Strange flowering

I saw this strange 'flower' on the branches of a bare fruit tree as I walked around the land at Earthtalk. What could it be? It reminded me of kauri gum.
When I inquired later, I discovered that this is a Golden Queen peach tree, and it seems that the tree has some wounds, out of which these secretions have bled and solidified.

I'm remembering the talk I attended last week by Lynne, whose family had been holidaying on a beach in Samoa when the terrible tsunami struck two years ago. She spoke so movingly about the trauma— she who is a trauma therapist and knows the effects so well, yet went through it all herself. Out of the trauma came some extraordinary transformations. I felt moved after hearing her speak of the healing process and the kindnesses that helped her family after they ran for their lives, leaving everything behind.
Seeing these strange shapes on the Golden Queen reminded me of the unexpected beauty that may sometimes flower from deep wounding.

Our Double band golden tiara is now available in silver

(pictured in gold above; photo credits: Elizabeth Messina)

Our bestselling Double band golden tiara, Style #147 is now available in silver by popular request! This style is fast becoming one of the most beloved pieces in our collection, but we've had so many requests for a silver version that we finally decided to add it. You can purchase HERE.

Adventures in Job Searching...again

So the job search is in full force again.  I’m officially looking in Austin (a definite possibility come August/September), New York (DREAAAAAAM!), and Charlotte (…ya know…’cause I’d still be around my family and friends).  But the part I hate the most of about the job search (despite coming up empty when it comes to prospects) is writing a cover letter.  I mean, don’t get me wrong, I can write about myself forever (hello BLOG), but there’s something so cheesy about cover letters that makes my skin crawl.  So in natural “ME” fashion,  I made a list, A-Z, of my marketable skills, some experiences, and character traits that I may want to include in future cover letters.  Just for fun…and in case someone who’s hiring comes across this…here’s what I have so far on my list.  There will definitely be additions and deletions (and yes, I did have to stretch it for some of the letters):

Active Listener, Analytical, Accounting

Business Degree, Business Minded, Blogging

Creative, Confident in my work, Communication

Detailed Oriented, Determined, Delegating

Easy to work with, Energetic

Forward thinking, Friendly, Forecasting, Fashion

Goal Oriented, Well in Groups

Handy, Hands on Learner

Intelligent, Internship

Judicious, Jovial

Keen, Kind

List Maker

Multitasker, Motivating

Non-verbal cues (observant of)

Organized, Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel, etc.)

Problem Solver, Promotions experience, Punctual, Presentations

Quick-witted

Retail experience

Self-starter, Social Media

Team player, Time Management

Unites

Veracious

Work Ethic, Writing

Xerox (I can make copies!)

Youthful

Zealous

Outfit post are going to resume soon!  We are finally starting to wrap up the school year...so it's been crazy.  Yeah yeah, I know, excuses excuses :-)

XOXO Bevin

Green Giants

Ok, I know that title's been used before but I do think it's appropriate. The tench fishing this week has continued in the same vein as last week, a bit slow but with great rewards. The week started off in fine style when I had a sizzling run within five minutes of my first cast. I had decided to go back to short hooklengths and heavy feeders since I've found a spot where the weed isn't too thick and I've also uprated my tackle. We're now on ten pound main line with an 8lb 15oz hooklink. The hook was a size ten was and baited with two plastic casters hair-rigged.

The heavy tackle gave me a great deal of confidence as I steered the tench between the patches of dense weed and when I got it close in where the weed's at its thickest I was able to keep the fish close to the surface as it ploughed around. It certainly ploughed, a cracking scrap by any standards and i could see it was another big fish. 9lb 1oz it went on the scales - I was well pleased with that.

The session didn't produce any more fish but I did lose another one. It didn't stay connected for very long but again it felt like a big one so that was a bit of a disappointment. Stepping up the line and the hook size hasn't completely cured my lost fish problems it seems.

Next day out was with Denis. It was s low affair that had a highlight and a lowlight. The highlight was the capture of another tench by me, 7lb 8oz this time and obviously spawned out. The lowlight was yet another lost fish, a tench again, and on the strong tackle. It fought very well and I'm sure this was a very big fish - possibly the biggest one I've hooked this season so I was gutted when it buried its head in the marginal weed and managed to shake the hook out. The weed is getting thicker by the day and it won't be long before we have to make the decision to drag it or abandon that particular part of the lake.

Thursday was a day I couldn't make it. I had a family function the evening before which meant I had to have a beer or two but I was also drafted in to ferry my daughter around on Thursday morning so there was no fishing for me. Denis fished on his own and finally broke his duck - and in spectacular style. Opening his account with a five pound bream he went on to catch a super tench of 9lb 1oz before eclipsing that one with a monster - the monster we've been after all this time!

One last day together to end the week but with clear skies and early sunshine it was always going to be hard. I didn't get a single bite but Denis hooked and lost two fish, one a tench and the other a bream. Once again the weed was his bete noir.

