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Omygoodness, where to begin! I walk out to the shop (garage) with a few ideas, some wood, stone, buttons, and even a bit of coconut shell. Who knows what will come out, lol. - This is a weekend in my Hendywood world. Click on the picture for it to enlarge.
O.K., I'll tackle the wood and a few buttons first. I love the Luna Face metal button. The button is initialed on the back, so I will make sure they stay visible. The heart buttons and wood are always popular.
Branches to cuff links. They have been seen at a few weddings, from what I hear.
My husband brought home a coconut one day and wanted me to try to do something with the shell. I thought he was nuts, but tried anyway. It turned out to be some of the prettiest "wood" I've worked with so far. How was I to know?
Time to work on some buttons! Gonna de-button 'em, oh yeah!
The day (well, two days...) are finally coming to a close, with finished items to show off
TIME FOR THE BIG REVEAL!  Find more of my handmade work at /shop-hendywood-directly.html Visit my Etsy shops at http://www.Hendywood.Etsy.com and http://www.HendysHome.Etsy.com Click on any picture below for more information about that piece.
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 My space…it could possibly drive some people nuts. Organized? Well, believe it or not, yes! It does not look that way. If someone dares to venture into the realm of my creativity, I tell them not to touch a thing. Nothing needs to be cleaned up, put away, de-cluttered, OR God forbid, thrown out. I know where my stuff is!! Not another soul in the world may know where IT is, but I do.
From the chaos, jewelry, that appears to come from an organized origin, emerges. Click on any jewelry pic for more information on that piece.
To see more of my work feel free to visit my Etsy shops at http://www.hendywood.etsy.com and http://www.hendyshome.etsy.com
CLICK ON ANY PICTURE FOR A LINK TO THE STORE WHERE IT LIVES.  I have found, during my creative endeavors, that I would rather reclaim it and then recreate. Take this lovely little Tree of Life necklace. It was a fence post in a neighbor's yard. The post almost made it to the trash, but I "reclaimed" it and turned the wood into something much prettier than a fence post.  I'm a middle school teacher that goes through and discards unneeded supplies. There's got to be a better way, right? The blue dot in the center of a nicely rounded and perfectly smooth piece of mesquite wood? - The remains of a color pencil that was too short to be held by a 7th grader. Look at it now!  This sweet little necklace? - A button. Yep, it started out as a little button, which would have worked very nicely somewhere ... but I saw a necklace and cut the "button" right off, lol.  One of my favorite reclaiming projects so far. This purse was a pair of pants that was destined for the trash bag. They were plumb wore out. However, the pocket was still there, so I saw a purse. Of course I washed the fabric before making the bag :) The button was handmade by me from a branch I picked up from the yard. I think, if it can be used again, don't throw it away!
REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE  Sooo...I thought I might try to venture out on my own a little more. A new page is under construction here at Hendywood.com and we will see if anything sells outside my good ol' reliable Etsy.
Kinda scary. There is a lot that needs to be considered. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a biggie. Am I using the right words to get noticed by Google? Once that happens, then someone might find me and buy! THAT would be exciting! Product, pictures, pricing, description, shipping, shopping cart. Shopping cart...how the heck do I do that?!? I went to Paypal and followed their directions, much simpler than I thought it would be. The earrings in the picture were once a pair of cute, cute, cute buttons. But, I thought they would make cute jewelry, so I took the button part away and drilled holes for hanging. These were the first items listed on my shopping page. Hope they get found! Remember, the page is under construction, so enter at your own risk, lol! Please click and take a look around at the new venture. Leave a comment and let me know what you think! /shop-hendywood-directly.html For a wider variety of items go to http://www.hendywood.etsy.com and http://www.hendyshome.etsy.com  August 5th was a big day for little old Hendywood. We hit 1000 sales! It was exciting for us, lol! How did that happen?... Since my father was a carpenter, I grew up in a wood shop. As I grew older, I kinda lost touch with the wood. Sad, really. In 2004, I told my hubby I wanted a table saw for my birthday, something to cut wood. I figured if I could cut the wood, I could build something. I was getting a hankerin' to get back in touch with the wood. Well, wouldn't you know. God had other plans. I