As I make changes to the site, I like to put in a few words to describe them and perhaps explain my reasons for them. You'll find the most recent entries here at the top - there's probably not a lot worth seeing as you read down, unless you're interested in how the site has evolved.
Latest File.
Entries from January 2003 through December 2004.
Entries from January 2001 through December 2002.
Entries prior to 01-01-2000.
Picture galleries from various trips, conventions, and art/whatever festivals, in no particular order.
If you aren't on my distribution list, you can still see the latest general information message that I sent out, here. I'll try to keep it current...
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(12-22-2006) The workshops are lined up for January: I'll be heading north in time to teach in Afton, Tennessee, the first weekend, should be able to make it to the Boston area in time to teach in Littleton, Massachusetts, before and after Arisia, then down to Frederick, Maryland for workshops on the 17th and 18th, and finally a stop in Surfside Beach, SC, for the last workshops before returning home.
I turned my badge and parking tag in at work today, so I am now retired. The official date is the end of the year, but there's nothing but holidays between now and then, leaving me free to fill orders and prepare student kits for workshops.
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(12-12-2006) I've just received an offer from a host in Washington, DC, for workshops there between the ones in Boston and the ones in Surfside Beach. Couldn't bee earlier than the 17th, and I have to be in SC by Saturday morning, but sometime in there should be time enough.
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(12-10-2006) Added workshops at the beginning and end of the list for my spring trip, one set just north of Memphis, before MidSouthCon, and the other in Denver, on my way back from Seattle.
Looks like I might have a host for the tentatively scheduled workshops in Sacramento, also.
My youngest grand-niece is living a fully-documented life, and we have footage of her enthusiastically participating in a bedtime story. Nothing to do with knots, or jewelry, but definitely an "Aww, cute" moment.
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(11-24-2006) I'm finishing up a week in Philadelphia, started with Philcon, and completed with Thanksgiving with one of my nephews and his family. My last actual vacation while officially employed, in fact, so I've been savoring it. There are pictures of various costumes and folks wearing my work in the "Philcon2006" directory -- see "Picture galleries", above.
December should be fairly quiet, though I've got at least one at-home workshop to conduct. I'll be spending most of my time gathering materials and organizing for my trip to Boston in January, including stops in eastern Tennessee on the way up and in South Carolina on the way back. Right now I'm certain of three sets of workshops on that trip.
See my show schedule for more information, and my workshop registration page to sign up or request more workshops.
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(11-14-2006) Necronomicon, in Tampa, was delightful as ever. I should prepare and upload some more pictures, but in the meantime there are several in the gallery under that name. See "Picture galleries", above.)
This coming weekend I'll be in Philadelphia for Philcon, where I'll be in the art show, and I'll be staying up there for a few more days, teaching in Richlandtown, PA, on Monday and Tuesday, and pigging out on turkey with my nephew's family on Thanksgiving, before wending my way home to resume work for one more month. (Yes, I am indeed retiring, after thirty years, to do jewelry and teaching full time.)
I've added a workshop on my way up to Boston, in early January, to be held in Afton, TN, the weekend of the 6th and 7th. You'll see the entry on my sign-up page, where you can register for that, or for any of the other workshops I've got planned. You can also nag me to hold workshops in other places, of course. Looks like I'll be doing some more in Pennsylvania, over in the western end of the state, next year, but I'm not sure when. I need to line up several in a row, for a trip to work out, like the series I've planned to get me to Seattle and back.
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(10-19-2006) The workshop schedule is shaping up nicely, registrations are on ->this page<-- if you're interested. Check the overall schedule on the "Workshops/Shows" page, above.
Just realized that even though the halter top is visible in the Dragon*Con 2006 directory, I didn't put up a page for it, so now I have.
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(10-08-2006) It's always nice to see that I've had some influence in the world. Dan and Allison came to me early in 2005 and spent a weekend learning how to make wire, design and tie Prolong knots and Turk's Head knots in wire, and now they've got a really well made website, showing some really great jewelry. Check them out at "The Have Knots".
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(10-05-2006) Some changes of plan. First, I'm taking a whole week off to go to Philadelphia in November, so I'll not only be at Philcon for the weekend just prior to Thanksgiving, but will also be able to do workshops in Richlandtown right afterward, and then spend the rest of the week pigging out at my nephew's place before having to find my way home again. It'll be fun, and I don't have to fly! (The TSA hates pointy tools, and they look at me funny when I come in with excessive amounts of precious metal.)
