As my son grew older and more adventurous, I found that the couple hours of sleep that I coveted as my right after a long night of work dwindled down to nothing. My life quickly became off balance, and my attitude resembled an ogre more than anything else. I felt that no one should have to deal with that every day, so I decided to change jobs. Luckily, a new call center was built within the past year in the next town, so I applied there. They hired me and I start on Monday! I will work more hours and more days a week, but shorter shifts, so I'm hoping that I'll be able to get sleep each night!
I'm participating in my first craft fair next weekend! I can't wait to experience it and see how it goes. For those of you who have participated in or attended craft fairs in the past, do you have any tidbits you'd like to share? I'd love to hear them!
I am thankful for all my fans and clients! You've made my jewelry making such a success and I love making new pretties and revealing them to all of you!
October 8, 2010
September 28, 2010
Giveaway! 777 likers :) CLOSED
You are all wonderful!
I want to say thank you to everyone who likes my page, comments on my posts and pictures, leaves reviews and feedback, and all of my lovely customers! Because of your support, I get closer to my dream of being a full time WAHM every day. To celebrate reaching 777 awesome likers, I'm giving away a $10 gift voucher good towards any jewelry/accessory/photograph purchase!
If I happen to reach 850 likers before the giveaway ends, I'll give out 2 $10 vouchers! So please like my page then enter here and share my page/giveaway with all your friends! All you need to do to enter is comment below with your name and email address where I can contact you.
I'll draw a winner on October 8th! You must be a fan of my GossamerScapes in addition to commenting here. I'll be verifying the winner's name to make sure they are a fan.
Winners have 48 hours to respond to my email or someone else will be chosen. Open to the US and Canada only.
I want to say thank you to everyone who likes my page, comments on my posts and pictures, leaves reviews and feedback, and all of my lovely customers! Because of your support, I get closer to my dream of being a full time WAHM every day. To celebrate reaching 777 awesome likers, I'm giving away a $10 gift voucher good towards any jewelry/accessory/photograph purchase!
If I happen to reach 850 likers before the giveaway ends, I'll give out 2 $10 vouchers! So please like my page then enter here and share my page/giveaway with all your friends! All you need to do to enter is comment below with your name and email address where I can contact you.
I'll draw a winner on October 8th! You must be a fan of my GossamerScapes in addition to commenting here. I'll be verifying the winner's name to make sure they are a fan.
Winners have 48 hours to respond to my email or someone else will be chosen. Open to the US and Canada only.
September 23, 2010
Facebook is down- world halts!
I'm sure that most of you have be scouring the internet for the reason why facebook is down- I'd love to know as well. I use facebook to keep track of so many things- it may seem odd, but with it down I feel sort of lost! I do a lot of customer networking through the site, I advertise new designs/jewelry pieces, and I keep up with friends, family, and other artisans. If you're looking for something to do in the meantime, check out some of my work on Etsy and Artfire. Hopefully Facebook is back up soon!
September 13, 2010
Referral Program: GossamerGold!
With the Christmas/holiday season fast approaching, I decided to make my referral program easier for everyone to follow! Here are the details:
For each new customer you refer (this applies to owners of blogs and fan pages as well, and you do not need to make a purchase yourself prior to being eligible), you receive one GossamerGold when they make their first purchase (please make sure that they provide me with your name/email address so I have a way of crediting it to you).
While GossamerGold has no real monetary value and cannot be traded, combined with another person's GG, or sold; it can be exchanged for $ off coupons for your future orders!
GossamerGold can be exchanged as follows:
Each GG gives you a one-time coupon for $1 off your total purchase from me. Please message me in advance if you have multiple GG that you'd like to redeem so I can set up your custom coupon code.
Please contact me ahead of time so I can set up a custom listing/invoice and apply your GossamerGold to your order before you purchase.
GossamerGold is currently available to those in the United States and Canada only. Void where prohibited by law.
So spread the word and get some good stuff from GossamerScapes in the process!
For each new customer you refer (this applies to owners of blogs and fan pages as well, and you do not need to make a purchase yourself prior to being eligible), you receive one GossamerGold when they make their first purchase (please make sure that they provide me with your name/email address so I have a way of crediting it to you).
While GossamerGold has no real monetary value and cannot be traded, combined with another person's GG, or sold; it can be exchanged for $ off coupons for your future orders!
