Colour

I was looking at some fellow artisan's work today (Cherished Dreams - who makes some exquisite children's quilts and wall hangings) and found myself drawn to one in particular that was bright, cheery and fun. The image on the hanging is quite serene, but the colours really grabbed me. I am sure she won't have the piece for very long at all!

I do one of two things when it comes to colours - either tonal (classic) or I go all out and mix it all up (the result can be heady or eclectic). Interestingly, when I DO mix it all up, I haven't successfully used a colour wheel - for some reason it always looks wrong! I find that I am drawn to mix certain colours up and 99% of the time my 'instinct' works and people love them. Sometimes these combinations are happy accidents, and sometimes they take a lot of work (experimenting) to get not just the colour combinations but the percentages of those colours in the finished piece right.

I do a number of pearl and gem torsades that are popular and have featured them often here on my blog, they can take an incredibly long time to get the colour proportions 'just right' - but they look effortless (until you try one!)

I've included a new cuff bracelet today - all freshwater pearls but in such striking colours - bound to go with anything you throw at it, don't you think!?

A day out at Dunedoo

I had lots of fun at the fundraiser yesterday that was held in Dunedoo. All the ladies were very welcoming and my display was set up in plenty of time with the help of my assistant, Trista.

As there was a fashion parade included in the day's events, I approached the woman organising it and she allowed me to select some jewellery for the models to wear down the catwalk :). The shoes at another stall were absolutely divine - but with only a sample shoe for each style the models didn't get to wear them!

A couple of my pieces found new homes in Dunedoo and one heartwarming purchase was by a mother for her daughter's upcoming deb ball. The daughter's eyes just sparkled as she was trying various necklaces on. It's such a delicious moment seeing the spark of recognition at finding the perfect piece.

I am sure that before I know it, my daughters will be at that stage too - and I really must slow down occasionally and enjoy them while they are young :) I've spoken before on how they're little art-addicts - always drawing and now I've found the perfect holder for their works. Its an art file found at Officeworks that comes in two sizes and was mentioned on the A Good Sort blog. Thanks for the heads up ladies (they're always so organised)!

I have now had my last scheduled show until spring so (hopefully) have lots of creating time before the new show 'season' arrives. I will also be using this time to concentrate on my online presence too as after all winter here is summer in the other half of the world!!

Today's piece is just divine - smooth, velvety chocolate colours in the sardonyx stones which I have kept simple with the addition of a little silver and some white freshwater pearls. This keeps the piece fresh and adds a little interest without detracting from the gorgeous patterns in the stones. Its finished with a little sterling silver toggle clasp that reflects the shape of the stones, just for that extra touch of something special.

Have a great day!

A foray into making rings

It's been a week of achievements and some moments I could have well done without! Well those bad moments were when I was suffering from a bad case of the flu - but I am almost better now and rather embarrassed at my lack of inner strength in the face of feeling unwell. And to think I tell my children to be 'brave'!

My son also dropped my camera *eeek*. I loved that camera and it took such lovely shots (after taking me two years to work out how). But I bought a new camera and since it is the same brand it's not so different to use *big sigh of relief*.

Feeling well again has also brought a buoyancy to my outlook, helped along by some great fellow bloggers at the Mom Bloggers Club. What a great group of upbeat, fun women! So you can add them to my list of networking sites from my last post!

Overall I feel very lucky to have fallen in with a such a variety of women in my endeavours to network effectively. I can learn something new, be inspired or just laugh along with them. I was reading the very inspirational Pink Heels blog today and came across this wonderful picture

now take a good close look... doesn't it just makes you giggle? I wonder what men think of it? It MUST have been designed by a woman :D

As far as achievement goes - well I finally made the foray into making some simple little rings. Clients have been asking me for well over a year to make some rings but I haven't had the time to practice and despaired of ever being good enough to confidently sell them. I did briefly entertain the thought of making traditionally styled rings but I eventually decided on a more 'fun' type of ring - something casual yet refined, sturdy but not heavy and a bit different to the average type you find. The one's I have made so far are all made with Argentinium sterling silver and pearls/gemstones. I have shown them to a couple of clients this week with great feedback, so will have to spend some more time making some in a variety of sizes. Do you like the couple you can see here (below and at the top of the page)?



