Halloween/Day of the Dead Blog Hop

I  love Halloween. It is my favorite holiday.You can wear anything you want,  all the chocolate you can eat and you don't have to deal with your relatives or in-laws. Life really can't get much nicer then that. 
Ever since I can remember I have always loved spooky things. Growing up, there were a lot of strange happenings at my house. As children we often saw shadows and heard voices that were not supposed to be there. That may have been part of my attraction to all things spooky and undead. I watched every Hammer Horror film on the Saturday afternoon movie. We played vampire, it was like tag, but creepier and you got to bite people.

When I was 8 or 9 I discovered Edgar Allen Poe's classic poem "The Raven"  I wasn't old enough to interpret  or even understand   the entire poem, but I knew enough to know that it spoke of something utterly terrifying in the world of adults.   It opened the door  to poetry for me and it still remains one of my favorite verses. 

For this blog hop challenge, I knew I would do something to pay homage to Poe and The Raven.
I had all kinds of ideas swirling around my head, but in the end I decided to keep it simple, inspired by 19th century mourning jewelry which I absolutely adore. You can check out my Mourning  Jewelry Pinterest board

My raven bead, my Poe pendant , and my skull charm, a powder coated black chain, a pearl, hematite  a black bead, and 3 black resin roses. 

I thought about adding my "nevermore" word bead, but decided that would be overkill. Haha overkill, I just cracked myself up!

If you want to hear Poe's Raven I suggest this reading by Edgar Oliver.

Please grab a cup of coffee or if its past lunch, a glass of wine and check out the rest of this blog hop. 
You can even put on Pandora Radio Spooky Symphonies  while you peruse this unearthly blog hop.

Diana Ptaszynski  http://www.suburbangirlstudio.com
Staci Smith  http://www.stacilouiseoriginals.com/

Kathleen Breeding  http://99bobotw.blogspot.com

Sue Kennedy  http://www.suebeads.blogspot.com

Dianne Miller  http://www.artbydianne.blogspot.com

Lisa Liddy  http://www.lisaliddy.wordpress.com

Toltec Jewels  http://www.JewelSchoolFriends.com

Linda Landig  http://www.LindasBeadBlog.com

Laura Medeiros  http://Www.zoeowyn.blogspot.com

Veralynne Malone  http://www.veradesigns.blogspot.com

Lynn Jobber  http://thecreativeklutz.blogspot.co.uk

Michelle McCarthy  http://www.fireflydesignstudio.blogspot.com

Karen Totten  http://www.starryroadstudio.blogspot.com

Jayne Capps  https://mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com

Jenny Davies-Reazor  http://jdaviesreazor.com/blog

Joan Miller  http://metalmudandsand.blogspot.com/

Melissa Meman  http://melissameman.blogspot.com

Melissa Trudinger  http://www.beadrecipes.wordpress.com

Kari Asbury  http://hippiechickdesign.blogspot.com

Inge von Roos  http://www.ingetraud.wordpress.com

Andrea Glick  http://zenithjade.blogspot.com 

Stephanie LaRosa  http://Www.stringaholic.blogspot.com

Lola Surwillo  http://www.beadlolabead.com

Jennifer Cameron  http://glassaddictions.com/blog

Diane Hawkey  http://dianehawkey.blogspot.com

Kristi Harrison  http://kristibasket-itsanewday.blogspot.com

Nicole Valentine Rimmer  http://www.nvalentine.blogspot.com

Tanya Goodwin  http://www.Pixiloo.blogspot.com

Shai Williams  http://shaihasramblings.blogspot.com/

Sandra McGriff  http://skyescreativechaos.blogspot.com

Sarajo Wentling  http://www.sjdesignsjewelry.blogspot.com

Marie Covert  http://thistledown-and-swaddlings.blogspot.com

Lisa Stukel  http://www.carefreejewelrybylisa.blogspot.com

Laurie Vyselaar  http://www.Lefthandjewelry.wordpress.com

Sherri Stokey  http://www.knotjustmacrame.com

Pam Traub  http://www.klassyjoolz.blogspot.com

Lori Dorrington  http://lorisglassworks.blogspot.com

Kristen Stevens  http://kristen-beadjourney.blogspot.com

Eleanor Burian-Mohr  http://cornerstoregoddessjewelry.blogspot.com

Sally Russick  http://thestudiosublime.com

Dawn M. Gallop  http://www.flipflopsandpoptarts.com

Christine Damm   http://storiestheytell.blogspot.com

From ghoulies and ghosties
And long-leggedy beasties
And things that go bump in the night,
Good Lord, deliver us!

Yes, it's my brain and yes, I know it's melting

Ok its been like 100 degrees here, and when I say like 100, I mean its like 100 with a heat index of hell.

It started out hot and miserable during my set up. It was so hot and miserable my misery made the news . Seriously.

I am trying to remember to smile. Its hot and I am past cranky. I have to explain the concept of "beads" to every other person who comes in to my booth.

Bead: –noun

1.

a small, usually round object of glass, wood, stone, or the like with a hole through it, often strung

with others of its kind in necklaces, rosaries, etc.

Yes, Yes, I make all this. They are beads.

People at art fairs often don't even know why they are there themselves, unlike bead shows where you can presume they are there because of a knowledge of and an interest in beads. Yes I actually did have to explain to a woman "how it worked", not once, but about a dozen times. Each time she held a bead in her hand it was like a mystery. "So, how would this one work?"

"Ummmm pretty much like the last 6 you asked about. Its has a hole, you put a string through it"

God is punishing me for being mean.

I am ready to shout "NOTHEYARENOTFUCKINGPAINTEDROCKS" but I refrain. It is too hot to shout. I croak it under my breath as they walk out of the booth.

I am almost thankful that the crowds are small, as my patience is growing smaller with every rise of the thermometer. Parts of my anatomy are surprising me with their sweating proficiency. Who knew?

My charming assistant.

I take comfort knowing that there is only 2 more days left. I may have to hurt someone if I stay in this heat any longer.

No bees, no honey; no work, no money

I wonder if the bees ever get weary of their vocation? Do they fly into my garden and say to themselves"Oh Crap! look at all the damn flowers! I will be pollinating all freakin day!"?

Or do they just take it one flower at a time, never worrying about what the day will bring?

This morning I looked at my pile of beads to glaze and said to myself "Oh Crap! I will be glazing all day!" I did glaze all day, 6 hours straight, and only conquered maybe half of the pile.

This means tomorrow will bring the same thing.

No bees, no honey; no work, no money.

I should not complain though. I had the benefit of air conditioning all day. The bees are not so lucky.

home is where...

This is an art project by Clinton Snider — called House 365 —

It is made out of pieces of abandoned and foreclosed homes in Detroit.

It is touring the area going from place to place with each "deed-holder" hosting the little (about 5 feet tall) wood-framed house for a month at a time. It's currently booked into the middle of next year.

It has become "a symbol for Detroit culture and how much abandonment there is," said Snider, who initially envisioned moving the house every day of the year, hence the name.

It is currently around the block from my house.

I have thought a lot about "home" and houses. Its more then a structure, its a place where you feel safe.

This is my heart on the house bead. It represents shelter for both the body and the soul.