I hope you all had a safe and happy Halloween.

I love Halloween. I love dressing up, I love carving pumpkins, I love decorating and I love the scent of the night. Not quite sure what that scent is, I think it just might the burning pumpkins, lmao. I didn't do anything last year, not that I remember anyway. So this year, I just HAD to pull out every thing I could, which isn't much, but it was fun. I told mom that I was going to get the pumpkins, and climb up into the garage and pull out all the Halloween decorations.

I spent hours carving the pumpkins. It hurt SOO bad tho! If you buy those kits they sell, then you might know the feeling. By the end of Wednesday night, I found one of moms wrist splints for my right hand/thumb. Those tools are not made for adult hands. This little "dot" poker wheel, "Ponce wheel," A. did not work well, and B. was so small and thin that holding it was a problem. Since it didn't work so great, I had to go over the patterns a few times. And the tool to thin out the inner part of the pumpkin was dull and, IMHO crap. I had to use so much force to use it, that it was most likely the main cause my thumb problems. Thankfully, the pain mostly went away by the next morning :)

So, every year that I do pumpkins, I HAVE to do a cat. I've done that cat quite a few times over the years, but EVERY year, the kids LOVE it. I always get so many great comments. That pumpkin was SOOOO strange tho. Then I opened it up, it looked like something out of a horror movie, I told mom to call out CSI. The pumpkin guts lookes like blood and bloody guts AND the seeds, if squished, popped a pimple....EWWWWW. I was almost expecting to find a bullet....lmao. There were a few holes on the outside, some hungry little grub must have had it's fill on my pumpkin. One batch of seeds that didn't get cooked :( At least the other pumpkin was fine on the inside :) I really hate spiders, but the shadow was soo cool, I'll live with it.

Last year, after Halloween, I bought all the pet costumes for 90% off!! Baxter got to be Yoda AND a Pumppy...lol. Mom called Chance TalooLAAAAAA, man did he hate me for "f****** with his dignity." He ran away from me everytime I came out with the braids. Seth's costume was a kitty inside, meaning that he wasn't to be allowed out of the house. Tho, the escape artist that he is, that didn't work out so well. The moment that the front door didn't close all the way, he was gone.

A few years back, I put together a Gypsy costume. I fixed up a thrift store skirt and made 2 pieces of fabric for a headband and a waist wrap. and this year at the Rennaissance Festival I bought a belly dancer wrap. I put my hair in curlers to get that really curly look, and I was a gypsy again this year. Even if I'm not going out, I LOVE dressing up ;) and this year, I even got mom into it....lol.

I was actually surprised that there wern't that many kids in my neighborhood ToTing, it was so nice, for around here anyway. We only bought 2 bags of candy, 1 big variety bag and a small m&m bag, and I was giving the kids 2 a piece, Mom took some of the m&ms and I took some taffy. I still have leftovers. I guess the niece and nephews are in for a treat next time I see 'em. Watchout Robyn ;)

Oh, and on a totally different note, if you're wondering "Where are her creations?" I hate to say, that there aren't any. Since my appendix surgery I have only made 2 things. This summer was so busy. First, mom and I had to build Baxter an outdoor kennel, then mom had a surgery on her thumb, THEN my grandma was in a car accident, it's just been busy. I recently got a promotion of sorts. See, I'm a Homemaker for my 88 yr old grandma, I had 2 hrs a week for cleaning her rooms. She has half our basement as her living area. Once she had that accident, actually before, her medical insurance had given her an extra hour of homemaking, and 2 hours of Home Health Aide service. So I've gone through the steps to do both for her now. And mom found out earlier this year that she is going to need a double mastectomy. Due to the radiation and scar left over from the lumpectomy, the scar tissue in her breast is too dense to see if the cancer has returned. Also, the scar tissue prevents her from getting implants, she'll need to have her belly cut up, they'll use tissue from there to reconstruct her breasts. That surgery is scheduled for the 10th of December. So, she too took the steps to have me become her PCA, Personal Care Attendant. That too, just recently went into affect.

Thus, I haven't had any time to do any claying. It bums me out, but now that Summer's over, I might actually have some time to get back into it.

