Spring Break...

Museums, Monuments, Martin, Maryland. That about sums up my kids' spring break. We took a road trip to Maryland to visit my folks. One day we went on a day trip to Washington, DC. Saw my niece who attends Howard University and my college roommate and dear friend Teresa and her sons.  Below are a few pictures. Hope everyone is having a good week!




Martin Luther King Jr monument. Breathtaking.





I have been wanting to visit the Holocaust Museum for a long time. I enjoyed the exhibits that we did see, but was disappointed that we could not visit the permanent exhibit on the 4th floor. It's tourist season, so passes are given out for the 4th floor. We got there too late.



Children Art Tiles in the Holocaust Museum.



A closer view of the tiles.



Of course, I can't visit Maryland without getting a crab cake! Nobody does a Maryland crab cake like Maryland. If you are in a restaurant that is not in the state of Maryland and they have Maryland crab cakes on the menu, quickly pass. Most likely it has filler! Taken with Instagram.

Orange and Pink...

Orange and Pink. Gorgeous color combination. I have recently seen a lot of accessories and clothing items with this color combination. I even made a couple of pieces using orange and pink gemstones. Love orange and pink, try mixing it together this spring/summer.

Love the loose plaid shirt w/orange skinnies.

One of my designs. Pink Salmon Coral Rose Pendant w/orange jade gemstones. Get it here

Yummy scarf. The colors are so bright!

My design. Orange jade "bullet" pendant on a rosy copper chain necklace. Also available here.

An all around great date night or girls night out outfit.

Source: stylenotesbybelen.com via eat.sleep.wear. on Pinterest

New Jewels...

I'm preparing for a big vending event this coming Saturday in Bethesda, MD. I'm super excited to see my line sister and other Sorors from my undergrad chapter! I am bringing my daughter along to help me at my table. While making new designs I always come across a piece here and there that I simply want to keep for myself. Currently the following are my personal favorites. They are available to purchase here.



Copper Butterflies on recycled copper chain earrings. I just love butterflies. These are very lightweight. Bohemian/Hippie style. These would look great at an outdoor summer festival/concert with a long flowy maxi skirt or cutoff distressed jean shorts.



Bright and Bold. Faceted tangerine jade gemstones with brass leaf components. Love these for a daytime garden wedding, outdoor patio lunch date, or hanging out poolside. Very resort looking.



Beautiful green and caramel agate gemstones. My photos really do not do these beads justice. Chunky necklace. Amazing for graduation party, after work cocktails, or bridal shower luncheon. I made matching earrings (if you are into sets).

New Glass Beads...

In preparation for an upcoming fashion show that I am vending in, I have ordered lots of gorgeous and yummy beads. Last week I received a shipment of czech glass beads in beautiful color combinations. Raspberry and pistachio combo and chartreuse and purple combo. Below are 2 earrings I designed using brass components accented with czech glass beads.

For more information on the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc Luncheon Fashion Show I will be vending at go here.






Pretty czech glass beads.



Leaf Vine Earrings with raspberry and pistachio czech glass beads.



Goddess Wings with brillant blue czech glass beads.

When Ladies Only Wore Dresses...

Source: tumblr.com via Robyn on Pinterest

I love the above photo for several reasons.

1. It's a picture of my Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. sorors taken at Howard University (1946).

2. It's old and faded, but holds a lot of history.

3. The ladies all wore knee length dresses.

I love skirts and dresses. I don't wear them a lot, but it's so refreshing to see a lady in a skirt or dress. I remember my maternal and paternal grandmothers only wearing skirts or dresses. They never wore pants. There are so many awesome dresses and skirts on the market today for all shapes and sizes. I personally like maxi dresses, pencil skirts, wrap dresses, and shirt dresses. I think I will challenge myself this summer to wear only a dress or skirt when I go out.

Do you wear a lot of skirts and dresses? Or are you a pants and jeans type of girl?

Hiking...

Greensboro has quite a few hiking trails. My girlfriend Kim and I decided to check one out today. We went on a 4 mile hike on the Laurel Bluff trail. Laurel Bluff is a 3.5 mile trail (7 miles both ways). It was beautiful, but tough. It was hot this afternoon so we decided to turn around at the 2 mile marker.
We used her husband's golf clubs as our walking sticks. Thanks Ed! lol! Kim also had a can of mace. Luckily, we didn't run into any animals or weird people along the way. A few things I need to remember for our next hike:

1.Bring my water. I left it in the car.
2. Wear a hat. Oops.
3. Identify poison ivy. Kim fussed at me. Told me as a former girl scout, I should know what poison ivy looks like.

I take my camera just about everywhere. Thought I would share some pictures.



At the beginning.



There were a lot of cute and sturdy bridges such as this one along the trail.



Looking ahead.



Most of the trail was along the water.

Strands...

A few strands of beads I recently purchased. Tangerine Jade, Blue Agate, and African seed beads.





Made hoop earrings from the African seed beads.




A pair of brass hoops dripping with eye popping tangerine jade. The Pantone color for 2012 is Tangerine Tango.




Both are available for purchase here.

PICK 4...

Four random things that have recently made me smile.





1. Watching my son play his first baseball game! After asking him for years to give baseball a try, he is finally giving it a shot. His position is third base. I played softball for years, so I'm excited.




2. Edamame with my girlfriends this past Friday for our monthly Girls Night Out.



3. Handmade all natural soaps from Whole Foods.




4. My daughter's homemade chocolate peanut butter swirl cupcakes.

5. *BONUS* Getting a letter from Greensboro Imaging and Radiology stating "The results from your recent diagnostic screening mammogram were normal."