More changes of plan: since I can do the workshop in Richlandtown, it would be asking too much of that host to ask her to hold another in January, so there is room for another workshop in a different venue on my way up to Boston for Arisia. I'm planning a set of workshops before and after Arisia, just like last year, and I'm stopping in at Surfside Beach, SC, on my way back to Florida, to do more workshops. I've plenty of time on the way up, if someone else wants to host one.
There are more things going on, later, and I suggest looking at my schedule to see what they are. One of them is a "grand tour" out west, like the one I did a couple of years ago in February, but this time it will be in March and April.
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(09-20-2006) Unfortunately I haven't had enough confirmed registrations to make the Castro Valley trip break even, so I will have to put that off until perhaps next Spring. I'm hoping to do another "western tour" such as I did a couple of years ago, going all the way to Seattle and back, so of course there would be at least one stop in the Bay Area along the way. Look for schedule updates.
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(09-17-2006) I should've been updating more, but if you have already clicked on the "Picture galleries" link above, you already know that I got a lot of nice pictures of my silver halter-top on various volunteer models while I was in Atlanta. I'll put together a separate page describing it soon, with various statistics. I've let many more people try it on than I have pictures to show, since I don't post pictures of anyone who expressed reservations. (Hi Ingrid! Email me if you change your mind...)
Just got back from Kissimmee, this afternoon, where I attended the state board meeting of the Florida Society of Goldsmiths, for whom I maintain a website. It was a fun meeting, as such things go, and one of the minor items decided there involved my eventually doing workshops for each chapter over the next year -- that's, hm, five or six workshops. Southeast Florida, southwest Florida, northeast Florida, northwest Florida, the Panhandle, and probably the west coast folks as well, at some point.
Next weekend I will be in Michigan for the Renaissance Festival there, and will stay Monday and Tuesday to teach workshops.
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(08-24-2006) Just a week until I go to Atlanta for Dragon*Con. I've got my art-show stuff set up, with some new stuff, and I've finished another new item that might well be on display at some point, if I can find a volunteer to model it. Need to do that, anyway, so I can take a picture of it...
I've come up with a lookup table for ring sizes versus number of bights around the edge, to help people understand why I select certain knots for some size rings, and other knots for larger or smaller ones. I've linked it from the Ring Size page, but if you want to, you can see the PDF file without going there.
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(08-16-2006) I'm back from Van Nuys, California, where I had several days of workshops. The weather cooperated by staying below one hundred degrees Fahrenheit, and the location was perfect for teaching, so everyone had a great time and did very good work. I put some pictures in a folder in the picture gallery (above) so feel free to check them out.
Just a couple of weeks to go before I head for Atlanta and the Dragon*Con convention. There will be at least a couple of pieces that should be new to everyone there, and so I'm really looking forward to seeing how they're received.
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(08-02-2006) Preparations are well in hand for my trip out to California next week, with full rosters for all my workshops. I'm also frantically gathering and organizing materials for Dragon*Con at the end of the month (Labor Day weekend in Atlanta), and looking ahead to the workshops in Michigan, then again in California in October. (See the Workshops/Shows page for details, or the sign-up page to register.)
Just a few days ago I received a message from an unsatisfied customer, which I reproduce in part on my "comments" page. (I haven't updated it in a while, it seems, but I've been distracted...) Since I haven't received any response from this customer, I am at a loss as to how to make it up to him, but perhaps his plight will serve as an example for others. Please, if you have the slightest issue with any of my work, at any time, I want to hear about it. I can resize, repair, even in some cases replace outright, a ring or other item that doesn't measure up.
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(07-08-2006) After a recent mixup in ring sizes, I've added a page on measuring fingers, including some pictures to illustrate just what I mean. Please take a look at it and feel free to suggest improvements and clarifications. There is also a link to it from the "Ring size" page, where I've updated and improved my advice on the same subject.
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(07-02-2006) A challenge was issued in Nashville for a "Celtic Mobius Strip", and I've come up with a response. The circumstances leading up to this involved a poster that one of the other artists had created, a very beautiful rendition of the idea, but I thought it would be nice to do it in 3D. Take a look at the result.
I just got my official acceptance letter from Dragon*Con's art show, so I know that I'll be setting up my display again this year. I'm also going to be on a panel for the Costume Track, and I've got one real knock-out piece to show off, plus a chance to show off something special in collaboration with another artist.
