i REALLY do not care for the color yellow

i know, it's not right...i should love all the colors equally. but i don't.
so this little sweater for my nephew porter (in the colors of u. of west viginia) is not going to happen. i can't bear to work with that color for any length of time, so i unravelled it, wound it up and put the yellow ball somewhere where i wouldn't have to look at it. what shall i knit porter for christmas, i wonder.......

almost there......ah, silver!

do we like THIS orientation.....
or THIS one?
anyone out there want to vote?
i'm partial to this "glamour shot" of the elements.


here it is, as of this evening.
the patina isn't quite right, there are some scratches that need to be sanded out and it's only temporarily strung so i can wear it to the wedding tomorrow night. after that, i'll unstring and finish the elements and hang them on multiple strands of the wire with the pearls as they are here, PLUS floating pearls on the 2 or 3 strands all the way up to the back......

1st day of school....

....was yesterday. this is what second grade and fifth grade look like at my house!

i.quit. (not really)

well, dang it all.
so, i bought the big expensive stainless steel container, filled it to the brim with brand new activated carbon. fired the whole set-up once with no work in it. and then, with great trepidation and excitement, slid this water etched piece in vertically, towards the back of the pan with at least 3/4-1" of activated carbon on top. i fired without the lid at 1110 for 30 minutes to burn out the binder, let it cool, put the lid on and fired for 3 hours at 1520.
and there's that darn cracking!!!
anybody (barb) have any ideas what i'm doing wrong?!?!