Things I Love

I haven’t written a post in a while as I lost a dear friend earlier in October. My faithful and loyal dog moved on the doggie heaven and I miss her dearly. Her passing has made me refocus my energies on those closest to me and I hug my hubby and kids tight – a lot. You never know when life will change in an instant.

But it’s a new month. I’m ready to be inspired and awestruck by the world around me again. So to get back into the blogging mode again I thought I would share with you some of the things I love …

I love fall hikes. This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago and even though the leaves were past their prime the day was near perfect in my mind. Even on a day when the sun isn’t at its brightest the colours of the leaves make the woods a happy place. Add to that the sound of leaves on the ground underfoot and the shrieks of kids running around and this lady has a big smile on her face.

My boys … especially when they are acting like goofs!

I recently celebrated a birthday (my 29th, again) and my darling husband gave me a vintage Miriam Haskell necklace. I’ve drooled over her designs before but was so surprised that he remembered. So … for next time I’d like one of these:

via

Or, this …

via

I love my husband dearly but what’s not to love when he gives me jewlery!

And, finally, my girl. She was the best pal ever.

I will be back next week in regular blogging mode – how I’ve missed writing!

Have an excellent weekend.

Jewelry Design: Miriam Haskell

I was shopping recently in one of our local boutiques and discovered the amazing vintage costume jewelry from Miriam Haskell. I’m smitten.

Her designs may be familiar to anyone who has ever played around with costume jewelry. I’m pretty sure my grandmother has a few of her pieces that I used to try on as a little girl.

She first opened her boutique in New York in 1926 and created custom collections for the society women of the time. She also designed jewelry for the likes of Coco Chanel, Joan Crawford, Lucille Ball and the Duchess of Windsor.

All Miriam Haskell pieces were and are today crafted by hand. Each element is wired to a filigree backing. One of the distinguishing features of a Miriam Haskell piece is that all the elements are woven together in such a way that you can’t see any of it underneath. One of a kind and gorgeous!

My personal favourites are the necklace designs. And, the cocktail rings. And, the bracelets. Yup, pretty much everything!

What style do you like? Do you own any vintage Miriam Haskell jewelry? I think I’d like to acquire some pieces in the not too distant future!

images via Miriam Haskell and here