Spring has sprung...and that means NEW BEACH GLASS!!

The weather here in Cleveland has been so spring like the past few days! It's just beautiful. I'm certain it will not stick around just yet...it is Cleveland after all :) But we are enjoying it none the less. We had a cook out today, hot dogs and marshmallows on the fire. So yummy!

And yesterday, my husband was desperate to go fishing...so I agreed to wrangle the kids for a few hours so he could get away for some peace and quiet. Now, those who know my husband will know he came home without fish. That is the usual. Poor guy! But he did come home with something for me!!! It was a whole shirt full (his shirt!) of beach glass in all sorts of shapes, sizes and colors. SOOO EXCITING! How cute is that? He went out to fish, but instead he came home with a bunch of beach glass for his crazy wife :) And oh my did he have some great finds! Many of them were large pieces and the bottoms of bottles which will be perfect for my upcoming sun catcher designs that I have been working on this winter. He also found some truly amazing smaller pieces. He found a rare lavender, a lovely aqua blue patterened piece and some other great ones! There is one in particular that I just can't fathom what it was though.


It is a very large, thick piece of aqua glass. And I mean like an inch thick in spots! Any ideas as to what it could have been would be greatly appreciated!! So off to work I go with all of these great "fishing" finds! Thank you hubby!!

My first feature in a treasury!!

I was so excited when I opened that convo on etsy this morning and saw the words treasury! What an exciting thing! Now, I know that there are people out there who have been featured in many treasuries...and ones that have made it to the front page no less. But this is HUGE for me! I am so very flattered to be included in the beautiful treasury FigMuffin has created. The Beach Babe treasury is full of lovely, frosty white beachy items...including my Lake Erie frosted white beach glass circle necklace. In addition to my necklace there are a variety of beachy themed things from headbands to a beautiful custom wedding dress! This is a truly fabulous collection that will really put you in the mood for summer! So go ahead...take a peak!

Facebook addiction!

Oh boy do I have a problem...it is facebook! I am utterly addicted. How many of you are with me? I mean, it really is very addictive. You can find old friends, chat, look at pictures, take quizzes and on and on! How does anybody get anything done anymore? Of course there are the occasional people that you think...hmmm, do I really want to talk to them? (Really...be honest!) But for the most part it is such a fun thing! I am the type of person who loves to catch up with old friends and Facebook is sooo amazing when it comes to that!

Originally I signed up for Facebook to use it as a tool to promote JLynnCreations. Now that I'm there though I hardly ever use it for that. I just love catching up. What strikes me as odd though is this, I never used to understand why people would rather text then just call their friend up. Well...now I get it. I chat with my best friends all the time. And you know what, I'm in contact with them more now then I was before. Don't get me wrong...I still pick up the phone and call. But it seems that when you just want to chit chat it's just easier to type. I can hardly believe I just typed that! I don't want to be one of those people! I swore I'd never be one of them. What's next? Am I going to stop picking up books and just read it on the computer. Oh lord...my little ex-librarian head is whirling right now! I need to step away from the computer right now! Really, I need to go make something with my hands!

Midnight

The sweet silence of the night. This is my favorite time of the day. Everything is quiet and peaceful. It is my time, has always been my time. I have always loved the night. For as long as I can remember I would stay up later then most. I love the solitude, the accomplishments, the calm. I used to stay up all hours of the night just listening to my music, writing, drawing...whatever I wanted to do. Now, as the mother of three little boys, my love of the night has never been truer or more needed.
It is the quiet after the storm. After everyone is put to sleep I look around, I listen, and I think. Sometimes I just go over the days events wondering how I'm going to do it all again tomorrow when today was so very trying. And other times I look around at a stray toy that was forgotten and I think about how I may feel 20 years from now...when all my boys are grown and gone. I think I will be sad, and I think I will miss their noise. It is an odd feeling this back and forth. And this is what the night is. My chance to go over things in my head, my chance to create and not think about those things, my chance to clean my house, my chance to watch a TV show without being interrupted, my chance to just sit and think about my boys and their futures, my chance to dream. Midnight is my time.

What is your favorite color of beach glass??

I thought I'd be fun to do a little informal survey here!! I love beach glass, all shapes, sizes and colors! Frosty white, amber brown, deep brown, green, mossy green, lime green, aqua, colbalt blue, cornflower blue, orange, lavender, red, pink oh my!! But I must say that even I have my favorite. Now, I know the rare colors and the not so rare colors, but all that aside...I just LOVE a lovely piece of cobalt blue myself!! The color is just so rich and deep...I get so excited whenever I see even a little shard :)

So tell me, what is your favorite color of beach glass?? Inquiring minds want to know!
Just leave me a comment and I'll tally them up in about a week and we'll see if we have a winner!!

Saturday Special Featured Artist Series!!

And it's Saturday!! Wow... that's amazing :) First of all...happy Valentine's Day to all of you out there! This weeks artist is one that I discovered this past Christmas season. She makes beautiful hand knit and crocheted designs to bring out your own personal style. UniquelyEwe's has something to delight everyone! From kids booties to beautiful hats and shawls...her shop is truly a pleasure to browse! I found her bunny booties




while doing some Christmas shopping on Etsy. My son LOVES bunnies and I just knew he would adore these. She created a delightful pair of brown bunnies for my son in time for "Santa" to deliver them Christmas morning...and oh the look on his face was priceless! She was such a pleasure to work with, and my son adores his bunnies!

In addition to her whimsical designs for children, she also makes beautiful things for adults as well. I have been coveting her Little Red Riding for quite some time now. I think I need to put it on my wish list for my birthday! I am a sucker for red...and this shawl is just so dramatic and lovely!



So stop on in UniquelyEwe's shop and pick up something special!

New beach themed market on 1000 Markets...Check out The Boardwalk!

As I've written before, 1000 Markets is a beautiful new site where you will find wonderful, handmade goods. Within this site, there are "markets" that focus on style, region or other common factors. I am so excited about the addition of a brand new market...The Boardwalk. It is a market that features costal, nautical and beach themed items that vary from fine art to beach glass jewelry and everywhere in-between! In browsing through this market I have found such innovative and fun items like these Sea Glass Drawer Pulls by BeachyRustica:




and this beautiful fine art print St. Augustine Lighthouse by Derek McCrea



It is truly a beautiful market that I am honored to be a part of. Please stop by to check us out!!