got the table saw for my September birthday and was learning how use it, but in November that year, life took a left turn. I had to spend some time battling and recovering from thyroid cancer. It took me away from my wood and saw for a while. But it's all good! The cancer went away and I dug the saw out and cranked it up. I worked on larger projects, like furniture and it kicked my butt. I debated doing this, because I knew, if I liked it, it would only cost more money. - I signed up for a bowl turning class at Woodcraft - It was December 2007. A Jet mini lathe showed up under the Christmas tree that year and my life took a right turn. That little lathe has not stopped since. The number of bowls started to pile up! I called them Didit Bowls if they worked and Dammit Bowls if they didn't. Fortunately, there have been far more Didits than Dammits. Ha! I needed more space ~ OR ~ get rid of some of this stuff. I'm a teacher. The kids at school call me Mrs. Hendy which is fine with me. I started throwing around ideas for a name for my work. Another teacher (who's last name was Wood) put Hendy and Wood together and the name 'Hendywood' was born. - Now what - http://www.Hendywood.Etsy.com  April 6, 2008. I remember it was a Sunday. My husband thought I should read an article in the paper about a website called Etsy. You could sell handmade stuff on there and make it your own website (as long as you followed their rules). I decided to give it a go. I figured out the basics and ended the day with about four bowls up for sale on the World Wide Web. It was a scary time. I sent word out to people I knew and wouldn't you know, within a week I had a sale. I 'bout peed my pants when that happened. My sweet sister-in-law bought the bowl in the picture. I will never forget my first sale... Below are some of the early pieces.
After a while, let's say a few years? I noticed people were buying and my style was evolving. I started working with stones, glass, and metal, adding a little variety. I also added a new Etsy shop. http://www.HendysHome.Etsy.com Below is a peek at the the evolution, lol.
Buttons, silverware, charms, gemstones. It's all fair game! I even got back to the sewing machine, something I learned in my childhood.
Over 1000 of my handmade items are floating around the world - incredible. And it all started with "I want a table saw. I need to cut wood." Take a look at my work at http://www.Hendywood.Etsy.com and at http://www.HendysHome.Etsy.com  Math…gave me problems my entire academic life. It just never made much sense to me, so I blame it on the teachers, lol! What am I today? ~ A science teacher and woodworker ~ Both areas where you would expect there to be math. However, I still don’t get it. My daughter and I were at one of my fave places in the world a few weeks ago, Woodcraft! http://www.JacksonvilleWoodcraft.com Love that place. I just wanted to pop in to pick up some lacquer they were holding behind the counter for me. Short trip, right? Until, she…SHE, not ME, spots some wood that she wants. Granted it was beautiful, expensive, but beautiful. “Mom I need you to make a bobby pin holder out of this.” What the heck? A bobby pin holder out of expensive exotic wood? Ya kidding? So, of course, the wood came home.
I told her I would watch while she made the holder. Boy am I glad that didn't happen! As beautiful and interesting as this burl wood from Australia looked, it was tricky to cut. But the pics show the finished container, just not her big smile when she spotted this piece of art on her dresser. You'd think there would be math involved with making this vessel. Nope, just a good eye and sharp tools. There was some wood left over. Maybe this would be the math part. What to do with it? I looked at the remaining stub and started working. A tiny bowl emerged. But wait, there's still more wood...just a smidge, but enough to do something. Jewelry! A pretty pendant was the end result.
 All of this and still no math. At least not any kind of math I can understand.
Find the bowl, pendant, and many other treasures at http://www.Hendywood.Etsy.com Go ahead and take a peek at http://www.HendysHome.Etsy.com too. Treasures can be found there as well!  Today is extremely quiet around here. It's wonderful :) The heat is not stifling outside because a storm moved through in the middle of the day. I can still hear the thunder rumbling in the distance. That rumbling, oddly enough, adds to the serenity of the day. The dog sleeps - on my bed, of course - BUT she is NOT spoiled! Being a teacher and an empty-nester, I cherish my quiet times.  Can't get much quieter than a snail, right? I've been busy tweaking pictures and listing a few new items. Tonight, things will change...It is "Pampaw's" birthday. Yes, the whole crew, grandkids included, will be over later for the birthday celebration! But, before tonight gets here, I will bask in the quiet and work on my creations.
