...the 'B.E.S.T.' kind of enablers

 

SPRING DAISY SEAGLASS MIRROR circa 2020 by svelteSTUFF

   Around Thanksgiving 2023 I was hanging / drinking a bottle (or 2) of wine with a couple of my BESTIES (A & L)...  Out of the clear blue, L asked if I had ever sold the 'Daisy SeaGlass Mirror' that I had made? - if Not (which I hadn't!), she wanted to Buy it!  'A' immediately chirped in "OH! I always loved that, and now that I've repainted, had wished I had bought it!"

  "DON'T FIGHT GIRLS!  SANTA MAY MAKE YOUR HOLIDAY DREAMS COME TRUE 8-)!"  CHRISTMAS SHOPPING DONE!!

WIN ~WIN!

(*Of course 'A' got an IOU for a custom piece that is Now 'in the works' !)

'BESTIE'

Not a word in my daily vocabulary, or that I have ever given much thought to...

 I think 'true' BESTIES bring out The Best in us.

  My BESTIES, without knowing it, encouraged me to 'play' in my beloved SeaGlass... (something I had forgotten how much JOY it brought me!)

...they gave me an 'excuse' to get creative!

 and make Daisies on a cold, snowy January morning

 (when I 'probably' should have been doing 'responsible-grown up' things)

'BESTIES' are the people in your life that HONESTLY encourage you to be selfish! 

 They give you the 'Free Pass / Motivation' to have FUN & be PASSIONATE again!

enJOY

&

be well!!

...BLUE MONDAY?

Jumping on the Bandwagon with creations for the recent uprise in 'Aroma Therapy' jewelry

BLUE MONDAY.

'THEY' say it's a thing... I am going to choose to ignore the commercialized version of it, and rather focus on the 'other side':

"to inspire people to take action and make bold life decisions".

 (Click on the link and decide for yourself!)

My 'intentions' (much friendlier than 'RESOLUTIONS') for 2020 are along the same lines as they have been for the last decade or so...

~Be more present

~Create every day

~Purge. Purge. Purge.

~Learn something new every day

~...yada, yada, yada...

Easier said as 'enjoy Life'!

And how has this been working for me? (Why, Thank you for asking!)  ...

Sentimental costume jewelry added to a frame and mirror

~I have Really been enjoying participating in 'joint' creative endeavors.

FRIENDSHIP + GLUE GUN = WIN*WIN!

~EXPANDING upon my minimal crochet 'talents'... WRISTLETS for Everyone!

DD YARN DESTASH + LONG WINTER NIGHTS= WIN*WIN!

~I'm finding YouTube to be an explosion of inspiration! J and I love combing beaches for 'treasures', and now I have been inspired by a lovely vlogger on Prince Edward Island to create mosaics!   A recent DD mirror is revived into a SeaGlass Mosaic.
LANDFILL RESCUE + EXCUSE FOR HOARDING SEAGLASS = WIN*WIN!

How has the first month of 2020 been treating you?  

 I have been missing all of my peeps in Blogland - please say 'hi' in the comments!!
  Until next time....

BE WELL

and

en JOY!

...'F' is for enamel FLOWER POWER! (enamel pins, Frocks and FlipFlops)

"F" Is for...

FLOWERS!

as in ENAMEL FLORAL PINS!

(that Nobody wears quite like Ms. KitCat!)
"Part of the appeal of the bright enamel flower pins that came onto the costume-jewelry scene in the early 1960s was that they were not your mother's jewelry," ... "There was nothing conservative about them. They were cheerful, cheap, and mass produced, and you could wear them in all kinds of ways and in all kinds of places,"
"Today, collectors covet the perky pins for the same reasons. They're fun to collect, look great on hats, bags, and dresses, and they don't cost a fortune"
CountryLivingOnline
PINTEREST

~and~

"F" Is for...

vintage Floral Frocks!

 
...that Sesame Shimmer and Miss Crane due proud, while sporting VERA scarves!!
(despite the fact that I can no longer squeeze into them!)

~and~

"F" Is for...

Flip Flops!

I have been working on adding 'earrings' to my FlipFlop Arsenal.  Earrings are previously unventured territory to me, but I think that I am getting the hang of it! It has been a FUN adventure (and diversion)... ~sorting through our seaglass/beach bricks/beach pottery hoards for the perfect sizes and shapes ~a Great excuse to play with the power tools in the Studio Annex (ie: Garage) ~and it has gotten my creative juices flowing again!  SOON this addition to the North Shores Collection will be ready to hit the stores!


 ~BUT, most importantly~

"F" Is for...

Family and Friends!

April 29,2019 , just barely over 2 weeks ago... Such a short time that seems like forever. 

 I've learned what a big hole a persons' departure can leave in my life.  At the same time I'm realizing just how he formed the 'complete' person I am today, and that is something that will never be taken from me.

~My 'creative' side was definitely a gene from him.

~Remain observant and curious, there is always more to learn.

~There is So Much waste in the world.

~If you Want to do something, You CAN.

~Be positive

~Actions speak louder than words.

~Take pride in your belongings.

~Always shine your shoes.

~A man's word is his honor.

~Love until the end.

and

~SMILE.

Over the last four weeks, our Family has rallied and drawn closer.  Friends near and far have been an unending wealth of support.  Family and Friends truly are the most important 'STUFF' we can have in our lives.  MANY THANKS to all!!

“Love people and use things. The opposite never works.” 

 I love you Dad ~ you will always be near in my heart.

