IN THE SPIRIT OF SUMMER

SUMMER.

It's the epitome of simplicity, when time slows and windows open to the list of things we wish we could do all year long.  There are certain things I do every summer, my open windows during the dog days. 

Drive

My summer has to include a road trip.  Texas is vast, and the highways are endless.  Driving is a big reminder that life might seem short but there's always more road over the horizon.  

The highway between Amarillo and Childress, Texas on my recent road trip to Colorado.

 

Climb

The mountains do call me, and every summer, I must go!  

On Mt. Crested Butte in July

Surf

 

I learned to surf in California - actually, at a turning point in my jewelry design career when I was out west attending a gem course.  Surfing is freedom, and there is such a sense of accomplishment, at every stage of learning.  From that first paddle out, to achieving the feat of balancing on the board - it's not so much about riding the wave as it is about the personal challenge: being my best me on the board in the open ocean. 

Surfboards are utter simplicity in both shape and design.  So inspiring!

 

Explore

My summer is always about creative exploration, not just adventurous.  I try to get as far away in my imagination as I can during these slow summer months.  

Shortboard earrings from the Surfer Collection, a favorite summer earring

 

CHILL

And there's always got to be a soundtrack!  

Click HERE and listen to my favorite summer tunes.

Elizabeth's Summer Soundtrack on the super cool music share site, MixedTape.me

The perfect wave is out there.  Go find it.  Happy summer!

Feel beautiful!

Elizabeth

MY FAVORITE PEOPLE INSPIRE ME TO BE FREE

My life is an occasion. I am rising to it.

 

With 4th of July here, Suzanne Weyn's quote is a great reminder for me that my freedom and independence lies in the moment. I am rising to it.  I am rising to it every moment I choose to be mindful, to be present to my gut feeling, my intuition, and then I have the freedom to act on my intuition.

Harley, Tommy & me during Thanksgiving last year.

 

Last October, I moved from Dallas to Fort Worth to join households with my wonderful life partner, Tommy, and his two beautiful children.  I love my new life.  It has been an exciting and challenging time, shifting into new modalities, living with a family after an entire adulthood living solo, and now commuting to Dallas for work during the week. This period has been a “reset” for me, a time of mindfulness of every move I make, everything I do and say, every plan I set forth, every direction I give my team at work, every piece of jewelry I design.
 

This period of heightened mindfulness and connection has made me more aware of some of life’s biggest challenges, in particular: how to be my authentic self in a culture filled with written and unwritten social contracts.  These expectations are the filters that I have grown up with from family, from friends, in the news and social media, in magazines, in fashion, in blogs, in the entertainment world, and even from a simple assumption I make from a look on a stranger’s face.  Every single one of us is subject to these made-up expectations if we allow ourselves to be.


Left: Harley, Tommy & me after Harley's performance of
High School Musical last year at Casa Mañana in Fort Worth 
Right: Ethan & Tommy

 

My discoveries and adventures throughout my adult life have led me to recognize what these filters are, and to shed most of them with a goal of clearly hearing and enthusiastically embracing my desires for my life.  Because we are social animals, I of course need to learn from others. The people I spend my time with are people of whom I admire, and who genuinely honor themselves and their own authenticity.

I tell you all this on the day before July 4th, Independence Day, to remind each of you of your personal independence to listen to your authenticity. I am finding that the more authentic I am, the healthier of a role model I am for everyone around me. The more I am independent of the filters that I have unconsciously let the outside world place upon me, the more present I am to be the incredible human being I was intended to be.

 

We are about to have our second annual Feel Beautiful Week. ‘Feel beautiful' has been my personal and professional mantra for over 12 years now.  I am surrounded by strong, independent women, and each one is beautiful in her own way. Next week I will share some of these special women with you.  I also encourage you to think about what makes you feel beautiful inside and out.

Feel Beautiful!
Elizabeth

WHAT'S YOUR SIGN?

 

I love thinking about how many ways our world works in synch - and how natural  elements and influences interact to affect the work we do.  It is no funny coincidence that my latest dalliance is with the Zodiac.

