Artemisia's Studio & a Giveaway Win

This post is unfortunately way late in coming, but better late then never, right?

Back in the beginning of December I received an email from Emanda of Artemisia's Studio letting me know that I had won a handmade ornament from her website!

To be honest, I had NO idea what the ornament looked like or even how I won it so it definitely came as a welcomed surprise. Looking back, I now know It was won from a comment I had left on Emanda's Challenge of Color post, a challenge we both participated in at the end of November.

After chatting with Emanda for a little bit over email, she told me to expect a package in the mail within the next couple of weeks. When it finally arrived, I was surprised once again, this time by it's contents!

Not only was there the most beautiful blue, green, and silver colored Angel wing ornament that literally took my breath away, Emanda also included a gorgeous pair of Rose Quartz and 'New Jade' earrings for me to enjoy.

Breathtaking. Literally! 

Merry Christmas to ME

I couldn't wait to add Emanda's ornament to our Christmas tree! It actually turns out that Angel wing was one of the first ornaments to adorn our tree this year. See for yourself...

Make sure to check out Emanda's Etsy shop, Artemisia's Studio and her Blog! She has some beautiful things to offer and is such a kind and wonderful person :)

Inspirational Tuesday(1/29)

"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make our world." 

--Buddha

What inspires YOU today? 

Flashback Monday(1/28)

Originally posted on May 22nd, 2009 entitled 'Drum Roll Please...The Bracelet!' 

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Ta da!

This is the final post in The Making of a Good Cause series and the unveiling of 'The Bracelet'! Okay, so it's not the best picture in the world, but unfortunately I couldn't come up with a creative way to display it >.<

Although I took more pictures!

Did you know an elephant with its trunk up in the air is a symbol for good luck? Well now you do! I forgot to add that into my bio for the bracelet itself, but that's alright.

This little beauty brought in $105.00 for the elephants!!!

Just for that, I am thrilled I got to be apart of everything =]

Thanks for following this story!

More Treasury Love

Eclectic Blue Saturday by Perriwinkleblue

Love by butenasPhotography

Lavender Snowflakes by PeachParlorVintage

You Are Here by MyAntarctica

Let it snow! by chickantique

Saturday's Picks(1/26)--I Miss You

Unfortunately this Saturday's Picks is a bit of a downer, mostly because I haven't been able to see my boyfriend in nearly a month and I'm missing him like crazy! 

That being said, it still contains a lot of cute handcrafted products from talented artists and crafters around the Etsy universe ^.^

Enjoy! 

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I Miss You A S--t Ton Greeting Card from JulieAnnArt

$4.00

Miss You Bear Stamp from cathands

$12.00

I Think I'd Miss You Even If We Never Met Cuff Bracelet from MyBellaByLizLollar

$29.00

Miss You XOXO Large White Chocolate Letters from chocolatesays

$22.99

Woman's Sun Tee by Jolby

$12.00

7th Bead Soup Blog Party Sign-Ups!

It's that extra special time of the year again! No, I'm not talking about the holidays (we just got through those people!). It's time for the lovely Lori Anderson's 7th Bead Soup Blog Party! 

Take notes of the dates people! 

Sign ups are this weekend, specifically starting TODAY, January 25th and going all the way through Sunday, January 25th. 

If you're new to the BSBP scene and you have no idea what I'm spouting out of my keyboard, you might want to check out the Queen of the Bead Soup, Lori Anderson and her Bead Soup Blog Party Blog. 

She actually just put together a page dedicated to the past few parties where you can see what goes on!

The last party was my first go around, so if you're curious as to what moi made, you can check out the collection of posts I did that spanned the length of the party here.

Now for the most important question....

Are YOU going to join in on the soupy festivities?

Flashback Monday(1/21)

Originally posted on May 20th, 2009 entitled 'The Making of a Good Cause-Beadware IL' 

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Happy Wednesday everyone and here is the other installment of my The Making of a Good Cause series!

When making a bracelet, the beads are the soul of the piece, but the findings are the heart and body. So you couldn't have a beautiful piece of jewelry without the clasps, crimp beads, or jump rings as its structure.

Which brings me to introduce you to the wonderful company I bought my 13mm Bali Sterling Silver Double Strand Toggle Clasp(pictured to the right below) from, Beadware IL on Ebay! If your not familiar with their store name, you might know them by their Ebay username wooden_flower.

Some information on Beadware IL right from their website:

Beautiful beads from around the world - Swarovski crystals in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, Bali silver beads and findings, Czech glass, Venetian glass, Grade A fiber optic cats eye beads in 30 colors,

vintage lucite, and more!

