The stamped hoop earrings are $8
The copper carpe diem Bracelet is $12
The family necklace with silver and copper are $20
The love word earrings are $5
Monday, July 2, 2012
Stamping some Metal
I've had metal stamping supplies for a very long time but never put it to good use. I finally decided to try my hand at it and I think the results are pretty fabulous.
The stamped hoop earrings are $8
The copper carpe diem Bracelet is $12
The family necklace with silver and copper are $20
The love word earrings are $5
The stamped hoop earrings are $8
The copper carpe diem Bracelet is $12
The family necklace with silver and copper are $20
The love word earrings are $5
Friday, February 17, 2012
New Friends
I'm almost certain that the best part about the work I do is meeting new people. I'd talk to a hole in the ground, so getting to see new people daily and talk to them is so much fun! I've met a few people from my jewelry sales that I truly feel like are my close friends now. This is the perfect job for me. :-)
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| Hammered 2 Inch wire Cross Earrings. $8 |
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| Silver lots of spirals bracelet $15.00 |
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| Copper lots of Spirals bracelet $15 |
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Pins and Pins Galore!!! The Joy of Pinterest
If you haven't ever come across this little jewel called Pinterest....well you are really missing out. I LOVE Pinterest. I sit at long red lights and pull up my Pinterest app on my Iphone and just pin and repin till the light turns green. Its addictive. Pinterest has just about any category anyone would want to look up and get tips, ideas, etc....
Something I love about Pinterest is that it is a great way to promote your own business. I plan on pinning all of my stuff from my blog and then my goal is that ONE DAY the entire world will know who Grace and Faith Designs is due to Pinterest. Great plan, huh? Feel free to pin and repin anything you see on my blog that catches your eye. I'll return the favor to you. :-)
Something I love about Pinterest is that it is a great way to promote your own business. I plan on pinning all of my stuff from my blog and then my goal is that ONE DAY the entire world will know who Grace and Faith Designs is due to Pinterest. Great plan, huh? Feel free to pin and repin anything you see on my blog that catches your eye. I'll return the favor to you. :-)
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Long Time, No See
Well since Facebook has decided to make major changes it has really taken its toll on my Grace and Faith Designs page. So I feel the need to be more active once again here. I have so many new things
since I last posted on here. I hope you enjoy!
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| Solid Brass/Pearl bracelet $12 |
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| String of Pearls necklace $12 |
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| Brass Zipper Bracelet $10 |
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| Silver Zipper bracelet $10 |
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| Silver and Pearl ring $12 |
Friday, June 3, 2011
New Items!
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| Spiral Ring $10 |
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| one inch initial earrings $5 |
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| three initial earrings $15 |
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| heart necklace $10 |
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| initial necklace with birthstone $14 |
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| guitar string bracelets $10 each |
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| initial necklace with copper accents $12 |
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| hammered initial necklaces $12 |
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| hammered heart necklace $12 |
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| small silver cross on silver chain $12 |
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| small wire heart ring $5 |
Monday, March 7, 2011
Lent
There's something about Easter season. It does something to me. Thoughts and emotions always begin to stir up within me. I have found that over the past few years, the reality of Christ has become more and more real to me due to the fact that I have tried to center my attention upon the life and teaching of Jesus. Now, I fail miserably at following him. As we all do, I suppose. So our Lenten season will begin with Ash Wednesday, which is a day of fasting and repentance. And then we begin our 40 day journey with Christ. I am challenging myself this season to get to know Christ in a way I've never known him before. I want to, as Rob Bell put it in my favorite Nooma ever, be following Christ so closely that I am covered in his dust.
I have been doing a reading Plan on my YouVersion Bible app and its called The Essential Jesus. There are only 40 days left of this reading plan, coincidentally. So, what better time to post about this and study it right here on my blog.
Your ears are open but dont hear a thing....this is what struck me with this reading. Your ears are open, but you dont hear a thing. I feel that way so often. I see people all around me who are obviously that way as well. What are we doing with what we are hearing? Because really we are all hearing it, right? We just aren't doing anything about it. Today I pray for the courage and wisdom to hear and then act.
Todays reading comes from Matthew 13: 1-58
1 At about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach.2 In no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get into a boat.3 Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation, telling stories.
