In the works

Here are some raw shots I took this week. Etsy listings coming soon!

 \

Treasury Features!

The past week or so two items from the etsy shop have been included in treasuries! It's always a thrill to be included with other talented etsy shops.

Click on the photos below to view the treasury collections. Happy Friday!

   

Light blue wire-wrapped glass, in Shades of the Sea treasury 

Green freshwater pearl dangle earrings, in Shops from Texas treasury

Weekly update fail(ish)

I had totally planned on weekly postings of the spiffy photoshoot & product pics! There would be new items listed in the etsy shop, and schmancy titles, and links, and and and..... allll that jazz.

Apparently, I overestimated my ability to bounce back from surgery. It's been, like, 4 days and I'm already bored of this whole "rest and take it easy" business. Though I can't complain about not having to do dishes....
Anyway until the swelling goes down and pain meds no longer influence my nap times (currently being, anytime I lean my head back), you'll just have to do without all that awesomeness. Can't you just feel the an-tici-pation? (said in my best Dr. Frank-N-Furter voice)

I am pleased to report the 'hardware removal' was successful (man, does that make me sound like a robot or what), AND I got to keep the plate-screws 'n all. You know I'm making that into jewelry...as soon as I regain function of my right arm. I'm thinking some pearls looped into the screw holes for a whole nature-on-metal theme. It will be amazing. I will wear it often and weird people out with the story. My fiance pretty much assumed I'd turn it into a full jewelry set. I love how he knows me.

In the meantime, I leave you with this:

                                                             I love me some llama.

Photoshoot- Quartz Tassel Necklace

After a long battle with various computers, I am finally able to post the results of the jewelry shoot last year! Unfortunately hundreds of product photos were lost when my old laptop died (the hard drive was unrecoverable, and we still don't know what happened). There are still many jewelry items waiting for another round of photos before being made available for purchase!

Thankfully, the photographer from our shoot had these photos burned to a CD, and it was just an issue of getting a Windows-based PC, and external wireless network drive, and my (now slightly less) new MacBook to play well together. It took awhile, but it all worked out! I'm not technically inclined, thus the looong wait. Since I have been remiss in consistent updates, I'll be posting a few photos at a time for you to enjoy.

Photography is by Stephanie Hawkins. She's a good friend and a fantastic photographer; she made the shoot go by so quickly, with a lot of  laughter & ridiculous giggling all around! I was thrilled to have her volunteer her time for this shoot. You can visit her site here.

Stephanie's site is currently being revamped so the content is sparse, but the lovely slideshow on the homepage is a great representation of her work!

Jewelry is modeled by the lovely Grecia Olsen. I love the rock 'n roll vibe she has goin' on!

This week is the quartz tassel necklace, which is currently up for sale on my etsy shop:

No End in Sight

There is still no convenient computer access on this end. My crashed laptop has been in a local repair shop for the past couple of weeks, with some valiant techs trying to salvage the data from the hard drive. My external backup drive? Toast. R's laptop? Well, working..ish, but, there's no spiffy photos on there. I think I have massive bad karma with windows-based PC's. 

The good news is we're going to the Mac side, and I anticipate having a spiffy new machine to brag about within the next couple of weeks. Despite the software learning curve, I am pretty excited about having a more reliable computer (can we say solid-state hard drive?!) AND lots more amazing jewelry to post pictures of. 

Unfortunately, several hundred photos may be lost on the old hard drive. A good friend and hobbyist photographer is retaking close up shots of jewelry, and we even managed the time for short photo shoot (with a live model!). More details and photos from that will be posted once the new Mac shows up. Woohoo! 

Computer issues (AGAIN!)

A quick note (using an old rickety laptop with a usb keyboard since the laptop is missing half its keys) to mention computer issues....again. My laptop crashed for no apparent reason, and R's laptop (same model as mine) is also broken-the power pin ripped out when he unplugged it. Awesome. Mine had that problem on three separate occasions. We are not happy campers, and plan on raising a fuss to have the laptops returned and our money refunded. We bought the laptops in April of this year, and this will be the 4th time mine is going in for "repair." It wouldn't be so bad if the customer service rep didn't try to tell us it's our fault every time. "Oh, your power pin snapped off? You'll be charged for that!"

