Meet Bailey a real Sea Dog of the USCG

It is no secret, I really like dogs.  Let me rephrase for accuracy.  A dog obsession.

(Bailey indulges me by posing for the camera.  Notice his little lawn box)

Recently, I received permission to board a USCG cutter (another fun work day) and saw a little box with artificial grass on the deck.  I commented it was the smallest putting green I had ever seen.   

No, Ma'am that's for our dog.  

Dog? You mean as in USCG mascot? I exclaimed.  

Affirmative Ma'am.

 

The crew must have of thought I had few screws loose by my level of excitement. Well, maybe I do but, the U.S. Coast  Guard doesn't really need to know that small detail do they?  Good let's keep that between us.

 USCG mascots hold a special place in my heart.

The most famous I've written about (and everyone else has too) was

"Sinbad" 

Sinbad may have been taken aboard as a mascot but, ended up

with a service record as true as any "Coastie" he served with 

from manning battle stations to standing watch on the bridge.

During his career he caused international disturbances
and was demoted in rank a few times.
Sinbad still managed to earn five theatre ribbons for his time at sea.

Sinbad served eleven years on the "Campbell" before retiring to lifeboat station duty

Bailey was found resting below and commanded on deck.
When I asked if he aspired to "Sinbad's" career
he responded with a big yawn.

I guess, that is a "No".

Wrinkling his nose at hearing "sit and stay"

Bailey was such a gentlemen he escorted us up
the gang plank and saw us off.

Opinions wanted. Which website page would you choose?

Hello everyone.  Your assistance is requested and truth be told, needed to help us select which of these two pages should be the home page for the

new Beach and Bauble™ website.  

Our original 2007 site was in need of an overhaul. The problem is we can't decide which one of these we like better for the home page. Sorry for the fuzzy cut from PDF documents photos.   

Please click on the images to enlarge them.

 OR

The center color band will likely change to a different blue 

Which one do you prefer?

Feel free to say why and offer any suggestions.

In the future the other divisions Beach and Bridal™
and
Beach Chic Designs™ founded in 2007
 will be added

Thanks everyone!

All photos copyrighted 2010 by the respective photographers and, or Beach and Bauble™

Giveback winner. It's a tie

I was very touched by the personal emails saying my post was brave.  One called it courageous because it wasn't pretty.  Although difficult to write; I would not call it brave nor, courageous.

It was more a statement of sadness and awareness.

My Heaven without You by j3ff3rson

I was enlightened by some of you.

I need improvement.

I can do more.

Maybe, you may think you, can too.

Selecting a winner also proved much more difficult than I thought it would be so the top two entrants were asked if they would mind sharing the prize. Both equally gracious, agreed.

Congratulations to

D of Digella Emporium

and

Rhonda of Shellbelle's Tiki Hut

Honorable mention to
Fair Maiden of Sea Cottage 

Solitary Shell by Lunatica DeMente


On a final note Kim of 1022 Sea Shell Avenue summed it up best.
 "We treat others the way we want to be treated; all things included.
Teaching my children to respect our precious land and ocean.
(God ain't makin' anymore)"

Thank you everyone for participating.

I remain truly grateful and amazed.

Glamorous Beach in a Vase how to and good old Beach Jars Tips

Outside our side door sits a table for two.

Since the space is limited decorations need to be small and compact.

I like to add a little beach grass that sways in the breeze.

Fire hazard! 

I minimized that by tucking the grass behind a large oyster shell.
 

To create your own you need to give your beach grass

 a little thinning out haircut.

 (toffee twist)

Tie a bundle of the grass with a little twist tie.

Place the oyster or other shell in the corner and drop in some

beach pebbles and shells.  Add the tea light  and a few more shells

to cover up it's sides.  Tuck the bundle of beach grass 
behind the oyster shell. Make sure the grass 
falls outward  and over the side opposite the tea light.

Instead of beach grass, add some water and tuck in a flower.

Now for a glamorous version.

Raid your jewelery box for old rhinestone earrings, pins, 

shoe clips, bracelets...etc Old rhinestone buttons work too.

Add a few loose pearls and Swarovksi crystals if you like.

A clip on earring or shoe clips work great on oyster and flatter shells.

The rhinestones look so pretty day or evening.
 Fabulous for a beach wedding!

The oh so popular "beach jar lantern" 

Everyone knows this one but, I like easy clean up.

Easy, old jar, sand or beach pebbles and/or shells candle

Put candle in jar surround with pebbles and shells. 

As the candle burns wax has a tendency to melt on to

sand or stones and shells and the jar. 

Messy.

 A quick fix is placing an empty votive cup into

the jar first.  I use a pair of pliers or tongs to gently

lower the votive cup into the jar.

As you drop in the pebbles and shells some will fall into

the votive cup helping to keep the candle straight.  Use long

tweezers or tongs to move the pebbles between the outside

of the votive holder and the inside of the jar.

I prefer using candles that are lower then

the the metal band on the jar; it looks nicer 

and casts that nice glow immediately.

It also minimizes wax overflowing the sides of the

votive holder.

I  use candles from the dining room that have already

been burned so they are usually just the right height.

Or 

 Simply lower a votive candle in a votive cup

into the jar....even cleaner since it's unlikely

any wax is going to overflow at all.

You can also place a tea light in a votive cup

Now,  

my personal favorite is using these small citronella oil containers.

