Bead for Life

A quick post since I'm tired and have a headache, but wanted to share something cool. I just got another package in the mail (I love ordering stuff on the Internet!). I totally forgot I ordered these, so it was a nice surprise. I came upon this website as a link from a link from a friend's site. I thought it was a great cause -- it's called Bead for Life. Ugandan women use recycled paper to create beads of every color of the rainbow. You can buy a bag of beads or you can buy jewelry made with these beads. I ordered a three-strand bracelet and two single bracelets, all in green. Because of the variation in the paper used, each one is a slightly different color. The women also separate the larger, handmade beads with seed beads. They look great in a bunch and I'm sure they look beautiful as single bracelets as well. Check out the website and their online store. It is truly a great cause. The sales of these beads helps the women support their families financially and start their own individual businesses. I'm so glad I found this website. I will definitely order from them in the future, as the prices are more than reasonable and they make fabulous, one-of-a-kind gifts!

Picture from Bead for Life store website.

another early set

This set is actually the result of my sister's wish to have a bachelorette party that wasn't cliché (as in nasty male strippers). So, as matron of honor (even though I was in the middle of a divorce), it was my duty to come up with something suitable for my baby sister's "last single night." We have both always loved doing crafty things -- she is an amazing seamstress, something I never got into. I thought about doing paint-your-own pottery, but then heard about a new beading place nearby. I called up the ladies at Bazaar Star Beadery, in Ridgewood, NJ to find out about having a bachelorette party there. I was so psyched when they said we could have the back room all to ourselves and bring wine and food. It was perfect! I had a really hard time deciding on a color scheme (as always). I was trying to stay away from blues because that is what I'm always attracted to, whether it be clothing, jewelry, anything. It is no coincidence that my favorite color is the robin's egg blue of Tiffany & Company. After circling the store for what seemed like eons (and it also seemed like everyone else in our party was close to being done with their pieces!) I settled on the main beads -- Peruvian opal, I believe it is, which is also appropriate for me since my birthstone is opal. It is my favorite shade of light turquoise that reminds me of the calming ocean. I had enough beads on my main strand that I made a necklace, bracelet, and earrings! The bracelet is my favorite because of the extra touch I added on the extension chain -- a tiny silver star charm...just a little something unexpected. All of the pieces are pretty simple, but I still love them. Everyone else had a fabulous time beading, and it was amazing to see the different color combinations and beads that everyone used. Now I need to get myself in gear again so I can open my Etsy shop. Tomorrow will be spent beading as much as possible after all the house cleaning is done!

purple punch

After a day of fighting off a wicked migraine, I don't have the energy to totally do this piece justice but I really felt like sharing this, so here it is. This is one of the first pieces of jewelry I made last year. It took a lot of thought to get this color combination how I wanted it, how I pictured it in my head. I am very happy with how it turned out. As you can see, it has matching earrings. When my sister saw this, she was pretty jealous that it wasn't hers! She LOVES purple. I tried to use the focal bead/stone as the basis for the rest of the colors. It seemed to me that purple was "pulling out" of the stone, for lack of a better term, for the color that should be used in the majority of the smaller beads of the necklace, and the largest beads on the earrings. My sister has borrowed this many times, even though I love wearing it myself...so this one's not for sale!

the mother of all *bling*

This is my newest and loveliest piece of bling ever...even better than my engagement ring. That’s because it IS my engagement ring—revamped. When I took off my ring for the last time before my divorce, I knew I couldn’t part with it. My divorce was not hateful and spite-filled. I didn’t hate my ex-husband (and still don't). It just fell apart and we couldn’t put it back together. It was the saddest time of my life. About a year later, I felt ready to do something to show my remembrance of what I once had with my husband joined with my hope of my future and being able to make it on my own. I married him when I was in my early twenties and started dating him even earlier, so I really hadn’t been “on my own” so to speak. Now, in a townhouse that I bought for myself and my feline five, I’m forging the way into the future and feeling like I have no clue what I’m doing. Some days I know exactly what I want for my present and future. Other days I just long for what I used to have. That’s what this ring represents. I had it made at Devon Fine Jewelers, in Wyckoff, New Jersey. Nancy Schuring, the owner, is the absolute sweetest person, and is an long-time friend of my family. I took my engagement ring and wedding band, which I had soldered together, and brought them to her to see what I could do with them. The result was selling the platinum setting, putting the small diamonds in my safe deposit box, and using the center engagement stone to build around for a new setting. I chose a Christopher Designs setting, which had just arrived at the store. With some help from Nancy and her team, I turned my tear-stained past into a blooming future. I am so happy with this ring. I think it was the right thing to do. I am still in contact with my ex-husband and consider him a good friend. Especially because the center stone that I used in this ring belonged to his grandmother, I didn’t feel that pawning the diamond was the right thing to do. He is and will always be a part of me, and so will the stone. Now it is set in a new and more brilliant setting. To me, it says, look at me. Look at who I was, who I am, who I will be, and who I have always wanted to be. It’s absolutely gorgeous and draws my eye to it with every movement and glint in the sun. It’s perfect.

shoddy shoes

Well, I was all excited to write this post about my new bling, and then the unthinkable happened. I was minding my own business, walking across the office, when I felt something funny around my ankle. Much to my surprise, the strap on my favorite Jimmy Choo slingbacks SNAPPED. The elastic was just shot. Upon closer inspection, I found that my left shoe was in similar condition but still intact. Who would guess such inferior quality crafstmanship in shoes that cost...well, I won’t say how much they cost or a lot of people will be yelling at me for buying them. So you get the picture. I am very disheartened by this. I think it will be less hassle for me to go to a highly-recommended shoe repair man nearby my office than to call up Saks and Jimmy Choo headquarters and demand replacement shoes. I am under too much stress right now. I just want to be able to wear them again! They are so comfortable and have been since the first day I wore them. I never got a blister, not once. That proved to me that these were, in fact, high-quality shoes, but now after this fiasco, I think I’ll have to get Louboutins or Manolos next time! I'll write about my bling later. I need to blow off some steam!

