My dear friend Merrie is a Christian author and wrote this amazing letter I thought was very appropriate for the coming Valentine's holiday. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.


To my precious daughter,

You are so beautiful.  I love you so very much.  You are a delight to me.

I remember as I was weaving you in my own image within your mother’s womb.  I selected those special eyes, ears, nose, and lips to fashion your lovely face.  I knew that your smile would tickly your mother’s heart. I gave careful consideration to the color and texture of your hair to compliment the contour of your face.

I molded the shape of your body knowing all of the ways that you would utilize it.   As I formed your fingers and toes, I smiled, as I knew your parents would count each of them.

As for those special talents and passions of your soul, I want you to enjoy them.  They are for My pleasure and for yours.

My child, you are fearfully and wonderfully made.  My hands fashioned you in a secret place.  You are my workmanship, my design.

I numbered your days even before they began.

It made my heart rejoice the day you accepted my Son, Jesus, as your personal Savior, and my gift of eternal life.  On that day, I sent my Holy Spirit to take up residency in your body as His Holy temple.  Yes, your body is a temple, a temple of My Holy Spirit. 

I sent Him to guide you and teach you My ways and My thoughts.  He will assist you in handling those talents and passions to glorify Me, your Father, your Creator.  It was for My good works that I gave them to you, to be zealous for My Kingdom.

Therefore, it is extremely important that you take very good care of your precious body for the furthering of My work.

May My peace continue to increase in your heart as you take comfort in this knowledge.

With all My Love,

Your Heavenly Father

(Paraphrases of Psalm 139:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, by Merrie Hansen, Christian Writer)

When I was growing up, my Sunday School teacher was Ms. Esther Carpenter. And she LOVED it when we learned Bible verses. She loved it so much that when you got your verse learned and recited it perfectly to her, she got you a book mark that had your name on it. For some reason, the store she went to never had bookmarks that said "Paula" so I always got one that said "Phyllis."

Besides the wrong name, the only other thing I remember about those bookmarks was the verse that was writtin on the bottom "A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches" (Proverbs 22:1). For years, I puzzled over my "Phyllis" bookmark with this strange verse I didn't understand. I am named after my dad (Paul) and I knew that he got to choose the name, not me. So that verse made no sense at all to my small mind.

It wasn't until college that  I finally understood what this verse was talking about. My dad is the Physical Plant Director at Friends University, like his father was before him. They have spent well over 40 years in that department taking care of the physical needs of the university. In those 40 plus years, the name Winchester has grown to be very well respected. I didn't realize how much so until I started working along side my dad. People respect him and find it an honor to work with and for him. It means something special to be able to say that I am Paul's daughter, or Ray's grand-daughter.

Too many times I think we come to believe that the sign of success is having great riches. We think that flashing our riches to others means something. In reality, it is more important to be a person who is respected for their integrity; someone who is known for being a stand-up class act.

I want to be that kind of person. Someone, who when my name is mentioned, people respect. Someone people want to do business with. I want to have integrity and value truth and honesty and all things good. I also hope you are able to find those things true about me and about Simply Beadiful.

First off, CONGRATULATIONS to Marla Keating Beagley for being the winner of the sunshine giveaway. I hope you enjoy the bracelet :)

I've been thinking alot lately about what inspires me, and what I enjoy doing and making. I was walking through Kroger this week and saw the coolest bracelet. It was simple, yet spectacular. It had big glass beads in this amazing spring green color, and then had sparkly faceted crystal beads woven into a larger bead in between. I was totally inspired by it and am going to try to come up with my own version of it. I love it when inspiration finds me in the most unusual places! And, I can't wait to show you the finished product :)

If you have something that inspires you, or a design you would like to try, I would love for you to share it with me. You might just see your design on the website!

When I went to the doctor last week, she told me that I need more vitamin D in my life. One of the best ways to get more vitamin D is to spend more time in the sun. But its winter here in Kentucky and super dreary outside, so that's not so easy. I heard on the news that as of this morning, there was snow on the ground in 49  of the 50 states. Holy cow that's alot of snow! I'm guessing that most of you are probably feeling as dreary as I am. So in an effort to help spread some cheer, I am having a sunshine giveaway! All you have to do is post a comment below about your favorite thing to do in the sun (G rated please) and I will pick one comment at random on Friday January 14, 2011 to win the bright sunshine bracelet below. I will post the winner on Friday, so check back for further information, and good luck!

I had lunch with my dear friend Bonnie today. In between bites of our delicious mexican food, we poured over old bead catalogs in hopes of finding the right beads for a new beading project. As I was explaining the difference between different grades of pearls to her, she commented that I looked so happy about my beads. And you know what?! I am happy!! Happy about beads and everything that goes with them. And despite my sometimes reluctance to really embrace it fully, I am happy with what God has called me to do with my beads.

When I was growing up, I had no idea what I wanted to be. In the third grade, it was a toss-up between a 911 dispatcher and a storm chaser (I guess that came from being raised in tornado alley!). In the fifth grade, my hot pink lipstick inspired my soul and I was just sure I would grow up to be a cosmetologist. Seriously!! In high school I decided to become an elementary school music teacher...until I remembered that I would have to listen to hours of beginner trumpet and violin lessons. YIKES!!! And in college, I wanted to moved to a third world country and be a missionary to their people.

After three long, hot months in the barrios of Ciudad Juarez, Mexico the summer after my senior year in college, my vision of missions had changed drastically. While I still had a heart for missions, I didn't know what I supposed to do with my life. All I really knew is that I wanted to be happy and make others happy.

When I was in high school, I can remember talking to a friend about passions in life. He said something that stuck with me, and today at lunch it came back to me. He said that you will always know the exact moment when you discover someone's passion in life...their eyes light up, they break into a grin, and you realize you are about to hear everything they know about that subject :)

That was me at lunch today...the babbling idiot who would have told anyone who would listen about my love of beads and where they came from and how they are made...or how to pick the right clasp...how happy I was with my new jewelry orders and where my jewelry is headed.

I may not know exactly what I am supposed to be "when I grow up," but what I do know is this: God has called me to make jewelry. And it makes me happy. And I think it makes other people happy too, because it is a way for me to show them His love in a very real way. So even though I might not fully understand this road I am traveling down, I will continue to make jewelry for myself and others. And trust that when the time is right, God will continue to show me exactly what I am to be and do.

And since it is New Years Eve, I will mention that one of my resolutions (I very rarely ever make them so listen up!!) is to blog more. I want to discuss all kinds of things...jewelry, beauty, fashion, life, love, etc. So I hope you will join me for the ride.

Happy New Year

This is my first attempt at blogging. I have been wanting to for awhile, but have not gotten up the nerve to do it. I hope to be able to discuss my journey as I learn new techniques, visit new shops and shows, and learn and grow as a small business owner.

Thank you for joining me for the ride!