"By Invitation Only" an International Group of Women Bloggers Sharing Their Own Point of View

February, 2013

our topic is

"INSPIRATION"

what inspires us?

& who (other than our husbands & children) has inspired us the most?

As I was searching for the proper photograph 

(above) 

to place in this post,

searching for a long time, I might add...

suddenly, there it was !

& so, my friends, today you might say this extravagantly 

done-up woman has been my inspiration

to explain to you where my inspiration comes from,

or rather, from where my inspiration comes.

Recently Vicki Archer wrote a post about surrounding herself

with beauty; this year she will focus on what she believes

to be beautiful, in every meaning of the word.

She inspired me with her post.

We all love beautiful things, don't we?

But, I don't think that's what she meant exactly.

To me, there is beauty in so very much of our lives, sometimes

beauty we overlook if we don't take time to notice.

I am inspired by the Pacific Ocean, overlooking the blue ocean of

the Pacific Northwest.  The power, the awesomeness, the ever changing

waves washing ashore.  I think I can dream deeply and feel deeply

when in these locations.  In fact, I think there is a book in me, however,
it is only when I'm here that I think this way.

And flowers.

I look at flowers and always see something inside which

amazes me.
I only wish I could create something as beautifully perfect
as every flower already is.

The sunlight shining through the trees inspires me, sometimes

it inspires me to be a better person, sometimes it wakes me up

and tells me to get on with it, but it is truly inspirational.

Like the light.

Always, the light.

Inspiration comes from photographs, the millions we can

access online, via Tumblr, Pinterest, etc.

All of us know this.

for example, what do you think when you see this stairway?

& music.

Always music.

But, not all music, just the genre of music I know & love,

the classic symphonies, never ever opera, not country,

love pop, like rock,

& I expose myself to all of it.

Each of you hear the music I'm listening to right now,

it's playing.

The amazing women I've come to know via our blogs inspire me

everyday.  Yvonne Pratt @ StoneGable, Heather @ Lost in Arles,

Tish @ Une Femme d'un a Certain Age,

Sandra @ ThistleCove Farm

Trish @ Trouvais & Coty @ Coty Farquhar Designs.

Shari @ LittleBlueDeer.

& Vicki, because she has the most elegant way of writing,

the content of her blog & her books inspire women all over

the world.

I have been made a better person because of all of you.

Each of you, in your own special way, bring the best of yourself

to your blog.  I know how much time and thought this takes.

Creating posts that are insightful, beautiful, witty, current,

interesting, informative & entertaining is a huge project

 I undertake almost every day.

Sometimes it comes in a flash.

Sometimes not.

My inspiration is the desire for you to read it and smile.

Inspiration in my jewelry business comes with the

certainty that I am only satisfied with the best.

Once a very special friend asked me to create a necklace

representing the wines of France.

The wines of France?

Well, there are yellow ones, rose ones, burgundy ones,

white ones, there are sparkling ones and very heavy ones.

Then I thought, Mother Nature doesn't make any

mistakes.  I put every gemstone and semi-precious gemstone

on a piece of glass, pushed them all around and, suddenly, I realized

how beautiful they all looked together.

So I made the necklace and it was beautiful and my client

almost died with gratitude.

He inspired me to be the best I could be.

& then there was my grandmother, Mom-Mom,

the most inspirational person in my life.

I've written about her, as a fictional character, in blog posts

in the past, always referring to her as Mom-Mom,

those posts were the most widely read ones.

She was like an Auntie Mame, an Elizabeth Taylor,

an Eleanor Roosevelt...

she knew EVERYTHING.

Seriously, she knew everything I was interested in knowing.

She taught all of us manners, deportment, the strength to

always be composed no matter what, to sit straight in a chair,

and how to read the newspaper and understand different points

of view. She also taught me how to have conversations with

anyone, to learn about everything, to never be bored,

and to always leave a good ripple.

She invited strangers home to dinner,
thankfully, they didn't come.

She took me to the ballet.

And, when I got married she taught me, by telephone, how to cook.

She made birthday cakes with money inside them.

She taught me the difference between fine porcelain

and everyday dishes.

She also taught me to laugh out loud at silly things.

She inspired me to get a degree in Art History though I

was not an artist. 

She painted her home whenever the mood struck her, 

and never cared what anyone thought about the most recent color.

She bought Christmas gifts for everyone all through the year,

and made a huge, big deal about Christmas dinner with the entire

family at her table.

She is my angel now.  

She told me she would be.

 I know she is there,

in the light, in the ocean, in the flowers, in the music, 

and in all the details I am obsessed with.

Or rather, in all the details with which I am obsessed.

We have a new member of

"BY INVITATION ONLY"

brought to us via Karin @ LaPouyette.

Please go over to meet

Marie-Claude

at "The Almanac Obsolete"

HERE

also visit the other members who are participating today,
they are linked in below my post.
just click on their icon & be inspired again.