 

 

 

 

Isn't it incredible, reading your horoscope, just how eerily accurate it can be?  More than just a medieval or folkloric pastime, Astrology has long been considered (sometimes controversially) a science.  It's about the influence of distant cosmic objects, planets, stars, the sun and the moon, and how powerfully their positioning was, on the day we were born.  

I can't say I live and breathe by my astrological status, but I do confess to being intrigued.  Two books on Astrology that I have loved for years are Phyllis Vega's "What Your Birthday Reveals about You" and Linda Goodman's "Sun Signs" (Linda Goodman's blog is here).    My favorite online Zodiac read is Astrolutely.  I do follow it though -- just as a fun way to check in with myself.  

 

 

 

I'm Virgo.  This description, found online, is pretty amazingly accurate.

 

 

Astrology has inspired artists since as early as 300 BC -- the Ancients saw art in the sky and named the constellations to be guiding images that have lasted through the millennia.  I love the personality of each sign, the clever humor, perhaps not meant to be taken seriously, at all!  

It's for its artistic inspiration that I have turned to the Zodiac, and am thrilled to introduce my newest collection of gold and silver pendants, available now for presale*.  

 INTRODUCING:

THE ZODIAC COLLECTION

I can't wait to see how people choose to wear their sign...

 

Feel Beautiful!

Elizabeth

*To order your Zodiac pendant, email us at lauren@elizabethshowers.com.  Available in gold and silver, pendants will be ready for delivery around June 15th.  

POSTCARD FROM NEW MEXICO

Winter turns to spring.

Tommy, the kids and I drove west to New Mexico, not knowing what we'd find, but deeply in need of a break.  What I didn't realize is just what a break it would give us!

First of all, in New Mexico, there's practically NO CELL SIGNAL.  So, we talked!  Conversations were extemporaneous and humor-filled, which happens when you have the time and the space to hear each other.   We drove, and listened to music, and played games.  

Finger puppets we found along the way became our entertainment on the road.  

We designed an over-the-road adventure that included State Parks, Martians and Ski Lifts.   

 Carlsbad Caverns, a jewelry designer's paradise, inspired visions of the way minerals are transformed into objects of beauty.  Stalactites of limestone were so eerily suspended, creating incredible shadows and angles.  As if the millennia of dripping and falling suddenly one day just... stopped... 

Carlsbad Caverns National Park 

The breadth and depth of the desert, the dry wind which at times howled over the roads ahead of us, made us feel both insignificant and very powerful.  

 Ethan framed against the NM plateaus that spread north from Carlsbad.

It was all about breathing, I think.  

I'm closing my eyes now and calling back what cleansed me during that week in New Mexico.  The fragrance of the desert and the effervescence of the mountains.  I see jade greens, dusky browns and deep sky blues.  And I hear the voices of the children -- how profoundly their voices provoke us to truly live in the moment.

The dual tracks, patterns on a Taos ski run.

I collected stuff, too, especially from a cool Taos store called Moxie.  Two of my favorite souvenirs are a gentle, turquoise-hued female buddha and an incense-burning pueblo, just like one I had in my childhood home.  

I loved this store, though it may not be unlike others that sell bright colored folk art.  I loved it for the bright spirit of the owner, Katie Thomas, and her unwavering commitment to provide unique beauty while supporting fair trade for the arts and artisans.  Here's what she says about herself and her mission:

Why Moxie?  Moxie is:

1 - The ability to face difficulty with spirit and courage.

2 - Aggressive energy and initiative.

3 - Skill and know-how.

It takes Moxie to venture into an unknown field in a recessive era.  It takes Moxie for crafters in developing countries to work hard to improve the quality of life for themselves and their families.  And "Moxie", it's a fun word to say.

This much-needed break gave me a dose of perspective, fresh air and MOXIE.  

Feel beautiful!

Elizabeth

FINDING THE PERFECT WORDS

I collect quotes.  

There are some amazing voices out there, whose words have changed my life.  Some of my favorite quotes come from the 13th c Sufi mystic Rumi, but also from more contemporary gurus like Deepak Chopra and Marianne Williamson.  There are historic "poets" whom I admire, like Eleanor Roosevelt and Thoreau, and cultural ones - Audrey Hepburn, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Marley.  The Dalai Lama speaks to my Buddhist heart, as the Psalms sing to my Christian one.  It's the words of others that help me form my own.  Perhaps it's legacy -- maybe life is all about passing along the perfect words!  

