Weekly Quote

Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive.---C. S. Lewis

Monday, September 10, 2012

Lovely Weekend at Garden of Beaden

It was a wonderful weekend at Garden of Beaden...hanging out with Irene and the gang and meeting Bead Shop Hoppers.  We met one very determined lady who had visited 23 of the 27 bead shops by Saturday afternoon!



Thank you to everyone who purchased a Watergirl Supply item.  I appreciate your support.  See you next time!

Now it is time to get ready for my trip to San Antonio, Texas to see my son and then to Fort Sill, Oklahoma to see Wild Thing graduate from Basic Combat Training.  It has been a long nine weeks.  I am very proud of her determination and her decision to serve in the Army National Guard.

Thursday, September 6, 2012

Taming the Azusa Canyon Williams Fire




Sky crane helicopter picking up water at San Antonio Dam to dump on the Azusa Canyon Williams Fire about 20 miles to the west. One comes over every 15 minutes and it sounds like they are landing on the roof.  

Saturday, September 1, 2012

A Second Day at the Bead Shop Hop

I am excited to announce that a second day has been added to the Watergirl Supply Trunk Show at Garden of Beaden during the Third Annual Southern California Bead Shop Hop starting next weekend.  

Watergirl Supply Trunk Show
Saturday September 8, 10 am to 7 pm
Sunday Septermber 9, 10 am to 5 pm
Garden of Beaden
313 N. 2nd Avenue, Upland, CA

I hope to see you there!



Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Southern California Bead Shop Hop Is Coming

The Southern California Bead Shop Hop is coming September 7-9, 14-16, and 21-23; three fun-filled weekends to trek around So-Cal in search of beady treasure!  

Will you visit one, two or all the stores in the hop? Great prizes and tons of fun. 

Each store will be decked out to represent their favorite movie. Go see what the stores are doing! 

To learn more about the hop click here

The event is sponsored by Beadsmith.

Watergirl Supply will be at Garden of Beaden on Saturday September 8, 10 am to 7 pm.   I am an eclectic collector so you will find religious artifacts, vintage brass, mid-century brass and copper charms, western charms, rhinestone components, military badges, vintage czech glass beads and buttons, and ribbon.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Fall 2012 Colors


Here they are the Fall 2012 colors from Pantone.  I love the four middle colors; tangerine tango, ultramarine green, bright charteuse, and  olympian blue (no surprise there).  On the whole this is a wonderful selection for the upcoming fall/winter season.

Click here to get the full report from Pantone.

Ok, so which is your favorite or favorites?

Monday, July 23, 2012

The Power of Introverts

Here is an intriguing discussion on being an introvert.



I relate to everything Ms. Cain says. I know my happiest moments are the quiet times...riding my horses, sewing, making a new necklace, doing research, being in my office/studio, reading, writing.


How about you? Are you an introvert too? Or are you an extrovert?  

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Even More 101 Uses for Your Old Jeans

31. Sit-Upon. Summer is almost here, for those of you who camp this sit-upon is a great recycle/upcycle project.  Recycle plastic bags for the cushion and upcycle a pair of old jeans for the cover.  (For those of you who have never heard of a sit-upon it is basically a stadium pad. I made my first one in Girl Scouts.  It was made with newspaper and contact plastic, and of course a sash to tie it around  your waist when you weren't sitting on it.)


32. Camera Cozy. Ingenious little bag to protect your SLR camera.








33. Gardening Knee Pad. Of course we would use denim from our old jeans instead of buying material!


34. Garden Mulch. For those old jeans (or parts of) that are just too worn to make into something else garden mulch is the perfect use.  Tear the jeans into strips and lay around your plants--keeps down weeds and holds in moisture.


35.  Ties.  Use the french seam (usually the inside seam) to make ties for tomatoes, beans, etc.


36. Hat.  What a lovely sun hat.


What are you doing with your old jeans?  Let us know by leaving a comment.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Watergirl Supply Trunk Show

Garden of Beaden in Upland, California is hosting a Watergirl Supply trunk show on Saturday, June 2 from 10 am to 5 pm.

copyright 2012 Watergirl Supply
I am excited to share my vintage jewelry and mixed media supplies with the GOB crowd.  I am an eclectic collector so you will find religious artifacts, mid-century brass and copper charms, western charms, rhinestone components, military badges, and ribbon.

