School started two weeks ago and I already feel like I've been back in classes for months. I have 12 or 13 weeks left? I am going to very much enjoy having the summer to look forward to when assignments start getting more intense. So far so good though. Only one year left after this semester finished and I'm officially past half way.
Just a reminder, since I can't remember if I posted this, I'm going for my Masters in Library Science through Clarion University (the online program, though the school itself is only about thirty minutes from me).
This past week was rough. On Saturday night when I checked on Jane for the last time before I went to bed, I was unhappily surprised to be welcomed by an awful stench and a baby with vomit all throughout her crib. It was almost midnight, and she was awake, so daddy took care of cleaning her up and playing with her in our room while I cleaned her room and blankets. The next morning was my turn. I threw up and then felt like I would never move again for about 12 hours straight. I slept almost 20 out of the 35 or so hours between Sunday morning and Monday around lunchtime. Monday evening, after finally feeling better, daddy and Jane were goofing around and Jane hurt her wrist so bad that we took her to the hospital. They couldn't tell if it was a sprain or break so they casted it just in case. Everyone who knows me on Facebook already knows this, but it was no fun. I am much less worried about it now though since after giving her a bath Wednesday night I took the cast off and she acted like the wrist was completely fine. Thursday the daycare called to let me know she banged her bottom lip against her tooth so hard that it made a deep cut that they wanted me to look at. That was also thankfully not as serious as it could have been but I'm hoping she has filled her quota for accidents and illnesses for a while.
On the jewelry shop topic, I completed my first huge order a couple of weeks ago! I made 10 of those bracelets that were in my last post and it wasn't terrifying or overwhelming, so that was a relief. Otherwise, I've listed new items that aren't getting as much popularity as I had hoped, but I'm still feeling confident about the whole thing. Since a couple of weeks ago I have only sold one thing though so the confidence is waning again. I have a lot of potential orders that sounded promising, so I'm still hopeful that the success I was seeing before and after the holidays wasn't just temporary.
On the actual jewelry making topic, I found that a less expensive and practical kiln exists. It's through Metal Clay Supply and only costs 189.99 (compared to the 600 the others all cost). I have to buy add ons for it like a pyrometer and temperature controller so it'll realistically cost around 300 but I have several ideas for things I want to add to my shop that I could only make if I owned a kiln. Dog tags made from bronze (MUCH less expensive metal clay), keychains made from white bronze (if I can fire that in this kiln, we'll see), sterling silver bangle bracelets. Oh the possibilities. I want to keep focusing on personalized items because they're more meaningful to make and are more on demand (making a fingerprint charm of Jane for myself was something I wanted more than anything when I first discovered precious metal clay).
Those will all be summer projects though. I'll only do mini experiments with the kiln until I'm done with the semester. I hope to order it today or tomorrow because the site has a deal where orders over $150 get a free fancy scale. :)
Just a reminder, since I can't remember if I posted this, I'm going for my Masters in Library Science through Clarion University (the online program, though the school itself is only about thirty minutes from me).
This past week was rough. On Saturday night when I checked on Jane for the last time before I went to bed, I was unhappily surprised to be welcomed by an awful stench and a baby with vomit all throughout her crib. It was almost midnight, and she was awake, so daddy took care of cleaning her up and playing with her in our room while I cleaned her room and blankets. The next morning was my turn. I threw up and then felt like I would never move again for about 12 hours straight. I slept almost 20 out of the 35 or so hours between Sunday morning and Monday around lunchtime. Monday evening, after finally feeling better, daddy and Jane were goofing around and Jane hurt her wrist so bad that we took her to the hospital. They couldn't tell if it was a sprain or break so they casted it just in case. Everyone who knows me on Facebook already knows this, but it was no fun. I am much less worried about it now though since after giving her a bath Wednesday night I took the cast off and she acted like the wrist was completely fine. Thursday the daycare called to let me know she banged her bottom lip against her tooth so hard that it made a deep cut that they wanted me to look at. That was also thankfully not as serious as it could have been but I'm hoping she has filled her quota for accidents and illnesses for a while.
On the jewelry shop topic, I completed my first huge order a couple of weeks ago! I made 10 of those bracelets that were in my last post and it wasn't terrifying or overwhelming, so that was a relief. Otherwise, I've listed new items that aren't getting as much popularity as I had hoped, but I'm still feeling confident about the whole thing. Since a couple of weeks ago I have only sold one thing though so the confidence is waning again. I have a lot of potential orders that sounded promising, so I'm still hopeful that the success I was seeing before and after the holidays wasn't just temporary.
On the actual jewelry making topic, I found that a less expensive and practical kiln exists. It's through Metal Clay Supply and only costs 189.99 (compared to the 600 the others all cost). I have to buy add ons for it like a pyrometer and temperature controller so it'll realistically cost around 300 but I have several ideas for things I want to add to my shop that I could only make if I owned a kiln. Dog tags made from bronze (MUCH less expensive metal clay), keychains made from white bronze (if I can fire that in this kiln, we'll see), sterling silver bangle bracelets. Oh the possibilities. I want to keep focusing on personalized items because they're more meaningful to make and are more on demand (making a fingerprint charm of Jane for myself was something I wanted more than anything when I first discovered precious metal clay).
Those will all be summer projects though. I'll only do mini experiments with the kiln until I'm done with the semester. I hope to order it today or tomorrow because the site has a deal where orders over $150 get a free fancy scale. :)
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