Now for something new....a rant

I have finally finished transferring all my previous aoHELL journal posts. Now, why did they have to go and decide to shut down their journals? **grumble...grumble** Ya know, the whole ftp way of saving them that was posted in one journal, totally frazzled my brain for a good 2 hours before I gave up. Robyn's new journal shuts down my browser every damn time I try to look at it. She's been having difficulties as well. Not to mention, her AOL journal has been up for YEARS compared to mine. And she keeps it up to date on a more regular basis than I. WOW AOL, nice going! Just erase our lives while you're at it. Wait, that's what you're doing, isn't it.

Ya know, I feel a little bit crazy for re-posting everything over here. I suppose I'm lucky that I didn't have so many posts. However, to everyone whose kept up a daily journal and wishes to keep it, man, I feel for you. Again AOL.....great job (note the sarcasm!!)

Man, I must be getting tired.....I don't have nearly as much venom and energy as I did earlier. To everyone whose trying to figure everything out and start fresh, good luck.

I'm goin to bed...till next time.

Allyson

Happy Birthday Robyn!!!

Today is my beautiful, wonderful, absolutely fabulous sister-in-law's birthday!! She makes some awesome tags on her other journal, My Creative Corner, so I made her a tag for once :)

Happy Birthday Robyn!! I love you!


Originally posted on AOL on April 12, 2008

Just checking in

Hi all-

How is everyone doing? I'm ok, I'm healing just fine. However, I have a mean old cold. It hit me just a few days after getting out of the hospital. It's getting better, I have my good days and bad. So, I've been sleeping a lot. I've still been working on some projects, but this cold has been hell on my creativity. I've just finished a special piece for a great family friend.....BUT.....My camera is gone! :(

You all know how much I love my new camera. Well, I went to take some pictures the other night and I saw a spot on the lens. I tried cleaning the lens 3 times or so and it wouldn't come off. I thought it was a piece of dust or so that got stuck under the lens, but when I took it back to Best Buy, the guys at Geek Squad said that it was a scratch. They told me that they will replace it, but that Best Buy doesn't carry that same camera anywhere anymore. What liars! The guy over in the camera department, looked it up for me and he found 2 or more stores in the state still have the camera. So, he ordered it right up and I should *crosses fingers* have a new one by tomorrow. It has been bugging me so bad that I have been dreaming about my camera troubles.

So there you have it, my week, 90% sleeping and bugging out over a camera. Once I do get my camera back, I will post my newest creation. One that I think you'll all get a kick out of.

One final note, I think I've got it set up now that I receive alerts via my normal email. *crosses fingers once more*


Originally posted on AOL on April 10, 2008

Snow can wait, I forgot my mittens

Back on the 21 of March we were having a blizzard. Mom came home from running some errands, and told me to grab my camera. She drove me down to a nearby park. The scenery was gorgeous! I still didn't know much about my camera, so some of the pictures didn't turn out all that well. But it's still pretty. Here are some of the panoramic pics I took.



(See thoese two black dots in the distance, they're deer. I couldn't get a clear close up of them tho. I was really bummed) :(






I went back the next day after reading the camera manual.
















(Imagine my surprise when I found them again) :-D


Just one more photo I want to share with you. In high school, my favorite class was photography. My teacher, Mr. Holtorf, was one of those teachers that you hear about that inspires children. He was fun, tho his lectures weren't, he was strict, but kind. He made me want to go to his class. In my junior year, I took the second of his photo classes. There were only like 8 students there. We all had so much fun. One assignment was to take a photo story. I went to this same park and took pics of the park in fall. Mr. Holtorf can be tough when it came to grading. Each photo was rated on a scale of 1 to 10. And he rarely gave a picture a 10.



I was the only person in our class to receive a 10. (I think I actually had 2, but I could be wrong.) After that, Mr. Holtorf recommended me to another teacher to take family photos at a hockey game. And Mr. Holtorf even approached me again in my junior year to take photos for the school district. The district wanted pictures showing school life to decorate their new office. Come half way through my Senior year, the district finally picked and put the photos on their walls. Out of all the students that participated, I had the most, 4, equal only to the professional photographer. Sadly tho, I didn't get to see Mr. Holtorf much after my junior year, he retired at the beginning of my senior year. I only got to see him again a few times at school and again at the meeting where the district unveiled the pictures.


