JEWELRY
Over at Inspiration Studio we’ve been craving some color,
so for the next two weeks we are celebrating just that!
The fun part is that you have a chance to participate…
Each afternoon we will be featuring a color-filled image from the
iStudio flickr pool, and we’d love to see your best color shots!
Click HERE to join the flickr group and add your images.
Looking forward to seeing you there!
I am still seeking out color, finding it in places unexpected, but at least it is there. Isn’t that true of so much in life? When we start to really look for something, we find that it is already there, all around us, in places we should have noticed but didn’t, often right under our noses.
Awareness.
It is what bring things to the forefront of our minds, it helps us figure out what it is we need to open our eyes to, it is the song we sing even after everything else has gone quiet.
Sometimes things happen in the world that make you aware of your own mortality, make you appreciate how much you have, even when it seemed
like so little the day before.
My world is filled with color. And love and warmth and friendship and flowers and hugs and hope and good food and reflection.
I am thankful.
I am grateful.
I am on my knees with humility.
My world is blue and green and purple and orange. My world is golden.
When I forget this, I am remiss.
Today, I remember.
may you find joy in life’s simple pleasures,
tiny smiles in everyday moments,
hugs from the people you love,
and light in the corners of your heart.
A tulip reaching for the sun in a vase on the table.
A reminder how tied we are to the earth,
its cycles, its foibles, its endless variations.
Potential.
::
The reaching and the growing create new energy,
exuding charm and grace and expectation.
Possibilities.
::
Look around you today.
Reach for the light.
Grow.
I’ve been spending a lot of time wandering around inside my own mind lately. Mostly not by choice, but this endless winter that I keep whining about (I know) has made it less than possible to wander elsewhere freely. My mind has been covered in all these layers of grey that have now melded into a curtain. I cannot see clearly where I am going, and I’ve been in here for so long, trying to find a way out, that I have begun to bump up against the boundaries.
I have worked my way to the edges, made my way through this maze that offers no way out, and my frustration is showing. And of course that is not entirely accurate, there is a way out, but it is either up, or down, or by forging a new path, it cannot be found by retracing, again and again, those paths that already exist.
For a while, I wandered aimlessly, and that felt good, it felt like rest, it felt intentional, it felt planned. But now, I wander helplessly, fueled by angst and restlessness and this has begun to feel more frantic and frenzied, my feet travel too quickly, I keep my eyes down, I am constantly hitting dead ends.
Even the crumbs I’ve left to mark my trail have begun to criss cross.
And I am out of bread.
There is no part of this maze that I have not traversed, no pre-determined path I have not explored, and so, it is time to escape these boundaries, whether by flight or charting new territory or simply digging my way out from under.
I haven’t decided yet which way to proceed, which one of my options offers the most possibility, but at least I am able, now, to recognize the need to make a move. To go up or down or through a wall rather than walking in circles.
I must lift myself up, find a way through, or dig in my heels and get to work.
To soar or to excavate? That is the question.
Standing still is not an option.
It’s another dreary day here, a full day of rain predicted, the world outside my window hovering in a spectrum of grey. Inside, I continue to seek out color, hunting down bits of brightness, especially golds and yellows that remind me of sunshine.
These canisters actually live in my studio, as storage for pens and office supplies, I bought them because of the birds on the labels. Actually, as I look around my house, I find that I have birds everywhere. Apparently, I have a thing for birds. Crows are one of my favorites, and though I know that’s a bit weird, I really like them. I have yet to see any real red-winged blackbirds this year, which will be another sign that Spring has arrived, but I did see a group of robins last week that left me smiling for the rest of the day.
In May, the hummingbirds will arrive, I keep a feeder for them on my studio window so I can watch them throughout the day. Around that same time, the tree swallows will show up, chittering and chattering away, the sound of pure joy. For many years they nested in the birdhouses in my garden, but for the past two, the sparrows have kicked them out. I’m not quite sure how to solve this problem, but I wish I knew a way, I really miss their little chirps.
Baby birds are the funniest thing, all mouth and hunger and need, and their parents work so hard to keep them safe and fed and ready to fly. I have rescued baby robins that have fallen from their nests, collected blue bird eggs that never hatched, cried when some predator managed to reach in and throw tiny, unhatched eggs to the ground.
