Feeling Guilty on the First Days of Spring

This time of year -- March and April, are when there are big Gem and Jewelry shows I go to with my Mom and sometimes the kids (not as often anymore as they are all entering the teen years and want more freedom).  I love the shows most of the time -- but sometimes I am a bit disappointed.  It used to be November (just before the holidays) was my big purchase time, but I have found that the November shows up here in Seattle are just not quite as big and full of diverse venders than March and April.

I know -- kind of a little rant up there, right?

So, this time of year -- right around the first days of spring I am often so far into my shop that I seem to be barely coming up for air.  Also -- as my mother says -- like clockwork, I start looking for a house. Yes, we still live in an apartment up here -- and so my home studio is teeny tiny compared to what I would like.

Enter a house I have been drooling over (well the yard more so than the house -- plenty big for fabulous gardening, tiny little house so I won't be spending the bulk of my days vacuuming rather than creating) dropping in price a few weeks ago.

As a joke, because I know I can't technically count my income from my shop yet (there are not enough years to average my income in my mind) I clicked the little "contact realtor for a showing" button on the Zillow app.

That afternoon -- Hubby and I were touring the house (he had to put those little slippers over hit Army boots to view, making me laugh hysterically) and falling in love. With the house -- not each other, we've got that covered.

In the subsequent weeks we've been doing preliminary work to purchase the house -- which is some stressful stuff I must say.

Because of that stress I have been such a bad business person I want to slap myself silly.  I haven't been updating my facebook page, or engaging as much as I should, my son and I making videos for the shop have kind of ceased for the time being.  It's a lot of paperwork -- and daunting stuff for someone who, in this Army life has never purchased a house before.

I have even barely been creating with all the wonderful things I got at the show recently.  It's some beautiful and inviting stuff in fact.  And kind of a bummer that I have barely been making -- let alone listing the stuff I have made.

Deep Burnt Orange Sunstone Briolettes I still have to make.

Ethiopian Welo Opal Briolettes I have made into a few things -- a pair of earrings (found here) and a necklace I still have to list, sigh.

I made these gorgeous wine Garnet Briolettes into a pair of simple earrings -- and haven't listed them yet.

This is Moss padparadscha sapphire -- I also made these into earrings, dainty and lovely -- but still not listed either. 

I feel like I am just so far behind -- and now the spring cleaning bug has arrived after the long, cold winter.

Here's hoping for brighter days.

~Maggie~

Is it autumn yet?

My son asked me what season it was right now.  I told him it's technically summer, but you could really call it early autumn.

I really love autumn -- apples are in season right now, so there is a plethora of apple recipes people are pinning to pinterest.  Pears are also coming in, so I can play with that as well.

Yes, I love all that summer has to offer in the Pacific Northwest -- but I grew up in New England, so autumn will always be near and dear to my heart.   Once my dear friend gets over her horrid late summer cold, I imagine I will start to see autumn leaves from Vermont cover my newsfeed. I can't wait.

But, the problem with transitional times like this is that there are so many things to do outside the shop -- make sure the kids are getting into the routine, make sure lunches are healthy and hearty, make sure the not quite summer and not quite fall clothes are cleaned and often -- and make sure that while the body and mind naturally wants to gravitate toward autumn foods when the crisp morning hits, often by lunchtime it is far to warm to think about baking / cooking / doing anything other than take out.

So this transitional period is often a little slow in my shop -- I am honestly not making very much as I get the kids engaged in school, and get everyone used to the fact we are not in summer anymore.

There are some new items in the shop -- they are pretty classically designed, a wear forever kind of thing.  And, I am fighting with the ever-changing rules of facebook, as in: what on earth do I have to do to get my posts seen.

I am also thinking of adding a few other areas of this blog -- like things I find on Pinterest to do (remember I am a klutz who can sprain an ankle sleeping at night -- so my pintrocities are pretty hysterical).  But the thing really is -- I am not all about the jewelry, seriously, I don't actually wear jewelry very often.   There's just a lot more -- and while I am shy, almost painfully so, maybe I should just do it, you know?

