Summertime

June was fabulous. Seriously the best sales that I have ever done and the feedback from everyone is incredible. Fab Fair was a great success, the new White Rock Market venue is awesome and Potter's is coming along. The kids did great at the Langley triathlon. Max is convinced he came in third. More importantly, he had barely learned to ride without training wheels and whipped through the course. Off the bike like a shot, I even saw him overtake someone on the run. Lily had a tougher time. She had the longest course yet for her and it was challenging. But she pushed through and finished strong. They are so set to do it again next year. My Gator's workouts are good despite the occassional desire to lie down in the fetal position. Maybe because Pablo is an Ironman, there is the assumption that I can be pushed to the limit too. I don't know. But I did pull 250 lbs across the floor the other night and that is an empowering feeling.

The Steveston Salmon Festival got off to a rocky start -totally due to me. After patting myself on the back for getting the last vendor parking place, I proceeded to drop my new apple green phone into the toilet, followed by falling down the stairs onto the sidewalk outside Starbucks. I didn't spill my tea. However, bleeding and swollen I headed back to the market, rounded up some bandaids, swallowed a handful of Advil and sold, sold, sold. A week later and my knee is still a kaleidescope of colours.

On Sunday, we did the first of the Steveston Farmer's Markets that I have signed up for. The biggest market that I've been in so far and what service! A gentleman came around to the booths offering delicious baked goods in the morning, and our lunch was ordered and delivered to us as well. An excellent idea at any market when it is difficult for lone vendors to get away.

I haul the kids with me to almost all the markets and they deserve many gold stars. Early mornings, cold wind, a bowl of cereal under a blanket. Never a complaint. I am very blessed. If only they could be such little darlings all the time......

I've got something brewing with an online fashion magazine that has great potential and am really excited about going to Harrison for the Festival of the Arts on July 18-19.

And hey - if there is anyone out there reading this - drop me a line. Would love to hear from you.

A little bit of both

May - some good, some not so good. I don't want to spend a lot of time grumbling but honestly, the two markets that I booked for May both bit. The "Health & Beauty Show" put on by Jam Expo was a total disaster. Unprofessional, disorganized and an expensive waste of my time. We've been offered a free booth for next year, but seriously...would I go back? Not on your life. Talk of a lawsuit was wafting around but I guess everyone is quietly licking their wounds and moving on. The other - the May Day Festival in Fort Langley was starting out to be a great day. Well-organized, happy people coming to enjoy the festivities and then the down pour. Everyone left and so they should have. Nobody's fault on that one. It was totally set up to be great day. Time for two more grumbles.....if someone sends a minor tv personality a piece of jewelry as a thank you for featuring them on their show, does it not seem proper etiquette that said "celebrity" should be gracious enough to send a quick "thanks"? And finally, I don't make "costume" jewelry. That is what girls buy at Claires. While I may be relatively new at this, I do have enough pride and confidence in my work that I don't think it sounds snooty to sniff at such a comment.

Okay, enough of that. The good stuff - I am really looking forward to the summer. The White Rock Farmers's Market (http://www.whiterockfarmersmarket.ca/) is bigger and better this year with some great new ideas like featuring local chefs. Potter's Nursery on 192nd in Langley has started their new market, and once all the produce vendors are there, I think it will be a great success. I had the best cheeseburger there on Saturday. (http://www.pottersonline.ca/). This weekend (June 6-7) I will be back at Fab Fair at the Heritage Hall on Main Street. (http://www.fabfair.ca/). I know I will be doing some great accessories shopping from the fabulous local designers who will be selling there. July will see me in Steveston for both the Salmon Festival on July 1st and the Farmers & Artisan Market on July 5th. I will always consider myself a Steveston girl and can't wait to go back each time. (http://www.stevestoncommunitysociety.com/).

Both kids are signed up the the Langley Tri-It Triathlon at the end of June, and my husband is full on in his training for Penticton. Apparently he lost 5 pounds on a 3 hour ride the other night. If only it were so easy for me. I've started going to Gator's in Cloverdale for their bootcamp and it is a wonderful, but very challenging, workout. Like I said, this weight is coming off me!

Anyway, I've got a bunch of custom pieces to get going on and some great new long chains to finish for the weekend. I've made a few of these long pieces and will get them photographed and online soon.

Enough chat! Off to work

A Decade Gone Too Fast

Tomorrow my daughter turns 10. Yes, it is true that time really does fly by. I was in my 30's (sniff, sniff). I'd quit my job at the cooking school (actually, due to circumstances, I had flung my keys at the owner and stormed out. Not recommended if you actually want a reference letter, but that is a long and complicated story.) In that time, I had a great stint at an investment company and rose through the ranks, had my son who is almost 7, put on a few pounds (sniff, sniff) and started this gig. My husband has done 6 Ironmans and shaved his head. We've been to Disneyland 4 times and have a torpedo of a pug named Hugo. To tell you the truth, she is not too happy about leaving the single digits behind. She's not ready to become a Tween, and I guess I don't really want her to either. But I am so very proud of her and all her accomplishments, her empathy, her sweetness, her persistence and everything about her. She is definately high maintenance and I pity the boy/man that falls in love with her. But she is amazing and beautiful. (And she is in the front yard right now talking to a boy.....hmmm)

It's been a good week on the gargoyle side of things too - I've been accepted into the Harrison Festival of the Arts in July, the Steveston Farmers Markets and Creative Finds in November. Still waiting for a few more responses from other markets and then the year will be squared away.

