Lamp work beads, some of the pieces that go into our tin ornaments.

As we are creating bunches and bunches of tin ornaments for the holidays, I thought I would show you some of the pieces that go into our unique ornaments.

Lampworking is a type of glasswork that uses gas fueled torch to melt rods and tubes of clear and colored glass. Once in a molten state, artists will shape and blow using tools and hand movements.

Each bead is unique…although you might find the exact same bead color and all….they will not be exactly alike.

Many of our tin ornaments have unique “mini pieces of art” each different be it a lamp work bead, recycled charms from vintage pieces or other additional handmade “trinkets” to make each tin ornament unique and special.

Hope to see you at this seasons craft fair events!

 

Tools…Juan’s Perspective

One of the things that gives our art work a unique character are the tools we use. These aren’t just any run-of-the-mill hardware store tools. These tools have a history. A soul. Many of them belonged to our parents and grandparents. We don’t simply enjoy using them because of their family history. It goes much deeper than that, because we each grew up using these very same tools. And, each of them has provenance. Each of these tools were used in a professional trade.

Here are a few examples of the tools we currently employ in our tin work. The two dollies were used by my Grandpa Smith in his Radiator/Body Shop in the 1920’s, ‘30’s and ‘40’s. Back when cars were made from actual steel. If you needed to shape a new body part or re-shape a damaged one, you would place the appropriate dolly behind the piece of steel and pound on the other side with a hammer, until the desired shape was achieved. These dollies are made from solid blocks of steel. After they were retired to my Grandfather’s personal workshop, I used them for many “important” projects when I was a kid. I even used them to pound out a few dents in friend’s cars.

One of the ball peen hammers belonged to my Grandpa Swinford. He used it in his carpentry business and I used it when I first learned to hammer nails (it was a lot lighter than a claw hammer and I hit the wood as often as I hit the nail, so it really didn’t matter if it was the right tool or not).

The other ball peen hammer belonged to Shawn’s Mother, Phyllis. She used it in her Art Gallery. Shawn spent a lot of time working in the gallery and used it to hang pictures.

Each of these tools were originally used professionally, for years, in artful endeavors. Over time they developed scars and wear and characters all their own. These very tools were used by our parents and grandparents to teach us skills and pass along a little bit of their knowledge. We are carrying on that tradition by using them in our own artful endeavors. Used together, they shape our tin work and give each piece a unique appearance and a little bit of history all their own.

 

New Inventory at Urban-Hobo.com

 

Our Last Weekend of Bicycling in AZ

Juan and I are trying to soak up our last weekend of bike riding in Arizona. The orange blossoms seem to be extra fragrant today. Juan loves this time of year and I feel he is getting something extra special where everything is in bloom.

Juan and I are so excited in this next chapter in our lives. Life is so short and we plan to try to live and enjoy every minute of it.

So today…the weather is gorgeous, very light veil of clouds and my Juan by my side…life couldn’t be any better.

 

We’re moving!!!

Yup…Juan and I are on a new adventure. We are so excited about this next chapter in our lives and we welcome you to enjoy the ride.

We are moving virtually to a new blog site Urban Hobo. Urban Hobo is our new business ventures. We will feature “artful edibles”, handmade and unique gifts. We embrace local and regional styles and flavors. Sure to tantalize your taste-buds and/or add flair to your home. 

We will also keep you posted on events we will be attending….hopefully to meet you in person.

Secondly, Juan and I are heading out of Arizona and back to my home town in Texas. I encourage you to check our new blog site Urban Hobo as I’m sure I will be sharing some of the craziness involved in moving Juan, me, two Dachshunds and a now 32 year old parrot across the states AZ, NM and then TX!

