i found these magical rings via the carrotbox blog. if you've been following this blog for a while, you know i love big rings that are not sparkly bling, but still feel like bauble-y cocktail rings on the finger. wearing a ring that you have to pay attention to and can't just shove your hand in a jeans pocket makes me feel, in the most delicious sense, like a lady of leisure. mari ishikawa's whole range is exquisite, check it all out here. it looks as if they are cast directly from natural materials, like seed pods and leaf clusters. i'm loving the patinas and simplicity of the bands. most certainly statement jewelry!

meet dutch artist hester zagt and marvel at her lovely work. she combines two elements of earth, metal and clay, in the most elegant and refined way. the pieces pictured here are silver and glazed porcelain. i'm personally inspired by all types of vintage kitchen tools and it looks as if she's also got a love for citrus reamers. i love that the work is so quietly funky and very wearable. it's jewelry i would buy for myself. you can view her whole online collection here.

if it's been a while since you checked out my etsy shop, bread + butter, please do stop by. I'll be posting a few new things this week and have added a sale section with some incredible deals. out with the old, in with the new!

new in the shop, these beautiful drop earrings. featuring a vintage ball button from about the 1930's, they have a subtle embossed floral pattern and are very light-weight. i've stitched them onto pure copper chain using very fine copper wire and hung them on anodized wires. copper is perfect for fall and in keeping with the affordable profile of the shop, they are only $24! 

my deepest thanks to everyone who commented on my big news. it's an amazing feeling to step forward into my best life with a stronghold of supportive voices behind me. thank-you, thank-you from the bottom of my heart.

remember how i've been referring to a secret project for weeks now and how last week when i wrote of my year of magical thinking? that was a bit of foreshadowing to my big news of today. after months and years and long weeks of slow, plodding steps forward - i am taking a leap!

i have secured a business loan and am launching into my jewelry studio full time! yes. i. am. i sit here simply amazed at my own boldness. crafting a life i love, made of days i own, wholly. what will the texture of that life be like? within a month, i will find out.

i've been waiting and hoping and planning and dreaming and fretting. it's time to live it. 

after all, the biggest risks in life are often the ones we don't take.

what inspires such boldness? well, two fictional characters helped cinch the deal in my mind after a hard week. it was a week in august which i came to the point where i said to myself, i cannot sustain this life i'm living anymore. i knew i was headed for a crash, i felt it in my very bones. my body had been trying to get my attention for two years, i just kept saying "not now, i'll deal with you later."

i've been so out of balance and it hit me hard, how much i risked in physical and emotional well-being. by working seven days a week, by running myself and my dreams nearly into the ground working two jobs on top of my business. and how ready i felt to take the balls-out route and just go for it.

back to the inspiration: laugh if you will, but it's one part harry potter, the final book. (spoiler alert!) he triumphs and earns the life he wants because he wasn't afraid to die. he faces his evil foe unarmed and with a heart wide open. and one part that girl from the movie whale rider, she does exactly the same, faces her fear, not afraid to die, knowing she is on the right path. she rides the whale into the sea, lives to tell the tale and becomes the tribal chief. sound a little crazy? i know. inspiration is like that, it's around all the time, in the deep and obviously profound and in the silly, popcorn children's stories. being open is the key. and somehow, when you're in a metaphoric plane crashing towards earth, your heart and eyes open a bit wider.

i realized i don't want a life lived in fear, clinging to some (false) sense of security.

in the end, i take this step with the support and belief of some very key people in my life. dear friends and family that see my talents and success more clearly than i can at this point. you know who you are and i cannot thank-you all enough! 

excellent food always inspires me, be it casual or fine dining. for me the feeling of being very well fed comes not just from the flavors, but also from deep within the food: how it is grown and the love and attention it received at each step, from source to kitchen to my table. then there is food that goes another step into sublime. food that is art on your plate, and all the rest.

i had one of the best meals of my life on monday, my birthday, at the bay house, just south of lincoln city, oregon. lovely dining room, wonderful service and they treated me to a table right in front of the window, looking out onto the bay. i've never spent two lingering hours over a meal by myself and certainly not celebrating a birthday. it was wonderful! i didn't even write in my journal or read, i just tuned into the pleasure of the experience, the amazing food and the view.

i was actually staying in the present moment, savoring my own company and feeling that being right where i am in this life is pretty damn great. watching the tide go out, the sun set slowly, the seabirds feeding - was so deeply relaxing. i highly recommend the bay house for a special occasion or anytime you feel like treating yourself really well.

when i arrived and ordered wine, the chef sent out the lovely little bite you see pictured above. salmon soaked in tequila and topped with a dab of creme fresh and cilantro "caviar". it was perfect. after taking a photo and chatting with the server, i sent my compliments to the chef. he then sent out an amazing appetiser, pictured below, that blew me away. i know i won't get every part of the description correct, but it was fois gras with seared scallops and the most delicate reduction sauce, topped with a fresh fennel sprig. absolute heaven on a plate -so beautiful and so delicious.

the rest of my meal was equally yummy (creme brulee gets five stars from me!), and i drove back home feeling like a fat, happy puppy. a truly memorable meal in every way. the chef at bay house, justin wills, is also a blogger. you can check him out here at donkeychicken.

thanks again, to the lovely staff at the bay house for making my birthday so special.