So Long Tucson...

It's our last night here. We dropped Jim and Lani off at the airport this morning, and finished our shopping a few minutes ago. In between, we dropped by Kate and Anne's studio to pick up the killer ring I won in an Emma Ralph auction benefiting our dear Jean Yates and family. More on that in a sec. First you have to see the ring. I love it entirely. I have many rings, but none a uber-cool as this. And to make it even better, I had several to choose from, but took this one because it's Kate's personal favorite, and one she's been wearing. I took it right off her hand, and felt guilty for only about two seconds. There is nothing more pleasurable to wear than a gorgeous handmade object infused with love. I hope to take their Low Tech Metalsmithing class so I can do great silver work with my beads. Check it out on either of their websites above.


As soon as we get home - Thursday or Friday - I'll wrap and ship all the stuff you bought from me here. Then I'll put together a quick fund raiser for Jean, who's son Dylan has been having very scary seizures, and the huge medical bills that go along with such a mysterious thing. Jean is so generous in the bead world, with her designs, articles, patterns, and kits, and a book in the works too. She shares so much, and is one of the designers I work closely with. We've never met in person, but we're friends, without a doubt. My way of helping her out will be to lug home a big bag of Tucson Loot, divide it up into three generous servings, and sell raffle tickets to all of you. I'll only sell 300 tickets at $10 each, so you'll have a good chance of winning one of the three prizes. And $3000 will help Jean and Jim catch their breath. I'll let you all know when I have it ready to go.

The other thing I have in the works is a bunch more silver to sell you, so I can send an equal amount to the HOPE Bracelet Project along with my beads this year. I bought some sweet strands that will work great in the bracelets. My idea is to sell half of them to you, to pay for the other half that I'll donate to the project. You'll get cool Bali silver at a good price, the HOPE folks will get the same, and I'll break even except for my time, which I'm willing to give. Be watching for that one soon!

That's it for now. One last patio dinner in Tucson before we head back into winter tomorrow. I'm OK with it. Lots to do at home, and we've had a truly scrumptious time here.