Show Reminder: Charity event at Dunedoo - chicken and champagne lunch in support of the World Youth Day - St. Michaels School Hall, Dunedoo, this Sunday 15th June. I'll be there with my jewels, along with local exhibitors of shoes and clothing.

Till next - have a great day!

Sites to sell and network in

It's been a bit of a whirlwind couple of weeks down here on the farm :) My daughter broke her arm a few weeks ago and after numerous trips to the Base Hospital (140km away) the cast is now off. Yay! My inlaws have been away so husband has been doing lots of extra running around looking after their property and it seems the children have had extra curricular activities all the time!

But not one to rest on my laurels, I finally did what I have been meaning to do for almost two years and that is open an Etsy store. Yes, you heard me - TWO years. Three days off it in fact. That's pretty awful isn't it. I was spurred into doing it by a great little networking group that has now officially become an Etsy street team called eSMArts. Cool, eh. Check out my *new* Etsy store here.

AND I joined an Australian Etsy-like site called Made It and have a few items listed there too. And of course I've been on the Canadian version - icraft - for a couple of months now.

I'm sure you remember me mentioning Posh Mama, that great social networking site for mums and Everything Skwiggle for the creator in all of us. Well, I've found a couple of more - Divapreneur and Indie Inspire Co.! I'm also a dedicated member of a couple Aussie networking sites too - the WAHM network at the BlogWhammy group. I have met the loveliest people through these sites, found the most interesting blogs and made quite a few customers too! One blog that I was checking out today was EP Designs. I'm not really into shabby chic but Elena does it with style!

Golly. It's a wonder I have any time to create at all!

But I do :)

Above is a pair of simple yet stunning earrings. Beautiful flat nuggets of aquamarine hang from sterling silver earhooks. Simplicity at its best.

Have a great day!

Pearls - all you ever needed to know!

I have always loved pearls - those amazing, glowing orbs that throw a very flattering light onto your face, no matter what your colouring.

One of my earliest memories is digging in my mother's jewellery box where she had a long strand of pearls, plain pearl earrings and a ring that included rubies, sapphires, emeralds and a large pearl. When I started to work in the jewellery trade I still felt a heady attraction to pearls. I was ecstatic to find huge, gorgeous mabe pearls and the weird and wonderful shapes of baroque pearls.

At that time (25 years ago .... eeek!) freshwater pearls were tiny, shrivelled things that although they had a nice sheen were so far from the accepted cultured pearl that I paid scant attention to them. But my, how things have changed!

I now only use freshwater pearls in my designs. Plump and pretty, they range in size and shape and colour so that there is always something for everyone in a pearl!

I get asked a lot of questions about pearls, so here is my version of
"Pearls: 101" :)

History: Considered magic charms, symbols of purity and love, or sources of wisdom and power, pearls are one of the oldest known gems in the world having been worn in civilized Middle East and Asian societies as early as 3500 BC. India`s Hindu god Krishna was credited with discovering pearls when he took one from the sea and presents it to his daughter Pandaïa on her wedding day. Medieval knights wore them for protection in battle. The Greeks associated the pearl with love and marriage. Ancient Romans saw pearls as the ultimate symbol of power and wealth - a pearl earring reportedly paid for one Roman general`s political campaign!

How do pearls form: Pearls are formed in clams, oysters and mussels by the secretion of a substance known as nacre around an irritant in the outer tissue of the organism, or between the outer tissue and the shell. Only a few species are capable of producing pearls and can secrete the nacreous coating that has the attractive pearly luster of gem pearl. Nacre is also the substance that coats the inner surface of their shells (called mother-of-pearl). In most species, nacre forms at a slow 0.6mm of a mm a year.

Shapes: This depends on the shape of the irritant 'nucleus' around which the nacre is deposited and whether or not the pearl has moved during its growth.

