Focus On Life - Weeks 43 and Week 44

I missed a week of the FOL:14 photography challenge while I was back home visiting family, but Sally had a little 'oops' moment and so this week's prompts are 'Two For One' - Week 43 and Week 44.

Week 43: Your favorite color 

  I'm not sure what my favorite color is - kinda depends on my mood and my surroundings, or where I'm at, at the time.

When I think of my favorite color(s), images of Sunrises, Sunsets, the Ocean and beautiful fall trees come to mind. 

 

 

So that's basically all colors, wouldn't you say?!!

And now,....

Week 44: An ordinary photo of the extraordinary everyday,...aka take a photo of what ever you would like and post it!

 

 

 This photo was taken on an extraordinary day spent with one my nieces. 

  We had the most lovely time and the beauty around us was anything but ordinary!

Let's see what everyone else captured this week, shall we?

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Extraordinary Beauty!

Cheers,

~Shel~

 

 

An InLinkz Link-up

The Very Vintage Fall Challenge Blog Hop

 Michelle Mach hosted this

Very Vintage Fall Challenge Blog Hop.

We all purchased these really cool Fall Challenge Kits and

were then 'challenged' to create something with them and

reveal it today.

I decided to stay as close to the theme of "Very Vintage" as I could - especially since this is completely out of my realm of "Norm".

I quickly realized while searching online that "Vintage" today

means soooooo many different styles! 

What yummy inspiration I  discoved and what a treat to tap into my

creative side and release something new! 

Don't be surprised if you start seeing more 'Vintage Inspired' looks popping up on my site here and over in my Etsy store - this stuff is fun (interpretation: addicting!)  and searching for oldies but goodies in antiques stores is something the hubby and I already love to do!!

These gorgeous leaves that I just love from the Vintaj Natural Brass, Co. were in my kit, so I sat down and created these.

 Of course there's pearls in them, you all know me well enough by now to know I'd pop a pearl in somewhere, right?!

If you look carefully, you'll see there's a pearl in everyone one of my designs here today!

"Vintage Autumn Leaf" Earrings

I couldn't figure out what to do with this Vintaj Natural Brass 'branch'.  I've seen tons of these worked beautifully into so many designs over the past year, but nothing was speaking to me - until, I came up with this "Vintage Brooch". 

I even tried to hammer/texture the back pin portion so it would look a bit more 'tree like'.

(which was silly - cause no one's gonna see that part, it's going to go into your scarf or sweater, etc. - but, live and learn!) 

"Colors of Fall" Vintage Inspired Brooch

And, then there were still so many components staring at me, but I kept going back to this piece of "Candy". Well, it looks like a "Vintage" piece of candy to me! 

I love it but all I could think of was "Coffee".  So, this is "Coffee with Cream, Please."  A very simple and not so very vintage looking necklace, but vintage enough for me.

"Coffee with Cream, Please" Vintage Inspired Necklace

I still have several other things from my kit on my bench that need to be made into something.  Especially this one really cool lucite tear drop shaped component.

It keeps screaming "70's" to me, 

but since that's not very 'vintage'

(hey watching it for those of you who just said out loud

"The 70's are very vintage!" )

I'm saving that for a more 'retro' piece!

Thanks to Michelle Mack for hosting this lovely challenge.

I'm glad I participated ~ I had a lot of fun!

I hope everyone enjoys hopping through all the other particpants blogs and seeing the wonderful designs they've created. 

Don't forget to leave a nice comment for everyone, too! 

And, thanks so much for stopping here, too - I appreciate it!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and "Falling For Vintage"!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Here's the list of everyone participating in this current challenge:

Andrew
The Writing and Art of Andrew Thornton

Cat
Boo Beads

Chris
beadjewelry.net

Cilla
Tell Your Girlfriends

Cyndi
Beading Arts

Cynthia
Cynth's Blog

Dawn
Morning Glory Beading

Donetta
Simply Gorgeous

Heather
As I Bead It

Holly
SilverRose Designs

Kate
We Can Make That at Home

Kristina
Wild Roses and Blackberries

Lauren
Laurel Moon Jewelry & Beads

Linda
Lutka & Co

Lisa
Lucid Mood Studio

Lola
Bead Lola Bead

Mary
MLH Jewelry

Melinda
Melinda Orr Metal & Clay Jewelry Designs

Michelle H.
Firefly Visions

Michelle M.
Beads & Books

Salla
Blog by Salla

Shannon
Falling into the Sky

Shay
Shaiha's Ramblings

Shel
MiShel Designs

Shirley
Beads and Bread

Stephanie
Pixybug Designs

Tari
Pearl and Pebbles

Terry
Pink Chapeau Vintage Jewelry

Tracy
The Bead Junkie

Autumn In My Head!

Leaves and Pearls - Autumn 2009 Design from MiShel Designs

Okay - so I've been thinking of all this "Fall" stuff lately. 

Fall colors, fall designs,...all of it!

Maybe it's because all the stores are spiced with autumn goodies like vivaciouly colored leaves in burnt orange, rust and gold. And maybe it's because the smells are so lovely right now - I mean spiced-cider candles are burning all day in my house!!