Originally posted on AOL on April 5, 2008

March Art

March Art....Hey, that rhymes....lol.



Hello everyone,
I hope every one is well. I'm feeling better everyday. Here are my latest creations for your enjoyment.

Up above is a collage of flowers that are actually a part of an even greater project. I made the collage so that you could see the details of the flowers themselves.

What we have here is a paraffin oil lamp. I got this lamp ages ago from my own garage sale. My SIL's SIL put it in and I took it out cuz I thought it was cute, but I never used it. I peeled off the decoration and added my own. I followed a tut to make the flower petals, and added them to a slab of transparent clay. Then I glazed and glazed for that high gloss shine. I think it turned out well. I love decorating glass with poly clay.

Here we have a faux turquoise liquor bottle, a basket weave glass and another cigarette case. A lot of the time I want to attempt a new technique, and I need to justify using that technique. So, I'll find something to embellish. That's the case with those 3 items.

Mom had finished off the liquor in the bottle, cleaned it out and brought it to me. She said that she thought it was an interesting bottle and wanted to see what I could do with it. I thought, "Hey, I want to try one of faux turquoise techs." I had a vision of how I wanted it to turn out, and the end result is exactly what I had in mind. I had extra "turquoise" so I made some beads and found a way to also incorporate them into the design.

I had that mini hurricane glass lying around since my last thrift store visit. One night I made a basket weave cane, and I couldn't figure out what I wanted to use it on. Then I saw the glass. And, well you see the result. I think it's really cute.

Finally, we have the cigarette case. I know it's a terrible habbit, but I found the case one day at Goodwill. It had a faded brittish flag sticker, and after making my own case, I decided to do another. I actually forgot I had it when I made the design to cover it. The tutorial I found was on a French poly clay site. When I finished the tech, I had a slab of clay and I didn't know what to do with it. I remembered the case and voilà, there you have it.

On Tuesday, I made mom drive me out to the thrift store. We combed through the store and I got some interesting new glasswares to decorate over time. But for right now, my Great auntie is really sick and I'm making her a special piece to hopefullymake her days a little brighter.


Originally posted on AOL on April 4, 2008

So tired of being tired!!!

Well, it's been a while, huh? I just get so tired since the surgery, today is the first day that I haven't taken a nap at noon. Thank you all, again, for your well wishes. You don't know how good that has made me feel. I'm kinda bummed that I haven't been on here much. I don't think that I can thank you guys enough.

This wasn't my first surgery, actually my third, but it was still scary. The first surgery I had was on my knee. I was a pedestrian and I was hit by a car when I was 17, they had to go in and fix the cartilage behind my knee cap. Then, I had a huge ovarian cyst (the size of a beach ball!!) that had to go. I looked 9 months pregnant! I kept being asked when I was due. (The first person to ask me was the pastor at my great aunt's funeral....that was creepy.) But this one was the first time that it was like an emergency surgery. And that really scared me. Everyone kept telling that my scar is cute, UMMM....no. It sure don't feel cute. But I guess that is supposed to mean that it will be just a little scar when it's all said and done.

Do you want to hear a creepy story? Not a gory, give you nightmares, kind of story, just creepy. Ok, well mom had her appendix removed when she was a little girl, like 5 or so. Her scar is huge, it actually causes her pain. That's not the story. Anyway, my grandfather died on March 28 many years before I was born. Mom says that every year something happens around the time of his death that is unusual, mostly a huge blizzard. Two years ago our cat of 16 years, Scrapper, passed away. This year, I had my appendix on the anniversary of his death. Grandpa's passing, mom's appendix already gone, it seems like he's out there, sending us reminders. Gee, thanks gramps.

I just noticed that I've been getting more and more comments on my entries. I'm sorry that I haven't really responded. I don't use AOL, so I don't get the notifications of new comments. I wish I knew how to have them forwarded to my regular email. Any heads up will help me out.

Bea asked me a few questions, and I thought I'd answer them.