I look forward to seeing you at GOB. Come by and say "Hi".

You can also find Watergirl Supply on Etsy.


Monday, May 28, 2012

In Remembrance

Santa Fe National Cemetery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
...of those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.

We must honor that sacrifice by not giving our freedom away at the ballot box.


Thursday, May 24, 2012

A few words about the Mustang Makeover...

It was awe inspiring!  I wish I was in the position to adopt because there were two ranch trained mustangs that went for $300.00 each...what a steal.

Wild American Mustang in Northern Nevada. SOURCE: earthtrinity.com

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Extreme Mustang Makeover


It's that time again when the mustangs (and their trainers) strut their stuff in Norco, California. The mustangs have 90-days of training...that's right 3 months.  You will be amazed at what these horses will be doing with only 90-days of training.  Here's the schedule for the weekends events.

I'll be looking for you at the Finals!

Sunday, April 8, 2012

This Day Foretold


 1 Who has believed our message 
   and to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? 
2 He grew up before him like a tender shoot, 
 and like a root out of dry ground. 
He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, 
   nothing in his appearance that we should desire him. 
3 He was despised and rejected by mankind, 
a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. 
Like one from whom people hide their faces 
   he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.
4 Surely he took up our pain 
   and bore our suffering, 
yet we considered him punished by God, 
   stricken by him, and afflicted. 
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions, 
 he was crushed for our iniquities; 
the punishment that brought us peace was on him, 
   and by his wounds we are healed. 
6 We all, like sheep, have gone astray, 
each of us has turned to our own way; 
and the LORD has laid on him 
   the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed and afflicted, 
   yet he did not open his mouth; 
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter, 
   and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, 
   so he did not open his mouth. 
8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away. 
Yet who of his generation protested? 
For he was cut off from the land of the living; 
   for the transgression of my people he was punished.
9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, 
and with the rich in his death, 
though he had done no violence, 
   nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it was the LORD’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer, 
   and though the LORD makes his life an offering for sin, 
he will see his offspring and prolong his days, 
   and the will of the LORD will prosper in his hand. 
11 After he has suffered, 
he will see the light of life and be satisfied; 
by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, 
   and he will bear their iniquities. 
12 Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, 
and he will divide the spoils with the strong, 
because he poured out his life unto death, 
   and was numbered with the transgressors. 
For he bore the sin of many, 
   and made intercession for the transgressors. 
Isaiah 53 (NIV)

Monday, April 2, 2012

Jean Cards

I am always on the lookout for unique ways to upcycle. repurpose. recycle.

Today I found a company that is recycling jeans (and other cool materials) into cards. Paperworks Studio.

from Paperworks Studio
Here's what Paperworks Studio says about themselves.

"Paperworks Studio is a successful mission-based, market driven social enterprise. We've doubled in the last two years and are on pace to double again this year. Our production team of artists are people with special needs and disadvantages. They are a great team and while working at Paperworks Studio, learn valuable life and work skills and gain self-esteem. This allows them to obtain more independence in their lives.

The artists make beautiful handmade cards, one-at-a-time,no-two-are-alike, from recycled materials and lots of LOVE!"
I encourage you to check Paperworks Studio out and maybe even make a purchase.  I know I will be.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Daddy Let Me Drive



I was picking up hay this afternoon and Alan Jackson's Drive came on the radio.  Every time I hear it I think of my dad and learning to drive.

I must have been twelve or thirteen years old when he started teaching me to drive.

Sitting beside him in the truck, he'd work the clutch and I would operate the shifter.  First gear, second gear,  third gear, second gear, stop, start over again.

Driving the old tractor around the pasture while my sister rode our horse Komoko.  Then we'd trade and she would drive the tractor and I would ride Komoko.

And finally driving the truck around the pasture.

By the time I was sixteen I felt like a pro.  And I was on top of the world when I took his 1969 Mustang Grande to DMV for my driving test!

Thanks Daddy these are great memories.

Thursday, March 22, 2012

I'm Published in Haute Handbags


I submitted a handbag to Haute Handbags last fall and have been so excited to share with you that they selected it for publication in the Spring 2012 edition. 

My issue of the of the magazine arrived today!  On April 1 you can get your very own issue.  

