Stocking Stuffers

I know, I know, it's hard to believe that a week from today is Christmas Eve. At work we have a countdown calendar...and I hate being reminded of it daily because I'm just not "on it" for gifts and prepping. BUT, the good news is I have stocking stuffers for you!

Actually, anything in my shop is small enough to be a stocking stuffer so you can't lose.

I will be so happy to move from full time holiday working hours to part time after the new year...whew! This year I haven't said Happy Holidays ONCE. No matter what religion a person believes in, the reason for the holidays IS Christmas so that's it, there's no way around it, so I say.....there really is no good reason to consider other people and that they might be offended to hear those 2 words. Why did I ever worry about it in the first place? Diversity awareness can sometimes be counter productive....so.......

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

CheckerBoard Cupcakes

Can you believe this...a checkerboard cupcake! Those are actually black dots, but when the artist pressed in the "liner" grooves, it slightly squared the dots...and I love it!

And, good old Target had cupcake tissue paper in the dollar bins today! I've never seen this before so I was very happy but had to hold back from buying a ton of it since I use tissue paper about once a year. The pack has 15 sheets, 5 each of purple, white and cupcake. Wish they would have made the white a pink...I mean, how many people even WANT white tissue paper these days when there are such cool choices out there?

I hope you're not going too crazy over holiday prep. We are lucky enough to be going to my sister's home in Napa and she and her husband and father-in-law love making the turkey dinner for others, so I guess I might just be washing dishes this time around.

And I hope you are happy with what you have. None of us have everything we want. No matter what level we are financially, there is always something more to desire, so my goal is to enjoy what I have right NOW....and dream about and worked towards the rest.

Happy Thanksgiving,

Golden Hollows

Each day this week I'm listing holiday earrings. Can you believe the amazing swirls of color in these first two pair??? The large beads are hollow and it's amazing they can be so strong. Kind of like how the arches of a building or bridge actually increases their strength. Just unbelievable. Above is Golden Amethyst Hollows.


I've had these beads for so long, I can't recall who made them and I am so sorry about that. Perhaps she will see this post and let us know! I call this pair Egyptian Blue Hollows.


I also will list a couple of simple and elegant pairs, like these Emerald Crystal Drops.

Behind the Times

Hi everyone. Well, I'm behind my schedule of finishing pieces I've been teasing you with, so I thought I'd show you goodies I'll be posting this week on my Etsy site.

First up is this pair of earrings featuring wonderful pumpkin beads I call "punks". The glass used is Red Roof Tile which produced a deep, smoky orange for something different than your usual orange. I just love this color, especially with the grey-green tendrils that are on all sides of these plump beads.

Then, to continue the holiday theme, I have a SnowGent and SnowLady in necklace form. Their little mufflers are so cute and go all the way around their necks!

There's been much going on around here that has pulled me away from my studio and now it is November, so I HAVE to get back on track. The plan is to post some destash holiday charms in sterling silver in my MomsArt shop and to finish that new line of cupcakes I KEEP talking about!!!

Stick with me, it'll be worth it,

Holiday Giveaway!

RockerJewlz has a sweet holiday giveaway going on PLUS a special gift for you.

The gift is that from today, December 7 through 15, all jewelry orders shipped to U.S. addresses will not only have the usual insurance & delivery confirmation coverage but will receive a complimentary upgrade to priority rate! This means that instead of waiting up to 5 delivery days plus the 3 days for Paypal to clear the bank, you should receive your packages within a week and most likely less…nice surprise, huh? And I will happily ship it directly to your gift recipient if you prefer.


And to top that off, for every item purchased in my Etsy shop through December 31st at http://RockerJewlz.etsy.com, you will receive an entry into my holiday giveaway. The prize is your choice of any pair of earrings OR pendant available in the shop (not limited to cupcakes this time as in the past)…and TWO of you will be winners, woohoo! Now that is something to celebrate on Sunday, January 3rd, when the winners will be randomly drawn.

For more chances to win, here is how you can easily get extra entries. Just follow these TWO guidelines:

1. You MUST email me with the url where you announce the RockerJewlz Holiday Giveaway and be sure to include info on how your readers they can find my blog announcement at http://RockerJewlz.blogspot.com. Any public website is fine with me (i.e. your blog, website, Twitter and Facebook) but I have to be able to GO there to see it so be sure to include it.

(To reach my email address, go to the left side of this blog, find “A little about me”, and at the bottom of it, “view my complete profile”.)

