Focus on Life - Week 8 - Monochromatic

 

For week 8 of Focusing on Life: 52 Photos,

Sally's prompt was: MONOCHROMATIC
 

 

"This week look deeper through the lens to the story your photo captures and then process it to one color! 

Or be daring and shoot in B&W (monochrome)."

 

I thought this would be a rather easy challenge but I was wrong.

I played around with my camera settings and some photo editing software programs and tried out new things.

 

 I really like other people's black and white photos and even many photos I see with Sepia and other tones, but not so much my own photos. 

Sepia's not too bad I guess,....
 

  I just really don't have the eye for it.

Not the way I want to, anyway.

That said, it really made me start viewing things in an entirely new way and noticing different colors.

The mountains of AZ. I truly love how the mountains
are every shade of blue!

I liked that!
 

  

So I challenged myself to capture Monochromatic (sort of!) pics in the world around me, with out processing to one color or doing major edits.  And it couldn't be shot in black and white (my own silly rules!).

Pretty much everything is this drab, dead color since we've had such a weird winter.

This was tough - the world is so multi-colored!

Thanks for bringing me out of my comfort zone this week Sally! 

It was definitely a fun perspective this week!




  

Make sure you check out all the other participant's photos!

Just for fun!!

 

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Monochromatic Challenges!

Cheers,

~Shel~ 

 

 

Suburban Girl Studio Design Team

Remember how I told you I was fortunate enough to get chosen to be part of the 2012 Suburban Girl Studio Design Team?

Well, here's the first set of components that Diana sent to me!

Sunset Orange Porcelain Flower Pendant by Suburban Girl Studio
Lampwork Glass Bead by Jan O. of LakeSide Creations

Lovely, aren't they?

The flower pendant is her Sunset Orange Porcelain Flower that she carries in her Etsy Shop.

Wait till you see all the fabulous items Diana has in her shop!
Oh my!  Trust me, you'll want one of everything!

The lovely handmade glass bead is from Jan Onipenco. You can find some really cool things in Jan's Shop, LakeSide Creations over on Etsy!

Sunset Orange Porcelain Flower Pendant by Suburban Girl Studio
Lampwork Glass Bead by Jan O. of LakeSide Creations

Thanks so much to Diana for providing this opportunity and her lovely ceramic pendant and to Jan for her amazing lampwork bead.

I'm excited because these aren't colors that I normally work with so it's going to be fun to challenge myself and play with some fun colors!

The 1st Reveal Date for the Suburban Girl Studio Design Team is on Sunday, April 1st, 2012.

April Fool's!

No really,....seriously - come back here on the 1st and I'll have the design team links and you can see all the really cool stuff that every one's created with the items that Diana sent out!

So, while I'm vacationing on the beach, I'm going to be playing with these. 

I mean really, who could ask for anything more?

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Designing with WAAAAY COOL Goodies!!

Cheers,

~Shel~

I Heart Macro - It's Sunday!!

Good Morning - it's Sunday and so that means it's "I Heart Macro" today!!  Lori Plyler hosts "I Heart Macro" every Sunday over on her blog and this morning I stopped by Studio Waterstone to check out all the cool Macro pics and OH MY GOODNESS!  There are so many amazing shots already this week - incredible!  Go check it out!

I couldn't decide what to post this morning because my camera is acting up a bit and not taking the amazingly wonderful pics it usually takes, so I have to reset everything as I'm sure it's something I've messed with and changed by accident.  It would help if I was at least somewhat 'techno savvy' but that's not the case, so be that as it may,.....strawberries and blueberries for breakfast anyone?

Yummy!

They're looking pretty sad upclose! LOL!!

Champagne with the girls!

These are the Strawberries we had for girl's weekend
at the cabin last week - looks much better in champagne!

I hope you're all having a good "End of Summer" Labor Day Weekend.  It would be nice if the weather cooled down a bit here since I'm just not feeling like it's the end of summer with temps still over 100 degrees, but I don't think that's happening any time soon.

Cocobird's been really out of sorts lately  - I think he's mad cause we've been keeping him inside all day and not putting his cage on the patio in the mornings for a while like normal because of the extreme heat.  He's seeing all the other 'birdies' hopping around outside and he's getting a bit jealous! Hopefully the temps will dip below 100 here in a few more weeks!!

Coco the Love Bird

Every one stay safe this weekend and have fun with your friends and family!!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Macro Sundays!!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Macro Sunday - Unexpected Beauty!

Welcome!

