I WON $100 worth of Mychelle! YAY!

I am so excited right now because I just learned that I won $100 worth of products from Mychelle which is one of my favorite skincare/beautycare lines. I won by becoming a fan of their Facebook page and signing up for one of their events. Mychelle wants to gain 750 facebook fans by July 15 and will be giving away more prizes. Check Mychelle out on Facebook and you could have a chance at winning too and make sure to join the Win A $100 Prize Package event. Bonne Chance!

A Michael Jackson Memory!!

On yesterday, June 25, 2009, pop legend Michael Jackson passed away. I was on the internet when I found out. In fact, I was on Twitter on which the news of him being rushed to the hospital and dying was spread hours before I heard it on CNN or local news. At first I really did not believe the news I saw on Twitter-I thought they were just rumors and/or a hoax. Then I finally heard confirmation on the local news and I was really saddened. And despite all of the bizarre happenings and scandals that happened in his latter years-there is no denying that Michael Jackson was super talented. And he had one of the greatest impacts on pop culture and the world for that matter.

Now I would like to share one of my favorite Michael Jackson moments. It is from a movie called The Wiz which is an African-American adaption of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz .Enjoy!

You can't win - Michael Jackson - The wiz
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How Many Calories Do You Burn When....?

A few weeks ago I had a workout slump. I did not feel like doing my usual routine which mostly consists of one of a couple workout dvds, or self magazine workouts that I have collected over the years, or a run/walk. And, although I was not in the mood to do my regular workout, I knew I had to do something so on some days I warmed up a bit with some jogging in place. And then I did a few push-ups and a couple of pilates planks. And on other days I just did some freestyle cardio, or dancing, or just stretching.

I then began to wonder how many calories I might have burned with just those few exercises so I did some google searches. And I literally typed "how many calories do push up burn" into the search bar. This search turned up a website called Fitday.com which had a page full of exercises (and other everyday activities ) along with how many calories these activities burn. The amount of calories burned are based on your weight, height, gender, and age. And according to my height, weight, etc... I can burn 420 calories an hour doing push-ups. And although I could never do an hour of push-ups row, I could break them up during the day. I also checked out a couple of other activities like running in place (420 an hour) and dancing (210 an hour). You can even find out how many calories you burn when walking and carrying a baby (150 an hour for me).

I guess the lesson here is every little bit does count-literally. Even on those days when I feel like I don't have energy or when I feel like I don't have time-I can do something. Whether it be a few push-ups, jumping jacks, run/jog in place, dancing around, or whatever. Some is better than none.

Bad Blogger! Bad! Tsk!

I have not made a blog post in 6 days -shame on me. So I have been thinking about what to post about and nothing's jumping out at me. I thought about mentioning my favorite eco cleaner (BioKleen) but it's Friday and I don't want to blog about cleaning on Friday. I also thought about writing something informative like the difference between true cinnamon and the other cinnamons (which is what's on most store shelves). However, cinnamon does not strike me as a Friday post either. Let's see, I did not make any new jewelry yet but I'm going to next week so that I can re-open my etsy shop.

I did finish my skirt and it came out ok. Dig the contrasting zipper! Nice huh? Just kidding, I put that zipper in because it was the only one I had lying around and I did not want to make a run to the fabric store or rip one out of something else.


Oh! and I got new phone. I have been wanting a new phone for a while now and I finally got one. I was trying to decide which phone to get but the $99 iphone special decided for me. And believe it or not I never really even wanted an iphone (Gasp!) but I just could not beat $99. Plus, my old bad phone was really a sight to see. The keypad on my old phone would come off frequently and at some of the most inopportune times. I was embarrassed to take it out in public. When making calls I would dial the number (with my phone still in my handbag) and then put it to my ear really quickly so that no one would see the phone. And texting? In public? And risk the keypad coming off? Forget it!

Old Bad The infamous keypad


New better


Oh well, I know this does not make up for 6 days of non blogging but it was worth a try. Right?

Maybe I'll Give False Eyelashes Another Try!

I have tried and failed time after time with trying to apply false eyelashes. I have used the strip versions, the clusters, and the individuals and I always manage to make mistakes while putting them own. I either apply them too high on the lid, or too low and I just end up looking like a clown - especially with the strips. Needless to say I have pretty much given up on the false eyelashes. Besides, I just wanted to try them out for fun so it's not such a big deal. However, I came across these (below) videos that someone posted on a blog and they were a bit long (like eight minutes or more) but they made me want to give false eyelashes another try-if he can do it, why can't I? Right?
So I will give another go and I'll make sure to post pictures If my umpteenth attempt. Hopefully there will be victory.
P.S. the music and the intros make me laugh just because I'm silly.

