It's a butterfly kind of day!

 I just got back from delivering this pendant to Margaret of MZGlass. The cabochon is her work, and I did the bead embroidery. It's liberally embellished with fire opal Swarovski crystals! I like how bright and cheerful it is. As I was getting into my car to leave MZ's place, I saw a huge butterfly fluttering across her yard. No doubt, it's a butterfly kind of day!

Not only did I deliver this pendant (and take home a lampworked butterfly/moth for my own collection), but I also listed this Teal Butterfly crystal bracelet. It features lovely Pacific Opal Swarovski crystals (one of my favorite colors) and a Sterling Silver butterfly clasp.

Warning: Crystal Bracelet Invasion!

 I think a while back I mentioned on this blog how I had found a stash of crystal bracelets that I had never listed on Etsy. Well, I got distracted by a few things, like needing to make a new costume bra for a troupe performance and then going on vacation, but today I finally tackled those bracelets! They're all in the image above, as well as a few that were already listed. I wanted to show a wide variety in the updated listing for a Custom Crystal Bracelet.

Taking the photos was so time-consuming that I was only able to list Picnics and Sunshine Crystal Bracelet today. Consider it the harbinger of the incoming crystal bracelet invasion!

I love this necklace!

The Moss Spirit is one of my favorite necklaces. Definitely one of those pieces that is really hard to offer for sale instead of keeping. But if you could see how much jewelry I have (which would require me to be able to fit it all into one image), you would tell me that I really don't need to keep anything, or make anything for myself. That would not stop me, of course, but you could try.

Olivine greens are my favorite, and I love layered jewelry, and the green garnet focal is just so beautiful. It looks great with the elegant simplicity of Rachel's black velvet choli. I didn't make it with tribal costuming in mind, but it works well, especially for fusion. Tribal jewelry doesn't have to be all kuchi and stones!

I'm definitely glad that I decided to include this necklace in the photo shoot. I have several pieces in this style and NONE of them are in my shop because they are so hard to photograph! They look so great on a person but just do not lay right on a neck board or flat background. They need to hug the real contours of a real body.

Feminist Photos Kickstarter!

Let me tell you a bit more about my totally awesome photographer friend, Liora K. She took all those beautiful images you've been seeing in my shop, but she doesn't stop at fashion photography! She has done a number of artistic projects as well, and is currently trying to raise funds to embark on a cross-country road trip to photograph a feminist in each and every state! You can learn more about the project on the Kickstarter page for The Feminist Photos.

The above image is one of my favorites from the series so far. Not only is the slogan one I can really get behind, but I think the pose shows how women can be strong AND beautiful. A month or so ago, a comics artist that I follow on Twitter posted a sketch of one of his female characters working out. She was a little more buff than the model is this photo, but nothing ridiculous. Someone actually told him that men didn't find muscular women attractive. REALLY? I mean, I'm not a man, but I think there are few things more beautiful than a woman with muscle definition.

Anyway, until recently, I never realized I was a feminist. I thought of feminists as activists. I figured if you weren't part of some specific group that was lobbying congress or protesting in the streets, you weren't a feminist. But it turns out that the very fact that I think that women should have equal pay, and control of our reproduction, and the right to marry other women, means that I am a feminist. I wish that I didn't have to be, though. I spend a lot of time getting sad and angry that I live in a world where any of that is still an issue. Most of the time I feel like I live in the future. Not only am I sitting here typing out something that can be read by people all over the world, but I also own a little phone that allows me to look up things on the internet, process credit cards, take pictures and video, and listen to music. Unfortunately I don't think our social mores are progressing as quickly as our technology is.

I hope you'll forgive me for getting a little political on my blog. I also hope that if you feel the same way that I do, that you'll consider supporting an artist who is raising awareness of feminist issues, and throw a few dollars into the Kickstarter.

Regular jewelry pushing resumes tomorrow. Thank you!

Introducing... Feather Earrings!

You may have noticed some of these feather earrings in a few of the images from the photo shoot! It's true, I decided to jump in on this fashion trend. I have sensitive lobes, so I can't always wear a lot of big earrings, but feathers allow me to go big and bold without hurting myself. The pair on the left made with green feathers and silvered leaves was my initial prototype which I made for myself. They're really fun, in most instances.

Pro tip: Don't wear feather earrings to Biosphere 2. Part of the tour takes you through all of the ventilation stuff underneath, and there's a couple of spots where it's like being in a wind tunnel.

The other two pairs are available in my Etsy shop! Luck in the Wind Feather Earrings are turquoise and grey with Hamsa charms, and Om Feather Earrings are beautiful and earthy with brass charms and shells with Om symbols on them.

Dragon Dreams of Allegory Gallery

 My most recent package from Allegory Gallery contained some great beads! I was immediately drawn to pair the Green Girl dragon focal with the magnesite beads, due to their similar shapes. I added some Swarovski crystals in Sunflower because I am all over that turquoise and yellow combination!

The magnesite beads are really interesting. Before I read the label I thought they were Czech glass with a Picasso coating, but no, they're stones! They have a very smooth, even shape and a bit of a seem on the sides, so I think they are a reconstituted and pressed stone. Just one of the many unusual materials on the market today! I think their mottled appearance is the perfect companion to the handmade dragon.

Dreaming Dragon Necklace is available in my Etsy shop, if you love this combination as much as I do and have to make it your own!

To see what my fellow Design Team artists have been up to, check out the side bar with all of their blogs!

FTC disclosure notice thingie: Some of the items in this post were provided for promotional consideration as part of the Allegory Gallery Design Team.

Awestruck

 I am awestruck by how beautiful these images are! I knew that Sata and Rachel would be great at modeling, but I had no idea just how wonderful it would be to see so much of my jewelry being worn by fully-costumed dancers... Especially when photographed so professionally by Liora K!

Check out the Tribal Jewelry section of my shop for more images. I haven't added them all yet, but I'm working on it! Some of them will show up in other sections, too, because I couldn't resist throwing in some beadwoven pieces, like the herringbone rope that Rachel is wearing, layered with a Ganesh necklace.