Ruby - July birthstone

July's birthstone is Ruby and it's rich color reminds us of love and passion. It has been said that the Ruby's red glow comes from an internal flame that cannot be extinguished, it's no wonder that making a gift of this stone is symbolic of everlasting love. I have a special spot in my own heart for ruby as it's my own birthstone :)

The word Ruby comes from the Latin "ruber," meaning red. It is a variety of the mineral Corundum which is the second hardest mineral after Diamond. It comes in a variety of colors, and is considered a Sapphire in any color except red.

In ancient times, they were thought to represent heat and power. It was said that if you threw one in a pot of water, the water would boil! This gem was also ground down to a powder and put on the tongue as a cure for indigestion.

I have not used any ruby beads so far in my jewelry creations, but one of my very talented colleagues and friends has..she sent me a picture to share...



You can find more of her beautiful work at Szarka's

If you have made something with rubies, please feel free to send to me while we are in the month of July and I will post it for you on my blog along with your link :) jonarablumaui @ hawaii.rr.com (remove spaces)

Jonara Blu Maui
Jonara Blu Maui Etsy

Not Afraid of Squidoo Anymore!

I've been afraid of Squidoo for some time. Only having glanced at it when I read that it was one of the sites I 'needed' to join..I was overwhelmed and so put it off for probably a year. I don't know why I was such a scaredy-cat...it's so much fun!

I know I've only scratched the surface of what you can do there..but here is a snapshot of my first 'lens'. I created one on Beach Wedding Jewelry...of course!



and here is the link:

http://www.squidoo.com/beachweddingjewelry

Please visit my lens, rate it and leave a comment at the end :D

The definition of lense from Squidoo's faq page is this:

"A lens is one person's view on a topic that matters to her. It's an easy-to-build, single web page that can point to blogs, favorite links, RSS feeds, Flickr photos, Google maps, your eBay auctions, CafePress designs, Amazon books or music, and oh so much more. That way, when someone is looking for recommended information, fast, your lens gets him started and sends him off in the right direction."


It looks like a really fun place to surf around as well..so I'm sure I will be spending some time there as I make myself comfy and try to learn.