Spring Fever??

Okay, so it's springtime in the southern hemisphere, right? I picked up several of these beautifully detailed Hill Tribes flower pendants in Tucson last February and never had time to do anything with them; suddenly inspiration hits and I have four flower necklaces done, with four more half-done on the workbench (I'm out of crimps and clasps). And... it's the last day of October. Maybe it's not me but my jewelry mojo that's in a time warp; whatever it is, I'll go with it because I love creating beautiful things. More pics to come.

Love This

Hearts and garnets seem a natural combination, and I especially love these faceted garnets because the faceting shows off their fiery color. This nicely textured Hill Tribes pendant of sterling-plus silver (97% silver) is from Thailand, as are the smaller hammered heart beads further up, and I added in some cultured pearls, Swarovski crystal bicones, and sterling silver. As usual I kind of want to keep this, but I can always make another one... I've made a total of seven new necklaces in the past week and will post pics as time permits. This one is the only autumn/winter one in the bunch; the rest are all airy peridot and apatite and tourmaline with flower pendants... maybe this week's SNOW tripped off an early bout of spring fever. Well, it's springtime down under, in the southern hemisphere....

Bluebird of Happiness

I moved my jewelry (and mosaic) studio back home, since this is where I spend most of my time these days, and my jewelry mojo finally seems to have found its way back home, too. Today I felt compelled to take a break from my very busy coursework schedule to do something with these exquisite kyanite spears I got a while back, and they seemed a natural fit for this sweet bird gifted to me last year by my dear friend Conne. Along with the kyanite I used Thai silver, Swarovski crystals, and cultured pearls, and I added two crystal quartz briolettes to the bird charm set. Matching earrings will come soon, when I have money to order more earwires.

I have had the kyanite and the bird for quite a while now and realized today that I've been saving them for... what? It occurs to me that I do that with life in general: I'll take that risk, go out, wear the beautiful scarf or those kick-ass boots or that wonderful necklace someday, on a "special occasion." Why do I not ever seem to consider now special enough? Now is what I have -- now is all I have. So today, now, I created something beautiful instead of "saving" it for some later time that may never come. It's a start. In fact, kyanite was a good choice for this new focus: this stone is thought to bring tranquility, enhance communication, and support meditation and clarity of mind and words. Consider me clarified...