BTW - we saw the Secret World of Og at Carousel Theatre. Such Fun! They do such a good job there. Can't wait to see Robin Hood in the fall and Frog & Toad next spring.

Got to go - karate tonight and off to make a birthday cake.

Bright Lights, Pink Bling

On Thursday, April 16th, I was very happy to see one of my bracelets (silver squares with black coin pearls) featured on an outfit on Breakfast Television. It was very quick but there is a mention of Pink Gargoyle and a shot of the piece. My first few seconds of my fifteen minutes of fame. The link is below. It's near the end of the video so be patient (and ignore everybody else's jewelry!.....)

http://site.btvancouver.ca/video/?bcpid=16157553001&bclid=16349005001&bctid=20023227001

Anyway, it made me happy. I'm confirmed for Vancouver's Health and Beauty Show, May 8-10 at the new convention centre at Canada Place. Can't wait to see the new building. It's a big show for me to do and I am going to be burning the candle at both ends but am so happy with what I am making now.

Just making plans for my daughter's 10th birthday. Hard to believe. I sound so old but time really does go by fast. Not only is she not a single digit girl anymore, she's coming home with wt pits. I thought I had a few more years before puberty started but apparently not. And the mood swings....That is what the red wine is for.

I hope the link works. If not just go to: http://site.btvancouver.ca/video/ Choose the first segment of the Fashion police.

Coming into my own

The other day I had the pleasure of meeting with a very nice woman from the Surrey Planning & Development department. She had contacted me some months ago about participating in this summer's Flavours of Surrey festival. We chatted about the event, she looked at some of the new pieces, and I decided to get on board. What made my day was when I asked her how she had heard about me. I was expecting to hear that she'd been by my table at one of the White Rock Farmer's markets last summer, or maybe she'd seen someone wearing one of my pieces. But no - she'd found me online and liked what she'd seen. There are only 5 spots for artists at the Flavour of Surrey event, and she was inviting me to be one of the artists. Gobsmacked would be a good word for my reaction. It's the use of the word "artist" to describe my work. And it's a long way from where I started 18 months ago when I would mumble to people that I made jewelry. As I become more and more confident in what I am doing, especially now as I am working to create as much of each piece as possible by hand, I am comfortable saying that I am a jewelry designer. I think my work can stand up to the title without seeming pretentious. "Artist" is something else - and it's a very good thing. I like the sound of it. And I certainly do think that jewelers are artists. The vision, the painstaking work, and the absolute beauty of what so many wonderful artists create using metal, stones, pearls and gems, is truly breathtaking. Even if I am only standing in the doorway, it's so wonderful to be invited to the party. I will post more practical info about the event as details get confirmed.

On another note - I had a lady recently insist that when she gets hot & sweaty, the soldered silver will rub off on her skin and make her messy. Now, the solder melts around 1000 F, give or take. I am sure she won't get that overheated on a summer's afternoon. She really wasn't convinced. In fact, there was some mention of finding me ("hunting me down") in the event that the bracelet she bought did ooze all over her arm. If anyone knows of such a thing happening, please let me know and I will gladly retract all my assertions to the contrary. But really....

So I am not too consistent at this blogging thing am I? It's like a quartlerly update. I have been really busy making new pieces and things are getting more sculptural all the time. I've pretty much got the year planned out for shows so will updating when more confirmed dates come in but I've been invited and accepted at some pretty cool shows. Being invited to attend an event as an artist, and the only jeweler at that, is very flattering. I've done a bit of freelance online writing to make a few bucks which has been a good experience too - haven't had to write like that for quite some time. What else? The diet and exercise thing is coming along. Planning to attend the Las Vegas half marathon in December with a couple of friends. We should be done in time to hit the casino at lunchtime (martinis in hand). My husband, who has his own ironman blog site, has finally shaved his head. The first day I thought I kept glimpsing Howie Mandel out of the corner of my eye. I finally touched his head yesterday, four days later. Ok, I'm a wimp - I didn't think it would be that big an adjustment. He does look a lot younger though and I am sure he will go so much faster at the Penticton Ironman now that he is more aerodynamic.

My friend Donnalin has started her own blog, www.dishingwithdonna.com
She's got lots of opinions, is totally sexy and has no problem telling you like it is.

One other thing, my sister-in-law, who makes fabulous belt buckes in LA is relaunching her website next week, www.frankieandjulie.com Handcrafted and gorgeous.

Other than that - I haven't got enough hours in the day to create all that I want, market how I want, photograph and sell, sell, sell. But I love what I am doing and feel that this is the year that the pink gargoyle really takes flight.

When it rains...

It was a dark and rainy night......seriously, after two weeks of snowfall, the rain came today. Where we were crunching along on a hardpack of several feet of snow, we are now up to our ankles, and beyond, in water. Thank goodness my boots are truly waterproof. It was the first time really testing out my cool Koi Tattoo rainboots (check out the line of Chookas). But I also want to wear my Ed Hardy Geisha winter boots - just need some cold, dry weather and I will be so styling. Hmm, one would think that I should be a boot designer....I just can't get enough of them. Anyway, the business at hand - I've been playing around with the overall look of the site and like the more solid pink. I've photographed everything now and have started uploading the pictures. About halfway through so far so should be done before the week is out. Other than that - day two of eating healthy. The goal is to lose 30 pounds before summer. Too much time snacking on chips and wine while I play with wire. Love Clean Eating magazine - great recipes and easy to use menu plans. Also - excited about the Biggest Loser starting up again tonight. So inspiring. What I would give for Gillian to kick my butt.