My latest read

I haven't posted in a while about what I've been reading, but as I've just finished my latest read, before choosing a new one (which is a HARD task, I'm telling you!), I thought to post my thoughts on it.

I've been reading a lot of paranormal romances, and I got hungry of my usual 'sick shit' type of books (so labeled in the old bookrelay forums, for those who still remember). Sick shit in our 'language' means gory, scary details, serial killers, FBI agents hunting them down, you get the idea.

So I found at the bottom of one of my many piles of books a hardcover from James Patterson, Double Cross, and decided to read it. It's the 13th in the Alex Cross series.
I found it quite a fast read and actually quite fun. Just checked now the Amazon ratings for the book, and based on the ratings, it seem like it's not one of James Patterson's best book. Not sure why it's rated so low, I really enjoyed reading it.

A while ago I took a decision to not let these user feedbacks, ratings and comments get to me before I read a book, so I stopped searching for them until after I finished the book. I found that this serves me quite well all the time, because I really enjoy books more when I'm not influenced by others. But back to the book.

Alex Cross is retired from his practice, but a series of killings, where he is personally mentioned by the killer, pulls him right back into the game. And the one who pulls him back is no other than his former FBI partner and friend, Kyle Craig, who turned out to be a vicious serial killer and was put in prison (that happened in the book Violets are blue, if you haven't read that one yet).

Without revealing anything else about the book, I will say that if you haven't read it yet, give it a chance. It's really good, and if you like the Alex Cross books, this one doesn't disappoint. Don't let the Amazon ratings turn you off from having a good read. And this point is valid not only for this book. Always make a habit of reading the book first, and google-ing or searching Amazon for the reviews after. You'll enjoy the book that much more.

Simplicity

Let's face it, we are in the middle of recession, no matter how much we want to ignore it. And although it has started in the US, it can be felt all around the world, including in Europe.

Why do I mention this? Because we all know when the money is tight(er), the two things that go first are perfume and jewelry. Many women stop buying jewelry until the situation is better. I mean jewelry and perfumes are still considered luxury items. And they are the first to go.
And if you have been following wire wrapping lately, it has become very complex, complicated and expensive. And no doubt about it, gorgeous as well.

This is why for the next few months I will be focusing on creating very affordable, yet sweet, elegant and beautiful jewelry. Focus will be on those of us who - no matter what situation the economy is in - we do not want to deny ourselves those little secret pleasures, like eating a few dark chocolate pralines, or wearing a cute pair of earrings.

Having this in mind, I am starting the very affordable collection of simplicity and beauty.

The first in this collection is actually an interchangeable pair of earrings - i.e. you buy two pairs for the price of one! Changing the beads on the earwires is extremely easy, just slide them off and put the new on in place. Voila, you have a new pair of earrings for that other outfit.

The stones are orange agate beads and chunky amethyst briolettes on sterling silver fancy earwires.
Everything has been tumbled in my Lortone tumbler for added shine and durability.
Shipping as usual is free. Price is shown both in EUR and USD, use whichever is more appropriate for you, depending on your geo location.

17 Euros

22 USD

Herringbone is the theme of today - SOLD!

As I mentioned in my previous post about herringbone weave, this is the first jewelry piece I made this year, a bracelet for a colleague at work. Green cats-eye in herringbone weave with 0.6 and 1 mm sterling silver wire.


I also made this cute pair of herringbone earrings after watching a free video on youtube, created by Cynthia. It really inspired me to try them and I will do more of these.
Beads are dark blue goldstone (so dark that they could easily pass as black in the proper light), they are really beautiful, and so dainty. If you like shorter earrings, which sit just right in your ear, these are for you :)

I will add the pair to my Dawanda shop, but you can also buy them directly from here via Paypal (with free shipping).

I had people sending me email asking me how much does xyz cost in $US, so I will display from now on both prices, in Euros and in $US. You can click on whichever button you prefer to buy it, depending on your location.

Best 4 free herringbone weave tutorials for wire wrapping

How did this post come about?
I'm working on a simple herringbone weave bracelet for a colleague at work, who placed the order for sending it to her mom as a gift. So this weekend I'm working on my very first piece in 2009. I will post a picture of it as soon as it's ready and my camera is charged.

