I AM HAVING A BLACK FRIDAY BLOG GIVEAWAY

First I want to say to everyone HAPPY THANKSGIVING! I am posting this a little early so that as many people as possible have a chance to participate. Next Friday is the so called "Black Friday" where people rush the stores and get the good sales. I know some of you cannot get out to the stores for this event and I know a lot of people are having a rough time this year. So I took a few moments and tried to come up with a way that I could show my appreciation and Give Thanks to all of you for being the wonderful support you have been, my old friends and new!

I am so grateful for all the wonderful people I have "met" on the internet and in person at shows & classes. I never thought my creative soul-mates were just a click away! As an artist there are times when we feel closed off from the rest of the world because we can lose hours, days, whole weeks and months dedicated to a single project or many little projects as far as bead making is concerned. Its nice to know that when I look up for a moment at the screen next to me there you are! Not only have you shown interest in my work but you have shown concern for me personally when physically all isn't working as it should. Who knew I could be so lucky! So, with that said...

MY BLACK FRIDAY BLOG GIVEAWAY is............................ a surprise-I can't show ya! But what I will tell you is, The winner will receive $100 worth of Lisa Peters ART assorted beads, buttons, pendants and cabochons as well as some of my studio stash that is not ceramic related! I am a hoarde---- I mean collector of many beautiful things and would like to share a small bit of those things with you! I am hoping that with these things and some of your own you can put together some handmade gifts to share this holiday season or give yourself a gift and make lovely things for you to enjoy! My only wish is that it brings a smile to you! So again, $100 worth of LPA Goodies and on top of that a whole bunch of great Studio Stash.

So, by leaving a comment on my blog a random generator "thingie "from random.org will calculate a number that corresponds with the order in which you left your blog comment. To make it fun - I would like everyone to answer the following ridiculous question. How would you use Lisa Peters ART pieces to save the world? I will randomly choose some of your answers to use in my advertisements on Etsy and on My Facebook Fan Page. You do not have to, I do not think the random generator will show favoritism! :) If not tell me what types of pieces you are interested in working with from LPA. I show and tell most of the time on flickr, so take a few moments and have a look-see!

Good Luck! The Reader Comment Option has been turned off until The Blog Giveaway begins Black Friday, November 27th, 2009 at approx. 12:00am EST until Monday Evening, November 30th, 2009 at approx. 11:59pm EST. The winner will be notified on my blog on Tuesday, December 1, 2009! I will not comment back to any of you until after the giveaway so that I do not interfere with the sequence., but will hang out over at LPA on Facebook anxiously awaiting your comments! BTW, I would love it if you stopped by my FACEBOOK Fan Page and became a fan! Until then I will be listing items on etsy that will have their own special deals as well! Etsy shoppers will be offered FREE SHIPPING on any orders placed in my etsy shop on Friday, November 27th - so if you can't get out to the stores that day feel confident that you will find something to create with at lisapetersART's etsy store and you wont have to pay to get it to you!

Don't forget to check out the BAO IOTW (Bead Art Originals, Item of the Week) and the BAO Color Mosaic for Winter White & Gold Items from your favorite BAO Sellers!

I Thank You for making 2009 a wonderful year!
Much love from my home to yours,
Lisa Peters

LOOKING BACK ON THE LAST FEW MONTHS

I do not blog as much as I would like to and when I do I kind of like the post to be able to last a few weeks because I never know when I am going to do it again. First, I want to thank all of my customers who have been purchasing items lightening fast from my etsy shop. It pleases me so much that you are all interested in what I have been creating.

This morning a customer sent me a lovely email that expressed how much she liked all the pieces she recently bought from me and also asked me about my pain and did it affect the work I had been doing. It something I have been thinking about alot lately as I photograph my pieces and put them up on etsy. Yes, I think my pain really affected my work but in a positive way.

When I first started to lose feeling in my hand the Dr's put me on some really high doses of anti seizure medication. It made me very hyper, though it was supposed to make me drowsy. When I was at the lake I couldn't participate in alot of the things I normally do and I had so much energy so I brought my clay with me to waters edge and carved beads. The first time I didn't have my normal tools so I used an old manicure set I had picked up at a garage sale years prior. When I realized I really didnt want to use a manicure set that I had picked up a garage sale, for obvious reasons..ick - I didn't have the heart to toss it..recycle, recycle..blah, blah, blah.. So there was my set of tools. Hmm, what to make the holes with? Well, I never used those skewers, so perfect tool for bead holes! And off I went a few rocks, seed pods, shells, and leaves later there were these great beads. Each one must have taken forever, but it didn't matter..my hands were not idle so I was happy and I also allowed myself to slow down and just take in the water, the sounds of nature, yet still be with everyone else. I took this home with me. Because of the pain and loss of strength in my arm, the slab roller and any really extreme movements were out of the question. So I really took my time and nurtured each piece. On good days I produced more, on bad days I carved, and carved and carved. I carved the fronts, the backs, places that no one would even look at..but I was diggin it :) When it came time for the Soft Flex Show in NY I had alot of new stuff I was really proud of and alot of pieces that had a really deep emotional connection with me. So yes, without a doubt the pain in my arm has affected my work.. when the pain goes away I know this is the path I want to continue on.

The Silent Title of the work for that show was made up by my husband Hank. He would sit with me as I created & practice his guitar & again while I was glazing. He noticed the change in my work & that I was using glaze as a wash, and sometimes not using glaze at all and said, "It appears as though this time you are letting the clay speak for itself". So the pieces with minimal glaze will now be from a series called "Letting The Clay Speak for Itself" Go Job Hank!

So I am scheduled for the epidural next Friday, The 20th of November and I'm keeping my fingers crossed this one helps me, if only for a little while.. I'll take it! I also urge you to become a fan on my facebook page. I am doing my best to update that page a few times during the day. I will be showcasing customers who use LPA pieces with links to their shops, etc. The link is on the right side of my blog.

Til next time,
Happy creating
Lisa

Its November?

I cannot believe its November all ready? Is it me or is everything just going waaaaayyyy to fast!??

I am finally getting around to photographing and listing inventory that was created for the Soft Flex show on etsy and flickr. I want to thank all of you who have been acquiring pieces almost daily since last week.. I CANNOT WAIT to see whatcha y'all are making!

For customers who have been waiting for certain items please email me and remind me. For those of you who have allready done this, please do it again (just kidding) I have posted alot of available inventory on my flickr page (If you have a PRO account, please add a note to anything you want-if not please email me, we will figure it out somehow) For those of you waiting for custom orders I have either emailed you, am going to email you to will photograph the thing you are waiting for very soon. (soon meaning, within the week!)

So whats next for lisa peters ART?

Glaze Experiments, Enamel and Electroforming..

The first thing I know I can handle are some new glaze experiments. I have shown some on flickr and sold out of alot of inventory at the Soft Flex show before I had a chance to show you So, it means I can make more with confidence. I believe I can start working on that in about a week or so.

The rest.. well, we will see. The tools are out of the box...there is a start ;)

So, go on over to flickr and take a peek! Would love to know what you think!

Lisa