Cellphone Photography

Here's a photo I took this morning when I went to my parents' for breakfast. This tree is much smaller than the ones that grow outside my studio and so I was able to get a closer shot of the lanterns. They look kind of like bougainvillea flowers, but they're actually the seed pods. And you can see they're beginning to fade on this tree as well. The ones on the trees at school look the same, too.

I had the day off, and I spent the morning with my parents. Then on my way to school, I stopped at one of the bookstore chains to get myself a calendar for next year. I have one now that I use to record what I do each day. Usually the entries are about the jewelry I make. I write down the price I paid for the stones and the findings, add a percentage, and then add in the labor hours. That's how I figure the price of each piece. I try to keep them reasonable especially when I've gotten a good value on the stones particularly.

So I have a new calendar for keeping track of what I make. I'm thinking of creating another one in which I write down what I've sold and what I've spent each time I go to the bead supplier. I keep track of this information in a different way, but I think writing it down in a calendar might help show me trends. And anyway, I like having journals and calendars in which I record information. It helps me feel organized on some level, even if it's just an illusion.

After choosing a calendar for my studio, I went to printmaking class. I have two large copper plates that I want to etch on and then print and add text to the prints, probably using the computer. However, the photo etching process might be a possibility, now that I'm learning more about how to do that. I created two new plates today from some photos I took with my cellphone. Unfortunately, I'm afraid they're over exposed. They didn't print very well. However, I'll try again next week, using a darker ink and less easy wipe so that the ink is stiffer. I may be able to get more of an impression than I did today. I left the plates in the sun for five minutes. When the professor saw them afterwards, he said he thought they probably should have been in the sun for only three minutes, to get the most from them. Well, it's still a learning process for me. But I enjoy doing it, and I see lots of possibilities.

I was talking to Jon and one of the other artists at the Village about clasps. I mentioned that I wanted to find large spring rings. The ones I bought here in town are all gone, and they haven't ordered any more of them. I did order some from the internet that seemed to be a good price, but they're still not large enough. However, Jon suggested a watch supplier, that he has a watch chain with a large clasp on it. So that will be my next area of research, along with all the other things I need to do.