Jewelry talk and more

Cyber Monday and Christmas 2011

2011-11-28T16:31:00.000-08:00

I have low cost and in some cases free shipping during Cyber Monday and Christmas.

Lots to chose from all timeless and one of a kind. Remember returns are easy.

Just a few of what I have on sale.

Happy Summer and almost Fall

2011-08-22T16:46:00.000-07:00

Mom's and Dad's have sent the kids off to school and it is time to think about the coming year and shopping. I have timeless jewelry on sale. Earrings are the lowest prices. Take advantage of the sales.

Newest passion for me is my metal jewelry. Love making them. I have made necklaces and hope to make a few other styles and items. I have one pair of earrings, but I am keeping those for myself. All the three colors, brass, copper and silver. I do a cold press method.

Remember I sell Arbonne products too. News of a new line of skincare and where to buy it. Maybe I can become a distributor for this local skincare specialist. Keep you posted. You can follow me on Twitter and Facebook. Go to my site and look for the Icon for Facebook On Twitter I am BlondRenee.

Happy 4th of July American!!

2011-07-03T15:25:00.000-07:00

I know you are all thinking about fireworks, grilling out, swimming and having fun. Where did the time go. It doesn't seem that long that we were still having a fire in the fireplace. Now it is 105 F. Wow. Time to hit the pool bit time. But I continue to plan my next design, keep up with the constant changes to my website. Shop for beads, wire, metal for new jewelry.

I have my new metal jewelry featured on my site. More to be added later, just in time for Christmas!!! It will be here whether we like it or not. So think ahead and shop.

Non jewelry related blog on gluten

2011-03-01T14:54:00.000-08:00

I have been not as active with my designs as I would like to be due to focusing on my health issues, specific. Gluten and staying away from it.
I am blogging in hopes that it may help someone else who is suffering with issues related to gluten. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten

I was not feeling well, had cramping back in October of last year. I was not feeling well, so I consumed crackers, soup (not gluten free) and bread. All the foods that are comfort foods. I got sicker and sicker. I went to all the doctors looking for answers. One doctor suggest I try to eliminate gluten. I did this as best I could, but continued to feel sick. I had tests done,after going back on gluten (you have to have gluten in your system in order to have blood tests and other testing done) saw more doctor (GI). They could not find anything out of the norm.

I decided to go off gluten again. After two months of trying very hard to be gluten free I am starting to feel better. I have to be very careful when eating out. I ask for a gluten free menu. But the restaurants can't guarantee that the food they prepare is gluten free!!. So I struggle and worry each time we dine out. I am also vegan which makes it very, very difficult. But these are my personal choices.

So again my point in blogging is for people to get help, you may not be Celiac but it good to be tested. Read all you can, go online to http://celiac.org/. There is a wealth of information out there. And lots of people who blog about it.

Very soon I will be back to feeling like my old creative self.

Happy shopping.

www.reneesdesigns.com

New design soon to be on website.

2011-02-08T15:28:00.000-08:00

Copper and stone. Copper wrapped pendent. Copper clasp. See full details on my website. www.reneesdesigns.com

2011-01-02T16:53:00.000-08:00

Now that the new year is here, it is time for the special occasions for 2011.
Starting with Valentines. I will be working on new designs for the holiday.

Be well and happy!!

Merry Christmas to you all!

2010-12-18T19:06:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas to you all. May the spirit of the season live in your hearts always.

You still have a few days to shop my site.

Happy Thanksgiving!!

2010-11-20T13:06:00.000-08:00

I have got to get geared up for the Christmas season. I am working on a bogo deal.

Hard to believe Christmas is around the corner with fall leaves still on the trees.
The view outside is gorgeous, hard to get into gear today. But I must work on some new things.

Happy Thanksgiving 2010

New Bracelet added!

2010-10-29T16:51:00.000-07:00

I added a new bracelet to my site. very simple at the same time trendy. And trendy we like.

Check it out.

http://reneesdesigns.com/store/page3.html
The Heart and Chain Bracelet.

Fall and Fashion!

2010-09-13T21:51:00.000-07:00

With all the clothing styles, who would not want to dress nice. With fall coming, that brings jackets, sweaters, scarves and big purses.
What a better time than now to be a trendy woman. Ladies take advantage of the clothes and jewelry.
I am working on some new pieces and will photograph them soon. If I can keep from wanting to keep the new styles for myself.

