What is Going On with Silver?

Spot Silver - 1 Year
Update Chart

 

I follow the stock market, watching it every week day on TV, and checking my IRA portfolio.  I own a little gold for hedging security.  But I really should have invested in all in SILVER!  In one year the price of silver has doubled. What is happening, and why is no one talking about it very much?

The current silver price is $35.20 and it is hurting jewelry artists who work with sterling silver and fine silver wire and sheet.  To say nothing of the price increase in my favorite medium - PMC3 - now well over $110 for a mere 50 gram package.  I know I cannot afford to buy it now, and to make items in it for sale is prohibitive as the retail price for the items should be at least 50% greater than a year ago.  That means that earrings that sold for $25 would now have to sell for $37.50, and necklaces at $90 would be $135.  Do customers understand this increase?  Silver has always been seen as the cheaper metal - now we have to use bronze, and copper to make reasonably affordable jewelry.

So,  I am going through my stash of sterling silver beads and putting them on Etsy in my de-stash shop at the ridiculously low price of their weight in silver scrap!  To help other jewelry artists who still want sterling silver, and also maybe to get some cash so I can buy fine silver wire.  My Etsy Destash Shop. 

I am even going to include a couple of Anne Choi beads in the sale.  

One of my favorite quotes "Life is not a question that waits until it's answered. The answer's in the living, the question's in the mind." 

Warm Winter Sunshine

The Angel Trumpet Tree is sounding a happy tune!  Several weeks of sunshine and 70s is just what it needed (and us too!)

Dutch Iris in the early morning sunlight - first blooms on these for us.

The hibiscus is glowing, more blooms every day now!

Even the gardenias have started to bloom again - 2 months early!

 Oleanders are climbing again, sprouting new leaves and blooms.

And the little white egrets are walking the tops of the ficus looking for prey -

Ah, winter in Florida can be very nice some years!

Winter Joy in Record Cold

The more than 100 year old record cold recently of 38 degrees in our area   (115 years of records) have produced many sad tales of our landscapes - many palm trees have half brown fronds.

However we have just experienced one of the miracles of nature.  Our tuberoses  have finally produced a most gorgeous blooming!  Just one stalk of the twelve that were planted in the spring, and after all the leaves of the plant have given up -

It started to bloom on Christmas, so I cut the stalk and brought in into the house (the next day was the record setting low), and then wonder of wonders, it started to come into full bloom.....

Until day by day the entire stalk was in full bloom, and my husband walked into the house and was inquiring 'aaaah...What is that wonderful smell?'   (a first)!!

 

Just another miracle of winter...

Happy New Year 2011

to everyone!

Remembering a Warm Thanksgiving

When the temperature dipped to 40 degrees this morning for the second morning in a row, we just had to go back and remember Thanksgiving two weeks ago when it was warm and lovely.

Hope all the beautiful blooms survive this cold spell...it will be back in the 70s by Friday, but new cold wave is threatening us for next week...is this global warming?