So in honour of my first piece, which is based on the herringbone technique, I went searching online for the best 5 free herringbone tutorials for wire wrapping. I got loads of question on how to make herringbone pieces whenever I showed some of my jewelry based on this technique on jewelry forums, and I know that this post will fill that void, since each of these tutorials is FREE, and one can learn to make a nice piece of jewelry based on it. Well, I found only 4 free tutorials on the net in the end, not 5, everything else was for a fee, but these 4 more than make up for the missing 5th :)

So here we go.

1. Hands down, the best tutorial is Eni's Herringbone weave, this one is a classic already :)
2. Irulan's herringbone tutorial takes place 3. Nice and clear pictures, easy to understand.
   
3. Adelin's herringbone weave is a nice new tutorial, put up late last year - interesting weaving of a bead which usually doesn't lend itself to herringbone.
   
4. Alternative herringbone tutorial by Heidi K. It is ingenious in its simplicity and you don't even really have to learn herringbone. Perfect for wrapping round beads and making a small cute pair of earrings. Gotta try this one out. If you have a free herringbone tutorial that you'd like to share, just leave a comment with a link to your tutorial, and I will add it to the list (rearranging the list if needed, depending on the tutorial quality).

2009 sticky mental resolutions

Now that 2008 is over, I've been musing on how I approached the year and what I want to change in 2009 to make the year even better. I've read recently an uplifting report called 'Sticky resolutions', which really stroke a chord with me. Why sticky? Because 'we can do anything we want to if we stick to it long enough' (Helen Keller).

So here are 7 sticky mental resolutions to implement this year:

1. Whenever you feel down, think of something that you can honestly be grateful for. Just take a minute of your time and appreciate the good things in your life.
   
   
2. Take the decision. If you're thinking for a long time to do something, don't put it off any longer. Just Do it (like Nike says). You never know until you made the decision whether it was right or wrong, but if you never do it, you'll always wonder 'what if'.
   
   
3. Make a habit to say 'thank you', don't take people for granted. Thank your waiter for bringing your meal. Thank your kids for anything trivial that they did for you, thank your taxi driver for bringing you home. Thank your postman for bringing your letter.
   
   
4. Never assume things. Never assume that you know what the next person is thinking about you, as you don't. If you see that your friend, or your boss is in a bad mood, don't automatically assume it is about you. Most of the times, it isn't. And if it is, let it go. You can't make everyone happy, it would be foolish to even try.
   
   
5. When you notice you have negative thoughts, change them immediately. Think of a song you like, look out the window and see the trees with the branches swinging with the wind, smile at your colleague at work, and your attitude will change.
   
   
6. Don't worry needlessly about tomorrow. Don't try to make several negative outcomes of the upcoming job interview, meeting or presentation. You don't know in advance how it will be, so don't assume it will be bad. And never say 'it will never work out', because usually things have a way of working out for the best for you. Even if at the time it doesn't seem so.
   
   
7. Don't worry about the last choice you made. It was the right one. How do I know that? It's because you took it, you are here. You are always on the right path for you. It took me a while to absorb this particular one, but if I leave out the 'what if's' it's quite easy actually. We are always where we are supposed to be at the time. This doesn't mean that we cannot change where we will go tomorrow. But for today, we are here, exactly where we should be.
   

10% offer also good from direct blog purchase

Thanks for the purchases from my shop, your items have been all sent out.
I have received emails whether the offer is also good for buying directly from the blog, as not everybody wants to register to Dawanda just to buy. Yes, you can buy from here as well.

So until January 11 (Sunday) you can buy 2 or more items from Dawanda, or directly here from my blog, and you get the 10% and free shipping, plus a silver cleaning propolish pad as a gift.
How does this work? Very easy:
Buy each item separately from this thread on my blog, and as I will see at Paypal your email address, I will count the total purchase and refund you 10%. As soon as the items are purchased, I will remove them from the thread right away.

After January 11, prices go back to normal, but you will still get the free shipping, and the gift cleaning pad.