New York City! January 2012

Battery Park Squirrel

Looking for a clueless tourist to jump on......

Museum of Modern Art

We went to the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim last month and came back with our heads brimming with ideas and inspiration from all the wonderful art we saw.

This charm bracelet was inspired by Paul Gauguin's "Still Life with Three Puppies". We found some vintage flocked puppy charms that we thought were just perfect for our project:

We used colors pulled from the palette of Salvador Dali's 1931 painting "The Persistence of Memory". The melting clocks in the painting are so iconic and we loved the colors he used:

Breakfast with the Beagles

LeeLee, Sly, Lucy and Jack starting the day off with their kibble.

Occupy What???

My daughter and I were in New York City last month and saw this as we were about to cross the street:

I think it makes a lot more sense than the Occupy Wall Street movement.

The Dog Ate My Homework

It actually DOES happen sometimes:




Bon Appetit LeeLee. :(




Yeah okay, keep ignoring us.....
Oh great - is that a snow boot? Are YOU the one who chewed off the zipper? We're pretty sure you are.



Ah - sleeping after all that effort.

The Reelentless

After years of taking fishing charters run by others, we decided with my husband's love of fishing and our family's love of fish, we needed our own boat. He's been dreaming of this for years and we just got this one a couple of weeks ago. She's even got a little head and galley which pleases me and she is very comfortable to sleep in. What I like most is the heater and the fact that the cover keeps you out of the weather. Even in the middle of Summer it can get really cold out on the water and it rains - a lot.

The Reelentless. Here she is in her slip at Valdez, Alaska.
She will be roaming the icy waters of Prince William Sound this summer as we fish for halibut, salmon, red snapper and ling cod.

Here's a photo of a rainbow I took out the boat's window. It was cold and misty when we started out and the sea was a bit rough. We ducked into a cove and caught three halibut and went back to port. It's a good thing because the ocean's swells were getting a bit bigger and I was feeling a bit green around the gills.
We got to see otters and porpoises - but they were being shy and I could not get photos.

A view of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline snaking its way up the mountainside - taken while driving back to North Pole after our fishing trip last weekend:

It runs 800 miles from the harbor town of Valdez to the North Slope oil fields at Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.

Goodnight Moon

We've loved this wonderful children's book for many years. This is a collection of vintage and handmade items available on Etsy that we have chosen to represent the illustrations in Margaret Wise Brown's classic story.

Swept from the Sea - An Ocean of Lovelies

With Spring approaching, we are making items loaded with Czech glass flowers and other garden lovelies! Here's our Dragonfly by the Sea necklace:Another sea inspired piece, Octopus in the Grotto, in transquil shades of turquoise, aquamarine, teal and seafoam:
Our Garden in the Grotto Charm bracelet, loaded with tiny sea creatures, Czech glass flowers, leaves and beads:

♥ Things I Love - Green Haven Soaps ♥

Interior Alaska Winters are long, brutal and drying to the skin. It was not uncommon for our skin to be itchy and flaky and develop dry patches on the elbows. Since switching to handmade soaps several months ago, the whole family has noticed an improvement in our skin - and no dry patches on the elbows!

I have purchased a lot of handmade soap in local shops, on my travels and over the internet. Some of the most delightful, outstanding bars I've used come from Green Haven Soaps on Etsy.

The bars are generously sized and highly scented with natural ingredients and essential oils. I could tell by the high quality of the bars that this soap maker does not skimp on ingredients. I've noticed some handmade soaps can get a bit soft and mushy after they have become wet. Green Haven's bars remained firm, yet still produced creamy, luxurious lather.

The soap is also presented beautifully. The bars came wrapped in a paper sleeve with a forest green embossed wax seal.

The shop is like a medieval fairy tale. With fanciful names like Avalon, Selkie, Quest and Tavern, beautiful photographs and descriptions of the soap, I felt like I had been transported to a magical land. Green Haven mixes scents in delicious combinations too - juniper, lavender, clary sage, peppermint are just some of the wonderful ingredients. I'm on the second bar from her shop and look forward to trying all the soap I purchased and will definitely be buying more.
I also purchased Green Haven Soap's Alchemy body wash. I didn't know whether to drink it or wash with it when I took my first whiff of this delightful concoction. It has an amazing scent of orange and honey. Alchemy truly looks like a magical potion with its lovely golden colour and is bubbly and wonderful and I feel so pampered when I use it!
Handmade soap is one of the last affordable luxuries. Such a great way to indulge yourself or give as a gift.

