Shop sale in honor of Women's Day

Behind the Moon Beadworks Etsy Shop

International Women's Day is celebrated in many countries around the world. 

It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, 

whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political. 

It is an occasion for looking back on past struggles and accomplishments, 

and more importantly, for looking ahead to the untapped potential and 

opportunities that await future generations of women.

I am proud to be an American woman where I am free to have 

a voice and free to be in charge of my own life.

  

Also as a woman business owner, 

I'm so thankful to those who paved the way for our liberties.

So I'm celebrating with a little shop sale for today only!

Just enter code "WOMENS15" at checkout for a nice little discount :)

Join me in taking a moment today to reflect on how far we have come as women

and seek to encourage the accomplishments of our girls in the future.

Silence and Solitude

 This past week or so I've been discovering the benefits of silence and solitude.  

It can be a rare and treasured thing for moms ;)

About a week ago I hit a low point.  Many of you know I have been dealing with 
some health issues lately but it extends beyond that.  
I realized that I have become a very "distracted" person.  
I say that meaning that nothing seems to have my full focus and attention.  
My thoughts are always churning yet I'm constantly forgetting things.
 I have forgotten how to quiet my mind.

It feels like there is constant demand for my attention and
I crave stillness and respite.

Designating some time to enjoy silence and solitude has become 
a blaringly evident necessity for me.

There's all sorts of "noise" we face every day...

from literal noise, to visual noise to, mental noise...
we need to take a break from it all on occasion.

So what are some ways you can embrace silence and solitude?

These days electronics rule. 
Turn off the radio, TV, iphone, or whatever your electronic "vices" are. 
Find a room in your house where you can be alone for a bit.   
Take some deep breathes and let the silence wash over you.
You will feel lighter and calmer almost instantly.

Clutter can cause a lot of visual disturbance.
You're running late and trying to find your grocery list amongst all the
clutter on your counter...not only does it take you longer to find it 
but you'll probably end up frustrated by the task of having to root
through all that "stuff" as well.   
Find my tips on organizing and tidying up here and here.

Somewhat surprisingly, social media can create a lot of mental noise.
Turn it off and take a break.  All that input can overload your brain.
In all reality most posts are not life altering,
take a break and you can pick right back up when you are feeling a bit more refreshed.

There are several benefits to enjoying daily silence and solitude.

* Promotes Inner Peace ~ Be aware of nothing but the sound of your own breathing.

* Promotes Self-discovery ~ Often your inner voice gets drowned out by all the external chatter.  

Silence can be a way of allowing your inner voice to be heard.
* Energizes you ~ Eliminates all the excess stimuli you receive at every moment.

* Boosts Creativity ~ Engages the "non-thinking" mind.

* Brings Focus and Mental Clarity ~ Your brain is automatically pre-programmed
 to investigate every incoming stimulus, which can make it quite easy to be distracted.
Silence eliminates the distractions.

These have certainly proved true in the past week.
I find I am more focused and becoming more relaxed in general.
I think Hubsy and the boys will also appreciate me being
a little less crazy all the time ;)
 

Do you take time out to be alone and enjoy the silence?

What are some of the ways you seek solace?

*Contributing thoughts found here.

Fast tricks to tidy your home

 One of the first things I've been tackling in effort to take care of myself is organization.  
How does organization play into nurturing yourself?  
Easy...the more organized you are, the less stress you have.  
I'm ALL about de-stressing these days.  
I still have some work to do with organizing my house but it is coming along.  
Hey, organizing takes time you know but it is time well spent I assure you!

If you missed my first post on organization, you can read up on it here. 

Today I'm sharing some quick and easy tools 
you can use to  tame the clutter crazies.

~ Stacks ~

via

Have a cluttered coffee table?  
Make your stacks intentional.  
Corral those magazines and books, stack them high and add a nice little topper like flowers or a candle.

~ Trays ~

via

 Have a bunch of loose items in your bathroom or on your dresser?  
Tidy them up by combining them all on a pretty tray.  
It will look like an artful arrangement rather than a bunch of strewn items.

