Sweet Regrets

Ah yes, those sweet regrets!

I have been so engaged in an assortment of activities that I do have some regrets.

I regret that I haven't had time to sort my shells yet. (and it has been raining daily!!)

excuse the backyard, the dogs have had a heyday out there

I am so curious as to how many buttercups are in these piles.

I like rocks, too!

I also regret that I haven't had a chance to reorganize my work space. But you aren't going to see that!

I regret not being able to work on my shops, too.

The sweet part is... dom ta da dom!
I've been working on some custom orders!

And I did do a little playing over the weekend.....

can tab glued to driftwood to make a hanger

 I saw this on Pinterest! using pop tabs as hangers! Okay these are Shae's energy drink tabs, and actual pop tabs have 2 holes and can be screwed on. The original poster of this grand idea was
http://blog.makezine.com/2011/01/19/make-projects-hang-a-picture-from/

This is a piece of Mangrove driftwood!
I apologize for the poor photo quality. It has been dreary out for days, and with UV 90 Shade Screen on my windows the lighting in my house is poor at best.

I also kiped/kyped some shells from my new pile.
Not many, just three.
That's my next post!

I have several new pieces to list, and I'm dieing to show you, but I still need pictures.

Aarrgghhh the madness lol!

At least the madness is fun!

Views of Florida

This past week has been a whirlwind of activity for me. I have been busy and running around like crazy.

I finally managed to take some time and clean that pile of shells. Whew! What a job! I didn't think I'd ever get them finished. Now, I have get to sort them. This is actually almost as fun as finding them in the first place! Reliving the finding part, and remembering exactly what we did find. I try not to ooh and aah too much while cleaning them, or I would never get finished!

About the running around part- I'm in great need of certain findings (jewelry making parts) to complete some projects. I searched my town up one side, and down the other looking. Nothing, Nada, Zip of what I was looking for. You gotta be kidding me!

So, I search Etsy. The only ones I can find came from China. That's a longer wait than I want to wait to get my stuff. I have things to finish! So, I didn't order. I pondered on it for a while, and then thought, maybe they are listed differently. Just search for __________. And that was the secret. Not everyone calls this component by it's full name. Aha! So I have orders coming from various places across the USA. I can't wait for my supplies to get here!

Anyway, I wanted to share some more pictures from last weekend!

This boat is big! It's called the SCREAMER. I bet it is! When those engines kick in and it takes off, it looks like a SCREAMING good time. We are going to do this one of these days!

The Mangroves are so awesome, and provide a home to many species of fish and sea life.

                                      I love Palm Trees!

This mural is amazing! I would love a closer picture, but this was snapped out the window at a stop light.

I can't ever take too many pics of birds and wildlife.

Oh, the beauty of a Gulf Coast sunset. Every one is different. Sometimes the sun disappears into the ocean. Other times, into the clouds. The sky tinged in pinks and purples.

This shell was cool, but very much taken. Can you see the slipper shells adhered onto it in the 2nd pic?
How cool is that?! hermit crab beat me to it though....bummer.

If everything goes as planned, I'll be back soon with a shell post!

Treasures Galore

I'm a pretty simple gal, and it doesn't take much to make me happy. Stick me on a secluded island for all I care, as long as I can hunt for treasure, I'm just as happy as a clam in the sea!

 Now, you know I don't mean TREASURE as in gold doubloons, silver ingots, diamonds, rubies, or even pearls...although that would be pretty cool.

I mean seashells, sponges, driftwood....and anything else beachy, and oceany. Sea Treasures!

I really shelled til my heart was content last weekend. We shelled from Honeymoon Island, to Caladesi Island, checked out Indian Rocks, and ended up at the end of Pass-a-Grille beach. We did find a few great shells there, over on the rocky side. The surf was roaring, the waves were crashing, and some beauties came rolling in! Ahhhhh! Salt spray in my face, and sand between my toes. There is no place on Earth quite like the beach!

