We're Going To A Craft Fair

Happy Cyber Monday!  We're busy preparing for a craft fair this weekend.  Here is a peek at what we are making:

Who?

Having fun with fabric, brass beads, buttons, crystal nose and wire twisted feet.

I love the textured foxes, so sweet.

I'm twisting some fancy ornament holders.

The photos are not great, but this ornament has a glass pendant in the center that can be removed and put on a cotton jewelry rope that is included as pictured below.  So you get an ornament and a necklace.  I'm making three or four of these, I think they are so lovely.

Well that's what we are working on, I Hope you are enjoying the transition into the holiday season.

Black Friday-Cyber Monday Etsy Shop Savings

Our Etsy shop also called My Laughing Lion is having a big sale this weekend 11/23-11/26.  Use coupon code LION20 to get 20% off your purchase.  You can get to the shop by clicking here.

We specialize in miniature beaded trees and hand wired jewelry.  Here is a look at a few of our items:

Each tree can now become a Christmas tree ornament with the wire tree holder included with every tree.

I urge everyone to take a look at Etsy (the online handmade marketplace) this Holiday Season.  The online marketplace now sells giftcards.   There is also now a process to use credit cards without signing up for a Pay Pal account.  Etsy also has a wide variety of amazing items that are produced by artists all over the world.  Definitely worth a look.

Have a great shopping day!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I am Thankful for so many things and want to share some of them with you.

Isabel Sophia.
She is sassy and sweet and spices up life every day. I love spending time with her.  Isabel is becoming a baker and has made two amazing cakes in a row.

I love to see her laugh.  Here are father and daughter laughing on an outing recently:

Esteban.
He is so funny and goes the extra mile every day to take care of all of us.  I am so lucky to have such a great life partner and friend.

Sebastian.
He is strong and smart, warm and funny and I am proud to see him becoming a fine man.  He also is a big help for me every day and I appreciate him.

Lucy.
The dog of  dogs.  She is so sweet and loving and obeys (most of the time).  We love to watch her dream and make little barking noises in her sleep.

I am also Thankful for my Dad and his lovely wife.  They have been so supportive, encouraging and loving.  I was so glad they were able to visit earlier this year.  I also love my kid sister Marina, she is pretty and smart and just sassy enough.

I am Thankful for my Brother, his lovely wife, their sweet angel Libby, Emily and Sam.  I am so bad at communicating sometimes but I want my brother to know that I love him very much.  I often think of the good times we had together as children.

I am Thankful that I am able to explore my creativity and grateful for the love and support I receive every day.

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving.

Our Trees are Now Christmas Ornaments!

I have been trying to create a holder that allows our tiny trees to become a Christmas tree ornament.  I know the trees would look so pretty on the Christmas tree but I wanted anyone with a tree to be able to put them on a dresser or desk after the holiday.  After several prototypes, the holder is now ready!  Let's take a look.

 Here is my red tree (January Birthstone).

Here is the light pink tree.  So pretty.

The Christmas tree ornament holder has a little wire worked basket that fits just under the beaded top of the tree.  I tested each holder by shaking it with a tree in it.  This design was the best by far and your tiny tree won't fall out.

I made the holder in gold for sparkle and also in dark green so it would fade into the Christmas tree and the tiny tree would stand out.  Let's take a look at that one.

I love the green one, but appreciate the sparkle of the gold Christmas tree ornament holder.

If anyone out there has a tiny tree and would like a Christmas tree ornament holder, just send me an e-mail with the number needed and gold or green wire.

I am updating our Etsy shop today so each tree listing shows that the ornament holders are included with each tree.

Our shop is participating in Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales so stay tuned for great discounts on that day.

Have a Treerific Tuesday!

Like Santa's Elves without the Hats

I haven't been posting very much because we are busy making up a storm.

We have a few events coming up and are making ornaments and other things.  Here is a sneak peak.

We used fabric for all of these.  So fun but with little time left over for blogging.  Bear with me for a bit longer.  We are trying to make this holiday season the best one ever.  Hope you are having fun getting ready for the season.

This is Christmas Tree Day!

