A Day Going Downhill...And Beaded Artsy Hat...#3!!

 (Artsy Crochet Tube Hat, Beaded Mesh Silver and Black Applique by wuglyees)

      I'm having so much fun with my artsy hats!! Or should I say...thanks to Yaya, of Whispering Pines blog!...my artsy 'chic' hats! ^_^ You should see me when I'm going through my colors and matching the right applique to the right color! Talk about toe-curling fun!!! LOL

      Choosing the grey heather yarn for this silver, black, and tulle applique was a 'no-brainer' though. It practically picked itself! ^_^

      There is so much bead work on the applique too!!!...

      I just have to find the right person to buy it!! ^_^ Is that YOU?!! If so, just click HERE and go ahead and get it!! :-)
 

     
      On a completely different note, have you ever had one of those days that started out great and then quickly took a left turn...or was more like a roller coaster?!...That's what happened to me today! O_O My morning started out with pancakes, scrambled eggs, and bacon...
 

      What could possibly be wrong with that, you ask?!....Absoluely NOTHING!! ^_^ ...
 

      That was the start of my great day!!! And it was delicious!!!...to the third degree!!! ^_^ ***I almost said to the 4th or 5th degree, but it sounded like I was trying to quote the law, or sing a song by the 5th dimension!! LOL*** And with my half glass of orange juice and hot cup of green tea to wash it all down, my day started off just great!! :-)
      Then hubby and I got into one of our conversations, and...without telling you what it was about...let me just say that the mood of my day started to go downhill! O_O ... But then we had our meeting at the Kingdom Hall, and the day's mood went back up!! :-)
      After the meeting I went back to work on my latest artsy hat...
 

      Then I realized that I didn't have enough yarn to finish it, and the store was closed where I get the yarn!!...Aargh!!!...STOPPAGE!...I hate stoppage!!! LOL....Roller coaster...downhill!! LOL...So, I was left to mentally play around with how I was gonna apply my new applique to the hat, once I got some more yarn and was able to finish the hat!...Did I already say: Aargh!!???....I did?!...Okay, good! :-))

      My dilemma is about whether to have the dangling bead tendrils hang off the edge of the hat or not.....I'm still debating....Suggestions are welcome! ^_^

      By the way, there is no argument about the center flower. ^_^ It can go anywhere and be adorable!!! :-) ...
 

      And I love that center metal flower!!! :-) ...
 

      Then...my day started to go back uphill when I started to watch the football game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Green Bay Packers! :-) I like both of the teams, but my long-time team is the Cowboys!! :-) ...But when my team lost!!..... :-( ...Downhill again!!....AND, wouldn't you know it, this was also about the time the conversation hubby and I started earlier came back up again!!!!! Aargh!!!!

      Thankfully there is always tomorrow! :-) ... Maybe by the time the sun has risen, and the temperatures outside have gone up, ***because it's been DOG cold!!...old southern expression. LOL***and my first morning green tea with honey and lemon has been sipped, and my morning scripture text has been mentally digested, this day will be a distant memory!!!...And we can try again...then...for a good day! ^_^ Although...O_O... it'll be Monday! Typically Mondays don't go so well!! LOL
      That's alright!! I have to have something smile-worthy to end this post with. And thinking about tomorrow going better than today is making me smile right now...So I'll take it!!! ^_^ Have a good rest of the night, Everybody!! ♥

Fishing-Life

This world is like a pond in which
you can't help but get wet.
We are like the fish snatched up
into the fisher's net.

The pond-it represents all of
our jobs and bills and debt,
that we swim in every day,
chasing the bait that's hard to get.

The world throws out a line
that we follow to the top;
Then we're pulled away from safety,
and on land we flip and flop.

Even if we get away,
we're now wounded, dry and tired,
`cause we've jumped out of the frying pan,
and now we're in the fire!

Sooooo...Is That What's Trending Right Now?!!

(Organic Market Tote Bag by SewnNatural)

       Clearly, looking at the header photo, you can see that I have a one track mind this morning! ^_^ It's breakfast-time here, and breakfast is 'always' trending for me at this time of the morning! :-) 

      What does 'trending' mean?!...and why am I talking about it?!...Well, 'trending' means "the general direction in which something tends to move, or to extend, incline, or veer in a specified direction."...And I'm talking about it because I saw something on Etsy that was in the list of the things they said were 'trending right now'! 

     This is what I saw...

