~buddha

enlightenment 

beatnheart destash beads, scorchedearthonetsy heart, destash chain

vintage skateboard

~valentines and aquarians

new today. the perfect gift.

loads of new work and a blogger sale~

for your eyes only. lol seriously though. i'm still gathering the cash needed for my national boards that i officially started last Monday. Yippee! soooo, i'm having a blogger sale. if you have seen anything here in any of my posts or sidebars that is not on etsy and you would like it, i'll list it for you and then you get a 50% discount! then anyone who buys from either of my etsy shops will also get a 50% discount just for being here and supporting me. share the word. muh! my shops are here for jewels and here for destash and little gifties. coupon code at checkout is blogger. xoxo

so here is reclaimed tin, a shell flower from kim, gilded bone and copper on a reclaimed chain.

                                    

petra drops and connectors with silver leg milagros.

                                   

old clay cones, donna millard beads and copper.

                                    

scrumptious bangles set found here

                                    

more bangles can be seen here.

                                    

one more bangle set to be listed soon.

because i can't help myself~

i feel like my kids when they clean their rooms. they could just go in and get the job done, but everything they find they play with or read, it's so cute and a wonder as they rediscover their stuff...i'm doing the same. as i'm cleaning my studio and destashing, i'm also finding ways to create and items to create with. golly, i even bought some wonderful yummies from kim and petra that will be mine. can't help myself! good thing i'm on break and can take some time for me. xoxo

Stella-hand formed copper and creamy faceted vintage bead neck chain with creamy sari silk. old cookie tin and bottle cap. thimble. glass crystal bead from days gone by.

wire woes 'til the copper explosion~

sterling silver wire~oxidized of course as i love the black. i can no longer afford it though. even traded in my handmade silver ear wires for personally transformed surgical steel as a result of the prices.

steel wire~started using it back when a friend showed me some squiggles he made with bailing wire. never worried about it 'til i bought a pair of earrings made from various sizes of steel wire and they rusted just from a small amount of moisture while hanging out in my car overnight (not me, the earrings). i then pulled everything i had made with steel wire and sealed them real well with wax or took them apart. now i only use the very thin wire to hold my silk in place on earrings and seal reallll good.

copper wire~spools of it! i brought some home the other day and oxidized it. what a mess! i have to wipe down the wire to remove some of the tarnish or else it transfers, but i love the look once i get the excess off! i recently decided on copper as i noticed more and more of the women i admire have been using it and i love the look. then a friend mentioned how inexpensive it was, so i made the leap. i think i can use the copper to hold the silk in place and i won't have any worries about rust.

well, here are my new attempts at prettiness using the copper wire~

copper wreath earrings~

kim and i gifted each other yumminess. here are some of her lovelies on my new lovely wire.

Sara~

these are me favs. enameled copper roofing material with vintage roses and vintage dress makers accents all on copper wire.

Trade~

matte chevrons and sterling silver with numinosity head pins. copper wire.

Charming~

labradorite, painted porcelain doll arms, little rosary connections from robyn and copper wire. i have a tiny stash of stones. not many mind you and i pretty much used them up (save some moonstones from kim) on these next three pieces. i usually stay away from wire connections as the silver was too expensive and the stones are not recycled, but i went for it and made sure to put something recycled with the stones.

inspired by robyn~

old belt buckles from uncanny artists and faceted garnet. definitely french circus inspired. oops, see a little copper tail, gotta go fix that! <3

lipstick love~

50's era metal lipstick case for your little treasures! double strand of orphaned stone beads with some accents ~antique metal button from fagins daughter, an italian coin from my buddy trent, a small charm from an old earring and a small spade charm from laura at uncanny artists~.
so, i say orphaned stones 'cause some of them are slightly chipped around the holes and most people wouldn't use them. i found them at a thrift store during the summer months and with the holes being so teenie, i had no idea what to do with them until the recent copper wire explosion!

hahaha funny life~uncanny artists is actually owned by laura from the recycled art show i do every year. i hadn't seen her there in the last two years and wondered what had happened. i love her stuff! doll parts, odd toys, tons of ephemera...  well, kim knew what happened! laura opened an online shop. funny, it took someone from far away to tell me someone close by had their own shop now. small world! visit her shop, ask her for specifics if something your looking for is not listed as she has thousands of items and not all are up in the shop. she is amazing. watch out kim, a ton of collage goodies are on their way!