GossamerGold can be exchanged as follows:
Each GG gives you a one-time coupon for $1 off your total purchase from me. Please message me in advance if you have multiple GG that you'd like to redeem so I can set up your custom coupon code.
Please contact me ahead of time so I can set up a custom listing/invoice and apply your GossamerGold to your order before you purchase.
GossamerGold is currently available to those in the United States and Canada only. Void where prohibited by law.
So spread the word and get some good stuff from GossamerScapes in the process!
August 30, 2010
The Art of Seeing- four leaf clover edition
Before May of this year, I never found four leaf clovers. I used to think it was because they were rare and I was unlucky. When I found my first one, I felt a childlike excitement, followed by the errant thought- 'did I just mess up my chances of winning the lottery jackpot'?
Since then, I've found several more four leaf clovers (I think my count is somewhere around 10). Sometimes I am looking for them; other times I will just look down and there will be one sitting at my feet, seemingly saying 'Hello. Now that you've noticed me, are you going to bring me home'? Of course, I cannot resist plucking the clover from the ground, bringing it home, tucking it between two cards and nestling it between two pages of a particularly lengthy tome.
A friend asked me tonight, 'how do you find them/so many of them'? I thought about it for a moment, then two. I realized it's not about looking and finding, but seeing things in new ways. When I hunt four leaf clovers, I usually crouch down or sit in the grass, feeling the tips of each blade rub against my palms and my calves as I gently brush the clumps of clover from side to side. Sometimes, I just sit and stare at the ground.
Before I began actually finding them, I just saw a big expanse of green that I really couldn't have cared less about. Now, I see each plant, each stem of clover and clover flower, the devil's paintbrushes that sometimes resemble spindly dandelions, the complex weave of grass and other plants that produce the tapestry I call my lawn. My eyes are drawn to the ants, beetles, and spiders that move on and under its vast two to three inch canopy. Once you really begin to see on that level, it becomes easy to spot a four leaf clover hiding in a sea of three leafers. In fact, it reminds me of Sesame Street when they would show you the 4 objects and sing the song about how one is different. Looking for four leaf clovers once I learned to see is just like watching that as an adult.
I feel tranquil and closer to nature in a way that I've never felt before. I recommend that everyone with access to a clover patch grab a cup of coffee, tea, or your beverage of choice, take your shoes off, and relax. I think you'll find that instead of actually having to look for it, the clover will jump out at you.
Since then, I've found several more four leaf clovers (I think my count is somewhere around 10). Sometimes I am looking for them; other times I will just look down and there will be one sitting at my feet, seemingly saying 'Hello. Now that you've noticed me, are you going to bring me home'? Of course, I cannot resist plucking the clover from the ground, bringing it home, tucking it between two cards and nestling it between two pages of a particularly lengthy tome.
A friend asked me tonight, 'how do you find them/so many of them'? I thought about it for a moment, then two. I realized it's not about looking and finding, but seeing things in new ways. When I hunt four leaf clovers, I usually crouch down or sit in the grass, feeling the tips of each blade rub against my palms and my calves as I gently brush the clumps of clover from side to side. Sometimes, I just sit and stare at the ground.
Before I began actually finding them, I just saw a big expanse of green that I really couldn't have cared less about. Now, I see each plant, each stem of clover and clover flower, the devil's paintbrushes that sometimes resemble spindly dandelions, the complex weave of grass and other plants that produce the tapestry I call my lawn. My eyes are drawn to the ants, beetles, and spiders that move on and under its vast two to three inch canopy. Once you really begin to see on that level, it becomes easy to spot a four leaf clover hiding in a sea of three leafers. In fact, it reminds me of Sesame Street when they would show you the 4 objects and sing the song about how one is different. Looking for four leaf clovers once I learned to see is just like watching that as an adult.
I feel tranquil and closer to nature in a way that I've never felt before. I recommend that everyone with access to a clover patch grab a cup of coffee, tea, or your beverage of choice, take your shoes off, and relax. I think you'll find that instead of actually having to look for it, the clover will jump out at you.
August 5, 2010
Blueberry Minky made possible by Abby's Lane!
