I'm No Cupid, Stupid!

Just kidding about calling you 'stupid'! Isn't this a great shot?!?
That's my face on that Cupid! How cute is that! You can fool around
with your face all day at PhotoFunia....and I just about did! Try it out!

Rings & Things

Rings & Things is a jewellery supply store and I've been using them for ages as a primary informational resource because they've taught me to do that. Rings & Things is known for its humourously clever and educational advertising, found in many bead and craft magazines. It's hard not to enjoy them or learn something from them.

Remember when the 'fruit quartzes' came out? Cherry, Pineapple, Raspberry, Blueberry Quartz and more. These were being touted as fabulous new stones and sold as such. They were expensive. Opalite, sometimes referred to as Moonstone, was also being sold as a stone. I was stopped dead by a gorgeous opalite necklace at the Farmer's Market. "What is this", I asked the jewellery artist who had made it. "It's moonstone", she replied and offered it to me to touch. It was weighty because of the size of the stones but not as heavy as you would expect stones to be. It kind of looked like moonstone. But it was warm. That was the tip off! Stones are cold in your hand in a way that you won't forget. Sure, they warm up when you hold them or lay them in the Sun. But they are always colder than glass. The jewellery artist was not trying to rip me off. As she explained, she only knew what her supplier told her. She was a victim of misinformation, just as much as I was.

Those 'stones' haunted me. They were glowing and really neat! So, I researched them and only Rings & Things was willing to explain that these 'stones' were actually Chinese glass. Beautiful, yes, but man made.

I still love these beads and buy them in every shape and size. I don't mind at all that they are glass. And I don't mind at all knowing that I can trust R&T to always tell me the truth. Even if it hurts!

My New Art Fire Shop!

Well, I'm finally selling online, thanks to Artfire! My shop is at http://WingedHeartStudio.artfire.com.

Here's their blurb:
"Welcome to Artfire, the premier online marketplace for handmade products designed by artisans around the globe. Our free community is designed for artisans to buy and sell their works, while celebrating unique handmade items and designs.

It is always free for buyers of handmade products to search through our listed artisans, buy, or request for items to be specially made. No matter if you are looking for local handmade crafts, or handmade products from artisans around the world, Artfire.com is the marketplace for you."

Forest Shades

I find these to be quite cheery and organic. The colours are varied and intense. Like the edge of the forest on a sunny day.

Mixed agates go with every style and every colour! The chips are stacked on fancy shmancy sterling silver head pins and the ear wires are also sterling silver.

Feel happy yet?

Black & White Day & Night Wisdom & Experience

Love the design of these as its simplicity allows the stones to speak for themselves, while the fact that the stones are different colours adds a rather confident, urban note. lol!

There are so many options with these! Beautiful with any colour, in any combination.

I have another pair just like them...lol! But seriously, I can make them with both black stones or white stones. Because that's the kind of crazy power I wield. : )

Aventurine Nuggets on Sterling Silver Ear Wires

Just wanted to highlight these rather lovely dangly aventurine earrings. The nuggets hang from sterling silver posts and are held in place by tiny circles. Only $15.00! They are the colour of money. (Ok, some money.)

Aventurine is said to be useful in attracting money so I thought I'd help the process along by listing the price! Clever, what?! This stone aligns with the heart chakra and helps it to open. Some say that aventurine is especially lucky!
Do you like them?

Amethyst Necklace with Rose Quartz Charms and Amethyst Earrings

Amethyst: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition.

Rose Quartz: Love, peace, happiness, gentleness, healing emotional wounds.

Aventurine Chip Necklace with Cloisonne Charm and Aventurine Nugget Earrings.

Aventurine: Healing, money, mental agility, visual acuity, peace, opening heart, motivation, leadership.

Sodalite Necklace and Earrings with Lapis Lazuli Charms

Sodalite: Wisdom, logic, calmness, healing, stress reduction, companionship, self-esteem.

Lapis Lazuli: Wisdom, intuition, awareness, objectivity, clarity, creativity, expanded consciousness, dreams, purity, courage, serenity.

Tiger's Eye with Obsidian Charms Necklace and Earrings

Obsidian: Clarity, deflecting negativity, protection, healing.

Tiger's Eye: Practicality, peacefulness, clarity, intelligence, intuition, new experiences, financial stability, calmness, releasing inhibitions.