getting raw

I've been procrastinating on taking pictures of the jewelry pieces I want to talk about, so that will have to wait until next time, although I am VERY excited to blog about them. I don't want to go into it too much now because that would just ruin it. So I've done something else this week that I'm super excited about. Long back-story short, I've had many health problems in my life, especially over the past ten years. I have felt especially horrible the past year. Sleep problems galore, bordering on narcolepsy...like falling asleep at the wheel several times during my seven-minute commute! It has been really frustrating. Some people said, maybe you're depressed and that's why you're so sleepy. I say I'm so sleepy and it's making me depressed. I'm getting pretty sick and tired of it, no pun(s) intended. I've been having trouble with my hip and regularly seeing a massage therapist who is amazing. If you live in the Hartford area, go to Simsbury Therapeutic Massage and ask for Marie. Tell them I sent you! She is truly the best massage therapist I've ever had, and I've been getting regular massages for awhile now. Last week I was telling her basically my lifelong medical history, some of which she already knew, and we got on the subject of raw and vegan diets. I am willing to try anything at this point in order to boost my health and get enough energy to start working out again. Also last week, another friend was telling me about some farms in the area who participate in Community Supported Agriculture. Basically, people who live in the area can buy "shares" of the crops each season. Every week, you go pick up a basket of whatever crops they have that week. There are "full shares" that are good for families, and "half shares" for people who are single or couples, or just don't eat as many vegetables, and both options run for 20 weeks. Both my friend and I decided to sign up for half shares at the same farm, Holcomb Farm CSA. There is also the option to pick up your weekly share at another location (closer to where my friend lives), otherwise we could just split a share. Based on my conversation with my massage therapist, and the fact that there are SO many good things about these CSA farms, I am going to try to wean myself into a raw (or mostly raw) diet. I need to detox my body, big time. I'm just realizing how many poisons we put into our bodies on a daily basis. I'm hoping this will kick-start my motivation for life in general. I'll post updates on my (hopeful) progress in upcoming blogs. 

(photo from Holcomb Farm CSA website)

my Lu

I am too spent from a long day to write too much and my head feels like it might burst at any moment. However, I had a little thought that I wanted to share. As I type this post, Lucy (a.k.a. "my Lu"), one of my five cats (yes, you read that correctly, FIVE!) is reclining next to me and producing a very lovely purr. Aside from the sound of the ocean surf crashing on the shore and receding into infinity, cats' purrs are the most soothing sound on earth. I love it when one of my kitties curls up against me when it's bedtime and lulls me to sleep with a soft, (or loud if it's my Moses) soothing purr. The kitties are relaxed, I'm relaxed, and we're all a big, happy mush of tails (except for me!), arms, and legs sprawled and curled over my (our?) bed. On that note, it's time to go to lala-land with Lucy and the gang. I have a LOT more post ideas up my sleeve, but I need to scan some pictures first to get the full effect for those posts. All I can say is, lots of JEWELRY talk on the way!

taking teddy for a walk

Whenever I take Teddy for a walk, I get strange looks, and sometimes, even stranger comments. Is that a dog? What do you think? Does he look like any dog you've ever seen? Is he barking? No, he's on a harness and leash, but don't let that fool you. He still does whatever the hell he wants, just like every other cat in creation. He's actually pretty good about not tugging on the leash too much, except once in awhile when a particular patch of grass intrigues him, or a bird darts for cover into a bush. I cannot do this with my other cats. I want to try to train Lucy to walk on a leash because trust me, my little chub-muffin needs the exercise. That will have to wait a few weeks until it is truly spring AND my life calms down a little. (Will that ever happen)? Teddy used to be an indoor/outdoor cat. However, his other half, my beloved Polka Dot, got snatched by a coyote, and hence, Teddy became an indoor cat. I'm not taking any chances again! Teddy, on the other paw, wanted to take many more chances. He yowled at the door every chance he got.  "I want to go OUUUUUUUT," he screamed. I couldn't take it any longer. He had been allowed to go outside for the first few years of his life, and now was cooped up inside. I didn't want to chance losing him to some hungry, wild animal, but I wanted him to have the opportunity to get some fresh air. So, I came up with the harness idea. I don't even remember there being a real "training" process, although I do know how to go about doing that with a variety of animals. He just seemed to put up with it from the beginning, as if he knew that having his mom accompany him on his expeditions and being slightly tied up was the closest he would come to true freedom. He has been okay with the compromise ever since, but no matter how long we're outside, he never wants to come in and always puts up a fight. While we're outside though, he walks, sometimes runs, right alongside me, like he's not even on a leash. He's my best buddy, and I just want him to be happy. So what's next? Training him to "go" on the toilet. Enough of cleaning five litter boxes!

p.s...another picture of jax

Here's another picture of Jax, who I talk about in one of my posts below. This one is a better representation of his spirit and spunk! Just want to hug and kiss him!

cool jewelry, just my style

Tiaras to Talons got a mention on Cluny Grey's "The Jewelry Blog." She has a similar background to me and is now designing absolutely gorgeous jewelry. So thanks to her for the mention and check out her blog!