Winter Wonderland in Jasper!!

Over the Christmas holidays myself, my husband, and our two sons went to Jasper National Park for a week. We have been there in the summer but this was our first winter visit.

The weather was clear but very cold....minus 36...hurt to breathe through your mouth!
Like anything, if you dress for the weather it's not a problem...there was no wind.

The boys went snowboarding and my husband and I strapped on our snowshoes! The hiking was spectacular!

I'd like to share some pictures...

A New Wine Stopper...I Love It!

A colleague at work asked me to make three lampwork glass wine stoppers for her...this is the second one.

I used a light topaz base, accented with ivory and Raku swirls, then encased in clear to magnify the fabulous colours, and textured to give a good grip.

I love it when the Raku "sings"....blues and greens and browns and reds...

My New Favourite!!! Lampwork Bead Pens!!

I have to admit....ever since Grade 3 when I "graduated" to using ink instead of pencils, I've always had a thing for pens!

Being left-handed, I learned early on that fountain pens left me with ink all over the side of my hand (pushing, not pulling), but that didn't stop me...I just had a black hand often, LOL.

There's nothing like the haft of a nicely balanced, weighted pen! Thick enough so your fingers don't cramp up, with smoothly flowing ink...I prefer black.

Well, imagine how thrilled I was when I found that I could combine two loves!!! Lampworking AND great pens!!!!

I spent the weekend making them...check these out. Being a tactile person, I love the feel of the smooth, cool glass on the pen, and if I loosen the cap a bit, I can get them to spin, like counters on an abacus!!

Football Birthday Cake

Well, today was my husband's birthday and since he loves football (North American) so much I decided to bake him a cake in honour of his favourite sport!

I had to get a picture of it before it got devoured....interesting to cut it into pieces too!

We had a lot of fun!

Bread Pudding....Is There Anything Better???

I had a bunch of stale bread left over from Thanksgiving (our Canadian version) last weekend, and had put it in the freezer until I decided what I could do with it.

DH suggested that I make bread pudding, so I thought I'd try out a new recipe....well, it is the BEST bread pudding I've ever had!!

I thought I'd share the recipe: (from Cooks.com)


BREAD PUDDING & WHISKY SAUCE

1 (10 oz.) loaf stale French bread, crumbled (6-8 c. any type bread)
4 c. milk
2 c. sugar
8 tbsp. butter, melted
3 eggs
2 tbsp. vanilla
1 c. raisins
1 c. coconut (optional)
1 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg

Combine all ingredients. Mixture should be moist but not soupy. Pour into buttered 9 x 12 or larger baking dish. Place into non-preheated oven. Bake at 350 degrees for approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes, until top is golden brown. Serve warm with sauce.

SAUCE:
1 stick butter
1 1/2 c. powdered sugar
2 egg yolks
1/2 c. bourbon

Cream butter and sugar over medium heat until butter is absorbed. Remove from heat, blend in egg yolks. Pour in bourbon gradually to taste, stirring constantly. Sauce will thicken as it cools. Serve warm over warm pudding. Rum, Ameritto may be used, or favorite juices or liqueur.

Stoma Cover Necklace

I had an order for the filigree butterfly stoma cover...and after discussing the length, I decided to make it up with a doubled aqua satin cord, with a chain extender to adjust the length if needed.

Here's a picture...these are custom made of course. This example would be $15.

This is the link to my website, showing the stoma covers that are currently available. You will find a section called Stoma Covers in the left hand column.

In The Spotlight on Ruby Lane...OMG!!

I can't believe it! I set up my shop on Ruby Lane back in August, and am really enjoying it there.

Last Thursday, I received an email from Ruby Lane, a newsletter that I had subscribed to, which is mailed out to thousands of others around the world.

Imagine my utter astonishment when I scrolled through the newsletter to find out that I had been chosen to be in their "Artisan Spotlight"!!!! Breathless and heart racing, I emailed a friend, Nathalie Girard, of Wire and Beads Creation, to see if her newsletter confirmed this. ...and it did!

Here's the link, I'm very proud to have been chosen for this month's newsletter!!

http://owners.rubylane.com/court/nlarticle/,article=nl20080922.html

Both of the jewellery pieces shown in the article sold that day!!

I'd love it if you would check out my shop!