Ceramic Beads and Copper Charms
MiShel Designs 2010 Fall Collection

Yep, that's it! And, I've been dreaming of and creating some new designs. 

Now, to find the time to photograph them - yes, that would be nice!

Chaos Wire Wrapped Hoops with Amber Dangles
MiShel Designs - Fall 2009 Collection

In the meantime, here's some Autumn Eye-Candy from years past. Enjoy!

Realm of the Goddess
MiShel Designs Fall 2010 Collection

Cinnamon and Spice
MiShel Designs Fall 2009 Collection

Aumtum Earrings - MiShel Designs 2009 Fall Collection

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Autumn Treasures!

Cheers,

~Shel~

"Autumn in Arizona" - Fall 2008 Collection

Mocha Earrings - MiShel Designs Fall 2010 Collection

Colors of Fall Designs for Artbeads.com

Just when you thought all things Fall/Autum were gone - being that Santa figures, Christmas Trees, Winter Scenes, Shopping Malls and Snow Storms are all the rage right now - I'm finally posting my Artbeads.com blog post for their Colors of Fall assignment. 

I've had this piece for a little while now (just not the pictures), so I'm happy to be able to get this posted but it made me a bit sad, too. 

See, Fall is my favorite time of year,...the colors, the activities, the somewhat cooler temps (although not this year here in the desert - it was still in the high 90's until Halloween!!) and I hate to say good-bye to Fall, even though the Winter Holiday Season and the New Year Celebrations are always fun and filled with excitement!

I really love designing jewelry for fall with all the typical fall colors; seeing how I can maybe combine them differently this year than in the years past and possibly throwing in some new and unexpected colors as well. 

I love Artbeads.com  Trends section of their website. And, their section in their Learning Center section under Seasonal Jewelry has tons of great free designs for you to try and the inspiration you can get from this resource is invaluable!  (Plus, it's loaded with all the lastest and greatest colors of the season, too!)

For my designs I started with Artbeads.com's silk ribbon in Multi Browns.  I love this ribbon!  I'm sure you can tell because the photo at the top of my blog of my  'Midnight' necklace was created using this ribbon in the Blue/Grey Color Combo!

I wanted to mix things up a bit, which is hard for me sometimes as I tend to stick to the same materials, so I added some copper chain and an antiqued copper Leaves and Flowers Toggle.  Both were easy to work with and since the toggle was 'antiqued' it brought the shininess of the chain and the matte colors of the ribbon together quite nicely.

You all know I love pearls and I love all things 'sparkly' too, so I chose to use some Swarovski Crystals and Crystal Pearls in my design in some fall-like colors.  I chose to use the Deep Brown Swarovski Crystal Pearls and the Brown Pearls since they matched the browns in the ribbon so well. I wanted some pops of color, so I chose Swarovski crystals in "Cosmic Olivine" and "Amethyst" and then threw in some really soft "Golden Shadow" for that added sparkle!  

With "Tassles" being so poular this season I decided to do a mini-tassle on my necklace and dangle it from the chain, adding little dangles of the pearls and crystals along the sides and using the ribbon so it would lay in the back; soft and natural on your neck!  (great for those sweaters we wear in the fall - nothing to catch or snag them!)  I used the toggle to connect the ribbon with the chain on the side so it would be easy to get on and off. 

I like how it turned out - although the pictures don't do the actual design justice!  But it does emind me of the rich colors of fall, the greens that are turning to brown, the purple hues of the sunsets as the nights get colder and the browns of the woods as the nights get longer.

Oh,...Fall,....sorry to see you go!

Until next time,

Peace, Love and all things "Falling,.....Falled,....Fell.  (On to Winter!!)

Cheers,

~Shel~
*I have received these products free of charge from Artbeads.com and I am honestly reviewing/creating with these products and have not been paid or compensated for my endorsement as it pertains to the products received.

Treasures Galore!

Wow - I've been listed in another Treasury on Etsy!  Thanks so much to Twisted Feather!

You should really check out these shops - they have some awesome items that would be perfect for gift giving this holiday season - especially for your family and friends who already have absolutely everything and you never have any idea what to get them - these items will be a hit!

And, as you're gearing up for the holidays and since Thanksgiving is just around the corner, remember that  tomorrow is Veteran's Day.

Please be sure to thank all those who have served or are serving our country, providing the opportunity for us all to live the lives we live today!!

And, please remember all the men and women (and their families) who have given the ultimate sacrifice with their lives for our freedom,.....words cannot express my gratitude! 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Good Finds, Great Freedoms and Wonderful Lives!!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Falling for New Earrings

 

  

While I'm waiting on more of my "Shel's Jewelry Supplies" clients to send in pics of their earrings designs created with my handcrafted earring wires, I thought I would post a few pics of some of the fall earring designs I've created and recented posted on my MiShel Designs website and Etsy Shop.

                 

I'm really interested to know what types of jewelry you're looking to add to your Fall wardrobe. What latest styles or classic designs are you working into your Fall Fashion Statement this season? 

Post your comments here on my blog or on the MiShel Designs Facebook Fan page and let's see what great Fall Fashion Style everyone has!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Great Fall Jewelry Fashion!

Cheers,

~Shel~