Spring, Camping & Some Good Stuff...

....there's a light at the end of the tunnel & it's warmth, green grass & sunshine!! I've never been so ready for winter to be over with! We still have little mounds of snow here and there, but it's all melted for the most part. My little mermaid picture really doesn't have anything to do with this post, other than it's really, really cute! I love the jellyfish! Speaking of jellyfish, my awesome friend, Mike Green, makes these amazing glass jellyfish pendants. Each one is unique. I just love them! If you decide you have to have one, please tell him I sent you. Speaking of amazing stuff:

This little book is the cutest ever!!! I've decided that I want to do some tent camping this year [I'll keep you posted on that idea, for sure]. Susie Ghahremani [boygirlparty.com] is such an amazing and quirky artist! I love her style. I just recently purchased these little journals:

and I love them so much that I just can't bring myself to write in them yet. Maybe I'll take one with me when I go camping...I think the one with the Owls would be most appropriate for that.My wonderful husband made me this awesome breakfast sandwich, which I have named the "Wayne McMuffin" ~ and McDonald's...you have NOTHING on him, nothing! While I was crawling around under my desk this morning, transferring all of my cords [which are a gazillion] to my new surge protector and battery back-up he snuck in the kitchen and whipped this up. He truly makes my heart sing!

Happy Sunday everybody!! So tomorrow is the "Ides Of March"....and the 20% Off Sale in my shop is still good until Midnight Saturday [March 20th]...check it out ~ I just listed several new things that I made yesterday ~
♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

"So long as you are learning, you are not growing old. It's when a man stops learning that he begins to grow old." ~ Joseph Hergesheimer

Missing my daddy today...

...it seems as though the older I get, the closer I get in age to my parents. They always seemed "so old", but now, not so much. Today would have been my dad's 75th birthday. It's hard to believe that he's been gone from this earth for almost 10 years now. There's not a single day that goes by that I don't think about him at least once. I miss those silly little jokes he was always calling to tell me, those hugs and belly laughs I would get from him when I told a silly joke, or just needed a hug. He was always my #1 fan and would tell me time and time again how proud he was of me. I miss that so much and I know he would have been awfully proud of me and the accomplishments I've made since he's been gone ~ but I can feel him watching over me and somehow I know he knows and he's proud.

So I'm dedicating today to him...I think I'll go out and take some pictures, since I somehow know. through my eyes, he can see what I do.
~ ♥ ~ Kathy

"Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us, or we find it not." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Wonder, Wonder, Wonder....

...so I keep going back & forth about doing shows again. I mean, Etsy has just been awesome for me, but I still like to be able to see those happy faces when someone buys one of my pieces that they really, really love. I can only imagine those faces when I sell something on the internet. I read through all of my comments here on my blog post and all of my feedback on Etsy and try to imagine what each person looks like. But then, I think it's probably a good thing that people can't see me sometimes when I'm shopping on the net. Like right now, I have on a huge flannel gown that is printed with a bunch of little doggies running around on it and then some totally mismatched flannel PJ pants that are horribly checked. And then a pair of Zante clogs that I've had for years and they are so ugly & stained, Lita won't even carry them around! But, if I do start doing shows again, I think I'll stay close to home ~ I mean no longer than a 3 hour drive each way to a show. Anyway, I'll keep you posted on that and also post a calendar, if I decide to start filling it up. In the meantime though....

I'll keep spending my extra days in the woods & hiking with Wayne, Ozzy & Lita. Those dogs just love it out there! This is a picture of them "doubling back" to check on us. They are so funny when they do that. They usually stay just far enough ahead to be able to still hear us, so if we are really quiet, they come running back to make sure we are okay and then they take off ahead again. They get twice the workout we do. And this is a picture of Ozzy, taking a sniff of some ice crystals spiking up out of the ground {I was told by someone on "flickr" that it is called "hoar frost"} It was all over the place and was really neat. Of course Ozzy is always interested in something I'm taking pictures of that's on the ground ~ he wants to make sure he doesn't miss an eating opportunity :)this is a picture of the gorgeous river than runs along the whole "Daniel Ridge Loop" trail. We went on this hike Wednesday ~ it was beautiful! Cold, but worth it:
happy trails to you.....until we meet again :)
♥ & peace always ~ Kathy

P.S. I got all of my ingredients for "Sushi" yesterday! Paula is coming over early on Tuesday to help me get it all made for the inauguration party! *Yay*

Hints, Tips & Smart Advice...

...is actually the name of a book I have, but I always thought it was quite a "catchy" title. Now I'm not sure about how much "smart advice" I can give, but hints & tips I'm pretty sure I have plenty to share. What I understand from most people on Etsy is that their biggest challenge is pictures. Of course, when you are photographing jewelry, the challenge is even greater. I've found that you can get the best pictures outside, under the shade of a porch, with indirect sun light, or even better on an overcast day. Use the "macro" setting on your camera and get the lens as close to your subject as possible, without losing the focus. Take at least 10 pictures, at all different angles and use whatever props you have available. I have a giant seashell and several big flat rocks {readily available around here!} that I use most of the time. I also have several childrens picture books that are great for backgrounds, as well:But I guess the most important thing is software, so you can lighten/darken your pictures and crop them to the all requested "Etsy Square"! I personally use "PhotoShop CS Version 8.0", but there are lots of other options. If you want to purchase software, "PhotoShop Elements 5.0" is great. It's not very expensive and you can purchase this book "Adobe Photoshop Elements 5.0 Classroom In A Book" that will teach you hands on lessons on how to use the program. But, if you want something for "free" that is totally awesome, I would suggest downloading "Picasa 3" from Google. It is a wonderful program and allows you to do tons of really cool things with your pictures. I promise you will love it!

