Big Sale Ends Sunday + Head/Hand Shaking
Sale Ends Sunday – 10% off all Art Jewelry, Prints, Tools, and DVDs!
Use coupon code HAPPYHOLIDAYS at checkout. Any qualifying items will show a 10% reduction at checkout once coupon is applied.
Sale ends Sunday, December 12, 2021.
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My Wild Neighbor the Meerkat$65.00 -
Spellbound IV$960.00 -
Giclee Prints normally $65 discounted to $58.50 with coupon
Spellbound IV Sculptural filigree earrings discounted to $774. with coupon
Eastern Repousse Tools Sets discounted to $202.50 with coupon
Got Design or Technical Questions? Get Help!
Sometimes we all need a little help, maybe a little coaching, maybe fresh eyes on a problem.
Whether you’re experiencing technical difficulties with one of the techniques or projects you’ve learned from Victoria’s classes or videos, or you could use some coaching in finding your own artistic voice within these processes, it’s time to access the help you deserve. (Please click the image for requirements.)
The 1-hour sessions are recorded for you to download and keep for life!
Please indicate if this is a gift and when you would like me to contact the recipient in the “Order Notes” box at the bottom of the checkout window. You will receive the printable gift certificate via a link in the email order confirmation (check your spam box).
Once purchased, Victoria will contact you at the email associated with your order to set up a time or get the recipient details if this is a surprise gift.
Give the gift of time, help, and resources to someone you love, which might be yourself!
$85.
The Part You’ve been waiting for…
…And in Other News from Lake Victoria
An Echo of Thanks
Thanks to everyone who contributed to WCLK Jazz 91.9 FM on our behalf!!! We didn’t win this year’s Signature Serenade competition, but we did make a big difference for the station. We also had a blast being the guest DJs even with a huge technical challenge.
Back in the early 2000s, comedian Elaine Boozler told the hilarious story of getting to sing the Star Spangled Banner before a New York Mets game at Shea Stadium. She’d been warned about the echo effect, that unless you wear earplugs, you can hear the echo of yourself singing over top of hearing yourself actually sing, which would make any non-pro have a helluva time keeping track of where one is in verse or melody. It’s like singing Row Row Row your boat with the second person coming it at completely the wrong place that isn’t quite consistentingly in the same place each round. Her running gag about the experience, which with the help of technology she demonstrated, was that, if you timed it right, you could catch up with your own echo and sing as one.
For some crazy reason, every time we were on the air with Debb there was this tremendous echo of Chris’s and my voices. Debb’s voice had no echo problems, and our echos would disappear while our tunes played on the air and we were chatting just the three of us. The echo only happened when when we were live on air and couldn’t be heard by the listeners. Chris and I had phoned in 5 rooms apart with closed doors, headphones, and dedicated pro microphones. The station’s engineer tried to troubleshoot it, but nothing helped.
No “Rocket’s Red Glare,” at Shea Stadium effect. More like
We’re so excited to so excite be here be with you here to help our beloved you here help jazz station during Signature during Serenade Signature Serenade…[just kill me now…]
Because it’s not hard at all for a couple of amateur enthusiasts to sound intelligent on the radio [insert eye roll here] while hearing everything you’ve said as you’re trying to remember the next thing you were about to say.
Live.
With thousands of people listening from all over the world.
A friend of ours often refers to people as “A couple who ___.” The fill in the blank might be, “A couple who fights for social justice,” or “A couple who creates art together,” or “A couple who volunteers their time.” I told Chris, “I’d rather just be a power couple than “A couple who powers through.” Maybe you heard us? I’m told we pulled it off. We’ll get a copy of the broadcast soon and find out for ourselves. One thing I can say for certain is that our playlist kicked ass.
Head/Hand Shaking
As Georgians continue to be stupid and gather in large groups, navigating life and boundaries has been filled with a lot of “No thanks” or “Sorry we can’t make it,” but to one event I caved. I feel ok going intermittently and briefly maskless and being able to social distance at a gathering space the size of a football field. In this case, it was an actual football field.
That said, I’m appalled that two years of a pandemic and everyone here still insists on doing what I’ve always felt was the stupidest cultural ritual ever: shaking hands at a finger food event. Eeeeewwwwweeeee!!!!
Seriously, why must this awkward, ring grinding, germ exchange persist???
Most of the time it’s easy to offer knuckles or elbows for a bump, but sometimes it feels the only way to get someone’s thrust hand away from my abdomen is to make hand to hand contact then push them back a bit. If that sounds icky, well…it is, except in my discomfort of their maskless faces in my proximity I found a great solution. I had a bottle of hand sanitizer looped to my evening bag’s strap (the latest in chic accessories) and slathered it on my hands so often that what people got in return was a greased palm in the form of a cold, jelly-like, germ killing substance from my hand to theirs. Life saving hand sanitizer can feel rather unpleasant when you don’t know it’s coming. Perhaps I’ve discovered the best way to contribute to the ending of this utterly disgusting and germy ritual.
A Chocolate Cake Update
For everyone who enjoyed the epic saga of Johnnie Jo’s Chocolate Cake recipe a couple of weeks ago (my sincere thanks for all the fan mail!!!), I can safely attest that 375ºF is the way to go (unless your oven runs insanely hot). Our new oven is marvelous, however, trying the cake at 350ºF was a near disaster when I checked it at the 15 minute mark (which, no, was not in the directions) and found it wasn’t quite risen in the middle. I turned up the oven to 375ºF and voila, it was the best cake I’ve ever made, at least in the memory of the cake consumers who live here. They’re looking forward to a Christmas repetition.
Oh, and the “beat up, 2-tiered, aluminum cake tin, no doubt bought with Green Stamps in the early 1960s?” that I mentioned you could buy on eBay? I scored one myself for posterity. It’s even still shiny just like Johnnie Jo’s once was before we helped her give it that lived in look.
Apologies to all my wonderful customers in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, and Canada
The US Postal Service has stopped mail to all or parts of these countries. I’m searching for affordable solutions, but it’s really challenging. If you see an insanely high shipping rate at checkout on my my site, that’s a portion of what DHL is charging me. For years, I’ve subsidized the international shipping rates rather than pass that onto my customers and will continue to do so as best I can. If the shipping rate drops after your order has been placed, I will refund the difference to your payment method.
Thanks for your continued patience during these crazy times!!!
Please also check my specialty products for metalsmiths at Rio Grande. As a much larger company, they may be able to ship to you for less.