I little while back I came across Abby's Lane through facebook. Abby's Lane is an online retailer of cloth diapers and various other baby/child products. I "liked" the business (but I prefer using the old verbiage of "fan") and checked out her blog. She happened to be running a contest, so I entered. Now, I typically don't win anything, so imagine my surprise when I found out I actually WON! It was a great prize too, $50 voucher good towards anything in the store! I was completely psyched but unprepared for the sheer amount of time I would spend trying to figure out what I actually wanted!
Finally I settled on a Blueberry Minky one size pocket cloth diaper in cow print, a pair of cow print baby legs, and some cloths. I would have never been able to convince my Dear Husband (hereafter referred to as DH), who holds the purse strings in our house, of the necessity of owning one of those gorgeous diapers! It was with the utmost glee that I placed my order, used my voucher, and anxiously awaited my fluffy mail.
Abby's Lane customer service is great and shipping is super fast! Before I knew it, I had my- ahem, I mean my son's- cow print Blueberry minky diaper in hand. Now I have to say, this diaper is incredibly soft! The inserts are great too and the overall look is so cute! My DH felt bad for our son, saying that we'd be paying for years of therapy as punishment for putting him in that black and white contraption. I don't care what he says, Sam enjoyed every minute of it!
As of an hour ago, I just found out I won a contest from Blooming Jasmine Boutique so I'll be writing about the burp cloths I won once I receive them!
June 2, 2010
The Puzzling Curry Caper
The day before yesterday my husband, Alan, made Curry for dinner. Hot, golden curry from a box whose contents resembled a fragrant, exotic bouillon. When I am working on a given night, I typically eat a small amount for dinner and then have more later on. So, he served himself a large amount, gave me some, and then proceeded to give himself some more. I became a bit angry because I wanted to be able to have the rest of my portion, just not at that moment. I went to take a nap before work, and while I slept, he put the leftovers away...
Later, when I woke up, I nursed my son, Sam. I asked Alan to heat up the curry so I could eat it before work. He could not find it in the fridge; I figured it was just because he was tired. I decided to skip eating.
Which brings us to today; I cleaned the fridge out and there was NO sign of the curry at all. Among the treasures I discovered were rice, some extra food we made for Sam, and remnants of some bacon mess that, while not completely edible, I managed to survive eating when he originally concocted it. I called Alan at work to ask him about it again but he swore he put the curry away. He wished that he could say that he ate it, but he didn't so he couldn't. I looked everywhere- in the cupboards, in the sink. I checked in the freezer and the oven too. I opened the microwave and peeked in the trash. I even had a staring contest with my avocado tree sprout, daring it to tell the full tale from that fateful evening. The mystical, hot golden curry was nowhere to be found.
The facts: I did not eat the curry. Sam did not eat the curry. The cats did not eat the curry. Alan said he did not eat the curry. I want to believe my husband, I really do, but the curry was not in the fridge long enough to grow fuzzy legs and slink away. I can't imagine that some furtive soul skulked into my house to pilfer the remains of my supper, but leave my sweet potato smeared laptop unscathed. I suppose Aliens could have beamed my leftover curry into the heavens, but there are two reasons why I doubt this: one, there are much better currymakers out there, and two, there was no way they could anal probe curry made from cut-up grilled chicken breast.
I am at a loss; I know it's unimportant in the grand scheme of things, but it irks me that it has disappeared without a trace. I live in Maine, not Bermuda, after all!
Later, when I woke up, I nursed my son, Sam. I asked Alan to heat up the curry so I could eat it before work. He could not find it in the fridge; I figured it was just because he was tired. I decided to skip eating.
Which brings us to today; I cleaned the fridge out and there was NO sign of the curry at all. Among the treasures I discovered were rice, some extra food we made for Sam, and remnants of some bacon mess that, while not completely edible, I managed to survive eating when he originally concocted it. I called Alan at work to ask him about it again but he swore he put the curry away. He wished that he could say that he ate it, but he didn't so he couldn't. I looked everywhere- in the cupboards, in the sink. I checked in the freezer and the oven too. I opened the microwave and peeked in the trash. I even had a staring contest with my avocado tree sprout, daring it to tell the full tale from that fateful evening. The mystical, hot golden curry was nowhere to be found.