(Handstamped Keychain Mother-In-Law Gift from Crazy4Handstamping)

    Of course it was just looking at the fact that it was words on something that caught my attention, but what the words actually say is pretty cool too!..."Thank you for raising the man of my dreams."...What a cool gift to give to a mother-in-law!! :-) By the way, you can have it say 'woman' of my dreams too if you want...just saying! :-)

      And then, finding one thing with words on it, I wondered if 'words on stuff' was what was 'trending right now'. So off I went to search for what was trending! :-) And these are a few of the things I found...

 (Best Friends Silver Infinity Ring from laonato)

       A ring with words on it (above). 

     And a scarf with Jane Austen's words on it! (below) :-) ...

(Pride and Prejudice Book Scarf from storiarts) 

       But I found that stuff with words on them wasn't all that was trending right now...Color is also trending! :-) YAY!!...

 (Rainbow Tie-Dye Hoodie from ItsCosmatic)

       Couldn't you see yourself out for a morning walk in this colorful hoodie?! ^_^ I could!....I can't!...But I could...if you know what I mean. LOL

     And what about these colorful wraps?!...

 (5 Bridesmaids Kimono Crossover Robe Spa Wraps from silkandmore)

     They're marketed for bridesmaids, but I could see a good girlfriend day gift here too! :-) ... Which reminds me, it's been a long time since I had a real girlfriends day!...Hmmmm...I need to get on that!

     Okay...so that's what's trending on Etsy right now! :-) ...What's trending in 'MY' Etsy shop is lapel pins and boutonnieres! :-) ...

     These are a couple of my new ones I have to list later today...

       This is my slow period, so they're not moving as quickly out of the shop right now. But I'm still crocheting because...hopefully...things will be picking up soon, when the warm Spring sunshine comes, and tax season is over! LOL People will want to 'look' good, even though they won't have any money left!! ^_^

     Okay...my one track mind has gone back to what's trending in my house...BREAKFAST!! LOL...

(Vintage Handmade Letters EAT Sign from ShopHomegrown)

      Have a good day, Everybody! :-)

Fishing-Life

This world is like a pond in which
you can't help but get wet.
We are like the fish snatched up
into the fisher's net.

The pond-it represents all of
our jobs and bills and debt,
that we swim in every day,
chasing the bait that's hard to get.

The world throws out a line
that we follow to the top;
Then we're pulled away from safety,
and on land we flip and flop.

Even if we get away,
we're now wounded, dry and tired,
`cause we've jumped out of the frying pan,
and now we're in the fire!

Just FLY-ing By!!

      It flew the coop...my Swarovski crystal fly button lapel pin I mean! It flew the coop from my Wuglyees Etsy shop! :-) Somebody finally likes it as much as I do and decided they would pay for it...YAY!!! :-) That may sound like too much excitement over a lapel pin, but hey! I gotta have something to be excited about besides hurricane Sandy and the stolen smile-able moments that people are creating because of it!
       I saw a little girl and her family in New York who never lost power during the storm, set up a table outside of their home and decided to let people come by and use their power to charge their cell phones and things! :-] That's the kind of spirit you like to see when there's devastation all around.
       Speaking of which, here's a few of the photos of the kind of damage we got here in western Massachusetts (these are all photos from the WWLP Facebook site)...

Belchertown...

 Palmer...

South Deerfield...

      ...and a couple other places...

     It's certainly not as bad as some of the other states, but if it was your home with this kind of damage you still might not be feeling so thankful!

        Okay, I got some sales overnight and I have to get them wrapped so that Mr. Wug can get them to the Post Office on his travels this morning...By the way, he won't have to go to the laudromat anymore. The washer is fixed!!!!! :-)
       Tomorrow I have a few cute Etsy items to share with you. See you then!! :-) Have a good day!

Fishing-Life

This world is like a pond in which
you can't help but get wet.
We are like the fish snatched up
into the fisher's net.

The pond-it represents all of
our jobs and bills and debt,
that we swim in every day,
chasing the bait that's hard to get.

The world throws out a line
that we follow to the top;
Then we're pulled away from safety,
and on land we flip and flop.

Even if we get away,
we're now wounded, dry and tired,
`cause we've jumped out of the frying pan,
and now we're in the fire! 

Okay...So Here's What Happened.......