Cabin in the Woods

It’s “girl’s weekend” at the cabin and what a beautiful weekend it is!

The weather has been heavenly - especially compared to what’s happening in Phoenix right now.

Since I was going to be at the cabin when it was time to post for "I Heart Macro" this week, I decided I'd capture some pics up in the mountains for posting.

I set out on a walk in the woods and found beauty in many things; even things that were burned. 

Burned Log - Do you see the "Turtle"
peeking out of the charred wood?
How about the "Heart" on his nose?

Between some of the burned trees that lay on the ground there were bunches of little flowers and their colors were lovely and the grass has come in so green from the rains – it was amazing!

There was even beauty over at Grandma Emma’s cabin.  It is still very sad and I choke back tears each time I'm there, but I chose to be open to seeing beauty this time and I felt a very calm and comforting feeling come over me when I walked up to where the cabin once stood. There was something very calming, almost soothing, about standing in the midst of all the rubble.

Remains after the Wallow Fire

Silverware



Beauty really was still present.  There, among the chaos of shattered glass, twisted metal and charred remains, was a key.  I took that as a sign; a symbol if you will, of a new beginning. Keys unlock doors. Doors lead to the future and the future can hold whatever you want it to – the choice is yours!

Here's to finding beauty in all things!

"Key to the Future"

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Beautiful Meanings!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Be sure to hop on over and check out all the cool pics for "I Heart Macro" over on Studio Waterstone's Blog. Lori Plyler puts together a really cool bunch!

June Pearls!

June's birthstone is the lovely and ever so fascinating PEARL!! 

My son was born in June and since pearls are my all time FAVORITE gemstone, I thought I'd show you a couple of pieces of awesome jewelry here - to entice you, of course!

The June Summer Sale over on my Etsy shop is going on now through June 22nd and you can save 15% on your total order.

Just enter JUNE15 upon check out to get some of these gorgeous pearl designs (and all other designs, too!!) for a spectacluar price!

And, here's a few Pearl Tid-Bits, too:

• June's Birthstone is the Pearl
• Pearls are one of only a handful of organic gemstones. (Organic gems come from things that were once living or were produced by a living organism and include not only pearls, but amber, coral, ivory, and jet.)
• Pearls were once believed to protect sailors from storms while at sea.
• Pearls are the most widely chosen gemstone for bridal necklaces.
• Diamonds might be a girls best friend, but pearls are a "cultured girls" best friend!!
• Metaphysically Pearls are believed to encourage open, heart to heart communication, to allow you to see the good within yourself and to protect the wearer from harm.

And, my favorite quote: (Author Unknown) "Pearls are the Gem of Queens and the Queen of Gems!"  (Gotta Love That One!)

So, as summer is now officially upon us (as of 10:31a.m. the news reported today), enjoy the Summer Season by hanging with family and friends, soaking up the sun and enjoying the outdoors and by happily celebrating the beauty of Pearls in your own, stylish way!


Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and "Pearls Baby"!!
Cheers,
~Shel~

  

Banana Fiber is YUMMY!!

Okay - I'm totally hooked on ribbons and yarns from "Darn Good Yarn"! Especially their Banana Fiber Yarn!  It's so YUMMY and SOFT!

 

I created some bangles with this super cool yarn and wrapped it up with some .925 Sterling Silver Wire and sporadically added some Turquoise bead dangles for movement and fun!

Funky, fun, soft, and FLUFFY – these bangles are your ticket to WILD!

You can find these cool bangles hanging out in my Etsy Shop.

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Funky Fibers!!

Cheers,

~Shel~ 

P.S. Check out this cool "Peace Baby" necklace I also created with some super soft Banana Fiber Yarn.  This one was donated to a cancer benefit being held next month for a young woman who's standing up to Brain Cancer, but various ones will be up in my Etsy shop in June!

Something Old is NEW Again

Anyone who’s spent any time with me at all has probably heard me ramble on about my favorite hotel on the planet – the Hotel Queen Mary over in Long Beach, California.

You are immediately rushed back in a time bursting with history and culture as you walk on board with Fred Astaire and instrumental jazz music playing softly in the background. Beautiful, rich wood and chrome details are a delight to the eyes and the Art Deco paintings set your mind a whirl as the excitement of what it must have been like to sail on this amazing ship engulfs you! (I could go on gushing for days,…so I’ll just stop now, K?)

This pearl and gold tassel was in a bag of vintage goodies that my niece picked up at a yard sale in the mountains of Arizona. It always reminded me grand opulence (hence, the Queen Mary!) so when it came time for the new Artbeads Blogging Challenge, “Something Old is New Again”, I knew exactly what I wanted to create!