I am also starting to make tutorials for some of my designs, which is often fun.

Looking forward to a productive autumn...

Credit: http://www.pinterest.com/pin/59954238762823922/

~Maggie~

P.S.  As a bit of a plug for the shop -- don't miss out on my Sale going on now, my 15 year wedding anniversary is coming up, so it's certainly a reason to celebrate. 

Magic Happens -- or so the saying goes.

I am going to come out and say it once and for all-- I do believe Magic Happens.   You're probably wondering where I come to this conclusion from, having had a rough month or two -- mostly personal but partly frustration in the shop.

See, in the shop -- summer months are notoriously slow.   Like snails pace -- or more accurately, it takes time for a caterpillar to become a butterfly.  And honestly, who wants to be online shopping when you can be out in the markets, enjoying the sunshine and that one guy selling "Cadillac peaches" who gives free samples?  The juice just drips from your chins, right?  Delish.  It's what summer is all about.

Photo Courtesy the Very Talented Vermont Photographer at Moonshine Designs and Photography.

I have fought the urge to put my shop on vacation mode -- and just go out to enjoy the sun.  Instead, I have just sharply focused when I do things, so that I can spend the summer with the kids, still clean up a bit around the house -- and keep the shop fruitful.

I also made one slight change in the shop that has done a world of good for my psyche.  Usually I have on my listings:  "Ready to Ship in 1 business day."   But, a few weeks ago, I changed that to "Ready to ship in 1-2 business days."

I know, I know, it doesn't seem like much  -- and generally I still get everything in the mail within a 24 hour period -- even on weekends which are technically not business days.

But, in giving myself that little bit of leeway for the summer -- I am now free to have an item sell at say 2 pm, and get it in the mail the next morning without dropping whatever I am doing for the day, but still be within what I promise.  Just knowing I have that takes a load off, I must say.

Granted, when school starts back up, I will most likely return to the "1 day processing time"  -- but the shipping will remain the same -- free and super fast. (I do first class mail for free -- during the holidays, expedited shipping will have a bit of a fee.  First class generally gets across the country in 2-3 business days).

But the one day has left me with some fun in creating -- which means magic for my poor weary soul. 

This Sapphire Necklace is more about technique for me -- plus it is September Birthstone Jewelry, so I had to add it.  I was perfecting my wire wrapping by doing these rosary style dainty necklaces.  So Much Fun.

I am adding this because in addition to being a rare form of apatite -- I love how much fun I had with the photography.  It's a necklace, and individually wire wrapped in sterling silver and this beautiful Green Apatite.

Simple and elegant -- these are the color of the year, and a little bit like Angelina Jolie's famous emerald earrings.  These are Emerald Quartz -- created by heating the clear quartz to bring out the green.  I am not a scientist, so I don't understand all of the techniques -- but I do know they sure are pretty.

I made these as a process piece.  I wanted to perfect the "all in one piece" earrings that these really are.  They are Natural Peridot and Freshwater Pearl, on a one piece "ear wire".

I have made heart hoops before -- but I have not played much with the precious stones on them -- leaving them to showcase the "hoop" more than  the stone.  With these shaded ruby heart hoops -- I played with both the ear wire and the stones to make something very unique.  And I made them in gold because then I wouldn't steal them for my own jewelry box.

I am adding these pearl earrings because I just can't get enough of the color.  Classic and elegant -- the perfect holly red for holiday events.

So many changes ...

Well, hubby came home after a 2 month temporary duty down to California (this just short of six weeks home after 2 years away just prior to that -- yeah I know, how on earth do I keep track?  I don't. I rely on the kids to tell me).  And as he was getting ready to come home, we had this stellar weather -- the weather that makes it so you don't really want to sit in your studio working on things?  Yeah, you know it, not a cloud in the sky and 70 degrees. 

