May is a busy month with birthdays, year-end celebrations, sports, and Mother's Day! Sometimes special dinners out and shopping trips don't make the final agenda before Mother's Day. And though I sometimes enjoy the quite solitude when everyone leaves our home, I really love experiencing all of us together in this space - making and creating.

So why not craft together as an activity for Mother's Day? Or have your children to create alongside special grandmothers or aunts for a sweet Mother's Day experience?

This is an incredibly budget-friendly (slightly time intensive) craft that all three of my children enjoyed. Gather together:

• Paper (we chose rainbow and only used one piece of each color paper to make all the beads here)
• Scissors or paper cutter
• Glitter glue (really, any glue is fine, but glitter makes everything better, right?)
• Pencil or pen (to wrap the paper)
• String or twine for necklace/bracelet/anklet creations

First step? Cut isosceles (ish) triangles out of your paper. Ours were about an inch at the thick end. Here's the important next step: begin with the thick end and tightly wind the entire triangle around the pencil. We made different shapes by doing this. Some beads were exactly symmetrical, some looked more like cones or party hats, and others looked like a wobbly top.

As you get close to the end of the wrapped paper, squirt a dollop of glitter glue on the front and back of the end tail and graciously smear it all over the end and the rest of the bead. This will help secure the tight wrap and spread the glitter around the whole bead.

Once the bead is secured, carefully remove it from the skewer and let it dry for a few minutes before crafting further.

String your handmade beads for necklaces and bracelets that are one of a kind. You'll have the finished product made from little hands, and the priceless memory of the entire experience as a special Mother's Day treat.

Happy Mama's Day! And happy crafting!

xoxo, MJ

Image captured by Ellen of Minnow + Co

In case you're wondering, let me reassure you that there are wonderful people in the world.

Generous, kind-hearted, supportive, go-way-out-of-their-way for you kinds of people. And I want to share one with you today.

Melanie does a great many things, among them she is a full-time caregiver for her mother and a pretty amazing jewelry designer and creator. She owns My Little Addiction Etsy shop, where she sells "beautifully simple, timeless jewelry."

When I was invited to become an Alt Rep, I scrambled to get together my wardrobe and accessories. I wanted to wear pieces that would speak to who I am and feature unique craftsmanship. And I thought of Melanie and her great work! I am all about beautifully simple and timeless pieces.

In fact, as a sign of our comraderie, the four of us Alt Reps wore a triad of Melanie's faceted rings on our knuckles as a simple sign that we were in this together...and in this to shine.

She was over the top generous to me and sent along an initial necklace and arrow necklace as well as two beautiful pairs of silver earrings. These pieces are all so beautifully made and have the sort of heft and sparkle that lets you know that she spent careful time and thought to make each piece unique and perfect. 

As I sign of my appreciation to be the recipient of her art, I've added a My Little Addiction button to the sidebar! If you're looking for quality and class, check out her jewelry. And tell her MJ sent you!!

Have a bright weekend, friends. And a lovely Valentine's Day!

xoxo, MJ

Hiya, lovely! How's it going? Exciting times around here...It's a great week of the year, the holiest one for Christians, as we gear up for Easter. My family is looking forward to all the services this week (with our oldest in the Church choir) as well as a fun egg hunt and Easter brunch with friends. What have you been up to?

Today I'm bringing you some Itty Bitty Lovelies that work with minimal supplies for maximum results. When you can create a masterful DIY with only a few items it's just that much sweeter, don't you think?

1. Tape saves the day again

Though I love art and photography, I don't have as much of it hanging on my walls or sitting on my shelves as I would like. Why? Frames are costly.

Jordan from Oh Happy Day posted this, and I just have to share it with you. Using kraft tape and some other supplies, she made these gorgeous thin frames for her home. The final look is remarkable, considering the low price of the materials. I am almost convinced that I need to buy my own matte cutter, too ($15).

Can't you imagine these in bright hues for a children's room or a classic black accent on book shelves?

2. Wall gallery for the no budget

Melissa takes us through the art that hangs in her bedroom in this lovely gallery made of simple frames she's purchased from Ikea. I adore the rhythm she's created on her bright walls. And learning the details behind each piece is delightful. It inspires me and reminds me that simplicity is more.

Head over to her blog and see what I mean. I think I'd love seeing all these frames hung really tight together as she has them in some of the photos. Have you created a wall gallery in your home? I'd love to see it!

3. Elegant bracelets for all the gals on your list

When I saw this post, I knew I wanted to savor it for Itty Bitty Lovelies. My good friend Joy from Frock Files has created the purest friendship bracelet that you could wear to the opera or the supermarket and look glamorous.

The way that she's stacked them is divine, and the closure method is genius. These are completely budget-friendly and the perfect spring accessory. Way to go, Joy. You've done it again.

My lovely for the week:

Life is better with friends. Be bold and ask someone, with whom you share common interests but not much time together, to join you for coffee. Invite that family you've been bumping into all over for a simple dinner. Arrange a Google Chat with bloggers you admire. Too often I imagine that others may not have time or an interest to get together, when the reality is, we're all just busy living our lives. A warm invitation does wonders for the spirit.

Let's make this a great week, friends. It's time to contemplate, refocus, and celebrate all that is to come.

xoxo, MJ

Oh, friends, today is the official Chaos Never Dies day of the year, and I'm feeling it. How about you? Perhaps the other two celebrations this weekend will bring about a sense of purpose and grounding with Forget Me Not day on Saturday and Veterans Day on Sunday. Grateful to those who have suffered and fought on our behalf.

                               

1. CALENDAR YOUR NEW YEAR.

Erika from Foxtrot Press and Studio put some great 2013 letterpress calendars all in one place for us to drool over. Thanks, Erika!! The depth on that Satsuma Press calendar... gorgeous. Looks like it's time to plan ahead for a wonderful year.

2. GET YOUR NERD ON.

Jessica from How About Orange featured this project on pie chart necklaces. Wait! Don't skim over this. Go check out her final product and tell me that they would not be a super cool addition to your accessories.

Putting it on the to do... and maybe the gift list this year.

3. CREATE WARMTH.

Oh, I just love this DIY. So simple and yet so unique. I can imagine a whole line of messages that you leave and light for the one you love. Or the suggestion of putting quotes from a favorite read for a bookclub gathering sounds fantastic. Thanks to Gabrielle at DesignMom for bringing it our way.

The Pars Caeli family is will be savoring life in a special way next week. I've got all sorts of goodness headed your way. I hope you'll stop back often and leave some comment love for a few fab friends who are heading our way.

Until then, friends, let's have a bright weekend!

XOXO, MJ