May Madness Sale!

~ Hey Gang ~

I'm having a 25% OFF SALE over in my



And,  it's only for my Blog Buddies,
my Facebook Friends and my Twitter Peeps.



To get your discount,
enter coupon code MAYMADNESS
during the check out procedure on Etsy.



The coupon code won't be posted in my shop announcements, so don't forget!



See, Madness CAN be fun!!



Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Going Mad!
Cheers,
~Shel~


I Heart Macro - It's Sunday!

I'm away,...playing with family today!

Here's something PINK
for you to enjoy!



Linking up with I Heart Macro

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Pink!

Cheers,
~Shel~

Mother Nature's Having Fun!

Hey - check out this funky rose that was growing in our rose garden! 



I don't know about you, but I've never seen one with a solid stripe down the middle.



I mean we've got all kinds of mixed up colors and blends and what not, but nothing like this before.  Wild, eh?



Guess Mother Nature decided to have some fun!

Everyone have a good weekend!



Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Stripes!

Cheers,
~Shel~

Echo Creative Club - April Reveal Is Here!

This was one of the months I was able to participate in
Echo Creative Club
sponsored by the talented
Jeannie over at Jewelry by Jeannie.


Jeannie makes some wonderful polymer clay beads and pendants - like the ones pictured here that I received from her a few weeks back for April's challenge.


Each time I looked at Jeannie's pretty Peeled Paint Beads this month, I kept thinking to my self, "Greek Goddess". 




So, I think that's what I was channeling when this bracelet design came to fruition.



 
I don't know,...what do you think?

Not sure if it's really Greek Goddess like or not.



 

I really like the colors though and the way it shines.

The Peeled Paint beads with their yummy turquoise color and the copper and gold tones made them fun to design with and I'm pleased with the way Jeannie's wonderful beads really stand out!

(Thank you Jeannie!)



I'm thinking I need to have a Toga party,...now that it's officially Summer in the desert,.....seriously.

It's reached over 100 degrees a few days this week and it's gonna stay pretty hot until late October,
so a Toga is probably all I'm gonna feel like
wearing for the next 6 months! 

Good thing I'll have my cool bracelet to wear, isn't  it?!!


Those of us on this month's design challenge team are listed below.

Be sure to check out every one's fabulous creations.

There's loads of talented designer's here who have created some yummy eye-candy for you to drool over!!

April Blog Hop
Jeannie K Dukic http://site.jkdjewelry.com/blog
Birgitta Lejonklou http://lejonklou.blogspot.com/
Cindy Cima Edwards http://www.cindycima.com/
Kristen Stevens http://kristen-beadjourney.blogspot.com/
Lola Surwillo http://www.beadlolabead.blogspot.com/
Lori Anderson http://www.prettythingsblog.com/
Michelle Buettner http://www.misheldesigns.blogspot.com/
Molly Alexander http://www.beautifullybrokenme.blogspot.com/
Shannon Chomanczuk http://www.formysweetdaughter.blogspot.com/


Oh, and don't forget to hop on over to our
Echo Creative Club Flickr Group
and see all the gorgeous photos
of our designs over there, too!!



Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Sun Goddesses!
Cheers,
~Shel~

It's Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Time Baby!!

It's time for the
Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Challenge
hosted by Tracy Statler over on her blog
Make Bracelets!


One of the rules of the challenge was that you had to have at least three bracelets, two of which needed to be made by you, and wrap, stack or layer them and take some photos.


They could be any color, any size, shape, style, etc. that you wanted and the idea (and fun) was to be creative and let your imagination play!


I created all the bracelets you see pictured here
(some more recently than others!)
and I had tons of fun making them, too! 

I wear my bracelets 'wrapped and stacked' on a normal basis.



It was a bit harder to get photos than usual.



I'm not used to taking pictures of my own wrist!




Here's a few more bracelets I've created along
with some tips on wearing them!









When you find yourself wanting to
Wrap, Stack and Layer
just remember to have fun!





Now, go get your eyes filled with tons more arm candy by clicking through all the participants listed below in the Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Bracelet Challenge - you're gonna have so much fun and be so inspired!!

