Wednesday, July 29, 2015

August Birthstone: Peridot



Peridot with moonstone or amethyst.

 Peridot is a symbol of fame, dignity, and protection.It is the traditional birthstone for July. 23 - Aug. 22  and is a gift for the 16th wedding anniversary




Peridot with an ocean jasper pendant
Healing ability: Increases strength & physical vitality. Protects against nervousness and aids in healing hurt feelings. It helps liver & adrenal function. Thought to protect lungs, sinuses, and wrists from illness and injury.
 
Peridot with ocean jasper pendants. The two on the right have sold.
Mystical power: Helps dreams become reality. It is believed to attract love. Calms a raging anger. Dispels negative emotions, and promotes sleep when worn to bed. Legend has it that pirates favored it to protect them against evil. Brings the wearer success, peace, and good luck.

Close up of ocean jasper pendants

Thursday, July 23, 2015

Lapis Lazuli





The name of this stone comes from 'lapis', the Latin word for stone, and 'azula', which is Arabic for blue. This opaque, deep blue gemstone has a grand past. It was among the first gemstones to be worn as jewelry and worked on. At excavations in the ancient centers of culture, archaeologists have again and again found among the grave furnishings decorative chains and figures made of lapis lazuli – clear indications that the deep blue stone was already popular thousands of years ago among the people of Mesopotamia, Egypt, Persia, Greece and Rome.

The golden sarcophagus of King Tutankhamen was richly inlaid with lapis lazuli, as were other burial ornaments of Egyptian kings and queens. It was used extensively in scarabs, pendants and other jewelry, and ground into powder for dyes, eye shadow and medicinal elixirs

Another of its earliest uses was as a pigment for paint. It was ground up into a powder and mixed with binding-agents to produce the intense, but expensive, ultramarine color favored by many early Masters such as Michelangelo. Many pictures of the Madonna, for example, were created using this paint. Unlike all other blue pigments, which tend to pale in the light, it loses none of its radiance. Today the blue pigment obtained from lapis lazuli is mainly used in restoration work and by collectors of historical paints.

The highest quality lapis lazui is found in Afghanistan. It is also found in Russia, Chilean Andes, Italy, Mongolia, the USA, Canada, Myanmar and Pakistan

Lapis lazuli is regarded as a stone of friendship and truth. It is said to encourage harmony in relationships and help its wearer to be authentic and give his or her opinion openly.

This stone is a powerful crystal for activating the higher mind and enhancing intellectual ability. It stimulates the desire for knowledge, truth and understanding, and aids the process of learning. It is excellent for enhancing memory. 


 Both have sold
 Healing : Lapis lazuli is beneficial to the throat, larynx, and vocal chords, and helps regulate the endocrine and thyroid glands. It enhances circulation and improves cardiac rhythm. It reduces vertigo and lowers blood pressure, and is thought to alleviate insomnia . Lapis lazuli is also thought to relieve general pain and inflammations, and is especially effective against migraine headaches. It aids the nervous system and brain disorders, and is believed to help with attention-deficit, autism and Asperger's syndrome. 

Mystical: Lapis lazuli is one of the oldest spiritual stones known to man, used by healers, priests and royalty, for power, wisdom and to stimulate psychic abilities and inner vision. It represents universal truth. It quickly releases stress, allowing for peace and serenity. It permits tapping into personal and spiritual power. 


The one on the right has sold

Tuesday, July 14, 2015

Getting My Purple On!

I am getting ready for this weekends Lavender Farm Faire! Last year I sold out of amethyst items halfway through the first day. So I am stocking up to try and make sure that does not happen. You can see these beauties in person at Olympic Lavender Farm this weekend. Check their website for tickets!

 Pendants
 Sold
 The necklaces are amethyst, glass beads and pewter.
Sold
Sold


Sold
Sold





Wednesday, July 8, 2015

Fossils!

Turritella Agate. The reaction to this stone is either "cool" or "ewww" when I tell folks it has fossils in it. Snails and sea creatures!  Either way the fascination with it continues to draw people into my booth.
Mixed with freshwater pearls. SOLD

 Pendants!
 Shorter, choker length. SOLD
Sold
This agate, found in western Wyoming and eastern Utah, is thought to provide you with strength and protection. It makes an excellent gift for travelers. It enhances personal connection to one's past lives.

 It also promotes inner stability, composure and maturity. It helps new mothers avoid depression and it encourages self confidence. (As always this information is provided for curiosity only and is not meant as any type of medical advice.)
Sold


 Freshwater pearls and pewter. Sold
Bracelets

Monday, July 6, 2015

View from my Tent - Paper Collage

At a recent show in Shoreline, WA my neighbor was Linda McClamrock, a paper collage artist.

Linda is a self-taught paper collage artist, using a combination of recycled paper, acrylic paint, and a sense of whimsy.  She uses old magazines, vintage sheet music, and any other paper that strikes her fancy.

Her tools of the trade are sharp scissors, glue stick, and old magazines. Some pieces also have acrylic paint in the background. The finished pieces are coated with gloss medium for better adhesion and color preservation.

Each of her pieces are handmade originals. She does not do any prints or copies. You can see more of her work on her Facebook page and in her online Etsy shop . Here are a few examples:

 


"Fat Chickadee", mixed media on birch panel. 8" x 8" x 1", needs no frame. In the background and at lower right, words from "Had I but wings like thing, free bird of flight" by Martha Lavinia Hoffman. 



 "Hope Bouquet", mixed media on watercolor paper. The words in the background include the famous quote by Emily Dickinson "Hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul, and sings and sings, and never stops at all", plus some nonsensical French and English phrases. On top of the words, there are 306 (yes, 306!) little pieces of paper, each cut freehand, to make the flowers and leaves.The artwork is 8" x 10", and is framed in oak with double mat (cream and navy blue). SOLD

 original collage using recycled materials - A dozen birds on the wire - 8" x 10" x 1"


A dozen birds on the wire - 8" x 10" x 1". Acrylic paint, wood panel, acrylic medium, primer, and recycled paper from old magazines.