R.I.P. Stella Salamone

My heart has ached for the last few days upon hearing you were in the hospital.  I hope you felt the many prayers I sent your way.  I should have been there with you and tried to stay up all night but I passed out between 3 and 4 this morning and just woke to learn that you passed early this morning.

I pray your soul made it quickly to the other side and you will stop in to say hello.  Please send strength and angels to your husband who is horribly broken up.

I'm gonna miss you so terribly much!

The airwaves won't be the same without our Thrash Queen



I'll miss your always open door and the invitations to dinner or just to stop in for a beer to watch YouTube videos.  We always looked out for each other no matter what tragedy the day brought.  I miss cook outs with you.  I miss your unique style and your great art.  I miss your blunt honesty which made you such a true friend.  And I dearly miss your laugh.   How can anything be the same?

My only solace in this moment is that I will see you again and you are finally free from all that pain

Day of the Dead part I

In case anyone wondered what the Mother Mary Machine actually is-

A Marshall full stack with Our Lady of Guadalupe on the screen.  Here is an artist rendition:

This time of year always makes me reminisce about Dia de los Muertos and how much fun it was in Cleveland last year!  There was such a great community festival with a lot of artist involvement.

Here is the entrance to the graveyard where you could leave messages for the dead:

Many artists, myself included, had the honor of creating ofrendas or shrines within the church.  There was such a great variety of interpretation it turned out to be a very spiritual night.

Here is a couple from the parade that went down the street

This was a great, life size Mary

All of these were handmade!

This is part of the shrine that I made.  It was in honor of my grandmother, my cat Chango, and Our lady of Guadalupe.  We built the display and filled it with paintings, drawings, a quilt, and mementos.

The air was filled with incense and music

This was the main altar made by Dante Rodriguez in honor of his abuela.  I love the housecoats and they reminded me of my own grandmother!

Here is another close up of mine:

This is a view at night when the sun was down and all the candles in the room had a magnificent glow.

This is from another artist.  

What a great time!  A shame to be missing it this year, boo.

TangledArts Crocheted Beret

It took me a couple days just to decide on a color, 

TangledArts from etsy has so many great options!  I figured grape would go best since I have a lot of wine, grey, and army green in my wardrobe.  I thought this would compliment it rather than just blend in.

I'm already loving it and look forward to warming my head once the weather cools!

nouveaute vintage supplies

Opened up the second shop finally!  I counted over 200 cards of vintage buttons that I bought from a retired seamstress's son.  As much as I love having these in my possession, they deserve to be USED!  I do keep some things just to look at and I will save a few buttons for myself and personal projects but seeing as I have a suitcase of these and a ton of lace and rick rack also acquired during that transaction...  Perhaps if I wasn't also a crocheter and a knitter, a sewer, a jewelry maker, a day of the dead altar maker, and just a renter- maybe then I would keep it all.


Besides, how else could I validate still buying supplies were I not destashing!

Frida Kahlo Necklaces

I made these earlier in the summer while thinking of Day of the Dead and Frida.  They're exactly the kind of necklaces I love- something that goes with a tank top and jeans and makes all the statement you need.

There's a connection between expression and your joy in life.  To be free to dress in whatever manner truly reflects how you're feeling and love that look.  I think Frida is someone who stepped out and wore a true expression of her artistic passion.


Inspired by Frida Kahlo, these necklaces are bold and made with the vision of traditional Mexican folk art.  The vibrant array of color provided by turquoise, gemstones, porcelain, and wooden beads is a celebration of life and and an expression of inner joy.  Each bead is wire wrapped to the next for sturdy construction.

I've got three potential shows coming up and so far I've been very productive and actually sticking to a schedule.  Regular trips to the post office, time set aside every day to make things, and yoga is finally starting to stick.  Hooray!

Male Models, Meow!

I'm so lucky to have married someone who doesn't mind modeling for me.  Plus, he wears my jewelry anytime we go out or he plays a show.  And it's nice to get a guy's opinion on some designs and also use his neck as a gauge for length.  I pay him in jewelry.  And lovin.

 Another plus is he finds me really cool pieces while he's out at work like that cool metal cylinder in the necklace above.  And it was a good buddy of his that supplied me with so many bullet shells!

I guess he couldn't have been better for melibeli unless he also crocheted!

Sunday Service Etsy Treasury

Been playing around and making Etsy treasuries.  Here's one I did late last night:

'Sunday Service' by melida

Getting primped for Sunday service is sure to be an event with these accessories! From a flattering and feminine vintage hat to hand crocheted gloves, you'll be looking your best. You're sure to turn a lot of heads on your way up to sacrament!

fabgabs $38.00	humboldtstreet $32.00	spacepearls $10.00
23stien $55.00	theothermagdal... $51.22	nudeedudee $145.00
TheZenMuse $24.00	thecherrychic $7.95	natureinspired... $70.00
ArtsNcharms $10.00	yasoknitting $15.00	LittleFlowersG... $15.00
tracyhibsman $70.00	unapam $9.99	sonshineleathe... $95.00

Generated using Treasury HTML code generator by Whale Shark Websites.

New Items for Etsy

In one day I changed the whole look of my etsy site.  Spent the morning putting together some pieces then finally scouted out a perfect picture taking nook in the new place.  Thanks to this small vintage toolbox I got just the look I wanted:

All of the pieces I've added lately are recycled and I'm finally getting through my large collection of bullet shells.  

Maybe now I will get working on the huge pile in my "to-sew" basket...