Ever jump for joy?

Hello my lovely goddess!

You know what?

Some of you reading this are my friends.

Some are my relatives. (Hi, mom!)

But some of you are just names on my contact list. I can only guess who you are. (You are goddess, that I know, but other than that, I don’t know anything about you. Except your email address.)

I’d like to get acquainted so here’s an invitation for you to send me a “Why hello there!”.

You can send me your photos, send me letters, random notes, hey, even poetry!

(Leave a comment below or write me at indre@hellomygoddess.com .)

I feel like I’ve got a monologue going here at my blog sometimes.

I wonder who you are, what bores you to tears, what you look like, or what your favorite flavor of ice cream is. (Artisan made dark chocolate with red hot chili peppers is my new fav BTW).

In the meantime, while I wait to hear from you, I took some photos of myself so you could see me better.

OK, I didn’t take the photos myself, as I actually had a professional photograph take them AND had a session of professional make-up.

Whoa, the make-up thing!

Have you ever had professional make-up done?

In my normal life, I am a nearly-no make-up sort of gal so this was a particularly special treat.

To have someone fuss over me so much while I relaxed in a chair with my eyes closed was even better than indulging in two scoops of my favorite ice cream. (Better for my hips anyway.) I told the make-up artist that I wanted a “no-make-up look” and she spent an entire 45 minutes to achieve that. That’s 90 times longer than I usually spend on my face before going out. (That’s 30 seconds for those who don’t want to do the math).

And the photographer? He’s a professional photographer, now semi-retired, who used to shoot for fashion magazines back in the ’80’s.

Did I mention how lucky I am?

No wonder I couldn’t keep myself from jumping up and down while my photos were being taken!!!

Nothing like feeling like a spontaneous, joyful 6-year-old!

Voilà, here I am, smiles and wrinkles, ripped stained jeans, and all.

Not a professional model but I’m sure having fun pretending to be one!

It’s only fair that I tell you a tiny bit about the clothes I choose to wear that day.

If you don’t my choices, I won’t be offended.

You don’t have to like everything I like.

I merely want to show how fun it is to tell your life story using clothes.

The jeans. Ah, the jeans. Ripped, stained, old. Dripping with history.

I bought them 2nd hand back in the mid ’70’s (no, I am not kidding) and put a few patches on them. Not that they had holes, it’s just that I liked decorating my jeans back then. I wore them constantly during my university days. After graduation, I went off to live in chic Paris, Milan, and Madrid and did not bring them with me. (Not chic enough for the European cities during the ’80’s, in my opinion.) I re-discovered them in the 90’s when I moved to a tiny coastal town. They fit right into my lifestyle here under the sun and palm trees.

I get tons of stares, compliments, snide remarks, smiles, looks of disgust, you name it.

Ice-breaker? You bet!

And the best part? They STILL fit after 40 years. Yeah, I’m a lucky girl. (I said that already.)

The top?

Another one of my personal favorites.

I designed it, made the pattern, and sewed it out of 100% linen.

I’ll make one for you, too! Just click HERE to see it in my etsy shop.

There’s also a red/black/beige version that looks beautiful on women with dark hair and/or dark skin.

Click here to see it.

The necklace?

I’ve nicknamed it the Cleopatra necklace but since I’ve promised to name my necklaces with goddess names, it can’t be Cleopatra. (Unless I cheat).

I wanted to choose the name Isis, the Egyptian goddess of magic and life., only that ISIS now is, unfortunately, associated with the name of an Islamic extremist terrorist group.

Pity.

Isis is such a beautiful goddess name.

I decided to name her Hathor instead.

Click on the photo to see this necklace in my shop.

Question time!

What’s your favorite flavor of ice cream?

What do your favorite pair of jeans look like?

Should I re-name the necklace Isis?

And if you don’t want to answer any of the questions, no problem.

If nothing else, please say HI!

Love, laughter, and joyful jumps,

Indre

P.S. My shoes? Just a old pair of converse sneakers to help me JUMP for joy. 🙂

May 5, 2015May 6, 2015

May Day or Mayday? Musings on feeling confident

Hello my goddess!

How are you today?