~ Baskets ~

via

 Baskets offer not only aesthetically appealing storage but they can help you clean up in a jiffy. 
Company coming over?  
Just toss it all in a basket and you're good to go.

~ Bowls ~

via

Bowls can work much the same as baskets, 
and there are a ton of options no matter what your style.

Containers can be so much fun to shop for.  Don't be overwhelmed 
by the variety out there.  You can stick to something neutral to play it safe or 
you can get a little funky.  I adore the urn used for the kitchen utensils above.   
Its traditional in nature and style but funky in the way that it is being used...t
he best of both worlds!  
Use you imagination and have fun...
and watch the clutter virtually disappear :)

*Many of the ideas for this post came from here.
** Yes, I changed my look again...just can't help myself ;)

Favorites and a Shop link-up

Do you have an online shop?  

Do you also blog?

Then The Blogging Shop Owners link-up may just be for you ;)

The Goal: Get to know and be inspired by other blogging shop owners; share your tips, tricks, and favorite items with other people; and get some free marketing while you're at it. Each month's linkup will have a different topic. This is the first month and the topic is 

showing off a couple of your favorite items from your shop. 

Kim at the K.O. Story is hosting the link-up, so swing on over and check it out.

Link-up

It's a great opportunity to network with other bloggy shop owners and I encourage you to join in.

Happy Networking!

Here are my current favorites from my Etsy Shop

Royal Simplicity Necklace

It never fails to make me feel confident when I wear it.

Onyx and Obsidian Bangle

I adore the movement in this bracelet, all that flirty fringe is just so much fun.

African Bloom Earrings

These were sold out for a while but I have them now back up in the shop.  I love the colors of the African Turquoise contrasted with the warmth of the carved wood.  This pair looks stunning with an all black top.

The mud of love

 Jump in the mud, mud  

Get your hands filthy, love  

Give it up, love, everyday
All you need is  

All you want is  

All you need is love

-Dave Matthews "Everyday" 

***

 

Let's change the world today.

Let's jump in the mud of love.

Get everyone filthy with it!

Your neighbor

Your co-worker

Your kids

Your spouse

The checkout clerk

The waiter

Give filthy amounts of love today :)

***

Flexing the old design muscles

via

So you may not know that I have a background in graphic design, although I have not been 

very involved in it for many years. You'd never be able to guess my design background 

from looking at my blog.  Admittedly I do not spend a lot of time on the design of this baby.  

Not because I don't care, I just have to prioritize other things (aka work, kids, hubby, jewelry biz) 

to come in front of it and alas there are only so many hours in a day.

But over the past week or so I've been doing some design work for for Hubsy's business 

and I've loved it.  And so now I'm itching to improve things a bit.  A few months ago we got a

 new Mac with the intention of getting Photoshop and some of the other greats but they have 

not yet shown up in the budgeting plan :)  

So for the past few years I've been using a free program called Inkscape.  

Not that it is terrible in and of itself but you just can't export it to anything without losing the 

effects and such.  If your a designer, you know this is BAD....like way BAD...

extremely frustrating and extremely limiting.

So I'm curious to know what you all use for creating graphics for your blog or business.  

Do you have an "in-between" program to recommend or is it essentially Photoshop or bust?

Spotlight on color | Amethyst

Oh yeah, I totally put Prince in there!

Many of you probably already know that February's birthstone is Amethyst. 
Oh how I wish I was a February baby!

Amethyst can range from gentle violet to brilliant purple.

 Long known as the color of royalty, purple has many other properties you may not be aware of.

It is said to be the color of spiritual fulfillment and purpose.  If you surround yourself with purple you will have peace of mind.  

No wonder I've always been drawn to it :)

Being the combination of red and blue, the warmest and coolest colors, 

it is believed to be the ideal color.

Even if you aren't a February baby, don't let that stop you from rocking this commanding color!

If you want to add some calm power to your look, go for Amethyst.  

Pair it with light or dark shades, you can't go wrong.

Find Amethyst in my Etsy Shop!

Sparkling Wines Earrings