Confessions...

Okay...

You are probably wondering...

or not...

what happened to me for the last few months? Why the silence on the blog and did I fall down into a bottomless pit!

Yowza... Ouch!

Uhmmm...

I must confess... it was a crazy year, 2008... good and bad things happened... mostly great things. The book release, the tv interviews, the traveling, beaders' emails, launching the PPT, new opportunities emerging, etc.

The bad? having a necklace stolen at the Philly show ranks up there, then a week later my dog Amber passed. A month later her father Sensei passed because his heart was also broken. That makes two family deaths a month a part! How did I survive that time? It was not easy, I must say. I had and have a tender spot in my heart for my pets. They were like kids to me and acted like ones too! Somewhat spoiled and always indulged with treats! I can't help it, that's my nature being one born in the Year of the Dog.

So you must excuse my silence. My heart was in the right place when I walked with Sara in San Diego for the Breast Cancer Walk for the Cure. Heart broken by the doggies gone to heaven but heart awakened by the love all my fellow walkers exhibited enduring with their pains and aches. That sprang ankle I endured towards the end was worth all the anguish. Thank goodness for the Black Diamond walking stick I had the forethought to carry along!

And then... what there is more?

Yes, more confessions... I needed a break from "da beads"... in order to renew myself to create again.

What? You think I always live the bead life? Well maybe so in my dreams but I HAD TO take a break from the beads for nearly a month to recoup and indulge in my annual winter weakness for fiber. Eeek... it is true, I am guilty... of letting these hands wander... to be soothed by woolies.

... and diverting my attentions from those beads to YARN! I started coveting wonderful fibers this winter having a love of wools and silks to begin knitting more seriously. I'm self-taught from books and magazines and love a good challenge. Knitting can be challenging as I delve into more complex patterns! I hope to someday be able to knit my own garments. Interweave and Knitting Daily! you are partially to blame for my renewed interest! So, what's on my needles now? I'm working on a HUGE hexagon blanket that will take me a year to finish. The larger the project, the more exciting it is to me.

I will share some of my knitted creations on the blog later when I have time to photograph the "finished objects". I find working with fibers a good tease to my hunger and my passion for "color, texture and creativity". So I figured now that I have more yarns than I have time to knit, I would take my fibers on the road. I'm going to give myself a challenge this year and see how many handknitted gifts I can make on just my road trips. There's something special about making beautiful things with one's own hands. I intend to knit all my family members something this year! Besides I always need to keep my hands busy working on something creative or I'll simply go crazy. I don't like to take seedbeading on the road because I like to have accessibility to LOTS of colors and it will be more of a hassle to pack. This also dissuades me from buying too many beads because do I really need more beads? Uhmmm... well, maybe I need all the new 15/o delicas in my stash.

Besides that, in December my sister Sandy and I jump started our Japanese fabric tool wrap concept to launch in Tucson 2009. You'll have to check out what we are up to for those who own or will own the PPT tools. We're working on other wrap ideas to launch mid-year too. All this and designing/beading/writing the Designer of the Year projects for Beadwork Magazine has kept me quite busy. But now that the first show of the year rolls closer, I'm back to thinking and making beads. Eeek do I have enough beads? Probably not as I feel the guilty pleasures of woolies calling my fingers even now, but I must be strong and stay focused on "da beads".

There's still much to do around here for Tucson so I will just say that I will be back to blogging, photographying, writing and sharing in 2009. I'm taking the trusty Powershot G9 to Tucson. You'll hear from me periodically, maybe even from the road. But if I am silent for long durations it's because I am hard at work on something new and fantastic... stay tuned!

For those who are visiting Tucson, drop by the Manning House Beadshow, I'm exhibiting in the Silverbell Gallery G21. My booth is located right off the entrance from the rear parking lot and I'm across the lady's room from my buddy Marsha Neal Studio. The show will also be holding a raffle for attendees so don't forget to enter the contest for a chance to win a copy of Bead Romantique. We're opened late on opening day... until 7 p.m. so shop until you drop, otherwise 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily. Visit the website for more details and to register. So, see ya there! Let's have some FUN!