So, like anyone, I decided to play as much as I could in between bouts of cleaning.  Neither of these two things ended up working out for me.  Meanwhile the whole pre-coming-home-week was spent with the kids kind of sitting there saying, "since when do you want me to put my clothes in a hamper?  Sacrilege."  No, seriously, it was that bad. 

But, I did get a few items done, and a few requests for custom items that are proving less than fruitful at this point. And for some reason, even though it's not a big color for spring, purple is really working out well for me.  Yeah, I do know there are all kinds of colors for purple, but we all also know that every shade of purple is basically just purple for me.   And Pink :)

Oh and by the way, my dear friend at Moonshine Designs and Photography made me this fabulous shop banner:

Awesome, Right?

So here are a few new spring items I have been working on between dishes, cleaning up after the kids and setting up my old computer since my laptop decided it was done last week sometime.

Monaco Blue Freshwater pearl earrings in Sterling Silver (Posts)

14k Gold Wire Wrapped Fluorite Earrings

Raw Garnet Wire Wrapped Ring in 14k Gold Filled

Rose Smoke Mystic Quartz Wire Wrapped Post Earrings in Sterling Silver

Ombre Pink Ruby Large Hoop Earrings in Sterling Silver (July Birthstone)

Raw Citrine Statement Necklace in 14k Gold Filled (November Birthstone)

And Remember, The Mother's Day Sale is going on for One More week.  I ask that stateside (domestic orders) be placed by May 6th, 2013 so that I can get the items to you for Mother's Day.

Spring Colors: African Violet

I admit -- I have never been a lover of flowers.  I only know the differences between the biggies: Roses, Lily's and my personal favorite, Tulips.  I sure do love me some tulips. 

So when one of the colors was announced as "African Violet" I was all kinds of "ught-oh," because I barely know what violet is, let alone "African Violet."

See, I think I grew up on the 8-pack crayola -- not the 128 or 150,000 Pantone is clearly working with. So for me -- even well into my almost ten years of jewelry design, colors have been like a rainbow--red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, brown, black.  And, I suppose pink.  

The pink is more like an add-on to me, like the "and sometimes Y" when working with vowels.  

So African Violet is somewhere between true "purple" and lilac -- but I would hazard closer to lilac.  So the most obvious gemstone would be amethyst -- but not just any Amethyst -- Rose de France Amethyst, sometimes called "Pink Amethyst."  You can imagine what "Pink Amethyst" does to my stoic brain -- I mean is it pink or Amethyst?  

Because to be honest, Amethyst is actually a specific color of quartz -- so how can you make that "color" pink instead of it's true form, Amethyst?  

Rose de France Amethyst Earrings

It boggles the mind.  Especially a mind like mine that like to look at what words mean (semiotics) to people -- like, what makes green mean green linguistically.  Or to go back to the subject at hand, what makes "African Violet" the color it means in the Pantone universe?

Rose de France Amethyst Large Heart Hoop Earrings

Massive hoops and a Dangle -- yeah for Rose de France Hoop Chandeliers :)

These Pearl Earrings are some stunners -- they can be found in my Bridal Line, But the softeness of the Lilac Pearls can be worn anytime, not just at weddings :)

These lovelies have both "African Violet" and "Lemon Zest" it's like a 2 for 1 deal on these 1.25 inch Ametrine Hoops in Sterling Silver

OMGosh it's jewelry that isn't earrings!  This Rose de France Cluster Cocktail Ring is made to order in the shop.

~Maggie~

Spring Sale

I just created an "early spring sale" in the shop -- must be my happiness at seeing a bit of sunshine.  It;s pretty simple-- everything is already marked down through etsyonsale, so you don;t even need to use a coupon code. 

I don't know about you -- but coupon codes can sometimes be a drag for me.  In my excitement to purchase the discounted item I often forget to put that pesky code in there and end up paying full retail.  Sign.

Everything is marked down -- and as an added bonus, it's still free domestic 2-5 day shipping.