No wax, no mess and hopefully less mosquitoes!
 The caps are little hard to remove but, worth it.

I like to hang little decorations, or clip on
 some rhinestones to the jar handles. Sometimes,
I add little silverware vases with small blooms.

If the jar is too short to use the suction cup

 I just tie the vase to the handles.

 Thanks for stopping by.

If you haven't entered my "give back" yet you can
by clicking here.  Ends June 18th, 2010

Seaside shops and a walk on the beach

Each morning on my way to work I drive over a tiny little bridge. In the winter it's gray and plain. 

Come summer it's a different story.

If you haven't started a summer garden yet you don't have to
travel far to get some flowers and herbs.

Pick up some beachy colored ornaments

Have some coffee and meander through a few shops
before peddling to the beach just a little over
two kinda short blocks away.

Sometimes, after work I like to go to the beach by our new (older) home
It's early in the season so just about everyone had headed home.

I found a seagull...

trying to eat this container

and some clam shells someone had rounded up.

 I was pretty much alone with the seagulls and the shells.

Wonderful.

Passing by the lake the sun made the water look golden.

Dozens of swans had gathered to groom themselves.

Beautiful.

Thank you for stopping by.
Enjoy your week.

Flowers for Friday.

A few images of flowers for your Friday afternoon from my friend's little patio garden

The afternoon sun cast the most beautiful light.

My friend always manages to squeeze a garden in somehow.

Proving the point once again.  

A garden does not have to be big to be beautiful.

Enter to win a Give Back. You act, I give. Celebrating World Oceans Day.

Wearing blue today in celebrating World Oceans Day had me thinking we can all do more to preserve and respect our oceans. You can "Seas the Day" and take ocean conservation personally.  Please take a moment to read and reflect before scrolling down to the "Give Back".

Our beaches are simply the "edges" of the ocean.

Things we do

oil covered beaches

(photo cnm news)

oil covered life struggles

 (photo National Geographic)

 and oil covered death; all heartbreaking

Lack of Proper Regulations and Control Standards.

 (photo National Geographic)

Over Fishing.

 (photo National Geographic)

Not caring what's landed in the net.

(photo National Geographic)

 Not Stashing our Trash.
 according to the Ocean Conservancy trash travels from our
hands to the sea. Their 2010 marine debris report is astonishing.

And

Things we don't do;
like paying better attention

To the facts that consistent use of plastic bags & 
excessive use of non re-usable water bottles 
helps fuel the need to drill for oil.

Or marine life thinking our trash is food; 

consumes it and dies, or becomes entangled in it.

Did you know marine trash impedes oil spill clean up?

 (photo NOAA)

Sea lion with a packing strap embedded in it's neck

Needless suffering

(photo NOAA)

This is one of the few to receive help; thousands do not.

Now for the (my) "Give Back"
I'd like to help clean the birds affected by the BP oil spill
but, lack the required certifications.

What I can do is be a better steward
and encourage others to do the same.

So, here is a little cache of  beachy, and environmentally friendly goods  
from our online store Beach & Bauble. to help the winner get started.
 Beach & Bauble (tm) switched to a "green hosting" company 
last week and have a new website under construction sorry for the inconvenience.

Oka-B shoes. Recyclable according to International Universal
Recycling Code#3.  Send them back to be turned into new pairs.
Made in USA, reflexology inspired design, non marking
antimicrobial, and oh so comfortable.  I have two pairs.
This color may not be available in all sizes

 Aromafloria home pedicure kit
USDA certified organic manufacturing facility, organic
essential oils, fair trade ingredients, wind powered facilities.

The Laundress Delicate wash - Love this stuff!
100% biodegradable, concentrated requiring less packaging
essential oils, not artificial fragrances. Allergen, phthalate, paraben free.
Laundress recycles all their shipping and packaging components.

Sea Bags recycled boat sail tote.  Great for the market or the beach.

Recycled silverware garden marker from my Etsy Shop
Your choice of the one shown above or opt for
a personalized one with your first name, blog or business name.
(keep in mind some names are too long to fit)

The best part is most of the standard rules of entry don't apply.

I will leave that up to you to decide.
I would love help spreading the word.

Sounds too good to be true?
 Your sort of right!

To enter, you have to do something.

Rules of Engagement
Open to residents of USA, England, Canada, France, Australia, Italy, Spain,
No anonymous comments. You must have a blog.

Leave a comment about what environmentally friendly action
or actions you practice.  From using recycled paper
 making your own grocery totes, green friendly cleaners
to participating in "coastal clean ups"

OR

Random Act of kindness/Pay it forward.
This is doing something knowing the favor will not be returned.
In this case you might win this give back

Holding the door doesn't count. Letting the person that has twice the

amount of groceries you have in your cart go ahead you of does.

Volunteer work at local food banks, animal shelters, blood donations
reading to the ill, or children at your local library, or if you participated  
in the "2009 Wreaths across America", equine programs 
for the disabled, things like this count. 
Volunteering to coach a sports team does not.

Winner must supply first name or user nickname for winning announcement
(Note:  Laundress and pedicure kit may not be shippable outside U.S.)
We will figure out an alternative item for you.

Ends  June 18th, 2010

Each of us is "response-able"

We can, together, make a difference.
Thank you everyone

June 9th, 2010 Marie from  Marie's Maison offered information regarding volunteer opportunities at Volunteer Louisiana to deliver food to families affected by the oil spill and other needs.