Susan G. Komen 3-Day 60 Mile Walk in San Diego (Nov 21-23)

SPOTLIGHT ON ... ARTICLE

December 2008

Beaders Unite for the Susan G. Komen Walk for the Cure

Written by: Lisa Kan

Read the entire article on Softflex Company's site:

*****

I hope this story inspires beaders around the world to use their "voice" and to look within your community to find areas where you may contribute. Every effort is important, small or large. Performing good deeds feeds your soul as you act outside of yourself for the benefit of others. Whatever your circumstance, wherever you are in life, there is always someone/some cause that can benefit from your kindness and lending hand. Giving what we are capable frees ourselves, adding meaning and enrichment to our lives. With the human element added to the mix, there is nothing we can't achieve together. In helping others, we help ourselves. To give without expecting anything in return is the true spirit of selflessness. There is no bigger reward than that which feeds our soul.

"People know you for what you've done, not for what you plan to do" - Author Unknown

Website Back Online

Hello again,

After a phonecall to the folks at Yahoo, the website is back online.

I will update the webpage after Thanksgiving but wanted to let everyone know that as of today, the entire first shipment of the Japanese Professional Precision Tools are SOLD OUT. This is phenomenal as most of the publicity on these tools have been through the excellent reviews in Beadwork, Stringing, Step by Step Wire, Step by Step Beads and from the editors of Bead and Button through their forums. Word of mouth raving comments from all of you to your beadstores or friends have made the launching of this product a success.

Unfortunately those who waited to order for Christmas, will have to wait a little longer. In order to maintain affordability the second shipment (smaller than the first) shipped from Japan by sea two Friday's ago. My Japanese business partner indicates generally the shipment takes anywhere from 30-40 days to arrive. My fingers are crossed it gets here before the holidays but because of the overwhelming response I have opted to extend the promo price of $125 for those who want to pre-order and pay for the tools from the second shipment. Otherwise, once the shipment arrives, more than likely the price will be from $135 to $140, dependent on any custom fees. I think for the value and quality even this price is quite affordable.

So, I am sorry we are sold out but I promise the tools will be worth the wait. Please email me to be placed on the waiting list and order from the second shipment. There are only 60 kits in the second shipment and the third shipment will not arrive until late January for Tucson. Due to the expense in importing product and the volatility of world economies these days, I am being watchful in each shipment. This is to ensure that the costs to you remain affordable. Thank you for enjoying these tools and please show your friends your tools.

Next, when I started importing these tools, my intention was to eventually have a beautiful Japanese tool bag to carry them in. We set that project aside to see how you would like the tools but because of the rapid sell out of the first shipment we will bring the prototyping back online. I hope to have a tool bag design by early 2009 and then go into production. Once this is ready, I will post on the website. If you want to be notified via email on the bag's availability, just send me an email.

Thank you again everyone for loving these tools!
Lisa

Website Down Temporarily

I just came back from my 3-Day walk with Sara and will write an update on the blog after a long absence. Need to take care of some immediate projects and then I'll catch everyone up to what I've been up to since the last entry.

In the meantime, the website was temporarily down while I was gone and I'll try to get it up by tomorrow or Weds. Just to let you know that we are nearly sold out of the first shipment on the Japanese tools. I only have FIVE kits left and the next shipment will not arrive until right before or after the Christmas holidays. This was to save money so that I didn't have to raise the prices too much, while still bringing you all a good value on these excellent tools. We've had a lot of recent publicity on these tools from Step by Step Wire, Step by Step Beads, Stringing, Beadwork and Bead and Button Editor forums. So, if we happen to sell out but you place and pay for your order before the second shipment arrives, I will honor the promo price. You just have to be a bit patient to get them as they are traveling by sea. The next shipment will be a bit more expensive due to the drastic changes in the exchange rate between USD to Yen but still a good deal. I will have the new price after the shipment clears any custom fees.

More writing later as I am recovering from the 60 mile walk with a slightly sprained left ankle and have some urgent projects to finish. Have an excellent Thanksgiving everyone.

Goodbye My Amber

Today I mourn the passing of my beloved pomeranian Amber, who passed to a better place this morning. She suffered from a collapsing trachea, which is a common ailment of pomeranians, as they age. A small heart murmur exasperated her situation these later years and she suffered from coughs. She was with us for eleven wonderful years. She loved life, me and was the most affectionate dog amongst our three.