Urban Hobo https://urbanhobo.wordpress.com/

 

A Special Ornament Every Holiday



My Dad

 During the Christmas season…Tons of memories flood my tiny little brain. The main one is always of my father. My Dad LOVED… I mean La La LOVED this time of year! Bing Crosby and Nat King Cole Christmas music was blaring on the stereo and we set out to find the perfect  Christmas tree (which meant HUGE). Oh and it had to be flocked…you know …for the snow effect. Although we did not get a lot of snow in El Paso TX…my Dad loved the flocked trees. I guess it reminded him of the wintery settings he enjoyed through his youth in Rochester NY with his 8 brothers and sisters! (Big Irish Catholic Family)

When I lost my father, I lost my best friend…my support….my hero. He was John Wayne! I was the youngest and only girl and I believe my Dad was wrapped around my little finger. (wink wink smiley face) We did a lot growing up together and yes, I would do all the “boy stuff” like camping, fishing and working in the yard with him.

He was a man of integrity… with God in his heart, strength in his hands and very humble. My family and I were amazed at the countless letters of condolences regarding my father’s passing that year and how much he did for their family. Juan (hubby) could not believe the charitable things he did without telling anyone…without saying a word. He was a good man with a HUGE heart.

I honor Pops each year during the holidays. If you have lost a loved one…or know someone who did…this is a great token to give to a loved one who has lost someone special.

I know you can buy these at any craft store; small picture frames that are made to hang as ornaments. My sister-in-law found several of these and put dad’s picture in it. She made one for me, her husband (my brother) and my other brother. It was a tough year 2007, the three siblings PLUS their spouses each lost a parent that year. No kidding… each one of us. So my beautiful and thoughtful “sis-n-law” created such a beautiful token to honor my Dad each year when I trim the tree. For me…that small little picture frame ornament was THE most precious gift I received that year. No amount of technology, jewelry or clothing could top such a gift. It brought tears to my eyes and I will never forget such a thoughtful and wonderful gift.

So if you’ve lost someone special OR you know someone close who has lost a loved one, I would recommend getting one of these little frame ornaments and creating a special gift.

May this year be the merriest of holidays for you and your family.

 

Can your table do this???

Yes, it’s the holidays and time to gather around the table with family and friends. What? In your small space??? Just because you decided to “right-size” your life and downsize your square feet, doesn’t mean you can’t have a party. That is where cool functional/multi-purpose furniture comes in to play.

I don’t know about you…but we grew up in a very large home equipped with huge eat-in kitchen and a separate formal dining room. The cool thing was getting to eat in the formal dining room. I must admit… my mom and dad truly enjoyed to entertain and enjoyed eating in the formal room, however as we got older and our lives got busier…less time was spent in the separate dining room and more…much much more time in the eat in kitchen.

I’ve talked to a lot of people and when asked about growing up with a formal dining room….all agreed….they rarely ate in that room! (Another room that can be eliminated from your square footage)

I’m not saying that you shouldn’t have a nice area to sit down and enjoy your meals…do you need more than one?

Another point I would like to add is how many times in a year do you have a large crowd? The obvious times are during Thanksgiving, Christmas and possibly a momentous birthday. So the way to think about your space is to think what the function of your space needs to be 98% of the time THEN follow up with the leftover 2% of the time. I am guilty of doing this too. I found myself always looking to have extra rooms. You know…I need to set up my home office AND I need a separate room for guests. The occasional guest…let’s see…in 7+ years in my bigger house that would be 5 times having guests over. Yes, in the course of 7+ years!

All of us in general tend to think about the one time we might need the extra space or a certain item verses the other 364 days of the year.

So here’s a solution from my good friends at Resource Furniture when it comes to dining and having more than the typical 4-6 guests at your home. It looks like a regular console for the 98% of the time you need it. However, when it’s time to have 2, 4 or more guests???? This sleek piece with aluminum telescoping mechanism and FIVE extensions becomes a gorgeous dining table at an unbelievable 117” long!!!!

What is so great about this piece is you focus on the furniture on what it is supposed to be most of the time and when you need to host a large gathering, you have an instant table. With the five extensions, you have the ability to make the table any length. It also comes in other colors and finishes. So be sure to check out their web site @Resource Furniture.

