Pearls for Lona

My mother has a friend that she met at her church. Her name is Lona, and she recently celebrated her 100th birthday! My mom mentioned that Lona is in good health, and is definitely young in spirit.

I haven't met Lona yet, however she made me a wonderful gift. She filet-crocheted our last name into a doily-like, framable wall decoration! She gave it to my mom, and asked my mom to deliver it to us.

Now imagine this: A kind elderly lady, possibly with arthritic fingers busily working away to make a gift for the daughter of a friend of hers. How sweet is that?

Wouldn't you think that her eye-sight would be failing, and that perhaps the end-result would be--a little irregular, albeit made with love?

Well, think again!

I am also a crocheter, and have made several thread crochet pieces. (And, in case you're interested in my needle-work resume, I've won blue ribbons at the county fair on several of my crochet pieces. OK, please excuse my cracking knees as I arise from my curtsy.) I can spot a well-crocheted piece. And this piece could hold its own at any State Fair, and would probably strut away with Best-in-Show/Grand Champion!

Her stitches are regular. OK, not merely regular, but PERFECT! In addition to this, many needleworkers know that the correct blocking of a finished piece makes or breaks the end result. The blocking on this piece is impeccable. Every stitch in place, each row aligned. Superb!

I am truly humbled by the quality of her work, and touched by her generosity!

So my beads came out again.

I made her this bracelet as a thank you gift. I chose pearls, as they are a perennial favorite. I chose pink, because Lona is young, in just about every way! Instead of using a traditional box clasp that pearls dictate, I used a lovely--FABULOUS!-- filigree clasp that my Hong Kong friend, Winnie, sent to me. A little peg inserts into the center of the clasp to close it, and the peg is held in place with tiny magnets. I figured this would be easier to close than any other clasp, however this is probably overkill as I imagine that Lona's fingers are probably more nimble than yours or mine!!!

And because my mom told me that Lona is a spunky lady, I added a little kicking spunk to the center of the bracelet--a pearl encrusted with Swarovski crystals. (Thanks to Winnie, again, my Bead Angel!) Once again, my little signature: whimsy to a traditional piece.

I'll be sending the bracelet to her today. I can only hope that my pearl knotting-needlework will hold up under her scrutiny. Even if it doesn't, I can imagine Lona graciously saying that it does.

Now if I can only keep my fingers as nimble for the next 52 years...

Confetti friend

It is time.

I've worn contact lenses since I was in the 9th grade, for distance vision. But as I've gotten a little older--uh, I mean better--my close range vision has been declining. So I made the leap to tri-focals.

When I went to choose my frames, I had the choice between the ultra-conservative frames, the conservative-to-modern frames, or the funky frames. I purchased from the updated conservative collection, however I did audition a few pairs of the funky ones. They just weren't right for me for every day use; but I did chuckle to think that one of my friends chose from that exciting collection when she chose her every-day glasses!

She's my Confetti Friend. The type who's fun, and can usually get me to belly-laugh within minutes! We used to meet at a coffee shop for a late evening snack or a cup of coffee every couple weeks, just like on a Friends episode. Only we're a little older. And not as pretty. And fatter. (OK, so it doesn't sound much like a Friends episode after all! Thanks for discovering the holes in my little analogy.)

I'd be wearing my requisite blue jeans, a sweater, and the newest necklace I'd made. She'd be wearing a fun outfit- usually with some type of stars or sparkles or appliqued embellishment. And her cool glasses. You wouldn't know what to look at first--her smile, her sequins, or her glasses that could only spell F-U-N!!

I've missed being around her since my hubby and I moved. I placed a call and a text message to her with no response. So I pouted on and off, realizing that this new chapter in my life might have cost me my friend--a casualty due to geographical distance.

So I pouted some more. But I was NOT going to be the one to reach out again. I'm a nice person, I have a nice life, and I'm not desperate for friends.

Then I buckled. I realized that I actually could swallow my pride just one more time! I rationalized that if I didn't hear back from her I'd bury this friendship, or at least put it on the back burner.

I dialed. When she came to the phone, she sounded sad and worn. Much to my chagrin, I learned that she had been extremely sick, even hospitalized in ICU for several days! How awful! And there I was, feeling sorry for myself that she wasn't calling me. It wasn't that she wasn't calling me, it's that she couldn't.

I'm not sure what upset me more--that she has been sick, that she was sick and I didn't know about it, or the fact that the spunk and giggle in her voice weren't there. Instead, I heard fatique and pain. And that was heartbreaking.

That did it! I can't take this!! It was time for my regular therapy appointment.

Bead therapy, that is!

Since I'm in a knotting state-of-mind, I pulled out the funkiest set of pearls I have in my collection to design a necklace for her. Each pearl seems to be a different color, or shape or style. I strung and strung, knotted and knotted. The size and the shape of these pearls resulted in uneven hole sizes and hole channels. This made the stringing even more difficult, and I found the thread jamming up inside the holes, with me coaxing it through with kind words and the tip of a needle.

But isn't the result fun? Whimsical, which I think is my favorite type of design--a different twist on a traditional format; pearls in outrageous colors that look like crepe paper streamers! (Can you see the color of the knotting thread? Florida Orange!) This isn't a necklace, it's a party! Can't you just hear someone blowing one of those uncurling paper party horns?

Like a clown, I will do almost anything to get my friend to smile and giggle again. I hope this necklace for her does the trick!

So, here's to better health and days ahead, my Confetti Friend. You'll be smiling again soon. And when you're back to smiling, remember, it's your turn to call.

Opal Nuggets for Vanessa

Once in awhile I'll get a strand of beads that I call "keepers". A keeper is a strand that, well, I intend to keep for myself--like the necklace that appears in my last blog entry. The problem is that I tend to want to squirrel away too many things for myself. And that's not very nice.

Our niece, Vanessa just graduated from college. She has long, silky brown hair, and is an expert horse-woman. I wanted to design a set that would mirror her outdoorsy inclinations. (Many of you know that this might be difficult for me to do, since I much prefer an air-conditioned room to basking in 90 degree sun, but I digress.) I think I managed to design a set that can be tossed on after a brisk afternoon horseback ride. Alas, this strand tugged at my heart, and I knew I had to part with it since it would be perfect for her!

I decided to individually hand-knot these gorgeous Opal Nuggets (thanks to hand-knotting guidance from my friend, Winnie!) and tossed in some Golden Pietersite for good measure. Plus, the Pietersite gives the appearance of hidden flakes of gold left-over from California gold-mining. It kind of completes the whole riding-the-horse-into-the-sunset feel. I'm going with a theme here--please be gentle with me!

So here it is. I'm blasting this picture all over the internet even before Vanessa receives her gift because I'm so excited about how it turned out!

My keeper strand has turned into a sharer strand. And that makes me smile! But I'm not making any promises yet about sharing that honking hunk of turquoise that's propping up those earrings...