Looking at the calender I figured August was going to be nuts… and I was right.  However, September is doing its best to keep the pace.  I keep reminding myself that November & December will be here soon enough and I’ll be griping about how there is NOTHING TO DO!!!!

It’s been a busy and fun month.  Camping with some friends in beautiful Brookings on the southern Oregon Coast.  It was peaceful, and fun, and I got adopted by my friends zany family.  Er… maybe I should say my zany friends family.  I’m not sure which one sounds worse… that the family is zany, or that my friends are zany.  Nevermind… it was fun.  Four days without computer screens, phones, internet, etc…  Just beaches, campfires, sand, raccoons, and scenery.  Plus we did a quick stop off at the Prehistoric Gardens parking lot to say hi to Rex because, well, it’s tradition!

I also got to photograph a strong man competition that Vic’s Powerhouse held at Three Rivers Casino.  That was a definite change of pace for me… however, strong men picking up heavy stuff is a lovely combination of two of my favorite things.

The little girl being held up was the winner of the kids tire flip challenge that was held during the lunch break.  Talk about a Strong Woman in the making!  She (along with many others of us) developed a bit of a crush on the guy in red.   Unfortunately I couldn’t think of a legitimate reason to have him pick up the photographer.

And in the Studio I got to tackle a few new projects.  One project was for a jewelery competition held by Janice Everett of JLynn Jewels a very cool artist & bead maker that I met through my friend Ms.  Amanda Austen of Sea Shore Glass Girl (who many should recognize as the August designer feature in Bead Trends Magazine and who also has a wicked cool Etsy Shop).  This is the piece (see below) I made, and has been earmarked as a gift for one of my friends.  I fear I will have to mail it to her tho, since there seems to be no time free when I can drive it over to her and spend an afternoon in her company.

The other piece I made for the competition is available for purchase in my Etsy shop.

Yes, you heard me right… I actually posted something in my Etsy shop.  My shop is named Eggplant And Saffron.  I’m Eggplant, and Saffron is my muse.  Eggplant is one of the nicknames my family bestowed upon me.  Also worth noting that I love the taste of, color of, plant shape, flowers of, and history behind the Aubergine.  Plus Saffron (aka Saferella, Sasafrassy, Saffers, SaffyDog) is the best dog muse I’ve ever had.

Oh, and just one more thing… I also managed to fit in a play date with my Grandma to show her how to do that felting thing I was introduced to at the Black Sheep Gathering.  It was a really fun day, and the first time ever I was able to teach her how to do something! It was also the first time she’s ever just hung out at MY house with ME!

I apologize for my oversight in not taking a finished photo of her fabric piece.  It turned out really nice.  The colors are all wispy and reminded me of a cloudy sky at sunset.

Here is my attempt at “painting” with hair.  I was pleased with how it turned out.  I already have plans for the next one.

As a quick tie in with the last posting, I created the above peice while listening to Gillian Welch Radio on Pandora.  I was in a folksy-frame of mind.

Well I’m tired now, it’s nearly September (literally in and hour & 15 minutes it will officially be September 1st) and the madness goes on.  Should be fun and I’ll try to be better about recording the fun stuff going on & happening in my studio.

~ L