Apparently, one is never ever ever supposed to unplug a latptop. Ever.

Crankypants.
If R's desktop (from the same company as the laptops) hadn't crashed a few months back, this would be slightly less of a crummy situation. He's only had the desktop for a couple of years, and it's DOA. Guess who we're never buying computers from again? These guys!

If only MAC's weren't so expensive, and could run our sizeable collection of games & software without needing to shell out even more $ for software compatibility programs.

Fortunately, I have a smart phone and can at least access email (though, sadly, not Etsy at the moment) so I can keep up with any sales and mail out packages quickly. Just no fancy pants printed invoices at the moment. Grumble!

Black Friday/Cyber Monday, and Why I Won't Play Along

Oh, Black Friday. The most reviled day to work retail. The shoppers tend to be beyond rude, overly pushy, and unreasonably demanding. The workers are stressed out and exhausted. The traffic is miserable the entire weekend. Having the occasional panic-attack in large crowds certainly doesn't help my opinion towards this particular shopping frenzy. I prefer to sleep in, eat leftover pie for breakfast, and snuggle up to R watching movies. This year, I'm especially annoyed with "Black Friday," but this time, it's as an Etsy seller.

The enthusiasm in which the Etsy staff is promoting "Black Friday Deals" pisses me off. Etsy is a community of artisans who work their butts off to offer quality items, beautiful unique pieces, and products created with skill and love, and if everything lines up just right, maybe, just maybe will there be a tiny profit after all is said and done. (jackass re-sellers excluded, of course).

 Etsy is a place I go to find something handcrafted and I expect the prices to reflect the quality. When I see an entire shop with sale items, I get suspicious. Occasional sales are great and all, and perfectly understandable when one is trying to move seasonal items or long-sitting products.... but constantly promoting "Sale" or "Clearance" items, and jumping on the "it's a random holiday so sell everything cheaper!" bandwagon just rubs me the wrong way. I find it degrading to the sellers.

As an Etsy seller, I strive to offer lovely, original, quality items at a price that the average Jane could afford, while not short-selling myself. Personally, I rather spend $20 on an original, handmade necklace than I would $10 on a similarish mass produced from a chain retailer. If a seller on etsy happens to have a sale on something I just love, awesome! Being pressured into selling items cheaper to compete with everyone else just strips away the dignity of the (what I think it to be) Etsy experience. Part of the Etsy experience that I absolutely LOVE is knowing that when I purchase something, I am supporting the artist, and encouraging their success, and the continued success of the handmade movement. 

So, being badgered into dropping prices just for some consumer-driven holiday to try to (maybe!possibly!) compete with big-box retailers is insulting. It's disgusting. It makes me cranky. I will buy what I want, when I want it. If it's something super expensive, I will definitely shop around (on the webz) but I (almost) always go back to the pricier handmade thingy.On the rare occasions I actually do go with a "name brand" it's because they have an amazing product that just can't be beat.-like makeup that doesn't make my break out in hives, and jeans that hug my generous curves in all the right places-and I spend a chunk of money on those items anyway. If I'm going to put something on sale, I'll do it when it's the right time for me, and the shop. I refuse to drop prices (and profit!) just because a whole slew of other stores are doing it.

I'm all about supporting small businesses, and helping preserve the dignity of the people who run them. Way before I sold anything, I recognized the amount of effort small businesses put out, just to survive. I appreciate the small details (like handwritten price tags, or handmade rafia bows). I like the cozy brick-n-mortar shops, the employees that remember my name, the owners that will sit and chat about your day. I like knowing that my purchases positively affect a mom 'n pop kind of shop.

If I wanted deals this weekend, I would brave the masses of shoppers. For quality goods, personalized service, and the warm fuzzy feeling that comes from supporting small businesses, I go to Etsy. So, big E, please stop frothing at the mouth about shops needing to jump on the Black Friday bandwagon. I'm not buyin' it.

That said, Happy Holidays, folks! If you're a Black Friday shopper, you're much braver than I am!

Treasury

Finally got around to making a rock 'n roll themed treasury on etsy (applause, please. Thank you, thank you.)