Here are a few examples for spring ideas:

Tsavorite Garnet Hoops 1.25 inches, Sterling Silver (Spring Color Emerald)

Amethyst Heart Hoops, Sterling Filled Hand Hammered (Spring Color Rhapsody)

Garnet Heart Hoops Sterling Filled (Spring Color Poppy Red)

Brilliant Rose Quartz Dangles, Sterling Silver

Pink Garnet Hoops, 1.25 inches 14k Gold Filled

Emerald Jade Hoops in Copper -- 1.75 inches diameter,  St Patrick's Day, Spring Color Emerald

Spring Colors: Grayed Jade

Mmmm, yummy grayed jade.  I like it for it's subtle yet steely green undertones.  Because, you know, I like green a lot -- since it plays off my hair so well and brings out the green in my eyes.  But, a girl can't always wear Kelly Green or Emerald.

 These pearl hoops were the first attempt to really get a grayed jade in the shop -- they are really lovely.  Luckily, I made them in 14k gold filled, or again, they would have wound up in my jewelry box, or more likely, my daughters. See, pearl is her birthstone, so she is certain every single pearl that enters my studio must in fact land in her jewelry box.

 Since we're talking "grayed jade" how about some actual jade?  This Necklace is made with natural jade in multicolored beads -- so it's got everything, Linen, Grayed Jade, French Roast, Some Wines, Caramels, etc. It's pretty divine -- and again, actual jade -- or grayed jade.

These are just plain fun.  A lovely green African Opal that is in fact a lovely grayed jade, or even, light emerald color.  Don't worry, we're getting to Emerald.But these were made after a smaller set was already made for the shop -- and luckily, a customer pointed out the error of my ways in being just this side of lazy and copying and pasting the description.  These host 30 gemstones on each 45mm sterling silver hoop and are really quite fun.  There is only one available in the shop as I only bought one strand at the last show I went to.  In November.  There isn't another show for me until March :(  But until then, this one pair is in the shop here ... assuming I can get another strand (or 3) they may make another appearance later this spring.

New Year -- back to the grind

I've been meaning to post for a while now.  But, I have been luckily bombarded with family stuff, as in my family all lives under one roof now.  Hubby is home again, and getting settled and signed into the local base here -- as we get used to doing things as one household.  It's proven....challenging. 

For one, shopping for one more adult has thrown a wrench in my shopping habits.  Who knew that much more was needed to maintain the cooking.  And for some reason, I didn't anticipate the extra laundry, extra household goods to buy, or even that my jewelry studio may impact hubby's netflix addiction.

See my studio is small, one corner of the master bedroom -- mainly so that I am still available for the kids and not in a separate location.  Also, it's sequestered in the master bedroom, because I don't really want to be searching for inspiration in the dining room while cartoon network plays in the living room.  Or Halo.  Or whatever new XBox game they are into this week. 

But I have been expanding my line -- even before hubby got home -- to include not only bridal jewelry, but also trendy, modern and relevant to the time of year jewelry.

Oh, an example?

14k Gold Filled Heart Hoops

These are hoops, in the shape of an open heart I made sing some 20 gauge 14k gold filled wire.  They are sturdy and dainty all at once.  It took me a while to get the shape perfect -- a lot of hammering, a lot of trial and error.  And several Youtube searches.

Once I got the shape right -- I tried to use a wig jig, but I am not that coordinated, so I had to make them by hand --  I hammered and tempered the metal in order to make the half hard fully hard so they wont bend and get all messed up.  You know, there is a history of young kids in my house testing the jewelry I make -- by accident at first.

Once that was all done, I decided, you know what?  These would look so cute if I added a little something something.

Sapphire Hearts

So I started wire wrapping stones onto the bottom half of the heart.  See, the area where there are no stones serves as the ear wire, and the stone part of the heart dangles.

They were so pretty that I went outside and took a million pictures of several different pairs and styles of these heart hoops.  And bam!  A set sold within minutes of me putting them up on the esty site for Maggie's Jewelry. 

