UFO or WIP?

Does anyone else find these acronyms confusing - there are so many around these days my poor fuddled brain can't always cope!
In this case I'm talking about Work in Progress and UnFinished Object.   I'm wondering when the former turns into the latter.  How long does a work in progress need to sit around before it becomes an unfinished project that may never be picked up again.
I've quite a few sitting around. Firstly a half made scarf on the loom. 

I got part way through and realised I didn't like it so folded the loom up and put it away and got on with other things.  Now I'm thinking I may never weave again on that loom unless I decide to cut my losses and cut it off the loom.  Such a waste of wool I think but actually a worse waste of a loom if I hide it away and don't use it!  Part of me still thinks I should just get it finished...
Then there is the rug sitting in a carrier bag behind the couch.  I've not done much but like the scarf I've 'gone off' the fabric I used for most of what I have done.  I know I should throw it out and start again with fabric I like better.  Part of the problem was that the fabric frayed so badly that every time I worked on the rug everything around including myself ended up covered in bits that clung stubbornly to my clothing, the couch and the carpet. At this point there should be a photo of said partly made rug but I can't find it!
There is a fair amount of jewellery that I made early on in my jewellery making enterprise and which needs taking apart and remaking - or just taking apart so the beads can be used for something else or sold on.
Then there are various little pots and bags with polymer clay projects that are either waiting to be finished off and made into jewellery or - well, just sitting around because they didn't come out quite as planned. 

I will probably finish most of these off someday but I'm not sure about the pink beads, basically I don't really like them so I'll leave them sitting for now.

Works in Progress

I bought a lovely new book recently - Patterns in Polymer by Julie Picarello.  I had pre ordered it from Amazon some time ago and was delighted when it arrived last weekend.  It was really inspiring and helped to kick start my ailing creativity.
She shows some really interesting techniques as well as really good tips on mixing colours.
I made up four colours, a deep red, lighter pink, pale blue and buttery cream.  They look good together and had enough contrast for Makume Gane which is a technique which works best with plenty of contrast. 

The large piece is made using the mokume gane I made,  I wasn't very happy with most of the slices and ended up using it to make the beads which I think will make a necklace.  The left over stack of colours I sliced with a wavy blade which gives a nice zig zag pattern.  I used leftovers to make what Julie calls a lizard tail which I flattened out and used for the bottom piece in the photo.  I haven't decided yet what to do with these.
I made some earrings with the zig zag patterned clay:

Squirrel Antics

One of the squirrels came back to my garden yesterday.  Well I choose to believe it's one of the same squirrels but it may not be!
He climbed up the narrow metal pole with no trouble and first of all made for the fat filled half-coconut shell.  I was on the phone to a friend at the time and was describing the scene to her.  She told me to put the phone down and get photos for her, which I did.   By this time he had given up on the fat and was raiding the sunflower seeds quite successfully by hanging upside down.   

Unfortunately I will have to disappoint him if he returns as I usually have a plastic lid taped halfway up the pole to stop rats climbing up. 
The plastic lid recently fell off, due to pigeons standing on it to feed on the seed that drops onto it from the niger and sunflower seed feeders.  The only way I've found to attach it is with brown parcel tape, not very pretty and far from permanent, but effective!
A squirrel has, in the past, jumped onto the top of the pole from the slate slab which stands upright nearby, so I may not have spoiled his fun.

Keyrings, a New Line for Averilpam

I'm trying a new line in my Folksy shop, I've listed one so far and have 2 more to go in soon. The first is made with a gorgeous agate slab. It's dyed purple, which shows up round the edges.  In the centre you can see lovely golden brown markings, the photo unfortunately doesn't do it justice. The other two use slices from polymer clay canes with metal charms.

 

June Bugs Listing Club

This month the Folksy listing club is the June Bugs so I've been trying to list an item a day.  I have opened a second Folksy shop, AverilpamEtc selling off some of my excess stock of beads etc.  I'm selling them very cheaply as it is stock sitting around that I'm very unlikely to use since my jewellery making style has changed radically since I started using polymer clay.  So I've not managed to list much in my Averilpam shop, but am getting a fair few beads listed, and I'm glad to say they are selling quite well.
Here are some of the listings from the June bugs today,  click on the titles below each picture to go to the shops.

 

This lovely ring is from Chicita Gimme That Thing. I like the mix of metals.

This beautifully painted aceo is from Wellydog Gallery, I love the colours.

This is a great nautical cushion from Ticketty Boo.  Don't you love that anchor motif?

This is a really pretty flower brooch from Juniper Spools (what a brilliant shop name!)
I hope you like these as much as I do, or maybe you'll find something else you like in one of these Folksy shops.

Squirrels on the Bird Table!

I know lots of people consider grey squirrels to be pests but I love them.   I rarely see any in my garden, so I was surprised a couple of days ago, hearing a clattering and thumping sound, to find a squirrel in the garden.  The noise was presumably from it hurling itself from the roof onto the greenhouse roof and from there via a small table to my doorstep.  The table is Monty's favourite place to sit and watch the birds, it's a bit rickety so rattles when he jumps up.   I'm just waiting for it to collapse one day, along with the greenhouse - Monty likes to snooze on the roof!
Today the squirrel was back, with a friend, to investigate the bird table.  There wasn't much food up there and they didn't seem interested in the sultanas that the birds relish, so they didn't stay long.

New Bag Designs - Disappointed!

I blogged recently about my new bag design - I've been brewing it for ages but only recently got around to making the prototype.   I wasn't entirely happy with the shape and made another but I'm still not happy with it.  They are lightly padded and machine embroidered and have small pockets inside. The felt is made with my embellisher using merino wool and some raw silk, then machine embroidered. Each has a hidden magnetic catch at the top of the bag just beneath the handles.
Here is the original prototype

I decided that this one was too long and narrow, and the felt handles were too soft, so here is number two

 I like this one better but it still isn't how I visualised it originally.  I feel the handles are too big in proportion to the bag.  I have also decided I would prefer the bag wider than it is high.  I'm planning to try a different, curved shape, with curved shaped handles.
In the meantime I can't decide whether or not to put these up for sale. I love the fabrics, linen with lovely silk fabrics for the linings and I'm quite happy with the felt I made. They just aren't quite what I planned.  I'd appreciate some honest feedback.