New Etsy Listings on the Way!

I just spent all of today making all of these beautiful pieces! It took forever, but the end result is definitely worth it! I will be listing all of these in the next few days on Etsy, so keep watching the store here if you would like to purchase one of these beautiful necklaces!!

Thanks again for all your support! I know Christmas time is a hard time for all the wives, sisters, and family of our men in the military if they aren't there. Lets show our support for them all!

Jewelry and Gem Show!!

I went to the local Jewelry and Gem Show today! For all you prospective jewelers out there, this is a great place to get started, or if you are experienced, it is a great place to stock up on goodies!

I had such a great time arranging styles I liked and picking out Jewels and Gems for my collections! And everyone was super helpful and I got great deals on everything I wanted!

Look for some more great pieces coming out soon!!!

Here are some of the great pieces I was able to get ;)!

You know like they say, "A jewel in the hand is worth 100 in a bag!"

I love you all!!

Mrs. Claus Must be an Army Wife!

I stumbled across this awesome blog this afternoon Loving A Soldier and she had the great post up that I'd love to share with you all!

Mrs. Clause Must be a Military Spouse

Ten reasons we know.

by Candace Lindeman


(Yes, we know there's not an "E" on the end of Santa Claus, but given the military's penchant for "clauses" we enjoyed the humor! We hope you do, too.)

Faced with the prospect of spending another holiday alone, military wives might recognize a kindred spirit this Christmas season: Mrs. Clause. She must be a military wife! How do we know?

1. Mrs. Clause supports her spouse. Because she works tirelessly as part of "Team Clause the general public defines her by his job. We military wives realize, though, that she is so much more!

2. Mrs. Clause will move anywhere to be with Old St. Nick. This is perhaps the most convincing evidence. Who else but a military wife would follow her husband on assignment to the freezing North Pole?

3. Mrs. Clause makes the best of every situation. Her generous and kind spirit makes even the coldest of places warm and inviting. She could do wonders with post housing!

4. Mrs. Clause worries about her husband's dangerous job. When Santa is off flying around the globe, Mrs. Clause keeps her concerns and tears to herself. But we all know she has more than her fair share of gray hairs! Perhaps she has installed a Web cam on Santa's sleigh so she can see (if not actually hold) him on Christmas Eve.

5. Mrs. Clause keeps the home fires burning. Imagine her leading a family support group meeting for residents of the North Pole. In turn, she's surrounded by love and good will.

6. Mrs. Clause understands that the mission is first priority. Even when Santa is home, he is so busy at work that Mrs. Clause hardly sees him. Like all members of our special society of spouses, Mrs. Clause understands that, though she may be last on Santa's schedule, she is first in his heart.

7. Mrs. Clause is frugal. Santa's salary is not published, but I suspect Mrs. Clause clips coupons to support a household of hundreds of elves and eight reindeer (plus the newest addition, Rudolph). Let's not even start on her heating bill!

8. Mrs. Clause knows how to keep her mind occupied. To stay busy, Mrs. Clause pitches in with the toy making (although it really is someone else's job), bakes hundreds of cookies (we all know how Santa feels about cookies) and volunteers her time (she is just as generous as her husband).

9. Mrs. Clause is underemployed. To take her mind off of her husband's safety (and to help with the bills) Mrs. Clause probably has a paying job, too. Although we know her for her kindness, Mrs. Clause is also a smart, independent self-starter. Since she has to work seasonally and values family life above all else, however, I doubt that this job fully uses her considerable skills and training.

10. Mrs. Clause is married to a genuine hero. For Mrs. Clause and military wives alike it's worth all of the sacrifice to be married to someone you truly respect and admire.

Mrs. Clause assists Santa and encourages him in his meaningful work. Just as Santa performs his duty selflessly with an attitude that could best be described as ... well, jolly, Mrs. Clause also knows how to accentuate the positive. Surely Mrs. Clause is one of us, part of the special breed called the military wife.

Featured in Christmas Treasury!

Wow! I am so honored to be featured in another treasury this week!! Kaiaandme featured my Wintergreen Onxy and Chalcedony necklace in her cute treasury! Check her her treasury here!
Just in time for the chilly weather is my Wintergreen necklace! Still working on your Christmas shopping list? Take a peek in my shop for some fabulous ideas!!

