Color Inspiration

Yesterday I was at CVS buying a fan. I walked out with a fan, a hair straightener (a ceramic CVS brand straightener that was on sale for $4.99- score!) two nail polishes, a Gatorade and a pack of gum. Another forty dollars surrendered to impulse shopping.

I just had to write about these awesome new nail colors by Revlon. I have been inspired by these two colors, mint green and soft pink, since the first sign of foliage this spring. The funny thing is, I didn't see these colors trending anywhere else, so I thought I was the only one. I bought two tee shirts at Charlotte Russe in Mint and Pink, but that was the only place I've seen them.

I'm currently working on a couple necklaces featuring mint and pink briolettes on a gold chain, so I'm super excited about owning these hot new colors! I think it would be a little overboard to wear the shirt, necklace, and nail polish all at once though, so I will try to resist. Color is the primary source for my inspiration in my jewelry. These two colors are my absolute favorites this season. I'd love to hear what colors inspire your creations!

P.S. Off topic, but please don't forget to enter my JUNE GIVEAWAY!

Practice Makes Perfect

I got my metal stamps in the mail! I've been practicing all day, and I'm almost etsy ready. I also ordered genuine birthstones to embellish my jewelry with, but I'm still waiting on those. Take a look at my progress! Any comments/critiques welcome. Do you think my work is etsy ready?

Metal Stamping, Are You Doing It?

Shown above is a beautiful hand stamped necklace by Alvina Abramova on etsy, featuring a 1/2 inch 14kt gold fill disc with stamped initial, and complimented with gemstones. The bright combination of colors in this necklace spoke to me instantly- and since I will be starting some metal stamping of my own soon, I just had to write about it! If it speaks to you too- I suggest you check out her shop, where you will find more hand-stamped goodies. I love the feel of her shop- it has a slightly more polished and elegant look than some of the metal stamped jewelry you see.

Metal stamping is a huge trend right now, and I don't see it going away anytime soon. I recently bought an amazing kit from sparklingshamrock on etsy. If you are looking to get in on the stamping action, then sparklingshamrock is your one stop shop for all your stamping needs! She has tons of fonts, ranging from $10.75 for the basic starter upper case font, to 240.00 for a set of upper case and lower case fancy fonts. That's the best deal I've been able to find anywhere online. She also puts together these amazing kits that have everything you need to get started on this awesome craft, including instructions. You can get started with the economy kit for just $69.75!

I can't wait to get started, but it looks like I'll have to. It just so happens I get into a fight with my boyfriend at the same time I need to borrow his hammer. Damn!

If you're not sure if metal stamping is something you want to get into, just browse through etsy's jewelry section, and look at the sellers who've had such success with it. People are always looking to personalize their handmade gifts, and stamping is a great way that jewelry makers can do that. I know I've lost out on a couple sales because I just didn't have the means for personalizing my items.

I watched a couple of tutorials, and I feel like I'm ready to dive in and get my hands dirty... Updates to come on my progress! Check out Beaducation.com, where you can buy tutorial videos and watch them instantly! Or, you can do it the cheap way, (like I did) go to youtube and type in how to hand stamp jewelry. There are a ton of very helpful (free) videos on there as well. That's all for now, gotta go make up with my boyfriend!