Natural pearls: Forming by the chance entering of an irritant into the oyster, a natural pearl only forms in about 1 of 40 pearl producing oysters. Due to the slow rate of growth and the relatively short lifespan of the oyster, large sized natural pearls are rare and usually not round. Found in the Persian Gulf (considered the finest natural pearls in the world), the Gulf of Manaar, the Red Sea, the north and northwest coast of Australia, Burma, Tahiti, New Guinea, Borneo, and Venezuela.

Cultured pearls: These pearls grow around a nucleus that has been manually placed within an oyster. This practice dates back to the 13th century Chinese, but was only perfected in the early part of the 20th century by the Japanese.

Before the modern culturing techniques, a round nucleus, usually composed of clam or oyster shell, was placed between the the mantle and shell of the oyster and allowed to grow for 2 or 3 years. In modern cultured pearls the nucleus (a bead composed of freshwater clam shell wrapped with a strip of the mollusc's mantle) is placed within the mantle or gonad of the oyster, away from the shell, allowing it to grow freely.

The size of resulting pearls depend on the size of the nucleus, the mollusc species, the temperature and chemistry of the water, and the time allowed for growth. Several pearls may be grown in a single oyster, but these will be smaller than if a single nucleus is inserted. Growth periods are from 2 to 7 years and figures suggest only 25% produce a cultured pearl. Japan and Australia are significant producers of cultured pearls. Australia uses an indigineous oyster that produces typically large sized white or silvery pearls.

Cultured black pearls are found in oysters off Peru, Baja California, Panama, certain islands of Indonesia, Micronesia, the Philippines, Okinawa, and French Polynesia (Tahiti and adjacent islands). Only from the latter have cultured black pearls been produced in large numbers. These pearls are large and have a high growth rate as well as superior lustre.


Freshwater pearls: The process of natural freshwater pearls occurring is pretty much the same as other pearls, except one occurs in mussels (freshwater) and the other in oysters (saltwater) respectively. Cultured freshwater pearls are created by either 1) inserting a small piece of live mantle tissue (from another mussel) directly into the pearl producing mussel. These are composed entirely of nacre, just like their natural counterparts. 2) inserting a shape into the mussel in a like manner to the creation of cultured pearls to create "coin" and other shaped pearls. A mussel can grow up to 60 pearls at a time!


Blister pearls: When the oyster or mussel was coating the pearl it also coated the shell lining, resulting in a pearl that was attached to the shell.

Keshi pearls: These are formed when an oyster or mussel rejects and spits out the nucleus implanted during the process of producing cultured pearls. Because the nucleus has been expelled by the oyster, the resulting pearl is all nacre and they often have a wonderful lustre. Also known as Petal Pearls.

Colour of pearls: Natural colours vary from creamy white to yellow, pink, green, lavender, and grey to black. Colours are caused by the amount of conchiolin and aragonite present in the nacre and by the quality of the water in which the oyster or mussel lives. The freshwater pearls' natural colors include white, cream, lavender, pink, orange, gold and gray. White pearls are often bleached to remove any undesirable faint colours. Freshwater pearls are frequently treated (either by irradiation or dyeing) to create a veritable rainbow of colours.

Other terms used to describe pearls:
Lustre - the shiny exterior of the pearl. The way pearls seem to glow from within and is based on the depth of reflection.
Bodycolor - the underlying color of the pearl.
Overtone - a translucent layer of color. Not all pearls have an overtone.
Irridescent orient - the variable play of colors across the surface of the pearl like a rainbow. Not all pearls have iridescent orient.

Well. You should have a fairly good knowledge of pearls now :)

Since I've been talking pearls, pearls, pearls, I thought I would feature (surprise) a pearl necklace LOL. This is a long strand necklace (39.5 inches) that is pictured above wrapped twice around the neck. The pearls are freshwater with a stunning lustre. You are probably aware of exactly how hard I am when selecting my stones for use, and I went through A LOT of pearl strands picking only the best ones here. So that it wasn't just another 'ordinary' strand of pearls (knowing what you now know, I don't want to ever hear you call pearls 'ordinary' again!!) I added some springlike cloisonne flat discs every so often to give it some additional lift. In honour of the cloisonne I named the piece "Eostre" after the Anglo-Saxon spring goddess. I found a great write-up about Eostre here too that you might find interesting.

