Eye and Mind Designs

[Barbara]

Hey, no sad smiley Marika, let's look on the good side and stay positive, it's the end of her treatment, she'll be healthy soon, we have to keep sending her good, healing vibes! ;D
#nature-smiley-015# #smileyhug#

[Marika]

barbara said:

Hey, no sad smiley Marika, let's look on the good side and stay positive, it's the end of her treatment, she'll be healthy soon, we have to keep sending her good, healing vibes! ;D
#nature-smiley-015# #smileyhug#

yes you're right Barb, but I can't think to her and at the cancer, but od ciourse I want to agree with you, she will kick that f***g cancer away, I'm sure!!!!!
Love unity and lots of good and positive vibes to her #smileyhug#

[StingingPistol]

Nel is going to be completely fine! We should just all love and support her, and she'll be all healthy again! ;D

[VintageMelon]

Hi all....Shannon's necklace is a squash blossom made by a Native American. Nel bought it at a garage sale years ago to replace his original one you can see him wearing in very early pics. He lost it and she replaced it with the one we know. I called a distributor of handmade pieces in Texas and she informed me the only way to get an exact replica was "to find the Indian who made it." Not possible but you can find squash blossoms if you look into southwestern jewelry. Good luck to you all and uh, what be up my Lady?

#redlight_unity_02# #hoonsmiley#

[Karen]

I'm glad that Nel is finally done with chemo. It's brutal. She is such a strong woman.

[Meredith]

vintagemelon said:

Hi all....Shannon's necklace is a squash blossom made by a Native American. Nel bought it at a garage sale years ago to replace his original one you can see him wearing in very early pics. He lost it and she replaced it with the one we know. I called a distributor of handmade pieces in Texas and she informed me the only way to get an exact replica was "to find the Indian who made it." Not possible but you can find squash blossoms if you look into southwestern jewelry. Good luck to you all and uh, what be up my Lady?

#redlight_unity_02# #hoonsmiley#

Thanks!

[Meredith]

Oh I found this:

Introduction
When Indian jewelry is mentioned, the symbol that often comes to mind is the squash blossom necklace — the cornerstone of most Indian jewelry collections. However, most people who own one or more pieces have no idea of its origin or meaning.

Early Influences
This particular art object is truly an Indian creation. However, it developed slowly and has roots deep in non-Indian culture and history. The principle part of the necklace is the crescent-shaped pendant, which the Southwestern Indians first saw as iron ornaments on the horse bridles of the Spanish Conquistadors in the late 1500s and early 1600s. Captured or traded, these ornaments soon graced the necks of the local Indian populace. Their acquisition was a matter of pride and the ornament, reproduced in the various metals, was proudly displayed during ceremonials. These pendants, originally brought from Spain, reflected the influence of earlier Moorish conquests and the occupation of Spain. As generations came and went, the pendant, referred to as a najahe or naja, became symbolic with various ceremonials. Since most ceremonials were related to the agricultural cycle, the naja was associated with crop fertility.

Once silver beads came into fashion around 1880, what more logical place was there to display the naja? However, the earlier acquired najas were undoubtedly hung around the owner’s neck by a simple thong. The first beads were large, non-ornamental and round. From these, more complicated beads — fluted and oval — developed. Often, dimes and quarters were fastened to a silver shank and strung between the beads. Occasionally, these coins were domed, filled, and made into beads.

The necklace we now call the squash blossom probably didn’t originate much before 1880. It was not mentioned by Washington Mathews in his Navajo Silversmiths Second Annual Report, 1880–1881. Arthur Woodard, in 1938, pointed out that the Navajo and Zuni beads were originally Spanish-Mexican trouser and jacket ornaments, fashioned to resemble the pomegranate, a common Spanish decorator motif, often carved or painted on missions in Mexico and worn on clothing. Early Navajo “squash blossom” beads show a striking similarity to the Mexican ornament and the pomegranate. Still, despite the similarities, there is quite a bit of doubt that the Navajo attempted to depict this blossom in his bead.

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The “Bead That Spreads Out”
The Navajo word for the “squash blossom” bead is yo ne maze disya gi, which means simply “bead that spreads out.” Nothing in the word denoted squash or pomegranate blossom. Perhaps the word was coined by a white man who, asking a Navajo what the bead represented (the white man is obsessed with what something means — he is rarely satisfied that something is simply attractive), was told that it looked like a squash blossom (the Navajo understands the white man’s obsession and often attempts to satisfy it as painlessly as possible). It is doubtful that the Navajo intended that the bead represent a squash blossom.

All have tended to portray the necklace in a crop-fertility light. The Indian ceremonials dealt largely with the agricultural cycle, and the first jewelry was worn during these occasions. In addition, the beads and chain looked like pomegranates or squash blossoms.
The squash blossom necklace serves as a reminder of the close interaction between the Pueblo and Navajo Indians since the mid 1800s. The necklace itself is Navajo, adopted by the Zuni. Yet the incorporation of turquoise on each of the blossoms is an advent of the Zuni, later adopted by the Navajo. Unfortunately, there is little historical documentation on this subject.

References / Recommended Readings
John Adair, The Navajo and Pueblo Silversmiths, University of Oklahoma Press, 1944.

Margery Bedinger, Indian Silver, Navajo and Pueblo Jewelers, University of New Mexico Press, 1973.

M.G. Brown, Blue Gold, The Turquoise Story, Main Street Press, Anaheim, CA, 1975.

Larry Frank, Indian Silver Jewelry of the Southwest, Schiffer Publishing Ltd., Westchester, Pennsylvania, 1990.