As I can’t hear your answer. I hope you are answering that are all is happy and well 🙂

And me? I am feeling wonderful.

Why? (Do we really even need a reason to feel wonderful?)

The merry month of May is my most bestest dazzlingest favoriteist month of all time.

(Spellcheck is telling me that some of those words I used are misspelled. Hellooo, spellcheck: I don’t care what you say. Those words DO exist. They are superkalifragelistics entries in Indre’s Dictionary of Favorite Words.)

There’s something about May that I can’t get enough of.

May starts out with May 1st. (duh…)

Ah, what a day! I really hope you danced your little hearts out and weren’t feeling too many sore muscles after all the prancing around the maypole with flowers in your hair. (Say whaaaaat? No maypole dancing? Oh, so sorry to hear that. How sad. Well, OK, confession time: neither did I. Maybe we’ll have to organize such an event next year; flowing gowns, crowns of flowers, wee faeries, and mighty goddesses included. What do you say? Shall we??!)

May 1st is a double whammy day because not only are you expected to dance around a maypole, you are also expected NOT to work. (Good idea as working & prancing aren’t very good dance partners.)
May 1st is a worker’s holiday in all of Europe (the equivalent to Labor Day in the US).
Any day that celebrates no-work-and-all-play is a great day, huh?

Then there’s May 2nd.

That is a big holiday in Madrid, Spain. Dos de Mayo. I used to live in Madrid and would get a super big kick out of the fireworks I’d see in the sky on that particular evening. Spaniards are very late night party people. So when they were celebrating on the 2nd, the fireworks would actually go off AFTER midnight. Which means that, in reality, it was the 3rd of May (not the 2nd) when all that colorful Bang-Bang stuff would take place. And why did I get a kick out of that? The 3rd is my birthday (thanks, Mom!!!), so I would take that fireworks celebration very personally. I clearly remember that first year I was in Madrid (turning 22!), standing there watching the fireworks as everyone was ooohing and aahhhhing, and I said to myself, “How cool it that? Madrid is celebrating my birthday!”

May 4th. Yesterday. BEE-Yoo-Tea-Full spring day. What more can we ask for?

May 5th. Today! Cinco de Mayo. Holiday & partying in Mexico! Another colorful fiesta! Never been there for that. I love bright colors coupled with blue skies and warm weather. I think I am putting that on my bucket list right now. Mexico on the 5th of May. Who wants to join me?

Today is also the day I send you something special.

A little surprise for you……….

Here’s a teeny weeny video for you!

“Oh, who cares”, I hear you say….

Ok, I understand, it is rather a waste of time to watch homemade YouTube videos.
(But what a better way to procrastinate than to watch funny puppy videos!)

This is NOT a Kute Kat video, nor a Funny Puppy video.

It is just me.

(Spoiler alert).

Jut Saying Hi.

Click on the image of me waving to watch.

Here is the thing.

It was SCARY for me to do this.

(Think: jumping out of a low flying vehicle, being locked up in a roomful of scorpions, being stranded on an island with no wifi.)

Heck, I don’t even do selfie photos of myself. So a selfie video???? Huh?

But I did it precisely because it was scary.

Here is the thing. (Yeah, I already said that, I know).

It feels SO GOOD to do something that is initially scary.

It moves you, it elates you, it transforms you into a real goddess!

And, that, my dearest goddess, is what this is all about:

Self-confidence.

Self-confidence is important to feel like a wonderful dazzling fantastic (and self-confident) goddess.

Doing something challenging, going beyond your comfort zone, helps boost your self-confidence.

Do you feel like you need a shot of self-confidence?

If so, I challenge YOU, my dear goddess, to do something a wee bit challenging today. Yes, today.

(Or this week. That’s OK, too.)

It could be something as simple as telling the guy who oh-so-impolitely shoved his way in front of you at the line at the supermarket that hey, you were there first.

Or maybe it could be as complicated as telling your boss that you deserve a raise.

Or telling him/her that today was the last day at work. Ever. (*gulp*)

Whatever. Try it. Please do. It feels WONDERFUL! (Especially after it is all over and those sweaty palms no longer sweat.)