Thanks so much to Tracy for hosting this lovely bracelet challenge - it's so much fun!!

Oh, I almost forgot,...


Barbie joined in the fun today as well!


Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Arm Candy Baby!!

Cheers,
~Shel~



Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Bracelet Challenge
Participants:

stringsattachedcindi.blogspot.com
carolynscreationswa.blogspot.com
cathiecarroll.blogspot.com
pinterest.com/chrisdeweerd
beatnheart.blogspot.com
storiestheytell.blogspot.com
tellyourgirlfriends.com
mamasgottodoodle.blogspot.com
copperdiem.blogspot.com
copperpennydesigns.blogspot.com
greenshoot.blogspot.com
twentytwelve-mmxii.blogspot.com
delle56.blogspot.com
elizabeth-marengoalhajas.blogspot.com
treasures-found.blogspot.com
erinsiegeljewelry.blogspot.com
ferrarioriginalsyahoocom.blogspot.com
facebook.com/handcraftedserenity
PaisleyDesignStudios.com
pixiloo.blogspot.com
hintjewelry.blogspot.com
silverrosedesigns.blogspot.com
daisychaindesignsjewellery.blogspot.com
jazzierich.blogspot.com
site.jkdjewelry.com/blog
jeanetteblix.com
glassaddictions.com
jerrisjems.com
howienjoylife7997.blogspot.com
overthemoon-design.com
katerichbourg.com
pinterest.com/kk0725/stack-it-up-bracelets/
kimmykats.com
kymhunterdesigns.blogspot.com
lamplightcrafts.blogspot.com
lelamccracken.blogspot.com
etsy.com/shop/goingtribal
inspiredadonments.blogspot.com
lorelei1141.blogspot.com
freshbakeddesigns.wordpress.com
lindysdesigns.blogspot.com
maryhardingjewelrybeadblog.blogspot.com
maureenmeanswell.blogspot.com
maybejustperhaps.blogspot.com
beadrecipes.wordpress.com
tekaandzoe.blogspot.com
miri100.blogspot.com
melissameman.blogspot.com
kenshostudio.com
beadingbymalindekoning.blogspot.com
havanabeads.blogspot.com
eclecticteaenshrinements.blogspot.com
roxidesigns.blogspot.com
stefaniessammelsurium.blogspot.com
thestudiosublime.com
sandivolpe.com
sharondriscoll.blogspot.com
sedillohillstudio.blogspot.com
sunshinebliss.com
sharonsjewelrygarden.blogspot.com
MiShelDesigns.com   

aujourlejour-shelly.blogspot.com
blueberrycrazy.deviantart.com/gallery
uniqueboutique-creativetouch.blogspot.com
starhitchedwagon.blogspot.com
terrabeadworks.com
theresestreasures59.blogspot.com
sweetbeadstudio.com
missyrappaport.blogspot.com
mylifeunderthebus.typepad.com
fredbeansnook.com/blog


It's Almost Time!

Oh,...I'm excited for the Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Challenge hosted by Tracy Statler over on her Make Bracelets blog!



 
It's tomorrow, Saturday, April 21st, so you'll have to come back on over here in the morning and check out all the lovelies everyone will have posted on their blogs!!




Also this Saturday, my sis and I are hosting our Spring Jewelry Boutique over at her house.

 
We try to do this twice a year.
Once in the Spring and once in the Fall.


We always have so much fun!
  
We'll have live music by acoustic guitarist
Preston Hindman




You can listen to one of my favorite songs he wrote,
 Remi's Song - here!


 
And, we've got Mina coming back this Spring to give her famous 30 minute massages, too.
She's fabulous - let me tell you!

We always serve a few cocktails and have some fruits and veggies along with tortilla chips a my sis's famous Pico de Gallo! YUMMY!!

Oh, and of course there's fun jewelry to drool over, too!


So, if you're here in AZ and get the chance, email me for directions and stop on by! 

It's gonna be a great Saturday!!



Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Fun!
Cheers,
~Shel~  

This or That Thursday!

I'm busy getting ready for my jewelry show this Saturday at my sis's house. 

