a beautiful.... dreamy place to create.... one that has gotten and is continuing to get more and more organized every day.... there are no words for my shear happiness and thankfulness for this room and for being able to call it mine all mine.

more studio detail soon... 

full- completely filled; containing all that can be held; filled to utmost capacity

Have you ever really thought about that word... what does it mean to be truly full?

Image Credit Clive Schaupmeyer

... no I am not talking about the full that comes from eating too much, we all know that kinda full... rather.. I am talking about "full" in relation to ones everyday life.

I look at this stunning picture and ponder that word... I try to figure out what it means to me, what it means in my life... am I full or am I half empty... which one?? what type of person am I... how do I really view my life, my possessions... my emotions...

this is what I feel and this what comes to my mind.....

I know that am full even if at times things in my life & grumpy emotions make me feel like I am half-empty. 

I know that I am full and that I have so much goodness in my life that if I let it, it will greatly overflow from my soul.

I am full of love for life. I am full of love for being happy. I am full of satisfaction from being contented and simple. I am full of dreams that can come true. I am full of glorious thoughts that can be turned into glorious actions. I am full of wonderful ideas that can become tangible items. I am full of inspiration that can be shared wholeheartedly with others. I am full of love for my family and dear friends. I am full of stories that need to come out. I am full of life that needs to be lived. I am full of words that need to be written. I am full of thoughts and emotions. I am full of the power needed to change my gray sky days into beautiful blue ones. I am full of energy when I let it flow. I am full of gratefulness for having all that have in this life. I am full of joy to simply just be. Yes, I am full to the point of bursting...

more soon....

EVERY SINGLE DAY this past week I have been thankful and happy for one thing...... and that is this wonderful news:

after not living near my parents for 10 years they are finally moving to my town and instead of being near 300 miles away, they will now be under 3 miles away and I just can't believe it.

and yes... my heart does ache for my other two sisters who sadly do not live near me.... but to have my parents within my same town is kinda like a dream and I am simply overwhelmed with thankfulness.

Thankfulness for family, love and the beautiful soul stirring joy that comes from a mom and dad. YAY!

in some other news....

Tuition to the Fundamentals Workshop is now $10 cheaper!

Over this past week I have been working on getting the new studio space settled (well kinda) and in doing so I have found out that I have way way to much stuff that I will not and do not use- so.... I am planning to have an online art & jewelry supply yardsale. Not sure if I will just open a page up here on the site to offer things or post some auctions over on Ebay.... I will share all the details on it later this week.

I can't tell you just how much I am looking forward to getting back to creating again. My head is filled with so many new ideas for custom jewelry pieces and paintings.... oh I can't wait...

I hope your weekends were wonderful!

more soon. 

...YAY for Heather!

Thank you so much for ALL who entered... More giveaways are to come!

In the meantime.... Heather you sweet gal... email me your mailing address and I will start working on your necklace this week. I already have some wonderful ideas for you.... Silver.... Blue... Dream... sounds like spring!

this weeks thankfuls are coming tomorrow..

oh how lovely clear horizons and blues skies can be...

These past few days have been really happy ones for me. 

I am not a person who manages well when extreme chaos takes over my house... it makes me feel kinda gloomy & overwhelmed BUT now that things are settling back down I am one big ball of HAPPY- yep that's me... happy happy. I have my emotions in check which is great cause for rejoicing and I am taking control of my little world once again.

Focusing on finding contentment and joy in the little things of life. Being happy with and making the most of what I have.. feeling blessed to have a family, a home and a place to create.. learning to be settled within my life.... taking some of this current joy and filling up my reserve tanks for when things get tough in life and looking forward with a full heart to all my future art endeavors..

I tell you, finding happiness in the simple things of life is one of the most valuable treasures that one can EVER find.

sooo in the spirit of- HAPPINESS, JOY, CONTENTMENT and GLORIOUS BLUE SKIES.... I am offering a very special giveAway to all of you..

This giveAway will be for a custom designed necklace... to enter leave a comment below including these things:

1. Silver or Brass

2. Favorite Color(s)

3. Meaningful Word(s)

I will take all of the above things and create something VERY special just for you.

PLEASE be sure to share this giveaway with your family and friends!

Winner will be announced this Saturday 2/27 at 6pm Eastern Time. ENJOY!

more soon...

on a quest to find thankfulness in simple to big things everyday.... this past weeks thankfuls are:

Monday- today I am thankful for hidden energy... the kind that kicks in when you need it the absolute must... the kind that somehow.. just when you think you are so tired that you can't do one single thing more... you can... yes I am so thankful for hidden energy.

Tuesday- today I am thankful for REST.... yes I am soooo thankful for rest.

Wednesday- today I am thankful for Ikea.... yep, Ikea. I am thankful for their affordable furniture... delicious meatballs and yummy cinnamon buns... oh yes I am thankful thankful thankful for Ikea and Ingvar Kamprad for coming up with such a wonderful concept.

Thursday- today I am thankful.... "and yes I know this is silly".... for power tools... YES.. power tools.. I can't say thank you enough for the inventor of the drill..... saving my hands and wrist.... making my life and assembling furniture a bi-gillion times easier... oh yes I am thankful for power tools.

Friday- today I am thankful for quiet evenings spent at home with my husband.... laying on the couch eating take-out and watching our favorite shows... laughing.... bonding.... snuggling under warm blankets with our furry babies snoring at our side... oh... how I am thankful for evenings & creating new memories with my man.

Saturday- today... oh today... I am so thankful for warmth and sunshine.... the kind that sinks into your cold and weary winter bones... the kind that makes you just want to sit and soak it all in... today I am so very thankful for warmth and sunshine.

I hope you had a wonderful week & weekend....