The weather's getting warmer, these tench will spawn very soon. Maybe too soon for me but at least Denis made the magic mark!

{tuesday shoesday} white & silver

{via style me pretty}

If my shoes looked like this, I'd be giving them a hug, too. Just sayin'.

{holiday} christmas cards

As a designer, I'm always thinking two holidays ahead! I've had Christmas on my mind for awhile now, so of course I had to participate in the 2011 Minted Holiday Challenge.

Ideally, I'd win and these will be for sale on minted.com. Realistically, if I don't make the cut these cuties will be for sale in my esty shop :)

Lips Care Tips

We all always think to care our body parts, and when we think about body care so we find the solution for caring our body. We also very bother to care our body parts, and Lips are one of them, mostly women always care those lips. And they always find the solution for caring lips, and they always want to them look beautiful and stylish and they also do some different to enhance them beauty, and when they think about them lips care so they also want beautiful, soft and healthy lips. If your lips are paining from dry lips so follow some tips for enhancing lips beauty.

1. If you want to smooth lips so use butter and cream on them lip so that you can get smooth and soft lips.
2. If you want to healthy and beautiful lips so you will take Vitamin E daily so that your lips can be healthy and soft.
3. If you find the Natural treatment for your lips so honey is one of the best things for your lips, you apply Honey daily on your lips and wash after some time and get beautiful, healthy and soft lips.
4. If you want to remove darkness from your lip so rub lemon daily on your lips.
5. If you feel very painful from your dry lips so don’t pull your lips, if you want to smooth lips so use granular and sugar paste on your lips so that your lip dryness could remove and you can get beautiful, healthy and soft lips.
6. You want to smooth and soft lips so you will have to drink sufficient water.
7. Many lips balms are available in the market, you buy that balms and apply on your lips.
8. If you want to healthy and beautiful lips so apply warm butter on your lips so that your lips can be healthy and beautiful.
9. If you want to cure your lips so you will need that don’t use commercial cosmetic lipstick in winter season.
10. If you want to your lips very attractive, beautiful, smooth and soft so use lip gloss.You can care your lips easily with your Glose, by adding rose water, lemon extracts and vesline as well. You no need to promenet your lips with lip liner, only apply glose on your lips. It will give you nice and decent look to your lips as well. Daily use rose water for your lips to make it soft and pink. Lips are the sensitie part of our body so be carefull about this and get complete know how about the lip care.
Extreme season such as summer and winter can bring benefits and also disadvantages to the skin. One part that is affected during the cold weather is the lips. As of now, you might be experiencing dry or chapped lips due to the temperature.

One of the most natural ways to prevent dry lips is to drink a lot of water and take foods that are rich in Vitamin E. You can also directly apply the serum inside the capsule by pricking the capsule with a clean needle.

You can also apply petroleum jelly or a lip balm in your lips while sleeping. If you will be attending a party the next day, make sure that you put ample amount of balm or Vaseline so that you will have a luscious or pouting lips when doing your makeup routine.

If Angelina Jolie can have it the whole year-round and so are you!
A beautiful smile lights up a day. It makes your elevation more delightful and lively. Your lips are the the largest part important and exquisitely sensitive measurement of your body. And for that reason you give to lead special attention of your lips.
The familiar lips problems are:

* Dark Lips
* Cracked lips

Dark Lips
You choice be flabbergasted to appreciate with the aim of our lips unlike most part of our body do not give rise to any melanin coloring to protect them. Lips are enclosed on the exterior by a thin layer of skin and on the private by virtually transparent mucous membranes. Therefore it is needed to get custody of our lips and to eat well-balanced groceries and a lot of fruits.

Indian Bridal Couture

So, today, there is a return to the very essence of Indian style -- contemporary yet classical, romantic yet structured and modern yet completely celebratory, as only India knows how.

We spoke to ace designer Tarun Tahiliani, who said, "Across all cultures, the occasion of a wedding is important and especially more so in India. I am trying to highlight the effort that goes into adorning the bride and groom, so that this milestone in their lives becomes one of beauty, elegance and pride."


Take a look at Tahiliani's latest bridal collection, created especially for the Indian bride and groom, old school style.As for their design the Indian wedding gowns have as main characteristic the richness in models, the embellishments added. For us it may be too much, a too decked out vision with a slight way to a cheesy, tacky look. Still, even being so uploaded in this way they express the highest stage of a woman’s beauty, a strong accent of its features.

