Summer's End

It's the end of our summer and we've packed up and left my sis's cabin in the mountains and headed back down to the desert! (and the heat!) 

Back to working full time, school shopping, school registration, appointments, clients, taking care of family and home things,..you know, all that good stuff.

The past 4 to 5 days have been very busy and eventful,...

* My sister and nephew returned to the cabin after their visit in Florida with my brother and family.

My sister Marsha and my nephew Preston

* My sis sold her Nutrioso T-Shirts and I sold my jewelry at the Annual Nutrioso BBQ. (Tents up, tents down, packing stuff, unpacking stuff, displaying things, selling things,...you know the routine!)

Marsha with her Nutrioso Shirts in our tent

 * I got clawed by Cosmo kitty when I startled him to death one morning as I went to remove him from the kitchen table. (Bad Cosmo!!) I've got a pretty funky looking swollen upper lip that is infected. I did some research and discovered it's "Cat Scratch Disease", which is a bacterial infection.

Pretty Kitty - Cosmo (a.k.a. - Momo)

Also known as Cat Scratch Fever! LOL!

Cosmo helping with the laundry!

Seriously though,...I go to the doctor tomorrow morning and will hopefully get antibiotics so it doesn't take the normal 3 to 5 weeks to clear up because it itches, tingles and hurts all at the same time. Not to mention that I now LOOK like the cat!  (at least my upper lip does!)

* Mike and I went on a mini-search party the afternoon we were to be heading home when the "Masked Rider", his cousin and a friend of theirs were over an hour late getting back from going caving!  Needless to say we were a bit worried,...but all ended well. Thankfully! (Nerve-wracking!)

Cousins - Preston and Logan (aka - the Masked Rider)

* Got to hang out with my  dearfriend, Jackie, who drove up for the BBQ weekend! (This was the fun part!)

Me and Jackie - Trying to keep dry during the Nutri BBQ

* Made Tortilla soup and Spaghetti Sauce in the crock pot. (not at the same time!) The house smelled great those two days! (This was the yummy part!)

* Created jewelry for the the Nutrioso Craft Show / BBQ. (more fun stuff)

* Watched some very cool storms roll in.
(way cool stuff - but not when you're selling things under a tent!!)

Storm rolling into Nutrioso.  Of course it's during the BBQ!
It's rained every year (except one!) during the BBQ.

* Walked to Grandma Emma's with Marsha, Jackie and Annie and took photos of all the wild flowers. (more fun)

Wild Flowers behind where Grandma Emma's Cabin used to be

Wild Flowers at the Cabin

* Drank coffee on the cabin porch with Marsha and Jackie and soaked up the cool morning temps! (Relaxing part!)

Jackie and Marsha

* Watched videos of the hubby and son riding their motorbikes up to the lakes.
(Going way too fast too, I might add!!)

The Masked Rider out in the desert on his old bike

* Took care of Cosmo Kitty and Annie Girl! 

Annie Girl!!

I will miss the cat and the dog!  (Sshhhh,...don't tell anyone!!) It will be nice now though to get some sleep because Cosmo won't be trying to sleep on my head or suck on my hair in the middle of the night!  (strange cat!)

Cosmo Kitty Reading His Emails!

I've got some exciting news that was emailed my way this past weekend as well, so I'm going to be sharing that with you here one of these days this week, too. 

You know, once things get back to normal!

Are you winding down for the summer or are you getting to enjoy a few more weeks of leisure time with your friends and family?

For those of you winding down,....I feel your pain!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Summer Endings,....

Cheers,

~Shel~

Ribbons of Hope

I'm not sure if I can actually call my handcrafted ribbons I designed "Ribbons of Hope" as that name seems to be take (by several individuals and companies!) but I'm calling them Ribbons of Hope because they started out as commemoration ribbons; ribbons to commemorate awareness for things such as motorcyclists on our freeways, and various cancers, too and they actually do represent hope. 

Many of my friends and clients asked if I could please duplicate my design for them, only using colors that coordinated with the types of causes, cancers, diseases, and awareness that meant something to them and were close to their hearts - so I have begun the process.  And what a rewarding proccess it is!