Plus, the hubby's birthday is on Sunday.

 And, I'm also trying to snap some pics of the arm candy I created for the Wrapped, Stacked and Layered Bracelet Challenge and Blog Hop being hosted this Saturday the 21st by Tracy Statler over at Make Bracelets

But I did get a chance to snap a few pics of some of the gorgeous flowers blooming in our yard this week.

As always, click to enlarge photos.





Oh, and Coco dropped in to say "Hi", too!



Have a great Thursday everyone!

Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and This or That!

Cheers,
~Shel~




In a blog slump? Get over that hump!

Hey gang, instead of beads on my bench today I've got
Lori Anderson's new eBook,
Follow The Path, ideas and inspiration for the creative blogger,
on my bead table!



It's packed full of gorgeous photos to inspire you alright, but what's really great is how Lori shares all sorts of ideas and topics to spark your creativity so you can perk up your blog!

One of the things I like most about Lori's eBook are the lists of words she uses to jump start your thoughts.
Powerful words that really make you think. 

I can't give away any more details. 

You'll just have to hop on over to Lori's blog and get yourself a copy!

I want to give Lori a big hug for using one of my photos in her eBook. 



I couldn't believe it when I started reading and came across my corks photo!

Thank you so much Lori - you're the best!

I plan on using several ideas Lori shares in her eBook
here on my blog this year!

Head on over and check out Lori's eBook and get some inspiration flowing through your blog!!

Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Great Ideas and Inspiration!!

Cheers,
~Shel~

Learning From Others: Blog Spotlight

Today I'd like to give a shout out to a blogger I follow regularly and look to for awesome color inspiration, business knowledge and tons of other fun stuff, too.

Brandi Girl Blog written by Brandi Hussey hasn't been on my radar nearly long enough, possibly a year or so, but in the short time that I've followed Brandi and gotten to know her a bit, she's become an invaluable resource that I turn to again and again.
And she's a real sweetie, too!



There are so many things Brandi does well and she's so generous with everything she shares that it's hard to know where to start. 

She's one of these rare people who have the ability to make you think about some pretty deep things all the while inspiring you to push yourself to try new things or to see the world a bit differently that you did when you woke up this morning.

 She has these amazing color palettes she shares with her readers which help trigger your creative side. At least they do mine.

Here's one of my favorites from Brandi.

Thunderstorm Color Palette #104 by Brandi Hussey


I was amazed at how few colors I actually saw in a picture until I started looking over the color palettes she would post with her photos. Then, when I followed her tutorial and did a couple of my own - wow - I had no idea all those colors were in the pictures I was snapping!

Color Paletter #98 - January Color by Brandi Hussey


She also offers up some great e-Books. She has one on pricing your designs. You should see the jewelry she used to create - luscious doesn't even begin to describe it!  Her eBook really helps those of use who sell our jewelry creations over some tough hurdles in regards to this topic.

Brandi's eBook - It's Free - Check It Out!


She also just came out with her fabulous Editing with Elements course to help people who are new to, or a bit techno-challenged (as in my case), with editing photos and working in Photoshop Elements.

I'm diving into this one right now and
will let you all know how I do!

Brandi's Editing With Elements Course


One of the things Brandi is outstanding at, in my opinion any way, is her teaching ability. In her video tutorials, she has a calm way of teaching and she speaks to you in a way that is upbeat and easily understood. And I think she has a great 'voice', too - that's hard to do sometimes on camera and Brandi just does it naturally.

I was really honored several weeks back when Brandi emailed me and asked if she could do a spotlight on me one day this month over on her blog. "Me?"  "Seriously?"  "Wow!" You can check out her post here.  And thanks so much for doing this Brandi - it's really special!

So, if you're in need of some inspiration, whether it be for your business or just some personal inspiration to lift your spirits or get you thinking about new things, Brandi Girl Blog is definitely worth checking out - you will not be disappointed. Honestly.   I think you'll come away with a whole new favorite!

Color Palette #89 - Quiet Moments by Brandi Hussey


Until Next Time,
Peace, Love and Gratitude!
Cheers,
~Shel~