See these in the Shop.

These lovely garnets are the ones that sold. 

But, as I have a touch of OCD, and the pictures sure did look nice, I went through my post shipment quality check -- which includes making sure they would be perfect on by holding them near the ear and checking how they would look, in addition to polishing, sanitizing, and blow drying after the polish and sanitize.   (I know what you;re thinking:  "You blow dry your jewelry?"  Yes I do, to make sure it's fully dry before I package it up to ship -- we don't want oxidation in the shipping time to occur, do we?)

And what do you know?  While the pictures looked divine, and they really did, the earrings were all wrong.  Because I had wrapped both earrings the same direction, I had to take one earring apart and wrap on the other side of the hoop.  Okay, a bit unclear there:  by re-wrapping, the gemstones face out to the world on both ears now -- rather than them facing one direction only -- and inevitably, one earring's gemstones facing the neck rather than the world.

So, live and learn, right?  I will be making sure I take pictures more often of these earrings on from now on -- because then I could know much earlier in the process if something is off, even if the pictures are pretty perfect.

~Maggie~

Check out all my new designs at:  Maggie's Jewelry

Working new designs at the 11th hour

So, the holiday season is officially upon us -- and I have gleefully put every item in the shop on sale. The sale is 20% off, taking most items very low indeed -- but hopefully you can get some fabulous gemstone jewelry for those you love.

Or frienemies. You could do that as well.

But, even as I add new items, I am still putting them on sale --and holding true to what larger stores are doing, I will leave this sale open a little longer than cyber Monday.
Here are a few new gemstones I am working with:
These are ametrine -- a mix of amethyst and citrine. And peridot, such a pretty tender shoots green. Very hot colors for spring.

Look for the in the shop tomorrow :)

~Maggie~

Holiday Sale Coupon Codes

I have been putting a lot of thought into the sale for this year -- so that I can include most holidays under the umbrella that will likely become "Black Friday," "Shop Small Saturday" and "Cyber Monday."

Here's the thing -- I have decided to open this sale way earlier than I previously thought for a variety of reasons.

1) I know it's easier to plan things when you know when the sale will be anyhow -- so I am starting it today.

2) I know it's easier to plan when the sale is open for a longer period of time -- and available to my international customers to order early, using the same sale code as my stateside customers.  That's just plain fair play.

3) Hanukkah falls early this year -- While not as early as next year, the festival of lights does begin December 8th -- cutting "Black Friday Sales" a bit too close for my comfort.

4) By opening it now -- and using a coupon code, you can tell how much something is that you will like and plan around pay-days since I know, as a military wife, sometimes the holidays are tight.

5) It's frankly easier for me -- I like to upgrade the speed of the shipping for early orders, and ask personally if you want anything special, i.e., a gift box, a personalized note, do you need me to wrap it for you?  All of these items I do at no extra charge during the holidays...and early orders make it so nothing is rushed on my end.

 I quality check my items 3 times -- once before the photo shoot, once before I place the item into tarnish resistant bags, and one final time before I ship.  I know, it's a bit obsessive, but I need to know the quality I send out is the quality I would expect to arrive -- and I am all about high quality.

So, there you have my stance on the holiday sale this year  -- and why I have opened it today.

Use Coupon Code Holiday2012 for any item in the store, your discount will be 20% off. 

And now for Shameless self-promotion.  Here are some birthstone ideas for holiday gifts -- I have difficulty shopping for some members of my friends and family, and birthstones can be a go-to for difficult to shop for.

You can visit the shop at Maggie's Jewelry for more gift ideas.

Happy Holidays!

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Inspiration...or something like it.

Here's the cold, hard truth:  I can not draw to save my life.    No, I mean it, if I had to draw a picture to literally save my life, the consequences would be grave.

