putting the knit in shizknitz

So my newest clump of silver has started forming a shape of a ring. I cut another 5 mm strip like my first project but this time we milled and annealed to a different size and flat instead of round. I rolled it around a mandril until it was 3 sizes larger than my own (size and soldered it closed, and the last step so far is to use the file so the band is in a “V” shape (instead of just being a square band). This week I’ll be creating mountings that will go on this band so I can place some stones in it! Can’t wait!

Here’s a view from outside my window. Happy Halloween!

U2 IPOD!!!!
Never wanted an Ipod before, but now, I must have one.

Is what I supposidly said during dinner a few hours ago. I, however, do not recall. We went to C & O’s trattoria in Venice, Ca (which does not serve donuts).

Great Italian food under the starry sky with some great friends and coworkers, life is certainly good. Add some house cianti and we have ourselves a recipe for… well, a humorous night out! Good luck Sean for your year away in Russia!

What a treat! My new knit book has arrived!! Many, many thanks to the generous Kat who took time to send me a copy from Japan as well as decorate the envelope with the cutest stickers… it was the bestest package I have received in a looooong time.

So 2 weeks ago in my jewelry class I made wire out of a slab of silver. Last week I learned to solder (muhahahahah!) and this week I finished my spider web! This is after pickling (which whitened it a bit) but before polishing (thus the dull look). This project was entirely to learn how to solder rather than for a classic keepsake. I was quite stoked when the instructor said how beautiful my necklace (I made!) was! If I could do one thing all day long and all night long, it would be this (no, not eating).

When you live 6 miles from work and it takes you an hour to get there. That’s what sucks. I’m not looking forward to the drive home. When it rains in LA, people drive like crap.

HOT. That is all I have to say.

Serious Orlando

What Orlando Bloom are You?
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“A work day spent swimming against the current of red tape trying to achieve something and getting nowhere.”

A vacuum is a vacuum is a vacuum, right? Not if you have a Dyson. How many boyfriends suggest purchasing a new (relatively expensive) vacuum when you already own one that works okay? Well, as Tienshiao said, this one has “nerd appeal” (or did he say Geek appeal?). In his typical fashion, he did his research and came up with his decision to purchase one. There are only a few models sold in the US, and certain models sold through certain retailers. For example, we purchsed the DC07 Full Kit from Costco. I’m sure Tienshiao will post his own review, so I’ll keep my comments short on the usage front. Here he is below, enthusiastically putting the new machine together (yes, he was more excited than he was last Christmas morning).

Before we left, he used my old Hoover I purchased about 3 years ago to vacuum the living room. To see how much this machine missed, we vacuumed the same area with the new Dyson. The third picture below is after vacuuming over the same place the Hoover already cleaned - see how much guck is in there? EWWWW!!!!

Another very cool feature is the hose - 17ft it will take you, right up those stairs. The handle is removable, and you can flip it to make it into an easy to carry and use handheld vacuum, perfect for those hard to reach areas (this is called “Telescope Reach”). For those of you with pets, this one worked great for pet hair - our Mia sheds like crazy and the Dyson caught it all, without using the Animal Tool.

I’ve been so busy with so many things lately that I haven’t had time to post! I’ve finished one quickie scarf I started a few weeks ago with some fun yarn I picked up at Yarns Unlimited in Santa Monica. I used size 15 needles in a Stockinette stitch until I got the length desired (and used less than 1 ball of yarn!). Wrap around neck a few times and its an easy way to dress up bland clothing!

Another great adventure I’m undertaking is the Handmade Jewelry class with Ralph Goldstein, who has worked for over 50 years with Italian jewelry artists. This jewelry class is equivalent to a cooking class in which they teach you how to make your own pasta. Silver wire, that I take for granted from downtown LA is now something I am creating by hand from a block of almost pure silver. The beginning projects are to teach us the basics - how to saw, solder, make wire, tubing out of silver. Our later projects will include a ring. Here is the first phase of my second project, where I have sawed a piece of silver, milled it (which makes it skinnier and longer) and annealed it (make it softer) by soldering.

On the box you see the block of silver before milling, next to the ruler is the size after a few rotations through the milling device. The best part was buying ALL the supplies - I am fanatical about having all the tools and supplies necessary, here are just a few of what I had to purchase. Watch out Elsa Peretti!