Chasing Away the Winter Blues

With a mid-January chill in the air, and the festivities of the holidays behind us, many people find themselves experiencing a bit of the winter blues, myself included.

To combat this, I dreamt up some pretty new treasures this week with just a hint of spring in their step...

Butterflies, birds and flowers take center stage

with accents of moss, robin's egg and turquoise.

I also added one more Valetine-themed piece for good measure, this cameo and heart bracelet...

which is a perfect segue for me to remind everyone to please enter my earring give-away contest!

One lucky winner will receive these ruby heart earrings! To enter, simply share my blog with someone you love and comment here by letting me know whom you chose and why you love them. Drawing will be held on February 5, with the winner announced no later than February 7.

Thank you all for stopping by, and here's hoping your winter blues have been officially chased away! :)

She Wore Red Velvet

Red velvet is so regal, and I'd noticed that I am often drawn to jewelry items that incorporate this rich material. I thought it would be fun to offer a small collection of these treasures just in time for the holiday season. If it proves to be popular, I may add some other pieces along the way.


This first necklace is entitled 'three birds'. I made the main pendant myself by covering a tarnished vintage button with worn red velvet and attaching a sweet rhinestone bird to the centre. More silvertone birds and a blue mystic quartz briolette hang from this, while vintage paste and rosaries, combined with freshwater pearls and gemstones, complete this beauty.




I fell in love with this sterling silver and red velvet shoe the minute I laid eyes on it! It was originally designed to be a pin cushion! To continue with the whimsical nature of this pendant, I hung it from a silvertone number 22 plate, and added an assembled tintype finding, goldtone mesh vintage watch fob, and ruby zircon, pearls and lavender rosary beads.







The final piece in my Red Velvet Collection (so far) is a long double-wrap that features a goldtone crown with - you guessed it! - red velvet! I don't think anything can be more royal than that! The necklace is chock-full of goodies including mother of pearl rosary beads, vintage watch chain, purple beads, gemstones, rhinestones, and even an Eiffel Tower link.






The three necklaces shown above will be available in my Etsy shoppe this evening. Thank you so much for stopping by! I will be back soon with more photos of the Versailles gardens from my recent trip to Paris. Au revoir! :)

Come Fly With Me

I've had a very busy week, just having returned from Las Vegas for a three-day business symposium. Most of the seminars I attended were motivational in nature and I feel encouraged to dream bigger in both my 'day' job and jewelry business.


The keynote speaker on opening day was none other than Stedman Graham. His story of finding his own identity in the face of prejudice and his relationship with a very famous woman (hint: starts with an 'O') was powerful and I was compelled to buy his book, You Can Make it Happen, which earned me the privilege of meeting him at the book signing afterward! A former basketball player, he sure is tall!

Between this trip and my upcoming holiday in Paris, I guess I've had travel and flight on my mind, both literally and figuratively. I started thinking about what 'flight' means and came to the conclusion that is the ultimate feeling of liberation. To soar, glide, reach heightened goals, explore, go on an adventure, experience freedom. So, with this idea in mind, I've created three new necklaces, two of which feature birds, and the other a compass. Come fly with me, won't you?



OK, I know chickens don't fly, but you get the idea:
















What does 'flight' mean to you?