I have watched a mother swallow cajole her babies into flying, watched as one of those babies peeked his head out to stare at the ground for a very long time, and then looked up at his mother as if to say, “but mom, it’s a long way down!” He did finally fly that day, and then they were gone for another year.
And now, just by writing this, I have managed to put a silly little grin on my face. On this day that feels so far from Spring, I have reminded myself that it will come, there will be sun and flowers and green and warm breezes, and there will be happy little birds to feed and watch and make me smile.
I’m going to go make myself another cup of tea
and keep right on grinning…
sits on a shelf
in plain sight
where i can see him
he gets a little dusty
sometimes
i forget to admire
the sky
that lives in his heart
but then
the sun will shine
right through him
and i remember.
Color me happy! I am so glad that March has finally arrived. Yay!
It is coming in like a lamb here, blue skies and sunshine,
and I am loving that as well.
Speaking of “in like a lamb,” I am over at Inspiration Studio today, talking about that very thing and offering up a photo challenge. I have dubbed March The Month of Color and I am challenging you to seek out some color and post your photos at the Inspiration Studio Flickr pool.
Stop over and take a peek if you get a chance!
:: :: ::
And now….the winners!
I had so much fun doing all these giveaways, you all really do mean a lot
to me and I so appreciate that you come here and take the time to
read and comment and offer your kindness.
Drum roll…..
The winner of the first giveaway, for a necklace, is
::
The winner of the second giveaway, for silver heart earrings, is
::
The winner of the third giveaway, for a choice of a print from my etsy shop, is
::
And the winner of the the final giveaway, for a bracelet, is
::
Congratulations to you all!
I will send you each an email so I can get your shipping info.
:: :: ::
And if you weren’t one of the lucky winners, don’t despair, we do a giveaway every time we have a jewelry show, and I think I am even going to add a few extras in this year, perhaps even monthly, so stay tuned!
Yesterday was my husband’s birthday. My mother in law, my son and I
took him out for lunch, then wine tasting, then dinner. We had no agenda, really, we set out for lunch and left the rest of the day open
to unfold as it would.
That may not sound like much, but it is rare for me to leave such an open-ended chunk of time, there is almost always
something tugging at me that needs to be done.
And it was one of those times when everyone is in exactly the right mood,
everything falls in to place just so,
and the sun shines down on your parade.
It was a very good day.
It made me stop and appreciate how blessed I am, how sometimes
the simplest of gestures can mean the most, how it is the time you spend
with the people you love that really counts, how sometimes,
being spontaneous leads to joy.
It was a day of contentment.
There was much laughter.
I will remember it for a very long time.
Always, with a smile on my face.
:: :: :
Wishing you a day like that, today, or one day soon.
:: :: ::
P.S.
A reminder that midnight tomorrow marks the end of our four giveaways If you haven’t entered yet, now is your chance! You can find them here:
The first giveaway, for a necklace, is here
the second giveaway, for silver heart earrings, is here
the third giveaway, for your choice of a print from my etsy shop, is here
and the final giveaway, for a bracelet, is here.
What a fun month it has been with so much to celebrate, despite the winter weather! That is the view from my back door this morning…
I think this may be the worst blizzard so far this year. So I will be
getting my work done and then cozying up by the fire tonight…
And now for the grand finale!
(and I am hoping that also applies to snowstorms)…
Because purple is my favorite color, and because I love you,
I’m giving away this gorgeous bracelet!
Handmade art glass beads mixed with bali and sterling silver, adjustable in length by hooking it wherever you like along the dangle chain.
TO ENTER:
The easy way: just leave a comment!
Any comment on this post will get you entered once. If you want to make it a bit more fun, tell me what your weather is like today!
For extra entries:
Follow me here with google friend connect (see sidebar at right), on facebook here, or on twitter here, or all three if you want. Each one of these will get you an additional entry, just make sure you come back and leave another comment telling me that you did so for each one that you do.
And in case you missed them, the first giveaway, for a necklace, is here
the second giveaway, for silver heart earrings, is here.
the third giveaway, for your choice of a print from my etsy shop , is here.
All giveaways will be open until midnight on February 28th!
Good Luck!
:: :: ::
Also, all jewelry in the etsy shop is 20% OFF
and all prints are 25% OFF
THRU THE MONTH OF FEBRUARY!
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