Every once in awhile, I’ll have some fun opportunity fall right into my lap.  I happened to ask one of the grip makers who purchases blanks from me, “What do you do with the ones that break or don’t come out of the CNC “good enough” to sell?”  And she sent me a zippy full of lovely bits.  I scraped off the adhesive from the backs, sanded them, and coated backs and fronts with linseed oil.  The next day, more sanding and linseed oil.  Day three, steel wool’d them and started deciding what findings were needed.  Today, went to the bead store and laid them out and planned their findings.

The bead store owner was so fascinated with them, that I’m to bring her a bowlful of polished wood bits next week and we’ll see if the customers are interested.  I sure am!  I’ve been saving all these little wood bits and hoping to find some way to make them useful.

So these are all laid out with findings and now their matching beads and other items, and in the morning I’ll check them again and start on them.  Hoping to mail them all on Monday, Tuesday at the latest.  Very enjoyable work and nice to have a little change of pace now and then.  It was fun to paw through my old boxes of goodies and treats and find beads and embellishments that would quickly work well to finish these into wearable art.

Another side job was preparing items for the Golden Hobby Shop, to deliver tomorrow on September 18th–here’s the firestarters I made–

and I made another batch of key fobs for them–

and believe it or not, finishing up an embroidered wool quilt to take.  I had this stuff around and since I’m unemployed again, thought I’d be resourceful and make some money while “cleaning up” supplies that are available.  Also some Fall and Halloween cards, and three more desk risers.  Keeping busy is a good thing.