Life is precious and you never know when you will lose a love one. My days are emptier without her companionship but I will survive. I still can't believe that she is gone when only yesterday she was frolicking and running in the backyard, happily sitting under the shade of a tree (where she now rests in peace). Although her passing is an extremely sad event in our family, I am glad she was able to hold on until I returned from Philly, to say goodbye. I was only able to spend 3 days with her after Philly and wished I had more time with her but she left us knowing she was deeply loved. In the three years that I've worked from home, every day I would take breaks throughout the day to speak or play with her. I will continue to speak to her, as she will forever be in my thoughts/heart. She may be physically gone but my memories of her will forever be fresh.


Amber was the shining light in my life and a great companion, keeping me company as I worked. She saw me through a lot, in these years, through joys and disappointments. I will deeply miss her. I love you Amber (aka Hamburger, as her nickname). Mommy will miss your smile, kisses and cuddles. You will always be in my thoughts.

Thank you for allowing me to share my loss with you all,

Lisa

Disappointment and Feeling Violated ...

I know I have been absent from this blog for A LONG TIME. I've been quite busy with other things in life that somehow came in between having time to share news with you here. Tonight I felt a need to write here as I am still in Philly, after another arduous show. This trip was one of the most challenging and demanding ones I've made in recent weeks. It seems I have been living out of suitcases month after month, draining my energies quite a bit to be creative. On this trip and Bead Fest Philly, I had some highly positive moments (when some of you came to my booth to thank me for writing Bead Romantique and sharing my design sensibilities in my articles. So thank you everyone for all your kind words which truly keep me going - designing and writing as much as I do. Then there was the spectacular experience early Sunday morning as Marlene Blessing interviewed me for Beads, Baubles and Jewels.

With all these great things happening, I was deeply affected by the singular event on opening day, Friday, when I felt truly violated for the FIRST time. After 3 hours of the show opening when I turned my attention to addressing a customer and was not looking, one of my sample necklaces were stolen from my booth. It was the only piece that I did not have a display for. Of course I should have known better and pin down the necklace, but perhaps my faith in my fellow beaders were too high. Nonetheless, this act show a deep lack of respect to me as an artist. I guess I should feel flattered that whomever took my necklace loved my work. But I am not flattered. I am hurt but as with anything I will get over it with time. I just can't believe that after three years of exhibiting it has culminated to this one event that disappoints me the most. We've all had small items taken, that's part of business, but this necklace meant a lot to me.


However, I want YOU (the one who stole my necklace) to know (not that you would read my blog) but that you have deeply sadden me. The piece that you took was the debut project I wrote for Australian Beading Magazine in 2007. Although I can easily replicate the design, it is troubling to me that you felt a need to take something important from me. I would like to ask my fellow beaders to keep an eye out for this necklace. Should you see someone wear it amongst you, know that it was stolen from me. I can not fathom that the culprit would ever return it but my hopes is that if you feel inclined to return the necklace, if you have an inkling of a conscience that you may mail it back to me - no questions asked.

My address is:
PO Box 80491
San Marino, CA 91118

Or perhaps you can easily slip it back to me next year when I return back to Philly. This event almost made me think over whether I would come back to Philly to exhibit. I hope my spirit will be lifted as I fly home tomorrow. I have to set this disappointment aside for the meantime to focus on preparations for yet another show, this time in Denver. In between, I will be busy writing and have several assignments to complete. You may not hear from me until end of September.

Feeling violated and disappointment
Lisa

P.S. On a positive note, thanks to my friends at Vintaj, I have met my fundraising entrance fee for my Breast Cancer walk. Thank you Wendy, Jeanne and Jess.. you guys are the best!

Chihuly Bridge of Glass

A dozen beautiful photos of the Chihuly Bridge of Glass from Tacoma, WA. No words are necessary to describe Chihuly's work. I hope this makes up for my absence from the blog the last few weeks.

I'm getting ready for a busy August - three trips in total this coming month. Wish me luck and survival! You may not hear from me until September as I need to focus on getting things done in the studio. In the meantime, enjoy the visual inspiration of all those glorious colors in Chihuly's work.