As for the cut of such a dress type firstly to be mentioned is that it covers everything. Its components are about a short top that covers the breasts part, shown the belly and has round neckline with shorts sleeves. But this side is seen only by the grooms, as in front of others men the bride reveals nothing more but its face. The skirt is a long one; in fact a long material in which the bride is wrapped with overlapped sides. A veil is added and it covers half of the head and let it to fall on the shoulders.
I have two very different traditional jewelry styles that I enjoy. I really like American Indian big bold pieces, but I also enjoy broaches and more traditional peals as well. In terms of trends romantic jewelry is always in style hearts and diamonds will always make a girl happy and she will definitely approve of your choice.
The traditional colors for the outfit at an Indian wedding are usually vivid, intense nuances, like red and green, orange, yellow and many others as well. They symbolize on the one way the spirituality: prosperity in life, faith and luck and on the other way all about richness, luxury- the material side.
But what is her outfit like? Indian wedding gowns are at total opposite from the well known ours traditional dresses. In the first place, the colors are about expressing something, about revealing a life aspect. It is not the same purity and chastity need to be showed through the white wedding dresses, even though here this is a strict rule and moreover, a life depending aspect.
For earrings hoops and circles or knot earrings are big this season. For my wedding I would probably go with traditional pearls depending on the neckline, a rounded neckline would look amazing with a nice string of pearls. The main character of the wedding as it should be normal is the bride.

Today I am dreaming of..

Summer escapes... Aqua coloured water... White beaches....

Home made strawberry cordial... A fragrant garden..

Frosted rose petal cake... And a day without rain... *sigh*

Warm hugs from a wet & grey Sydney.

xx Charlotta

Images: 1. Design Indulgences, 2. Enchanted Dream Weddings, 3. Paula Deen

This is summer.

N'est-elle pas parfaite pour l'été? très échancrée sur le devant et en dessous, une jambe qui se dévoile, le tout sur des escarpins pointus. Très sexy.
Robe: Diane Von Furstenberg.

1920's Dress ups!

Saturday was the celebration of a friends 30th, oh we are slowly but surely getting old, only one way to deal with it......party lol!

So the theme was 1920's, the era of head adornments, flapper girls and the charleston! Love a good dress up!

Considering I forgot my pap camera I was quite impressed with the iPhones ability to take some cracking photos! I think the marble wallpapered Spiral stair case from Jenns flat is the perfect backdrop! Pretty cool huh?!








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Women on the land

I didn't expect to be putting up a post in celebration of growth at this time of the year, but after my weekend at Earthtalk, I've returned with many images of amazing productivity from a block of well-loved and well-tilled land. Everything has been done with such care, and it's all organically grown. Here is the heritage flax collection, planted for the muka, the silky fibre inside that is used by Maori for weaving. The silver green leaves set off the autumn leaves beautifully.

I stayed in 'Banana Bungalow', which was situated in the citrus orchard, and ate many of these delicious mandarins while I was there.

The grapefruit are ripening nicely.

I saw pomegranates growing, for the first time.

And pawpaws.

And bananas! This bunch was growing upside down because its branch had sagged, but it's now been tied up again.
Two women have worked hard since 1992 to transform bare paddocks on a sand dune into a fertile block of land, filled with diverse species of native and exotic plants. What they have achieved is remarkable. I am filled with admiration,  and the immense pleasure that comes from seeing the good earth happy and productive.

Arty Jewelry III Sneak Peek: Silver Swirl Stickpin

I'm getting ready for my next Wild Wire Women retreat, which begins on Thursday evening, but in the meantime I've finished the step-by-step photography for the latest jewelry piece that will appear in my next ebook, Arty Jewelry III.

The bead-and-pearl embellished Silver Swirl Stickpin is really fun to make and presents all sorts of creative possibilities. You could fashion your pin using gold, copper, brass, or bronze wire instead of the sterling silver wire that I used, and your design will depend largely on which beads and/or pearls you use to embellish your pin. I took 44 closeup shots of the step-by-step process to show you how to make a Silver Swirl Stickpin of your own... Look for Arty Jewelry III this summer on www.amazon.com and www.barnesandnoble.com!

You can still download Arty Jewelry and Arty Jewelry II for just $9.99 each through the same outlets. I provide several jewelry projects in each ebook and they are all clearly stepped out with closeup color photographs and detailed instructions (hundreds of photos per book). If you'd like to see the actual projects offered in each ebook, just click on the links above.

Soon I need to put the photo equipment away and start organizing the studio to welcome four ladies to my next Wild Wire Women retreat. I'm really looking forward to this one, because they've chosen some beautiful and challenging jewelry projects to make. I hope you'll follow us next weekend as we have a great time in Idyllwild!

Happy wrapping,
Sharilyn

Awhitu birds

I've just had a relaxing weekend on the Awhitu Peninsula, staying on the organic small holding of my friends Tanya and Charmaine. There, the skies are big, the peace immense, and the bird life plentiful. On their land they made a small pond, which attracts many water birds. In the field surrounding the pond, Californian quail move around in a small, camera-shy band. They are as big as hens, and their plummage is almost blue in the winter light.

Easier to photograph are the two 'widows', who enjoy a good life scratching around in the orchard: a duck, and a very fat hen.

And when I walked down the end of the road, to the coast, there in the distance I watched a blue heron, peacefully feeding.

So much space, peace, and beauty. I feel soothed and expanded from the weekend. Bird watching is a marvellous way to empty the mind.