Bluebird of Happiness Nest

Pearls: Purity, faith, charity, innocence, integrity, focus, wisdom, spirituality, sincerity, fertility.

Blackstone and White Jade

Blackstone: The spiritual value of these stones will vary depending on the dyed stones they come from. Some people believe any black stone has a power associated with its blackness that intensifies the spiritual values of the gemstones around them. (More info here.)

Jade: Fidelity, dreams, realization of potential, peace, accord, resourcefulness, accomplishment.

Mixed Agates

Agate: Balancing physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies; perceptiveness, strength, inspiration, awakening talents.

Aventurine: Healing, money, mental agility, visual acuity, peace, opening heart, motivation, leadership.

Carnelian

Carnelian: Precision, analytical capabilities, physical energy, verbal skill, peace, spirituality, will power.

Zodiac Stones & Birth Stones

Aries (March 22 - April 20) - Bloodstone (Jasper)
Taurus (April 21 - May 21) - Sapphire
Gemini (May 22 - June 21) - Agate
Cancer (June 22 - July 22) - Emerald
Leo (July 23 - August 22) - Onyx
Virgo (August 23 - Sept 22) - Carnelian
Libra (Sept 23 - Oct 23) - Chrysolite (Peridot)
Scorpio (Oct 24 - Nov 21) - Aquamarine
Sagittarius (Nov 23 - Dec 21) - Topaz
Capricorn (Dec 22 - Jan 20) - Ruby
Aquarius (Jan 21 - Feb 21) - Garnet
Pisces (Feb 22 - March 21) - Amethyst

Modern Birthstones:

January - Garnet

February - Amethyst
March - Aquamarine
April - Diamond
May - Emerald
June - Pearl
July - Ruby
August - Peridot
September - Sapphire
October - Opal
November - Topaz
December - Turquoise / Blue Zircon / Blue Topaz

Traditional Birthstones:

January - Garnet
February - Amethyst
March - Bloodstone
April - Diamond
May - Emerald
June - Alexandrite
July - Ruby
August - Sardonyx
September - Sapphire
October - Tourmaline
November - Citrine
December - Turquoise

The Colours of Stones

I love colour and actually feel something physical when I see certain colours in various combinations. I have had friends approach me in the supermarket without me realising it, as I stood, transfixed, in front of a stack of different coloured laundry hampers. lol

"Color can influence our emotions, our actions and how we respond to various people, things and ideas. Much has been studied and written about color and its impact on our daily lives.

Many people believe that colors are powers, and that colored stones are especially powerful. Here are some of the meanings of colors and the energies contained in their corresponding stones."

Read more about colours here.

The Traditional Qualities of Stones

Don't forget to consider the meaning of the colour of the stones. I'll post on colour meanings next.

