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

HOLIDAY WISHES

Creating my Last Minute Gift Guide for the holidays has gotten me thinking.  I can't count how many people have asked "What would be perfect for the girl who has everything?" 

It's a challenge, we all have so much!  And yet the holidays are about being delighted.  As much as I love a beautiful jewel, I am far more inspired to offer the message that comes with my jewels --  I think the best gift for the girl who has everything is the reminder to Feel Beautiful!

Check out my Last Minute Gift Guide here

Crafting a Last Minute Gift Guide for you has also made me reflect on my own wish list.  It occurs to me that this year (a year of big changes, all so positive), I truly am a "girl who has everything."  

Here's what my Christmas wish list looks like, each item on it is based in gratitude for having all in the world I really need.

  I want to use my down time to grow

I've added a commute to my life, up to 2 hours a day that I know I can use productively.  I'd love a subscription to Audible, an "audio book store" with a huge range of fiction, non-fiction and podcasts.  

And since I'm so often on the move, I need a bigger collection of reading glasses (why is it they're always where I'm not!?)  EyeBobs are my favorites.  

Audible has great gift subscriptions / These are EyeBobs "Co-Conspirator"

I want to feel healthy and comfortable

Tommy has me running again, and it's nice not to be tied to a schedule for my workouts.  Nike shorts and an Under Armour jacket are perfect running gear for this time of year.  

I have favorite workout clothes that have kind of become "signatures", and anyone who knows me well will attest that I'm as likely to wear them to work as I am to a workout!  Unfortunately, I can't find many of my favorite pieces any more, but I LOVE this LuluLemon hoodie. 

Under Armour's Studio Luxe jacket / My fav Nike shorts / Fab form-fitting Lulu hoodie

I want to be rested and present

It's been said that a good night's sleep is the answer to every question, and I believe it.  My ritual typically includes a great cup of green tea and a lounge-y pair of  PJ's.  And in a pinch, a great stand-in for sleep is always massage. 

Massage Envy has gift cards! / Hanro loungewear / EZ green tea

I want to feel connected to the people I love

As the year passes into memory, what I'd like most are just sweet, heartfelt notes from the people I love.  From friends new and old, from family whose time and attention I often take for granted, and from Tommy and his precious kids.  These are the gifts I cherish the most.  

So the best thing you can offer the girl who has everything?  
The blessings of growth, presence, friendship and love.  May your holiday be full of all.

Feel beautiful!

Elizabeth

WHEN ICE COMES TO TOWN

We ventured out this morning, and found Fred's Texas Café open, had a holiday-infused quail with eggs.  

Icicles are hanging from any perch, suspended in crazy shapes.  The roads in Fort Worth are like skating rinks, and hardly a soul is on them.

Inspired by frozen peace, time feels like it's standing still.  I'm seeing all sorts of possibility, in jewels and in life.  

It's perfect weather for creating Inspiration Boards.  

Kaleidoscope earring, a stack of tree-textured rings, warm with a bit of edge like the hand-knit tea set.  

Bird's Nest ring in turquoise is a little hint at life, a dream inspired by some favorite charcoal drawings and a winter sea/escape.

As clear and shivery as the Poles, Deco earring is set with many translucent stones.  Here in green amethyst.   

Vintage Chandelier earring in pyrite, inspired by a fantasy getaway.  

Maltese Cross hoops and the Soleil earring, each designed to reflect the translucence of sun on ice.


"Remember

this December,

that love weighs more than Gold."

- Josephine Dodge Daskam Bacon

Let it capture your imagination. 

Feel beautiful,

Elizabeth

CELEBRATING THE COMPANY WE KEEP

It's a quiet week, a week for gratitude.  I guess it takes cresting my forties to realize how true it is that we're only as good as the company we keep.  My friends inspire me, they shape my day, inform my preferences; they surprise me and make me laugh.  

This Thanksgiving, I'm celebrating the company I keep.  

For Style and Substance...

I started designing many, many years ago, making wire-wrapped jewelry for my friends.  While my own aesthetic has developed (a lot!), I still design with my friends in mind, knowing that if they can wear my jewelry, it'll look perfect on every woman, everywhere.  

