Troubadour

Just a simple bracelet in turquoise and sterling silver; it's all I have time for these days. I've had these beads for a few years and like how they came together here; maybe it's all about re-learning how to fly, be free, reach for the stars... Or maybe sometimes a bracelet is just a bracelet.

Spake the Raven: When in doubt, go rockhounding

Spring fever has driven me to distraction (not a good thing as I try to get a good start on three new courses) and so, possessed of a stunning spring day and a restless dog, I decided to hoof it a few miles up the mountain to the old mining town of Kelly. This mineral-rich area is one of Magdalena's (few) tourist attractions, and both the remains of the town and the man-made hills and valleys of weird rocks dredged from deep in the mountain are actually quite interesting in the rugged, silent, do-with-it-as-you-will way that so characterizes this area. Arguably the world's finest Smithsonite came from here, and although I'm sure the area has long been picked clean by hikers you never know what a hard rain might uncover. And so we keep coming back up the mountain.

 I found some very pretty rocks, large and small; I use most of them to add some interest to my gardens, which are also rugged and spare not by design but by necessity. A few are tinged with what appears to be chrysocolla (which has more intense coloration than turquoise and is relatively common in this area); many more are a mix of quartz and other minerals, like this strangely compelling specimen. Next trip up, I need to put a backpack on Lucy the dog so I can bring more pretty rocks home. (Don't worry about her; at 94 pounds she can handle it, I'm sure.)

O Spring... {sold!}

I had so much fun in Tucson... and found some wonderful components, of course. This bracelet uses a few lampwork glass garden beads I picked up at the Best Beads show along with a sterling clasp and unusual Thai silver bead caps from Ands Silver, my neighbor at the Renaissance Bead Show. Tucson in early February is a blessed respite from Magdalena's not-so-southwestern winter weather, and I was so pleased to make the pilgrimage with two great friends. I'll be back next year, paid or not, if only to feel a warm breeze and find more beautiful stuff and talk to more great people, especially the glass artists.