Shells / Stones?

The sermon at our church Sunday was about Joshua, chapter 4. It talks about the Lord parting the waters so they could cross the river and the 12 stones they gathered and carried to the other side. The stones were for the Israelites and their descendants to remember what had occurred there.




Our Pastor explained that other things can serve as remembrances besides stones. He shared several pictures taken many years ago of church members and projects of our church. We are celebrating our 125 th anniversary this year. Several people have gathered old pictures of the building, church committees and members. It is not only fun to see the pictures but to either remember or imagine what it was like when the pictures were taken. Some of the pictures are over 100 years old.








Well, sharing pictures is what I do a lot in this blog. Whether it be a picture of one of my projects or jewelry pieces or something else. Anyhow, I want to share a picture of some shell jewelry my Mother made during WWII. The economy then was tougher than it is today. But being creative, she found a way to earn some money (Specifically to buy a new vacuum cleaner)





She had some friends who wintered in Florida. Each spring when they returned, they brought some new craft ideas. (But that is another whole story!) One year they brought back lots of shells. She turned them into lovely pieces of jewelry. Just a few small shells and voila you have flowers or a basket. She made pins and earrings. Her cousin worked at Eastman Kodak and many of her co-workers were eager to have something different. Good costume jewelry did not exist during the war.



Anyhow, this picture is a "stone" that not only represents my memory of my Mother (obviously) but also of the times and what can be done even in bad economic times. Lets face it, jewelry is something that we can do with out. However, the holiday season of giving is coming up and perhaps we can use my Mom's idea of making something from "shells" and start a whole new memory.





And don't forget to tell your children about your stones and/or pictures or any other remembrances you may have. It is a way of passing on your "stories" for the future.



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Shell Jewelry

I was looking though some old pictures and came across this one. A picture I took several years ago of the shell jewelry my Mother made during WWII. She always did lots of crafts but these were made to earn money. Her cousin worked at Kodak Park (Eastman Kodak) in Rochester, NY and she sold the pins and earrings to the secretaries she who worked there. (They were called secretaries then) She purchased an $89 Airway vacuum cleaner with her profits. That was a whole lot of money then. I still have several pieces of her shell jewelry and the picture reminds me of how you can have a great idea only to get side-lined. When I took the picture, I purchased 3 shadow box frames with the intent of making 3 shadow box frames of her shell jewelry. One for each of my children. As of today, I'm not exactly sure where they are. Undoubtedly, in the attic put away when I got tired of moving them around.

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