 2007.

During that incredibly hard time, she received comfort and support from the sisters of Mount Saint Mary's Abbey in Wrentham. The Abbey is the home to the Trappistine Quality Candy factory. The sisters make handmade chocolates and fudge along with other sweets in the Abbey kitchen which is very outdated and needs to be renovated. Click here to read Mother Agnes’ request for assistance.

This is where Nancy knew she could make a difference for them, as they did for her.

Taken directly from Abbey Art Auction website:

From Nancy Bacevich…

When my son, Lt. Andy Bacevich, died in Iraq in 2007, our family was surrounded by angels who delivered compassion and consolation.

One of these groups was the sisters at Mount Saint Mary's Abbey in Wrentham. They now need our help with fundraising to replace their decrepit kitchen. Candy-making is their primary means of support, so a functional, commercial area is vital to their delicious, hand-made product.

Therefore, I want to hold an art auction on the behalf of the nuns, to be held on October 18, 2008 at the Blessed Sacrament Auditorium in Walpole. Our art group is inviting any artists to join us in our effort to support the abbey.

-Nancy Bacevich


Nancy has put together a huge art auction to benefit the sisters of Mount Saint Mary's Abbey. Please check out Abbey Art Auction website. The auction will be held at the Blessed Sacrament School Auditorium, in Walpole tonight from 6pm-9:30pm. Over 54 artists have donated artwork and over 45 businesses have donated as well.

I too am donating, but not for the auction itself. I have made a brooch for Nancy to remember the event. It is in the form of the logo for the art auction that she herself designed.

Nancy's logo for the art auction.


My interpretation in silver, with a red crystal dangle for the hanging light.


I hope that she can think of this brooch as a gift from all of the artists who donated their artwork for the auction.

Dave

I was lucky enough to have a squirmy subject for some photos today.

Meet Dave, the Gallery 9 mascot and general watch dog of the shop. A 6 year old, 12 pound Italian Greyhound rescued from the Italian Greyhound Rescue by my sister Julie

It's tough to be sleeping all day and then have to work as a model. Just ask him, he will most likely yawn at you and act unaffected by your attention.

I saved my two favorite photos for last....mmmmm just like ice cream!

And if I do say so myself, I totally captured the true Dave in this picture...