There is only one thing I am worse at than drawing, and that is spelling.  Luckily -- there are all kinds of programs for that, to help a girl out.   But, even with all my schooling (You know, just a few classes until I finally get that master's degree), I still can not spell -- and I have to work rally hard at proper grammar.

But back to the main topic -- okay I have my coffee ready, so I can certainly write this, right?

So when you have inspiration, I see that most of my artsy friends see things in their mind's eye, and often, if they design like me, they draw it out.  Huge hindrance for me, since, again, I can not draw.   Literally, I need help with a circle.

This is not to say things do not inspire me -- they do, and I look for inspiration everywhere, the autumn leaves, the winter snow, the many colors of spring and summer.  But, my favorite place to find inspiration for my designs?

The lyrics to songs.

Seriously, I sit there, or am running around the house picking up after my three kids like a mad woman, with crazy red hair and half bleached pants, blasting my iPhone (which is currently charging so that I can do this inspiration thing while cleaning again today) and a lyric, or line from a song will hit me and I will see colors and stones in my head.

Then, since I can't draw, I have to make it.  Then and there.  At least the design elements.  Maybe it's not the stones I saw in my head, because potentially I do not have those on hand -- but something has to be made so that I capture the essence of what my mind saw. 

Then, I will go back to the song, holding the piece and sort of give a yes or no as to whether it works.  Most of the time, however, it doesn't, and I see something else when it's produced -- or even in the middle of production. 

Currently, one of my daughter's favorite song's is "Firework" by Katy Perry.  Listening to that, I saw a fire work earring design in my head -- it was difficult to make it because I wanted it to be perfect, and colorful -- but I am pre-show right now, so my gemstones are a tad limited.

I ended up with these because of my gemstone limitation right now -- I will still have to work out the full "Firework" design.  More stones, more colors, more wire wrapping, but still a hoop earring -- remember watching fireworks as a kid on New Years or the 4th of July?  Yeah, that's what I am going to Evoke there. 

That set above, while beautiful, became "Fire"  without the "Work."

How are you inspired?

~Maggie~

Tourmaline: October's Other Birthstone

Lucky you October.  First you get flashy Opals, which dates back to at least the 15th century as your birthstone -- then something magical happens and jewelrs decide to also give you the lovely tourmaline as a birthstone.

I am very happy about this, because my Mother was born in October, and is very finicky when I have to shop for her.  There is a reason I have so much labradorite in my shop--it's the mommy, loving the gray flash of labradorite.

However, when researching birthstones, I round that there are so many versions, that I just have to write a whole bunch on the subject.  Sadly, she is a Scorpio, making my libra post null and void for shopping for her astrological birthstone.

But tourmaline, oh sweet tourmaline, Mom, you are one lucky chica.  Tourmaline is one of my favorite stones, but I am born in December, so I am mostly straddled with turquoise and blue topaz. Not a huge fan.

Super Chunky Tourmaline Necklace

Tourmaline comes in every color under the sun, including a remarkable "Watermelon Tourmaline" that actually has a few colors in the same cut of stone.  Each of the wonderful colors have different mystical properties, making it a really unique stone to play with. 

Plus, it's just super pretty -- my favorite is the pink and green, but that's just me.  I am pretty certain my sister would love the black tourmaline, which has some interesting historical references on its own.

All tourmaline enhances understanding, increases self-confidence and amplifies psychic energies. Tourmaline is said to neutralize negative energies, alleviate fear and grief and finally aid in concentration and communication.

• Green tourmaline regulates blood pressure and strengthens the heart and nervous system. It  also stimulates digestion and strengthens the immune system.
• Black tourmaline is a protective stone; especially against radiation. Black tourmaline also has a  positive effect on the body's loco motor system, while strengthening musculature.
• Blue tourmaline helps combat water-retention, promotes detoxification of the entire body, strengthens the immune system. Blue tourmaline also reduces throat issues and bronchial problems.
• Watermelon tourmaline  alleviates pain, protect the nerve cells and strengthen the immune system.

 ~Maggie~