Tell me about your intent at trying to do something scary.
Write about it in the comments below.
(Yeah, I get it, leaving a comment here is a scary challenge, isn’t it?)
I read each and every one of your comments. I love, love, love to get your comments on my blog 🙂

Please share this letter with anyone you know who may need a boost of self-confidence.

Hi & bye! See you soon!

😉

Indre the Happy Confident Goddess

April 22, 2015April 22, 2015

Lost all hope? Never fear! Eos is here!

Hello my dear goddess,

I am hoping you are thoroughly enjoying the spring weather as much as I am!

What have you been up to recently?

I’ve been tinkering around in my jewelry studio and made 4 pairs of earrings and 3 statement necklaces recently.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:

My heart sings making beautiful things!

So I really hope I don’t bore you out of your lovely goddess skull by showing you my stuff.
Today I’ll show you the first thing I made.
Something simple.
But not plain!
A simple pair of earrings.
Voilà!

All my jewelry pieces have a goddess name.
I believe that every woman is a goddess 😉
Don’t YOU think so?
E O S
Eos is the goddess of hope,
the goddess of the dawn,
the goddess of a new day.

Of all the goddesses to choose from,
why did I name these earrings after Eos, the goddess of hope?

The turquoise and Swarovsky crystals symbolize bright blue skies.
(And, why not, smooth sailing ahead, too!)
This is to remind ourselves that even if our day isn’t going exactly as we’d like,
perhaps it’s even downright miserable and grey,
there’s always hope that tomorrow will be better (patches of blue sky included).

Spring weather can be especially treacherous,
going from crystal clear blue skies to cloudy,
windy and stormy within hours, or even minutes.
Here in southern Spain,
our spring weather is usually
quite warm and sunny
but this year we’ve had
many cloudy and rainy days, too.

I must admit the clouds and rain can be pretty spectacular where I live.

See what I mean?

Next time you you are feeling all down and grey, just shout out,

“Hey, Eos, are you there?”

Shout again (louder!) if she doesn’t answer straight away,

“I need your help! Eeeeeeeeeooosssss!”

She’ll eventually answer (goddess are ageless and time has no relevance for them),

“Yes, I’m here. How may I help you?”

So it’s your turn to ask,

“Could you pretty please tell me where my day of hope is?
Gosh, I am feeling so lost…even a tad down today….”

And she’ll answer back,

“Just look inside yourself, my dear goddess, YOU are the ray of sunshine!”

(She sounds a bit like the good witch in Wizard of Oz, doesn’t she?)

Remember Eos’ kind words. They are the truth.

You ARE a perfect ray of sunshine.
(Wearing blue dangle earrings is optional.)

Please take a moment to share YOUR adventures with the spring weather.
Or about Eos.
Or whatever else is on your mind right now.

I am listening (OK, OK, reading, in this case).

Talk soon!

Indre

March 20, 2015March 20, 2015

Chocolate Cake & the 2nd Day of Spring

Hello my lovely goddess!

It’s spring!!!!!!!!!

I love all the seasons (some more equally than others) but spring is my special darling.

The days are getting longer.

The weather is getting warmer (kind of).

And best of all:

the pesky mosquitoes haven’t hatched yet!

Oh,wait, there IS one thing better than the lack of mosquitoes:

my favorite daughter’s birthday is tomorrow!

(I have one daughter BTW.)

I get to bake a chocolate cake (and eat it, too!)
Can life get any better than that? WOOT WOOT!

With the birth of spring and the arrival of flowers,
I just wanted to tell all you goddesses here
that no matter whether the rain is raining
or the sun is sunning,

YOU are the light and YOU are shining!

You may not be perfect (I am kinda not perfect either).
Perhaps you’re feeling down today
or maybe you are super duper up in the clouds, dancing with the rainbows, and finding pots of gold.
(Oh, if you find any gold coins, rubies, and emeralds in those pots, you know where to find me.)

Whatever you are doing, whatever you are feeling right now:

YOU are awesome just the way you are!

Spring has sprung,
This post is done,
Can’t wait to smell the flowers!

Talk to you next week, my lovelies!

Indre

Do YOU like spring? Yes ? No?

Tell me about your favorite season in the comments below!