Rootbeer Cupcakes and Cream Soda Icing?!

I love baking cupcakes, who doesn't? :) I was searching through all my cupcake books, printed recipes, and websites and amongst my searching I found a fabulous recipe for something I knew would be amazing!



Root Beer Cupcakes! From Cupcake Project This recipe was delicious! I added my own touch to the cupcakes by adding chocolate gnache balls to the tops of them :)

Here's the recipe:
Root Beer Cupcake Recipe

The cake part of the recipe was a root beer cake. I found the recipe at the Bittersweet Blog. The cake was moist and had a strong root beer smell and flavor. Definitely a winner.

makes 12 cupcakes

• 1 C rootbeer soda
• 1 t apple cider vinegar
• 3/4 C sugar
• 1/3 C canola oil
• 1/2 t vanilla extract
• 2 t rootbeer extract
• 1 1/3 C flour
• 3/4 t baking soda
• 1/2 t baking powder
• Pinch of Salt

1. Combine the soda and vinegar and let stand for a few minutes.
2. Add in the sugar and oil, whisking vigorously until slightly frothy.
   
3. Integrate your extracts, and gently introduce the flour, along with the baking powder / soda, and salt, being careful not to over mix.
   
4. Fill cupcake liners approximately 3/4 of the way to the top.
   
5. Bake at 350 F for about 18 - 22 minutes.

I couldn't find root beer extract anywhere locally, so i improvised and used Root Beer soda instead and added a little bit more than whats called for :) In the end this resulted in a yummy root beer taste that wasn't overpowering! mmmm

The Cream Soda Frosting was next, also from Cupcake Project! Her recipe is delicious, I can't wait to make more frosting flavors using her technique :) Here's the recipe

• 1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese
• 1/4 C butter
• 4 C powdered sugar
• 1.5 t cream soda extract (Cream soda extract isn't exactly a common household item. However, I was able to order some at a soda home brewing company, HopTec. This is also where I ordered my root beer extract from. The service at HopTec was fantastic! They shipped my stuff the same day and even called me to let me know they had found a cheaper shipping rate for me. I'd definitely recommend them, if you want to try making some cream soda frosting. I'd also highly recommend the frosting. It was a perfect match for the root beer cupcake.)
  

1. Beat cream cheese and butter.
2. Add powdered sugar until the consistency is right.
3. Add extract.

Let me know if you try out these cupcakes! They were a hit over Thanksgiving :)

Happy Giveaway Winner!

In celebration of ECLIPSE (!!!!) I was lucky enough to participate in a fun Blog giveaway called "30 Days of Eclipse" on the amazing Joyful Reviews & Giveaway Blog! In my giveaway two lucky winners were picked! One won one of my Bella rainbow moonstone rings, the other one my Goldstone Carved Wolf Bracelet! She was So excited about her bracelet, she sent me a totally AWESOME picture of her sporting it:
Isn't she so beautiful? :) She was also kind enough to write me a really sweet review of the bracelet, that I'd love to share with you all!

"Hello! You don't know me but I won one of your Bella crystal heart and wolf bracelets in the contest you hosted for the "30 Days of Eclipse" giveaways at Joyful Blogs. Since it wasn't purchased through my account I obviously wouldn't be able to leave a feedback message on your page. However, I checked the mail today and saw that it had arrived.

I quickly opened it and was so delighted that I had to let you know! I think it's an extremely beautiful bracelet and I've already gotten compliments on it. I'm excited to not only wear it for the Eclipse premiere but for just about any other occasion as well. The care you took to protect the crystal was nice and the chain is a perfect fit. I also love the bit of sparkle on the wolf and even prefer your version to the one I've seen by NECA."

I'm so happy that she is enjoying her bracelet so much! :) It really warms my heart to hear such great support from awesome people like her!!

Featured in Boca Raton Magazine!

You'll never believe how excited I was to find that my White Sand Druzy necklace was featured in a magazine!!! *squeal* I was googling my name (haha, who doesn't??) and found out that I had been featured in Boca Raton magazine! If you have a moment please check out the link:
http://www.bocamag.com/Blogs/Shop-Talk/May-2010/The-Weekly-Dig-Druzy-Jewelry/