Lilac and Blooms

Today's Tuesday and I have a tons of tasks to get done. Looking through my todo list and feeling rather overwhelmed. My lower back is still really sore and I'm going nuts.

My husband started raking the old leaves off our flower beds yesterday and uncovered a world of small little seedling poking their way through to the sunlight. I love this time of year when the plants start coming alive.

Here's another photo of a gorgeous mauve flower I saw in Cuba. To complement, I've also included two pairs of earrings that reflect the floral theme.

Green and Purple

Yes, more photos of plants from my week in Cuba. I love the purple and green leaves of the one plant! I haven't been able to do much beading since I have been back as my lower back locked up on our way home so I've been shuffling around the house and to and from bed. 

I've posted a photo of some earrings I was working on before I left. They are similar to the tangerine earrings I had in my giveaway but in a pale blue.  

Back To Reality!

Well we had a wonderful vacation in sunny Cuba.  It was lovely to get away from the cold weather and do nothing except eat, drink and relax.   

I took lots of photos of flowers...here's a couple.  I need to look up these flowers somewhere to find out what they're called as they are simply gorgeous.

I've had some great ideas for new jewelry designs and so hope this week to actually make some.

Have a great day!

And the Winner is......

Thank you everyone who entered the first Jacaranda Designs Jewelry Giveaway. I used a random number generator to select a winner and the winner is.....

Demmi!

Congrats and I will be mailing you your earrings in the next couple of days!

Happy St.Patrick's Day!

Happy St. Patrick's Day everyone! Thought I'd post some of my "GREEN" items for today. Oh, and I'll be drawing for the giveaway this evening so don't forget to enter.  

Cafe Handmade Interview

I've been featured on the Cafe Handmade website. Click here to read it Cafe Handmade Interview

Thanks Kerri!

Thai Mango Salad & Don't Forget To Enter My Giveaway!

I decided to cook Thai food tonight. We have Thai mango salad and pad thai! Here's the recipe for the mango salad. It's yummy!

Thai Mango Salad Recipe

And so it begins! MARCH BREAK

Today is the last day of school for a couple of weeks as March Break starts here in Ontario. I'm going to try posting on my blog, but it's going to be busy with the boys home.

Yesterday I made another of my love knot bracelets. I think this is my all time favorite.

Also, made some bird nest earrings the other day. I can't take credit for the design. I found a tutorial on the web and decided to try my hand at it.

Happy Friday and have a great weekend! and don't forget to enter my jewelry giveaway!

Organized Chaos

Organized chaos is the only way to describe our household right now.  I have downed tools in terms of house cleaning for a couple of days to get some photography and jewelry making done. On Friday the boys start March beak so I'm going to be pretty busy here.  

I did manage to make this bracelet yesterday - glitzy and glamorous, it's made from Miyuki beads, crystals and sterling silver clasp.  It's a fast design and only took about an hour to make.  I've also been experimenting with attaching bails to briolettes. 

Jacaranda Designs First Jewelry Giveaway!

I will be starting a contest today that I shall attempt to run twice a month.  Initially, I will be giving away one of the items from my own shop, Jacaranda Designs.  However, in the future I shall be showcasing other artists' work.

The giveaway today is a pair of Tangerine Orange Bellflower Earrings.   These lovely earrings, made from tangerine lucite bell flowers are light and fresh looking.  The little orange swarovski crystals look like little stamens poking out from the flower petals.  Perfect for spring!

To enter, you need to take a look at my Etsy shop and mention your favorite item in your comment here.  If you provide a link to this contest on your blog and add the link to your comment, then you will be entered twice in the draw.

I shall be selecting a random winner on Tuesday, March 17th.  Make sure I can contact you via email!

Not Enough Time In The Day

Another busy weekend has just flown by and other than making some custom jewelry for a customer, I barely glanced at all my new beads.  There doesn't seem to be enough time in the day. It was the last weekend of skiing I think, unless we get one last blast of snow.

Went into my garden this morning and took a quick photo of the first blooms of the year.  Snowdrops!  They're always the first to poke up through the soil.

This weekend a friend dug up some vintage jewelry she had that never wears.  She thought maybe I could take them apart and use the beads which I think I will do.  Yes, another project but looking forward to it.

Also, going to post my first ring on my Etsy website.  I finally received my mandrel so I can actually measure it before posting it - always a good thing!

So have a great week and I hope to post a little more often that I did last week!

Think Pink

The weather was glorious today! A balmy 16 degrees which is a welcome change from the frigid temperatures we've been experiencing all winter.  I think it's time to put away the skis and snowshoes after this weekend.  Booked a week away in the sun so I'm getting really excited about that.  

I headed into town and of course, no visit to Toronto is complete without visiting the beading stores!  I am branching out of my usual color spectrum and I am buying some lovely fresh pinks and corals for spring and summer jewelry creations.  I had an order yesterday for five necklaces in pink for bridesmaids and it got me thinking that I really should try my hand at using various shades of pink.  Matched with pale coral, it can look stunning.

Have a great weekend and have fun!

Kreativ Blogger Award! Yeah!

Kreativ Blogger Award

I received an awesome award from Southern Girl.

Thank you for the award Southern Girl!

Here are the rules:

List 7 things you love and then pass the award on to 7 people..tagging them and letting them know they won!

You can copy the picture of the award and put it on your sideboard letting the whole wide world know you are KReATIV!

So here are the 7 things I love:

1. I love reading stories to my children every night before bedtime.

2. I love going on vacation and strolling along a quiet, wide expanse of beach.

3. I love going to beading stores  and spending hours looking around, trying to decide what I'm going to create and what I should buy (I just don't love the bill!)

4. I love going out to lunch with my husband, even if it doesn't happen that often.

5. I love it when my boys belly laugh uncontrollably.

6. I love spring time when I start poking around the garden and discover small shoots poking up through the soil.

7. I love traveling and discovering new places and cultures. 

I am awarding the KREaTIV award to:

Grammatically Delicious Designs

AnastasiaC

Eeniemoni

Wire and Wool

Wallis Designs

Dorset Hill Beads

Simply Happy, Simply Everything

I was featured on the front page

I was very excited on Sunday evening to see one of my posy bracelets on the Etsy front page treasury.  I wish it happened more often!  This is the bracelet that was featured.  The Jacaranda Floral Locket Bracelet.

Colorful Vintage German Glass Beads

Lately, I've been buying quite a few vintage german glass beads to incorporate into my jewelry.  I love the range of colors them come in and the richness of those colors.  They pair so well with the antique brass chains.