Category: News

Last minute but lovely: Arts in the Park

On Sunday, I spent a lovely day out in the park with dozens of other local authors, artists, and artisans.  The annual Stittsville Arts in the Park show was supposed to be in June, but got rained out.  Sunday was the rain day, and boy, was it the total opposite.  We had a bit of cloud off and on, but the humidity was gone, the temperature was great, and there was a light breeze.  I got to meet loads of people and I think everyone was in such a great mood because of the weather.

The show itself was a success, too.   There was a ton of great local talent, and the kids area had some delicious lemonade for sale.  The park was pretty busy for most of the day and I barely had time to sit down.  I’m very much looking forward to next year’s show.  Watch for details!

Lavender Swarovski Pearl Hair Pins
Lavender Swarovski Pearl Hair Pins, made during a quieter moment.
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Drakestail’s set up at the park!

Happy June, everyone!

There are so many things happening!

We were at Ravenswing in Ottawa for their 10th anniversary! Ravenswing was amazing! Great vendors, lots of old friends, and lots of new ideas. Getting there was a little nuts, but it was all worth it!

We hid under our tent, in the ever-disappearing shade, and made the best of a beautiful, yet really freaking hot, day! It was an amazing time filled with music, amazing crafts and vendors, and some tasty handmade treats! We may or may not have devoured a bag of Maggie’s Shortbread

at the booth
Braving the heat and have the best time!

We also gave away our first raffle prize! It featured a bit of sparkle, a bit of relaxation, and of course, a bit of beauty.

Will you be our next winner?!?
Will you be our next winner?!?

Then, last Saturday we were raffling of ANOTHER piece of jewellery, this one in support of getting a Buddy Bench for St John Paul II Elementary School.

garage prize3
Helping kids make friends? Is there anything jewellery can’t do?!?

 

Finally, THIS Saturday, June 11th, we’ll be at Heart Home and Handmade Indie Craft Fair. (Yes, we do have another prize give-a-way) This one is at the Bell Sensplex, 1565 Maple Grove Road, Ottawa. Come visit us from 10am to 4pm, and enter for your chance to win!

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Team Meeting and a Photo Shoot!

Drakestail Team photo

Since Roxy lives in Winnipeg and Trish and I live in Ottawa, we do most of our chatting over Skype or Facebook messenger. This past weekend, however, Roxy visited Ottawa and the three of us got to meet up in person!

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After stuffing ourselves silly at breakfast, we went to Carleton university for a photo shoot. We went for a lovely walk around campus and took advantage of all the green space and shot some team photos. Since this was the first time the three of us were together since Trish joined Drakestail, we needed some pictures of the three of us together.

Of course, us being us, the day wasn’t completely serious…

Drakestail photoshoot outtakes

And I did get side-tracked by a loon swimming on the Rideau Canal behind us.  It got nick-named “jerk bird” because it kept diving when I’d line up a shot.

The jerk bird.

But we had a great time, talked about business and about life, and got some great photos of the whole team together.

Drakestail Team photo

Tips and Tricks – Natural Silver Polish

I had my first art sale in over a year last month and when I took all my jewellery out to prep it I noticed the silver had tarnished. This is, of course, to be expected but I still had a brief panic about what to do. I do not like using harsh chemicals, all products in my home are natural so I decided to google natural silver polish options and found numerous articles about using baking soda.

My fiancé ran out to grab a soft toothbrush for me while I got everything ready. I laid out all the pieces that needed polishing on some microfiber cloths, set aside another cloth for drying afterwards. I prepared my baking soda paste (baking soda and warm water) and got started!

IMG_4412
Ready to get started!

I was skeptical at first that it would do a good job, but with just a little light scrubbing…

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Scrub scrub scrub!

Turns out I was very happy with the results! It didn’t scratch or damage the silver in any way, which was a concern since baking soda is abrasive. I polished up all my silver pieces in no time and got everything rinsed, dried and packed up for the next day! I’m always so excited when I find natural cleanser and options for household products so I thought I’d share this one with all of you!

tips and tricks
Polished on the left, still waiting to be done on the right!

 

Turning Toxic Water into Gold

Looking to turn lead into gold?

Ok, we haven’t gone that far, but scientists have found bacteria that (sort of) makes gold!

Delftia-acidovorans
Tiny bits of gold!

Gold chloride is a toxic byproduct of mining. Delftia acidovorans and Cupriavidus metallidurans are 2 species that have developed a resistance to the heavy metal toxin. They eat the toxic mix and poop out 24k gold.

Bio-lab/art piece “The Great Work of the Metal Lover" featuring gold producing bacteria
Bio-lab/art piece “The Great Work of the Metal Lover” featuring gold-producing bacteria

Is it going to change the gold market? Probably not, the toxic feed is still costly, and it’s not like artificially created gemstones have stopped the demand for naturally occurring stones. There is, however, talk of using the bacteria to help extract gold out of the mining waste, thereby reducing or eliminating the toxic byproduct, or even using the bacteria’s presence to test soil samples and find the best place for future mining.

gold bracelet
So we can make you more pretty things like this!

All in all, it’s a pretty cool discovery with positive environmental application potential, and a little extra shimmer.

Looking for your own bit of gold? Visit us here, or invite us over for your very own Fabulous Home Party!

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