And yet there are those people whose style is something… different, you almost can't put words to it -- in fact, they can't put words to it, so effortless is their look.  

Kathleen Cook-Hunter's style is in her quirkiness.  She doesn't follow trends, she creates them.  Her brilliant use of color is unconventional and deep.  This kind of saturation is what I strive for in the colored stones I choose every season.   

Kathleen with Christie, both in Elizabeth Showers

Karen Bates Novakowski is not only a friend, she's worked for me for years, and there hasn't been a day she hasn't delighted us all with her effortless chic, even in workout clothes!  Karen is a study in layers, and is the perfect muse for the way my jewelry can be worn together. 

Karen and me at the Couture Jewelry Show in Vegas, 2009

To explore distant places…

My most intrepid friends are hands down, Ann Alford and Erin Fenstermaker, both of whom have the tenacity to pick a spot, map its highlights and challenge me to go there with them.  They don't hesitate, ever, and it's with them that I've scaled boulders, bathed elephants, shot rapids and jumped from cliffs, and extended my own borders in every way.

For their taste buds...

Christie Coker introduced me to Pickapeppa sauce.  It was a childhood tradition, she doused it over cream cheese on tortilla chips, I think it got her through high school.  (Simple solutions!)  I've refined my own Pickapeppa tradition to accompany hummus on gluten free crackers.  Maybe a tad less "high school," still pretty decadent!

Coveting their Closet...

I have to include my sister Susanna in any conversation about friends -- especially when I'm thinking about closet influence.  The 5050 Boots from Stuart Weitzman (I'm wearing them today!) were Susanna's picks years ago, and I've passed them on to countless others.  So sleek and sexy, my pair is literally on their last leg!

For Popcorn and Culture...

Jennifer Stagen and I go to the movies together, and - I'm not proud - our recent obsession was with the Twilight Saga.  While I probably shouldn't call it Culture (not with a capital C), the power and energy of the characters, their interaction with nature - it speaks to me. 

Alice Cullen, the vampire world's greatest friend!

Their Eye for Art... 

My favorite pieces of art are those that are made especially for me.  Kristan Vinzant created Bark Art, made from tree bark applied to canvas.  I am using tree texture in more and more of my jewelry.  I'm surrounded by it! 

"BARK ART," Kristan Vinzant, 2009

A Friend on the Ground...

I've just moved to a new neighborhood in a new town.  Only 30 miles from where I've been, I wouldn't know where to start without Kim Boyd.  They say moving is up there with the top most traumatic life experiences, and without Kim's rapid response as my friendly City Guide, her tips for a masseuse, a dry cleaner, great restaurants, a tailor, a nail salon, and way more -- I would feel lost.

My new home, Fort Worth


And Words of Wisdom From Friends...

"Date someone for all four seasons before you decide to marry him."

"Rejection is God’s protection."

"Nothing in this world happens by mistake."

"Practice the 3 M’s to stay sane:  Meetings, Meditation and Masturbation!" 

 … Priceless! 

With friends: Ronda, Christie, Kristen, Ann, Christie

Go on, celebrate the company YOU keep!

Feel beautiful!

Elizabeth

THINKING THROUGH LOSS IN MY CITY OF HOPE

Dealey Plaza, Dallas, this morning

The world has its eye on Dallas today, the 50th anniversary of the death of JFK.  I love my city, and on this day, I'm proud of it.  With all the media coverage and editorial - non stop - on TV and radio, it wouldn't be a wonder if Dallas just buckled.  It's a lot of responsibility to be this city, the one on whose soil Camelot was lost.

And Dallas didn't deliver the perfect day today, no sunshine or warm temps.  Instead, it's raw and intemperate.  Like it's an actor in a play.  Dallas reflected the world's temperature.  

Lee Park, Dallas, this afternoon

On my corner, flags are at half staff.  The leaves have fallen all at once.  

A nest in branches, such a symbol of resilience 

It was a sad day, and yet even in it's winter-ness, there's life, and hope.  

I'm proud of Dallas today.  

"One person can make a difference, and everyone should try."

- JFK

Feel Beautiful,

Elizabeth