Spotlight: Mocahete

I spend a lot of time on etsy looking at shops run by other jewelry designers; admiring their work, and not making nearly as many purchases as I would like. If you are looking for bold, dynamic, and earthy designs, I highly recommend that you visit Mocahete. When you do, you will see the quality, style, and passion with which each piece is made. And, as a wonderfully satisfied customer, when you select a design to purchase, you will feel it.

Dante and Sabrina work together to create ethnic, tribal, and modern jewelry. Offering a wide range of earrings, bracelets, necklaces, rings and brooches, you are sure to find a handcrafted piece to fit your personal style.

Oil Spill - Dang it!

The BP oil spill has been upsetting me since we first heard about it. Everyday I wake up and watch the morning news. The reports on the spill have me worried, anxious, and suffering slight nausea. The complacency infuriates me. That much oil in the ocean is a serious concern. And the dispersants forget about it! What if everyone took turns spending a day in a boat with their macaroni strainers and scooped as much as they could? Maybe that’s naïve.

But a wonderful group of etsy artists have come up with a way to help. Proceeds from sales of their hand crafted items are being contributed to help with the Gulf oil spill clean up. There all different kinds of sellers participating, and the list continues to grow. Maybe we can’t all get in a boat and scoop oil. But shopping for a cause, now that’s a win, win.

Hopi Necklace

Hey! Today I wanted to take a moment to let you know about a new necklace I made. It is a one of a kind design, that is bohemian, beautiful and affordable. I used large genuine Turquoise beads, and smooth, round Lapis Lazuli gemstone beads to create it - along with some Onyx and black disc-shaped beads. Not only is it gorgeous and extremely wearable, it will make you feel good too. I hope you'll take a look at it, as well as the other OOAK jewelry designs at squeakydingo.etsy.com.

Thanks :)

WildLifePrints

Etsy has some of the most amazing shops and artists. They never cease to amaze me, and to inspire me. Today, I wanted to let you know about one of these superb shops, Wild Life Prints. In this shop you can purchase some of the most whimsical, creative archival quality prints I've ever seen. A few things you'll find- an Elk on a sofa, Zebras at a disco party, and a colt playing soccer. What?! How do you come up with this stuff? So fun, thought provoking, and unique. You really should take a few minutes to see this for yourself.

Rock Story

I have a master’s in archaeology. I got it at the University of Sheffield in Sheffield, England. After the pieces of this bracelet were assembled, the shapes and colors reminded me of Avebury. The shiny flecks of Pyrite on the Quartz rectangles, the stark, coldness of the White Agate coins, and the imperfect shapes of the grey freshwater pearls stirred my memories of the Upper Kennet Valley.

During my coursework, we went on a 2 week long field trip all over England and Wales visiting archaeological sites. We must have seen and investigated 18 different places, including the infamous Stonehenge. Avebury was the one that we visited that astonished me. It was electrifying. Standing in that stone circle, I got goose bumps on my arms and the little hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I can still feel that wonder and awe writing about it now. Without a doubt, this henge held deep significance for whoever created and used it. Someone (or ones) was compelled to upright theses gigantic rocks, some weighing as much as 40 tons. There must have been a damn good reason. Even with all of our modern science and technology we can only speculate. And after more then 5,000 years, 27 of the 98 stones are still standing – mocking gravity and defying psychics.

Fun 2 Save

It's always important to save. What's that saying, a penny saved is a penny earned? I think that's it. Well, now you can save your pennies and have fun doing it. The Pig Pen has a wide selection of unusual and adorable piggy banks. Traditionally, piggy banks were for children. But with so many whimsical designs, now they're for adults too. Keep one in your office, and save up for those times your boss drives you to drink. Or keep one in the kitchen, and encourage your dinner guests to contribute to your "retirement" fund. Whatever the reason - splurging on one of these seems like an obvious investment.