So, listed here in this post are the beginnings of some of the designs. These first pics are of the original design with blackened sterling silver ribbons that have been hand forged, textured and wire wrapped and adorned with saltwater and/or freshwater cultured pearls (of course they have pearls - you guys know me well enough to know that!!).

One of the ribbons in these pictures is going to be given to a young woman who's father and I attended school together. This young woman has been diagnosed with brain cancer.  Her necklace will have a gray ribbon attached to it for brain cancer awareness and I'm donating more jewelry items that will go into a silent auction at a benefit that will be held this summer for her. With out mentioning their names or anything (to protect everyone's privacy), I'd like to ask you to send your warmest wishes and prayers to this young lady and her entire family - there is definitely strength in numbers when it comes to 'postive vibes' that go out into the Universe! Thank you - I really appreciate it and I'm sure she and her family will as well.

The other ribbons in this collection that I'm creating will have various colored gemstones and ribbons associated with the different types of awareness causes such as pink for breast cancer, gray for brain cancer, yellow for our troops and their families, teal for Hodgkins Lymphoma, light blue for child abuse, red for your "heart health" and many more.  There are also plans for various types of metals to be used such as gold, copper, brass, etc. making these handcrafted metal ribbons adaptable to any cause which needs awareness and education. I'm also going to be donating a percentage of the proceeds of these ribbons to various causes as well - I just have to work out all those details first, before folks can start placing orders!

I welcome your thoughts and comments on these - so feel free to post something to this blog or shoot me an email or leave me a message on facebook.

He's my MiShel Designs Facebook Page so you can leave a message there if you'd like.

Until Next Time,
Peace, Lots of Love and Awareness!
Cheers,
~Shel~







P.S. - Someone asked and I looked it up - GRAY is how it's spelled in the America's and GREY is how they spell it in Europe and just about everywhere else in the world,...so they are both acceptable and both correct. I prefer grey for some reason,...don't ask my why! However, I made sure I corrected my use here in this post to the 'American' version but I still have it listed as GREY on my FB page!  :)

Tucson Bound!

Finally - today's the day I hop in my car and head down to Tucson for my annual "drooling over beads, pearls, gems and findings" fest!! 

I'm so excited I could pee right now.  Oops, that's probably TMI - but how many of you would feel the same if you could go, or do feel this way cause you're there (or almost there!)?

Yes, it's a beautiful site, full of beads, pearls, gemstones, findings, cool tools, new ideas, creative spirits wandering the city and over all excitement! 

I'll be posting to twitter nighting (like I'd stop drooling to text/type? Right!!)  The gems need my full attention mind you!  

I love Tucson!  I get to feast upon Nina's wonderful cooking, share a glass of wine with her and her hubby in the evening and hang out watching the sun set over the Catalinas - how wonderful is this?!! Then, my hubby and son roll into town Friday after school - they love the gem show too!! Then, all of us go in search of great things and share all our treasures and finds over dinner Saturday evening - it's tradition!

 

So, until I return home next week and get the new pics posted,.....here's some goodies from last year - and boy were they fantastic!!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Tucson!!  

Cheers,

~Shel~ 

End of Year Sale at MiShel Designs!

As we say good-bye to 2010 and ring in 2011, I wanted to say "Thank You" for making 2010 a great year and what better way to do so than by having an "End of the Year Sale" over at MiShel Designs!

Just in case you didn't get everything you wanted for the Holidays (accessories wise!) - here's your chance!

For all my Blog followers and Facebook friends and fans, enter coupon code NYE2010GET20 upon check out in my Etsy Store and get 20% off your order from now through January 2nd 2011!

There's lots of fun designs that will go great with your January wardrobe - producing a warm glow for those cold winter days!

 

I'm wishing you and yours a very Safe, Happy, Healthy and Mega Prosperous New Year!

 

Until 2011,.....

Peace, Love and Happy New Year To You and Yours!

Cheers,

~Shel~