If you think you are going to re-do a room… think about what the room will be the majority of time…not for “that one time”. Be creative with multipurpose furniture or if you have a knack for carpentry, look through magazines or online for ideas and build your unique piece.

Remember to focus on what you need the majority of the time and purchase or create a unique way to utilize your space when you are entertaining, having guests overnight or whatever purpose you might need for the few times!

 

The Tree Is Trimmed…All Minus 1 ½ feet

WOW! It seems like Labor Day was just here and we were THINKING about Halloween. How’d we get to Christmas so fast? I tell Juan every year, Christmas comes faster and faster.

I la la LOVE Christmas. Everything about it. As a kid I loved the holiday decorations, the holiday spirit in everyone’s hearts and the joy of family and friends getting together. It is my time of year. As a child, my father loved Christmas too. I spent many days just hanging out in the living room with my Dad as he blasted Bing Crosby or Nat King Cole Christmas music on his “Reel to Reel” stereo. (For the much younger generations it was like a HUGE cassette!)

I collect Santa ornaments. When I travel, I love picking up one in remembrance of my trip. For years, I’ve been trimming an artificial tree. I put mine up so early, I want to be able to have it up after Thanksgiving and enjoy through Christmas. This is a challenge if you buy a real tree…besides some of my ornaments are heavy and the fake branches can hold the weight.

Since we moved to our 900 square foot home, I did have to get rid of the 9 ½ foot pre-lit tree I used in my old house. It would be folded over due to the low ceilings and the circumference would take up the whole living room. So we purchased a 7 ½ foot unlit slim tree. It is perfect for a smaller space especially with the narrow diameter….you do not feel that each time you walk by you will take an ornament out!

Since I had to manually light the tree I got started. How spoiled I’ve become with a pre-lit tree. It sure made it easy to put together. I was able to concentrate on getting the branches bent correctly and fluff the tips up to look like a real tree. Now I will have to wrap the lights AND get the branches ready for decorations. Juan hates this part as I become very picky on how the lights go on and how the branches are set. He would run around the tree in circles with the lights and throw a clump of tinsel at once if he could. (wink wink smiley face) I however like to weave the lights in and up to the trunk and back out trying to give the tree a perfect glow. (Wow that is so Martha Stewart, right?) Okay….I am a little particular when it comes to festive illumination!

Well, back to lighting. I thought I would be smart by setting up the first tree section and wrapping the branches before I add the middle and top section of the tree. That way I could easily lean over the top of the section and really weave the lights perfectly. Heck I am so smart…I’ll have this tree glowing and ready for ornaments in no time.

I spent a lot of time getting that first section lit. It was perfect….a perfect glow and the branches looked great. Now on to the middle section….I carefully lined up the pole to add to the bottom section and it doesn’t want to go in???!!!! Why? I thought well I must be way off and got under the branches to see what was going on. I am sure most of you know by now what happened. I did a beautiful job of lighting the MIDDLE section of the tree first! Crapola!!!!!Needless to say, Juan was laughing hysterically a good 10 minutes before he calmed down. It was pretty funny but now I am thinking “How can I add the bottom piece without disturbing the middle section?” or “Am I going to have to undo ALL the lights and start over?”

  So….I decided to continue on and instead of trying to pull out the section I did…I went ahead and added the top section and began my weaving wonderment of lights. It was beautifully lit….heck I should have another 1 ½ feet of tree to light but alas I was not paying attention when starting this project. Instead of a 7 ½ foot tree….I have a 6 foot tree and you know what???? It looks great. Juan agreed, he said you don’t even miss it and it fits so nicely in the room.

 

This year I decorated with my glass and German glass Santa and Snowman themes ornaments…went with heavy red accents and a dash of green on top!

Note to self:
 
* Be sure you check the labels of the tree to be sure you are starting with the correct section
 * Maybe you should hold off lighting the tree before you put the whole thing together

 * Don’t get upset of you make a mistake….it’s the holidays and not worth it

* If you do mess up….take a break, have some eggnog and get creative!

              HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

 

Organization for the Holidays

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas….. Maybe not quite as much here in Phoenix AZ…but I am sure in other parts of the country.

I know you are also saying…”Why the heck is Shawn talking about Christmas when we haven’t even eaten the turkey and “camped out on the couch enjoying the football games.”

Well…the reason I am starting now is since October you have been getting into your attic/garage/basement/shed/storage unit pulling out the holiday decorations. This is the time as you go through each holiday event (Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years etc) look and see if you can better organize your decorations.

Sometimes the hardest part is taking the time to go through everything and see what you wish to keep, throw away or pass down to others…getting it organized. THEN…the next thing to think about is storage solutions.

As I have preached on several occasions, the key to small space living is great organization. Heck! The key to sanity with holiday décor regardless of size of home IS organization.

Let’s start off with ornaments. I remember growing up; my parents had the ornaments in their original packs. (Okay 1960’s) Although it kept the glass ornaments secure, you had a bunch of these small cartons you had to stack up in storage or in a box; however they were never quite the right shape to put in the bins etc. Or…you had all the ornaments in one giant box where they clanged on one another or wrapped in tissue and you never seemed to have enough room to put all your ornaments in one box.

So look for storage solutions at Target, Wal-Mart, IKEA or specialty container stores where you might find more specific needs at a slightly higher price. I’ve included a couple of ornament storage solutions that make it easy to organize and protect your precious ornaments year after year.

Strings of lights are always a challenge. One thing I decided to do was pre-lit Christmas tree. That way I do not have to spend the time weaving in strings of lights before I get to the fun part of decorating. So many trees are easily assembled with the pre-lit lights…no headaches in connecting etc. If you are investing in an artificial tree, be sure you get one that you are going to enjoy for years to come. Artificial trees are great as they can hold your heavier ornaments and be displayed a lot longer than a real tree. If you like the smell of a Christmas tree, try purchasing greenery at a nursery. You can decorate your mantels or other areas with the greenery and adding ornaments as well as having that great Christmas tree smell.

For outdoor lighting, be sure you have them neat and bundled. You do not wish to be spending your next year of decorating trying to eliminate the big “KNOT” in your string of lights like Clark Griswold had in “Christmas Vacation”. There are plastic boards you can wrap your lights around, a reel style that you can wind your lights on and easily spin off when needed, OR….a cheaper way is to get heavy duty cardboard, cut in a large rectangle shape and wrap a string of lights around. Only string one per cardboard, that way you can determine how many you will be using each year etc.

Bottom line you want to make decorating for the holidays easy.  There is nothing worse than dreading the thought of decorating. If you do not have your items easily accessible…try to find a spot in the garage or in a shed where you can get to your boxes easily.

For me….decorating for the holidays is such a joy. I LOVE the Christmas season. And if you take the time to organize your decorations, clear out what you do not want or use and have it easily accessible, you’ll be more apt to put them up each year! 

 HAPPY ORGANIZING HOLIDAY SEASON!

 

Shameless Plug! Hosted A Little Holiday Show

Several “blog posts” ago (It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas) I shared with you a passion I have for making things. You see…when it’s 122 degrees in the summer here in Phoenix AZ, I try to think about cool crisp air mornings and wearing a jacket to keep warm…basically day dreaming about cooler weather! ALSO, I am in my 900 square foot home creating cool “objects de art”!

Well I had a small holiday event showcasing my ornaments and crosses. Needless to say I sold 80% of my inventory AND have orders for several crosses. Whooo Hoooo! I’m excited…can you tell? (wink wink smiley face and high five!)

Many have been asking about a website etc and I am in the works, however, I think I will put up a facebook page and provide you pictures of my ornaments and other STUFF I am creating for the holidays if you are interested. For more info, email me at shawn@jmsogroup.com.