Focusing on Life: Week 47 - Centerpiece

It's week 47 for the Focusing on Life: 52 Photos weekly photo challenge hosted by Sally over at The Studio Sublime and our prompt this week was:

 

 

 

 

Centerpiece

 

"This week focus on what is the centerpiece, the central, most important feature in your day, week, life!  It makes you comfortable, brings you joy, brings you peace of mind, or is simply a place of comfort."

 

For me, this one was easy! Well, I thought it was going to be anyway.

 

These two. Yep - they're my "Centerpiece". My hub. My Rock. My World. My Everything!

 

My Goofy Boys!!

 

 

Only they're not much into having their photo snapped. I told them I didn't want to 'cheat' this week and use a photo of them that I already had and so they had better stand there and let me take their picture!

 

So they agreed. But only for a second.

And only for 1 photo they said.

 

Well, I think it was about 5 seconds, then they bolted so I couldn't get a second shot! Stinkers!

 

I played around with some editing and overlays, etc. I used one called 'Logan' on Pixlr. How appropriate, eh?!

 

And here's the rest of my "Centerpiece".  This was taken at our family reunion this summer up near my sis's cabin. With the exception of just a few who weren't able to make it, it's my sister and our two brothers and their families. These wonderful people are also my 'Centerpiece' and part of my 'Everything'!

 

 

 

 

I'm going to be spending Thanksgiving with some of these folks. Wishing I could spend it with all of them, but grateful for those of us that will be together! 

 

I'm wishing all of you here in the U.S. a wonderful Thanksgiving Day this Thursday and a fun, yet relaxing, holiday weekend.

 

May you have the luxury of spending time with your family, friends and those you are close to and may you be healthy, happy and 'full' of love and light!

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Finding Center!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Focus on Life: Week 46 - Reflect

This is week 46 for the Focusing On Life: 52 Photos weekly photography challenge and our host, Sally, from over at the Studio Sublime gave us this prompt:

 

 

 

Week 46: Reflect

 

"The start of the Holiday season is coming up quickly whether we are ready or not, so before jumping in to all the hustle and bustle let's take a moment to slow down and reflect on all the joy, peace, happiness and love we already have in our life."

 

Wow - how on earth do I capture all the joy, peace, happiness and love that surrounds me in one photo - especially when all those I love and find joy with are spread through out the country?

 

Yep - a bit more challenging than it sounded when I first read this prompt last Sunday!! 

 

Last year during this time of year I was whining to my brother-in-law (aka - Older Wiser One) one day about how rude people were during the Holiday Season and how I thought this was supposed to be the "Happiest Time of the Year!"  And  his response went something like this,....

 

"There are people who don't feel the same as you do during this time of year Shelly because maybe they've lost a loved one and they're missing them.  Or maybe they can't be with the ones they love during the holidays and this makes them sad. Or, perhaps they are trying to figure out how they're going to put food on the table and they're worried there won't be enough money to feed the ones they love. Or maybe, they just don't have people around them who care about them like you do."

 

UGGHHHH! 
'Older-Wiser-One' is such a downer sometimes! 
But he was right. 

I needed to step out of my 'bubble' and realize how lucky I was and just accept things for what they were and not expect everyone to feel the same or act the same as I was acting and feeling.
(Just take things as they come and don't judge or be offended!)

 

So, this week I chose to "Reflect" on how lucky I am. 
(Truly Blessed - despite how some weeks I seem to forget this!)

 

And I wish those who might be feeling down or in despair the comfort and luxury of Joy, Peace, Happiness and Love as our year slides into its final weeks.

 

 

 

 

Until Next Time,

May Everyone Find Their Little Slice of Joy, Peace, Happiness and LOVE!

 

Cheers,

~Shel~

Bead Chat Magazine and Artisan Whimsy

I wanted to give a big shout out to Melinda Orr and all the ladies over at Bead Chat Magazine and Artisan Whimsy.

 

The November issue of Bead Chat Magazine is out and it's Fabulous!
 

