Peek at My Week (Sep 6-12)

At the end of each week, I like to do these little reviews to share some of the creativity and beauty I find in my days as well as some of the struggles I face. This is to help remind you and me that it's not always sunshine and rainbows, you have to ride out the storms too. Take a peek.

I was up extra early on Sunday and actually caught the sunrise.

Just as impressive was the light that hit the trees as the sun rose.

Pat and I spent much of the day prepping the pool and food to have a couple of friends over for some outdoor fun. 

Monday was a holiday, but I still got up and made myself take a morning walk. 

I discovered that the ditch in one of my favorite areas had been mowed so that I could get to the fence line easier to take pictures. 

The morning was spent knocking out a few chores that could be handled at home, then we enjoyed the holiday in the pool.

Once we were good and waterlogged, I made Red Beans and Rice with our favorite local sausage, Conecuh. 

On Tuesday, I focused on getting several NEED-TO-DO tasks tackled.

I priced some jewelry for the Bargain Bin at my booth at Southern Antiques and Accents before taking it up there in preparation for Saturday's Super event. 

In the afternoon, I took product pictures for Etsy.

This time of the year, it's so hard to get outside to get the pictures in the heat. Of course, it's no fun in the dead of winter either. But, I suffered through and knocked it out. Yay me!

On Wednesday's morning walk, I spied more flower vines on that same fence.

I was able to squeeze a little creative play into the day before I did a little thrift shopping in the afternoon (while I was out for a needed supply.)

After my walk on Thursday, I sat out on the deck for my planning and reflection time.

This has been a habit of mine since about the beginning of the year. And, it's really become my favorite time of the day. I try not to rush through it. It's lovely. The rest of the day went off without a hitch.

I have to admit that I was super irritable on Friday and didn't want to focus on household chores. Once I knocked out the direst of them, I needed to turn my attention to something more desirable.

I'd been itching to make a journal for a few days. And, after watching the tutorial for this Eco Printed Link Stitch Book, I decided to try the technique. Before binding it, I took care to make it just like I wanted it. And, that included some stitches on the sewing machine to create pockets. 

The book came together beautifully - even though I had to trash two of the signatures because the vintage book paper they were made out of was too fragile for this technique.

Now I just need to add a few treasures in the pockets!

I also did some more hand-stitching on my haphazard embroidered mandala in the evening while we watched TV. That helped ease my frayed nerves. 

On Saturday, I skipped my walk since I knew I was likely to get some exercise working in the yard later in the day. After coffee on the deck and chatting with one of my brothers, I braved the heat and humidity of the day to trim some limbs and sweep the porch.

Of course, I found myself stopping to admire the foliage as well. 

I spent the early part of the afternoon prepping videos for upload before Pat and I ran up to his studio so he could take care of something while I uploaded a couple of videos.

Back at the house, we lazed on the couch while college football aired in the background on the TV.  Alabama won't be playing games for another couple of weeks, but it was nice to have a little normalcy for a "Saturday in the Fall." 

Here's some of the inspiration I found over the week. I hope it inspires you too!

• Now that it's September, we can look ahead at making Fall-related crafts. I think this upcycled Sweater Sleeve Pumpkin Tutorial is a perfect example. 
• And, if you need even more pumpkins, here's a cute DIY Paper Pumpkin that you can make and even put a little electric candle in. 
• At The Beading Gem, you'll find a tutorial for making Faux Lava Rock Jewelry from Polymer Clay. What a neat idea!
• This tutorial for Faux Metal Earrings with Gelli Arts combines my love of jewelry-making and papercraft into one project.
• If you're ready for Halloween crafting, how about making some Halloween Cat Earrings with Polymer Clay?
• These book sculptures from Barbara Wildenboer are something to behold. Really, go see them!
• Somehow all the polymer clay tutorials are showing up for me right now, and I hardly ever use it. But, if you're interested in exploring it some more, here are 10 Polymer Clay Jewelry Projects to check out. 
• Something about these botanical porcelain sculptures feels magical. 
• I really love these Ephemeral Bird Assemblages. They're very in-the-moment but so sublime!
• Here's a list of jewelry tutorials that aren't polymer clay: 17 DIY Choker Necklaces. 
• Ohmygoodness - go take a look at these segmented glass sculptures. Something about their shape has me wanting to touch them!

We're currently preparing for a possible hurricane here this week, but hoping that it won't be too bad. And, I definitely want to knock out a few creative projects as well. Here's hoping you find the good in your week ahead as well. Enjoy it.