Blog entry
Beautiful Firsts - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
Looking for a handmade gift for a special someone, an item that was made from the heart? Each of the Beautiful Firsts creations featured below are artisan handcrafted; many are one of a kind designs. The unique items chosen are the first listing in each shop (as of this post) but there are many more beauties to be discovered if you stay awhile and browse. Support handmade . . . support handmade artists!
Unique New Handmade Jewelry by Shadow Dog Designs
The Muses have been active - lots of new jewelry, most with a fun, boho flair, have been created recently. Now all I have to do is to photograph them and get them listed. Easier said than done! The newest necklaces and pairs of earrings listings are featured below. And, to round out the number of jewelry shares to ten, three oldies but goodies that are patiently waiting for a new home can be found at the end.
Shadow Dog Designs - New Handmade Jewelry
The past two weeks have been very busy . . . not so much with making new jewelry and listing new pieces . . . but with life itself. It seems I find myself coming and going at the same time. Thank heavens for yoga classes and the bits and pieces of meditation I can do. They definitely help center my life, to look at what life throws my way with empathy, caring and a sense of humor (or at least I hope!).
Summer Heat - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
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With the summer solstice rapidly approaching, I decided it was time to feature hot, hot, HOT colored artisan handmade items in oranges, reds and yellow. But before I do, (since I am a huge science geek), I thought I’d share a bit of about sunrises, sunsets and the summer solstice. The solstice here in the Texas Borderlands will take place on Tuesday, June 20, 2017 at 10:24 pm MDT. Most people think that, because the solstice signifies the longest day of the year (or the shortest, in the southern hemisphere), the earliest sunrise and the latest sunset happens on that day. But that is not true. The exact date of earliest sunrises and latest sunsets varies with latitude. At mid-northern latitudes (say Philadelphia at 40 degrees north latitude), the earliest sunrises of the year happens on June 14 and the latest sunset on June 27. The farther south you go in latitude, the earlier the earliest sunrises become and the later the latest sunset are. For instance, the earliest sunrise here in El Paso has already passed - on June 11 - and the latest sunset isn’t until June 30.
Circles of Our Lives - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
Sometimes the most mundane of things in life suddenly captures my imagination. The other day, when I was outside with Seamus, the very handsome Shadow Dog, I started thinking about circles (yes, my brain does shoot off on a tangent sometimes!). You see circles everywhere: most door knobs, most coins, the sun and moon, the pupil of most animal's eyes and the wheel, just to name a few. Most people don't give them a second thought unless you're a mathematician, an architect or an artist. As a gardener and an avid observer of nature, I daily feel the circle of life all around me on a more cosmological scale: day/night, phases of the moon, seasons, life/death. And then I remembered a Wendell Berry poem, called "Circles of Our Lives", which I will share at the end of this post. This led me to do some reading about circles (inquiring minds want to know!) and copious note taking.
New Handmade Earrings and One Necklace by Shadow Dog Designs - Jewelry Gift Ideas
It has been a month since the last time my newest handmade jewelry was shared. A week stay in Dallas at the beginning of the month and then a glorious week stay in Oregon last week definitely cut into my creative time. But I came back filled with all sorts of new jewelry ideas - I just hope the Muses are inspired, as well!
The Ocean Stirs the Heart - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
The ocean stirs the heart, inspires the imagination and brings eternal joy to the soul - Robert Wyland (marine life artist)
This past week, I was able to reconnect with the ocean when visiting the Coos Bay / Bandon, Oregon area. While my husband golfed, I explored the amazing land that is southwest Oregon. From huge trees to craggy cliffs by the sea; from the multitudes of birds to the fog interlaced with sunshine, I was taken with the landscape . . . and the very friendly people. And I was actually able to meet a long-time artist friend face-to-face for the first time. What a lovely person Sue is!
Botanical Beauties - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
BOTANICAL: pertaining to plants
Many people think that the desert is nothing but prickly plants and blowing sand. Believe me, there are plenty of prickly plants here in the Chihuahuan Desert, and, at times, plenty of blowing sand. But there are a whole host of other plants that bloom beautifully and are much more friendly to the skin. The Chihuahuan Desert is termed a "cold desert" since temperatures often drop below freezing during the winter with occasional snowfall. It is, on average, higher in altitude (El Paso is at 3800 ft / 1200 m) than the neighboring “hot” Sonoran Desert around Tucson (2643 ft / 806 m) which rarely experiences freezing temperatures. While Tucson and Phoenix bake for several months with triple digits, summer temperatures in the Chihuahuan desert are more moderate, our hottest month being June. Triple digits, yes, but for only a few weeks. Rainfall averages less than 10" per year, most of that coming during the monsoon season, normally July through mid-September. Amazingly, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature has indicated that the Chihuahuan Desert may be the most biologically diverse desert in the world! Our plants just tend to be built on a smaller scale than those found in the Sonoran Desert.
A Sense of Fun - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
This week’s Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade blog post is called A Sense of Fun. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of “fun” is “that which provides amusement or enjoyment.” I am often delighted and amused at the creativity of my artist friends and ALWAYS enjoy browsing their shops. And since Mother’s Day is almost upon us, any of these picks will make wonderful gifts. Buy Handmade - buy a gift that was made from the heart.
Star Stuff Harvesting Star Light - Wonderful Handmade Wednesday on Indiemade
Dr. Carl Sagan is a major hero of mine. As Wikipedia explains he “was an American astronomer, cosmologist, astrophysicist, astrobiologist, author, science popularizer, and science communicator in astronomy and other natural sciences.” he was often called "the astronomer for the people." Quite the Renaissance man! I remember being glued to the TV when the groundbreaking TV series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage was first aired. Dr. Sagan was able to explain complex ideas in a simple way that a layperson could understand. Being a science geek, especially when it comes to space, my mind sailed on its own voyage of personal discovery each week (and with the reruns that I always managed to watch). I still remember vividly and muse over certain parts of certain episodes that particularly touched me. Unfortunately Dr. Sagan died in 1996 at the young age of 62. I still miss him and all he had to offer. He returned to the star dust he so loved.