Both of these pendants were made from mesquite wood, one of them is holding a blue color pencil. Can you tell which one? They are listed at http://www.hendywood.etsy.com
Steampunk jewelry and wine - oh yeah!
Listed at http://www.hendyshome.etsy.com  I'm on a bead kick. I can't help myself...I'm buyin', I'm makin', I'm storin'. Problem is, I need to use these beads for something pretty. If you look at the pic you will see that I like the natural look. There are natural stone beads, handmade ceramic beads, Czech glass beads, and wood beads that were handmade by me. Most are natural looking, but I like to throw in some brighter colors just for fun. The leather? Well it is perfect for stringing all of these beads together.  Storage...it's turning into an issue. The best way to store these little suckers is on jewelry that I make, right? I'm just not keeping up with that, so this pic shows one of my drawers of miscellaneous beads. You can also see my fancy zipper bag system. Ha!  O.K., it's a start. I have a few things made and many more ideas floating around in my head. But...tomorrow's another day, right? I'll string some beads then. Look for these finished pieces at http://www.hendywood.etsy.com
  What's in the bag?...Well, nothing's in this one, lol. However, how many times have you used a bag lately? They are handy little helpers. I could not survive without zip locs, the garbage is much esier to handle in a garbage bag, and, of course, I have one of those cloth bags hanging in my kitchen to hold - what? - plastic bags from the grocery store, to be used again. It's been way too hot to work on wood outside in the garage, so I've taken to the sewing machine. Nothing complicated, just these little bags. What could you do with the one pictured above? It's made from a fleece blanket that was never used, so the fabric is brand new and super-soft. The bag is big enough to hold an iPhone and bright enough to be seen. Perfect!
 One simply could not survive the holidays without a bit of extra cheer. But, someone may need some cheering up. How perfect!! Wine wrapped in a Grinch bag. It's a must-have!
What's in the bag? It's your call. These bags and more will be listed on HendysHome http://www.HendysHome.Etsy.com.  Independence Day, the fourth of July, a day when we, the United States of America, celebrate the signing of the Declaration of Independence (July 4, 1776) making us independent from Great Britain. Enough of the history lesson… Who the heck is that cutie in the picture??? About eleven years ago, I moved into my neighborhood with my hubbie, three daughters, a dog, and two rabbits. Some early memories: * Two greyhounds lived next door while our rabbits lived in an outdoor hutch separated by a chainlink fence and the hutch enclosure - yes, they were rescued race dogs...the rabbits eventually died of old age several years after moving in, the greyhounds never figured out there were rabbits right across the fence. * There was a plumbing problem on the first day of moving in, the plumber accidentally broke the old pipe in the upstairs bathroom and stuck his finger in it to plug the water. I was sent to turn off the main water valve, only...I didn't know where it was! Finally found it, the plumber released his swollen finger from the pipe and yes, water was EVERYWHERE!!!. My awesome new neighbors rushed in to help! * My most precious memory - The doorbell rings, we open the door to a tiny elderly woman standing there with a plate of cookies. Of course we invite her in. It's Bernice, our neighbor, welcoming us to the neighborhood. The oatmeal cookies were amazing and Bernice was awesome! Bernice is the cutie in the picture!  My next door neighbors, Kevin and Shelley (sp?) host a 4th of July block party every year. We've been doing this for several years now. It's amazing how the neighbors all come together for this...and right in my yard! What fun! Along with food, drinks, a bounce house for the kids, and dancing in the streets, there is a parade followed by fireworks. Yes!!! People make floats all decorated for the occasion and parade up and down in front of my house.
The year 2010 was very special because Bernice lead the way, all dressed in her patriotic finery. With herself and chair all decorated, her daughter, Regina, made sure she was a shining star :) Bernice experienced over 90 Independence Days. Not long after this picture was taken, the Good Lord took her home. My hope is that Americans continue to celebrate Independence Days for a very long time. Long after I am gone. AND that we never...ever...take for granted the sacrifices made by our fellow Americans to keep our independence. God Bless you Bernice, thanks for the memories. |
Karen HendersonWife, Mother, Grandmother, Teacher, Lover of Animals, Woodworker, Jewelry Designer, Owner of Hendywood. Archives
June 2016
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