Etsy Beagles Blog Giveaway ♥ Enter to Win A Fabulous Prize!!

Cast your vote at the Etsy Beagle Blog: http://etsybeagles.blogspot.com/2010/02/etsy-beagles-hearts-and-hounds-team.html

We love dogs. We love Beagles. We are also proud members of the Etsy Beagle Street Team - made up of Etsy Sellers drawn together by their love of dogs. Periodically our team will pick a theme and participating members will create items to go along with the theme. Team members donate a portion of the proceeds of their entry to the animal charity of their choice.

Our latest theme is "Hearts and Hounds". You have an opportunity to win a fabulous pouch from the lovely Tricia of Kooky Handbags just for voting for your favorite team entry:
All you need to do is go to the official Etsy Beagle Blog and vote for your favorite team challenge entry by leaving a comment and voila! You're entered!

The winner is chosen by our "Flealess Leader" Miss Anomoly's handsome hound Flash.

Flash dives into a bowl where slips of paper with the names of the voters have been placed. His goal - the hidden Snausage. The first slip out of the bowl shows the winner. ♥


Our entry is the Hearts and Hounds Charm Bracelet.

$10 from the sale of the bracelet will be donated to the Loving Companion Animal Rescue in North Pole, Alaska. Visit their website to learn more about them.

Good luck to all!

Alice in Wonderland Jewelry by 2 Raven Chicks

Alice: But I don't want to go among mad people.
The Cat: Oh, you can't help that. We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.
- Lewis Carrol, Alice in Wonderland

We are SO excited to see the new Tim Burton Alice in Wonderland movie that will be coming out in March!

Here are some of the Alice in Wonderland inspired pieces for sale in our Etsy shop..

The Queen of Hearts choker

Alice Meets the Caterpillar charm necklace
Alice in Wonderland charm necklace

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz

Inspired by L. Frank Baum's classic The Wizard of Oz, we created this charm necklace. Complete with the yellow brick road, flying monkey, the Tin Man, Lion and Ruby Slippers.

It's for sale in our Etsy shop:

Finding Oz Charm Necklace

Santa's Reindeer

The Raven dude was ice fishing with a buddy this weekend at Fielding Lake. Part of Santa's herd was spotted....

Look's like they're all getting ready for the big day!

Bracelet Blog Giveaway - Etsy Beagle Team♥

Enter for your chance to win your choice of a beautiful bracelet from the lovely, talented Beaglebeads:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/35807123@N03/4121892967/in/pool-etsybeagle

All you need to do is go to our team's Blog and comment on your favorite item in our Happy Howl-i-days Winter Challenge! Enter here:

http://etsybeagles.blogspot.com/2009/12/etsy-beagle-street-teams-happy-howl-i.html

Come check out all the fabulouse entries by my talented team mates! The handsome hound you see in the team blog photo is our mascot - Flash! I can't help but smile when I see his sweet face!

Thing One, Thing Two and Thing .03

Let sleeping dogs lie. NOW I know what they meant by that. When these three come to there's gonna be pandemonium!


Her Ladyships Juliette, Lucilla and Sylvestra enjoy a life of luxury and privilege. With a personal staff of four flunkies to cater to their every whim and desire their home is truly a doggie dream come true.
So far the littlest member seems to fit in fine. What she lacks in size, she makes up for with attitude. She seems to be oblivious to the fact that she weighs about a pound.

♥♥♥A New Addition To Our Family!♥♥♥

Here she is - Her Ladyship Juliette of Pinestream. Little Beagle Julie is coming to join our family next weekend. What a sweet face and just look at those socks!

Hopefully big brother Lucky-dog and big sisters Lucy and Sly will welcome her with open paws. I'm expecting a lot of sniffing. Lucky just turned 11 years old last month and Beagles Lucy and Sly turned one last week! Sly (J.R. Ewing's secretary) and Lucy (Ewing) are named after characters in the popular nighttime soap from the 70's - 90's - "Dallas" - so is Julie (another of J.R.'s secretaries on the show).

Going into winter is not the best time to get a new puppy, but we got Lucy and Sly last December and we all managed to survive the winter. I'm questioning our sanity, but everything will end up just fine.

