I just added two new holiday necklaces to the ‘Paws For a Good Cause’ section in my Etsy shop. 100% of all proceeds will be donated to HSUS (The Humane Society of the United States) and SCGR Rescue (Southern California Golden Retriever Rescue).

Both feature whimsical Lampwork beads inspired by our real life pets handcrafted by favorite glass artist, Janet Crosby.

Janet has generously and kindly gifted these beads to me, so make sure to visit her website and check out all her other fun n’ fabulous glass creations! She’s the best!

The first photo will link you to Santa Claws, the second photo to Santa Paws.

Thanks so much for stopping by! Until next time - take care & stay well!

I made two dog bone necklaces for Southern California Golden Retriever Rescue’s holiday eBay auction. The event starts soon after Thanksgiving so make sure to check out their website for more details to help them help goldens in need. These gifts that give twice make the perfect holiday pressies for any dog lover.

The photos above show “Golden Swirls”, a Lampwork dog bone necklace featuring a glass bone torched by favorite artisan, Janet Crosby. I paired Janet’s bone with lovely, shimmering Mother of Pearl set off with shiny sterling silver and a sparkling Swarovski Crystal charm.

I couldn’t decide what to call the second necklace as it features a really unusual bone. “Blue Mist”, “Purple Haze” and “Smoke Gets In Your Eyes” were contenders. In the end, “Blue Mist” won.

The focal, again, is a beautiful, mysterious, glass bone by Janet. I tried to pick up the gorgeous colors in the bone through a variety of shades of Swarovski Crystals. Oxidized, ornate sterling silver give this piece a formal feel. It really is quite lovely in person, if I do say so myself!

If you’re interested in any of these one-of-a-kind, handmade pieces, make sure to check out SCGR Rescue’s website for the 411 on their holiday eBay auction as well other fundraising events.

Thanks so much for stopping by. Until next time — take care & stay well!

‘PAWS FOR A GOOD CAUSE‘ has donated $1,590 so far for 2008. Third quarter donations include $240 to HSUS, $255 to SCGR Rescue, $300 to GRCGLA Rescue, and $455 in merchandise donations to EFA Artists Helping Animals Etsy.com team store and CSRNE Joey Fund Auction. Click the image above to view the updated donation documentation.

I am so thrilled and honored to be able to do this using my creativity, and with the generous and kind support of my loyal customers; wonderful Lampwork Artists - Janet Crosby, Lori Flanders, Marcy Lamberson, Dawn White, and Kim Yamakawa - who have donated fabulous, handcrafted glass beads, and most of all - my dear, dear husband. I am very fortunate to have you all in my life.

THANK YOU.

As I write this, No Doubt’s song, “New”, is running through my head, crowding out Kate Nash’s “Merry Happy”. Welcome to the NEW blog design that I’m still testing out.

The old blog design was nice enough and had a lot of cool whimsical things going for it, but it bugged whenever I viewed it from a widescreen. The blog entry would be all the way over to the left in Cucamonga, and the sidebar would be all the way over to the right in Timbuktu. And in between, well, can we say “awkward”? Guess it’s bound to happen when you have an adjustable width design.

So this is the new design with a fixed width. I feel a little claustrophobic like I can’t stretch my arms across. Hoping I’ll eventually get used to that. The sidebar is not totally as it should be. Still playing with it hoping to add more linkadoos and nifty lil’ gadgets. Soon, my pet. Soon.

I just added two NEW bone necklaces to my Etsy shop. The photos above will take you to each listing.

Both pieces feature fabulous Lampwork bones from one of my favorite glass artists of all time, Janet Crosby, of Firefly Lampwork. Check out her Etsy shop and website for more of her beautiful and whimsical glass creations. Her Etsy stuff gets sold out like ssssizzlin’ HOTcakes so make sure to sign up for her Quick List Newsletter, her regular newsletter, or her shop’s RSS feed. You won’t be sorry!

Stay tuned for more NEW listings…and NEW blog postings this week. Thanks so much for stopping by! Hope to cya soon.