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(06-29-2006) The last two weekends have been quite interesting. The workshop in Guelph, Ontario, went very well, with all of the students' jewelry coming out fine. With security and customs being such a potential PITA, I didn't take along nearly as much interesting stuff, which made me sad, but we all had a great time anyway. The following weekend I was in Nashville, TN, for the Hypericon science fiction convention there. A small convention, but not the smallest I've attended, and I liked being there. Some pictures in the convention folder, which you can also reach through following the link above.
While I was there I had the pleasure and privilege of taking a number of modeled photographs of jewelry, which greatly enhanced the latter. See them on the page relating to hair adornments, and a new page devoted to a great new choker-style necklace.
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(06-15-2006) Another workshop has been added to the list of upcoming events, a flying visit to California for the weekend of October 14th and 15th, in Castro Valley.
Vacation days are running short, but there might still be some room in my schedule to do some other visits like that before the end of the year.
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(06-04-2006) Here's an experiment I've been meaning to conduct ever since I made a couple of decorative combs from the Prolong Knot, with side loops drawn out, and I think it turned out well.
There are only a few slots left in the September workshop in Michigan, several openings in Van Nuys in August, and it looks like one opening left in Guelph for week after next. I'm working on other plans, as well, and will post details.
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(05-29-2006) Just got back from Orlando, and the 19th annual Oasis Science Fiction convention. This was only my second year there, but there were a lot of familiar faces. I attended as a guest, and participated on a costuming panel on Friday, then on Sunday I conducted a small workshop on knot-tying. My costume took a ribbon in the masquerade, but I can't take a whole lot of credit for that, on two counts. One, the costume is a total slam dunk for me (you'll have to see me in person sometime to understand that) and it was also a narrow field of contestants so I had much higher chances. Still, a ribbon is a ribbon, right? Anyway, I will be there next year, also as a guest, and I'm really looking forward to it. There are some pictures available: "Oasis 2006" in the folder listing.
I'm getting ready for the trip to Canada in several weeks, and the trip to Nashville, TN, the following week. See my shows and events page for upcoming plans.
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(05-05-2006) Realizing that I'd left a gap in the listing of string tutorials, I've added a set for the seven-lead by ten-bight Turk's Head, tied in hand. This is not a trivial knot to tie, and I recommend doing some of the simpler ones first. One of the things I'll be doing at Oasis in Orlando in a few weeks will be an interactive session, letting people have string to tie friendship bracelets for each other, and I've been trying to refine my teaching techniques... doing this tutorial was helpful. Hm, looking at the list, I see that I need to either add one for the 7x13, or explain how the 5x9 is expanded to those dimensions.
Those of you who are looking forward to the workshop in Guelph, Ontario, will be pleased to know that I have purchased my airline tickets and I'm fully committed to the trip.
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(05-01-2006) Another set of workshops well on their way to becoming definite plans. Michigan in late September, in a visit to some friends from the chain mail forum (The Ring Lord), and a stop at the Michigan Renaissance Festival, I'll be doing two days of workshops, Monday and Tuesday, the 25th and 26th of September.
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(04-22-2006) As I feared, it became necessary to cancel the Yuma trip. I'm sorry that I didn't manage to push those workshops hard enough, and there were only four people signed up to attend. I'll try to do a better job with future plans. In fact, I am planning at least one trip out to California, scheduled for August, and that might be close enough for some of the folks who might have hoped to see me in Yuma. Please see the Workshops/Shows page for upcoming events.
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(04-21-2006) Some plans are moving along, others seem not to be working out. I've had a rush of orders for rings, and that's good, but I'm feeling pessimistic about the trip to Arizona week after next, since today is the first time I've heard from anyone out there in a month...
I've got a number of additions to my shows and events calendar, notably a trip to Guelph, Ontario (near Toronto) in mid-June, to teach a couple of workshops. Before that I'll be in Orlando, FL, at the Oasis science fiction convention, and right afterward I'm going to be in Nashville, at Hypericon. There are various other plans in the works, as well.
I have to confess that I haven't done anything on my bracelet tutorial book, but I've got the raw materials ready for when I get back to it.
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(03-31-2006) Midsouthcon was great, and I've got a few pictures in the convention folder you'll find on this page. Unfortunately, there was a glitch when it came to saving some of them, so I don't have pictures of an especially delightful young lady wearing my silver scarf. I've learned that its proper name is a "hip wrap", by surfing around on a bellydancer costuming website.
