Where you can find me!

Where can you Find Me besides the Beach?

Loving Coastal Living's main Blog is on WordPress- www.LovingCoastalLiving.WordPress.com

Visit my shops!
and on Etsy-




Monday, August 29, 2011

Monday's Featured Artist- Welcome Eileen from Classic Coastal Creations

My latest featured artist is Eileen Shirk of Classic Coastal Creations- sit back, enjoy a cup of coffee and learn more about Eileen and her beautiful jewelry with me here!



    































 I am a native of Virginia Beach, VA. I was raised along the shores of the Chesapeake Bay and the Atlantic Ocean. Spent most of my childhood walking and playing along the shoreline searching for shells, rocks and anything organic the waters yielded.  My parents were avid gardeners.  I spent the rest of my childhood afternoons running among the trees, bushes and flower beds.  I loved to pick flowers, and string necklaces.  This was the beginning of my love affair with nature. 
                                                                               
       After a professional career as a registered nurse, and raising 3 wonderful sons, I have returned to my real love, creating art.  I studied art and design at a local visual art center for 3 years.  A couple of seasons ago, my family took a trip to the Smokey Mountains of North Carolina, where we went rock hunting.  I was instantly hooked.  The beauty of the stones we collected were just incredible.


       I started designing jewelry soon after.  I love to work with the organic rhythm of the stones or shells as I incorporate it into my designs.  Now, I am constantly on a treasure hunt, looking for nature’s treats.  Living here at the beach, I am always searching for sea glass and or shells that may have washed up.  Each treasure is then embellished with either sterling silver, copper, and or crystals.

As I started this adventure, I was encouraged to sell my goods and share the beauty of the pieces with the others.  I am alright with this as long as I continue to enjoy the process and it does not turn into production work.  My pieces are available at 4 local venues; I do 2 or 3 outdoors shows each year.

Short term goals, sell enough to pay for my materials and continue to make a high quality product that can be worn and enjoyed for years to come.  I will not compromise the quality of my pieces.  With the prices of metals going through the roof, once again I will only use the best materials to create the best product.  I will just have to scale back on inventory for now until metal prices begin to  drop.
Long term goals, to create a cottage shop business that I may someday be able to make a living at doing what I love doing.
Also, I feel that we need to continue with our awareness and education of the natural world around us, and the gifts it has to offer.


I feel I have the talent, drive and belief in myself to continue with this adventure.  This is what I was meant to be doing all along in my life, just took awhile to get here!
As with all of the arts, while wearing any of my pieces evoke emotion weather positive or negative, I have achieved my goal.  The reaction speaks for itself.
Eileen Shirk
Portsmouth, VA







Here's where you can find Eileen!
Etsy Shop- www.indiocrab.etsy.com
Facebook account/site:  CLASSIC COASTAL CREATIONS, VA









Wonderful and Inspiring Work- thanks so much for sharing with us all!
~Lynnette


**Also, I haven't heard from Eileen today- and we send prayers to her area from the recent Hurricane Irene.  Hopefully she will check in with us soon, and let us know all is well!
Sorry for the technical difficulties on this post and the position of the pictures!

Thursday, August 25, 2011

Bright.Bazaar: Typographical Breakfast Nook

Bright.Bazaar: Typographical Breakfast Nook: 1 via 2 There's so much I love about this little breakfast space: the swing leaf table; the box benches with cushion pads; the gloss black...

Monday, August 22, 2011

Help me Welcome Kristin from Inspired by Oceans


Tell us a little about yourself, shop or selling venues.

My name is Kristin Magnus and I currently live in Sparta, WI. I have recently relocated here from a small island community in Maine. So, my inspirations for making nautical jewelry comes from my creativity and love for blue and green hues! I enjoy making pieces of jewelry while sitting at home with my dog Linekin! I started selling on Etsy in June of 2011 and have not ventured from there, but would love to!
Kristin on New Years Eve 1920 Gala with Jim

What are some things that bring you joy or inspire you?