I found the bamboo tut at Polymer Clay Central. Here is a direct link for you: Bamboo Pen.

I prefer to use Premo and Fimo soft, but since the company that makes Fimo changed their formula, I've started using Premo more. The change in Fimo changed the baking temp, and before I knew about the change, I noticed that the piece I made looked a little burnt. I don't like Sculpey because it gets too soft, and it's a little too brittle after it's cooked.

The pitcher was a glass pitcher. And it was a thorn in my side. Originally, I attached all the little pieces to it with just a thin coat of Elmers glue. Well, when that dried, the pieces were cloudy. Part of it's appeal, to me anyway, is that you can see the fish on the other side through the glass. So I plucked each and every little piece off and re-attached them with liquid clay. Once that baked, a whole bunch of the bubbles slipped down, and the fish weren't sitting right either. I plucked them off again! I finally just used crazy glue and with a little help from mom and one big headache later, it was finally done. I tend to become a perfectionist when it comes to my art, and I wasn't going to be ready to give it away till I was satisfied with it.

Even tho I've been away for a while, I have been working on some projects!! It's taken a little longer than I would have liked. Like I said before, noon-time naps. It kinda sucks to only be awake for 4 hours then be so dead tired. I'm just about finished with a few of them, and new ideas are coming to me every day. All I need to do is get some pics and I'll post them when they're ready.

So look for another update real soon.

Originally posted on AOL on April 2, 2008

A message from Nurse Chance

"Meow and hello to all of you. I'm Chance, Ally's nurse. She asked me to let all of her visitors in JLand know that she is doing well (well enough to make this silly hat and stick it on my head). She is so overwhelmed by the warm wishes that she received, she wants you to know that words can not describe how happy that makes her feel. She also wanted me to tell you that she's feeling a little loopy, but she'll be back when her head clears up a little more. I promise to take purrrrrr-fect care of her, I'm just so happy that she is home now.  >^..^<"

Originally posted on AOL on March 30, 2008

Hi this is Allyson's SIL

 

Hi everyone my SIL went to the doctors today because she had been in alot of pain since yesterday and found out she had Appendicitis. They did a CT on her at 5:45 to make sure that is what was going on and admitted her immediately and took her Apendix out. She was out of surgery around 9:15 and in recovery. We got to go up and see her a little after 10 once they got her into her room. She is doing good all things considering. Everyone wish her a speedy recovery :) She will love to see all the well wishes when she gets home!

Hugs, Robyn

Originally posted on AOL on March 29, 2008

Follow the Yellow Brick Road

One could say that this piece was inspired by the classic "The Wizard of Oz." Of course that movie has a special place in all of our hearts. Even I find myself watching the movie every now and then.

But, no, this piece was not inspired by the movie. This piece was inspired and created for JLands own RobinNGabster. It was her journal, The Yellow Brick Road, that was my inspiration. Robin came here and has left me some very nice comments. Her first comment was left on the "Pay it Forward" entry that I posted a few weeks ago.

When I make a special gift for someone, I want to make it something truly special. Not knowing someone makes that task rather difficult. You don't know what that person is like, what their interests are, or even what their favorite colors are. When I took a look at Robin's journal, I knew instantly where I wanted to go with this gift, The Yellow Brick Road.

Robin just received her pen. She wrote me a wonderful email that really put a smile on my face.

Robin, I'm so happy that you like your pen. You're a sweet lady, you deserve that special gift.


Originally posted on AOL on March 23, 2008

History of Dragons

I love Dragons. They are second only to white tigers. So, of course I'd want to sculpt them with my clay. Here are a few of my dragons.

"Dragon of Flames"


This guy I gave to my brother as a Christmas present. He isn't the first dragon I ever made, although, he is the first one that I ever got a photo of. When I made him, I noticed that his horns were VERY delicate, so I decided to get the dome for him. Funny story, I looked online for the dome, and X-mas was approaching fast. There would have been a very slim chance that I'd get one ordered in time. On top of that, the prices for the domes were a little out of my range, and I wasn't absolutely sure that I'd get the size I needed. I looked around at the local craft stores for anything that would suit my needs. Alas, nothing quite right. One day, out of the blue, Mom and I went to a thrift store. Let's say I wasn't very hopeful that I'd find what I needed, but on the slim chance....