One of the members of the chain-mail forum on The Ring Lord is working to get me up to Guelph, Ontario, for workshops in June. Scheduled dates are June 17-18, and at this time there are still some openings. See the sign-up page, to register.
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(03-22-2006) For those who haven't looked in a few days, go back and check the scarf, mentioned below, because I got a chance to take pictures of it on a model last week.
I'm a little concerned about my email in-box, lately it's been very thin. I'm still getting order forms, comment forms, and workshop requests, but not that much ordinary mail. Just recently my domain migrated to a new host, and their spam filters might be over-reacting, so if you've sent me ordinary emails and haven't gotten a response, use one of the forms to let me know.
I'm gathering students for the Yuma, AZ workshop, but the numbers are still low. See the shows and events page, or the signup page.
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(03-10-2006) I'm getting ready for MidSouthCon, the science fiction convention in Memphis, in a couple of weeks, which is one reason I was so anxious to finish the scarf that I mentioned below. Plans are being proposed and considered that will let me travel to a few other places for teaching, and now that I have my passport renewed, it's possible that I could end up going abroad to do so. (I've been getting quite a few requests from Canada.)
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(03-03-2006) I could be flying out to Yuma, AZ, in early May for two days of workshops. See the sign-up page if you're interested. I need as many registered (and pre-paid) students as possible, early, so I can afford to buy my tickets to fly out there.
A new project in knotted chain mail, which can be worn as a scarf or as a skirt, depending. It's not all soldered, but I've assembled it and here's a picture.
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(02-20-2006) The Sarasota renfest was interesting, but I didn't really have much time to explore it. I spent a bit more time, yesterday, down in Deerfield Beach. Very large show, with a lot of people attending. I took a few pictures, which I've added to the convention folders page; look for FL Renfair - 2006.
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(02-05-2006) Updated some files and pages. Added a couple of new pictures to the page about silver corsets, and I've been adding more to the convention pictures under Arisia 2006. I haven't decided what weekend I'm taking off to go to Deerfield Beach, to see the ren-faire there, but this coming weekend (Feb 11) I intend to go to Sarasota for the Ringling one.
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(01-25-2006) The workshops that were planned for this coming weekend in Tampa, sponsored by the FSG, are canceled. They didn't get around to signing up a full roster, and called me up to let me know it wasn't happening. Anyone who was hoping to take it, feel free to contact me directly and we can probably set something up for one of my "at home" weekends during the year. I suppose we'll be rescheduling the FSG-sponsored workshops for this fall, if things work out.
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(01-22-2006) I made it home, finally. There are still pictures to be added to the convention folder, and some other work to do before I settle into my normal routines, but at least I'm not on the road for a while.
Recently someone contacted me and complained about a delayed response. I've added some text to a couple of pages to reinforce the following point: in order to complete an order or provide information I must be able to communicate with you. If you don't provide me with a valid email address, or a telephone number, I will be unable to respond. If your mailbox is blocked, or your email host requires some sort of handshaking or pre-approval, my messages will simply bounce into oblivion.
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(01-18-2006) Still on the road, but the Arisia convention is over and I'm on my way south in stages. The first ring workshop went well, all the rings looked good, and tomorrow I'll do the second one, in Maryland. There are some road pictures, separate from the convention pictures.
An interesting thing happened during a rest stop in Danbury CT, while I was walking around the mall there. (I do my rest stops in odd ways, sometimes.) When I walked past a big-name jewelry store, there was a little stand there with an appraiser, apparently for the edification of passers-by, so I decided to be edified. I only showed a couple of things, but the Mexican Fire Opal pendant is apparently more valuable than I had originally thought. This is the second time someone told me I was undervaluing it, but the first time it happened, last year, the individual wasn't saying so in an official capacity as a certified expert.
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(01-07-2006) I don't always create a trip log, but since I'm stuck in a motel room this evening and have leisure, why not? I'll try to keep it up as I make progress teaching my way to Boston and back. Check the log if you're interested, but of course the pictures from Arisia will be more likely to show up in the convention folder assigned to it.
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(01-06-2006) First update of the new year. Happy New Year to everyone, and may health and prosperity attend you.
Interesting new fact emerging from my oldest sister's investigations into geneology: I have some Mohawk blood. Not a heck of a lot, certainly not enough to let me build a casino or some such, but a matter of some satisfaction for me.
