Artwork

I don't know what's up with me and the classes all of a sudden, but classes and workshops usually make me happy, so maybe I ought to be taking more of them, right? Which is to say, I signed up for another class. I feel kind of guilty about spending money since I'm still not working, but I'm already signed up for these two (that is, the BeadFest class and the one I'm about to tell you about) and they're paid for so it's too late for second thoughts about that, really.

There should be a little badge in my sidebar for the new one, which is not a jewelry class but an artsy-collage sort of thing. It's called @ home with Claudine and it's an online class taught by Claudine Hellmuth. I've been mulling it over for a couple of weeks - I guess I first saw it on Claudine's blog and since I kept thinking and thinking about it, I finally decided to go for it. If it will prod me to actually do more playing with collage then it's a good thing. The supply list is a little bit overwhelming, but most of the stuff I don't have already is stuff I've been meaning to buy - like sampling Claudine's paint line, which I've been hearing really good things about. And the class doesn't start for a month, which means I can watch for coupons and sales and maximize my dollars, hopefully.

BeadFest Texas

Anybody want to come take a class at Bead Fest Texas with me? They opened up registration, and I decided on a whim to take "Scrap Box Bracelet" which is a full-day class on October 2nd. It's expensive but it includes almost all of the materials, so that helps. Here's the sample bracelet:

I've been meaning to learn cold connections and that kind of thing, anyway. Plus I like the bracelet.

I'm just going up by myself, unless I find somebody else who wants to go. (Which is not my way of saying "poor little me" - I don't mind going by myself. I'm kind of independent that way. But I'd love to meet up with other people who are going!)

Where I've been (short version)

I keep starting and abandoning entries about where I've been, and I guess that's because the question of where I've been is not really easily answered, or rather there are multiple answers. I spent most of the winter being terribly depressed - but I've been working on that and I feel considerably better now - and even though I neglected my classes horribly while I was busy moping, I did manage to pass my certification exam, so now I'm job-hunting. (And oh my god, I hate job-hunting more than almost anything in the world.) I've also been running around doing various neglected errands that will be easier to get out of the way before I start working again.

Except for the easter-egg painting flurry a couple of months ago, I really haven't done much in the way of craft stuff at all. And I'm not even letting myself shop for beads, to speak of, until such time as I start doing something with what I already have. I'm hoping when I get back to the working world I will get more interested in jewelry again; that seems to be my pattern. But I'll try not to be completely silent until then!