It is filled with lovely handmade purses, market bags and clutches.

And the cutest little coin purses made from fabric yoyos.

You will be inspired.


My bag, Out of Africa, can be found on page 135 in the Gallery section.  

I paired cheetah upholstery fabric with black leather from an old jacket and lined it with a wonderful batik my sister brought from Africa when she returned from her Peace Corp adventure.  

A vintage red button and vintage red silk tie on the straps add a much needed pop of color. 

Finally I embellished the bag with pompoms I made from a vintage mink stole that had seen better days.


Saturday, March 17, 2012

What I Learned This Week

My mother loaned me her awesome embroidery sewing machine :).  This week I spent several days test driving it.

My test drive was on a rocky road with lots of pot holes (like California's freeways) and frustration...the thread knotted up, the thread broke, the material puckered......

I was not happy, all I wanted to do was try out some stitches and make the eyeglass case from last Saturday's 101 list.

I called my mom to discuss the problems and possible solutions...change the bobbin thread to lighter thread, make sure the needle is the right size for the material, use different top thread.  I tried them all with minor success, sometimes the stitches looked good, sometimes the problems were back.  Hum.

So I pulled out the instruction manual.  I was doing what it said to do but wait...what's this...different stitches take different presser feet!  I changed out the presser foot and I was test driving on the Autobahn.

It was time to make that eyeglass case.  I took out all of the green threads in my stash and used them to create a background of vines using a different embroidery stitch with each color.  On top of that I hand stitched flowers using torn strips of lightweight silk.  I'm pleased, my glasses are pleased.

That's what I learned this week.

How about you, did you learn something new this week?  Leave a post below and share what you learned (and it doesn't have to be about sewing).


Saturday, March 10, 2012

More 101 Uses for Your Old Jeans. Recycle.Reclaim.Upcycle.

Seems that everyone is making a list of ways to recycle your jeans from Fox News to This Old House.  I loved the This Old House list cause it was from a guy perspective...repair a rust spot...bolster insulation...huh? And how about this article at Forbes.com about Ford (the auto maker) using recycled jeans in the 2012 Focus!  So you can see we are in good company in our pursuit of ways to Recycle.Reclaim.Upcycle our jeans.

24. Market Bag. Everyone needs a market bag or two.
25. Wine Bag. Cute bag, neat idea to bleach the denim.
26. Lunch bag. Nice insulated lunch bag, unfortunately no instructions on how to make.  I think most crafty types could make this without instructions.  This lunch bag is significantly different than the lunch sack I showed in my last post, that's why I included the lunch bag here.
27. Yoga Mat Bag.  A little more challenging project because of the circular bottom. Downward dog on!
28. Nail Pouch.  This is probably the simplest denim project you will ever make.
29.Clothes Pin Bag1 or Clothes Pin Bag 2. Makes me wish I had a clothes line so I could make one of these bags for the pins.
30. Eyeglass Case.  I know this is not shown in denim but the pattern would work wonderfully with denim for the outside.  And isn't the caterpillar charming, perfect for a spring project.

I am taking this denim bag to the local Farmer's Market today.

I made it from the legs of a pair of wide leg jeans and an almost vintage sunflower print fabric from my stash.  The handle is from a nylon fabric, also in my stash, and upcycled leather.

How about you, what have you created from your old jeans lately?  Post a response below (come on don't be shy).  I can't wait to know what you are doing with your old jeans.

UPDATE:  The Market Bag desperately needs a pocket for my cellphone and a clip for my keys.  Then I could slip my wallet in the bag and leave my purse in the car. 

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

Cowgirl Style



Thank you Renee for including my denim purse in this treasury. Be sure and check out Renee's jewelry on Etsy. 

Thursday, January 5, 2012

Deja Vu--There Goes My Baby

Noah left home for San Antonio, Texas today. He will be completing his engineering degree at UTSA.


He's happy and ready for the adventure and, maybe, a little sad. I'm happy for him and a lot sad.


So...there goes my baby. Bye, Noah. I love you.

"I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance 
Livin' might mean takin' chances, but they're worth takin'
Lovin' might be a mistake, but it's worth makin'
Don't let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter
When you come close to sellin' out, reconsider
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance, I hope you dance."
--from I Hope You Dance by TIA SILLERS and MARK D. SANDERS