I worked and re-worked this piece a few different times, first with two different chains like what it was attached to when it was given to me. I added, subtracted, added, subtracted Swarovski pearls, crystals, bead caps, more chain,….urggghhhh,…nothing looked right and nothing felt like the sleek sophistication that was befitting the Queen Mary or the elegant women who graced those magical ballrooms and suites.

“Simple is Best” kept whispering in my ear, (just like the ghosts of the Queen Mary herself!) and I reconstructed everything once more, adding only a few pearls to the bottom of the tassel, keeping the chain that more closely resembled the 1940’s period and ditching the art-deco looking chain - although it would have been very fitting, it was way too "gold looking" and bright for this specific piece.

I alternated different sizes of Swarovski Pearls and gold plated bead caps and finished it off with a simple hook clasp; very befitting the time period. Earrings were created that would compliment, but not distract, from this elegant necklace and I finished them with my own handcrafted 14K gold filled earring wires. All was now perfect!

I imagine myself wearing this stunning and timeless set while sipping a cocktail on the aft deck of the Queen Mary; soft music playing in the background and the cool, ocean air dancing lightly on my skin as I sail, like royalty, across the ocean!

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Something Old is Definitely New Again!

Cheers,

~Shel~

FTC compliance disclosure: the Artbeads.com items mentioned in this post were provided as a promotional gift as part of the Blogging for Beaders Program. These items are for review or design purposes.

Winter Enchantment – Windswept Dreams Necklace

Our assignment this time around for the Artbeads.com blogging challenge, was the theme “Winter Enchantment” and I found some nice items to try – and boy are they cool!

This project, by the way, is also doubling as my YOJP 2011 Week 9 Entry this week – with the theme being “Windswept”.

I had a ball with this cause I was really jazzed to try out some of the Swarovski Crystal beaded yarns. Here’s what I got:

• Swarovski Crystal 3mm Crystal Beads White Cashmere Yarn

• Swarovski Crystal 3mm Jet Beads Black Cotton Yarn

• Swarovski Light Grey Mohair Yarn with 3mm light grey pearls (ya knew there be pearls in there somewhere, didn’t cha!!?)

• Swarovski Crystal Hematite Mohair Yarn with 3mm hematite beads.

These were really fun to work with. All were soft, and the mohair and cashmere ones are really ‘fuzzy’ and remind me of nice, warm winter sweaters! They would be great to make little “Barbie” necklaces with. Yes, I even make jewelry for Barbie once in a while….I’m such a dork!

I really am a dork, because I forgot to snap my ‘before’ pics when I take all my goodies out of the bag and you get to see everything lined up before I start creating – sorry about that.


For my necklace focal bead I chose a 28mm Jet Swarovski Crystal Twist Pendant – boy does this have some heft to it! LOVE IT! And, the toggle I chose - since I was doubling this for my windswept theme for Week 9 of YOJP 2011 – was this spiral (swirly wind!) Tierracast Spiral Toggle Clasp.

I like the Tierracast toggle design and since it’s light weight (it’s silver plated not true sterling) it feels nice on the back of your next and doesn’t press down on your neck bones in the back. I know that sounds weird,…but trust me,…it’s important!

I gathered up these lovely little, fabulously fuzzy yarns with their tiny little beads and wire wrapped the ends, sliding them into some plain sterling silver cones that I purchased from my friends over at BeadWorld here in Glendale. I also got the nice sterling silver bail that’s holding the Swarovski Crystal pendant on at BeadWorld as well!

I added the pendant and the toggle clasp to the layers of Swarovski yarns and ‘Ta-da’ – it’s a “Winter Enchantment, Windswept Dream!” (it’s more of a little winter enchantment, fluffy, fuzzy looking type of dream necklace than any windswept necklace, but whatcha gonna do!?!) But, it still looks rather ‘Winter-ish’, don’t you think?

I’m really thankful to the folks over at Artbeads.com. I’ve been ordering from them for over 5 or 6 years now and their items are really great, shipping is fast, and their prices are some of the best around. You definitely can’t beat that these days – that’s for sure!

Until Next Time,
Peace, Love, Winter Enchantment and Windswept Dreams of Spring Coming Soon!!
Cheers,

~Shel~

FTC compliance disclosure: the Artbeads.com items mentioned in this post were provided as a promotional gift as part of the Blogging for Beaders Program. These items are for review or design purposes.