Happy Mothers' Day!

Yep - jumping the gun a little bit here - but, what the heck. Happy Mothers' Day to all the moms and moms-to-be (You know who you are!) and all the kids from 0 to 110 who wouldn't haven't gotten to be here without their moms.

That about covers everyone, doesn't it. But hey - it's May - some of us have had a few days of decent weather, and any excuse to celebrate - that's what we say!

If you thought you might mosey on down to the store and take Mom bead shopping this weekend - that's a heck of a good idea, and so - we're having a little sale -Swarovski 4 mm Bicones are 16% off. Starts Thursday - runs through to next week. And, if you're not within moseying distance - well - that's what the website is for! Because - it's a big country and we can't be everywhere.


Mother's Day, beads, you might think that a sale is the cherry-on-top - but actually no. The cherry-on-top is Cherry Quartz. We have a new shipment of Cherry Quartz - in all the usual shapes and sizes. Actually - the colour is more salmon than cherry - but I suspect that calling it Salmon Quartz might not have had the same appeal. Would have worked for me though - I like salmon.

Salmon Quartz - or Cherry Quartz - is a "manufactured" stone - inspired by strawberry quartz - which is a quartz variety with iron oxide inclusions. When you examine Cherry Quartz closely - you see that it is colorful, translucent inclusions in a fine, clear matrix. Because of the way it is made - it is manufactured in blocks - it is then carved, shaped, ground, cut, and polished exactly the same way as any other stone bead. The labour remains the same - only the original starting point differs.

In fact - we have two more new stones this month! Also new, and available in all the usual shapes and sizes is Mexican Red Snowflake Jasper. Jasper - as you may have figured out from the huge number of varieties that we carry (Currently 16 and counting) - comes in many different flavours - some pretty specific from the part of the world that they come from. This is much like regional food - pasta may be everywhere - but a noodle is not just a noodle. In fact - the cooking analogy is a good one - Mother Nature cooks up variations depending on the available local ingredients - a dash of iron oxide here might get substituted for another element somewhere else. All that remains is for you to pick your favourite! This Mexican Red Snowflake Jasper is a variation on Ocean Jasper, and has different colours - but the patterns are similar. MRSJ is roundish patterns of red, orange, and cream on a black and grey background.

Also new this month is ... TA DA! ... Dragon Vein Agate. Dragon Vein Agate reminded me right away of the Fire Agate we used to have - and indeed - that is what it is. This is also a stone that has had a little help to look the way it does. Also known as "Fire Crackle" agate - this starts as an agate, which is then coated and heated and cooled rapidly - to create the distinctive vein pattern on the surface. It's pretty cool-looking stuff, and for some reason - reminds me of sea turtles.

Oh, speaking of Dragons, which I frequently do, we also just got a big re-stock of Dragon's Blood Jasper in - which is our stone of the month - and on sale for the month of May! This is a mottled green with splashes of red - so another earthy look. Earth Dragon look.


That's it for this week, hope you and your mom have a lovely day, and we hope to make your day happier with lovely beads. Please click on a link or an image above, or just go here for all the wonderful new and fabulous old beads this week!

Oh, and I almost forgot - you can get her some flowers here too. Pressed Wild Flowers.
...I cut down trees, I skip and jump, I love to press wild flowers ... . ;-) Your earworm for the day. You're welcome. :-P