 

 

 

Bead Chat Magazine did a tribute to Bead Trends Magazine, since it ceased publishing this summer, and featured several of the jewelry designers and their designs that were in the 'hopper' about to be published by didn't quite make the last publication. And, they did a feature on me since I was going to be the Beads Trends October Designer Highlight.  They did a super job including all the designs that were to be in the spread and made everything look just wonderful.

 

 

I can't thank them enough for publishing everything they did in the November issue of Bead Chat - thank you, thank you!!

 

I wanted to give a special thanks to Cynthia Machata over at Bead Chat. She put up with my endless email problems as I was switching computers and going from Windows 7 to Windows 8 at the same time.  Such a patient, creative and friendly soul - I don't know how she does it all, but she does. And, she does it with such grace. Thank you Cynthia - you made everything super easy!! (And you should see her jewelry! Yep - Pretty. Darn. Cool! :-)

 

This month's issue is jam packed with all sorts of goodies so be sure to click here and check it out.

 

And, some more exciting news - this month's the start of the all new and improved Artisan Whimsy site - be sure to go check it out as well.  The comradery on this site is unmatched. People sharing, helping each other - it's pretty cool!  There's lots of things in the works over there, so be sure to check back often.

 

Okay - time to get back to work!  I hope everyone enjoys their week!

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Diggin' Bead Chat Mag!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Focus on Life: 52 Photos - Week 45 - Industrial Photography

It's week 45 (Holy Cow Smokes Batman, where has the year gone?!) for the Focusing on Life: 52 Photos weekly challenge hosted by the talented Sally Russick over at

The Studio Sublime.

 

 

 

Our prompt this week was:

 

Industrial Photography:  It's amazing how something perceived as cold and whose purpose is to perform a function can have a beautiful soul."

 

Well, this got me thinking - as our weekly prompts always do.

 

On Halloween, our son (aka - the Masked Rider) took a pretty good spill on his motorbike while taking it for a spin around the block here in our subdivision. I was at the grocery store when this happened and, long story fairly short,...here's the gist of it.

 

Normally, the "Masked Rider" looks like this when he rides his dirt bike (even around the block, pretty much!):

 

 

 

This day, he was dressed like this:

 

Logan was actually wearing only a tank top, basketball shorts and his riding boots when he crashed.
And, this is Mike's motorbike, which is much smaller than Logan's.

 

And this is what happened when he decided the street would look better paved with his skin than with the asphalt that was already there,....

 

 

Yep - OUCH!  His hands were the worst - well kind of!

 

 

Nope - not a pretty sight.

Didn't feel too good either according to Logan.

 

Lesson learned: always wear your helmet, NO MATTER WHAT!!  And gloves, a long sleeve shirt and some pants couldn't hurt, either! :-) 

 

We're the luckiest and most grateful parents on the planet that he didn't hit his head (which didn't have a helmet on it and although it's pretty hard, it's not that hard!!) and that this didn't turn out worse than it did.

 

But, I thought about what Sally said in her prompt. How something cold and 'industrial' (if you will) can have a beautiful soul.

 

Well, 'Scrape' as he's now referred to, is chomping at the bit to get back on his bike and ride. To him, it has a soul. It's beautiful in his eyes.  (it's his fault he biffed it he said, not the bike's fault)

 

So, here's a piece of 'soul' from his bike:

 

This is a pic I took of his broken muffler.
It wasn't broken in the crash, but it was a kind of cool angle/pic to get - so I grabbed it!

 

 

And yes, he's doing fine - thanks to all of you who follow me on facebook and sent well wishes. They were greatly appreciated!

 

Then there's this. This definitely has a soul. And, it's back in use. It's the water line from Grandma Emma's cabin that burned in the Wallow Fire a few summers back.

 

Utility pipe that was burned in the Wallow Fire at Grandma Hindman's.
It's now in use at the new cabin that's over close to where the old one was.
Yippee!!

 

Now, it's back up and running to the new cabin that's being put in close to where Grandma's was!