The facts: I did not eat the curry. Sam did not eat the curry. The cats did not eat the curry. Alan said he did not eat the curry. I want to believe my husband, I really do, but the curry was not in the fridge long enough to grow fuzzy legs and slink away. I can't imagine that some furtive soul skulked into my house to pilfer the remains of my supper, but leave my sweet potato smeared laptop unscathed. I suppose Aliens could have beamed my leftover curry into the heavens, but there are two reasons why I doubt this: one, there are much better currymakers out there, and two, there was no way they could anal probe curry made from cut-up grilled chicken breast.
I am at a loss; I know it's unimportant in the grand scheme of things, but it irks me that it has disappeared without a trace. I live in Maine, not Bermuda, after all!
My son, the Artist
My son has recently become an artist in his own right. He specializes in found/installation art, sculptural painting with temporary organic substances, and the occasional performance piece.
Translation: he makes a mess of our living room, smears his baby food all over our stuff, and tries to eat stuff he shouldn't.
My fingers remain crossed that he will never decide to experiment with the style of Piero Manzoni, although from what I understand, he may decide to combine Manzoni's material choice with Jackson Pollock's painting style. I duly assured my husband that if that fateful day should ever come to pass, HE will be cleaning it. This is non-negotiable. As a child, I drove my mother crazy with the stunts I pulled, but painting with my poop was never one of them. It doesn't help that my In-laws are waiting with bated breath for this particular masterpiece; I just hope he decides to install it in their house.
I don't suppose it's too much to ask that he be interested in digital photography instead?
Translation: he makes a mess of our living room, smears his baby food all over our stuff, and tries to eat stuff he shouldn't.
My fingers remain crossed that he will never decide to experiment with the style of Piero Manzoni, although from what I understand, he may decide to combine Manzoni's material choice with Jackson Pollock's painting style. I duly assured my husband that if that fateful day should ever come to pass, HE will be cleaning it. This is non-negotiable. As a child, I drove my mother crazy with the stunts I pulled, but painting with my poop was never one of them. It doesn't help that my In-laws are waiting with bated breath for this particular masterpiece; I just hope he decides to install it in their house.
I don't suppose it's too much to ask that he be interested in digital photography instead?
June 1, 2010
Origins: Six Arms Short
Welcome to my blog, Six Arms Short!
I am many things: I am a Wife to a wonderful if somewhat nerdy husband who has a penchant for videogames, Invader Zim and B rated Zombie movies. I am a daytime Stay at Home Mom to a 10 month old boy who, since becoming mobile, has become my personal trainer. I am a CNA who works the night shift at a local nursing home specializing in the care of the Elderly afflicted with Alzheimer's; and if that wasn't enough, I am an entrepreneur for a hopefully soon-to-be burgeoning portrait photography business www.GossamerMemories.com and an Etsy shop GossamerScapes.Etsy.com specializing in Fine Art Photography from Maine.
Too often I feel like an Octopus although I have only two arms, and so the name "Six Arms Short" was born. Here I shall document my trials, discoveries, and rough gems of wisdom-or foolishness as the case may be- read at your own risk. My writing has not, as of yet, been discovered to cause cancer in the state of California; I attribute that more to the fact that I do not often write publicly rather than the result of rigorous scientific testing. If you happen to suffer a subcranial hemorrhage after reading one of my posts, please do not send me the bill. I have plenty of my own, thank you.
In short, I've never been busier in my life, but I've also never felt so fulfilled.
I am many things: I am a Wife to a wonderful if somewhat nerdy husband who has a penchant for videogames, Invader Zim and B rated Zombie movies. I am a daytime Stay at Home Mom to a 10 month old boy who, since becoming mobile, has become my personal trainer. I am a CNA who works the night shift at a local nursing home specializing in the care of the Elderly afflicted with Alzheimer's; and if that wasn't enough, I am an entrepreneur for a hopefully soon-to-be burgeoning portrait photography business www.GossamerMemories.com and an Etsy shop GossamerScapes.Etsy.com specializing in Fine Art Photography from Maine.
Too often I feel like an Octopus although I have only two arms, and so the name "Six Arms Short" was born. Here I shall document my trials, discoveries, and rough gems of wisdom-or foolishness as the case may be- read at your own risk. My writing has not, as of yet, been discovered to cause cancer in the state of California; I attribute that more to the fact that I do not often write publicly rather than the result of rigorous scientific testing. If you happen to suffer a subcranial hemorrhage after reading one of my posts, please do not send me the bill. I have plenty of my own, thank you.
In short, I've never been busier in my life, but I've also never felt so fulfilled.
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