(Clock Work Red Necklace by yazdi)

       Another cog in the 'work' wheel gear has grinded to a halt...It sounds so dramatic, doesn't it?! :-)) To put it simply...hubby is out of a job...at least for a few days. Probably more...And while I should be terribly sad about it. I'm strangely relieved!

      What happened was...hubby has been working ridiculously long hours at work. I'm talking 14, 15, or more hours a day! It's been really taking a toll on him. Especially because he's also my main care-giver, with all of my health issues...He's been tired. Really....EXHAUSTED! And not getting the proper amount of sleep.

      As some of you know, he's been a 'snack cake man' for quite a while. It's been all over the news about the work issues his company has been going through...and he's been on the inside...so to speak...feeling the pinch!...Well, yesterday 'Pinch' came to 'push' because of an incident that happened with hubby's truck.

     He forgot to put the emergency brake on his truck while he was at a stop, and it rolled into one of the store employee's cars! O_0 Nothing on the car was damaged, and she...in effect...waved him off and said everything was fine. So hubby left...Problem is that 'company policy' is that no matter whether there's damage or not, you're suppose to get info, take pictures, etc...before leaving a situation like that. Hubby, because there was no damage to her car, and because she waved him off anyway,...not to mention that he was in a hurry to get his work-load done in a reasonable hour for the day,....didn't do that. :-(

     So...hubby was suspended until he meets with his job representative. He tried to call him all day yesterday, but frankly...the rep has been in deep negotiations with his company anyway...Union stuff going on!...so who knows how long this suspension is gonna be! And even after the meeting...he may be out of a job just because of the way things are looking with the company...Sooooo...anybody wanna meet my hubby at some craft shows and say hi?! ^_^

     That may be the next step for us. And it may actually be an answer to some prayers, because the job has been a HUGE stress on him for quite a while. It's tough to walk away from something you're good at...and frankly, something you love to do...even when you can see it's not the best thing for you!...But when you get pushed out....Well, that's another story! LOL

      Anyway....in anticipation of the fact that we're gonna need to make some money somehow, I'm in 'crochet mama' mode! Hubby may need supplies for a craft booth somewhere or something! ^_^ So yesterday I started a 'few' men's boutonnieres...

       Yellow...pink...brown...and blue!

        All of the pretty colors were just calling my name!...They're kinda persistent too, because after I finished with these...Well, not finished exactly!...^_^...They still need backs and buttons and stuff sewn in...But first I had to make some other colors that were hollering: "POETESSWUGGGGGGGG!!!" LOL

      Some purple shades...

         Some orangy shades...

       

       And a beige colored one too!...

      Now, today, I've got to pick just the right buttons for them and put some finishing touches on them...including some backs!...

        Hey! Somebody's gotta be working around here!! LOL...On the 'for real, for real'...as they say in the south...I might sound kinda flippant about the whole job thing. I'm not. It's just that this isn't the first time we've been in this situation, and every...time...our God has pulled us through. I'm secure in the knowledge that if this job wasn't good for us, God will help us find something that is!...Experience has proved this true EVERY TIME!

      So we're gonna do all we can to keep our oars in the water...so to speak...and keep our eyes and ears open to whatever is next. And in the meantime we're gonna try to enjoy the unexpected 'virtual date night'...well...'virtual date DAYS'...lalapalooza that has dropped into our laps!! ^_^

 (Typography Art Print by PlayOnWordsArt)

          Okay....gotta go now. SOMEBODY is gonna be making me some breakfast in bed!!...By the way, don't forget the book of poetry Giveaway!...(see the right hand sidebar.)...AND we're only one follower away from the afghan blanket Giveaway now too!! :-) Have a good day everybody!

Fishing-Life

This world is like a pond in which
you can't help but get wet.
We are like the fish snatched up
into the fisher's net.

The pond-it represents all of
our jobs and bills and debt,
that we swim in every day,
chasing the bait that's hard to get.

The world throws out a line
that we follow to the top;
Then we're pulled away from safety,
and on land we flip and flop.

Even if we get away,
we're now wounded, dry and tired,
`cause we've jumped out of the frying pan,
and now we're in the fire!

Virtual World

Don't adjust your screen. The picture is kind of dark because it was 5:45 a.m.! It's what my backyard looked like when I woke up this morning....*deep breath*...I love waking up and feeling like I'm laying in the backyard. Just watching the sun come up is kind of calming.

