Bears In The Trees! Oh My!!

This past week we visited the Great Smoky Mountains. The day was overcast and cloudy with scattered showers. The mountains are beautiful on cloudy days. As we traveled around the winding road that led to the top of the mountains we viewed drifts of clouds that gently kisssed the evergreens on the mountain peaks. Wild life was evident and we spotted two large owls that were taking advantage of a cloudy day. It was rather funny that we had just been talking about how we had seen bears more often when we were children visiting the mountains than we had since we had... matured... Not long after that conversation we were moving along at a rather quick pace for sightseers when I spotted something at the top of the trees near a mountain viewing stop. I yelled out "Hey! I think that was a bear in that tree!!!". We quickly made a U turn (on a narrow mountain road...) and went back to see if indeed there was a bear. Sure enough, IT WAS A BEAR!!! We jumped out of the car with our cameras and started clicking away. The sun was beginning to set and the day was cloudy but I managed to get a couple of shots of that bear who was munching away on the branches of the tree he had climbed. He seemed to be a young bear but he was still large, after all he was a bear. He was so agile moving around in that tree as he climbed higher looking for more scrumptious treats to devour.

The day in the mountains on a cloudy and rainy day was a success and we enjoyed our trip. A cloudy rainy day had transformed itself into an adventure in nature. I guess the highlight of our day was getting to see that bear. Even better, that the bear didn't even notice we had stopped to watch him have his supper so he didn't decide to make a change in his menu and have us for supper.

Etsy Shops are the Best

I have listed in my blog a number of links to wonderful shops from Etsy.com. Within those shops can be found some of the most beautiful high quality and unique hand crafted, handmade with love items of all kinds. Visiting these shops will take you away to a wonderful place within yourself, that place where creativity longs to be freed! You will find yarn arts of all kinds there. Toys for babies, warm soft booties, capes, afgans, and more. There are artists of every flavor. Find soaps, lotions, scented oils, floral arrangments, wedding items of all kinds, paintings, photography, specialty cards, even oragami. I make jewelry and have a shop that I really enjoy. ( http//www.happyplaces.etsy.com/ ). There are all kinds of jewlry artists, silver smiths, metal works of all kinds. I found a shop by a couple who make gorgeous lamps with coffee mugs and pretty tea cups. If you like stained glass you will find talent on Etsy that will blow you away! The list could go on and on and on...

Home made is the way to go for well made unique items for your personal pampering and for your home, family and friends and it can easily be found all in one place ... Etsy.com.

Hand Made In The USA

Industry made the USA great, is mass production destroying it? It seems that creativity is a dying commodity in our country. I can't think of anything that isn't mass produced to the outer limits. I would love to visit new places and experience diverse cultures and lifestyles but traveling within the USA seems to have become monotonous and; I feel I must say it, boring. It seems that no matter where one goes things look exactly the same. Shopping malls are all designed with the same architecture and with the same major retail shops. When shopping inside the shops everything is the same in every size and color. It seems that people want to go to the same places on vacations, eat at the same restaurants, wear the same jewelry, and drive the same type of cars as their neighbors, regardless of whether those places and things are of true personal interest to them. What happened to being unique? Where is creativity and individuality? Do people have to be the same to be or feel accepted in our culture today? Is acceptance of peers mandatory for acquiring self approval and self acceptance in our culture today?

The wonderful thing about hand designed and hand crafted items is the attention to details that crafters give to their creations. It is their love of their craft that gives them a winning edge on quality and beauty. No one creates without care for the outcome of their creation. There is a growing movement toward hand made and designed products today. Everything from children's toys; due to safety concerns within the mass produced debacles, to hand made hand bags, jewelry, clothing and home decor. There is a thirst to be individuals with freedom to think, choose, and explore our own ideas and personalities. There seems to b e a rising of the beautiful spirit that made the USA great, with all of its diversity.

The internet has opened up a wonderful new venue for such unique and creative expressions. Hundreds of thousands of craftsmen/women of unique, one of a kind, hand crafted, high quality items are beautifully displayed in wonderfully creative formats. Perfect for those who love to think for themselves and enjoy expressing those qualities about themselves that make them wonderfully and beautifully made.

I see a turn back to our roots, back to what once made the USA great; in fact made the word great, on the horizon. Beautiful works of art from every culture are becoming more and more available and are in higher demand than in previous decades. Thank goodness there is hope for our future still. The beauty of individuality and creativity will not die; in fact, it is in the process of being reborn!

Beauty Is In The Eyes Of The Beholder!

I have said that beauty can always be found; no matter what life throws at us, if we only look for it. I must say now that the old saying "beauty is in the eyes of the beholder" is so very true. I was recently viewing my daughter's pictures on her "my space" and found this picture she had taken and posted. I couldn't help but laugh. She never fails to amaze me, and I love to try to see things from her perspective when I share things with her. Seeing things from her point of view was really funny to me when I saw this picture. A photo of a dumpster in down town Knoxville, Tennessee adorned with graffiti.

Summer Dreams Of Autumn

As I contiued my summer dreaming surrounded by the cool of the shade trees I finished the copper pearls necklace. It took some time to decide whether or not to include silver in the double strands and I decided not to. I wanted the warm tones to be even and undisturbed. The beautiful plum blossom jasper has the colors that bring the nature of this necklace together. As I interspersed the jasper I wanted to make sure that they were placed in a fashion that would best drape around the neck when worn. I am really happy with the way it turned out.

I have been in the warm earth tones for some time and so I completed another series of warm earth toned jewelry. Earth Rocks ... Golden red agate, these are so beautiful the way that they glow. These turned out to be spectacular!!

These pieces can be seen and purchased at my shop www.happyplaces.etsy.com