Friday, September 27, 2019
Wednesday, September 25, 2019
Christmas Traditions - The Candy Cane
There is a sweet story that has circulated for a number of years regarding the candy cane and how it came to be a part of the Christmas tradition, but that story is simply, well, a story.In an effort to make the candy cane more symbolic of the season, rumors say that the hook in the cane is a shepherd’s crook (or a J for Jesus, if you turn it upside down), that the stripes are for purity and the blood of Christ, and that the flavor is a nod to the hyssop plant for purification.
These symbolic goodies were all added well after the fact that the candy cane had become steeped in our Christmas traditions.
The truth is that the candy cane as we know it started
as a sugar stick in 1837 in Massachusetts. It was a simple white stick and several years later, the red stripes were added.
They were first introduced during the Christmas season in 1874, and they did not gain their peppermint flavor until later. They also got their crook much later.
Bob’s Candies (now known as Bobs Candies where those awesome soft, peppermint candies come from) was the first to produce the candy canes we know today.
In 1920, Bob started making peppermint sticks, and his brother-in-law, a Catholic priest, invented a little device (the Keller Machine) that put a hook on the end of the candy. Those were the first candy canes that look like our common candy canes and became a solid part of our Christmas traditions.
The boxes of candy canes that we buy are still made by Bobs Candies, which is now a division of Farley and Sathers, and those wonderful soft peppermints and hookless sticks are a common impulse buy in every Cracker Barrel in the country. I am a fool for those darn things.
While the symbolic story is more interesting, we did come by peppermint candy canes in a much more mundane way. Either way, the candy cane is here to stay and a fun tradition that young and old enjoy.
In addition to stuffing the stockings with wonderful candy canes, here are some more sweet gift ideas that are sure to please.
Beaded macramé bracelet, adjustable clasp
Andrea Designs
Fiesta Red Irish Crochet Heart with Beaded 3D Red Roses
RSS Designs in Fiber
Blood Red Crystal Earrings
The Singing Beader
Sacred Heart of Jesus Chaplet Rosary Bracelet
PrettyGonzo
Greeting Card, Wedding Card
Daisyblu
Swarovski Red Pearl Crystal Silver Bracelet - Handmade Jewelry
Victorian Style Treasures
Viking Chain Earrings, Hoop Jewelry, Gift for Her
MorganJewelryDesign
Magic Spell of Christmas - Chair by Fireplace
Colleen Cornelius
Coiled Rope Basket
WyvernDesignsHome
Christmas Gingerbread Dog Tag Necklace with Polymer Clay in Red and Green
Blue Morning Expressions
Handmade Large Hole Lampwork Beads
Covergirl Beads
Swarovski Santa Earrings, Christmas Red Handmade Holiday Jewelry Gift
Shadow Dog Designs
Red and White Superduo Snakeskin Beadwoven Handmade Cuff Bracelet
KatsAllThat
Candy Cane Christmas Ornament
Kevs Krafts
In addition to these fantastic gift selections, each of these artists have their own shops filled with more gift ideas, so be sure and stop and shop with each one.
If you see something you like, buy it now or forever lose it as handmade gifts sell out quickly!
Don’t see the perfect gift? Ask an artist to help you design something.
Shop now!
Julie
Friday, September 20, 2019
Saturday, September 14, 2019
Cross Partners in Promotion Team: Hurricane Dorian Bahamas Assistance
Cross Partners in Promotion Team: Hurricane Dorian Bahamas Assistance: For those of you who do not know, I work for a publishing media group that has 15 weekly community papers, and part of our mission is to rea...
Saturday, August 31, 2019
What a Difference a Year Makes and Countdowns
Volume 16 Issue 9, September 2019
What's New in September?
We are getting ready for the annual Countdown to Christmas 2019 that we host every year for our handmade artists and friends. It is a place where we showcase the latest and most beautiful handmade gift ideas for anyone on your gift list. Every year, we do 12 weeks of blog posts that carry all of the handmade goodies, and then we do 12 weeks of midweek posts where I go and share little stories about the holidays and showcase more of my friends’ lovely gifts.
This year, we will start on the 20th of September and run until December 6. We open this up to anyone who sells handmade that wishes to share their handicrafts, so you see so much more than my jewelry and bead offerings. I have very talented friends who can knit and crochet, as well as draw, paint and design pretty jewelry. The posts go up on this blog, and if you want to be notified in advance, then sign up for my newsletter and I will try and get posts out monthly.
Until then, September is starting to look like it might be a squally, rainy one for us, and in preparation for grey days, I have been wrapping brightly colored beads and creating new pendants like crazy to stock my keychains for the holidays!
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Thimbles: It’s Christmas in Florida this month, and my collectible holiday thimble stash is now nine designs richer.
Greeting cards: I have only added five, but I am working on it. Starting with my fractal art cards and other flower work.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website. www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
What's New in September?
We are getting ready for the annual Countdown to Christmas 2019 that we host every year for our handmade artists and friends. It is a place where we showcase the latest and most beautiful handmade gift ideas for anyone on your gift list. Every year, we do 12 weeks of blog posts that carry all of the handmade goodies, and then we do 12 weeks of midweek posts where I go and share little stories about the holidays and showcase more of my friends’ lovely gifts.