Browse my etsy shop HERE

March 11, 2015March 20, 2015

Let’s share the sunlight, OK?

Hello my lovely goddess!

The sun is streaming through my window today
and I am reminded how grateful I am to be living in such a sunny warm place!
I realize that not all of you are so lucky, at least not as far as weather goes.
Never mind, spring will come to your part of the world (sooner or later…)

Even though the sun mostly shines in southern Spain,
life does have its moments of darkness around here.

I was quite abruptly reminded of the reason I choose “Hello My Goddess” as the name of my lifestyle brand.

Yesterday Mr. Ex Hubbie stopped by my studio unannounced.
He decided that last night was the moment to blame me for being distant to him.
And to blame me for treating him poorly.
And to blame me for taking advantage of him.
And to raise his voice.
And. And. And.

“Walk away!”, I hear you telling me. “Don’t listen to him!”

Easier said than done.

He was standing in the doorway. I was finishing up sewing a pair of linen trousers
for a woman in Oslo, Norway when Mr. Ex arrived.
(He did knock first before opening the door, I grant him that.)
He knows that I am alone while in the studio. He knows that my studio
has only one door and one tiny window. When he started to raise his voice
more than was comfortable for me, I grabbed the broom out of a corner
and started to sweep.

Trying to get rid of dirt?

Sweeping out the bad vibes?

hmmmmm, perhaps….

Why am I telling you this???

Because I want to tell you again and again and again
the reason why I choose the name Hello My Goddess.
I thought it awfully corny to choose the word “goddess”
when it came to me during an A-HA moment about 4 years ago.
Yet I couldn’t deny it. “Goddess” was the only word that so succinctly
summed up the two words WOMAN & POWER.
And I was in search of some badly needed power.

We women need to stand up for one another.
Support one another. Cheer each other on. Hold each other.
Hug each other. Yell out “Bravo!” at the top of our lungs when we succeed.
Give consoling words when when we are feeling down. Help each other.
Stand tall. Take sh** from nobody.
And show our power.
Our loving goddess power.

After Mr. Ex’s departure, I went up to my bedroom,
sat down on my favorite cushion, turned off the lights, and breathed.
After 10 minutes, my heart was not beating so rapidly. I was grateful it was over,
grateful to be divorced, grateful to be able to talk about this openly.
I am incredibly grateful that I learned a heck of a lot since 1980
when I first met and fell in love with this particular man.
Yet after all these years, he is still able to induce fear in me,
if only for a minute.

I just wanted to tell you something, no matter how awkwardly feminist and corny it sounds.
It doesn’t matter how tall you are, how short you are, how young, how old, how whatever.
You are beautiful and you are wonderful just the way you are.
The sun may or may not be shining right this very minute
in your geographical location, yet please remember that the sun is always in your heart and in your soul.

My goddess, remember that YOU are a goddess!

(I tell you this because I also need to remind myself, too.)

Changing topics, and onto much lighter things,
I wanted to let you know that I shall be re-vamping my
HelloMyGoddess lifestyle website during the next few months.

In the meantime, I’ve placed many of my creations into my etsy shop.
Please come and browse around my etsy HelloMyGoddess shop HERE.

While you are still on this page, please share your insights in the comment section below.

Do you feel trodden on by a boss, by a close family member, by a neighbor?

Vent it out!

(Remember you can keep your comment anonymous if that feels better for you).

How do you deal with the situation?
We are here to listen and support one another.

Love and (sun)light,

Indre

March 5, 2015March 7, 2015

Pants that fit you – EVERY TIME

Let’s face it.

Skinny jeans look good on about 2.999% of the world’s population.

(My 19-year-old daughter being one of the chosen few).

What about the rest of us?

Those of us who do not belong to the 2.999%?

(OK, OK, I admit… many of us DO love AND look good in skinny jeans!)

Those of us who have the health of a 30-year-old and the wisdom of a 300-year-old;

what kind of pants make us look good???

We’re the ones who make decisions.

We’re the ones who have the power.

WE ARE THE ONES WHO WEAR THE PANTS.

We are the ones who wear pants that that reflect our hopes, dreams, and wishes.

