a few new items with lots more to come

I'm delving into fabric art, as I am making art quilts. These sweet little bluebird stampings are too lovely to resist on my own work, so they are to be offered up for sale on etsy tomorrow...

this is the cutest teeny tiny postcard on overdyed distressed muslin. so sweet!! about ten more to go on that front... have to work on the photos tomorrow and then upload. i'm spent tonight!

LOTS of new etchings, themes this time of vintage Paris. Each set is a mis-matched set of scenes and items pertaining to vintage Paris. Voila, mon cheri!

Check them out at http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.












believe. There is no other way...

http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com

moonlit forest

I have a high stack of pendants (I know you thought I was going to say pancakes, but no. but I would like some of those too...) and etched charms to list on etsy but etsy is not cooperating with me today. I managed to list this moonlit forest copper etched pendant photo and am still having problems that hopefully will resolve overnight... At any rate, this one is on http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.

It is a rainy, rainy day here in Richmond, dark and dreary. Dank and dark and dreary and I cannot get motivated this evening. It's a good night to lay in bed, watch movies and work on needlework.

I've been working on various projects all day-- etchings, sewing, cleaning up and running errands but it's hard to get real motivation going. Just when I was going to leash Lucy up and take a good walk, it started to really rain, not just drizzle out, so it was a quick out and back in again.

For cheap entertainment, I've been photographing funny pumpkins in our neighborhood.

I particularly like the top one. Something about the teeth make me laugh.

A bright-shinier day tomorrow, I hope...

a visit to the parents

Two days ago my husband and I loaded up the dogs and went to visit my parents. While there, Michael did work for some churches (tuning pianos) and a neighbor. My mom and I went to the beach, loaded up the dogs and bought the most beautiful mums from a very friendly Mexican fellow, got groceries, washed loads of laundry (our laundry facilities are terrible where we live- scary place...) and in general we all got caught up after not having seen each other in several weeks. First thing my parents showed us from their beach walks in New England? A big tray full of sea glass collected along the shores of northern Maine. Beautiful! My mom picked a handful out for me to bring home and drill so she can make some lovely things with them. Last night we were treated to a full screen show of the New England pictures, with whale watching and the works.

Dad, Michael and I took Lucy for a long walk past the horse pastures and down almost to the bay. Along the way, Dad, a retired wildlife biologist with a keen eye, found umpteen neat insects on the road that I almost squashed for not having the good eye. Above, Dad and I stop for a photo op along the trail home.

Big hairy spider Dad found on the walk. It was HUGE and sluggish. Dad said it was cold. Good thing- I didn't want it jumping on me.

Mom finally had her bon appetit moment in the kitchen last night with Julia Child's boeuf bourguignonne.

Yes it was most delicious! Yum!!!

Now we are home again and I have a boatload of jewelry orders to complete and mail out, plus so many new ideas swimming in my head I sat down for quite a while tonight and wrote them all out, plus a to-do list so long I had to quit out of practicality.

Don't anyone faint but next time I will have new jewelry components on etsy and here!

Foliage Fancy

I'm very pleased to be included amongst the talented artists in the new Fall issue of Stringing magazine. My necklace, a copper and silver creation titled Sit Under A Tree, is on page 40. The pendant is reproduced and for sale on my etsy site http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com. Before the magazine came out, I wanted to make the pendant available on my etsy site. Since my memory failed, I searched and searched through my photos, trying to recall if I made the stamped bar with copper or sterling and could not remember. So, finally giving up, it's created with sterling silver and went live a few weeks ago. Now that I have the free artist's copy back from Stringing, I see it was in fact made with copper. Go figure. I'm leaving it with sterling online, unless someone requests copper, as it is just as attractive, goes with the rest of the piece just as well, and is just as step-by-step tedious to create and wire wrap either way.


Foliage Fancy! Speaking of which, the leaves are really turning brilliant reds, orange, and yellows in Richmond. This is my favorite time of year so I'm really savoring it and drinking it all in. Maybe one of these days it will stop raining long enough to take a proper walk through our neighborhood. Today & yesterday we had record low temps in Richmond. yay! I love it!!

It's to rain all weekend, thwarting our yard sale plans tomorrow. A good day to stay inside and create some lovely new things, and also to head out and see the new Michael Moore movie we're both itching to see- Capitalism, A Love Story. I'd also like to go see Julie & Julia again but it's my husband's turn to pick a flick.

Have a lovely, fall filled weekend, everyone! Go buy a pumpkin, drink a pumpkin spice latte, take a leisurely walk or drive- enjoy life!

find magic in the moment

It's been a long couple of weeks, people, after I had a mammogram (it's breast cancer awareness month, by the way!!) and a small lump was detected. My parents and husband rallied round. I am so thankful to have such a loving family. A biopsy was performed last Friday and then a long wait over the weekend for the results. Monday evening- the call from the doctor's office. Thankfully, thankfully- benign. Of course me being me, I assumed the worst from the start and my mind raced with fear for a week and a half in between mammogram and biopsy and then over the weekend until the good news. I literally felt frozen with dread- a new and terrible feeling. I was so glad to have my family here (they canned the first leg of a long planned vacation to be with me) to help keep fear at bay. It's definitely a reminder that we're not here forever. I still feel a bit strange now, like I should have some new lease on life or something, although it is indeed something that literally thousands of women go through every day. Still I am trying to figure it all out. Otherwise, as usual, creating things makes me feel good, satisfied and purposeful.

