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Pink coral, mother of pearl earrings in 16K gold-plated hoops from Paradise Bungalow

Amy Jennings’ island-inspired jewelry not only comes from the time she has spent traveling Polynesia but also from a deeply personal experience.

The high school history teacher had made jewelry all her life, but it wasn’t until her grandmother fell ill in 2007 when she really started to focus on the art. Jennings would spend time with her after work, playing the ukulele, painting and making jewelry — anything to cheer up her grandmother, who was no longer able to walk. The jewelry seemed to make her most happy.

“My late grandma was so encouraging. After I’d make something, I’d show her. Watching her smile propelled me to make more,” Jennings said. “I would have never dreamed off all these jewelry designs burgeoning from this relationship.”

Now Jennings sells her simple-yet-stylish earrings, necklaces and bracelets through her etsy store, Paradise Bungalow. Some of the materials she uses include shells she has found on the beaches of islands such as Hawaii, Samoa, New Zealand and Tahiti. Her husband, who is from Hawaii and Samoa, helps out by drilling the shells and carving mother of pearl.

Some of my favorite pieces include the pink coral, mother of pearl and 16K gold-plated hoop earrings (pictured above); sea foam blue chalcedony bezel and freshwater biwa pearl flake necklace; and the real red coral branch necklace.

Red coral branch necklace

Blue chalcedony bezel and freshwater biwa pearl flake necklace

All photos by Amy Jennings.

Hello, Waikiki: view from the top of Diamond Head

The second week of our honeymoon was spent in beautiful Oahu, Hawaii. Though this was my third visit to the island, Rory had never been, so we decided to spend our entire time there. This worked out fine, as this time I went armed with lots of food recommendations and did a lot of things I hadn’t done before, such as hike Diamond Head and visit the Pearl Harbor memorial.

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This is what awaits you when you fly into the Kapalua-West Maui Airport:

The view from the Kapalua-West Maui Airport

I wish I could show you a panoramic view of what surrounds the airport: ocean on one side, lush green hills on the other. So even though we waited a while for our ride to Enterprise Rent-A-Car (which isn’t actually at the airport but is housed in the Sheraton in Ka’anapali about 5 miles away), the view kept us company. My mother and I were visiting Maui the week before Thanksgiving for my cousin’s wedding, and we chose to fly into the smaller, one-runway airport on the Western side of the island (with a connection in Honolulu) even though it was more expensive than flying into Maui’s main airport in Kahului because it was more convenient to where we were staying in Kapalua, whereas Kahului is about an hour’s drive away.

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Do you miss the free-room contests from The Westin Bonaventure? Miss the thrill of possibly being the lucky one to score a gratis stay? Well look no further than these deals:

SLS Hotel: To celebrate its first anniversary, the SLS Hotel is randomly giving away two rooms a week for $1 a night to lucky winners who happen to visit its Web site at the right time. But hurry because the promotion ends Nov. 30.

Embassy Suites: If you stay at any Embassy Suites before Dec. 31, you can enter to win a grand prize of a trip to one of nine Embassy Resorts, which include properties in Lake Tahoe, Waikiki and Myrtle Beach. The prize includes a five-day/four-night stay, airfare and ground transportation. There will also be 100 first place prizes of $100 Visa gift cards.

Marriott Hawaii: Marriott has put together the granddaddy of giveaways — seven nights at two of five Hawaii hotels (so you can visit more than one island), airfare (including inter-island flights) and a private luau for you and 11 of your friends. Yes, that’s right, a trip for 12 to Hawaii. All you have to do to enter is make a three-minute video before Dec. 20 showing why you love Hawaii.

San Juan Marriott. From Don Riddle (Flickr).

Through June 12, Marriott International Inc. is offering a “Deal of the Day,” with up to 60 percent off rates at a different Caribbean, Hawaii or California hotel each day for 24 hours. Other deals that’ll be offered include free nights based on a minimum length of stay, and free services and amenities. You can find the deals starting at 7:00 a.m. on either Marriott’s Twitter feed (@marriottintl) or at www.MarriottDealoftheDay.com. Today’s deal is 10 percent off daily room rates to $167, with a fourth night free on either a pool- or ocean-view room and free daily breakfast for two at the San Juan, Puerto Rico, Marriott. Though Marriott won’t release the locations of the hotels beforehand, the company says most will be beach resorts. You’ll have to find your own way there, though.

Of course for L.A. locals, the Westin Bonaventure has been giving away free rooms since March via its Twitter feed (@thebonaventure).