I am truly inspired by the ocean!  Whether I am sitting in a chair by the beach, looking at old photographs of my family in Maine, or relaxing with my love Jim, I am always inspired by the objects around me!
Jim-My Love-Canoeing the Kickapoo River in Wisconsin

Do you work outside the home, or are you self employed?

For the past six years, I have taught Kindergarten and PreK in Maine. I am looking forward to teaching in another state. During the summers, I did a lot of work on Maine cottages and the caretaking of them. I have met many clients, some only accessible by boat and the natural landscape and cottage designs inspired a lot of my work!
Hendricks Head Lighthouse -Inspiration for Work -Southport Island

How long have you been creating, and why did you begin?

Over the past 15 years, I have experimented with many types of art. I enjoy painting, crafts, scrapbooking, and metalwork. I recently started making jewelry because I enjoy wearing earrings everyday!

What are some of your favorites (websites, materials, foods, books, other people’s work, etc.)

My favorite materials are crystal and glass. I also love silver and nautical items. I enjoy eating sushi and Thai with my love Jim and when I am not eating, I’m usually surfing the web, enjoying others’ work. I love looking at nautical-inspired designs including fabric, pottery, and wood creations!  There are so many talented artists on Etsy, that I find myself looking for hours J
My Best Doggie Friend -Named after Linekin Bay, Maine

Where do you live, and do you hope to live elsewhere?
I currently live in Wisconsin, but spent the last 12 years in Maine. I love to travel and have always dreamed of teaching overseas, so maybe one day I will get that opportunity. One of the most beautiful places that I would love to visit or even live is Thailand!

What are some of your short term and long term goals overall.

Overall, I would like to continue to make jewelry and other items including sewn pieces. In the long term, I hope that others can enjoy my work as much as I enjoy making it!

What is your most treasured possession, and why?

My most treasured possession is a beautiful white gold and sapphire ring that my sweetheart purchased for me in the Bahamas. I look at the deep blue and think of our amazing times walking in the white sand and sailing through the ocean! And of course, it’s my birthstone, so that makes it very special!

Do you have a religious or spiritual background?
I would not consider myself religious, but definitely spiritual. I believe that things happen for a reason … when one door closes, another door opens. I see that in life, there is some higher power, but what that is, I’m unsure. I wake up thankful and hope to get the most out of life; spending time with the ones I truly love! 

Thank you Kristin for sharing!  Visit her shop on Etsy at www.inspiredbyoceans.etsy.com
Her beautiful jewelry is so reasonably priced, and I'm sure you'll love browsing her vast selection!
Thanks again, 
Lynnette
www.seashellsbyseashore.etsy.com
www.beachbumbeauties.etsy.com

Monday, August 15, 2011

Latest Featured Artist Interview- Rae Studios


Tell us a little about yourself, shop or selling venues.
I am an artist, wife, mother, step-mother, vegetarian, yogini, environmentalist, social activist, lover of food, books, music, wine and dancing. I guess I can be summed up this way: Silly momma looking for time to create and meditate!

My shop is called, Rae Studios, after my middle name. I designed the logo ages ago so I guess I’ve always had it in the back of my mind that this is what I would be doing with my career. Rae Studios is a comprehensive art studio specializing in interiors and fine art. I am a trained fine artist with an MFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York. While studying there, I met my husband, who is an architect. We have been looking for ways to collaborate so I began studying Feng Shui from the American Feng Shui Institute. Rae Studios is a place that fuses my study of Feng Shui with my love for creating objects. I hand knit and sew accessories for the home and family as well as create fine works of art. Sometimes I design some jewelry just to keep things interesting.

What are some things that bring you joy or inspire you?
I love nature. It fuels my soul and jump starts my creativity. I love sitting outside with my cup of coffee in the morning watching the coconut trees rustling in the breeze. When I decided to move to Brooklyn to attend art school, a friend of mine said, “Are you sure you will be able to survive there? I don’t know anyone who needs trees as much as you do!” Well, I did survive and trees really do grow in Brooklyn, but I’m really thriving now that I am surrounded by gorgeous green mountains and the blue, blue sea.

