weekending, week beginning, and good news!

Thanks to the lovely Joslyn over at Simple Lovely, I've won a necklace! The necklace in question is a pretty little darling that my mother will be receiving for Mother's Day--rose gold chain with a gold kiss weight as the charm. f. is for Frank, Shannah and Casey, have an aesthetic that's moving past the contemporary overkill of "cutsey" and pushing to see how the strange and the organic can make new and interesting designs. They are making some jewelry that's unlike anything I've ever seen before--like this mixed hickory slice necklace:



I'm not going to lie, I got a bit bored--in Chicago--of seeing jewelry that wasn't trying to make a statement or was trying to make a statement that other designers were already making. I almost stopped going to craft / art fairs for awhile (almost, but I'm too much of a groupie to stop). I f. is for frank is refreshing for its ability to see how subtle changes and mixed tones / golds and metals can really alter a piece of jewelry and our orientation to how we wear accessories.

Winning a giveaway was a great way to start a week, especially a week where I'm starting to really think about jobs and direction. This was good motivation to look back at my children's books and work and think about what is collecting and what needs to be attended to so it isn't "just gathering." Time to consider DIY publishing?

Ending a weekend, one of the first weekends where I didn't have an early morning bakery delivery or any kind of "work," is much easier with this kind of goodwill and spirit. That doesn't mean I don't miss the weekend:

There were a lot of trees this weekend.

And all the trees looked eager for spring. 

Luckily, there are some early bloomers like lavender and sage. And this makes me, Jesse, and hopefully the winter-tired trees, think that we might soon be past the darker days. 

It helps to have a holiday, some chocolate, and any kind of game where you get to find plastic eggs. 

I'm awake enough, even after a 4:00 am morning, to attend trivia tonight and become familiar with Ithacans instead of just driving around and exploring our new home on my own. I hope I'm awake enough in a few hours when it's actually time for trivia.