The studio is coming along beautifully and I am thrilled! I will share it all with you very soon..... I am making sure to get things just how I want them... :)

In some other news... I am having a giveaway hosted over on the Blog of the LOVELY and TALENTED Denise Andrade aka Boho Girl. Denise is one of the sweetest souls I have come across in this great big Internet Art World.

The giveaway is for free tution to my online workshop the Fundamentals of Jewelry Making. To enter and visit the enchanting world of Boho Girl click here.

more soon...

below you will see a small glimpse into the BIG mess that is my life at this very moment.... mind you this BIG mess is completely self inflicted.... as much as I wish that I could put the blame elsewhere I can't... so here's the back story....

several months ago, I finally decided that it was time to rearrange my "Little Button House" in a way that could contain a dedicated studio space for me.... well, needless to say I did.... and I had my lovely new studio ALL and I mean ALL set up in what was my son's room and he was relocated to another room..... WELL..... the room that he was relocated to just wasn't really the best place for him..... as it is in the front of our house.... lacked privacy and is kinda small for an already bursting at the seams teenager who for heavens sakes needs his space! soooooo.... that meant another rearrange was in order and repainting because my son could NEVER live with the lovely creamy yellow walls that I had painted in what is now the old studio space... :) confusing... yes I know.

the last few weeks have been full of moving things around, cleaning carpets, trips to Ikea, planning- does this go here.... will this fit here.... can I do this... blah blah and finally I am at least able to walk through my living room without killing myself. It has been one of those "You Never Know Until Your Live With It" experiences... but we are all on our way to being once again settled into our new & PERMANENT spaces.

I haven't had ANY time to make anything other then a mess.... and my creative soul is dying to DO SOMETHING! I have tons of ideas and plans but no time at the moment to let them manifest into something.

I am hoping next week though..... hoping....

Within the "NEW STUDIO SPACE" I am really making sure to set up things just how I want them... areas that are designating for different art tasks.... I can't wait to share the finished room with you.... :)

The Living Room Mess!

The New Studio Mess!

oh and keeping with my fickleness and in response to many request I am reopening journal post comments...:) thanks for wanting to share your thoughts with me. :)

more soon...

even though I had some days this past week that were...  just... well... emotional train wreck days... I still kept on my quest to find thankfulness in simple to big things everyday.... so this past weeks thankfuls are:

when did I get lost... where is my heart... when did I forget..... that I am my own boss... that I make my own rules. why do I feel this pressure to create for the masses... who cares about that. I am not famous... I don't have any deadlines to meet..... people are not dying to get their hands on my mediocre works... why am I forcing my own creativity...YES, I know that I am a "will work for food" artist.... but since when did the need to create for a shop full of goods and not for my own satisfaction become the main focus in my life.

What has happened to me... today I lazed around in my PJ's...  didn't shower until 8pm.. ate dark chocolate
M & M's all day and walked around with this nagging thought heavy on my mind.... after my post about the power of you I just kept thinking where is the power of me... funny how writing that has made me think... where is the power of my own creative spirit... why am I losing interest in life... in art... what happened to the joy of just simply sitting down with a hammer or a paint brush and just going at it.... when did the joy of making become not enough.

the reality is... that there are days that I simply just don't want to get of bed... that I just want to lay in my misery and wallow in my sadness... stare at my ceiling and replay thoughts, mistakes and answers over and over in my mind.... there are days when my heart is broken for those who have so much less then me... days where I feel selfish and spoiled.... unworthy.... days where I have no interest and simply just don't want to touch a single medium for creating anything.... but truly who doesn't feel these same things at some point in their life... it doesn't make me crazy it make me real.... it means that my life isn't always happy, upbeat and inspiring.... and that lows like this come and wear me out... that hidden hurts and self esteem struggles hide out in the shadows of my life too....and that somehow I have to get back to the point of being in charge.... in charge of my time... of my emotions... of my center... the online world is wonderful but also horrible... where and how to find the balance is where I am at... the balance between real life becky and online becky... this is my current struggle... this is my fight.... this is my life at this moment.... does it mean that I am not thankful for the things that I have... for those who come and read my ramble... or take my classes... or buy my art.... no.... it just means that I am a person with thoughts and feelings and not just a blog.

more soon.....

Sometimes in our lives as daughters, sisters, friends, wives and mothers it is so easy to forget ourselves....

Amazingly, it seems as though the things in life that should make us feel like super women can actually push us to lose our true sense of self and aid us into forgeting what makes us strong in the first place. 

When was the last time you thought about the POWER that is YOU??

Do you know how powerful you truly are.... YES... YOU.... YOU are a powerful force of nature.... just think of ALL you do...

... taking care of a family..... making a house run like a well oiled machine... making sense of pure chaos at 6:30 am when the dog peed on the rug, the baby is screaming, your already late for work, you just spilled hot coffee all over your brand new pants and now you realize that your car is on E..... YOU- you like a super woman can make a day that starts off like that turn into day that ends with a quiet calm and peacefulness like no other.

YOU have the power to kiss boo-boos and POOF just like that things are better.

YOU have the power to have four pots on the stove, baby in one arm, phone in the other, little one tugging your leg asking for milk and still calmly kiss and welcome home husband.

YOU have so much more power then you even realize....

there is power in you to heal.... there is power in you to comfort.... there is power in you to love.... there is power in you to cherish.... there is power in you to grow.... there is power in you to do.... there is power in you to create.... there is power in you to overcome.... there is power in you to be.... there is power in you to inspire.... there is power in you to respect.... there is power in you to spread your wings.... there is power in YOU to be anything.

so when you feel lost.... uninspired.... confused.... stuck.... even alone.... NEVER forget how POWERFUL you really are in life.... NEVER FORGET THE POWER THAT IS YOU.

more soon....