TEN THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU * YES MAN

Ten Things I Hate About You - I finally watched this 1999 movie last night. Only 10 years late. The trailers always looked good, but then I'd read that it's a remake of Shakesphere's Taming of the Shrew set in a modern day high school, and say maybe another day. As I watched, I was convinced that the actor playing the wild guy who gets the taming job was a younger Aiden from Sex and the City. Same smile, same shape of face, same voice. You know, something about him. Come to find out at the end of the movie that it was Heath Ledger. Maybe it's time to watch all of Heath's movies. If you like the high school genre, this is a sweet one. Oh, and the boy who plays the kid who wants to date the younger sister is the guy who is the lead in 500 Days of Summer.

Yes Man - A long time ago when Jim Carrey came onto the movie scene in Mask, I tried to watch it, thought it was awful, and put it at the very bottom of my list. No story, just this person stretching his face and being really hyper. I can get that at home. I kept trying to watch Carrey's movies (all those great reviews) and could never finish one - they were all the same. Silly, hyper, creepy. And actually although I liked Yes Man, I didn't finish this one either (fell asleep)! The premise is good, though, and he's not so hyper anymore, there are some really funny scenes, and Steve and Peter enjoyed it. So yeah, if you need a movie to watch this month, and 10 Things and the others I've liked aren't On Demand, then Yes Man might be a good choice.

PEAR NECKLACE

When I was a little girl, my grandparents had the most fantastic garden at their house in Detroit. My grandfather's section was next to the garage, and he grew farm plants....fruits and vegetables and I remember you could hardly go in there it was so wild and green. My grandmother's garden was neat and organized, and ran along the fences on either side of the yard. She had phlox, peonies, hosta, shasta daisies, and roses. I'd give anything to have pictures of the plants and the line up. On the side of the house were the lilies of the valley. Still my absolute favorites. They also had a pear tree somewhere in the yard, because I remember the most delicious pears. We'd sit on the metal chairs that were always propped against the big tree in the yard, and my grandmother would use a paring knife to cut up the pear for us.
A few years ago, in Mexico, I bought a lovely glass pear, and when I showed it to my mother in law, she said "Psomi, tiri, kai axlathi"....bread, cheese and pear. This was a saying that her mother and grandmother used to say, and I guess it was a meal that they'd eat as well.
When I saw the pear clasp, I knew that I'd make a necklace about pears. Then, when shopping for beads, I spotted these colorful coin beads and asked the vendor what they were. "Pear Jasper" he said, (in what I thought was pretty clear english). I had to have them for the pear clasp. Only it turns out that they are really "Imperial Jasper".
The necklace is lovely. I paired the "pear" jasper with colorful freshwater pearls, and gave the necklace three strands. By the time it makes it to the show, it might have a couple of dangles on either side of the clasp as well. The clasp is a vintage button which is set into a Sterling Silver base.

THE ROAD FROM HOME * GREEK SOUL-MEMORIES OF A DETROIT CHILDHOOD

The Road from Home by David Kherdian This Newberry Honor book is the story of Veron, an Armenian girl who survived both the 1915 Armenian genocide and the 1922 Smyrna catastrophe. It's written in the first person and it's unbelievable that a person could survive so many hardships and so much pain. The book covers the years from 1907 to 1924, and takes Veron from childhood to young woman betrothed to a man in America. I loved reading the details of her life with her family in their village before the march and other events that would take her family and leave her orphaned. Somehow, the goodness of others and her sweet tough nature helped her at each juncture. She always made good decisions in spite of it all. It's a memoir from the heart and mind of an amazing woman. If you only read one account about the Armenian Genocide, this is the one I'd recommend. It's for all ages.

Greek Soul-Memories of a Detroit Childhood by Stelyani Sandris - I started this book last night after finishing Road from Home, and couldn't put it down until I'd finished it this morning. It's one of the more poignant and unique books you'll ever read. Stelyani was Estelle Changas, and throughout her life she wrote about her childhood growing up in Detroit. Her family was poor after her father died young, and her own experiences and memories, as well as those of her family, changed and shaped her and stayed with her through her life. Probably riding around on her shoulder and rattling around in her brain, the way mine do. In these stories, she put her heart on her sleeve.

KNOSSOS NECKLACE

When you return from Greece, if anyone asks you about the colors of Greece, you might never mention the color red. However, if you visit the ruins of the Minoan Civilization on the island of Crete at Knossos, you will see red. The first time I experienced Knossos, I loved these ruins compared to the dusty gray stones we had seen in the Peloponisos. These Minoan people had murals! They had colors! They had bathtubs!
(That's another story - it turns out it was a roomful of sarcophagi, but I was young; I thought they were bathtubs, and no one ever told me they weren't). Very civilized. When I took my son to this fabulous place years later, it had changed. The first time we visited, when I was young, we wandered around, climbed around, and there were maybe one or two other visitors there. In the 2000s, however, there were lines, and people, and waiting, and everything was cordoned off. Very civilized.
So I come home, and I'm telling my Koubaro about how much I love these ruins (I still do love that red!), and he tells me that those ruins were painted by the original archeologists who excavated the site. Not by Minoan muralists. I googled, and of course, he was correct. However, there are reds in Greece. On Crete. And they are beautiful.
And they inspired me to make this necklace. I wanted it to be fluid and curvy, like the red columns, so I used deep red crystal roundels in two sizes. They are set off by hematite squares and Swarovski crystal bicones. The square Bali Sterling Silver clasp is the finishing flourish.