The store isn't all that organized. There are 5-6 isles of household merchandise and knick-knacks. We searched high and low, by the 4th isle, all I had was one of those domed clocks that was made of plastic and was too short. I was losing hope fast! By the second half of the 4th isle, I saw it!! I weaved my was through the crowd of people and snatched it up. The dome was perfect, no scratches, no cracks, and the height and width were perfect. I had expected that I would have to make a few more trips to the store before I found the dome I needed. All I have to say....That was fate :)

I used 2 candle holders to construct the base and I sealed it with some black clay and hot glue. Bill loves it. They have since moved into corporate housing, and have had to store most of their belongings into storage while they search for a house. Yet, my "Dragon of Flames," still sits proudly on a shelf in their home.

"The Hatchling"


You know this little guy. I finished him in February. He answered the question of what came first, the dragon or the egg. I intended to just cover the egg. However, things don't always happen as they are intended. (Am I right or what?!) After baking the egg a second time, I dropped it into some ice water (that helps translucent clay become more translucent.) Science alluded me that day, and the egg imploded. My cute little egg had a gaping hole in it!!! "Darn it," I thought, "now what?!?" "Well, it looks like a dragon egg, why not make a dragon for it." That's what I did, I even constructed a nest for him to sit in.

And now, My most Favorite piece to date.

"Azreth of the Rock Pond"

Here he is!!! Azreth!!

Remember when I told you about going over to Robyn's? I created him then. I bought a polymer clay book, "Dragons" by Christi Friesen. That book inspired me to make him.
It took me a while to come up with his name. Finally I went over to Rum and Monkey and used their dragon name generator. I remember how many combinations I went through before I found a fitting name. But I do remember what the final combination was, "Seth walk underfoot." My brother gave that to my cat Seth when he was a kitten :)

Once he was done, I realized that he needed a home. So, I gave him his own island. Robyn and I went out to Micheal's a mere hour before closing and I bought the rocks and wooden base. I made the island and tree out of aluminum foil before covering it with clay.

Azreth looked lonely, so I added a mouse. One can only guess why that little mouse would dare to approach Azreth, lol. Then, I looked closer at the tree. What better animal to perch himself upon a dead tree than an owl. Lol, that little mouse really has some guts.

I finished off the piece at home, I added the water and the rocks. I couldn't be happier with how it turned out! It truly is my most favorite piece to date!


Originally posted on AOL on March 21, 2008

NEW Camera!!!

(I love white tigers.)

So, I talked to my dad about a new camera last week. He told me that he would help me out! He said that we would go out one of these weekends together and camera shop. Well, we didn't go together :( But he and his wife, Connie, gave me some money to go out and find one. :)

I ran out right away to Best Buy and started shopping. I looked at some of the newer, more pricey cameras. Tho they were really nice, I was on a budget and I needed to be able to get a case and memory card as well. So, I asked the sales lady to show me a step down in price ($200 to $180). So, she showed me the Nikon Coolpix S200. She told me that BB just lowered the price from $200 to $180, so I tinkered around with it for a while. She was explaining all of it to me, granted, she told me that she was a Canon girl, so she didn't know that much. I saw right next to the price tag was another ad that there was another $30, making the camera $150. That pretty much sold me. I liked what I saw, and the price was right! So, now I have a new camera. I got myself a case and I've ordered, online, a 4 GB SD card. (I think I paid less for the 4GB then BB wanted for a 2GB card, lol)

I've been playing around with it a little here and there this week. Mostly when I take a break from organizing my room. Which I have been doing for the last 3-4 days. The tiger picture above is actually a panoramic pic of a towel Bill and Robyn got me from FL a few years back.

This is me showing off:


This is my Maine Coon, Chance. You can't tell from this pic, but he is 42 inches long from the tip of his nose to the tip of his tail. yep, he is one big kitty.


Here is our Irish Terrier, Baxter. I had to pinch him today, cuz he just wouldn't keep his green jacket on, lol.

