Quit Your Day Job

Just in case you wanted to know even more about me and my life story, I've been featured on the Etsy blog as part of the Quit Your Day Job series.  You can read the whole article HERE.

Cherry Plum Crisp

So, I had a bowl full of cherries and a few very ripe plums.  What to do, what to do.  A crisp!  I haven't made a fruit crisp in ages -- obviously a long overdue dessert.

Cherry Plum Crisp

Fruit Layer
4 cups of fruit (I used about 3 cups of pitted cherries, halved and 1 cup of chopped plums)
  (I think this recipe could have benefited from another cup or 2 of fruit)
1 1/2 TBSP brown sugar
2 tsp lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon (I completely forgot this)

Topping
1/2 cup rolled oats
2 TBSP chopped walnuts
1 TBSP brown sugar
2 TBSP melted butter

Combine all of the fruit layer ingredients and turn into a greased 9"x9" baking pan.  Combine topping ingredients until well mixed.  Bake at 375  for 30-45 minutes.  Keep an eye on this so as not to burn the oatmeal.  Of course, this is best served topped with vanilla ice cream. 

Two notes about this recipe:

I adapted in from my favorite apple crisp recipe, so feel free to substitute any fruit for the cherries/plums.
The oat topping will be chewy, but I like that kind of texture.  If you don't, you may want to either grind up the oats, use the quick cooking type or pre-cook them.

A New Earring Design!!

I've been plugging away, building earring and necklace inventory for our busy Alaskan summer tourist season, relying on tried and true designs.  Then, just 2 days ago, a new idea popped into my head.  It's actually a variation on a design I did a few years ago and allowed to fizzle out.  I love when this happens -- just when you think you'll never come up with something new, there it is!

I started with one of my sterling silver tornado elements and wrapped size 15 seed beads all around it.  Yes, I have done this part before.  The new variation is the dangle on the bottom.

I will probably list a few pairs in my etsy shop eventually and the rest will be for my booth at the Alaska State Fair and my fall craft shows.

Whiskey Quartz cubes with gold seed beads

Garnet Briolettes with rosy seed beads

Amethyst Briolettes with purple seed beads

And yes, there are plenty more pairs completed and several more in the planning stages!

Margarita Shrimp

Last night's dinner was fabulous, if I must say so myself!  I can't remember where I got the original recipe, but I've modified it a bit for our personal tastes.

Margarita Shrimp

1/4 cup sliced green onions
1/4 cup oil (I used this stuff, but you can use any vegetable or olive oil)
1/4 cup tequila
1 tsp grated lime peel
2 TBSP fresh lime juice
2 TBSP honey
1/2 tsp salt

Combine all the above ingredients and add 1 pound of large shrimp.  Marinate for 4-6 hours.  You can broil them for 5-7 minutes, but we prefer skewering them and grilling them.  I like to boil the remaining marinade and serve alongside the shrimp.

Shrimp on skewers, ready for the grill:

On my plate!

Fused Glass Tile

A couple of weeks ago, there was a lovely event up in Palmer called "Who Let the Girls Out".  There were activities and special things going on all over town.  While at Half Moon Creek delivering some new earrings, I decided to take advantage of their offer to make a fused glass tile.  The upstairs studio was full of people and cute kids making tiles.

All manner of glass in a rainbow of colors was available to use on our tiles: shards, chips, stringers and small bits (not the right name, but you get the idea).  All we had to do was arrange some glass on the clear tile and they did the fusing for us.  Here's what I made:

I love the way it turned out.  Pretty cute, huh?  I think I'll hang it in the window in my studio.

Volcano Arts :: Enamels

I just returned from a short stay/class at Volcano Arts in California.  It was sort of a last minute trip and I wasn't sure what I would work on this time.  I thought I wanted to make a sterling silver ring with something decorative (not sure what) riveted to the top.  Christine convinced me to try my hand at enameling a small copper cut-out to rivet to the ring-to-be.

Well, the ring project never got off the ground!  It quickly turned in to a pendant, which I know I will wear more that the ring anyway.  The copper flower was just too big for a ring, at least for me.  I used heavy gauge sterling silver sheet for the base of the pendant and the 2 pieces of enameled copper are riveted to it with a handmade copper rivet.

I love it!   I had big plans to do something fancier with the bail, but I forgot to anneal the silver before adding the enameled pieces, so I was limited as to how much manipulation the silver would endure.  The best laid plans ...  There's always more to learn when working with metals.

At this point, I was in love with the idea of enamels and proceeded to spend the rest of my class time making more enameled components.  Anyone who loves color, and has a healthy respect for heat and fire would be right there with me.

Lest you think this is just about sprinkling on some enamel powder to get this magic to happen, there are a series of steps that must be completed before the Fun With Color begins.  This series of components all required the following:

• cut, saw or punch out a shape
• mark the center
• dome
• drill the center hole that you marked earlier
• clean with fine grit sand paper and pumice

I like the idea of layers of color for use in a piece of finished jewelry.  I had so much fun choosing the color combinations.  Of course, Christine has every possible color, so much time was spent ogling tempting color charts.

Aren't they cute?  I'm anxious to get started incorporating these into some pendants!