Starting anew is always a good thing! Here is Vol. 1 of "Artful Living on the Bluff" for you to enjoy. While I am not contributing new material to this blog, please feel free to look around and then visit me at the new and (hopefully) improved "Artful Living on the Bluff" blog at artfullivingonthebluff.blogspot.com

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Morning Coffee Quotes

A Winter's Night in Chicago just before snow (Dec 3, 2010)

"The three hardest tasks in the world are neither physical feats nor intellectual achievements, but moral acts: to return love for hate, to include the excluded, and to say, I was wrong."
- Sydney J. Harris

"Those who understand only what can be explained understand very little."
- Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach

"The shallow consider liberty a release from all law, from every constraint. The wise man sees in it, on the contrary, the potent Law of Laws."
- Walt Whitman

"Be sincere, be brief; be seated."
- Franklin D. Roosevelt

"To know a person's religion we need not listen to his profession of faith but must find his brand of intolerance."
- Eric Hoffer

"There are two kinds of failures:  those who thought and never did, and those who did and never thought."
- Dr. Laurence J. Peter

"Remember that everyone you meet is afraid of something, loves something and has lost something."
- H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

"I am more afraid of an army of 100 sheep led by a lion than an army of 100 lions led by a sheep."
- Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord (Talleyrand)

"The cure for the evils of democracy is more democracy."
- H. L. Mencken

"I think it is an immutable law in business that words are words, explanations are explanations, promises are promises - but only performance is reality."
- Harold Geneen

"It's better to be prepared for an opportunity and not have one than to have an opportunity and not be prepared."
- Whitney Young

"It is not what a man knows, but what he thinks of in time."
- Mark Twain

"True remorse is never just a regret over consequences; it is a regret over motive."
- Mignon McLaughlin

"Genius is the ability to act rightly without precedent -- the power to do the right thing the first time."
- Elbert Hubbard

"The mind cannot long act the role of the heart."
- Francois de la Rochefoucauld

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Serendipity

"Serendipity" - the fortunate convergence of events or a lucky discovery. That's how I felt about this piece as it came together from a collection of vintage jewelry bits and bobs.
 This necklace features a beaded bead made by me many years ago that has finally found it's purpose! Shiny silver and rhinestones were the perfect companions for the gray and violet tones. This stunning piece measures 23" long.

You can find "Serendipity" in my shop on Etsy.

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

New Upcycled Jewelry

There was a flurry of jewelry-making in my studio last night as all bits and bobs in shades of gold were dug out of boxes and bins. At the end of the evening, three new creations emerged, upcycled from those odd bits! Here are "Collage", "Wings" and "Mint Flower" - all are available at CindyCaraway on Etsy.
Collage






Wings
Mint Flower

Friday, December 3, 2010

Morning Coffee - Bergdorf Goodman's Holiday Windows

Well, if this video is any indication, it is safe to say that steampunk is alive and well - at least it is at Bergdorf-Goodman's!! I found this great video at "Plays With Needles". What a great job this would be, right??
 Enjoy :)

Thursday, December 2, 2010

Introducing "Lady Grey"!!

Here she is, all finished and looking pretty! Yay! :)
You can find out more about "Lady Grey of Winterset" by visiting my shop on Etsy.

Christmas Jewelry listings

Well, as some of you know, I have never made holiday/event specific jewelry before but thought maybe I'd give it a try for Christmas this year. While watching holiday movies last night (to get myself in the mood!) I made a simple necklace and a cuff bracelet. I still have a bag full of red, green and gold goodies but here are some shots of my meager first attempts (both of which you can find for sale in my shop on Etsy):

Christmas Rose cuff bracelet
Red and Green Holiday Ruffle Necklace

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Honey Dipped Pink and Brown

Here's the new goodie gathering for my next fiber project. This piece is inspired by yet another page from that same old catalog! (I'm getting alot of good out of that one!) This little "mood bag" features a combination of honey gold, rosey pinks and warm browns and maybe some antique gold or aged brass. I still have a few touches to add to "Lady Gray" but I'm looking forward to getting started on this next piece.

Here is a shot of a bit of the original catalog page