The workshop schedule is looking good. I've got students lined up in Surfside Beach, SC, Riverdale, MD, and Littleton, MA, with full rosters in the latter two. The same students, more or less, will be taking both bracelet and ring workshops, separated by a few days as I travel up to Boston and back. Arisia will be a lot of fun, in Boston, and I get to see several nephews and nieces along the way.
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(12-27-2005) Doing some cleanup work on the site, and noticed that I hadn't really pared these news files as well as I should have. They should load faster, now, with only two years worth in each one. There's some overlap, as the current news file extends back past the latest entries in the next-older file, but I'll trim further as I reach the end of the next two year period.
Plans for the January trip are in full swing -- I've got openings in all the classes, as of now, and if you're interested in attending one, check the schedule, and sign up or request other dates.
I'm really looking forward to attending Arisia again during this trip. There will be another folder of pictures, mostly costumes from the masquerade, which will be added to the page of picture directories.
I'm afraid I won't be going to Tucson this season, but circumstances dictated otherwise. Next winter, though, I hope to attend again.
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(12-12-2005) Philcon was a lot of fun, and I took several pictures of various costumes, and I've added a directory listing to the others on the page with all the convention folders. Just click the "Philcon 2005" link.
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(12-08-2005) One of the folks on The Ring Lord has come forward to offer to host the workshop between Surfside Beach, SC, and Littleton, MA, which I had originally thought would be in Fredericksburg, VA. The new location will be Riverdale, MD. Please see the sign-up page for details.
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(12-05-2005) For an update on the problems I've been having with my knotted chain-mail shirt, check this page. Looks like I'll have it ready for wearing again before this coming weekend, when I'll be at Philcon, but it's been a hard road for the last few weeks.
During all of the work, I found one knot out of the thousands of knots that was tied wrong, and decided to leave it there as a concession to my fallibility. (And because replacing it involves taking out four knots, not just one, and I was feeling lazy...) See me at the con, and if you are the first person to find it, I'll give you a piece of silver jewelry.
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(11-28-2005) The book schedule may be slipping. I did a lot of photos to document the work, and now I have to do some writing to catch up with it. For those who were hoping for it by the end of the year, my apologies... I don't think it will be that soon.
I'll be in Philadelphia for Philcon and will have some pieces in the art show there. I've just finished up a couple of sets of wedding rings, to be shipped out soon. I'll put pictures of those in the wedding set gallery, eventually.
In January I will be traveling up to Boston for Arisia, and will be stopping in Surfside Beach, SC, possibly in Fredericksburg, VA, and just outside of Boston itself, to teach workshops on the way up and back. I'll also have work in the art show at Arisia. See the sign-up page for details on workshops.
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(11-05-2005) There will be a few pictures from Necronomicon as I get time to convert them, but I'm also very busy with some other things. I'm finishing up another ring order, and writing more of the text that will go into the book, and working on a new project inspired by both the corset and the shirt, but resembling neither.
The trip to Boston in January seems to be shaping up very well. I've received encouragement from several locations along the way, and will be finalizing the arrangements with them as soon as I can, so as to allow people to sign up for specific days and classes. One of the stops will probably be in Surfside Beach (just south of Myrtle Beach), and there might be one in Richmond, VA. I've been offered a studio just outside of Boston, also, and will be adding that to my plans.
The knotted chain mail shirt has been giving me fits, lately, since adding the sleeves. It's far more difficult to handle in polishing, since the sleeves tend to turn it into its own little strait-jacket during tumbling, and there's a lot more stress on individual knots. I've added a page that describes the newest method I've come up with to check out the knots, and smooth out distorted ones.
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(10-21-2005) Finally got a chance to get a good picture of the knotted chain-mail shirt on a model, since I finished the sleeves. I'm pretty sure it's in its final form, now, but who knows...
I'll be wearing it at Necronomicon next weekend, and of course any other time I've got a good excuse to do so.
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(10-07-2005) Work is piling up, and my commitments as well, so I'm going to have to put workshop scheduling on hold for the rest of this year. After the new year I'll have vacation again, and I'm already planning a few trips that will include workshops. Updates for the shows and events page should reflect the changes as I make them.
I've decided that even though it is great fun to meet students at conventions, it isn't really possible to devote sufficient time and attention to teaching while also handling PR and sales and art show issues. For this reason, I'm going to try to arrange more time before and after, if possible, but reserve the actual convention days for convention activities.
