coffee, chemistry, and cookies

Well, I still haven't had a chance to do much in the studio lately, but as soon as this chemistry class is over, I plan to go full force into creating new pieces.

I decided to help myself make my studying a little more pleasant by making some chocolate chip cookies, and what do ya know, it did help. And, of course, they're always better when they're half-baked :)

Linked

For Valentine's Day, I made my boyfriend a pair of sterling silver cuff links. Unfortunately, I was in such a rush to finish them up before meeting him for dinner that I didn't get a chance to take pictures of them. I intended to get some pictures of them this weekend, but I forgot, so hopefully I will remember sometime so I can post them.

Anyway, for Valentine's day we went to Bricco in Harrisburg. The whole meal was delicious, but I'd have to say the beginning and ending were my favorites. They offer a variety of cheeses, which was exciting to us because we are big fans of cheese. We followed the waiter's suggestions on our selection of 3 cheeses, and it was truly a unique experience. I would never have thought to pair fresh honeycomb with blue cheese, but they were really amazing together! Then, to finish our meal, we got a chocolate cake with 7 layers of various kinds of chocolate. Need I say more. We also each received a complimentary chocolate covered strawberry, which was delicious! I would definitely go back, even just for the cheese and dessert!

Then, as if that wasn't enough, he got me a huge box of Godiva chocolates. I told him I always buy myself a box for Valentine's day in hopes of winning the prize they give away, so he got me some so I didn't have to. Of course, I didn't win. He also got me some handmade soap and feather earrings that I had on my favorites list on Etsy. Oh, and he also sent me roses earlier in the day, which was a nice surprise!

Even though I didn't get a picture of the cuff links, I did get some pictures of him wearing them, so that sort of counts, right? He was able to get some wear out of them this weekend while playing music in a wedding and while directing the orchestra for his school's winter concert (he is a music teacher). It was a busy weekend, but it was fun.

Celeste

I've been really behind with getting new items made thanks to organic chemistry. It definitely is not a class I was really eager to take... in fact, I've put it off as long as possible. I'm just trying to convince myself that I'm really interested in it with the hope that I will do better with that line of thinking. I'm not sure that it's working, but I guess it can't hurt.

Anyway, I did manage to get some photos taken of a new pair of earrings I made last week. I was going for a geometric look, but after I finished them, they reminded me of a crescent moon in an abstract sort of way.

Celeste Earrings

Frothy

The randomly sized circles on this pendant reminds me of bubbles. Bubbles are fun, so naturally wearing this necklace will lead to fun times :)

Here is a long chain I'm working on. I love long necklaces because of their versatility. They can be worn long or doubled up, and they also look great layered with other necklaces.

My First Successful Hat

After a few failed attempts at knitting a hat, I finally succeeded in making one that a.) fits and b.) I would actually wear. For Christmas, my boyfriend got me this really cool colorful hand spun yarn from Marajane on Etsy. I'm really happy with how it turned out... and I'm glad that I can now make more than just scarves.

I had this cool idea to make wrap around scarf-things hanging down from the sides... but some ideas look a lot better in my head than in reality. They may come in handy if I'm going to be outside in a snowstorm, but until then, I think I'll just leave them off :)

Little posts

I finally got around to listing some of my new post earrings in my Etsy shop. I really love these as casual everyday earrings. I made myself a pair of the Trellis earrings, and I've been finding myself wearing them a lot. They are especially great on cold days when I'm all bundled up in my scarf or big turtle neck and don't want dangly earrings hanging down and getting in the way. I've had a lot of fun making these, because even though they are small and simple, there are so many possibilies for different designs.

Pebble Earrings

Trellis Earrings

Jane Earrings

Loose Leaf

I'm sitting here enjoying loose leaf for the first time in my life, so I thought I should share how delicious it is. I'm normally a coffee drinker, but I've been intrigued by loose leaf tea for some time now. I was really excited when I opened a Christmas gift from my parents that included an adorable teapot/cup and loose leaf tea! My mother brought some Darjeeling tea back from her trip to India. I was a little skeptical drinking it without sugar or honey, but it actually has a really nice flavor, and I don't feel it needs the added sweetness.

Here is the cute little teapot my mom picked up in London with painted scenes of the city. The cup fits under the teapot, which warms it before pouring the tea into it.

I'm really looking forward to trying lots of other kinds of teas. What a nice, relaxing way to start the weekend!