500 DAYS OF SUMMER

500 Days of Summer - I loved this little movie. It's about love in your twenties and relationships and dating and friends and how some of us are obsessed and some of us are casual. The acting was great, the story wonderful. I loved watching it and wouldn't have minded if it had gone on and on. It's a bit quirky but very confident as a movie. I'd only ever seen Zoey Deschanel in fashion blogs and magazines, but she's beautiful. It's a modern movie with an element of timelessness. Here's the link.

JEWELRY BY DIANNE SOPHIA * GRAPEVINE NECKLACE

At my grandmother's house in Detroit in the 1960s there was a wooden two story porch, and all along the porch in the summer was the most beautiful grapevine. The story was that she had brought the grapevine back from the "old country" a few years before. The "old country" was actually the new country, because she and her family did not originate in a village outside Thessaloniki in Greece, but rather in a village outside of Smyrna in Asia Minor. My grandmother's father died when she was 9 years old, and her mother died of a broken heart (so the story goes) when my grandmother was 16 years old. Therefore, in 1922 when they were chased from their home, she was was 18, and responsible for her younger sisters and brother. Their father had owned lands on which were grown Sultana (golden) grapes for raisin production. When I saw this clasp, all the memories came back to me, as they do whenever I encounter a grapevine. We never ate my grandmother's grapes in Detroit, they were small and kind of bitter. She mainly grew this vine for the leaves with which she would make everyone's favorite dolmathes, or stuffed grape leaves.
In this necklace I was motivated to use these wonderful large Green Opal coins which rest on your neckline beautifully. They are like picture beads with their varying shades and designs of green and red and brown. All the colors of grapes and grape leaves, as well as the healthy earth on which they thrive. The little dark green jade chip beads provide an accent of leaves, while the silver bali beads remind me of little grape clusters. It's lovely in person. This necklace actually has two focal center designs. The Clasp can be worn at the front of the necklace for major impact, or if you prefer, the clasp can be worn traditionally at the back, and a lovely square vined bali sterling silver bead can be worn at the front.

DRY

Dry - by Augusten Burroughs - I won't rest until I've read them all! I think this is my favorite of all of Augusten's books. Dry is a memoir about his alcohol addiction. He's honest and descriptive and serious and droll. He writes candidly about drinking ungodly amounts of alcohol, and then about his experience in rehab, and about working as an advertising copywriter. It's a book to learn from - he writes a lot about dealing with his addiction. His introspection on so many parts of his psychology are food for thought for life.

SANTORINI BRACELET

I've always been fascinated with the 1920's...the jazz age. Art Deco, flappers, the Charleston, Palm Beach, the stories of F. Scott Fitzgerald. (That's how it started, actually-we all know I'm not necessarily a student of history otherwise). I'm fortunate to live in a 1920s designed and built home, and my eye always goes to an Art Deco look when I see it. It's totally modern, yet classic. Symmetrical elegance. The Santorini Bracelet is so called because it is once again made of those materials that remind me of the black "sand" volcanic beaches of Santorini.
This bracelet pairs round jet beads with silvery crystal roundels. The clasp is magnificent - a deco gem composed of diamond-like gemstones set into a vintage button which has recently been set into Sterling Silver. Understated and elegant, wear it with that simple little black dress, or any time you're in all one color. The deco element will always surprise, never disappoint. It's truly timeless fashion.

DIANNE"S CHOPPED SALAD

For years I made my greek salad with Iceburg or Romaine lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, feta, spices, olive oil and red wine vinegar. It's been evolving, though, and the latest version is really yummy-does the white Basalmic Vinegar make the difference? I make a big bowl of it and feast for days. Sometimes I wrap it up in a quesadilla. Here it is in my new yellow bowl.

Dianne's Chopped Salad

1 Heart of Romaine Lettuce
1 Tomato or 5-10 cherry tomatoes
5-10 baby Carrots
Onion - a small amount
Some Cheese
1 Hard Boiled Egg

Olive Oil
White Balsamic Vinegar
All the spices in your cabinet
Cavender's Greek Seasoning
Soy Sauce
Helmann's Mayonnaise

Dice the onion, practically mince it but not really...maybe a couple of Tablespoons when you're done, put it in the Salad bowl. Chop the Lettuce and Tomatoes into small pieces. Shred the carrots into the bowl, do the same with your cheeses...hard cheeses like Asiago, Romano, Parmesian are my favorites. Chop up the hard boiled egg and put that in. You could add chopped cucumber or other lettuces or cabbage. Just make sure everything is chopped and shredded.
Pour Olive Oil all over it, and shake in some of the White Basalmic Vinegar. Now shake in a little of all the spices in your cupboard...more of the ones you like, less or none of the ones you don't. I keep my spices in alphabetical order, and so use Anise seed, Basil, Celery Salt, Cilantro, Dill Weed, Garlic Salt, Marjoram, Rosemary, Tarragon and Thyme. Shake in a generous amount of the Cavenders Greek Seasoning. Spritz the Soy Sauce over it all, and last but not least add two or three good dollops of Helmann's. Toss it all gently until it's completely combined and enjoy!

POSEIDON NECKLACE

After trying many different patterns of Labradorite and blue crystals, I finally created the perfect balance in the Poseidon necklace. The Labradorite stars with it's occasional iridescence or "Labradorescence", flashes of sparkle and rainbow color among the facets on an individual bead. The beads themselves are the shades of blue/gray that Poseidon experienced as god of the undersea world. The Poseidon clasp is a find....a vintage button enjoying new life set in sterling silver. I think this is my favorite piece so far, but I promise not to keep it, although I may be modeling it at church tomorrow. Take a look: