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?

Pearls and Girls in History

The pearl is my birthstone so I wanted to get a little history on them. When I was just a wee little girl, I didn't like the idea of a pearl as a birthstone. Thought it was boring. I wanted something more glamorous like a diamond or emerald. What was I thinking? There's nothing more classic and stylish than strands of pearls draped elegantly on someone's neck, or a small perfect pearl dangling from the ears. Plus they've been around since forever and never go out of style.

First, some interesting facts:

• Pearls are the only gem created from a living organism. 

• It's been reported that Cleopatra dissolved a pearl in wine and drank it to prove her love to Marc Antony. Sounds odd but we've probably all done worse.

• The ancient Greeks thought pearls would promote marital bliss and that's why brides still wear them to this day. All you need are pearls, girls.

How fabulous does Audrey Hepburn look with these pearls draping down her back? Pretty amazing, right?

Now how about my favorite member of any royal family?

And my not so favorite member of any royal family, her mean mother-in-law Liz? She's hiding her pearls under her jacket but we know they're there.

And of course we can't forget the nice Liz. Her pearls are truly spectacular.

These Mikimoto pearls were given to Marilyn Monroe by then husband, Joe DiMaggio. I'm sure there are pictures of her wearing them but I just love the way they look in the gorgeous box.

Do you have any photos of your favorite gals in their pearls? Please share and I'll post them here.
Happy Birthday to all the June babies out there.

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.

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.

The Whole Bead Show, NYC

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.

Just a day of trying to organize all my beading stuff which is taking over. Any good tips or suggestions on storage? I'll take them.My bead habit needs some organizational skills.

This desk is a mess!

These are the teal version of the blush earrings I posted yesterday. Really pretty color