I know the economy is poor, but we all need to look our best.

Shop my website for good values.

Sale going on now

2010-07-23T16:39:00.000-07:00

I have a big sale going on at www.reneesdesignscom. It is not like a Christmas in July. It is an all summer long sale. I am working on a newsletter and plan to get that out to customers new and precious.

I want to sell some inventory so I can work on some new pieces.

Shopping could never be easier. No parking, so crowds.

Big and small.

2010-06-19T20:36:00.000-07:00

Summer is here!! Soon the United States will celebrate another birthday on July 4th. I will be creating some new red, white and blue jewelry. Any requests?

I see more and more jewelry on women. I wear it almost every day. But especially when I go out. It makes me feel so feminine. And now the bigger the better. It makes a statement. But the simple styles are still a winner. There is something about a small dainty piece that can't be mistaken. It says class.

2010-06-01T15:01:00.001-07:00

2010-05-03T18:00:00.000-07:00

I gave my website a new look again. The butterfly has a special meaning to me so I included it on my site.
The weather could not be any more perfect. Love it.
This weekend is Mothers Day and our anniversary. We have special plans. We are going to the beach!!! I really like the beach!!!

Have been working on a few new jewelry pieces...If I didn't have to be a cook, maid and chief bottle washer I could do all kinds of projects. I need to finish my book one of these days. I have been talking about it way too long!!!
Chain jewelry is so popular. I included a style I did. It will be for sale soon.

Where is the sunshine!!

2010-04-21T13:57:00.000-07:00

I am the type of person that needs sunshine to feel good. I get more creative and want to spend time staying busy. Today it is rainy, cold and cloudy. So I am a slug!!! I hope to get my website looking different. A sort of spring cleaning if you will.

www.reneesdesigns.com

Spring colors and new jewelry to reflect the colors

2010-04-08T20:24:00.000-07:00

This is one of my favorite times of the year. When the renewal of life begins again.
I love the colors God paint the world in spring time. How gorgeous my front flower gardens are. Rich purple from the lavender, the vibrant orange of the poppies. The sunny yellow of the daisy's. And the roses, oh how gorgeous they are this year. The red, purple, yellow. They all resemble velvet.

One of my new necklaces is a crocheted beaded necklace that reflects the colors in my garden. Rich yellow, green and orange.

Gato, my Hispanic cat!!

2010-02-22T17:36:00.000-08:00

I have two cats, one that lives in the other outside. Both are spoiled rotten. My inside cat now wears a cross I made for her out of seed beads. She loves it, or I should say I do. She is one cool cat!!

2010-02-13T14:47:00.000-08:00

Ok all you love birds, have you gotten you valentine a valentine? It is too late to send my jewelry, but you can remember your sweetie with a card, fat free chocolate LOL, and maybe some flowers.

My recent goal is to bring you more new designs. To exercise, gee can I do both at the same time. I wish!!!! I am a small lady, but I can see the fatten chocolate almonds have caused my pants to fit tight!!! Help, what was I thinking!!!

Happy Valentines Day. Until next time. God bless.

Happy Birthday to me

2010-01-25T21:03:00.000-08:00

Yes, another year has come for me to celebrate. My DH took me to dinner in Cambria, that is a sweet place to go. We found a small but quaint restaurant along Moonstone beach. My DH does not like to adventure far from the same old same old, but this turned out to be now one of his favorite places to eat. It is a little pricey but good.

We splurged on dinner and I ordered a delish chocolate torte. I was so full from my dinner (I ate 1/2 of it) but I had to have a little chocolate. After all it was my special day!!! Ha...count the calories later right!!! This week I feel I have had too many desserts. I digress. We had a nice quiet evening. Another year under my belt.

How on to Valentines Day. I really must get some jewelry together for the big "Love" day!!

Gardein to OJ

2010-01-11T16:42:00.000-08:00

A new year and new jewelry. Check out the crocheted bracelets on my website.
Ok, so like so many I wanted to lose some that fat that has been hanging around for a decade now. I was going to eat healthy tonight using the new Gardein product I heard about on Oprah and the Healthy Voyager. Not tonight, DH is bring home a veggie pizza. I know, I know, I don't have to eat it. But who can turn down a pizza. Besides I won't have to cook!!! woohoo. Not a good night to be having pizza. I go to the doctor and you all know they like to know you weight. So how come they don't want to know my height. LOL

Today was warm here in CA. 70 degrees. Unlike the rest of the country. Florida is getting pounded with cold weather. There goes the prices for Florida OJ.

