We took a weekend trip last month, as we do many years, to the Lied Lodge & Conference Center in Nebraska City. If you live in the Midwest, it makes for a great weekend get-away! We often meet up with relatives there, and find that it's become a destination spot in recent years for weddings, so we can watch one or so of those on the lawn from the balcony! Next to the Lodge is Arbor Day Farm, with hiking, gift shops, free trees to take home, and more!
But the true joy for me, in addition to the Lodge and tree farm, is the beauty of the outdoors and the surrounding areas. While I was there, I couldn't resist doing what I always do when I get a camera in my hands, and that was taking photos of every tree, bush, flower, leaf, and pebble I saw!
I was particularly drawn to this tree and the colors of its berries, and it inspired my jewelry-making for weeks!
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I started with the necklaces below, trying to capture the color of the pink, red, and light green berries against the darker green leaves. I used wooden lime green beads for the "stems," various stone beads in shades of red and green for the "berries," and ended with wire "leaves."
Next came "red berry" earrings in "leaf maze." (below)
Finally, here is the bracelet I just finished....
..."branches" twisted and tangled
in a criss-cross pattern,
red and green "berries" of various shades and sizes.
These were a joy to make and remind me of a charming weekend surrounded by the trees of this historic, environmentally important, and beautiful area!
Please share with us,... what inspires YOU?!
Sharyl
P.S. If you like these color combinations, you can view a few more items in these colors on Sharyl's Jewelry -- Earring page.
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Credits:
- All photos and jewelry by Sharyl © July 2011
- All nature shots this page taken on the Lied Lodge & Conference Center grounds.
1 comment:
Hi Sharyl, what a nice blog post. We love it that your recent visit to Lied Lodge inspired you to create these beautiful pieces of wearable art. We invite you back again anytime. Thank you! ~LL
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