seriously in love

I'm seriously, seriously in love with this Etsy shop. If only I had somewhere to wear one of these gowns. . . ahhhhh.....

Alas, my life is baby barf and random Lego pieces.

For everything there is a season. When I'm forty, I'm planning on really getting sexy.

birthday season

According to Hallmark, August is the month with the most birthdays. I guess they'd be the people who would know that type of thing.

WIN THIS BANNER FROM

STORIA HOME

It's birthday season around here. The entire side of my husband's family has their birthdays within two months of each other. Ben and I are the lone rangers in December and April. So there is a fair amount of celebrating going on. And gift buying.

It's not that I don't enjoy finding gifts for people. Everyone knows I don't need much of an excuse to hit the shops. It's just that it can be a little overwhelming. Granted, some people are easier than others. For example, you could buy my brother-in-law a garden hedger or a six pack of fancy beer and he'd be as happy as a clam. But some people, they pose a bit of a challenge. I'm not naming names here (mother-in-law), or pointing fingers (father-in-law), but if those individuals would be willing to create a list of items for me to choose from (hint), it would probably help get rid of the pinching sensation I feel at the base of my neck whenever I set out to find just the right thing to give them.

Who is the Birthday Queen? Jerusalem Greer!

I have a new friend on Etsy that makes having a birthday funner than ever. Jeruselum (isn't that a great name?) of Storia Home makes and sells her fabulous party decorations. She has a darling blog and a inspirational website. She has just the thing for your next party.

Here is her personal Manifesto:

"Make Do and Mend!" Taken from a poster from the WW II era this phrase sums up everything for me. Learning to "Make Do" can be the very thing that spurs on great creativity and it can also be a way to save the planet, one vintage find at a time!

AND you lucky people have a chance to win the birthday banner in the first photo. Simply leave a comment on this post and I will use my little random number picker to select a winner on Monday!

I want to wish my good friend Becky a happy birthday today! You look fabulous darrrrrllling!

east meets west

Lately, I have been drawn to gold vermeil. Vermeil is when they coat sterling silver with 22-24 carat gold. Most vermeil pieces have an exotic, middle eastern look because the gold content is so high they are very yellow. Think Indian wedding jewelry.

For these earrings I used four different stones. The briolettes in the middle are natural emeralds. The other green stones are tsavorite (a type of garnet) and the blue stones are apatite. I used large citrine briolettes on the bottom.

I am finding that it is not easy to find the kind of vermeil components I really want. I am only interested in pieces that have a certain exotic look. I have been working on several sets of earrings. Watch my shop for further postings.