Women’s History Month Biographys

Did you know this month is Women’s History Month? You can check out a list of some very famous women at The Frisky. They have my favorite Julia Child.

What Exactly Makes One A Jewelry Designer?

What exactly makes one a Jewelry Designer? For definition sake; a Jewelry Designer is any person who produces a unique and one-of-a-kind (OOAK) piece that can be many different styles and techniques. History of Jewelry Designers goes all the way back to ancient Greek and Roman cultures. These jewelry designers started off as Etruscan Civilization goldsmiths in the cultural expression, which became more prevalent through these ancient cultures. Jewelry designers today are time and again professionals with varying knowledge of Gemology, Metal Smithing and Rendering. These jewelry designers cater to a sizeable number of clientele as well as private customers. There are various trademarks and brands that become the property of their respective owners.

Jewelry designers can be anyone from gemologists, craftsmen and jewelry historians who definitely share a passion for fine jewelry and gemstones. Goldsmiths brought their very own style and jewelry skills, from traditional to artistic, from antique to contemporary. Reflecting the societies and eras in which jewelry was worn; fashion jewelry often illustrated particular events that were out of the ordinary during that time. Jewelry designers today have rich traditions in design and style to draw from in order to design and create their own style of jewelry.

Jewelry designers have created more and more styles that are specifically geared toward what a specific client is looking for. Jewelry will be a leading fashion trend for possibly the next one thousand years. There is an extensive assortment of materials, prices, and styles that jewelry designers offer that will satisfy just about anyone. There are a number of extremely creative jewelry designers that have been recognized for their original styles as well as their investigation into themselves for new and unique designs. Jewelry that is highly sought after in today’s market ranges from costume to vintage jewelry designed by a number of famous jewelry designers.

Designers of all genres are continuously coming up with new and one-of-a-kind styles whose magnificence and reputation have become unmatched. Defining style for these designers is about understanding the significance in combining shapes in order to create new styles of jewelry. Most designers have a great amount of pride when it comes to their designs, while at the same time trying to keep up with the ever changing fashion trends.

Items used to create jewelry come in a number of shapes, sizes, colors and styles. Native Americans are known for using seed beads in their loom work to create colorful and detailed jewelry and adornments for their tribal wear. Gemstones are widely used and a favorite for making all styles of jewelry. There are metal, glass, crystal, fabric, acrylic, and other types of beads used as well. Mediums that can be used for creating jewelry ranges from sterling silver to copper to soda cans. There is also jewelry that is made out of nearly every well-known material and can be finished to embellish almost every part of the body, from earrings, hairpins, bracelets, and necklaces to toe rings and many, many more types.

Vintage Jewelry seems to be very popular in the way of antique Jewelry. Vintage or antique jewelry can date back as far as hundreds of years and can be some of the most collectible jewelry out there. These pieces are rare, which can make them highly sought after by jewelry collectors everywhere. Costume jewelry is well thought of as the high point in jewelry design history.

As a jewelry designer there is increasingly a large amount of information via the World Wide Web that teaches all the aspects of fashion design, form, history and materials that can be used in creating jewelry as well as how to successfully market your jewelry. So study and practice, practice, and practice. Who knows maybe you’ll be the next jewelry designer to be referenced 100 years from now!

My Album Cover

My Album Cover

Originally uploaded by Ivonnardona

Chris Parry, whom I follow his blog, has given the most interesting instructions for making an album cover. This has the potential of being totally addicting. Here are the instructions:

Band Name – Go to “wikipedia.” Hit “random… Read More”
or click http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
The first random wikipedia article you get is the name of your band.

Album Title – Go to “Random quotations”
or click http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3
The last four or five words of the very last quote of the page is the title of your first album.

Album Cover – Go to flickr and click on “explore the last seven days”
or click http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days
Third picture, no matter what it is, will be your album cover.

4 – Use photoshop or similar to put it all together.

Let me know the link to your picture so I can check out what you come up with.

Om Shanti Handcrafts

I’m not the best with keeping up with my blog and posting these interviews but I had a few minutes and decided that I would go ahead and get one in. Here is an interview from a fellow Coloradoan from Mile High Etsy Street Team. Kate is from Colorado, which is where I live and I really enjoyed reading her interview. I really enjoyed the quote from a friend on question #2 and she makes some really great points for question #9. I know you will enjoy her writing skills!

1. Tell me a little bit about yourself.

I’m a seeker, a writer, an herbalist and a maker. I’m owned by three cats and two rats. Moved here to Colorado a few years ago and am loving every minute of it! I started Om Shanti Handcrafts as a way to make things, perhaps make a little money, and hopefully escape my truly awful job.

2. Tell me a bit about your background and how long you have been an artist/crafter.

Oddly enough, I was always a science geek growing up — still am; I bring my rock hammer and lens along on hikes to look at the rocks.

Never thought of myself having any creativity and still feel a little weird about the idea that I do. I can do no better than to quote a

friend:

I was positive that I was not creative/could not make art for most of my life. Nobody ever told me that if I practiced, I’d get better.

