Welcome back, Dream Wire Designs

Some of you might remember a few years ago a dear friend, GG, came to stay with us for a few months. We've known GG since she was two years old, and her mom and I are excellent friends. GG and Older Daughter grew up together, and she was working in New York City for the first year Older Daughter was nannying in New Jersey, so the girls were able to get together (and GG even managed to drag Older Daughter to the Met, since GG is an opera fanatic).

Anyway, GG had an Etsy store called Dream Wire Designs. It slowed down for a while as she was busy with her job, but now she's attending college and reinstating the store. I urge you to visit and support her endeavors -- and help pay for her schooling (every little bit helps!).

Here are some of the astounding creations this talented young woman makes -- with just wire and beads, her fertile imagine, and her nimble fingers.

One of GG's most popular items is custom crowns for little girls. When she was staying with us, I was privileged to watch her make these from beginning (sketching the outline on her computer and sending it to the customer for approval) to end (her jaw-dropping construction techniques).

She also makes custom crowns for grownups. These are very popular for brides.

GG is both a history buff and a Lord of the Rings buff, so many of her pieces reflect those interests.

Here's her interpretation of Catherine of Aragon's headdress (that's the first wife of Henry VIII):

And Goldberry's circlet (from The Fellowship of the Ring):

GG can do all sorts of fantasy wire designs -- chokers, necklaces, earrings, brooches, you name it. She's one talented gal.

Go check out her store -- and tell her I said "hi."

Another daughter and one of THOSE days

Our friend GG, who makes such ethereal and beautiful jewelry pieces, is staying with us for a few weeks. We're so tickled!

GG's folks live across the country now, so frankly we thought we'd never see her again after she left boarding school. But an unexpected opportunity arose to have her stay with us for an extended period of time, and we jumped at the opportunity with both feet.

We had a place to put her -- a spare bedroom -- but frankly it was a MESS.

This bedroom is tucked under the steep roof of the house and its only windows are low and on the floor. Kind of a neat room, if a little dark.

As with many spare bedrooms, it had become a catch-all for everything. We spread the corn crop up there to dry. Younger Daughter used it for sewing. We have overflow books in there. In short, GG's visit was the perfect excuse to clean it out.

So little by little we sorted, organized, discarded, donated, and otherwise got rid of the mess.

Progress...

When at last the floor was clean, we moved the fold-out futon couch in as a bed (with a plywood board underneath to shore up the saggy, lumpy mattress). Clean sheets, warm blankets, ready to go... just in time to travel to the airport.

Late on Thursday evening, there she was!

GG is like another daughter to us, so she slips right in with our family.

And she (along with our girls) is a trooper. Today we were coming back from Coeur d'Alene, climbing the steep grade heading out of town, when the car suddenly made an ominous sound: thumpthumpthumpthumpthump. Flat tire. Crud.

As I later emailed to GG's mom: "Managed to limp to the top of the grade and pulled over. Naturally I was in a place with no cell phone coverage, so I called 911, who connected me to the State Police, who called [name deleted] road service (which we have instead of AAA). Apparently our service call was "declined" (it's Saturday, after all, everyone knows flat tires don't happen on Saturdays -- remind me to renew our membership with AAA on Monday morning). So a very nice policeman showed up...

...but because the car was parked on a slight slope, his jack wasn't high enough to lift the car to pull off the tire and neither was mine (a comedy of errors), so the policeman called a Les Schwab fellow with a mega-jack. Meanwhile the girls set up a spontaneous tea party by the side of the highway...

...and made the best of a bad situation until the Les Schwab fellow arrived...

...who was very nice and efficient and had me on my way in five minutes...

Since we were driving on the spare "donut" tire, we crept home at 40 mph, so we only got home about an hour ago. The girls were TROOPERS."

Such was my email to my friend. An hour's drive ended up taking four.

So GG will be with us until at least after Thanksgiving, and we'll savor every moment we can. Despite the flat tires and THOSE kinds of days.

More Dreamwire Designs

Our friend GG, whose talented fingers and vivid imagination have produced some amazing results in the past, has some new pieces available on her Etsy store.

Daphne's Coronet

The White Queen (this can be worn with the prongs facing up or down)

The Queen of Hearts (fun!)

Cinderella's tiara

Silver moon

She has lots more beautiful items at her Etsy shop. Go take a look!

GG is coming out shortly to stay with us for a few weeks -- can't wait!

More Dreamwire Designs

If you remember, our young friend GG has started a wire jewelry business making some amazing designs. Her focus is chokers, necklaces, circlets, and earrings. She does some amazing things with simple wire and beads, things which I find jaw-droppingly beautiful.

GG has some new items available on her Etsy site. Consider these:

A red-beaded Tree of Life.

Copper choker.

Gondorian-inspired chandelier earrings.

Clever dragonfly earrings.

A history buff, GG has been experimenting with Tudor-style head pieces. Here's Ann Bolyn:

Jane Seymour:

There are lots more beautiful things at GG's Etsy shop. Please go take a look!

More Dreamwire Designs

Our young friend GG, who started a wire jewelry business called Dreamwire Designs, has some new pieces available. Man, I can't believe what comes out of her fertile mind and through those creative fingers.

I thought this choker was particularly beautiful.

This coronet can be worn with the peak down, or up. I liked it down, myself.

Any dragonfly fans out there? This is a hair pin. Astounding.

This is a Japanese-inspired cherry-blossom choker. Betcha you didn't think this sort of thing could be created from wire!

This Greek-inspired brass choker is deceptively simple. I think it's elegant.

There are lots more beautiful pieces available at her Etsy shop. Take a peek.

Dreamwire Designs

A few years ago, some dear friends sent their daughter GG to a boarding school in our region for a couple of years. Because her family lived so far away, and because GG and Older Daughter have been good friends for many years, we were her home away from home during the times she couldn't be with her family for shorter vacations or the occasional weekend when she just needed to get away from school.

GG is all grown up now and has started a business making wire jewelry called Dreamwire Designs.

She's always had a talent with jewelry-making. One year she gave Older Daughter a choker which -- I'm not kidding -- still gets comments everywhere she goes. ("Where did you GET that?") Now she's putting those talents to good use in starting her own business.

She's been playing with some designs from Lord of the Rings. Here's Galadriel's circlet:

And here's Eowyn's circlet:

She also makes earrings, ear cuffs, and chokers, all for extremely reasonable prices. I urge you to take a peek at her talent and support her endeavors.