Free US shipping on purchases of $50 or more

If you want to know more about the technical stuff such as shipping, returns, and whatever else you may question, check their FAQ page here.
When I went in search of the perfect clasp, I knew I had requirements; One, for it to be double stranded and two, it be sterling silver because I wanted this to be a high quality bracelet with nothing but the best materials. Then I wandered upon this toggle clasp and it was beautiful!

Looking through Beadware IL, I can see their description is right on the money! They have a wide variety of stunning

and very affordable beads and findings. I found what I paid for the sterling silver toggle clasp(after shipping) was extremly reasonable. I am very satisfied at how perfectly it went with my bracelet and how easy working with the company was.

With reasonable prices, fast shipping, and 100% positive feedback, you have another place to indulge your jewelry fetish! Lol

Tomorrow we will be featuring an Etsy seller(finally)! And this one is where I got my amazing elephang charm. Don't miss it!

Flashback Monday(1/14)

Originally posted on May 19th, 2009 entitled 'The Making of a Good Cause-24hourgems' 

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I thought I would start out with the beads that I chose for the auction bracelet. The first thing you should know about me is that I love symbolism. It means more to me if I buy something that has meaning to it over something that's just an object-Kind of like buying handmade or vintage as opposed to factory made. Handmade is just more personal and has more of a story then some mass produced cheapy piece of crap you buy from a chain store.

So of course I'm going to put symbolism into my bracelet! And because this is going to the Elephants, I figured I would look up the Elephant totem online and see what some of it's attributes were.

Here is what I found from Lins Domain:

An Elephant totem gives you

ancient wisdom and power to draw upon.

It embodies strength and power.
 

It's very important that I add those qualities to my bracelet because that's who I am. I want to make this bracelet personal and meaningful for the person who buys it.

I did some research and found all of those qualities in one beautiful stone: Lapis Lazuli. I found the perfect Lapis beads at 24hourbeads on Ebay!

A little about the company from their site:

We specialize in beads: Freshwater Pearl, Millefiori Glass, Lampwork Glass, Gemstones, Kyanite, Ruby, Pink Opal, Lava, Turquoise, Bracelet, Pearl Necklace, Biwa Pearl, Tourmaline and much more.
 

I have to say I am extremely satisfied with this company! The beads where beyond stunning(I am debating on making myself something from whats left over), the shipping was fast and easy, and very pleasant to work with in general.

If you take a look at their site, you can find anything in any price range. Speaking of prices, WOW. They are extremely reasonable even before shipping.

All in all, I am very satisfied on my purchase from 24hourbeads and I'm eyeballin a few other lovelies for my collection! Lol

Come back tomorrow for more on The Making of a Good Cause.

Flashback Monday(1/7)

Originally posted on May 16th, 2009 and titled 'The Making of a Good Cause' 

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This is a more detailed explanation of the Mailbox Monday post and my venture to help the Elephants!

First off, I wanted to say a big thank you to my friend Suzy who has humored me with all of her wonderful and adventurous stories on her trips to Africa and her love of all the animals she has encountered! I am truly honored to be apart of this experience!

I suppose it all started when Suzy emailed me with some of her stories. I love hearing all of them! In some later emails she told me about some of the organizations she works with and the fact that the Elephant organization she belongs to is having a banquet within the next few weeks. She told me of last year's banquet and what went on and I wanted to do something to help out the cause.

Thats when she told me of the auction and I had the idea to make something jewelry related that can be auctioned off. I was so excited, I immediately asked if I would be able to do that and when she said of course, I launched into finding the perfect pieces for the bracelet that was forming in my mind's eye.

Here is a little about EARS(Elephant of Africa Rescue Society) from their website Elephant Ears:

Elephants of Africa Rescue Society is dedicated to supporting projects aimed at securing a safe habitat for wild, African animals and dedicated to providing a sanctuary for their captive cousins with a special focus on elephants. We believe that by educating the public about the problems facing both captive and wild animals we can increase public awareness and support.

Elephants of Africa Rescue Society is a 501(c)(3) California non-profit organization. We have a board of directors consisting of seven people who have a love of African Elephants. Some with exotic animal experience, others with just the desire to help. We have pulled our resources together to form E.A.R.S.

This year's fundraiser was a western theme! I can't wait to see the pictures :D Anywho, the next few parts in this series are dedicated to the companies in which I bought my supplies and the making of the actual bracelet!

There will be a special suprise at the end of the series too...Shall I say in two words: Give Away.

Keep checking back for more on The Making of A Good Cause Series.