After the storm passed, I made this. It's available in my etsy shop http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.

This pendant is in the current issue of Stringing magazine, page 40. It's also in my etsy shop. These orders, piled and ready to be boxed and shipped, kept me sane during the last two weeks.

As always, Lucy and Maggie keep me laughing and loving. My lovely parents have resumed their journey north. I hope they have a wonderful time and see glorious leaves, blue skies and stunning scenery. My husband and I keep on keeping on, here where the skies seem just a bit more blue than usual.

birds on wire

I guess I'm in a flighty mood because my pendants are all sprouting birds. Now available in my little etsy shop http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com.

A mix of metals. The opposite side of this domed pendant has a single stamped bird under the sun.

I'm working on some submissions for not only jewelry magazines, but fiber magazines as well, with several interesting projects in the works.

My parents visited this past weekend, leaving their little dog with us for autumn doggie camp, while they travel in the Northeast. Since my mom and I saw the movie Julie & Julia, we have both become veritable Julia Child freaks. Since we saw the movie, we have been deeply coveting the original non-book club Mastering the Art of French Cooking book. My mom, who has a vast cookbook library, called my husband last week before they visited, all excited! What could be going on? Well, she knew she had the part two book in book club version, but! She rooted around in her vast cookbook library, in a hidden away part of a cupboard and VOILA! She found an original first edition copy of Part One Mastering the Art of French Cooking! We both screamed with excitement! And she didn't even remember she had it before... Goes to show, folks-- never throw anything away! I, being of meager means, have been drooling over the first editions on Ebay but they are going for HUGE prices. Good heavens.

We spent part of our time over the weekend trolling the thrift shops in search of an older edition of this cookbook and today I stopped at another Goodwill, still searching in vain. Until I come across a treasure, I am consoling myself with the fortieth anniversary edition. Price? $24.95 from Costco. That's more my speed.

Keep checking back on my etsy site, if you wish, and...

Bon Appetit!

bird under sun/bird under stars

I've been working with copper and nifty blue patinas lately, after having purchased a lovely blue patina copper pendant necklace from the amazing Amanda Davie. I fell so in love with Amanda's beautiful creation, this my most favorite necklace of all my necklaces, that I asked her how on earth she did it. She told me, I got my ideas in order, set up my little chemical lab, shoved the cat out the door, put my pieces of worked copper inside, and then waited. and waited. and waited. After 1/2 a day and one full night, I eagerly opened up the container. And found the pendant that I so carefully constructed was black. Yes, it was black. I felt sick.... Not a lovely blue, not a glowing turquoise or even a faint green. Black. So, persevering creator that I am (read OCD at work...) I made another. Waited again. SAME RESULTS!! I'm totally puzzled by now. WTF?? I did everything right! But, it didn't look bad with the black as it worked into all the nooks and crannies, but I wanted blue. *sigh* So I tried an unorthodox method not highly recommended because of mess. And I waited again. Got up yesterday morning and dashed into our studio, kind of expecting the usual. But, no! It was bea-oooooo-tiful blue blue blue!! And here is what I created with it:

A double sided domed pendant with tinkling bell inside, secured with brass eyelets. Does anyone know how much I LOVE cold connections? Anyway, let me get a hold of myself. Isn't the blue lovely? A bird under the sun stamped on one side...

A bird under the crescent moon and star on the other. Paired with some gorgeous twinkling gemstones, an elegant little pewter bird from mamacita beadworks, a vintage brass clip, vintage brass chain and sterling clasp and voila! It is for sale right now on my etsy shop http://jenniferstumpf.etsy.com. Go take a look!

September 13 found me a birthday boy in my household. My husband turned 47 on Sunday, which called for special events all day long. Above, something we eat about twice a year, real peppercorn hickory smoked bacon, care of our neighborhood butcher shop. It was absolutely divine.

Morning, honey! Nice bed-head. Happy birthday! He wished for whole grain blueberry pancakes and real bacon with lots of syrup and butter. Coming right up... Yum. Good stuff.

We spent a good part of the day lounging. And eating, apparently. Here is the man himself on his big 47, looking a bit spiffier in front of a homemade roasted walnut and carrot cake with cream cheese and zest of lemon frosting. We took it over to our artist friend's house and shared, both so we could have a little socializing with friends and also so we wouldn't eat the whole cake ourselves. Two kinds of ice cream, hot fudge, strawberry sauce, fresh raspberries, whipped cream and coffee rounded out the binge. Oh, and Michael and I went to a Chinese buffet right before and ate three plates each, plus tackled one heck of an amazing sushi bar. By the time of this picture, I was seriously wishing for two things: an antacid and an elastic waistband.

Earlier in the day... a kiss from my girl Lucy. What a sweet dog she is. She turns 13 this month. And she loves carrot cake.

Last night we walked til we could almost drop and I made a huge pot of vegetable soup. Cooler air is coming, I can almost feel it. More blue pendants are also coming.