Thursday, March 27, 2014

Korean Bead Soup with the Help of Vonna

When we moved to South Korea, I began to collect (among other things) little charms which were reminders of our time there. They included the very first thing I noticed when we first arrived in Korea which was a maedeup (Korean knotted) key chain. I bought it and knew I was going to learn how to make these beautiful knots. I had a couple of hand painted bottle caps from Nabi Island and a few pieces of chilbo (Korean enameling) made by my teacher, Nan-Young.

Also there was copper mask that I bought at the Hope Market in Hongdae in Seoul and a couple charms from Dongdaemun. There was a charm of my beloved Hwaseong Fortress which was designed by metal guy and enameled by Nan-Young. And finally a wooden carving handmade by my body guard. Each piece is priceless to me for the many memoires they hold.

I knew I wanted to incorporate them into a bracelet but I was at a loss as to how. That's when I thought of my dear friend, Vonna. Her jewelry designs blow me away and I own several of her pieces. You can see her creations in her Etsy shop here.
I sent her everything you saw in the first picture and this is what was returned to me. I was in shock. It was amazing what she did with all those charms and I find myself staring at it and remembering so many wonderful things. Thank you Vonna for your talent and for being my friend. I'm very blessed.

Tuesday, March 18, 2014

More Hanji!

I picked up these forms during my last visit to Korea last year. Luckily, I had ordered ahead because I wasn't able to do the proper shopping I would have liked to do due to Rocketman's kidney stone. We are thinking about a trip over to Korea in the Fall although we haven't made any firm plans yet.
 These were so fun to make and very easy. The hardest part is always choosing the paper to use.

I sorely need to buy hanji paper and it's really something I can't have my Korean girlfriends do for me. I have a feeling I will need a suitcase just for hanji paper the next time we go.

Spring is supposedly this week but you wouldn't know it here in Minnesota. Right now it is snowing and we are expecting 2-4 inches by morning. I'm still looking forward to seeing a green lawn although I haven't missed mowing.

Thursday, March 13, 2014

Bojagi on Etsy


Every once in a while I'll do an Etsy search on bojagi to see what pops up. It had been awhile and when I found Harim Kim's etsy site I almost jumped through the screen. She had the most amazing bojagi and I immediately ordered several things. If you know me, you know how obsessed I am with bojagi and especially Korean thimbles. She was offering handmade thimbles at an unbelievable price. I know all the time it takes to make a thimble.
 
She is in South Korea so it took awhile for my package to arrive. You can see what I bought in the photo above. So if you want some Korean bojagi and can't get to Korea, Harim Kim can ship to you. She also has a Ebay store. She also sells the ramie that I use in a lot of my bojagi.
Speaking of ramie, this is a photo of mine. I had bought just about every color the Korean vendor had. This is one of my happy boxes.
Louie has been really affectionate since I returned from our daughter's. He loves to sit on my lap or Rocketman's and purrs up a storm.
 


Thursday, March 6, 2014

A Week with Noah, Ezra and Our Newest Grandson, Judah!


I was on pins and needles the last week two weeks of February waiting for the call that Laura, our daughter, was in labor. She was due March 4th but I really thought it would be a February baby especially since she went early with her two previous pregnancies. I was right!
 
I got a call from her Monday night, February 24th, that she felt she was in active labor. She never had consistent contractions but she was pretty sure. I packed the last minute things and Rocketman loaded my car and off I went. She lives about an hour from me and, luckily, it wasn't snowing or rush hour.
 
I arrived in plenty of time and they went to the hospital around 10pm. Judah Corwin Anderson was born 5:16am on February 25, 2014. Daddy Brent came and picked me up with the boys to visit after Noah came home from school. They were so excited to meet their little brother.

Ezra had a great time as you can see.
                                  Rocketman drove over after work and joined us for the fun.
We left baby and Mama and went out to eat and then home to get the boys into bed.
                                  Judah and Mama came home a day later in -20F temperatures.
                                           Noah was definitely smitten with his little brother.
                                                 Ezra liked being the big brother.
I stayed a week to help out and the boys were so good. I never got tired of hearing Noah telling me how much he loved me and that I was the best Grandma in the world. This is Ezra's look when I told him it was naptime.
 Judah changed so much just in the week I was there. He is also such a good baby. Sleeps and eats great.
            I took the kid's stuffed animals and did this to surprise them. Noah sleeps on the upper bunk.
             I took these pictures of Noah coming home from school in -20 degrees temperatures.
         Yes, he took his sweet time getting home while I watched from the window freaking out.
                           It was 20 below zero!!!!  He should be running all the way.
                   When it was bedtime, look who thought he was a stuffed animal, Finnegan.
                                                  Ezra loved the stuffed animals!
             Here's my baby girl with her baby boy. She is such a good momma. I'm so proud of her.
                             She sent me home with these eggs from their chickens.
I came home to this, my favorite candy bar in the shape of a heart along with a beautiful plant and a sign. He said he didn't want to buy so many Reese's but that's how many it took to make a heart. I'm sure they will get eaten:)
                 Rocketman said that Louie just wasn't himself all week. I guess he missed me too.


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