Oh Deer!

I took my camera outside to shoot photos of my flowers at dusk, only to realize how badly the deer have ravaged my garden. This is the worst year I've experienced and it's not letting up. So as I was getting down in the dumperoo about the situation, I came upon this one lone daylily, the only one left in bloom and still standing tall.

This shade of orange is one of my favorite colors for jewelry but it's really hard to find in beads and stones. I've searched for Czech glass because they make every possible color of the rainbow, but not this one. If you have any suggestions on where I can find something similar, please be kind and let me know.

Feels Great To Be Noticed

Just found out my lariat necklace is featured on this beautiful Etsy Treasury designed by Wintergarden, a fellow seller on Etsy.  Blues and greens are my favorite color combination and I'm so honored she included my work. She makes fabulous jewelry using yarn and stones which is available at etsy.com/shop/wintergarden

Fall 2010 Color Trends

Pantone has released it's Fall 2010 color forecast and I'm very excited about he possibilities for jewelry.

I always adored Lipstick Red and they've included my all time favorite jewelry color turquoise which they're now calling Lagoon. Sounds good to me and I'm glad they're not only using it for summer. Living Coral and Woodbine make a beautiful palette as does Endive, Golden Glow with a hint of Chocolate Truffle. I actually have a lot of beads and stones in many of these colors and I can't wait to get to work. What do you think of the color forecast?

Color Story

My rose bushes are in full bloom and nothing inspires me more than their stunning color. I went to the garden center today and found annuals in vivid oranges, purples and yellows to plant in  my containers. That's one of my favorite annual treats; mixing and matching flowers in various hues and arranging them in funky old pots. So many of these colors remind me of colors I like to use in my jewelry. The bold color of the roses make me think of bronze; the two together would be spectacular. The bright pinks would look great with silver and blue grays. Orange and purple is a wonderful combination any time of year and works well with crystal accents. As I keep my garden going this summer, I hope to come up with color palettes I never thought of before.

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The Color Edition

If I had to choose one source of inspiration for my jewelry designs, I'd have to say color. Big, bright, bold delicious color. I love combining shades of color that are unexpected and aren't typically paired together but somehow really work. Color wheels work well for some, but I get  my best results when I just experiment by arranging beads and stones next to each other and see what pops out at me.

I went through my photos and here are some color palettes I'd  like to use in my work.

These Adirondack chairs were sitting in front of a store that I found on a trip to the Jersey Shore (yes, that Jersey Shore). The individual colors are nothing special alone, but when grouped together, they really work well. I like.

This shot below is is of my outside deck taken last summer. I love arranging  baskets and pots of flowers and grouping them together on funky outdoor tables or whatever I can get my hands that have various heights. There's nothing like sitting out there and staring at the colors. Perfection. It just occurred to me that I buy my flowers the same way I buy my beads; get an assortment of color and hope they all work.

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Here's a simple stretch bracelet I just made with bright orange and lighter celery green colors. Love the combination of colors, plus I feel brighter as soon as I slip it on.

What are your favorite colors to work with? Inquiring minds want to know. Have a great, happy and colorful day.

Happy Easter, Happy Spring

It's Easter Sunday, the sun is shining here in Jersey-land, my friends came to visit for
the weekend, and life is good.

To celebrate the day, I've rounded up a few of my designs with great spring colors. Color is one of the reasons I love making jewelry; the possible combinations are limitless. I've been using a lot of metal and pastels together because they're unexpected and provide contrast to each other. When I combine colors that I really wasn't sure would work together and then they actually do, well I'm a happy camper. 

Here are some of my combinations. The weather today is spectacular so I'll be outside looking for more colorful inspirations.

Rock.Stone.Tween Treasures?

Deciding whether to tap into the tween jewelry market so we've created some designs as prototypes to test the waters. Those tween girls are a tricky bunch. Here's what we have so far.

My tween son thinks his contemporaries will like these, but then again, maybe they won't. Decisive much? So we're test marketing to our target demographic to get opinions right from the horse's mouth. Any opinions of your own? Please share.

Happiness is Bold Color

Just back from visiting my dad in not-so-sunny Florida. But lousy weather is a good excuse to go bead shopping which I did and had a ball.

First I found these gorgeous hanks of seed beads in a mix of my absolute favorite colors -- various shades of greens with just a hint of blue. I'll mix them with some more colors in the same family and get to work on a bracelet or necklace with oodles of strands. More is more, as I always say.

I got these turquoise nuggets for Christmas and have been staring at them ever since. When I first saw them I thought they were too raw and chunky but after playing around with them, I've changed my mind.







Here's a bracelet I made  and I think it's pretty cool. Funny how taste can change. Plus they feel great in your hand; so much texture. Next up, a super-chunky necklace with the same stones.

My next post will be back on the subject of social networking. I've got lots of new tips and trends to share.