Birdhouses and Outhouses at 2RavenChicks

Finally, we have posted some birdhouses to our Etsy site! They are made by the chief Raven guy - Husband and Father of the 2RavenChicks. They are made from recycled cedar fence boards from our backyard fence.

Here's an outhouse for the feathered friends - the Shoot the Moon Outhouse Birdhouse - complete with crescent moon ventilation, a rusty old cabin nail and a vintage Miller padlock:
We've named this one the Tarts and Bed Springs Birdhouse (what a BAD name - LOL). It's got an old tart tin and a rusty vintage bed spring and very knotty wood so what else could we call it?

More Charm Necklaces!

We just listed these charm necklaces in our Etsy shop today. I really like the vintage lock escutcheon and cabinet key on the Persephone's Garden necklace.

We are both Jane Austen fans and loved Bollywood's take on Pride and Prejudice - Bride and Prejudice! We became big fans of the over the top, outrageous production numbers in the movie.

We named this charm necklace Moon Over Bollywood . Complete with a bejeweled, enameled, bright orange elephant charm (so cute), rhinestone studded crescent moon, colorful beads, tiny vintage Indian bells, and a really amazing little vintage glass inaglio of the Taj Mahal. Very colorful and fun!

We've got a lot more charm necklaces in the works right now - a sea creature themed necklace as well as the Etsy Beagle Street Team Fall Challenge Piece - the theme - "Bark to School"!

I can't wait to see what my talented team mates come up with! This will be our first challenge, so we're not quite sure what to expect, but it will be a lot of fun! The Beagle Team is such a wonderful group of Etsians!!

Starting today through Midnight EST on Monday, August 31st, we are offering free shipping on all the items in our Etsy shop! This is to Celebrate the milestone 18th Birthday of the younger of the 2RavenChicks on August 28th!

Well, it's getting late and it's been a long day, so am signing off for now! Thanks for stopping by our blog!

Spooktacular Fall Find - Vulture Decoration

Isn't this guy terrific? Handcrafted by Lex of Northwindstar - this vulture is just too adorable! With his hunchback the younger RavenChick and I have named him Quasimodo! The bones on the vintage bobbin she's used as a base are just a scream!

Lex has an amazing assortment of primitive items in her Etsy shop. How could anyone resist these bats with their beady eyes and tiny fangs? They even have wire in their little wings and can be posed - I love the one she's got hanging upside down:Candy Corn too - with no calories!I had to have them all! I had ordered a set of her Barn Owls and was delighted when I got them! They smelled delicious too (Lex uses an aromatic cinnamon rub on a lot of her items). It's so nice to order things online and get the item and love it even more than you thought you would!

Lex is also a very lovely, gracious lady! Check out her blog: http://northwindstar-primitives.blogspot.com/ for tasty recipes, craft ideas and other delights! I can't wait to see what Lex has in store for Christmas!

Since many of you reading this are still sweltering in the scorching temperatures of summer you may think August is a little early to be talking Halloween. Just close your eyes for a moment and think about the brilliant blue skies and cool Autumn air soon to come.

I'm already thinking of the Fall! Here in Interior Alaska we've had frost a couple of times and some of the leaves in the woods around us have started turning to gold.

Autumn is my favorite time of year. I love the smells of the season - spices , pumpkins and crisp, juicy fall apples! Rich savory soups and stews - mmm. The rich colors of the turning leaves and fashions. Getting out my boots and fuzzy comforting sweaters.

I can hardly wait!

Waiting for the 172nd Stryker Brigade

After deploying to Iraq for a year, the soldiers of the United States Army's 172nd Stryker Brigade are making their way home to Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

I've taken photos of a few of the wonderful handmade banners put up by families and friends of the troops.

Banners and signs are also showing up on many of the quarters in the housing areas as well. I drove through several streets and saw so many yellow ribbons!

As more and more banners show up along the main road on Post you can almost feel the excitement in the air.

It's easy to spot the Soldiers who have just come home. They're the ones you see in the Commissary with children clutching at them in a grip not even a gale force wind could break. Or the couple giggling and holding hands in the food court of the Main Exchange.

Signs are appearing on local businesses as well - from coffee stands to the used car dealerships. This is a town that loves its military and as a Veteran myself married to an Army Retiree, I'm proud to live in this supportive community.

I have several friends who are anxiously waiting for their loved ones to arrive.

A big shout out to the weasel/worm and the one that will let you pet his rank.


You KNOW who you are.
God willing, ALL the soldiers will return no later than the end of September.