Nobody ever told me that just because my art didn’t look like “fine art” that I saw in museums, it was okay. Nobody ever told me that everyone is creative and has their own unique vision to share with the world.

It never occurred to me to make things until fairly recently. Since then, though, it’s like a whole new world has exploded in my mind (and all over my apartment).

3. What is the first thing you can remember making by hand? How and why did you make it?

I’m sure I made things when I was a kid — nearly everyone does — but the first thing I _remember_ making by hand was a piece of medieval-style clothing for a friend. We were camping at the time, so no sewing machine, and he needed some help getting it done — I found I had a talent with the needle and that I preferred making it by hand to using a machine. That was about it for a long while, though.

4. What inspires you? Where do your ideas come from?

My jewelry ideas come from songs — mostly by Dar Williams or the Indigo Girls so far though there are a few outliers. One was inspired by a song in a Star Trek book, of all things (How Much for Just the Planet which I highly recommend). Sometimes it’s as obvious as a color mentioned in the lyrics, sometimes it’s a lot more subtle than that.

My herbals are different. Anything medicinal especially is more influenced by what herbs have what effect than by what smells nice together, though every once in a while I’ll have a ‘feel’ that a particular herb should go in. Usually when I do the research I find out that I was right and sometimes for a totally unanticipated reason.

I do make an attempt, in my bath salts and teas, to balance scents with what does what. In my Long Day Working salts, for example, every ingredient is beneficial for tired and strained muscles in one way or another, but they also just smell good together. My lip balms, on the other hand, leave the beneficial effects to the olive oil and beeswax and just unashamedly smell good.

5. What are your favorite materials?

In jewelry, lapis lazuli, hands down. I have to make an effort not to use it in every piece. It’s my absolute favorite stone. I also like the silver wire I make my clasps out of; I plan to start using it for more decorative things in my jewelry as well.

For the herbal stuff, lavender has got to be near the top. I thought I didn’t like lavender for years — I finally realized that it was the awful synthetic stuff I didn’t like, not the real thing. The real thing has a sharpness to it that the lavender fragrance oils just can’t match.

A recent favorite is spearmint. I asked a friend at work what kind of lip balm she’s always wanted and could never find; she replied that peppermint’s easy but why doesn’t anyone make spearmint? I stopped on the way home to pick up a bag from the local herb shop and spent the rest of the ride home with my nose practically in it, it smelled so good!

6. What is your favorite color? What colors are you drawn to?

Lapis blue, which shouldn’t surprise anyone. And jewel tones in general — those deep, rich colours.

7. If someone were looking to take up a craft, what advice would you give them?

Don’t hesitate, don’t second-guess yourself, just _do_ it, see how it comes out. And when your first try is awful, don’t despair. Try it again and again — if it were easy, it wouldn’t be worth the trouble, would it? And you _will_ get better. Just keep at it.

8. What is your area of interest in crafting? What do you specialize in?

Beaded jewelry, and herbal bath and body stuff.

9. What would be your top 5 tips for a beginner?

5) Do not bring credit cards to the bead show. Ask me how I know this.

4) Olive oil is slippery.

3) Cats and loose beads combine poorly. (It’s kinda funny, though.)

2) Follow the instructions on the bottle of lye. I don’t care how much you hate safety goggles, wear em.

1) It’s clichéd, but: Just Do It.

10. What would be your top 5 items of essential equipment?

5) A good glass measuring cup.

4) A wide variety of pliers.

3) Funnels. It’s hard to have enough.

2) You can use hardware organizers for beads too.

1) My brain.

11. Can you recommend a technique or ‘tips’ book ideal for a beginner?

I’m ashamed to say I don’t own a single jewelry book, not even one.

For herbal stuff, Rosemary Gladstar’s Family Herbal is absolutely the best. It’s what got me started, and I still refer to it regularly.

12. Can you recommend any brands to look out for, when buying equipment or kit?

I get my beads in so many places it’s hard to give an answer there.

That said, if you can find a nearby bead show the variety and prices both will be much, much better than what you can get elsewhere.

Camden-Grey is a lovely source for essential oils and other supplies; I’ve done quite a bit of business with them. Majestic Mountain Sage has some fine things as well.

13. Do you sell your work, or is it purely for pleasure?

I sell it — if I didn’t, I could never wear all the jewelry nor use all the bath salts, and I think my mother is already getting sick of beaded jewelry for every gift-giving occasion. 🙂

I still get a lot of pleasure out of making it all, though. When I don’t, that’s time to stop.

14. What is your Etsy shop address and name? Where else can we find you?

Om Shanti Handcrafts at http://omshanti.etsy.com .

You can also find me at the Creative Cafe Showrooms at

http://www.creativecafesalesrooms.com/storecatalog.asp?userid=31 .

I also have a blog at http://omshantihandcrafts.wordpress.com .

The POEST Astrology Challenge

I entered this piece called Mercury and Virgo in an Etsy Street Team that I am in. Please stop by and vote for me, I would really appreciate it.

VOTE HERE!