We are the ones who wear pants that that show our style.

“These are gorgeous pants made with great care and beautifully styled. I can’t wait to wear them. Thank you so very very much. I love the style and it’s not an easy one to find!”

-Liz

We are the ones who wear pants that look good if we wear size LARGE.

We are the ones who wear pants that look good if we wear size SMALL.

We are the ones who wear pants that look good if we wear size XX-LARGE.

We are the ones who wear pants that look good if we wear size WHATEVER.

Here’s what the French ladies (oh là là!) have to say:

“Je suis ravie de cette première commande, quel plaisir d’avoir un vêtement sur mesure, parfaitement coupé ! Très grand talent et professionnalisme de la créatrice, qui par ailleurs est tout à fait adorable … Un grand merci et à très vite pour une prochaine commmande.”

(“I am delighted with this first order, what a pleasure to have a customized garment, perfectly cut! Great talent and professionalism of the designer, who also is quite lovely … A big thank you and see you soon for a future order.”)

-Maimylene

“J’ai reçu le pantalon, il est parfait et me va très bien.”

(“I received the pants, they are perfect and fit me very well.”)

–aureadenier

“Très beau pantalon, très belle qualité, fait sur mesure. La livraison a été rapide. Je recommande. Une expérience très positive! “

(“Very nice pants, very good quality, custom made. The delivery was fast. I recommend this. A very positive experience!”)

-Aurore

“Je suis satisfaite de ce pantalon, belle finition merci”

(“I’m happy with these pants, nicely finished. thank you”)

-Sylvie

Go on, wear the pants. Make the decisions.

Believe in yourself, you lovely goddess.

Show the world your power with style!

Buy the pants that fit.

BUY THEM HERE.

Now.

February 16, 2015February 16, 2015

Red-colored heart-shaped object. And it’s not even Valentine’s Day!

Recently, I was at my mom & dad’s house.

This may not seem like a big deal to you but it is a HUGE deal to me!

My parents live more than 4,400 miles
(that’s 7,000 km, my European friends) away from me.

So it’s not like I can just hop into my car and arrive at their doorstep on a whim.

Seeing as I hadn’t seen my dad in about 5 years (yeah, crazy, I know!) and my mom in over a year, I had decided to spend the entire month of December and the first week of January at my parents’ house in Chicago.

I even slept in the same bedroom I had when I was between the ages of 7 – 17!

What memories!

I started looking through the closet and drawers.

Imagine being able to look through your old dressers and closet!

While you are imagining, I’d like you to imagine something else.

Imagine the excitement of a little girl, rushing to the living room
on December 25th at 6 a.m.,
and discovering a mountain
of colorfully wrapped boxes
under the Christmas tree.

That’s exactly how I felt when I opened the dresser drawers.

Where my old stuff used to be.

What I discovered instead were piles of beads and semi-precious stones.

My mom’s stash of beads.

And she said I could keep them!

Oh, the joy!

But…

There was a problem.

Keep in mind that after the holidays, I had to fly back to Spain.
Leaving behind cold and dreary Chicago weather and exchanging it for sunny and warm Spain.
No problem there!

So what was the problem?

The dilemma was that I was only allowed 50 lbs. (23 kilos) in my suitcase.

Which meant that I had to decide judiciously what I was going to take with me, and what I was to leave behind.

Decisions, decisions!

But…

what a FUN decision!

I made up my mind to take the pile of coral.

(I also decided to take the pile of turquoise but that is another story. Oh, and the silver. You can bet I didn’t leave behind the sterling silver.)

So here it was, sitting on my studio desk back in Spain.

A bright bunch of coral.

Luscious.

And red.

Grab a closer look.

So I pulled out my jewelry making tray.

And started to play!

Hmmm, what goes with coral?

Turquoise goes with coral!

And what goes with coral and turquoise?

Why, amber and sterling silver do!

I played and played.

And here’s what I came up with.

It’s sitting on my studio desk right now.

So here it is.

The “rough draft” of my coral + turquoise + amber + sterling silver necklace.

“Still not finished?”, you ask.

Yeah….uhhh…

Still not finished.

Heck.

