My baby is 1 year old!

By 'baby' I mean this blog - the one you're reading right now!

I have been blogging for over 5 years, I actually started blogging as a travel journal, when we started traveling a lot during summer and the grandmothers wouldn't have proper information about us. I figured out that writing about our adventures will be the best way to remember it years later. I then continued - it was mostly a family and friends type of blog, where I would report what's new in our lives.

Then last year, when I was trying to re-start the jewelry business (I entertained ideas of starting it a few years back, but life happened and I just didn't have enough time to focus back then; I don't have lots of time now either, but what I have I am using in a more focused way :)) - and a blog seemed a very nice extension. A way to talk not only about my art, but about myself, to let people know who I am and what I am doing. Makes for more 'personal' contact in an online world. Or so I believe.

Back in October 2011 I knew I need something to "push" me and force me to write regularly - it's easy in our busy world to say "tomorrow"... and you know very well how that works! My friend Delia from Eos Grafx was having similar thoughts for their own blog and she mentioned participating in a challenge, where one would have to blog every day for the whole month of October. It sounded scary (do I really have something to say every day?!?!) but I entered anyhow. For the whole month of October, every day (well, sometimes 2 times a day, sometimes skipping one day) I posted an article.

And you know what? By the end of month I was getting into a schedule... It was still hard to figure out what to write about every single day (the challenge hosts are all about blogging, and have wonderful ideas, however not all would fit into my idea of what this blog has to represent, so I was trying to find a balance). Then I found the idea of a-theme-a-day and I modified it for this blog... in January I entered Lori's Bead Soup Blog Party... and the rest is truly history. I found a community of wonderful artists and artisans; nowadays the trouble is not that I don't know what to write about... but finding the time to write :)

So now we are right here - one year later. My blog has 305 published articles and it has been visited in 33,000 + page views already (that comes to almost 3,000 a month, which is quite something) - thank you all for reading and visiting so often... and for all the nice comments you live too!

There are 93 followers - but I am sure that'll change in the next 2 weeks.

Why - would you ask? well - what's an anniversary without an anniversary gift?

There will be 2 - for 2 lucky winners.

One is the 'Caught you!' pendant - set in copper (or silver platted wire) with jade (your choice of a few colours I can offer). The pendant will be set on a leather cord, and finished with a matching handcrafted clasp (similar to the one pictures below).

The 2nd prize - since it's October, Breast Cancer awareness month - it will be my 'Pretty and Strong in Pink' bracelet. Set in silver plated wire and pink jade beads, with a custom handcrafted (and matching) clasp - this is a striking piece, it'll start a conversation for sure!

 

How can you win? The usual ways: use the Rafflecopter widget below and make sure you use as many entries as you can:

• Leave a comment on the blog
• Like All Pretty Things on Facebook (use the buttons on the right side of the blog)
• Follow this blog (use the buttons on the right side of the blog)
• Share this giveaway on Facebook (use the buttons at the bottom of this post)
• Share this giveaway on Twitter (use the buttons at the bottom of this post)
• Blog about this giveaway (use the buttons at the bottom of this post)

When you live a comment - please mention which piece you would prefer (if you like both the same, I will pick one for you :) ) And make sure to mention your email address somewhere so I can contact you!

Let's party now, the giveaway is open for 2 weeks - it's time for celebration :) I will pick teh 2 winners on the 15th of October (2 weeks from today) and will post the results the next day right here.

Thank you for joining me on this journey!

a Rafflecopter giveaway