2. The email MUST include the url, AND your name AND street address (otherwise, how will I mail your prize if you win?).

3. Go shopping with me on Etsy to see what you will choose as your prize! Could this giveaway be any easier?)




In addition, I now have plenty of cupcakes on 18 or 20 inch sterling silver chains.

Have fun shopping and I’ll talk to you after the New Year with the winner announcements,

Autumn Sale and Topaz

Beginnings Bracelet in Topaz is now available for your Autumn and Holiday needs.
I love how the light shines through this particular color of Swarovski crystal.

Topaz is the birthday stone for November, and this slender bracelet is perfect for birthdays,
anniversaries and holiday gifts.

I'm having a nice, big fat sale on Autumn jewelry in my Etsy shop. Aren't these glass acorns awesome?
They are the colors of candy caramels and oh so pretty.

I have plenty of pumpkin jewelry as well.
The beads are so pretty that the jewelry turned out quite elegant rather than just another novelty.
You'll be very pleased with how pretty they are.

So come and enjoy the sale to pump up the volume on your holiday wardrobe!
Shop HERE.

Cupcake Giveaway and Cake

So, my big announcement today is another Cupcake Giveaway for U.S. contestants!
You need to enter at the sponsor's site...NO ENTRIES on this blog, please. The giveaway is being sponsored by the PurplePinkAndOrange site and the prize is ANY pair of Cupcake Earrings that you can keep for yourself or give to a special someone as a gift.

You have 3 possible methods of entry and
Giveaway ends on Saturday, July 18th at midnight CST.
I hope you enter!

And now for some post 4th of July stories. I love this holiday because rather than fighting crowds and driving to a fireworks show, I simply step outside and watch the illegal fireworks all around my neighborhood. I warm at the muffled sound of a faraway launch, the pop, crackle & sizzle of the burst and then the misty cloud of sulphur smoke that floats swiftly past my home...from a good quarter mile away. I just love it!

We are located smack dab in the middle of what I call the "siren" corridor...the 2 fire stations are at either end of a very long road that passes by our home...at least we are set way back on a court and not on the main road. Usually I hear the sirens going to AND from their locations, but this time I counted SEVEN separate vehicles heading in ONE direction...about 30 seconds apart. As soon as one passed, here came another.

Sheesh! As my mother used to say "sounds like the whole TOWN is burning down". I can identify a firetruck from an ambulance...police sirens and ambulances sound almost the same, but ambulances have a sharper tone. Anyway, couldn't see flames or smoke in the sky, so who knows WHAT was going on!


Okay, second story is about my traditional 4th of July flag cake. I'm sure many of you make one as well, but for those of you who don't, it is soooo simple & yummy, I thought I'd share my "recipe". I buy any white cake mix that advertises it's moisture "value" whether it's pudding or whatever. I bake it in a 13 x 9 inch pan and let it cool until it is still warm on the bottom. Then I pierce the top with a fork and spread smashed fresh berries all over it. I prefer strawberries & blueberries...some people use raspberries as well but to me it then tastes like a wedding cake.


While the cake bakes, I select 50, yes 50 similarly sized blueberries to represent all 50 stars of our spectacular American flag and I slice strawberries by hand. I love my strawberry slicer but it produces a slightly thinner slice that is a little too floppy and I want a firm slice so I don't mess up the whipped cream "icing". I just slice until I think I have enough and then being my anal self, I organize them by size so I can make rows of similarly sized strawberries...looks a little "gollywumpus" to mix sizes....yeah, yeah, I know.

For some reason I just couldn't get good light for this final "ta-da" photo, but here she is... I always present the cake to my family so they can see it before we each dig into whenever we are ready to munch on it. I put the cake in the fridge so it's deliciously chilled which makes a big difference in texture and flavor. It helps to firm up the cake portion. I just love this cake.

Since there are only 3 of us in my household, I always hope my son will attend a party so he can take most of it with him...and sure enough he came through once again, saying "thanks Mom!!!" on his way out the door. Of course, this happiness followed a bbq here at home with the BEST ever tri-tip I've cooked so far!

I used to marinade the darned things for hours and still didn't get flavor running all the way through as I'd hoped. But I have now created a marinade so perfect that only ONE hour on each side is enough!

And here it is...no measurements, just dumped it in a pan as I saw fit:

Soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, worchestshire sauce, liquid smoke (mesquite flavor) and sesame seed oil

As Rachael Ray would say....Yum-OH!

Hope I entertained you today...now go enter my giveaway!!!!