Seth, unfortunately, couldn't be bothered to pose for a nice picture. The rule in this house is that "Seth gets what Seth wants." Well, he didn't wanna pose.

Another Panoramic view:


This is my work space/Supply storage area. The Panoramic function on my camera is AWESOME!!! I was playing around with it tonight some. I did take a 360° view of my room, but I deleted it because I didn't have the flash on and I'm not sure how it will show up on here. If I get a good 360, I'll see about posting it on here later. (if any one wants to see my room, lol)

Any way, my work room is approx. 10ft X 13ft. (I have another room to sleep in.) My work room has to accommodate my art, play, entertainment and clothes. I've got my TV, PC and my PS2 in there. I can't really do more than one thing at a time in there. When I have my poly clay stuff set up, it gets messy in there fast. The work space and supplies take up 85% of the remaining space in there. (Poor Tyler doesn't fit in the room with me when he comes to visit, lol) So, as I said before, the last few days have been spent to me completely overhauling my space. I think I can fit another person in there with me now. (Maybe I'll go snag a niece or nephew if I'm home this weekend.) As you can tell, I'm really proud of myself. I'm not necessarily the most organized person in the world, so this was a MAJOR accomplishment. I hope to keep it this way for more than 3 days, but time will tell.

Well thanks again for stopping by. I've got another project that I HAVE to post about soon. I love it so much. so check back soon ;)

G'night

Ally


Originally posted on AOL on March 18, 2008

February's Creations Pt. 2

As I promised, here are the rest of the things I made in February.

These two treasure chests were Valentines for Robyn's daughters, Ray and Lexi. I bought them each a charm bracelet, cause every treasure chest needs a treasure. :)




I found an online tutorial for the bamboo pen and I decided to make my first polymer pen. The kanji symbol on it the one for beauty. The girls saw the pen, and they each wanted one for their own. I also stamped their names on the back of one of the charms.




Robyn came by tonight with Rayanna and my nephew Josh. She also brought along her camera. Ray brought her chest as well so I could get some pics. I haven't been able to see Lexi yet, so I still have her chest and pen. Hopefully I'll see her next time she's in town.


Originally posted on AOL on March 12, 2008

I'm gonna play too :)

I got this from Robyn, who got it from Linda, who got it from kathy, who got it from Kelly who got it from Bernie, Sounds like fun :)

Who wants to play along...be quick there are only three winners!

Here are the rules:

1. ~Leave a comment on my blog that says you want to play. The First three folks to comment will get a gift from ME. I'll create something special, just for you.

(Email me to Let me know how I can contact you. SilverShivaZero@comcast.net)

2. ~Do the same thing on your blog. The first three folks who leave a comment and commit to doing this on their blog, too, will get a surprise from YOU at a surprise time in the next 365 days.

Hugs, Ally

Originally posted on AOL on March 10, 2008

Coral Reef Pitcher

Visitors from Robyn's journal may remember that at the end of 2006 that my mom was diagnosed with breast cancer. Don't worry, she's doing well, all the latest tests show that the cancer has not returned.

During her radiation therapy, she has to go everyday for a few weeks. Money was tight, and with gas prices being so high, you can guess that we could use a little help. Thanks to our wonderful neighbors, we got just that. Nearly everyday Jan, our neighbor, gave my mom a ride to the clinic. If I'm not mistaken, mom offered to pay her for gas, but she declined, saying that she enjoyed the company, and was happy to help.

After Christmas, mom brought me this pitcher that she got from a garage sale, and asked me to do something special to it.


(Sorry about the poor picture quality, I really need a new camera)

Every year Jan and her husband take a cruise in the Bahamas, so I went with a coral reef theme.

This was the longest, most painstaking project I have done to date. So many "technical difficulties." All of the little bubbles kept falling off, my attempts at a clown fish "cane" kept failing miserably. I put in about 5-8 hours a day for two weeks before I was finally happy with it.

Mom and I brought it over to her house with a bottle of wine to share with her and her husband. They really loved it. They found a spot on a shelf to display it right away.

It seems to me that everything I make these days has a story to go with it.


Originally posted on AOL on March 8, 2008