Stone + Fiber = Cool

I've been dabbling at Kumihimo (a traditional Japanese fiber art) for about six months now and love how it looks with stone. For this cord I used some exquisite hand-dyed silk that I found at the 2007 Albuquerque Fiber Arts Fiesta to make a 12-strand braid that perfectly matches this amazing chrysocolla stone given to me by Dean and Conne of Two Cranes. I have five or six other braids finished but have been kind of stumped about how to finish the ends for jewelry. The piece above shows one way: attach a button (this one is from Sara and David of Creekmore Durham Glass, from whom I also obtained the lovely pendant at right) and make a loop on the other end. I could also try more formal, finished end caps, but they can be expensive and so far I haven't found them entirely reliable. So, more exploration on that issue.

In other crafty news, the grouting of the cross piece in the last post did not go well; the very dark grout just muddied the whole piece. So I have to decide whether to scrape out the grout, or at least the top layer of it, and try a much lighter color. *Sigh.* I guess it's all part of the learning process. Maybe my bout this week with strep throat threw off my color judgment... or just tired me out.

And in other general news, my dear friend Evelyn is now on hospice care at home and will probably leave us soon. I know she's lived a full life and has had some peace in these past few years, but it's still way too soon. I love you, Evelyn, and will come say Goodbye today or tomorrow. Also, my father is in the hospital because he needs bypass surgery, which will happen next Monday or Tuesday; this was quite unexpected (for me, anyway); he has always been healthy. AND... my mom needs another round of chemotherapy; her cancer is back. DAMN. So I may not be updating here for a while.