Golden Pearled Abalone with Mother of Pearl Heishi Necklace

Hey there! Is anyone else as glad it's Friday as I am? I do enjoy the weekends, and am excited for them when I know my hubby hasn't planned to work.

What he has planned is something extremely cool, something we've been wanting to do, and something we've never done before. I also have a something cool to do, that I've been wanting to do, and have never done before, so this should be a FUN weekend for us! Hopefully this tropical storm supposed to turn hurricane doesn't muck up our plans, cause hubby's plan includes going to the Gulf on Sunday. 
I'll let you know on Monday ;)

For now, let's talk seashell jewelry.

I think it may be apparent that I have a new thing for abalone shells of all kinds. Every time I see a new variety, I am buying it to play with. I still have a couple of kinds, besides this one, that I haven't played with yet....I'm hoping to do that today!

I think I've shown you the pearled abalone. This is the golden pearled abalone shell. It has a pretty golden hue to it. I have 5 more of this shell in various sizes, from larger than this one, and then graduating down to 1 3/4 inches.

This shell is nearly 2 1/2 inches long. It's so pretty!

It goes so well with the Mother of Pearl Heishi Beads. These are the beads I bought when I Diane and I went to my bead store. I added some small aqua button pearls for a touch of beachy color, and I think it makes a nice accent to the Mother of Pearl (MOP) in this necklace.

I bought a black velveteen necklace display bust, and you would think a mostly white necklace would just pop against the black. What it does is make such a glare that you can't see the necklace or the shell. I tried it with the tropical necklace from yesterday, too, and it was a no go.

I really, really like the simplicity of this necklace, and the iridescent hues of the shell. This is so beachy!

Last night the sky was amazing, so I have to share some pics with you.

Quite a spectacular show, and even more impressive in person! It was breathtaking!

Oh, and the house next door....has sat empty since it was built in early 2007. Wanna be my neighbor?

Have a great weekend! See you on Monday!

Tropical Seashell Necklace

We're going all tropical today with a tropical color beaded seashell necklace!

My beads are freshwater button pearls, and orange bamboo coral. My shell is one that I bought, and is a
Mitra Mitra, also known as the Episcopal Mitre, from the Mitridae family of shells, of which there are many species. The Mitra Mitra is orange and white, and has a tropical look to it. They are widespread from the Indo-Pacific region, to east Africa including Madagascar, the Red Sea, eastern Polynesia, southern Japan, Wake Island, Hawaii, and Austrailia.

I knew I had to make something with these shells! I bought a few in various sizes.

I love the color, and the pattern of this shell. These shells are thick, and heavy for their size, giving this necklace a nice weight to it.

Nice sized shell, huh? Can you see how big and plump those button pearls are??? They are just gorgeous!

I finished it off with Japanese Miyuki seed beads. They are the most uniform of the seed beads, and renowned for their craftsmanship. A loop and hook clasp completes this tropical seashell necklace.

This necklace would compliment many outfits, from casual jeans and a tshirt, to a pretty sun dress, a cute shorts outfit, or even something a bit more dressy.

It's always summer somewhere, but I would even wear this in the dead of winter. Talk about chasing those winter blahs away....this bright orange would surly do it!

I have a couple of more beaded necklaces, and some shells on chains to show you. And some new earrings, and bracelets.

See you soon!

Biking the Greenway

This past Sunday hubby and I loaded up our bikes to ride the trails at The Greenway, also known as the Cross Florida Greenway.

For hundreds of years people have been wanting to cut a canal right through Florida, making a passage from the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico. It has been denied several times, but almost came to pass in the early 60's. They actually started the Cross Florida Barge Canal project!

Marjorie Harris Carr began fighting the project in 1962. It was a long fight, and the canal project was abandoned in 1971. Not far from my house, hidden in the trees in the median of Hwy441/27/301 if you look for them, you can see the supports for a bridge expansion.

image courtesy of wikipedia

I happen to know exactly where to look, as they have been there for my entire life. When I was a kid, the trees weren't blocking the supports at all. This is not far behind the Sheriff Sub Station.

Because of her dedication in saving our ecosystem, the greenway was named after Marjorie Harris Carr.

This section of Florida would have been part of the canal, but is now a wonderful place for kids to play, families to picnic and enjoy activities like biking, walking, running, roller skating, and skateboarding. 

There are several trails, from the 1 mile in red, to the 1.5 mile in blue (that's what we did) and 3 miles when you include the green. I have no idea what the yellow is....I'll find out next time! We plan to go back soon, take a picnic lunch, and ride for a couple of hours.

The trails are smooth and well paved, with benches every so often to stop and rest, or just take in the beautiful scenery.

Thanks to Marjorie Harris Carr my town isn't split in half by a barge canal, and we have a beautiful park like setting to enjoy.

More Beachy Rings!

Last week when I had the shelling blisters, and my hands were sore, and my legs were sore from doing the Belleair Bend Over Double..... I made EASY things. The hair barrettes that you've seen, and these rings.

These ring bases are a lighter weight, and more easily adjustable than my other ring bases.

Psssst....my favorite is the olive shell!

I used weatherproof waterproof adhesive, so these beachy little adornments should hold up through high tide, or at least some hand washing in case you forget to take them off. I'd personally treat the sand dollar and starfish as delicately as soft gemstones.

I need to take more pics of the sand dollar ring....the camera isn't fond of white on that aqua paper. Of course I forgot that I had deleted the majority of them, and remembered when I was listing these.

I have a TON of pics to take anyway. I have been on a roll since my blisters healed, and made several necklaces. Now that my legs feel better it's time for some more standing, bending, and crouching...a photo taking session is at hand.

I almost didn't list these, and just saved them for the shows, but thought what the heck! At least if they are listed I have an inventory list of sorts.

If you all think of anything, and I mean ANYTHING I need to remember to take with me, or to do...your advice is most welcome!