2009-12-30T21:25:00.000-08:00

2010

2009-12-30T14:49:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!!
I hope everyone had a good Christmas.
Mine was quiet. We did our veggie tamales. I made an apple pie of which DH ate most of it. Thank goodness!

We will be spending a quiet New years at home. We have another tradition that was started when we were dating. We went to New Mexico in December of 1998. Coming back home we stopped in Blyth Ca and celebrated by having ice cream, with the room lit with votive candles. So to this day we still have ice cream and light our candles.

I have been working on crocheted jewelry to add to my website. It was very popular with my bookclub ladies. I found a great vender to buy my wire.

I still have the spiritual bracelets. Each one different. I found a new idea for a bible bracelet I am anxious to make.

Happy 2010!!

2009-12-09T13:26:00.000-08:00

Spiritual bracelet. Order it today at www.reneesdesigns.com

Make someone happy, for Christmas, birthday or just because you love her!!

2009-12-09T13:18:00.000-08:00

Shop with me at www.reneesdesigns.com
It is not too late to get your gift of jewelry!!

Fall and jewelry

2009-11-18T16:58:00.000-08:00

Fall is such a lovely time of the year. I like the colors that the trees are ablaze with. It is the time to break out the boots, sweater and your big chunky jewelry!!!!

I like to put big necklaces on with my white blouse, a light jacket and a pair of jeans. I love this look. I really like the black boyfriend jackets that you see this year!!

Being a girl is so much fun!!

Visit me at www.reneesdesigns.com

Halloween

2009-10-31T12:30:00.000-07:00

Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, [it is] more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain or Samuin (pronounced sow-an or sow-in)".^[4] The name is derived from Old Irish and means roughly "summer's end".^[4] A similar festival was held by the ancient Britons and is known as Calan Gaeaf (pronounced kalan-geyf).

Snap-Apple Night by Daniel Maclise showing a Halloween party in Blarney, Ireland, in 1832. The young children on the right bob for apples. A couple in the center play a variant, which involves retrieving an apple hanging from a string. The couples at left play divination games.

The festival of Samhain celebrates the end of the "lighter half" of the year and beginning of the "darker half", and is sometimes^[5] regarded as the "Celtic New Year".^[6]

The celebration has some elements of a festival of the dead. The ancient Celts believed that the border between this world and the Otherworld became thin on Samhain, allowing spirits (both harmless and harmful) to pass through. The family's ancestors were honoured and invited home whilst harmful spirits were warded off. It is believed that the need to ward off harmful spirits led to the wearing of costumes and masks. Their purpose was to disguise oneself as a harmful spirit and thus avoid harm. In Scotland the spirits were impersonated by young men dressed in white with masked, veiled or blackened faces.^[7]^[8] Samhain was also a time to take stock of food supplies and slaughter livestock for winter stores. Bonfires played a large part in the festivities. All other fires were doused and each home lit their hearth from the bonfire. The bones of slaughtered livestock were cast into its flames.^[9] Sometimes two bonfires would be built side-by-side, and people and their livestock would walk between them as a cleansing ritual.

Another common practise was divination, which often involved the use of food and drink.

The name 'Halloween' and many of its present-day traditions derive from the Old English era.^[10]^[11]^[12]^[13]^[14]

Origin of name

The term Halloween, originally spelled Hallowe’en, is shortened from All Hallows' Even – e'en is a shortening of even, which is a shortening of evening. This is ultimately derived from the Old English Eallra Hālgena ǣfen.^[15] It is now known as "Eve of" All Saints' Day, which is November 1st.

A time of pagan festivities,^[6] Popes Gregory III (731–741) and Gregory IV (827–844) tried to supplant it with the Christian holiday (All Saints' Day) by moving it from May 13 to November 1.

In the 800s, the Church measured the day as starting at sunset, in accordance with the Florentine calendar. Although All Saints' Day is now considered to occur one day after Halloween, the two holidays were once celebrated on the same day.

Symbols

A traditional Irish halloween Jack-o'-lantern from the early 20th century on display in the Museum of Country Life, Ireland.