 

How beautiful is that?!

 

Not exactly sure if these are considered 'Industrial' photos or not, but I thought this was a very cool prompt this week Sally - I'm looking at things in a totally different manner than before and am excited to see what every one's going to post this weekend.

 

I'm prepping for a show tomorrow, so I may not get to every one's posts until next week - sorry about that!!

 

Now, hop around today and see what other beautiful, industrial souls were found this week!

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Feeling Blessed!

Cheers,

~Shel~

MiShel Designs Fall Jewelry Boutique and Trunk Show

 

 

Just a reminder that I will be hosting, along with my sister, the MiShel Designs Fall Jewelry Boutique and Trunk Show down in Casa Grande, AZ this Sunday, November 10th from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. 

 

 

 

 

Along with several new and fun jewelry designs to see and handle, Marsha's making her famously delicious Pico de Gallo and we're serving up some yummy drinks, too.

 

 

 

There will be live acoustic guitar (and possibly some ukulele) music to relax with and Mina (the best massage therapist around) is going to be setting up in a private room so you can book a half-hour back massage with her and be able to go home feeling super relaxed in your new jewelry designs!

 

 

 

Looking forward to seeing everyone there!

 

Until Next Time,

 

Peace, Love and Fall Show Time!

 

Cheers,

~Shel~

 

The Key,...

~The Sea Will Forever Hold The Key To All That Is Me ~

 

A little while back I received an email from my ultra talented friend Jeannie Dukic of Jewelry By Jeannie. Some of you may remember last year when I participated in Jeannie's Design Group, the Echo Creative Club.

Jeannie makes fabulous beads (and really cool jewelry too, by the way), and not just any beads, but super great, polymer clay beads. I had never really worked with Polymer clay beads or pendants in my designs before Jeannie asked me to design with hers last year and wow, what a treat, let me tell you what! 

"My Cherry Tree" necklace by Michelle Buettner

 

I truly enjoyed designing with Jeannie's beads and pendants.  They helped me step out of my design box a bit and try new colors, new materials and different styles - it felt good. And challenging, too. 

So, in Jeannie's recent email, she asked me if I'd be interested in designing something with a few of her new beads she just 'perfected' to look exactly like lamp-work glass beads.

 

Um,....YES, I would! :-)

 

She explained how after much trial and error and going through A LOT of polymer to get them exactly right, she was ready to put them up on her website store and she thought about asking me to design something with a few of them. (Thank you so much Jeannie!!)

Polarity Beads - Jewelry By Jeannie

 

When I opened the package Jeannie sent me (which itself was a work of art!) I was delighted to find these beautiful beads staring back at me.

 

See what I mean - lovely!!

They really DO look just like lampwork beads!!

Incredible!

I was excited at their beautiful blue color. They remind me of aquamarine blue and the color of the sea.  I tried to put some of my aquamarine stones with them - but what I had in my gem stash just didn't go with these beads - mine were too 'green' or something,....not what I had envisioned. 

To me, these beads were screaming "Sea!! Ocean!! Waves!!", so I got out some of my glass beads that look like beach glass and went to work.

I grabbed some C-Lon cord (beadshop.com) in Turquoise and did a bit of macramé to mimic the 'wave' feeling I had with these and added some various sizes and shapes of seed beads in different shades of blues to the glass beads for some contrast in size and texture.

 

I know, I know,...you're all shocked that I actually HAVE seed beads aren't you?  Well, truth be told, I have two little 'bins' completely full of them. Why?  I don't know.  Food for the vacuum, I guess. I can hear it squeal with delight from the broom closet each time I get the bins out. Lord knows that other than stringing them (and I don't even do that very well!), I could never work with these little rascals.  I have such admiration for people who work with them.  I mean seriously, the art they create with these tiny little things just amazes me.

Anyway, I got in this 'zone', if you will, while creating with Jeannie's perfect polymer beads and here's what came of my creative session.