Agates: Balancing physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies; perceptiveness, strength, inspiration, awakening talents.
Amazonite: Success, joy, self-expression, awakening heart, soothing, harmony, balancing.
Amber: Soothing, calming, cleansing.
Amethyst: Contentment, spirituality, dreams, healing, peace, happiness, love, intuition.
Ametrine: Intellectual stimulation, attunement, releasing, dispelling tension, connecting.
Apatite: Intellect, achieving results, healing, insight, humanitarianism, meditation, balance, creativity.
Aquamarine: Courage, purification, peace, intuition, self-expression, balance, preparedness.
Aventurines: Healing, money, mental agility, visual acuity, peace, opening heart, motivation, leadership. Usually green, but also peach, red, blue.
Azurite: Intuitive energy, dreams, healing, insight, stilling the mind, concentration, self transformation.
Bloodstone: Courage, intense healing, renewal, strength, victory, intuitive decision making.
Calcite: Purification, peace, calming, memory, awareness, appreciation of nature.
Carnelian: Precision, analytical capabilities, physical energy, verbal skill, peace, spirituality.
Celestite: Verbal skill, healing, compassion, calming, growth, intuition, hope.
Chrysocolla: Easing heartache, stamina, wisdom, peace, love, communication, vitality, inner strength.
Chrysoprase: Balancing male-female energy, love, grace, compassion, clemency, personal growth.
Citrine: Intuition, comfort, protection, creativity, physical energy, wealth, mental awakening.
Coral: Diplomacy, quieting emotions, visualization.
Crystal Quartz: Intensifying energy, spiritual development, healing, raising consciousness.
Diamond: Courage, strength, healing, protection, spirituality, mental abilities.
Dumortierite: Self-reliance, stamina, patience, recognition of potential, understanding, communication of ideas.
Emerald: Love, domestic bliss, sensitivity, loyalty, memory, mental capacity, harmony, focus, eliminating negativity.
Fluorite: Stability, impartial reasoning, responsibility, concentration, health.
Fossil Stone: Accomplishments, improvement of one’s environment, communication, innovation.
Garnet: Health, removing negativity, awareness, commitment, regeneration, order, insight.
Hematite: Mental attunement, memory, calming, balance, focusing energy and emotions, peace, inner happiness, transforming negativity.
Howlite: Awareness, calm, emotional expression, observation, patience, eliminating negativity.
Iolite: Intuition, spiritual growth, healing, balance, releasing discord, awakening to inner knowledge.
Jade: Fidelity, dreams, realization of potential, peace, accord, resourcefulness, accomplishment.
Jaspers: Protection, nurturing, joy, awareness; balancing of physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual energies.
Labradorite: Alignment, spiritual connection, transformation, clarity, peace, progression, discernment.
Lapis Lazuli: Wisdom, intuition, awareness, objectivity, clarity, creativity, expanded consciousness, dreams, purity, courage, serenity.
Lepidolite: Hope, stress reduction, birth, peace, spirituality, physical strength, luck, protection, emotional balance.
Malachite: Transformation, insight, clarifying emotions, fidelity, loyalty, practicality.
Marble: Charitable actions, original thinking, alleviation of sorrow.
Moonstone: Introspection, reflection, beginnings, insight, tenderness, harmony, peace, travel.
Mother of Pearl: Mental clarity, intuition, sensitivity, imagination, adaptability, cooperation.
Obsidians: Clarity, deflecting negativity, protection, healing.
Onyx: Self-control, decision making, intuition, recognition of personal strengths.
Opal: Creativity, spontaneity, relationships, memory, happy dreams and changes.
Pearl: Purity, faith, charity, innocence, integrity, focus, wisdom, spirituality, sincerity, fertility.
Peridot: Warmth, friendliness, understanding, openness in love and relationships, regulation of cycles.
Pyrite: Defense, prevention, protection from negativity, physical wholeness, memory.
Rhodocrosite: Love, emotional balance, cleansing, renewal, relaxation, expansion of consciousness.
Rhodonite: Peace, generosity, attention to details.
Rhyolite: Change, variety, progress, creativity, transcending barriers.
Rose Quartz: Love, peace, happiness, gentleness, healing emotional wounds.
Ruby: Nurturing, spiritual wisdom, attainment of values, economic stability, protection from distress.
Sapphire: Joy, peace, beauty, intuition, prosperity, fulfillment of dreams.
Serpentine: (see Jade)
Smoky Quartz: Dissolving emotional blockage, clearing the mind, cooperation, personal pride, joy in living, attentiveness to the moment, protection.
Sodalite: Wisdom, logic, calmness, healing, stress reduction, companionship, self-esteem.
Sunstone: Alleviating fears, energizing, cleansing.
Tanzanite: Communication, intuition, protection, symmetry, decision-making, spirituality.
Tiger Eye: Practicality, peacefulness, clarity, intelligence, intuition, new experiences, financial stability, calmness, releasing inhibitions.
Tiger Iron: Artistic endeavors, beauty, vitality.
Topaz: True love, success in endeavors, understanding of interrelationships, expression of ideas, trust, health, personal expansion and growth.
Tourmaline: Energizing, soul-searching, releasing.
Turquoise: Spiritual attunement, cleansing, healing, protection, valor, soothing, peace of mind, guidance through the unknown, romantic spontaneity.
Unakite: Balance, re-birth, foresight, emotional balance. Wonderful for the heart chakra!
Zoisite: Dispelling laziness, facilitating advancement.

Welcome to Winged Heart Studio!

Winged Heart Studio is the creative division of my Craft Dinner empire. Mwuwahhaa! I will be showcasing the things that I make here and, if I have what it takes, installing a little shopping cart perhaps. We'll see.

My other blog, Craft Dinner, covers everything else ...my teaching schedules, my friends' art shows, web finds, book reviews, interviews, yoga stuff, Peterborough and so on. k?

Let's see what happens!