A to Zs, inspired by Moorea and others

This photo of Jeff and I is from our rehearsal dinner the night before our wedding two weeks ago. My sister Jenn took it and I think it kind of sums up how much fun we were having with all of our friends and family.

This has been a big year and a big month. I've noticed lots of new followers here on the Sadie blog and have hardly had the time to keep things going around here the way I'd like to. So, as a way of introducing myself to all of you, I'm going to share the A to Zs of me, Sarah, with you. I first saw this on Moorea's blog, so thanks to her for passing some inspiration my way. If you post something like this on your blog be sure to link back to her, or to Liz, who got this whole thing going. 

A. Age: 31
B. Bed size: Queen
C. Chore that you hate: Putting away laundry, just like Liz and Moorea.
D. Dogs: Lola, a border collie staffie x from the Cochrane SPCA. She's 8-ish and the BEST.
E. Essential start to your day: E-mail check, breakfast, bike ride to work. Weekends require a little sleeping in and laziness.
F. Favorite color: This is tough. Today, almost-black navy.
G. Gold or Silver:  Both. At the same time.
H. Height: 5’7", though for most of my adult life I thought I was 5'6".
I. Instruments you play: All of them...very badly.
J. Job title: Landscape Architecture Intern, Jewelry Designer.
K. Kids: I'll babysit for you.
L. Live: in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Supernatural!
M. Mother’s name: Janet Miriam.
N. Nicknames: They never stick.
O. Overnight hospital stays: As an infant, I'm guessing.
P. Pet peeves:  Bad grammar is always annoying, bad grammar or incorrect punctuation on signs drives me crazy. Except one on Main St. that used to say "Freshly Quizzed Juice". That one I loved.
Q. Quote from a movie: Who's Benjamin? Who's Benjamin? My drummer! (Do you know what it's from?)
R. Right or left handed: Right, though apparently I swing left in golf. Not that I golf.
S. Siblings: Two younger sisters, one younger brother.
T. Tea of coffee: Both. I drink coffee mostly on the weekends or if I take public transit to work. Tea is the drink of choice at work so I stick with it.
U. Underwear: Tie dyed!
V. Vegetable you hate: This is cliché, but brussels sprouts. I just found out they're called "brussels", too.
W. What makes you run late:  I put things down without thinking. When it's time to go, my keys, sunglasses, lunch, bus fare all become roadblocks preventing me from leaving the house on time.
X. X-Rays you’ve had: Where to start? I'll just list broken bones instead: left wrist x 2, right wrist x 1, right humerus x 1, one growth plate in my leg at age three, one ankle. It should be noted that I do not partake in extreme sports, just that I have extremely fragile bones.
Y. Yummy food that you make: I make the lasagna around our place (about once a year).
Z. Zoo animal: Large cats. I once saw this thing on TV about a large cat sanctuary in Florida. I would definitely volunteer at a place like that if there was one nearby. 


Tell me a little about yourselves? Or have you perhaps posted your own A to Zs?


UPDATE: After seeing this meme repeated on a few other blogs, I noticed an astute commenter picked up on the fact that "T" was missing. Like, everywhere. From every blog that I've seen so far. So, I've added my own in a little update. I just couldn't let it slide. 

shop updates

amethyst core sample necklaces: eight and nine

green opal and vintage brass

pastel pink jasper and vintage brass

There are a few new pieces in the Sadie shop that I wanted to share with you. Luckily I took a day off in Vancouver this long weekend and was able to get a lot done...not just on the wedding front, but also updating the shop a little. I'm really excited about being able to offer more amethyst core samples just in time for the real summer weather that's finally hitting the west coast. I've also started incorporating vintage charms into the clasps of my layered pieces, so if you go for a green opal or pink jasper piece, you can look for this added detail.

Sometime I should show you all the mess that I make when I make jewelry. I can't honestly believe that Jeff doesn't freak out. Right now I'm posting these pictures while sitting in a giant pile of little plastic bags and tools and chain bits. I'm gonna have to figure out a new organizing system soon. Happy 4th, American friends!

stock

I'm really excited to announce two new stockists for Sadie Designs jewelry: OKO Gallery in Portland, OR and Red Velvet in Springfield, MO. I am very happy to be part of these wonderful shops, both of which are run by very sweet people who love handmade and support local artists. I really hope that if you're in the neighbourhood of either of these places you'll stop by. I was lucky enough to visit OKO this morning in Portland and loved so many things in the shop that it took some serious will power to not leave with a whole new pile of accessories and housewares. OKO is in a really fun part of Portland that I'd never been to before. Close to the immense Forest Park and in the vicinity of some great breakfast places. The one that we went to was once featured on Man Vs. Food for its giant pancakes (called "mancakes"). I ended up having strawberry covered cheese blintzes. Delicious! I'm totally on another overeating vacation and I love it! I've also picked up some new fabric for a couple of projects that I have in mind. I'll let you in on a little secret...I never want to go home! Hope you're all having a wonderful long weekend, too. What have you been eating?