“What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed.4 As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it.5 Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots,6 so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly.7 Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds.8 Some fell on good earth, and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.9 “Are you listening to this? Really listening?”Why Tell Stories?10 The disciples came up and asked, “Why do you tell stories?”11 He replied, “You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn’t been given to them.12 Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears.13 That’s why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they’re blue in the face and not get it.14 I don’t want Isaiah’s forecast repeated all over again:
Your ears are open but you don’t hear a thing.
Your eyes are awake but you don’t see a thing.15 The people are blockheads!They stick their fingers in their earsso they won’t have to listen;They screw their eyes shutso they won’t have to look,so they won’t have to deal with me face-to-faceand let me heal them.16 “But you have God-blessed eyes—eyes that see! And God-blessed ears—ears that hear!17 A lot of people, prophets and humble believers among them, would have given anything to see what you are seeing, to hear what you are hearing, but never had the chance.
The Meaning of the Harvest Story18 “Study this story of the farmer planting seed.19 When anyone hears news of the kingdom and doesn’t take it in, it just remains on the surface, and so the Evil One comes along and plucks it right out of that person’s heart. This is the seed the farmer scatters on the road.20 “The seed cast in the gravel—this is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm.21 But there is no soil of character, and so when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it.22 “The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the kingdom news, but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun strangle what was heard, and nothing comes of it.23 “The seed cast on good earth is the person who hears and takes in the News, and then produces a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.”24 He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field.25 That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn.26 When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too.27 “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’28 “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’
“The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’29 “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too.30 Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’”31 Another story. “God’s kingdom is like a pine nut that a farmer plants.32 It is quite small as seeds go, but in the course of years it grows into a huge pine tree, and eagles build nests in it.”33 Another story. “God’s kingdom is like yeast that a woman works into the dough for dozens of loaves of barley bread—and waits while the dough rises.”34 All Jesus did that day was tell stories—a long storytelling afternoon.35 His storytelling fulfilled the prophecy:
I will open my mouth and tell stories;
I will bring out into the open
things hidden since the world’s first day.
The Curtain of History36 Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field.”37 So he explained. “The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man.38 The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil,39 and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.40 “The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act.41 The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom,42 pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen.43 At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father.“Are you listening to this? Really listening?44 “God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidently found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field.45 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls.46 Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it.47 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a fishnet cast into the sea, catching all kinds of fish.48 When it is full, it is hauled onto the beach. The good fish are picked out and put in a tub; those unfit to eat are thrown away.49 That’s how it will be when the curtain comes down on history. The angels will come and cull the bad fish50 and throw them in the garbage. There will be a lot of desperate complaining, but it won’t do any good.”51 Jesus asked, “Are you starting to get a handle on all this?”
I have been doing a reading Plan on my YouVersion Bible app and its called The Essential Jesus. There are only 40 days left of this reading plan, coincidentally. So, what better time to post about this and study it right here on my blog.
Your ears are open but dont hear a thing....this is what struck me with this reading. Your ears are open, but you dont hear a thing. I feel that way so often. I see people all around me who are obviously that way as well. What are we doing with what we are hearing? Because really we are all hearing it, right? We just aren't doing anything about it. Today I pray for the courage and wisdom to hear and then act.
Todays reading comes from Matthew 13: 1-58
1 At about that same time Jesus left the house and sat on the beach.2 In no time at all a crowd gathered along the shoreline, forcing him to get into a boat.3 Using the boat as a pulpit, he addressed his congregation, telling stories.
“What do you make of this? A farmer planted seed.4 As he scattered the seed, some of it fell on the road, and birds ate it.5 Some fell in the gravel; it sprouted quickly but didn’t put down roots,6 so when the sun came up it withered just as quickly.7 Some fell in the weeds; as it came up, it was strangled by the weeds.8 Some fell on good earth, and produced a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.9 “Are you listening to this? Really listening?”Why Tell Stories?10 The disciples came up and asked, “Why do you tell stories?”11 He replied, “You’ve been given insight into God’s kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn’t been given to them.12 Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears.13 That’s why I tell stories: to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight. In their present state they can stare till doomsday and not see it, listen till they’re blue in the face and not get it.14 I don’t want Isaiah’s forecast repeated all over again:
Your ears are open but you don’t hear a thing.
Your eyes are awake but you don’t see a thing.15 The people are blockheads!They stick their fingers in their earsso they won’t have to listen;They screw their eyes shutso they won’t have to look,so they won’t have to deal with me face-to-faceand let me heal them.16 “But you have God-blessed eyes—eyes that see! And God-blessed ears—ears that hear!17 A lot of people, prophets and humble believers among them, would have given anything to see what you are seeing, to hear what you are hearing, but never had the chance.