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(09-20-2005) Updated the workshop sign-up information, and a few other tweaks.
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(09-18-2005) Sometimes when I'm avoiding some work, I end up doing other work... just finished this pair of graduated knotted chain-mail earrings, as an experiment.
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(09-14-2005) I've been going to a lot of science fiction conventions, so I decided to put up a list of picture folders on one page, for those who would like to find them more easily.
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(09-11-2005) Updated a few pages, added some more pictures to the Dragon*Con directory. I still haven't got my plans for Charleston completely made, though I will definitely be there, at the IGKT meeting. They welcome visitors, so at the very least it would be nice if folks came to see me there. I'll have some work displayed, and we'll be demonstrating knot-tying techniques of various kinds.
Note that the new prices have been posted. I took some care to match them to what I have been charging, when taking material expenses into account, and for now I will be able to point to the listings when people ask "how much?", without the need for extra computation.
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(09-09-2005) I've added a page to showcase a large piece I finished before I went to Dragon*Con, and which sold while I was there.
Current plans for a book of tutorials have been stepped up and streamlined. I had intended to produce one with all my various projects in it, laid out in a logical order, but a good friend pointed out that it would take me forever and a day to do it right, but that if I were to do one with a major project and some variations on it, with a gallery of examples, I could have it done in a matter of weeks, or at most months. I'm going to try to have something done before the end of the year.
Still haven't updated the price pages, sorry. I've been working on current orders, and taking new ones, for Turk's Head rings of various sizes and patterns, and working very hard at my regular job. I'm sure nobody is impatient to see prices that will probably be a little bit higher, anyway, right?
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(09-03-2005) Good news, I got to see my niece from New Orleans, and she's okay, though it appears she's lost everything she owned. There are a lot of folks in that position, or worse, and my heart goes out to them all.
The first day of Dragon*Con, today, and I'm too tired to post many pictures right now. Still, you should be able to see a few that have been placed in this folder.
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(09-02-2005) Well, I missed my deadline on the price lists, in the stress and confusion of the last week or so. Until I catch up, of course, no changes in price.
My hear goes out to everyone in Hurricane Katrina's path. I'm in an unaffected part of Florida, but I've been very worried about my friends and family members who were.
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(08-24-2005) Just some words about the new prices, before I post them in week or so. One, if you've already obtained a price from me on your order, that's the price you'll pay, unless the new price is _lower_. (If the price goes down, yours does too.) I will not add charges to an existing order, in other words.
I was about to include a long-winded explanation of how I derive prices, and why, when I remembered a page that has been on the site for some time. It has now been updated, and discusses my pricing policies in some detail. The new prices will be posted in a few days, and will be effective as of September 1st.
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(08-11-2005) My knotted chain-mail tutorial finally showed up on the Orchid jewelry site, Ganoksin, so I've re-targeted my link on the teaching page to send people there, instead. Hanuman did a very nice job of laying it out, too. While you're there, you should look at the rest of his site, it's one of the most useful locations on the web, for those who're interested in jewelry-making.
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(08-04-2005) Updated the sign-up page to reflect the next two out-of-town trips and the possible workshops associated with them, to Atlanta, GA, and Charleston, SC, in September. I'm looking for hosts and students, please let me know if you're interested.
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(08-01-2005) I'm somewhat recovered from the trip, but now I'm engaged in catching up on ring orders. Some weddings coming up soon, and I have several commissions for wedding rings to complete.
Looking over the costs I've had for materials since the last price increase, I'm afraid that I'll have to raise my prices again, soon, but I don't want to do it without considerable research, and without warning potential customers.
Please consider this entry such a warning. The new prices should be in effect by the beginning of September.
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(07-23-2005) The workshop tour continues... I've been keeping the log up more faithfully than this page might have indicated, as those who've been reading the trip log already know.
Yesterday my computer died, taking a couple of weeks of email and editing with it, so if you sent me something, or were expecting something back from me, it might be a good idea to send me a reminder.
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(07-11-2005) A couple of days into grand tour of the Midwest, now. There's a sketchy log, with pictures, which I'll try to keep updated as I go along.