P.S. The above photo is borrowed from the OKO blog because I brilliantly forgot my card reader this weekend and can't share any of my own pictures with you until Monday!

the sadie blog turns 1!

Today is the 1 year anniversary of my first real post on the Sadie blog. You know what I can't believe? That's it's only been a year! I mean, how is it possible that it was just a year ago that I was getting back from an amazing birthday trip to New York, that my last summer in school was getting underway, that I still had a year left in my program, that I had endless time on my hands, and on and on it goes. A year really flies by and I'm so glad to have this great visual record of the past twelve months. I'm looking forward to sharing the next year of events with you all. Thank you again to everyone who takes the time to read and comment. You're the best! Wanna see that first post? This photo is of the world's most delicious birthday cake which I ate with a bunch of other Canadians, a couple of Americans, and one Italian last year in Central Park. We cut it with knives fashioned out of cardboard and borrowed from a hotdog vendor and ate it with our hands. If you're ever in New York check out momofuku, that's where this beauty came from (it really was beautiful in the beginning).

let's be adventurers

This morning I was taking the seabus to work and ran into a woman with a bike all loaded up with touring gear who really didn't seem to know her way around the station or the seabus. Since I was riding my bike, too, it was natural for us to talk to each other while we waited for the ferry. I learned that she'd just been cycle touring in Patagonia for ten months, and now she's here in Canada for ten months of bike riding and then is planning to ride to Alaska. I don't know for sure, but it looks like she was travelling on her own, and since I was just on my way to work and she was riding her bike to Whistler, I was super inspired by her and a little bit jealous, too. Our paths crossing was a nice reminder that there is a lot of possibility out there for all of us and that, up to a point, we can choose adventure if that's what we want. She reminded me that travelling is best done if you can really get away for a while...at least, that's been my experience. I miss those years when Jeff and I would just take a month off work (or quit altogether) and head off on an adventure together. Perhaps sometime I'll share some stories of our cross-country trip in 2002. Victoria to New York. We were such crazy kids.

In a couple of weeks I'm turning 31. No longer 30, I'm going to be in my 30s. Not that I'm even remotely considering quitting my job (which is kind of awesome), I still think this is a good time to make plans for adventures in the near future. Maybe something epic like a ten month bike trip around Patagonia, likely something a little more do-able (for me, right now) like a month long trip down the coast. Who knows, but a big trip feels like the right thing to aspire to now. A big trip that Lola and Jeff can come on, too.

I'm hoping to put together a little summer series on this theme, so if you're going on an epic (or even mini) adventure and you'd like to share it, get in touch. I think I have a couple lined up already that are almost literally polar opposites. At the very least the gears are turning and a new guest post series is in the works. I hope that some of you can be a part of it!

Book club post on Part One tomorrow!

outtakes

This past Sunday Jeff, Emily, Ryan, Amanda, Lola, and Hazel and I went to Lighthouse Park in West Van to do a photoshoot with some new Sadie pieces. The weather was so beautiful, the dogs were pretty hyper, and the views were amazing. These are a few outtakes from our shoot. I can't wait to see what Ryan ends up having, as he was the true photographer of the day. And even Hazel modelled some jewelry. She can be seen wearing a pendulum necklace in the photo above. I'll share more soon!

that post about summer hockey in vancouver

I'm going to let these pictures and videos do most of the storytelling, but I think it would be remiss of me to be a Vancouverite and not mention that something huge is going down here right now. The Vancouver Canucks are in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in 17 years. Last evening was game two. To deal with the thousands of people who want to watch and party and parade around town with homemade Stanley Cups, the city has set up a bunch of outdoor screens, streets are closed, and people are high-fiving and slapping their bellies all over the place (seriously, that seems to be a way that men are celebrating this). We saw party RVs, almost got murdered by an airhorn blast of unrivalled power, snuck into the CBC plaza party, and watched the Canucks win with an overtime goal just 11 seconds into the first overtime period. Were you downtown or watching somewhere else last night? What are you doing for game three tomorrow? Are you, like me, a Flames fan who is just loving this for the atmosphere that it's creating in the city? I swear. Jeff and I are like, well, this is fun, but it's no 2004...and I don't get to scream "THAT'S MY NEIGHBOUR!!!" every time Martin Gelinas scores a series-winning goal. Check out some amazing photos and more over at the CBC.

a few new things...

the miriam necklace

cave explorer necklace

pendulum necklace

Hi everyone, just a quick check-in on this beautiful sunny Sunday afternoon to share a few photos that Jeff and I took today of some new pieces that are in the Sadie shop. My mom brought me a few pieces of jewelry from my 92 year old grandmother's collection of costume jewelry this weekend and one piece had the most amazing vintage brass tassels on it. The tassels have now been incorporated into two new pendulum necklaces in the shop. I also photographed the Miriam necklaces and am adding just one new lonely cave explorer to the shop today. This guy lives in a teardrop-shaped agate geode and is hard at work with shovel in hand. Now back to that book club book!