The International Turquoise Annuals, vol. I and II, 1975 and 1976 (only two published) Impart Pub, Reno, NV. Note in vol. I the article on pages 31–55 by D. Allen Penick, “Turquoise, the Mineral that’s an Accident.”

Carl Rosnek and Joseph Stacy, Skystone and Silver, Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, 1976.

Joseph E. Poque, Ph.D, The Turquoise, A report to the National Academy of Science, vol. XII, Second and Third Memoir, 1915. Reprinted in 1974 by Rio Grande Press, Inc., Glorieta, NM. (This reprint includes a foreword and details on Southwestern turquoise mines by Rex Arrowsmith and an excellent reference list. )

Stuart A. Northrop, Turquoise and Spanish Mines in New Mexico, University of New Mexico, Press, 1975.

Stuart A. Northrop, David L. Newman, David H. Snow, Turquoise, reprinted by General Printing and Paper Co., Topeka, KS. A reprint from El Palacio, vol. 79, No. 1, 1973, Museum of New Mexico.

[VintageMelon]

rutterbtr said:

I'm glad that Nel is finally done with chemo. It's brutal. She is such a strong woman.

Nel is not out of the woods yet. Her condition is totally up in the air for another 3 months until she is tested further for cancer cells. However, she has a good prognosis and yes, I agree, she is way stronger than she thinks. This last year has been hell on her and I think Lady H*O*O*N would agree with me that she has had many more bad days than good but always remains optimistic about the future. Keep sending the good vibes, she needs them, she feels them. But, by all means, don't stop praying for her cause it ain't over til the fat lady sings and I haven't even cleared my throat. #pout# I'm not trying to be a downer but I have been through cancer w/my son and I know what I'm talking about. Nel, we all know, has been through worse than this losing her son (her words) and she isn't ready to throw in the towel. Keep doing what ya'll have been doing...she needs us all. Take care!

Diana #peacesmilie# #hoonsmiley# #redlight_unity_02#

PS-Thanks to whomever supplied the Zuni and Navajo info! (Gelfing?) That was cool to read!

[melonforthought]

Hey Melons, The necklace that Shannon has is actually called a Naja, a squash blossom necklace has decorative flowers - examples of squash blossom necklaces are people like Doyle BRamhall, and Stevie Ray Vaughan have worn them. The actually beads are called fluted pawn beads. There is different styles for beads but the ones Shannon have are of this style. For both parts they can be made. In fact silversmithing is a huge industry in New Mexico, and so look for someone out there they will definetly make you one. The turquoise that is in SHannons believe it or not is the most expensive part. In total it costs about $650 and this is because everything is put together, and custom made and made from scratch ---- everything from the pawn beads to the naja are not available to many places. Also the size of the beads are 9/16 inch. I hope this all helps you.

[Marika]

vintagemelon said:

rutterbtr said:

I'm glad that Nel is finally done with chemo. It's brutal. She is such a strong woman.

Nel is not out of the woods yet. Her condition is totally up in the air for another 3 months until she is tested further for cancer cells. However, she has a good prognosis and yes, I agree, she is way stronger than she thinks. This last year has been hell on her and I think Lady H*O*O*N would agree with me that she has had many more bad days than good but always remains optimistic about the future. Keep sending the good vibes, she needs them, she feels them. But, by all means, don't stop praying for her cause it ain't over til the fat lady sings and I haven't even cleared my throat. #pout# I'm not trying to be a downer but I have been through cancer w/my son and I know what I'm talking about. Nel, we all know, has been through worse than this losing her son (her words) and she isn't ready to throw in the towel. Keep doing what ya'll have been doing...she needs us all. Take care!

Diana #peacesmilie# #hoonsmiley# #redlight_unity_02#

Thanks Diana, I'll never stop myself to pray for her, never!
Positive vibed lots of love and unity for our special momma Nel.

#redlight_unity_02# #heart#

[Marika]

The last day I had two wonderful necklaces made by Nel from my melon friend Carolyn, she sent me those as a gift, I looove them so much they are wonderful!
I love Nel's job she is so talented, I will wear them very often.

[Meredith]

OMG I feel awful, I just got an email from Nel saying that my order was ready but she never got my payment! I never got the email telling me how to pay...... I replied to let her know....I hope she doesn't think bad of me!

[Marika]

admin said:

OMG I feel awful, I just got an email from Nel saying that my order was ready but she never got my payment! I never got the email telling me how to pay...... I replied to let her know....I hope she doesn't think bad of me!

Nooooo I don't think she would think bad of you Mere!
She will reply you soon. #smileyhug#


I would want to put my first orden today or maybe tomorrow.
I hope she can accept payments with credit card or paypal, Credit card would be a good way to pay for us who lives overseas, I hope she can accept it.

[hanna]

I would love to order couple of her necklaces! They are so beautiful! But I don't have any credit cards or paypal so I'm not sure if I can order..

[Meredith]

beegrrrl said:

admin said:

OMG I feel awful, I just got an email from Nel saying that my order was ready but she never got my payment! I never got the email telling me how to pay...... I replied to let her know....I hope she doesn't think bad of me!

Nooooo I don't think she would think bad of you Mere!
She will reply you soon. #smileyhug#


I would want to put my first orden today or maybe tomorrow.
I hope she can accept payments with credit card or paypal, Credit card would be a good way to pay for us who lives overseas, I hope she can accept it.

it seemed by her reply that she was waiting for a check....so I guess she takes personal checks? I would rather use paypal...I hope she responds soon so I can pay her.