Do you work outside the home, or are you self employed?
Rae Studios is a full time job for me along with raising my two children and two step-children. Part of the mission of Rae Studios is to educate through arts based learning. So I teach private art classes, run a Waldorf inspired homeschool cooperative as well as teach workshops in various art making techniques.

How long have you been creating, and why did you begin?
I can’t remember a time I haven’t been creating! As a child, I would draw my own coloring books, write my own newspaper, make my own puppets (and write the dialogue for the puppet show of course!), make clothes for my Barbies, costumes and sets for our family backyard skits...Art was always important to me.

What are some of your favorites (websites, materials, foods, books, other people’s work, etc.)
My favorite artist is the American painter, Cy Twombly. I love natural materials: wool, cotton, papyrus, hemp, wood, stone, clay. I could eat tomatoes and avocados each and every day and never get tired of them! There are 4 books that I absolutely love and read over and over. They are: One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, The House of the Spirits by Isabel Allende, The Bone People by Keri Hulme and The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver. My favorite song is “Get Together” by the Youngbloods which my mom had on a 45 vinyl record that I used to play on my little record player when I was a kid.

Where do you live, and do you hope to live elsewhere?
I live in Kingston, Jamaica in the West Indies. My husband and I moved our family here a year ago from Brooklyn, New York in search of a better quality of life. We love it here! Kingston is set on a crescent shaped harbor and is surrounded by the foothills of the Blue Mountains. It is gorgeous! The children can play outside and we have access to fresh foods year round. There is also a vibrant art community here.

We are keeping the door open to other international opportunities. We enjoy the idea of being an international family and hope to divide our time between Jamaica, the U.S. and Europe or South America.

What are some of your short term and long term goals overall.
In the short term, I want to finish my study of Feng Shui and begin doing consultations; find local stores to carry the Rae Studios brand; have a solo exhibition of my fine art in a gallery here in Kingston and get studio space that is outside of my apartment! In the long term, I would like for the homeschool co-op to become a full fledged school...The Blue Green Studio School for Social and Environmental Justice; to have Rae Studios acknowledged on an international level; travel to Italy and to build an eco friendly house in the Blue Mountains.

What is your most treasured possession, and why?
An original painting that was given to us as a wedding gift by a very dear friend. Her studio was next door to mine at Pratt and we quickly became friends. After my son was born,  I had to return to work as a teaching artist and she became his caregiver. She is one of the most lovely people I have ever met and the way she inspired, taught and cared for my son amazed me. Plus, it is a gorgeous work of art!

Do you have a religious or spiritual background?
I believe that we all have Divine energy flowing through us that connects us to each other, to nature and to the Spiritual world. I pray daily and meditate. I teach our children the Golden Rule and that we are all part of the Divine so all life is to be respected. I teach them to have an open mind and to embrace this life with their very core.

Visit Corey Here: 
http://www.raestudios.net
www.raestudios.etsy.com

Thank you for sharing your story with us!  We wish you all the success and joy from selling your beautiful knitwear and jewelry online.
~Lynnette

Saturday, August 13, 2011

Sharing some of my latest artwork/ jewelry from our Etsy Shops

Just wanted to pop in and share some of our latest additions!










Thanks for looking!  You can visit both shops here:
Have a wonderful weekend.
~Lynnette

Focusing on the things I am Loving...

With an overwhelming amount of things going on in my personal life right now, I've decided to focus on the Things that I am Loving, instead of dwelling on the craziness that surrounds me. My stress level is to its max, so this post with hopefully bring inspiration to others possibly in similar situations.  So, here's some things I'm loving today...

I love trees that don't grow straight.  It may sound silly, but I just love looking at their twisted and crooked branches.  A natural beauty.
I love linen skirts, white cozy pants, or other bottoms!  
Subtle touches of pink, aqua, and lavender.


I love the way the sun touches through the clouds, and how the moon illuminates the dark, night sky.
I love warm sand between my toes, and being on the beach with my family.
A lovely Asian, veggie stir fry.
I love the Sunset over the Laguna.
I love working in my pj's.
I love fishing with my son...
I also love Lush, Tropical Plants.

I love birds at play on the beach.
And finally, probably my favorite of all...my children laughing.