But I can't lay here staring out of the window all day. I've got things to do, people to see, and flowers to crochet!...Before I take off to do that though, I wonder...have any of you ever visited the Virtual Labs on Etsy?! I ask because I realized yesterday that it's been a long time since I visited a lab. With my tweeting on Twitter ( Come follow me! I'm Poetesswug2 http://twitter.com/PoetessWug2 ), doing my blog every day, crocheting and working on SEO linking in my "Wuglyees" shop ( http://www.etsy.com/shop/wuglyees ), I just haven't taken the time!
   But if you have an Etsy shop, making handmade items to sell, I think the virtual labs are invaluable to your success. I say this because of the wealth of information and encouragement that I personally have received in the labs. Here's what you do....
    Go to Etsy, click on "community" in the upper bar, then click on "Virtual Labs". In the middle column you will see the schedule for upcoming "Events", including the times for them. In the colored boxes, or "Rooms" it'll tell you which one has the current event going on. The size of the boxes kind of tell you the capacity of each room too. (In other words, how many people will be able to fit in there.) The "Auditorium" is the largest.
   I usually visit either the "Newbie Chat" or the "Shop Critiques". The newbie chat, while it sounds like it's just for "NEW" people, isn't!  Not only is it attended by newbies, or people new to Etsy, but there are also always other Etsy shop owners there. They, like me, attend so that they can meet the new owners and offer help if needed. It's a way of giving back what was given to us when we were newbies. The idea of that lab, though, is to help new people get their questions answered about the workings of etsy. I like attending it because I get to share with new people what I've learned: what a "Treasury" is, what the purpose of the forums is, how their announcement page should look, what info should be included in their profile and policies page, how and what to use as item tags, how to take pictures (Okay, so I don't usually do much talking on this subject!! LOL Although I do know HOW it's suppose to be done...I just haven't mastered it yet!), and so forth.
   My favorite, though, is the "Shop Critiques". That's where I've learned the most! What happens in that lab is that a person from Etsy administration visibly pops into the middle of the room, which is configured in little boxes all in a circle around her (Or in a half moon shape in the smaller rooms). Then, while she reads the things we're typing to her, she answers questions, picks different shops (which you can volunteer to be a guinea pig for), and tells them individually what she thinks about their shop. She gives advice on what to fix, what's great already, and what to aim for to make your shop more successful. A lot of people visit this lab so that they can get some personal attention and clues to why they aren't selling more from their shop! It's not easy to get picked. There's thousands of Etsy shops! You have to be quick at typing. I guess I must be pretty quick, because I've been picked a couple of times so far. That's how I found out that I needed to fix my shipping info and how to do it...The last time I was picked she was impressed with my progress and how my shop looked, and was at a loss as to why my shop wasn't selling right now. She gave me some encouragement to keep crocheting and building up supplies because she was sure that come September-ish my sells would pick up. I hope she's right!
   The fun things in the lab are the little symbols that you can play with in the bottom bar, below the chat bar. If you click on the little red 'heart' a lot of other symbols will show up in that row. To sling them across the room, just click and hold on your own avatar, drag and point the line where you want the item to go, and then release the click! (In my opinion this is only fun when the room is empty!!! LOL It is rather annoying when the moderator is talking about something you're trying to pay attention to, and some "joker" starts flinging things at people...Some people never grow up!!)
    I've met some wonderful people, and shared some helpful experiences  with people that I've met in the virtual labs. I'm gonna try to get over there tomorrow. There's a "Shop Critique" scheduled at 4:00p.m. on "Tagging". I think I can use some help in this area too. (for the Etsy searches to pick up more of my items.)  Maybe I'll see some of you there! Just click in one of the boxes, type my Etsy name, "Wuglyees" and say Hello! You can tell if I'm there by my Etsy avatar. It's not the Wuglyee bear that I use on twitter. It's this...

   I'd love to hear what you have to say about my shop, and...look at your shop too! You know how nosy I am!!! LOL...{My poem today is one that I sell in a frame in my Etsy shop!}

Fishing-Life

This world is like a pond in which
you can't help but get wet.
We are like the fish snatched up
into the fisher's net.

The pond-it represents all of
our jobs and bills and debt,
that we swim in every day,
chasing the bait that's hard to get.

The world throws out a line
that we follow to the top;
Then we're pulled away from safety,
and on land we flip and flop.

Even if we get away,
we're now wounded, dry and tired,
`cause we've jumped out of the frying pan,
and now we're in the fire!
http://www.etsy.com/listing/21471916/fishing-life-poem-in-a-frame