I'm Inspired

and that's a good feeling!  I took a class with Bettina & Lubna of LB o J'zazz.  For my local friends they have a bead store & great classes.  I loved Bettina's teaching style & both of the ladies were available to help us individually.  I'll be taking another class :)

The above sample, left, was made by Bettina & inspired by the picture on the right:

Iranian glazed ceramic tile work located on the underside of the tomb of Persian poet Hafez at Shiraz, Iran, Province of Fars

My piece

I could not get over how intricate the piece looked & how easy it was to construct.  I am hooked & probably in trouble - it's good trouble though.  I need to go through my stash & see what I have that is conducive to this design.  The nice part is there's room for lots of experimentation: color ways, seed bead sizes, Czech firepolish sizes.  Bettina taught the class & came up with the color ways for the kits.  It was so hard to pick which one I wanted.  In the end I selected the one with purples & browns.  I was so excited to wear it this morning that I just added a jump ring at the top & suspended it from a brass chain.  

Not Sure of my Direction

This post was going to start out about the funny anecdote from yesterday.  (I parked my car like a Kuwaiti next to the curb, yes in a driving lane, with my hazards on.  I did this to run in & use an ATM)  Then I did something I normally do.  I found a mosque I passed several months ago that caught my eye.  I pulled over, this time in a parking lot, to take pictures.

So, back to the title.  I'm feeling a bit lost these days.  I'm not sure what direction I want to take my jewelry business.  I'm not sure where I want to go with my volunteer work.  Some days I'm not feeling so creative.  It's frustrating as my window of free time has diminished a bit with a part time job.  I'm the type of person that's always ready to go.  I guess this is one of the ebb & flow periods that I just need to push through.

Creative Goings On

Frame & Round Swirls: Lileya

It's a 5 day weekend here so I "should" be able to get all my new jewels posted. 2 days down & 3 left. The above picture is a little teaser of some of the new pretties I've made. It's taken me a bit of time to get back to "normal" since we gotten back from the states. I've started my part-time job & the kids start school soon so hopefully I'll be able to get into a routine.
Most of the new pieces are in aqua hues, neutrals & corals/fall orange.  I'm a bit surprised about my recent color choices, not the aqua - just the other stuff, but I guess that's part of me & my creative journey.
So I better get off this blog & back to work! :)