This year, we will start on the 20th of September and run until December 6. We open this up to anyone who sells handmade that wishes to share their handicrafts, so you see so much more than my jewelry and bead offerings. I have very talented friends who can knit and crochet, as well as draw, paint and design pretty jewelry. The posts go up on this blog, and if you want to be notified in advance, then sign up for my newsletter and I will try and get posts out monthly.
Until then, September is starting to look like it might be a squally, rainy one for us, and in preparation for grey days, I have been wrapping brightly colored beads and creating new pendants like crazy to stock my keychains for the holidays!
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Thimbles: It’s Christmas in Florida this month, and my collectible holiday thimble stash is now nine designs richer.
Greeting cards: I have only added five, but I am working on it. Starting with my fractal art cards and other flower work.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website. www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
Tuesday, July 30, 2019
Christmas in July and Daylilies
Volume 16 Issue 8, August 2019
What's New in August?
As we head into another hot, muggy summer filled with hurricanes and mosquitoes, my desire to create cool, colorful jewelry designs and collectibles is working overtime to lower the temperature outside and inside.
My Christmas collectible thimble inventory gained 9 new designs and is slated to pickup some new Halloween imagery, as well. It has been hot out and after our little excursion into the mountains, we have settled back into the doldrums of summer. With fortune and luck, we will escape a hurricane season like the last few years and only enjoy some cooling rains.
In the meantime, we have been admiring the roadside charm of fields of bright orange daylilies. Oh, and I gained a daughter-in-law with two teenage girls to round out our little family.
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Thimbles: It’s Christmas in Florida this month, and my collectible holiday thimble stash is now nine designs richer.
Greeting cards: I have only added five, but I am working on it. Starting with my fractal art cards and other flower work.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website. www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
What's New in August?
As we head into another hot, muggy summer filled with hurricanes and mosquitoes, my desire to create cool, colorful jewelry designs and collectibles is working overtime to lower the temperature outside and inside.
My Christmas collectible thimble inventory gained 9 new designs and is slated to pickup some new Halloween imagery, as well. It has been hot out and after our little excursion into the mountains, we have settled back into the doldrums of summer. With fortune and luck, we will escape a hurricane season like the last few years and only enjoy some cooling rains.
In the meantime, we have been admiring the roadside charm of fields of bright orange daylilies. Oh, and I gained a daughter-in-law with two teenage girls to round out our little family.
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Thimbles: It’s Christmas in Florida this month, and my collectible holiday thimble stash is now nine designs richer.
Greeting cards: I have only added five, but I am working on it. Starting with my fractal art cards and other flower work.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website. www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
Sunday, June 30, 2019
How I Spent My Summer Vacation
Volume 16 Issue 7, July 2019
What's New in July?
Back from a much needed vacation and ready to tackle the summer sun, heat and hopefully, very few hurricanes. We went off to the Smokies and did a side trip to Illinois to see family and celebrate my birthday. Then back home again to Harry, who had to spend a week playing with his friends at the dog resort. Oh, poor, Harry.
Lots of new ideas to explore for this second half of the year, and with that comes lots of design work and note taking. My plan is to add another book to my author list, but this one is geared towards cross stitching simple designs. I have all these little doodles that need a home, and since I got hooked on coloring in some app on my tablet, I though more and more about those doodles I have laying around.
In between doodling and working on new beads, I have spent the summer quietly reading and taking another college course in marketing to keep my brain fresh.
Here is something cool to look at while I do loads of laundry and unpack the truck. From the Garden of the Gods in Southern Illinois, Shawnee National Forest.
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Earrings: I have been busy creating a plethora of new earrings; almost all of them featuring images from art.
Beads: I am working on stocking more polymer clay beads for jewelry. Over the last couple of months, I have been making some 10 and 15 mm beads for my own designs, and will put those extra beads in the shop.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website.
www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
What's New in July?
Back from a much needed vacation and ready to tackle the summer sun, heat and hopefully, very few hurricanes. We went off to the Smokies and did a side trip to Illinois to see family and celebrate my birthday. Then back home again to Harry, who had to spend a week playing with his friends at the dog resort. Oh, poor, Harry.
Lots of new ideas to explore for this second half of the year, and with that comes lots of design work and note taking. My plan is to add another book to my author list, but this one is geared towards cross stitching simple designs. I have all these little doodles that need a home, and since I got hooked on coloring in some app on my tablet, I though more and more about those doodles I have laying around.
In between doodling and working on new beads, I have spent the summer quietly reading and taking another college course in marketing to keep my brain fresh.
Here is something cool to look at while I do loads of laundry and unpack the truck. From the Garden of the Gods in Southern Illinois, Shawnee National Forest.
What’s New
Key rings: New Bible verse key rings and purse charms.
Earrings: I have been busy creating a plethora of new earrings; almost all of them featuring images from art.
Beads: I am working on stocking more polymer clay beads for jewelry. Over the last couple of months, I have been making some 10 and 15 mm beads for my own designs, and will put those extra beads in the shop.
You will find all of my beads, canes and finished jewelry on my website.
www.bluemorningexpressions.com
Until next month,
Julie
Things to Look Forward To:
New Products:
Leggings: My supplier has added a great legging line, so I have been experimenting with design and element placement. I have several in my store now and am working on peacock leggings designs.
Posters: I am working on putting descriptions up for my bible verse posters and my hot rod posters. There are more to come.
Bookmarks: I decided that some of my beads and images would translate nicely to bookmarks. Those are on the bench.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)