Ran out of jewelry stringing supplies. Bummer. Whatever.

Had to order more supplies.

Still waiting, semi-patiently, for the order to arrive….

You want to see it when it’s done?

What do you think?

Should I re-arrange the beads?

Take out something?

Add something?

Do you ever wear statement necklaces? Yes? No?

LET ME know!

Write your opinion & ideas (heck, or just say HI if you can’t think of anything) in the comment section below!

thanks <3

July 24, 2014August 3, 2014

BROCADE CLUTCH Give-away!

Win this One-of-a-Kind Clutch!

Why am I doing this?
Just because I am grateful that you’re here reading this!

The winner will be announced on July 31st.

What do you have to do to participate?

If you got this letter from a friend, then here is what to do:

Click here to go the homepage & sign up.
Make sure to scroll down to see the box where to enter your name and email!

If you are already receiving letters from me, you don’t have to do anything.
You are already entered to win.

About the clutch:

I made it.
What inspired me was the fabric.
I had a small remnant of a brocade fabric
that I bought from a small fabric manufacturer in France a few years ago.
Despite being made in France, the fabric made me feel like I was in Kyoto just looking at it!

I am in love with traditional Japanese culture.
I’ve never been to Japan and I don’t even know any Japanese people.
Yet their sense of design enchants me.

Kimonos, ikebana (art of flower arrangement), sushi, zen gardens…

The words that immediately jump to mind when I think of Japanese design are:

Simplicity.
Harmony.
Balance.
Perfection.

This clutch isn’t a masterpiece of Japanese design (after all, I am not Japanese!) but it is elegant and timeless.

Here you can see the front part of the clutch and the brocade fabric.

I added two “flowers” to the zipper pull, making it both practical for zipping open
and to add an exotic touch. 🙂

The inside has orange and fuchsia satin.

The back is simple, all in black, so as to keep the overall design understated & elegant.
This fabric is 100% linen, made in Barcelona.
It can also be worn with the black side looking out.

One-of-a-kind.
Made with lots of LOVE 🙂

I realize that evening bags are often just worn once and then stashed away in closets and forgotten. What a pity that would be if that happened to this bag. 🙁

So it occurred to me that when you travel, this bag could be the ideal place to store your undies & socks so they wouldn’t get all jumbled in your suitcase. And you’d have that evening bag ready, just in case you got invited out to that chic little bistro on the Seine…..
You just never know!

Do you like this bag?
Did you like the story behind it?

Invite your friends to join the give-away!

For each friend you invite,
you will receive an additional chance to win.

How do I know who your friends are, so you’d qualify for more entries?

Have them leave your name in the comment section below,
so I know who gets extra entries.

Thanks for participating!

Good luck to all of you!

The winner will be notified personally by email and also announced July 31st
on my blog https://www.hellomygoddess.com/blog/
and on Facebook over at https://www.facebook.com/hellomygoddess

Share this with your friends!

Don’t forget to remind them
to add your name in the comment box below so that
I know how many entries you have!

Talk next week!

Love,
Indre

P.S. If you love to read, here’s a dreamy & enchanting & romantic novel I read recently.
The protagonist? The Japanese garden!!!

The Garden of Evening Mists Tan Twan Eng.

July 11, 2014July 18, 2014

BEACH = sea shells

It’s July!

Off to the beach!

YAAAAY!! I LOVE the beach.

Actually, I am lucky because I do not have to wait until July to go to the beach. I merely have to put on my shoes or sandals, and in 10 minutes flat (walking, not by car!) I am on the shores of the Mediterranean.

I never sunbathe. Boooooooooring!

Instead, I swim. Or I walk. Occasionally I run.

What I always do, no matter what, is pick up the little treasures I see at my feet:
seashells, pebbles, stones, twigs, sea urchin shells, sea glass……….

Sometimes I carry the little jewels in my hand for awhile, and then end up throwing them back into the sea.

Other times I cannot resist the temptation of taking the treasure home.
The big ones are doorstops and paperweights, the tiny ones get made into jewelry or mini shelf art pieces that you can get here.

I ran across an idea in Sweet Paul magazine* about converting seashells = spoons.
Oh, I HAD to try that!

