3/16/2024

if old, go bold

 


Yesterday my friend Kathy came over and she put the crimps and clasps on the jewelry pieces I had just finished.  We spent the afternoon discussing our favorite subjects, cooking and gardening.  As usual,   she did not come empty handed and brought a wonderful loaf of her homemade bread, a plate of cookies, and a packet of squash seeds.  Before she left, we walked around the garden and admired the rhubarb poking up, a little  yellow crocus, and the brave chives that were bursting from the ground.

I could not have attempted the jewelry project without having her as a backup for what I can’t do.  No one could describe these pieces as delicate or demure.  My motto is, “If you're old, go bold.”   It's not that I need  new jewelry, but it's fun to have something new to wear at the beginning of spring. 

3/11/2024

worth the extra money after all.

Whenever I meet someone who has been diagnosed with macular my advice is always the same: start now to master dictation and text readers.  We all think we don't need them yet.  But once you do need it, it is so much harder to learn a new technology.

Learning to use dictation it's fairly easy and allows you to reach out to people.  But if you don't master the text reader, no one can respond. You really need to know how to use both.

My new phone has a text reader feature which I am trying to learn now. Unfortunately, all the instructions are in text that I can't read.

The dictation and the text reader on my old Word program were abysmal because it was so old and outdated.  I tried to buy  a new Word program.  Now you can't buy the program outright.  You have to pay  a yearly fee to use the newest  version.

I figured it was a waste of money, but I was really wrong.  Both dictation and the text reader on the new word program worked beautifully and in sync.  I couldn't be happier. I only wish the narrator on Microsoft Windows 10  worked as well.  It’s so frustrating as well as being complicated.  The Word text reader only works on Word and not on the internet.  So I am still struggling for anything on the internet.   

Now for the blog I use Word dictation instead of dictation on my phone. Then I listen to it with Word text reader, and then my  husband does  the final editing.

This is all going more smoothly now.  The only glitch is inserting pictures. Somehow my picture file system is all messed up.  I am now focusing on the picture problem.  So in the end, getting the new Word program was worth the extra money after all.   

3/03/2024

old costume jewelry renewed

 


I did manage to get a two-strand necklace from the beads I recently posted.  I had to work out a few technical issues and restring one of the strands.  I am happy with it and it is ready for my friend to finish the ends.

 I had these plastic beading trays with grooves, and   they are working well for me.

I have the beads settled in the grooves, so I don’t have to worry about them shifting. 

 I want to make a couple of turquoise necklaces while I'm in the mood.  I gathered two necklaces, two bracelets, and one money clip.   I will see what I can do with them.  My criterion was finding beads with a hole  large enough that I can feel it.

 We had rain, snow, and hail this last week.  So this project is just what I needed.  It’s not that I need more jewelry, because I seldom go anywhere anymore.  But just playing with beads will help pass the time until I  can work in the garden.

2/23/2024

comment on old post

 When I reached a point I couldn't see the computer screen, I was completely dependent upon text reader  and dictation features.  I stopped blogging altogether for about a year.  I really missed this outside connection to the world at large. 

When I started again I figured my reader level would be zero.  And maybe   without readers, the blog would be gone altogether.  But to my amazement it was not only there, but the daily visitor levels were in the thousands due to old posts linked to sites throughout the internet.   

It was really encouraging that I was still having readers even when I wasn't putting   new material up.  So at least the old material was still relevant to someone. Yesterday I received a comment on a blog that I did over 15 years ago.  It was like getting a virtual hug.  It made me so happy that I decided to blog again and made me even more resolved to keep tackling  obstacles that stand in my way. 

It is now really a new blog in a way that the old blog was about a strong woman tackling life head on.  The new blog is about a not-so-strong woman struggling to make her way with new and now harder challenges.

PS:  The blog post mentioned was on recycling bedside tables

I have one of these bedside tables I purchased for my husband 10 years ago. The top eventually popped off as the screws were short and into pressboard.
It's been sitting around waiting to be repaired or donated as is, as I replaced it with a better hospital bed side-table for hubby from a thrift store.
I've got the best idea for it's used now. Next to the sewing machine for an extra table for trimming or pressing I can lower or raise for sitting or standing.
Thanks for the idea you shared on craftystorage blogspot after I had watched a Martelli youtube of their Omni Stand height adjustable table as then I searched for recycling a hospital bed side table in sewing room.
Thanks for sharing. Ann

2/20/2024

Remember brooches>


When is the last time you wore a brooch?  Can you even remember women used to wear a brooch on their blouse or on the lapel of their jacket?  Who has a lapel anyway?  Ten years ago I would see all these discarded vintage brooches and had to collect them, of course.  Eventually I had a drawer full of them and started trying ways to use them.  I put them on hair clips; I grouped them in necklaces; and I used them on needlework.  
 


The two black brooches on this necklace were very old. I combined them with two necklaces, and now it is one of my favorite pieces of jewelry.  As I found pieces that might be compatible, I slipped them into a Ziplock bag and set them aside. 


Recently I ran across a bag that had three necklaces, none of which I would wear by themselves.  But they seemed to be so compatible, and it was about time that I did something with them.

 

The beads were large enough and had distinct shapes that I thought I would be able to string them using a beading wire.  I couldn't  finish the ends, but I had a friend I know would help me. So I spent a few days trying to figure out how I could do this, and I think I have the plan if it works. I have several other bags with groups of vintage jewelry that I would love to do something with.  Even if it doesn't work, it will be a pleasant few days just trying, and certainly beats vacuuming or cleaning baseboards. 

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