BE WELL

and

en JOY!

...S'MORE fuel.

I am smitten by 'creating' with 'Found' objects!

With the weather Finally warming a 'bit', my latest obsession is...

DRIFTWOOD.

There are So many beauties of Driftwood (besides it's naturally wondrous beauty and characteristics)....

Starting with the scenic locale's that you MUST go 'in search of'.

...and the Fun Cafe's you find (in search of Java & RestRooms!!)

~there is always the added Bonus of alternative finds (BEACH GLASS!!)

Some alternative finds, however do not come home! 

NOTE TO SELF: look more closely at that COOL piece of 'driftwood' before reaching for it - teeth and 'eye balls' are a NO! 

Nautical inspired vase

Sandpail - Driftwood PENDANT display
w/ pottery bowl for holding packaged units!

 While out combing the serene water shores that are 'Pre Season', there is much time for meditation and inspiration can strike at ANY TIME!


Driftwood stores Beautifully, and when you tire of working with it, the disposal of excess supplies is FUN and THRIFTY too...

Campfire!

ie: S'more Fuel!!

Do not fear - I have not forsaken my love of ...

PLARN!

(ie: recycled plastic bags)

~OR~

BUTTONS!

~OR~ 

BAKING!
(Easter Pie!!)

~OR~

STUFF.  

But lately our main source of 'stuff' is our Attic inventory!!

???  Does Anybody know anything about these old Woolworth tags or WilliamSonoma mini copper molds:????

 Hope you all enjoy your day, however you choose to spend it!!

...Fu. Lu. and Shou.

Is it legal to just be finishing up decorating at 2pm on December 25th?

Well, it's done, anyways.  Inclusive of a BOXFUL of 'new' Vintage ornies found in the 'haul' I recently mentioned and TWO (2) GINORMOUS.BEAUTIFUL ornies gifted to me by 'L' (one shown in this picture - with the pine trees!)

Of course, all of this decorating was made possible with the help of TV Christmas specials - including the classic 1988 PeeWee's Playhouse Christmas.  Yeh, so, I'm an 80's girl.  I can't help it!!

The NE has had a little Holiday Gift from Mother Nature this year - in the form of a 'free trip to warmer climates'!!  Christmas Eve in Central NY state was about 70degrees!!!!

So, what's a person to do?

MAJOR Seaglass Trip!!!!!!!!!

Seaglassing in December -

Without a coat-

or gloves-

in New York State!

Merry Christmas to ME!!

but wait...

it gets better!

J found a BLUE MARBLE (the.Holy.Grail. of seaglassing), then shortly later I found MY FIRST EVER MARBLE! and it is GREEN - for CHRISTMAS EVE (of course!).  Then we found another old round worn blue piece of glass....  YIPPEE! YIPPEE!

~ AND ~

on the ride home...

a Beautiful Moon Rise!

I have also been enjoying the Holiday season in the Studio - 'Playing with the Angels'!

(not to worry - bottom left was an attempt at a Holly Leaf with Berries - I didn't mutilate a poor angel THAT badly!!)

I AM going to give you 'snippets' of the contents of 'The Haul' gradually, so as not to completely overwhelm / bore you!!  And, 'Yes', I HAVE gone through ALL of the boxes already!!  I think this is my favorite find - or at least for now it is ;-)...

Three (3), 13" Ceramic / Porcelain / China figures that I found in the bottom of one of the boxes. Not sure of exact age - if anyone has any info I'd love it!!  I have found that they are:

SANXING (deities)

"are the personified ideas of Prosperity (Fu), Status (Lu), and Longevity (Shou) in the Chinese traditional religion."

PROSPERITY.

STATUS.

LONGEVITY.

Three 'Deities' I don't mind having in our home as we head into another year!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!!

...BEACH BRICKS!!

In keeping with our 'To-Do-Before-COLD-Weather' List, we have been in the Garage, using The Drill!

My latest obsession... BEACH BRICKS!!

The recent onslaught of Japanese Lanterns in the garden...and the harvest of, ...and the trimming of, ...and the sorting of, ...and the photographing of, ...and, ...and, ..and!

Has inspired me for a new Fall 2015 line...

I'm sure EVERY.ONE. of you know how once you get started on something, it is hard to stop...

The 'svelteSTUFF studio' is NO exception!!

Jack-o-Lanterns!

 cats!

 spiders!

 abstract pumpkins!

ghosts!

...OH! SO! FUN!

Yes, there are still a few designs rambling around in our heads... 

J: "How about moons?"

and Other designs need some 'tweaking' and 'reworking'...

So I foresee more additions to our 'NorthShore Fall2015' collection in the near future!!

THANK GOODNESS for this heat-spell that we are in right.now., so that I don't feel guilty being indoors, doing silly things like threading beads and naming pumpkins!! (We are open to ANY ideas!!)

'WILHEMINA' here got her name, as she kind of reminds me as much of a Whale (Free Willie), as she does an abstract-squashed-gord!!  BUT, she 'needed' a female version...

Yes, it's true.

I'm easily amused.

BUT

It's all good right?!

IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN CHECKING OUT MORE OF OUR 'NAMESAKES' - MANY OF THEM ARE IN THE svelteSTUFFj ETSY SHOP ~

GO CHECK THEM OUT!!

I'M LINKING UP WITH:
Hey Mom, What's For Dinner FRIDAY FRENZY
Mrs. Olson SHARE YOUR CUP THURSDAY
TAKE A LOOK FOR LOADS OF GOOD READS!!!!