Till next time - have a great day!

A holly blue necklace and the fashion world.

I just read an amusing post on the Beauty Banquet blog - about the bitchiness of the fashion world and Anne's first hand experience of it... albeit at the edges of fashion. It's a sad but true fact that some people are like that - it's all about the image they project.

Now, obvious fact here - I make jewellery. And as such it is an 'accessory'. But I make jewellery that is BEYOND fashion (ooooh, those fashionistas may hate me now!)- I endeavour to make timeless pieces that you can wear for years and may very well even be handed down to your children. I like the fact that you can don a statement necklace and all of a sudden that little black dress looks a million dollars.

I have had the experience of some people buying my jewellery and then mistreating it terribly - because to them it wasn't expensive enough to look after! It was 'throw away' as it was priced in a similar bracket to some resin/plastic/acrylic/plated pieces in a local boutique. Hey, we're talking about gemstones, pearls and sterling silver here! I make my pieces to be worn to enhance their appearance, but also as items that will be loved and respected and like sharing my jewellery with people who can see that my designs are incredibly well priced for one of a kind REAL jewellery!

So, I'm with you Anne - real women of the world unite!!!! (Ahhh, that feels better :) )

Now, a piece for today.... let me see. OK, even though it's a tad on the wintry side today the sun is shining and the sky is a brilliant shade of light blue ... and the blue reminds me of this piece (which is rather spring/summery but we've all got to have something to look forward to!). Gorgeous holly blue chalcedony is the drawcard in this necklace and isn't it stunning? Separated by flat squares of rock crystal quartz and tiny silver balls. The whole effect is quite modern with its angular cuts yet the colour is dreamy and quite sofly romantic.

Have a great day!!

An outing to Scone and you as part of your product

I love doing shows. I love getting out there and meeting people, catching up with past clients and seeing the happy faces of people who have found a piece of jewellery that I know they will love and enjoy for many years.

I also am very fortunate to have a lot of clients that have my best interests at heart - they always share the "source" of their much-commented-on jewellery and recommend places to exhibit where they think my jewellery would be popular. This is so incredibly satisfying that it's very hard to actually impart how heart-warming it is! Some of these wonderful people I am now fortunate to count as friends as well as customers.

I attended the Scone Grammar School Fete last Saturday - this was on the recommendation of a long-standing customer who had also rang the school's organising committee and ensured that I could go and there was a place available for me, before letting me know. It was rather late notice (less than 24hours!) but I rallied, asked a friend (thank you so much Trista!) to come with me and we had a brilliant day! It was outdoors, which I rarely do, but the sun was shining, the temperature was perfect and the jewellery was sparkling. The school grounds were a lovely background and there were masses of people to appreciate it all :) A big thanks to Annie for organising my attendance and thanks also to Amanda and Maria for coming up and visiting (and bringing their friends!) from way down the other end of the school grounds.

I have been catching up on some of my favourite blogs and Ingrid at Heart Harmony has a very easy-to-read-and-learn-something type of blog at Small Business Ideas. I saw a post on "Brilliant Product Packaging" and it rang a bell with me. Not just in the actual packaging of an item, although I do include a little about me there too. As my endeavour is creative, part of the product is ME. People like to know a little about the person who made something that they like/love. And they like to hear the story behind each piece I make - whether it be the amazing stones and how they inspired me to create a particular piece, or a little about the stones themselves. I love to share my passion so this is not a difficult thing for me to achieve!

Now, a bit about the photo for today. I really love this necklace - it's a piece that sneaks up on you ... once you take the time to look closely you're in love with it too. Inspired by the wonderful hues in the peacock-blue freshwater pearls that form the body of this piece, I have added in bright royal blue lapis lazuli, heathery-purple amethyst, icy rock crystal and acid-green peridot. The result is quite lush up close but almost sedate from a distance. Do you like it too?