cheers and happy new year everyone!

keys and more keys...

my son and his girlfriend just moved closer to college. as a result, i received a gift. as they readied to get the new key to their new apartment, she bestowed upon me her key collection. collecting since she was a little girl, i received hundreds of keys in various shapes, sizes and age. i'm a lucky girl not only 'cause i have her in my life but because i now have more keys then my husbands huge key chain!
here are a few of my favs and some of the loot:

here's to opening doors!

yesterdays key~

made a sweet bangle with a key. looks too cute on. sari silk wrap, stone, steel, love.
got a new key to my new classroom too!  ♥

moose tooth pin~

i put it up then took it down. just didn't seem finished to me. does now. :)
numinosity tooth from kim. white coral from richelle. sierra nevada pale ale bottle cap tooth cap. hand formed steel wire pin ~sealed with bees wax~ myrrh, white glass, crystal, dentalium shell. sterling silver wire. vintage and contemporary all the way!

so today, i am shopping at the grocers (local challenge is done). simply can't afford the food at the co-op so we decided co-op for local meats and super for the organic other stuff. seriously, $4.00 for a can of organic pinto beans? simply can't do it when it takes two per meal for our family. good thing our local super carries a huge variety of organic, just not in the meat department. have you ever tried local organic meats vs. the super meats? way different flavor! yum.

on the agenda ~homemade raw fruit and nut bars~ and flax crackers in the dehydrator. haven't made them in years and could use an extra shot of omega threes for the old mental health! ;) curried lamb and lentil stew in the crock. gonna be a productive day as more basil arrived form hubby's green house and needs planting as well. cheers y'all!

Let your performance do the thinking. ~Charlotte Bronte

 

numinosity and challenges~

my love love tommy just came home and said ~that ones a keeper~ as i was about to post it. so, imma not gonna post it 'cause i think he's right and i kinda felt it as well anyway. it's just so pretty that i wanted to share! so here is a glass numinosity bead with yummy amber chips, a long ceramic bead, lace trim and white glass seed beads. it is a keeper and one-of-a-kind. thanks kim! <3

but i digress. i have been posting about challenges, one of which i blew today by having red chile cheese fries! ah, the shame of it! ok, another ten days on the real food challenge it is to make up for that flatooey. blech. but, it was going real well till my meltdown today, so I was thinking of upping it to the 100 days if i can keep my cravings at bay. ;) seriously, last night i used my grammas recipe for egg noodles and substituted whole wheat for white flour and they were awesome! even picky little dude ate them without question and both kids asked for them again. with the noodles we had pesto made from the basil we grow and then pickled peppers and green beans from last years crop. what a meal! i can deal with this. i think i can continue this challenge with the caveat not to cave to cravings.

then the homegrown challenge is going well too. 30 days of locally purchased products. even found a place to get gas. *big smile*

the real challenge of course is staying creative as the stash dwindles and the cash is not available to re-stash. i'm a teacher and it's summer. gotta be careful, but this is when i am most productive as the rest of the year i am full fledged teacher! sooo, in drops a box of yummy goodness from kim at numinosity beads to keep me going. i made some stuff (like the necklace above) and intend to make some more for sure. i'll get her back, no worries on that! thanks kim. cheers y'all!

~doll head and another challenge

i made some stuff, which i enjoy, but my stash is getting so puny, i can't make much of anything at the moment. so, another challenge? making something pretty with what i have, which is almost gone. hahahahaha. means i'll be shifting gears and sewing again soon!
but back to my original challenge of 10 days of real food. going good, but I can make some very fattening food if i want to, so ima gonna watch that part. tonight~chicken curry~ with peas from the garden and red quinoa salad. yum!
so, since i'm challenging myself, i'm also going to do the 505 30 days of buying local which means local beers, co-op shopping for all the food and walking since I won't be able to buy gas! lol
cheers!

frozen charlotte and a pipe stem. vintage faux pearl necklace. sterling.

bike chain links. silk. antique linen buttons.

leather pouch with a watchmakers vial. assorted pipestone, glass, faux pearls and then one-of-a-kind shell beads made by me!

bike chain links, lace, cut crystal beads. love. <3