 Click on the image below to check it out in full color, and don't forget to check out the featured shops!

Mini Feature!

I've been mini-featured! Karen of the  Mystic Wynd blog was kind enough to choose me as this Friday's mini-feature, and theme chooser. Don't know what I'm talking about? Pop over to  Mystic Wynd to read the mini feature on me/my shop, and check out the awesome themed products that go along with it. No spoilers here, folks.

Go...read! Now!

Recycled glass necklaces

Lots of lovely new wire-wrapped pendants are finally going up for sale! I'll be listing small groupings of them everyday, and I'm excited (and a bit nervous) to see what kind of interest is generated. 

If you're interested, the back-story of the pendants can be found here. I hope to eventually buy my very own tumbler so I can create a wider variety of pendants. Especially since the "recycling" center here is super picky about the type of glass they accept. I have a stash of empty wine bottles that I would love to tumble up! Plus, smashing glass bottles is fantastic therapy...

So, on to the only reason you're here. Photos!

I love that this came out tooth-shaped!

Some of the glass comes with interesting "fracture" lines that darken during tumbling. 

There are so many shape, size, and color variations!

The peach glass reminds me of french lingerie. I have no idea why.

Green! There are so few green pieces...

Love that light blue/aqua coloring going on here.

My heart is torn between the green and royal blue pendants.

They're just so....

Awesome.

So, yes, that is what has been keeping me out of trouble lately! The pendants are all wrapped with nickel-plated wire, and will come with vegan suede in a choice of length & color, finished off with ribbon crimps and a lobster clasp. As is, the custom necklaces are $17.50 each. I am also offering the option of having the glass re-wrapped in sterling silver wire, for an additional fee. I know there are folks out there allergic to nickel, or who just might want a different look to the wire. 

Swing by the shop to check out the options!

I'd like to take a break from the regular jewelry posts, and introduce you to some of the staff. Aside from the resident jewelry making monkey (me), that is.

First, there's Marvin. He usually leads the evening wrap-ups, but today he popped in early for the morning staff meeting. Marvin helps mellow us out after a stressful day, and reminds me that I really need to get back to swimming on a regular basis.

Say "Hi," Marvin. 

Then, of course, there's the admin & support team. While they don't deal with much directly, they are crucial to the continued success, and my sanity.

Clockwise, from left, we have the office sweetheart Kira with fluffy-butt support, Maggie our bossy office manager and all around goof ball, and Duke the scrappy foot warmer (a crucial role, especially in winter!). Without their persistent whimpers for attention (Duke), sloppy I-just-drank-a-gallon-of-water-and-want-to-smooch-you kisses (Kira), and mile-long tongue(Maggie), I would be way crazier than I already am. If only I could get them to help out with photo editing....

So there you have it. The calming, fuzzy force that keeps me sane!

Quartz & Pearls

Just a couple of days after listing those gorgeous ice flake quartz earrings, they sold! There was much happy-dancing going on. Hoping for a repeat success, I just posted these beauties in my shop:

This time the quartz beads I used are a slightly darker shade than before, and topped with some really lovely white potato pearls. The pearls have such a fantastic luster to them, and it play so well off the shine and crackle of the quartz. Potato pearls are among my favorite shapes to work with, as each pearl has such a unique quality. It was quite a process to pick through the  pearls to find just the right ones to pair up for these earrings, but so worth it. 

The addition of the pearls definitely ups the "fancy pants" aesthetic. I can easily see these being worn out for a night on the town. Perhaps a dinner date? Swanky lunch meeting?  Some days, I just want to keep everything I make for myself....

More fun with recycled glass

Finally getting around to editing some more photos of all that lovely recycled "beach" glass I wrapped! After this pile of photos, I still have quite a few pieces that haven't been photographed yet-yay projects! Here are a few of my favorites from the latest session: 

Peach

Emerald 

Light blue

I'm diggin' the speckling with this light blue glass!

     

                  Faux  suede cord options. Everyone loves choices! 

So far, the peach pendant is the only newly added piece up for sale. Editing is hard work, and thar be double chocolate chip cookies to nom. Enjoy!