 

 

Jeannie's new beads are called 'Polarity Beads' and they are a dream to work with. So light and versatile. That's one of the main things I like about polymer clay pieces (other than the fact that they can actually look like any other material on earth),  - their weight - or lack there of, actually. It helps when designing pieces so you don't have to have objects of equal weight on the other side to balance the bracelet or whatever you're designing. And, for earrings, these beads would be perfect because they can be larger, but not have the over-the-top weight of some glass beads - thus not weighing you earlobes down. Yeah!! 

 

 

I used this little Heart/Key charm from B'Sue's Boutique as my focal for the necklace. You can't really see the inscription - especially since I used some gilder's paste (also from B'Sue's) over it - but it says:  "He who holds the key, can unlock my heart"

 

Well, the sea holds the key to my heart.

At least that's what it feels like when I'm there,....

 

 

I truly enjoyed creating with Jeannie's new beads and using them as the inspiration for this set.

 

I guess you could say they unlocked a sort of 'key' to a certain area of creativity for me!

"The Key" Jewelry set by MiShel Designs, Polymer Clay Polarity Beads
by Jeannie of Jewelry by Jeannie.

 

 

I hope you get the chance to hop on over to Jeannie's shop and check out all her other lovelies!

 

I personally have my eye on one of her newer Acanthus Pendants (the blue one will go perfectly with some of my Ancient Roman Glass Beads from both Happy Mango and Philip Mertens).

 

I mentioned to the hubs that it would be cool for Christmas - so we'll see what shows up in my stocking on Christmas morning!! :-)

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Keys to Creativity!

Cheers,

~Shel~

 

Focus on Life: Week 44~ Saints, Souls, Sugar Skulls and Scares

The prompt from Sally over at The Studio Sublime for Week 44 of Focusing on Life: 52 Photos was this:

 

 

 

Saints, Souls, Sugar Skulls and Scares

 

"Whether 'trick or treating', celebrating the spirits and souls of loved ones that have passed, or having a scream from a scare, this week take a moment to capture a spirit, spider or other spectacle of the season!" 

 

We're celebrating  Dia de los Muertos,

so here's the only thing I captured this week.

 

 

 

 

Sorry, no cool sugar skulls!

But you can see my post about it HERE!

 

Time to hop-along and see what everyone else has captured this week!

 

Until Next Time,

Peace, Love and Celebrating the Season!

Cheers,

~Shel~

Dia de los Muertos

 

From Black Snow Comics - Via Pinterest

Here in Arizona (and many places around the world) Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a heavily celebrated, three day celebration from October 31st through November 2nd.

 Breaking it down:

October 31st - All Hallows Eve - Young ones make a Children's altar to invite 'Angelitos' (spirits of dead children) to come back for a visit.

 

November 1st - All Saints Day - Altars are made for spirits of the adults who have passed to come back for a visit.

 

November 2nd - All Souls Day - People go to the cemeteries of their relatives and loved ones who have passed and decorate their graves/tombs and leave marigolds, muertos (bread) and sugar skulls (cookies).  Families celebrate their loved ones lives and remember them by saying prayers for the departed and by sharing stories with each other.

*You can find a more thorough explanation on Wikipedia under Dia de los Muertos - summarized by Frances Ann Day (Latina and Latino Voices in Literature (Frances Ann Day), Greenwood Publishing Group, page 72)

 

The decorations and pictures used to symbolize Dia de los Muertos and the Day of the Dead can look a bit morbid or offensive to some people.

 

Here where we live, we're used to seeing many paintings, figurines, sculptures and the like - so it's not offensive or morbid to us.

 

It's honoring those you love through art.

 

Just like any other holiday or celebration.

 

 

 

 

We have many loved ones who have passed on.

 

Family and friends who we miss, but are blessed to have had in our lives.

 

We choose to celebrate their lives by honoring their memories and celebrating their souls.

 

Knowing quite well how much richer our lives are because of them.

 

Believing they are always here, within us, guiding us and helping us as we go through our own lives.

 

Here's to our loved ones.

 

To the Celebration of their lives.