Archive for November, 2011

Save 15% off any purchase from my Etsy shop now through Monday, November 28th. I’ll be adding new pieces all weekend.

Just a quick heads up to let you know the lovely Intergalactic Bead Show vendors will be at Metrolina Expo this Saturday and Sunday. The show runs both days from 10 AM – 5 PM. There is usually a $5 admission charge on Saturday and a $4 admission charge on Sunday. For more information and a $2.00 off admission coupon, check the official Intergalactic Site.

I purchased ten geode slices quite a while back but couldn’t figure out the best way to mount them. I didn’t want to interfere with the beauty of the stone because they are gorgeous. I think this setting solves that problem. I soldered a sterling silver frame and added half round prongs to hold the stone. It’s simple, clean and allows light to pass through the stone. I’ve mounted three of the geode slices this way so far.

Look for this piece and a few others in my Etsy shop soon!

Rings & Things is running a cleverly named jewelry design contest. Check out their Rock ‘N’ Rollo Challenge! Here are the details:

• You must include either some of their Rainbow Amazonite beads and/or Larvikite beads
• You must also include one or more types of their bulk rollo chain
• You can use any other components you want (handmade, store-bought, new, vintage, found objects, etc)
• Entries don’t have to be jewelry.
• Limit: 3 entries per person or design team

Prizes are $250-$75 Rings & Things gift certificates plus lots of bragging rights. And best of all, there’s plenty of time to enter. You have until January 31st, 2012 to get you design in!

It’s Beadaholics roundtable time again! The Charlotte Beadaholics are a monthly meetup group for local jewelry artists. We meet at On A String Bead Shop in Myers Park. Our roundtable meetups include a demo or discussion. This month, Nolan from On A String will be showing us how to create a knotted silk strand.

The silk knotting technique can be used to create necklaces or bracelets (or even earrings if you want to). Traditionally, most people think of knotting as a method to string pearls. One sign of a “good” strand of pearls has always been their strong, hand knotted silk. The silk knots protect the pearl nacre by preventing individual pearls from rubbing. They also give the strand a liquid or fluid feel that allows them to lay perfectly around the neckline. And should that string of pearls catch on something and break, only one pearl will roll off. Anne, at On A String, mentioned that you can experiment with the color of the silk used to knot crystals or transparent stones for unique and beautiful effects.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve been seeing lots of higher end gemstone necklaces knotted lately. It’s a gorgeous, luxurious look. Hope you can make it!

In preparation for the holidays on Etsy, I decided to design a jewelry collection. I suspect I’m also strongly under the influence of Project Runway since I’ve recently watched Seasons 1 and 2 of both Project Runway Korea and Project Runway Australia.

The mentor for Korea, Professor Kan Ho-sup, gave advice that stuck with me when I think about designing jewelry. Granted, I was reading subtitles but I hope they were close to what he said. I wrote down,

“A collection should show progression”
“Be compact”
“Connect, connect, connect” and
“Boldly throw out the things that need to be thrown out”

I thought I needed to work more like a fashion designer and create a mood board or inspiration board. I gathered up items that caught my eye recently because they fit ideas I’ve been sketching or thinking about. I’ll be honest. I usually throw stuff like this in a folder and never look at it again. This time,  I taped them to a piece of black gatorboard I had laying around. I used the blue painter’s tape so I can easily reuse the board. And voilà, my Fall/Winter 2011 Mood Board:

It took a lot longer to make than I thought it would. Plus, I was in the middle of prepping for a garage sale. (Garage sales apparently also take a lot longer than you think they will to get ready for.) I’ve stood my mood board on the back of my work table to use as a reference. I hope it will help me over the next few weeks. By placing some constraints on my designs, I think it will make it easier to get started. In any case, I’m excited about working on this collection now.

Next step > Consolidate and finalize the sketches I have in about 30 different places!