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(07-09-2005) Finally got around to updating the workshop syllabus to reflect both the one-day workshop (Bracelet) and the two-day workshop (Bracelet plus Ring), and their relative costs. I also updated a few other little items, and clarified the "second ring discount", since the "second ring" is always the smaller one of the pair, and this point was not made explicitly, before. That was an expensive oversight, but it reinforced a valuable lesson in customer relations, well worth the cost.
Today begins my driving trip -- Hurricane Dennis is going to make things interesting on the roads out of Florida.
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(07-05-2005) I'm not entirely sure why nobody in Kansas City seems interested in taking either the bracelet or the ring workshops, but so it goes. I'll still be in town, attending KansasFest at Rockhurst University during the period from July 19th through the 23rd, and if you're in the area and would like to look at some of my work or just hang out, give me a call. The Chicago, St Paul, and Little Rock workshops are looking good, though I still have some spaces open. Check my signup page to see how many, and to sign up for one, or to request one in some other location.
Note that there is a venue for the Kansas City workshop, if one happens, and the dates would be the 21st and 22nd, that's Thursday and Friday. For those interested, the sooner I hear from you, the better chance there is that the class will happen.
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(07-01-2005) I've added a quick tutorial on knotted chain mail to the page of tutorials, but there will be a more extensive one on the Orchid server, soon.
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(06-28-2005) Among other things I'm busy with, I still intend to update older string Turk's Head instructions and add more knots, and today I've managed to add the seven-lead by eleven-bight, tied in hand, to the collection of tutorials. I've put enough pictures together that I might not have to add any explanatory text -- take a look, tell me what you think.
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(06-24-2005) I finished one of the prettiest seven-lead rings I've ever done, recently, here's a large shot of it.
I'm making a lot of progress on the workshops for July, but there are still plenty of openings for students. Check out my signup page for the listings so far, and a form to fill out to add your name to the list. Right now Kansas City is lagging behind the others, I don't have any students or a host there, but I'm planning to be in town for several days anyway, seeing friends and attending a convention, so feel free to get in touch if you're in the neighborhood and want to meet me.
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(06-07-2005) Just a few updates, here and there. Notably, I finally got around to shooting a sequence showing how to tie seven-lead Turk's Head knots "in hand"; two sequences, actually, one results in a 7-lead by 9-bight Turk's Head, the other in a 7-lead by 12-bight. I'm still working on pages that put them in sequence with explanatory text, but the pictures themselves may be self-explanatory to those who've managed to tie five-lead knots.
I just realized that the first page had the year "2004" where it should have had "2005", in my "workshops and shows information" line. My apologies, I really have been keeping better track of the site than that, other than the mistaken year.
This just in: my work has been accepted in the juried art show at Dragon*Con, coming up this Labor Day weekend.
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(05-31-2005) I just got back from Orlando, where I attended the Oasis 19 Science Fiction convention. Lots of fun, of course, but I also sold some jewelry and made some good contacts. This isn't as costume-oriented a 'con as many of the others I've attended, but there was a small masquerade on Saturday night. I took a few pictures and put them in a directory for people to look through.
I'm going to have to start getting really serious about the July tour, now, and make plans with the various hosts and students along the way. Remember to check the listing at the bottom of the sign-up page for your name if you expect to attend. If you don't see your name, and either were expecting to see it, or want to add it, send me an email as soon as possible to let me know. I'll be updating it as I go along.
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(05-21-2005) Traveling is fun, but it's good to be home again for a while. Next weekend I'll be just a couple of hours away by car, instead of half a day by air, in Orlando, Florida, at Oasis 18
I've added a page just for the ponytail wrap that you might have noticed in the pictures taken in Seattle, because it came out so much better than I expected... probably becaue of the model.
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(05-14-2005) I'm in Seattle, Washington, and Tolcon is in progress; I've met a number of really nice folks here. I'm about to take off to conduct my Saturday workshop, but before I go, I'm updating the site, including a link to some pictures I've taken here.
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(04-30-2005) Added the beginning of a student roster for Chicago, added some more events, including the next meeting of the International Guild of Knot Tyers, in Charleston, SC. For those of you along the eastern seaboard, there should be some workshops coming up soon.
I have enough students for the ring workshop in Seattle next weekend, but there are still a couple of openings for the bracelet workshop on Saturday.
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(04-30-2005) Yesterday the site was down all day. Turned out to be a hardware problem at my webhost, but they've got it resolved now. I hope everyone who tried yesterday to get to the site will have tried again today, or soon.