Dusting Off My Sewing Machine!

I have not had the urge to sew for quite a while. In fact I have been so not in to mood to sew that I put off hemming 2 pair jeans (I'm 5'4 and the jeans were cheap but long) for almost a year. And this is a little sad because I have a fashion design degree so I should love to sew right? Wrong! And I got that revelation a few years ago when I decided to make a dress from scratch and found no joy in it. I think that I got tired of all of the steps i.e. cutting,basting,notching,marking,etc... I also think that all these steps are what drew me to jewelry making which require fewer steps - except for metalsmithing. Plus making jewelry just came so naturally to me and I love shopping for gems.

Anyway, and few days ago I was kind of bored and decided to pull the sewing machine out. The main goal was to hem the 2 pair of aforementioned jeans because the jeans I was currently wearing started to show some wear and tear-literally. So, I hemmed the jeans and then suddenly a miracle happened-I felt inspired to sew something else. I looked through my old stashes and found some denim fabric that I was going to use to make a tote. I decided against the tote and thought that making a really simple a-line skirt would be cool. I then found an old torn denim skirt and decided to use that as the pattern. I laid it out, cut out the pattern and sewed the pieces together and now I am almost finished. I just need to add a zipper and maybe a waistband or facing and hem. I must also mention that I have gotten some extra inspiration from Threadbanger.com which has all types of sewing projects and tutorials. One of the tutorials that I found really cool to watch was the d.i.y body form in which a body form was made using water activated packing tape. I probably won't be making a form anytime soon but it made me realize that there is always a way to do it yourself.

One Lovely Blog Award for me! Yay!

I am happy to announce that I have received the One Lovely Blog award. This award was given to me by Gloria's Jewelry Box blog (Thanks so much). And please be sure to check out the Gloria's Jewelry Box shop on etsy where you will find some really beautiful jewelry featuring gemstones, crystal, brass and more.

I gratefull accept the One Lovely Blog award and in doing so I will post the Rules of Blog Award Acceptance:

1. Accept the award, post it on your blog together with the name of the person who has granted the award, and his or her blog link.

2. Pass the award to 15 other blogs that you've newly discovered. Remember to contact the bloggers to let them know they have been chosen for this award.

And I am passing the One Lovely Blog Award to:

Leandrea
T.Allen-Mercado
Silver Rose
Georgia
Judy
The Apple Hill Doll
Raevyn
Joyce
LillyShayStyle
Michelle
SharonKay
Patricia's Art
Rachel DeJohn
BOWquet
ShellyStout

Another Fave Online Shop!

Yup! I have found yet another online shop to burn up my cash. The name of the shop is RawGuru.com and it specializes in raw foods and is also a community network for people who are interested in or already live a raw foods lifestyle. They sell all types of raw food snacks, nuts, dried fruit, superfoods, vitamins, supplements, teas, dehydrators, sprouters (getting one soon-tired of paying top dollar for sprouts), etc... Now, I am not one who only eats raw or organic but I do include raw and organic in my diet. And I especially like some of the snacks that I have found on rawguru like the Gopal's Goldenberry Brazil Nut Cookie (made with only brazil nuts, agave nectar, and organic goldenberries) which does not taste exactly like a traditional cookie but it tastes good to me. In fact, most items of the raw items I have tried do not taste exactly like their traditional counterparts (cookies, chocolate bars, jerky,etc..) but I still like them. And besides, many of them (raw snacks) are a little healthier and have more nutrients for the calories. Needless to say I am gonna be doing a little more shopping on rawguru.com in the days to come.

It's June Already? Wow!

It is June 1st and I can hardly believe it. Time seems to be moving so fast and I seem to be moving so slow. I have so many things that I want and need to do i.e. get my own e-commerce website for my jewelry, participate in some art fairs, re-open my etsy shop (it’s on vacay), find or create some unique displays for trunk shows, etc... And the list goes on. Also, I usually do one of a kind pieces but I feel that I need come up with some base pieces of jewelry that will always be available to customers. I feel this way because I think having base pieces or “standards” work well for websites. Plus it is sometimes easier to re-create than to come up with something new. And although I have always said that making something over and over would take the fun out of creating- I feel like a could use a few hours of mindless work. Needless to say I have a lot (or what seems like a lot) on my plate. I guess I will just take it one day at a time and hope for the best.