Development of artifacts and symbols associated with Halloween formed over time encompassing customs of medieval holy days as well as contemporary cultures. The souling practice of commemorating the souls in purgatory with candle lanterns carved from turnips, became adapted into the making of jack-o'-lanterns.^[16] The carving of pumpkins is associated with Halloween in North America where pumpkins are both readily available and much larger – making them easier to carve than turnips.^[17] Many families that celebrate Halloween carve a pumpkin into a frightening or comical face and place it on their doorstep after dark. The American tradition of carving pumpkins preceded the Great Famine period of Irish immigration^[18] and was originally associated with harvest time in general, not becoming specifically associated with Halloween until the mid-to-late 1800s.^[19]^[20]

Halloween spiders at a row house in Washington DC

The imagery surrounding Halloween is largely a mix of the Halloween season itself, works of Gothic and horror literature, in particular the novels Frankenstein and Dracula, and nearly a century of work from American filmmakers and graphic artists,^[21] and British Hammer Horror productions, also a rather commercialized take on the dark and mysterious. Modern Halloween imagery tends to involve death, evil, the occult, magic, or mythical monsters. Traditional characters include the Devil, the Grim Reaper, ghosts, ghouls, demons, witches, goblins, vampires, werewolves, zombies, skeletons, black cats, spiders, bats, and crows.^[22]

Particularly in America, symbolism is inspired by classic horror films (which contain fictional figures like Frankenstein's monster and The Mummy). Elements of the autumn season, such as pumpkins, corn husks, and scarecrows, are also prevalent. Homes are often decorated with these types of symbols around Halloween.

The two main colors associated with Halloween are orange and black.^[23]

Trick-or-treating and guising

Main article: Trick-or-treating

Typical Halloween scene in Dublin, Ireland.

Trick-or-treating is a customary celebration for children on Halloween. Children go in costume from house to house, asking for treats such as candy or sometimes money, with the question, "Trick or treat?" The word "trick" refers to a (mostly idle) threat to perform mischief on the homeowners or their property if no treat is given. In some parts of Ireland and Scotland children still go guising. In this custom the child performs some sort of show, i.e. sings a song or tells a ghost story, in order to earn their treats.

Costumes

Main article: Halloween costume

Halloween costumes are traditionally those of monsters such as ghosts, skeletons, witches, and devils. They are said to be used to scare off demons. Costumes are also based on themes other than traditional horror, such as those of characters from television shows, movies, and other pop culture icons.

Costume sales

BIGresearch conducted a survey for the National Retail Federation in the United States and found that 53.3% of consumers planned to buy a costume for Halloween 2005, spending $38.11 on average (up $10 from the year before). They were also expected to spend $4.96 billion in 2006, up significantly from just $3.3 billion the previous year.^[24]

UNICEF

Main article: Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF

"Trick-or-Treat for UNICEF" has become a common sight during Halloween in North America. Started as a local event in a Philadelphia suburb in 1950 and expanded nationally in 1952, the program involves the distribution of small boxes by schools (or in modern times, corporate sponsors like Hallmark, at their licensed stores) to trick-or-treaters, in which they can solicit small-change donations from the houses they visit. It is estimated that children have collected more than $118 million (US) for UNICEF since its inception. In Canada, in 2006, UNICEF decided to discontinue their Halloween collection boxes, citing safety and administrative concerns; after consultation with schools, they instead redesigned the program.^[25]^[26]

Games and other activities

This section is missing citations or needs footnotes. Please help add inline citations to guard against copyright violations and factual inaccuracies. (October 2008)

In this Halloween greeting card from 1904, divination is depicted: the young woman looking into a mirror in a darkened room hopes to catch a glimpse of the face of her future husband.

There are several games traditionally associated with Halloween parties. One common game is dunking or apple bobbing, in which apples float in a tub or a large basin of water and the participants must use their teeth to remove an apple from the basin.^[27] A variant of dunking involves kneeling on a chair, holding a fork between the teeth and trying to drop the fork into an apple^[28]. Another common game involves hanging up treacle or syrup-coated scones by strings; these must be eaten without using hands while they remain attached to the string, an activity that inevitably leads to a very sticky face.