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(04-24-2005) In order to reduce confusion and let students know what their current status is, I'm going to put a listing on the sign up page, names only (no email or other personal stuff) and which workshop(s) they're confirmed for. Please check this list to see if you're on it, or see how much room is left in a workshop; I'll try to keep it up to date. Right now the only one showing is for Seattle in May, but I should be able to start the ones for Chicago and points west, soon.
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(04-22-2005) For those who clicked, you saw that I did add some more pictures. Great convention, enjoyed it a lot.
I've decided to go to Seattle in May for the Tolkien Convention (TolCon), which will accomplish two things. One, I'm sure I'll enjoy it, and I might be able to sell some jewelry to the folks there, and two, a number of people have been asking when I'd come back to do more workshops in the northwest.
Please see the "Workshops/Shows" page for details, or go to the "signup" page to register. There will be both a bracelet and a ring workshop, over two days, two for the price of one for those who choose to take the latter. (Well, the ring workshop is more expensive, so that probably sounds like a much hotter deal than it is.)
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(04-02-2005) I'm still at MidSouthCon, in Memphis. There's a lull in the action, so I've uploaded some pictures, and will add more later.
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(03-26-2005) I'm working feverishly to finish some tasks, some for myself, some for others, and haven't been keeping up on the workshop updates. My apologies for that. Since I only had one serious inquiry for the Memphis trip, I'm going to concentrate on just doing my stint in the MidSouthCon dealer's room, and perhaps meeting one or two folks in the area, but I promise, I will get back to workshop planning very soon.
Some of the recent work I've been doing include finishing the rough Australian opal that I linked somewhere below. It is now polished and mounted in a bezel. Along the way, while making that bezel, I decided to tie an extra pair of the same knots and mount them on earwires, so you can see them on the earrings page.
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(03-16-2005) I've found time to add some more to the shirt, and took two new pictures along the way. One shows the sleeves at quarter length (think "tee-shirt"), and the next one shows them at half lenth, but cut at a bias. Please take a moment to look at them, I'm very pleased with the way it's coming out.
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(03-10-2005) Two students flew in from out of state to take both workshops, the Prolong Knot bracelet and the Turk's Head ring, over the weekend. Here's a page showing some pictures, and a letter I received afterward.
I've never really done any lapidary work, but lately I've been hand-working this little opal chip, and if I can get it polished up enough, perhaps I'll set it and add it to the pendant collection.
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(03-02-2005) I took some more pictures of the Mexican fire opal, at different angles in bright sunlight to show the fire in it.
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(02-24-2005) I've added a page discussing my home-made tumbler that is large enough to polish my knotted chain mail shirt.
I have my reservations for the hotel in Memphis where MidSouthCon will be held. I'll have a table in the dealer's room, and I'd be delighted to meet anyone in the area who is interested in seeing my work in person. If you don't want to register to attend the convention, get in touch and perhaps we can get together elsewhere. I'm also looking for an opportunity to conduct a workshop during or near that time, for anyone interested in that.
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(02-19-2005) I finally figured out how to attach sleeves to my silver knotted chain mail vest, but so far I only have one short section of it done. Take a look, tell me what you think of it.
Almost forgot, I've been working on the bezel settings for some opals, here's a link.
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(02-17-2005) Sorry about no updates in a few weeks, but I've been busy. No pictures from my visit to Tucson this year, since I didn't drive there this time, but flew instead. I picked up some new opals, and I've been working to set them. While working on that, I completed a setting for one of the opals I've had in stock, and it came out very nicely.
I'm updating my shows and workshops page, and right now I'm working on some plans for early April. I'll be in Memphis, TN, for MidSouthCon, and if enough people express interest in it I'll conduct a workshop there.
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(01-24-2005) Updated while coming back from Boston, where I was attending Arisia. (I'm still not home, typing this in the airport terminal in Boston while waiting for the confusion caused by the blizzard to subside somewhat.) I didn't take a ton of pictures, but there are a few already uploaded -- you can see them *here*.
Another entry while on the way home... so far I've traveled from Boston to Minnesota, to miss a connecting flight by two minutes, and I'm now heading for Detroit and hope to connect with a flight to Tampa from there. I don't mind that much, except for the hurrying between flights, since I'm in the same boat with a lot of other folks who got delayed.
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(01-12-2005) First update of the new year. I've added some pictures of a necklace that I just finished, another in my series of pieces using knotted chain mail in silver.
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