We enjoyed some wee hours of the morning shelling, too! I can't believe how many Buttercups I found! I have some plans for them! So very many awesome shells, sponges, mini's....I even found a couple of Baby's Ears!
And.....
OMG! a LIVE STARFISH! The camera was in our room at the time :( so I didn't get a picture of it...and of course I left him in the ocean where he belongs. I still haven't found a keeper east coast starfish, but I will. Karma is on my side. I put a live one back, so I know I will find my sea star one of these days :D

For my landlocked mermaid friends, and ocean lovers, I took a quick video on Honeymoon Island.

 I have a ton, well maybe about 50 pounds of shells and stuff to clean. I'll get some pics of our complete haul, and some of the special ones cleaned up to show them to you next time.

You don't have to live at the beach to be beachy.....
I live in a beachy state of mind!

Pound Cake and Jammer Panties

I hope you all had a sweet Valentine's Day!

I sure did! I opted to avoid a crowded restaurant, and made dinner at home, with dessert! I had a few errands to run, so I made a pound cake....

to cut into cubes, and dip in chocolate. Along with bananas, strawberries, and cookies. The chocolate dipped strawberries and bananas were my favorite, (sorry I didn't get pics of everything), but the pound cake was really good, too.  My hubby is such a chocolate fiend, that we he has a chocolate melting pot. I think I bought it for him last Valentine's Day.

I have been absent minded this week, and forgot to mention that Shae had a bout on Sunday. It was really good! She got to JAM for the first time!!!!


She did awesome, and scored like 4 points! It was the last jam of the bout, and her very first time as a jammer. She is the one wearing the green "hat" with a black star on it (and hauling @ss around the track!) It (the hat) slips over their helmet, and is called the JAMMER PANTY. 

I have also been remiss in not mentioning that I won another blog giveaway. DaCraftyLady, also known as Crochetaholic, makes various crochet items. I won a pair of her oh so neat and kitschy earrings in my fave color!

This is actually not a good picture. The color is off. Purple is the hardest color to photo. Really. These are actually more of a grape, or eggplant, a really pretty color. My picture doesn't do them justice! They look violet to me in this pic.
I actually just found out that she awarded me with a Versatile Blogger Award, like that one over there somewhere--------->
Thanks Debb! I guess I am a versatile blogger! LOL
A little of this, a little of that.....

I have a new petition in my sidebar---------> To put funding back into the Everglades. Florida is not, and cannot BE  Florida without the Everglades! Talk about screwing up the ecosystem!

Okay, I am off to do Etsy stuff, take some pics, and maybe make something....
and then start packing.

I'm going to the BEACH!

I Heart It

When I'm not hearting things on Etsy, I'm pinning things on Pinterest. I think I have pinned more things that are food related, that I can't have, than anything. My Pinboard for food is called YUMM-O. If you are one of those people who can eat whatever you want, you should take a look at that board! Ohhhhh YUM! I think I'll stick to special occasions to make some of that yummy stuff.

Today is one of them!

Source: cookingclassy.blogspot.com via Della on Pinterest

 Doesn't this look oh so sweet, and just perfect for a V Day dessert?!

Source: duhlicious.com via Della on Pinterest

 The crepes look magnifique!

Source: bhg.com via Della on Pinterest

 But, the individual trifles look quite delish, too!

But maybe, because every bite counts....

Source: thesweetslife.com via Della on Pinterest

 Just one! One little cheesecake stuffed strawberry!

Maybe something even lighter?

Source: bhg.com via Della on Pinterest

See? YUMM-O!

It's going to be a tough decision!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

I mentioned the other day about getting out of my comfort zone, and it began with putting shells on leather cords. I tend to go for small and dainty. Not big, or gaudy. But, I know that many women love big pieces of jewelry. BIG earrings.

Flat scallops, or fan scallops, are just that. Pretty darn big!

These are really fun, and SO noticeable! I'm stepping farther out of my comfort zone, completely out of the box! It's a start anyway....

And dare I mention I'm seriously thinking about changing my shop name? There's much to do. It's pretty much like completely starting over, except that I have the product, and I know so much more now, than I knew back then. Sometimes, it's all in the name. I have been wanting to do this for months. I have thought about it repeatedly. It's a new year, and change is good.

I do have a surplus of business cards. ( sad face)
But I can get new ones!
My packaging is easily adaptable ~ Super happy face :D

Let the adventure begin?