Some games traditionally played at Halloween are forms of divination. A traditional Irish and Scottish form of divining one's future spouse is to carve an apple in one long strip, then toss the peel over one's shoulder. The peel is believed to land in the shape of the first letter of the future spouse's name.^[29] Unmarried women were told^[who?] that if they sat in a darkened room and gazed into a mirror on Halloween night, the face of their future husband would appear in the mirror. However, if they were destined to die before marriage, a skull would appear. The custom was widespread enough to be commemorated on greeting cards^[30] from the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The telling of ghost stories and viewing of horror films are common fixtures of Halloween parties. Episodes of television series and Halloween-themed specials (with the specials usually aimed at children) are commonly aired on or before the holiday, while new horror films are often released theatrically before the holiday to take advantage of the atmosphere.

Haunted attractions

Main article: Haunted attraction

In front of "haunted house" during Halloween season, Northern California.

Haunted attractions are entertainment venues designed to thrill and scare patrons; most are seasonal Halloween businesses. Origins of these paid scare venues are difficult to pinpoint, but it is generally accepted that they were first commonly used by the Junior Chamber International (Jaycees) for fundraising.^[31] They include haunted houses, corn mazes, and hayrides,^[32] and the level of sophistication of the effects has risen as the industry has grown. Haunted attractions in the United States bring in an estimate $300–500 million each year, and draw some 400,000 customers, although trends suggest a peak in 2005^[31]. This increase in interest has led to more highly technical special effects and costuming that is comparable with that in Hollywood films.^[33]

Foods

Candy apple

Because the holiday comes in the wake of the annual apple harvest, candy apples (known as toffee apples outside North America), caramel or taffy apples are a common Halloween treat made by rolling whole apples in a sticky sugar syrup, sometimes followed by rolling them in nuts.

At one time, candy apples were commonly given to children, but the practice rapidly waned in the wake of widespread rumors that some individuals were embedding items like pins and razor blades in the apples.^[34] While there is evidence of such incidents,^[35] they are quite rare and have never resulted in serious injury. Nonetheless, many parents assumed that such heinous practices were rampant. At the peak of the hysteria, some hospitals offered free x-rays of children's Halloween hauls in order to find evidence of tampering. Virtually all of the few known candy poisoning incidents involved parents who poisoned their own children's candy, and there have been occasional reports of children putting needles in their own (and other children's) candy in need of a bit of attention.^{[citation needed]}

One custom that persists in modern-day Ireland is the baking (or more often nowadays, the purchase) of a barmbrack (Irish: báirín breac), which is a light fruitcake, into which a plain ring, a coin and other charms are placed before baking. It is said that those who get a ring will find their true love in the ensuing year. This is similar to the tradition of king cake at the festival of Epiphany.

List of foods associated with the holiday:

Barmbrack (Ireland)
Bonfire toffee (Britain)
Candy apples
Candy corn (North America)
Caramel apples
Caramel corn
Colcannon (Ireland)
Pumpkin, pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread
Roasted pumpkin seeds
Roasted sweet corn
Soul cakes
Novelty candy shaped like skulls, pumpkins, bats, worms, etc.

Around the world

Main article: Halloween around the world

With its roots in Celtic cultures, Halloween is not celebrated in all countries and regions of the world, and among those that do the traditions and importance of the celebration vary significantly. Celebration in the United States has had a significant impact on how the holiday is observed in other nations. The history of Halloween traditions in a given country also lends context to how it is presently celebrated.^{[citation needed]}

Religious perspectives

Autumn colors

2009-08-03T14:19:00.000-07:00

Fall is not far away. I know, I know I love summer too but I have to gear up for the new looks and colors. I will add new necklaces to my site today.

I made a sale today and will mail it this week. Thanks to my loyal customers, new and future. I appreciate all of you.

My book is not getting the attention it deserves. I still have lots of typing to do. Then comes the editing. Ugh!

New looks, new styles

2009-08-01T18:14:00.000-07:00

Why be ordinary when you can be fabulous!! Wear a statement piece of jewelry. Big and bold is here. Wear a brightly colored piece with basic clothing. Make it pop and get noticed.

Embrace the beautiful you.

Necklaces are layered, with links bound together into stacks that surround your neck. Some are long enough to wear as a single chain or to wrap a couple of times for more depth.
Look for more textured links, alone or combined with polished links. And don't hesitate to clip a charm to some of the links in your necklace -- that's a trendy look for 2009 and beyond.

Check back for new looks for Fall.