Spring, bling, ning...and things

-
As we are about to embark on our two week Spring Break, my son said on the way to school this morning, "That gopher thing was wrong."
He was referring, of course, to the groundhog; around here, we've had cold weather and are expecting snow for the next few days.
These flowers Dennis came home with yesterday are reminding me there is a fresh, pastel-colored season in sight.
As is this gorgeous necklace that came in the mail from my sweet friend, Angela!
It's her original design and made from amethyst and glass, with a peacock theme.  It is so lovely!  Angela is building a website of the jewelry she designs and makes with her mother -- you can see/shop for some of her beautiful things here.
In other creative news: I recently joined Jeanne Oliver's Creative Community; it's a place to connect and enjoy some of her free online art and business videos; then, if you like you can sign up for one or more of her e-courses.  The one I'm doing is called Building a Creatively Made Business, and I'm really enjoying it so far.  Jeanne teaches, inspires, and encourages, and I've already begun to try some of her tips to revamp my handmade Etsy shop.
Speaking of talented locals -- I was reading Somerset Studio Gallery when some vibrant art caught my eye, and I noticed the name of the artist: Wendy Brightbill.  This is a familiar name because Wendy was my son's Kindergarten teacher.  Now she teaches art, gets published in many of those Stampington magazines, and has a new baby.  She also has a lovely story of her personal creative journey, which you can read on her blog, A Girl and Her Brush.  I'm pleased to have re-connected with Wendy and learn that we run in some of the same creative circles.  Don't you love those "small world" moments?  I do.

Comments

Linda said…
we are up to our eyeballs in snow. 2 storms last week. no more snow predicted for now. love the flowers, how pretty. necklace is beautiful and the colors are very nice.
March 22, 2013 at 11:37 AM
Tammy@T's Daily Treasures said…
I can see an area on that map is one my son will be heading to for college and he is gonna be in for a shock when it comes to cold weather. :) Sending warm wishes your way, Tammy
March 22, 2013 at 1:53 PM
Kathy said…
I love when those "small world" things happen! It has been a busy week at work and during a brief break I dashed though the lobby at my office and ran into a neighbor from about 25 years ago - how unlikely is THAT!!
March 22, 2013 at 9:31 PM
Lisa said…
Those flowers are so pretty - and yes!, a reminder that nice weather is not *too* far away.
March 22, 2013 at 9:51 PM
autena said…
Gorgeous flowers! I think that storm you are having , or just had, is headed here :(
March 23, 2013 at 8:11 AM
chateau chic said…
Definitely ready for spring, but maybe we'll be having some of that snow too.
Thanks for stopping by. I'm a new follower.
Mary Alice
March 23, 2013 at 5:06 PM
suziqu's thread works said…
Oh so coooold again!
Beautiful rose and hydrangea in that vase. We can still pick these in our Autumnal garden here at home at present with our final rose flush!
A very charming necklace here from your friend Laurie!
Have a great week!
March 24, 2013 at 2:32 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Baby Jesus Candy Cane Christmas Ornament How-To

-
Image
Here's a tutorial to make sweet baby Jesus ornaments: Materials: 3/4" round wooden balls blue felt like-sized small wooden stars flesh-colored acrylic paint yellow acrylic paint black permanent marker small button as star decor raffia natural excelsior "moss" silver thread or coordinating yarn candy cane You'll also need glue or a hot glue gun, paint brush and scissors Begin by painting the wooden balls with flesh-colored paint and the stars with yellow paint. When dry, draw two sleeping eyes on the ball. Meanwhile, cut small pieces of felt and make little rolls to represent the baby's body; tie with a tiny piece of raffia. Next, glue the wooden ball onto the top of the body roll of felt; if you wish, you can also cut a small wedge of felt to glue over like a little swaddled hood on the baby's head, but I think it looks cute without it as well. Glue the l...
Read more

Flagler College in St. Augustine: the Tiffany connection

-
Image
We visited this wonderful building that began its life in 1888 as a lavish hotel built by Henry Flagler, one of the founders of Standard Oil, and now houses Flagler College . It is such a beautiful old building and in it we saw: these fabulous Tiffany chandeliers... on a spectacular painted and embossed ceiling in one of the hotel's drawing rooms.   I apologize for the quality of the indoor photos -- it was quite dark in the building. I had to laugh at these painted cherubs on the ceiling... and the way their ribbony robes encircle the chandelier mount! This large clock over the mantle is special because it's a Thomas Edison clock and because it is made from one piece of rare onyx.  We were told that Edison's "signature" on his clocks is the use of the incorrect Roman numeral "4". But the most spectacular feature of the building is that Louis Comfort Tiffany himself made the stained glass windows. Most of Tiffany's windows a...
Read more

O Christmas tree, jeweled Christmas tree...

-
Image
Earlier in the season Rebecca and I went to a craft fair at a local high school, and there was one booth with the CUTEST little jeweled, framed Christmas trees! The gal was nice enough to let me photograph them.  Sorry it's kind of blurry, but it was dark in that high school gym! I know it's an older kind of craft (from the '60s and '70s) but she made them sweet -- not gaudy at all.  We were both SO inspired. So, last week we made it happen.  I brought a bunch of my old, broken vintage jewelry, some velvet, glue,  old frames, and we sat in her dining room and made a forest of little trees! It was so simple: first, we took a vintage frame and covered the backing with velvet.  We just glued it on. Then, we took our time arranging bits and pieces of jewels into a Christmas tree shape. When we were happy with the arrangement, we committed and glued the jewels down!  I love this avocado green velvet! And then we did it again.  We h...
Read more