Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds

Before I started work full-time I went through a bunch of things in my room at home in Lebanon, and I found some jewelry that I had made back in the day. I was really into making elastic necklace sets; I think it was a craze probably ten years ago, and I strung seed beads like my life depended on it. Here are a few sets of them.

These green beads were the first glass beads that I ever owned (I always call them my first "real beads."). Not quite diamonds, but hey, you've got to start somewhere, right?

And here is the first pair of earrings that I ever made (to go with the necklace below): This is still one of my favorite colors to date.

I always loved this wooden bead...

I too went through one of those hemp stages from about age 11-16; I have enough hemp necklaces rationed up for an army at Mom and Dad's house. But here's some a necklace I made years ago with beads that Mom and Dad got for me from Hillsville:

(They're made in Ghana)

I have Plumb Alley Beads & Gifts to thank for advancing my skills in jewelry making; I started working there when I was a junior in high school and worked there pretty much over breaks and all through college. So I started in 2004 and my term there ended in 2008; it was definitely my favorite job ever. I got paid to do the thing I love to do: create (the helping people part was fun, too). As a result, I learned so much from the ladies with whom I worked; they taught me so much about beading. Another treasure that I found was a "Forever Friends" necklace from 6th grade-ish (?). It may have been 4th grade, actually. Anyways, my best childhood friend Holly has the other half.....at least I hope she does because you know, base metal is making a comeback. We used to ride bikes around her neighborhood all the time and map out secret forts under trees and shrubbery in people's yards. It was awesome.

BFF's, right Holly?

The other night, Java Lady and I were craving a midnight snack (because everybody knows that's the healthiest time to snack), but because we had to roll into work at 9:00 the next morning, we had to make it snappy. So below is a video featuring Java Lady making one of her favorite treats: "Fried Banana and Fudge Sundae": The best part--it literally takes about 2.5 minutes to make!

All you need are the following ingredients:

Browned butter 1 banana 2 heaping spoonfuls of fudge sauce 2 bowls full of vanilla ice cream And now for our feature presentation...

Dessert for the Working Woman: Fried Banana and Fudge Sundae with Java Lady