I like to declare tree day on occasion and share the trees I've made recently.  This week I have been focused on finishing a few Christmas trees.  I love them and hope you do too.

I will start off with a few trees I tried as prototypes.  I think there are too fragile, but look pretty.

I love the polar bear, he makes the perfect winter prop.  This tree was fun to make but I don't like the cone look that much.  It is pretty and sparkly though and will be part of our miniature Nativity set.

This tree is pretty fragile but I love the texture and the star.  I am going to make one out of thicker wire to see if it can be perfected.  

Ok, here we go.  The stars of the show.

This tiny Christmas tree is made with gold wire so it has a little extra sparkle.  I love the deep green color of the glass beads.

This tiny Christmas tree is made with green wire, so I think it looks a bit fuller than the gold wire tree.  I love how they both turned out.  They are not packed with branches so look more like real trees to me.  This green wire tree is my favorite.

Esteban and the children love this tree the best.  It is fuller and takes more beads and time and is actually a little heavy for it's size.  I prefer the skinnier trees.  Which do you like better?

I have a few other things I've made and want to share.

This tree reminds me of trees that architects draw on building plans.  It has a unique textured top that I really like the look of.  I made it with very thin wire and will try a few in thicker wire, but I love the design.

It is a pin with a wire work cloud and glass bead rain drops.  The idea is that it's a cloud with a silver lining.  

Whew.  Thanks for taking a look at my latest wire creations.

I hope you have the best Tree Day ever.

Cold Snap!

Here in Arizona, yesterday was the coldest we have seen so far this fall.  The low was 44 and the high was in the seventies.  I know that is amazing weather, and trust me I am not complaining.  But for us, after a long hot summer, that low is super cold.  My children are so funny, yesterday they put on socks and funny knome hats I made for them as a bit of a joke.  I was not able to capture a photo of us in our funny hats, but the winter has just begun.
Here is Isabel modeling the red knome hat earlier this past summer.

It was shocking to wake up in the cold.  Luci let me know right away that she wanted to stay in bed instead of following me into the kitchen like she usually does.  She let me know by thumping her tail and burying her face under her blanket.  Yes, Luci has a cozy blanket and loves to be covered before she goes to bed.  She is too big to sleep with the two of us, but she prefers her bed in our room to sleeping anywhere else.  We have a nightly ritual where Luci is asked to come down from our bed and get into her bed that we pull out from under the bed.  Sometimes she is reluctant.  It always makes me laugh.  It is as though Luci thinks that she can sleep hard in our bed and we might forget and leave her up there for the night.  Not likely when she sprawls across the bed sideways.

Here Luci is in my bed.  She always lays across and sleeps hard.

Here she is in her bed.  That is her beloved fuzzy blanket in the upper left corner.

The cold felt like one of the first signs that the holiday season is on it's way.  Thanksgiving here we come!

The kids have been helping me make some holiday ornaments, we will share them in the next few days.

Have a great Tuesday!

I Knew My Dad Was A Hero Before I Knew He Was A Veteran

I have mentioned in several posts that my father was in the Air Force as I was growing up, he was in Thailand during the Vietnam War.

I remember so many moments as a child when I looked up at him and thought I would always be safe.  My dad is not a giant.  He does not have bulging body builder muscles.  He wore a uniform, but all the soldiers wore the same uniform.

It is all there, in his eyes.   He would brave a fire or lift a car.  He would slay the dragons or the terrorists.  He is the kind of man that all men want to be and all children want to have as their father.

I am grown up now and he lives far away, but I still feel safe because I know he is out there.  He is still ready to face any trouble with me, to slay any serious grown up dragons I come across.

If you look into the eyes of the man who is my father, you would also see the strength, honor, love and grit that has been there all of my life.

So you see I knew he was a hero before I knew he was a Veteran.

Today I honor one of the best men on the planet, a man who has great love for his country and his family.

Today I honor my father, the Veteran.   Thank you for your service, Dad.

Photo Courtesy:  ABC15

Please give your love and appreciation to the Veterans in your life today.  Have a great Veteran's Day.