Welcome to my world!

Considering that it is a brand new year, I have decided to start a Brand New Blog!

I have been blogging on Wordpress for quite some time now, so this concept of writing and talking to people I cannot see is not entirely new. However, please bear with me as I try to get things set up. This is a work in progress!

First, a little about me. I am a mother of one child, a son. He is now 17 years old, almost 18. I can remember being that age! I fully realize that within the next couple of years he will be moving out and "spreading his wings" and while I can totally understand his excitement, I cannot help but worry. Things are so different now, in comparison to when I was his age. It is harder to find work, the cost of living is increasing dramatically, and there is no job security! I suppose that my parents felt the exact same way when I left the nest. It doesn't really help though. All I can do is let him know that no matter what, I will always try to be here for him, to support and encourage him as he gets ready for the next chapter of his life.

I work in a medical clinic as a "receptionist". I put that in quotes due to the fact (as we all know) there is no such thing as Just a Receptionist! At least, not anymore! I enjoy working there quite a bit, and just recently we have started the process of changing to EMCs (electronic medical charts). In other words, paperless office. Yeah, right! I foresee quite a long time before we can actually get to the point of not using paper, but at least it is starting!

I have many hobbies and interests. I love to garden, and grow vegetables and fruit. So far, for fruit, I am only growing raspberries (my favourite!) and hope to grow blackberries sometime in the near future. I also grow the family favourite staples such as tomatoes, peppers, Spanish onions, and zucchini. I have tried in the past to grow carrots, but they did not do well. Nor did the radishes, lettuce or corn. This year, though, my garden has been doubled in size, so we shall see what I can fit in there!

Another hobby/interest of mine is my flower beds. At this time I have 5. I use plain mulched woodchips, not the stained type. I find that I like the look of it, as it looks more natural to me. Plus I do not have to pay for it, which helps. I grow many types of flowers such as pansies, sea thrift, mums, Dianthus, Sweet Williams; but I am most partial to lilies, glads, tulips, crocus, daffodils and other such bulb varieties. I have started to press and dry some of my flowers as part of my crafts.

I have quite a few indoor plants as well including Christmas cactus, jade, cyclamen and various other cacti. I have even managed to have my aloe vera flower!

Now, my major passion is sculpting! I use mainly Fimo polymer clay as my medium and have only been doing this since April 2008. I actually started off quite enthusiastically sculpting full sculpts! My first ones were of frogs, mice, pigs, and penguins. I quite enjoy doing those. I gave most of those to my family as special gifts. I also have sculpted dragonflies/damselflies, ladybugs, sea serpents, butterflies and more. I am on http://www.flickr.com/ , under the name of jewelzodonnell and you can see some pictures of my work there.

More recently I have been working on various other clay creations including gift tag toppers/ornaments, brooches, pendants/necklaces, and even a sun catcher. The jewellery, sun catcher and key chains are actually mixed media as I like to use my very own dried and pressed flowers and leaves in the pieces.

I have a shop on http://www.etsy.com/ (also under the name of jewelzodonnell) and belong to a wonderful street team by the name of PCAGOE (Polymer Clay Artists Guild of Etsy) As a member of the PCAGOE, I have been able to meet quite a few very talented artists who use various forms of polymer clays in their artwork. They are very friendly and love to encourage others who share their passion. I am so happy to have been accepted as a new member!

The PCAGOE team has a wonderful monthly challenge that changes every month. January's challenge was Black and White. I entered it with an interesting piece I called "Laugh, until you cry". It is a harlequin mask, (theatre mask) and you can see it in my shop at http://www.jewelzodonnell.etsy.com/ (soon, I will figure out how to put in my Etsy Mini)

This month's challenge is ACEOs and I have entered a piece I call "Dreams of Summer Past" It is a cute little piece, using a dried dianthus flower as its focal point. Please feel free to check out the team website to see the entries http://www.pcagoe.com and vote for your favourite! The voting will be held from February 1st until February 7th. Voters will be entered into a random drawing and there will be some prizes!

There are so many talented people in the PCAGOE Team! To see some of their work please check out http://www.etsy.com/ and type pcagoe into search.