Some of my heros, their words are music to my ears.  

My friend Ronda gave me a quote book that is never far from hand.  "She..." by Kobi Yamada is itself a work of art, these quotes always bring me solace and when I need it most, a laugh. 

The greatest gift of quotes, "She..." by Kobi Yamada

One of Yamada's quotes in "She..."

If you're on Facebook, you'll recognize my Friday Quote.  Choosing it every week is one of my favorite tasks.  And I love all the comments you post, about how a quote speaks to you or what it reminds you of.  Here is the first Friday Quote I posted on Facebook, almost a year ago.  (I'd love you to follow me on Facebook here so I can share my Friday Quote with you, every week.)   

Quotes are expressions of connection and bonding.  Friendship, and ultimately, love.  The simpler the better!

Feel Beautiful!

Elizabeth

GETTING IT DONE

January is the universal reset, it's the great "creator of space."  I'm engaging in January, and dedicated to clarity, simplicity, and being organized.  

A visual I borrowed from a great blog about simplifying, One Simple Thing

Last March I was introduced to an amazing book that has helped me lead by priority (here's a post I wrote about it).  The book, "Getting Things Done" by David Allen came to me as a tip from two great friends - one of them was Tommy, whose desire to help me get organized may be far more urgent now that we live together!  I've committed, this January, to taking "Getting Things Done" to the next level.

And it's gotten personal.  I've begun working with a virtual coach on staff at David Allen Company, home of Getting Things Done (GTD).  It makes me think of the new movie Her, in which Joaquin Phoenix's character falls deeply in love with his Virtual Operating System.  It's easy to understand how he could!  My virtual GTD coach, Julie Ireland, has given me motivation and structure, and encourages me to trust myself.  So much of getting things done is just having the courage and confidence to tackle it.  

Love this quote, by Michael McGriffy

Here's what it is. 

At the lovely age of 42 I am realizing with greater clarity that I'm a woman with powerful tools and resources, and with mentors all around me.  My challenge is to create a framework from which I can operate at my highest capacity, effectively and efficiently, using my own resources and tools. That's the "trust myself" part.

My goal for working with Getting Things Done?  

To clear out the cobwebs that interfere with my creativity.  Actually, those "cobwebs" can be amazing thoughts and ideas that will serve me well as long as I use them, and interpret them wisely.  David Allen's method is based on the rule:  "Do it, Delegate it, Defer it, Drop it."  This was my weekend, to get in and get dirty.  I've focused on geting on top of my Outlook.  Next, it's my personal space, my office on Turtle Creek and the area I've carved out in my new home for writing and design.  My aim is to be able to move seamlessly between the two, never compromising time or creativity in the process.

I am finally learning Outlook, not just using it

Here's my new mantra:  Simplicity, clarity and focus!

You've got to think about the big things while you're doing the small things, 

so that the small things go in the right direction. 

- Alvin Toffler  

Feel Beautiful!

Elizabeth

WISH LANTERNS OVER NEW YEARS

I wrote this post this New Year's Eve, December 31, 2013 -- I was out in the country of Mississippi 2 days ago, my wifi was challenged and we just discovered it hadn't posted, so here's my New Year message to release whatever is in your way to create a beautiful space for your dreams!

New Years is so sweet - when done compassionately, it's the best kind of celebration.  It's the moment in the year when we are encouraged to stop and acknowledge our accomplishments.  It's a time to give a nod to the ups and downs, and to say a quick thanks to the people who've accompanied us along the way.  

This New Years, I'm excited to begin a new tradition that I learned years ago on one of my many trips to Thailand.  Once the afternoon light wanes, Tommy and I, along with many of our family and friends, will light Sky Lanterns and release them into the night sky.   It's my hope that with the lanterns, we'll each send off a wish and a dream, releasing them to create the space to come true.  The lanterns will mark the passage of the old year, and welcome the surprises of the new.  

Our first sky lantern, also known as a wish lantern, into the Mississippi sky.

After the last lantern flickers out, we'll light our bottle rockets and roman candles, and send 2013 off with fanfare!

Happy New Year, my friends.

Feel Beautiful!

Elizabeth