Well, I gotta run for now. I'm feeling a little better ~ I hope I'm on the downside of my cold. But before I go, I must share these awesome little earrings I made this morning and please do check out the shop ~ I have several new things in there from yesterday :)
I named them "Dogwood In Fall", because they were inspired by the Dogwood trees that are bursting with these awesome little red pods right now:I hope this post helps a few people. Check back tomorrow for a post about a camera "flash diffuser" that is absolutely "free" and works great!! Have a wonderful day!

xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy -

Remember, it's all about networking & the more places you can set up a bio for "free" the better off you will be in the long run. Listed below are all of the places I have set up my bio that have actually brought me customers:
http://www.dornickdesigns.com
http://www.dornickdesigns.blogspot.com
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dornickdesigns
http://www.myspace.com/brocsmom
http://www.twitter.com/dornickdesigns
http://www.dawanda.com/shop.dornickdesigns
http://www.indiecollective.net
http://www.talentdatabase.com
http://www.artsofbrevard.org

I LOVE PhotoShop!!!

This is a picture of a friend's daughter & little boy. I made this awesome little print with it today! I'm really getting back into my digital scrap-booking again. I just love the little birds!

And this is the whole little happy family!
And this is the "Saluda River" @ Jones Gap State Park ~ the print is for sale in my shop ~ I named it "Tranquility" ~ listen closely and you can hear the water trickling....

Happy Friday! We are going to the "Duck Pond @ Dusk" tonight to hear "Shannon Whitworth" ~ she is amazing.....check out her website and listen to some of her music ~ I promise you will love it! And lucky for me, she loves my jewelry :) And then tomorrow is the "Mountain Song Festival" here in Brevard @ the"Brevard Music Center". So, I'll be sure & take plenty of pictures and blog about both this weekend!

xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy

Life In The Forest…

…so as of today, all of my strawberries have been eaten by some little critter and all of my hummingbird feeders have been emptied, leaving only sticky little paw prints on the glass containers. I can only sum up that it was raccoons or bears, but have come to the realistic conclusion that I do "live in the forest" and to expect anything less would just be unrealistic. But, I'm glad that I didn't insist on a garden {other than my herb garden}, since it surely would have been only to feed everything but us. I really didn't want a garden anyway, I'd much rather visit the Farmer's Market every weekend and come back home with a sense of supporting local farmers & my community.

Well, with the "Spring" everything else awakens, along with the flowers & trees. Like this Rat Snake that we found by our front porch last year. He came out to "play" yesterday and Ozzy & Lita didn't even pay him any mind! It was like they were used to seeing him or something. He's about 5 feet long and rather docile. I tried to take another picture of him, but he quickly slithered into his "home" under our porch steps! We decided that we would let him stay, since he will be good for keeping rats & mice away. Wayne even has said that he wants to become "his friend" and maybe even try to touch him! Now this is my husband talking, a city slicker from Boston! But I have to admit, he sure has quickly turned into a country boy and he loves it!

Now, if I can keep my "Hosta" safe from the deer this year, I'll be doing good.

And these are the cutest little "Newts" I ever saw {of course they are the only ones I've seen}

Off to the post office & the grocery store ~ Hope you are all having a wonderful Wednesday!!!

Xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy

Today I'm sharing a quote that my friend "Jen" sent – something her Dad said:

"Life has a flavor that the sheltered and protected never know, and I've tasted a lot of it" - Jen's Dad

Good Stuff ~

This awesome Dragonfly necklace {that I'm totally in love with}

These Mahogany "Cocoons" that are just awesome.

This wonderful little Bone Tortoise necklace, which I named "Gui Ling", meaning "long life"

And last, but not least, our dinner from last night @ "The Square Root" – Coconut encrusted Wahoo Fish, Steamed Green Beans & Garlic Mashed Potatoes. It was wonderfully, scrumptiously delicious. And lucky for me, I have leftovers, the best part of any meal.

*Yay* ~ we are finally getting some much needed rain. All of our newly planted flowers & herbs are loving it, for sure. I hope you are having a wonderful day!

Xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy

"If You Want The Rainbow, You Gotta Put Up With The Rain"

My little forest friend....

Is this the cutest little fellow, or what! I found him in my yard in Pisgah Forest. He looks rather mean, but he was really sweet. I can't wait to discover all of the little critters that live in the forest. I'll be there for good in 2 short weeks!!! I'm so excited.

If you purchased something while I was away, it was mailed out yesterday, so you will be receiving it soon. I just dropped in to say hello and now I'm off to do some moving related activities. Hope you are having a wonderful week!

xxoo & peace always ~ Kathy