Resin Experiments

So, I've been doing a lot of experiments with epoxy resin over the last few weeks! It's a lot easier to use than I'd thought it would be - and working with resin makes far less mess than I'd thought it would, too!

 

The resin I've been using is Pebeo Gedeo Color (in Lapis/blue, Topaz/Yellow and Ruby/red), and Pebeo Gedeo Crystal Resin (which is clear). Each box comes with a bottle of part A, and a bottle of part B. You mix it up using the measuring cup and stirrer sticks provided (following the easy instructions), then pour/drip/drizzle it into molds, jewelry findings - or anything else you'd like to resinify!

You can mix the Gedeo Color resins and Gedeo Crystal resin together, and you can also add colourants, glitter, and other objects to the mix for more effects =). I've been having heaps of fun experimenting with it over the last few weeks, and look forward to trying out some more ideas (as soon as I feel well enough again)!

~Ad =)

Stitching Projects - Part 2

The second stitching project I completed while I was stuck in bed sick was my first ever blackwork sampler!

My first blackwork sampler!

Back in April, I began to study blackwork stitching. I found some patterns and guides in books and online, so I started with those! Once I was feeling more confident, I started to create my own patterns and stitch designs, too! I kept stitching until the piece of aida was completely filled up!

As I wanted the finished sampler to represent me, I tried to include as many of the things that I like as would possibly fit! I ended up succeeding - with insects and animals, plants and flowers, my pets, family, love, games and more hiding within the patterns =D.

Twilight cats!

My snaily and flowery garden!

Birds on a branch!

I am really happy to have learned this new type of stitching!!!


(There are more pictures of this sampler in my DeviantArt stitching gallery =D)


Some pattern and guide links:

• Butterfly
• Elephant
• Elizabethan lace
• Filling patterns (an amazingly awesome reference!)
• Flower fill pattern 
• Miscellaneous patterns and borders

~Adrielle =) 

Stitching Projects - Part 1

So, while I was stuck in bed sick over the last few months, I spent my better moments working on some stitching projects =D. The first project was a Folk Apple cross stitch kit from [make it] - although, I added some white seed beads to the design to make it shinier!

The centre of my Folk Apple!

When I had finished the kit, I decided to use some spare green and red cotton to create my own custom border of vines, leaves and flowers around the apple =D.

The border around my apple =) 

I am really happy with how the finished project turned out!

My Folk Apple! =D

~Adrielle =)

Hard Timez

So, the last few months have been physically and emotionally difficult for me, and for my family.

Since January, I've had an increasingly painful period (with a few days here and there where I thought it was gone, and that I was all better - but my problems soon returned). In addition, other strange symptoms seem to keep surfacing (including migraines, severe nausea, difficulty urinating, etc.), but as of yet, no cause for my problems has been found.

On top of these new problems, all of my regular medical issues are currently flaring - and not by coincidence. With my other conditions, I'm usually only able to leave the house a few times in a month - depending on the month - otherwise my regular symptoms become increasingly severe. While the (very lovely) blood nurse could come to my house, I had to go out for all of the other tests and exams. It was exhausting, and stirred up my Ehlers-Danlos, ME/CFS, and other conditions that rely on careful management to keep them under control.

In addition to this, mental stress usually makes the symptoms of my other conditions worse - so it's no real surprise that I've been stuck in bed so often during the last few months (although, I feel a million times more relaxed now that they are talking about endometriosis rather than tumours and growths!)

Anyway, with all of my regular symptoms stirred up majorly - and the new symptoms piled on top - I have been feeling more than a little bit miserable. I feel guilty for being asleep so much of the day, and for falling behind with study, work and social stuff. I feel bad for not being around for my friends and family. I feel insincere saying that I will catch up when I am feeling up to it - but never being able to say *when* that will be.

It's hard.

I've been referred to a specialist, but the earliest appointment that I could get with her was in May. (I'm on the 'call if someone cancels an appointment' list - so if someone cancels, I might be able to get in earlier... *crosses fingers!*) It seems like a long wait - and it's just for an initial appointment. I'm guessing that after the visit, there will be more tests for me to go to... Hopefully sometime down the track, they will find out what is causing my problems and will be able to fix me!

~Adrielle =)

Health Update - Women's Issues

So, most people that know me are aware that I've been having a very difficult year so far with pain, fatigue and depression. On top of all of this, I've been experiencing some new symptoms of late... (If you don't want to know about periods and women's health issues, you might want to stop reading here!)

    

Anyway, to jump straight to the point, I had my period for three weeks solid - and then kept spotting for another week and a bit after that. This is definitely not normal for me! (I'm on 'the pill' to stop migraines and keep my acne at bay - so it seems especially strange). I kept hoping that the bleeding would stop, but NOPE! Every time I thought the spotting had gone away, I would get a fresh round of period pain, and it would return again.

Apart from the inconvenience of constantly bleeding and having period pain (and the consequences of all that bleeding on my iron deficiency), I became quite concerned. I'd had a normal Pap smear in December, so that made me feel a bit better, but I was still worried. Bleeding for a month really isn't normal...

I went to see a lovely doctor, and she thinks that I could have a bacterial infection. I am now on tablets to stop the bleeding so that I can have some other tests done in a week's time.

Now all I can do is wait!

-----------
Update: 
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So, I ended up having a painful period that lasted for six weeks...

After what felt like a billion tests, the doctors still cannot find the cause of my abnormal bleeding - and it now seems to have stopped (with the help of hormone pills). Luckily, the test results have ruled out most of the scarier possible causes (like tumours and growths). Therefore, at this stage all that the doctors can do is wait and see - and refer me to a specialist for even more invasive tests if the bleeding starts up again (to check for things like surface abnormalities, endometriosis, etc.)

I am really hoping that the bleeding won't start up again, and that my problems were just caused by some kind of transient hiccup that will resolve itself. However, I am still getting abdominal pain from time to time, which doesn't seem like a good sign.

Anyway - for now, the news is good! =)

In other health news, I had a cardiologist appointment this week. Apart from having an even faster heart rate than usual (possibly due to a viral infection on top of POTS and SVT), everything was fine! Now, I just need to have my five-yearly full bone scan to check the progression of my degenerative joint disease (which is caused by EDS), and then I'm (hopefully) done with tests for the next nine months or so! *crosses fingers*

~Ad =)

Adrielle's Adventures in Awesomeville!

So, for the last week and a bit, I have been playing a lot of Terraria! I have created a nice little world called Awesomeville, and one of my favourite things to do in my new little pixel tile world is to dig for gem caves!

My character - with a fish bowl head - finding an amethyst cave!

My character, dressed as a princess, finding a gem cave!

This was the first gem cave I found! I didn't have very nice clothes on at the time lol!

My other favourite thing to do in Terraria is to build! I started with a small and humble abode - made from rock... but then I kept extending and prettifying it... and it has become a castle!

My castle!

I like my castle a lot - but it is becoming a little bit small... I might need to extend it some more...

~Ad =)

A Quick Update!

So far, this year has been an exciting and busy one for me! I've been to the dentist and had my tooth filled (one of the perils of having EDS), I've worked on lots of game art for projects that I found via IndieTeamUp, I've started two new creative projects, and I've started an online programming course to learn C++!

Although I haven't been able to leave the house much and have had to spend a lot of time in bed, I'm so glad that I have my laptop and my iPad - and I've been learning heaps of new things, and getting a lot of stuff done. I finally feel like I'm achieving things again!

~Ad =)