The Meaning of the Harvest Story18 “Study this story of the farmer planting seed.19 When anyone hears news of the kingdom and doesn’t take it in, it just remains on the surface, and so the Evil One comes along and plucks it right out of that person’s heart. This is the seed the farmer scatters on the road.20 “The seed cast in the gravel—this is the person who hears and instantly responds with enthusiasm.21 But there is no soil of character, and so when the emotions wear off and some difficulty arrives, there is nothing to show for it.22 “The seed cast in the weeds is the person who hears the kingdom news, but weeds of worry and illusions about getting more and wanting everything under the sun strangle what was heard, and nothing comes of it.23 “The seed cast on good earth is the person who hears and takes in the News, and then produces a harvest beyond his wildest dreams.”24 He told another story. “God’s kingdom is like a farmer who planted good seed in his field.25 That night, while his hired men were asleep, his enemy sowed thistles all through the wheat and slipped away before dawn.26 When the first green shoots appeared and the grain began to form, the thistles showed up, too.27 “The farmhands came to the farmer and said, ‘Master, that was clean seed you planted, wasn’t it? Where did these thistles come from?’28 “He answered, ‘Some enemy did this.’
“The farmhands asked, ‘Should we weed out the thistles?’29 “He said, ‘No, if you weed the thistles, you’ll pull up the wheat, too.30 Let them grow together until harvest time. Then I’ll instruct the harvesters to pull up the thistles and tie them in bundles for the fire, then gather the wheat and put it in the barn.’”31 Another story. “God’s kingdom is like a pine nut that a farmer plants.32 It is quite small as seeds go, but in the course of years it grows into a huge pine tree, and eagles build nests in it.”33 Another story. “God’s kingdom is like yeast that a woman works into the dough for dozens of loaves of barley bread—and waits while the dough rises.”34 All Jesus did that day was tell stories—a long storytelling afternoon.35 His storytelling fulfilled the prophecy:
I will open my mouth and tell stories;
I will bring out into the open
things hidden since the world’s first day.
The Curtain of History36 Jesus dismissed the congregation and went into the house. His disciples came in and said, “Explain to us that story of the thistles in the field.”37 So he explained. “The farmer who sows the pure seed is the Son of Man.38 The field is the world, the pure seeds are subjects of the kingdom, the thistles are subjects of the Devil,39 and the enemy who sows them is the Devil. The harvest is the end of the age, the curtain of history. The harvest hands are angels.40 “The picture of thistles pulled up and burned is a scene from the final act.41 The Son of Man will send his angels, weed out the thistles from his kingdom,42 pitch them in the trash, and be done with them. They are going to complain to high heaven, but nobody is going to listen.43 At the same time, ripe, holy lives will mature and adorn the kingdom of their Father.“Are you listening to this? Really listening?44 “God’s kingdom is like a treasure hidden in a field for years and then accidently found by a trespasser. The finder is ecstatic—what a find!—and proceeds to sell everything he owns to raise money and buy that field.45 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a jewel merchant on the hunt for excellent pearls.46 Finding one that is flawless, he immediately sells everything and buys it.47 “Or, God’s kingdom is like a fishnet cast into the sea, catching all kinds of fish.48 When it is full, it is hauled onto the beach. The good fish are picked out and put in a tub; those unfit to eat are thrown away.49 That’s how it will be when the curtain comes down on history. The angels will come and cull the bad fish50 and throw them in the garbage. There will be a lot of desperate complaining, but it won’t do any good.”51 Jesus asked, “Are you starting to get a handle on all this?”
They answered, “Yes.”52 He said, “Then you see how every student well-trained in God’s kingdom is like the owner of a general store who can put his hands on anything you need, old or new, exactly when you need it.”53 When Jesus finished telling these stories, he left there,54 returned to his hometown, and gave a lecture in the meetinghouse. He made a real hit, impressing everyone. “We had no idea he was this good!” they said. “How did he get so wise, get such ability?”55 But in the next breath they were cutting him down: “We’ve known him since he was a kid; he’s the carpenter’s son. We know his mother, Mary. We know his brothers James and Joseph, Simon and Judas.56 All his sisters live here. Who does he think he is?”57 They got their noses all out of joint.58 But Jesus said, “A prophet is taken for granted in his hometown and his family.” He didn’t do many miracles there because of their hostile indifference.
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