Here’s a handful of shells that I picked especially for the project:

I won’t give you instructions how to make these spoons.

If you are artsy fartsy, like me, you can figure out it out by just looking at the photos.

If you are not a confident DIY-er, then here’s what you need:

***an assortment of seashells

***different thicknesses of wire (you can get some at the hardware store or at a craft shop)

***pliers (to help bend the thicker wires. any old pair will do)

***a hammer & nail (to punch a hole in the shell, you place the nail in inner part of the shell. With one quick blow, you’ll make a hole. Careful for your fingers! Be forewarned that some shells will break this way 🙁 Be sure to have lots of extras!)

It was a bit fiddly to make the first one. I was ready to give up.
I ventured to make another a week later. That’s when I got hooked and made 4 in one go.

So now I have 5 of these sweet mermaid spoons.

Where to use them?

In the salt jar? hmmm, maybe not. I already have a cute wooden spoon there.

In the sugar bowl? YES! Good idea!

My mom made this sugar bowl eons years ago.
(OK , I know, I know. White sugar is a “no-no” nowadays but I have the stuff around the house for a few of my friends who need the so-called-white-poison in their coffee or tea).

Anyone for some blackberry jelly & freshly baked whole wheat bread & a cup of tea??? mmmmmm

This isn’t a story. So it doesn’t need an ending.
But just in case here are the 3 morals:

·Observe the tiny things in life. (seashells, smiles, butterflies, free hugs)

·Nothing is perfect. Yet everything is perfect in it’s imperfection. (each seashell is uneven in shape, size and color. like my teeth. like my body. like my new website. )

·Enjoy the process. Savor the journey. Sure, the outcome is important but if you don’t pay attention to the ride, you’re missing out. (making the seashell spoons was just as fun as seeing the end result. life rushes past too quickly. take each day one at a time. and don’t forget to smell the flowers. you don’t know if they’ll be around tomorrow.)

*Original seashell spoon idea seen on http://www.sweetpaulmag.com/crafts/seashell-spoons

July 4, 2014July 4, 2014

Come visit me in Spain!

Happy Birthday, US of A !

For those of my American friends reading this, I hope you are enjoying these 3 days of outdoor fun.

After indulging in

grilled zucchini + secret spicy sauce,

green onion + red skinned potato salad,

special brew beers,

and those crazy red-white-blue jello-O margarita shots,

maybe you’re wishing that this non-work weekend could last forever.

Maybe not.

Maybe you suffer from an acute case of of wanderlustitis

and wish that your whole life were a vacation.

Come visit me in Spain!

I’m not kidding!

I’ve made several good friends through the internet. And TWO of them actually ventured beyond their comfort zone and made it out to my teeny weeny town in the middle of nowhere in southeast Spain.

(Caralee & Laura Z, here’s a winking at you!)

We had the best time, going for long walks by the sea and indulging in the best hot chili + rich dark chocolate ice cream that money can buy (around here, anyway). If you don’t believe me, ask them 😉

Since it might be awhile since you can make it all the way to my little corner of the world, I’ve decided to invite you into my studio.

OK, I’m sure you’d just prefer the beach but since you are my guest, you’ll have to put up with me while I show you some of the tiny things that have meaning in my daily life.

A little cabinet that I found abandoned out on the street in Madrid eons ago.

It was a boring brown so I painted it a snazzy black +white + red.

A couple of years ago I white-washed it, adding grungy swirls.

A closer look at what I keep on top of it:

+A triptych of mini art, entitled “Beauty & the Beast” , painted by my best friend Doreen.

+A heart shaped rock I found on the beach (no kidding!) that I decided to paint red. I use it as a paperweight.

+Another beach stone, this one painted with an all-seeing eye by my son when he was 8? 10?

+A trade-fair bowl I bought some years back. I loved the story behind it: Made by Nepalese women, using traditional basket-weaving techniques but made out of candy wrappers!

I decided to take off the boring old door knob and replaced it with a stone.

(I live next to nature: stones of all shapes and sizes are plentiful around here).

I drilled a hole in it & painted it red. And for the final touch, I added a red satin cord with beads as the pull so I could open it.

Inside you can see the snazzy way I had painted in back in the ’80’s when I first found this.

My design inspiration + ideas are stored here.

View of my studio. I dream up ideas & make jewelry here.

Nice windows with lots of sunshine. Yeah, I know!

I am lucky!

Hey, come visit!

Whaddya say?

Leave your comments (or your travel dates) below!

June 27, 2014September 25, 2015

Let’s make the world a more beautiful place! TOGETHER!

“ …surrounding yourself with objects that are not only beautiful, but also elegant, can make a world of a difference…”

“I like to surround myself with things I love. “

“ Some decades ago, conscious consumerism was ‘I don’t want my dollar to support a bad cause.’ Now it’s one step better: ‘I want my dollar to do something good.’ “

“A product shouldn’t just be ethical. It should be attractive. You don’t want a product that does good. You want a better product that does good.”

”It’s not about buying more. It’s about buying better.”

“We’re living in a really powerful time. So many people are waking up. So many shifts are happening. People want to discover who they are and make a difference in the world.”

“ whether you’re starting a revolution or you smile at a human on the street …. what you do matters…. “

“connecting to like-minded people on the powerful web”

“inspire → be inspired → inspire → be inspired”

“I’d love to inspire you so that you could inspire me”

These are all snippets of ideas that are whizzing around my brain.

I know I am not the only one thinking this way.

I heard YOU say them on the internet.

You have inspired me!

I am a creator. I love to make clothes. I love to make jewelry.

Yet with so much “stuff” out there already, much of it just polluting our lovely planet, I felt a deep discontent about adding more daily junk to our overstuffed lives.

And here is how you have inspired me:

I’ve gone treasure-hunting
to bring you
beauty and meaning and love
to your daily life

because I’ve come to the conclusion that by surrounding ourselves
with beauty,
with true friendship,
and with love,
we are adding meaning to our lives.

DO YOU AGREE???

Here’s a sneak preview of what you will find at Hello My Goddess:

Beautiful things.

Filled with meaning.

Made by do-gooders from all over the world.

WRAP TOP made by Avda

OIL & VINEGAR CRUETS made by Maia

NATURAL LINEN NAPKINS made by Urte and Simona

I’d like your input, your comments, your ideas.
By joining forces and doing this together,
we CAN be the change we want to see in the world!

So pretty please, leave your insights below!

The merry month of May is my most bestest dazzlingest favoriteist month of all time.

It feels SO GOOD to do something that is initially scary.

Self-confidence.

Do you feel like you need a shot of self-confidence?

Hello my dear goddess,

I am hoping you are thoroughly enjoying the spring weather as much as I am!

Hello my lovely goddess!

Hello my lovely goddess!

Why am I telling you this???

My goddess, remember that YOU are a goddess!

Let’s face it.

We’re the ones who make decisions.

We’re the ones who have the power.

“These are gorgeous pants made with great care and beautifully styled. I can’t wait to wear them. Thank you so very very much. I love the style and it’s not an easy one to find!”

(“I am delighted with this first order, what a pleasure to have a customized garment, perfectly cut! Great talent and professionalism of the designer, who also is quite lovely … A big thank you and see you soon for a future order.”)

-Maimylene

(“I received the pants, they are perfect and fit me very well.”)

–aureadenier

(“Very nice pants, very good quality, custom made. The delivery was fast. I recommend this. A very positive experience!”)

-Aurore

(“I’m happy with these pants, nicely finished. thank you”)

-Sylvie

Show the world your power with style!

Win this One-of-a-Kind Clutch!

Invite your friends to join the give-away!

For each friend you invite, you will receive an additional chance to win.

Share this with your friends!

Happy Birthday, US of A !

Maybe not.

Come visit me in Spain!

Hey, come visit!

“ Some decades ago, conscious consumerism was ‘I don’t want my dollar to support a bad cause.’ Now it’s one step better: ‘I want my dollar to do something good.’ “

”It’s not about buying more. It’s about buying better.”

“ whether you’re starting a revolution or you smile at a human on the street …. what you do matters…. “

“inspire → be inspired → inspire → be inspired”

For each friend you invite,
you will receive an additional chance to win.