Archive for the ‘Designer Spotlight’ Category

Summer Road Trip part 3

Friday, June 29th, 2012

Hi bloglandia! Today is the deadline for entering the Vintaj Summer Road Trip design challenge. Mollie was a little late in getting her inspiration piece completed…seems her idea of a summer road trip is wandering in the woods.  There are no clocks or calendars in the wilderness! Her “Day in the Woods” necklace is well worth waiting for, however. She combined a number of sweet little elements together to make this piece. We’ll have to look closely to see them all, as the sunlight can be a bit distracting!

blends-with-nature

The vial hangs with a cluster of wire-wrapped bicones in shades of smoky blue and gray from olive green velvet ribbon.

n-is-north-mollie

Mollie painted a wee brass feather charm with Vintaj Patina in a muted blue-green color before hanging it inside a glass vial. The vial top is adorned with a Vintaj bead cap, Swarovski rhinestone wheel and a crystal bicone from our new Idewild Blue Crystal Jam mix.

decoemboss-leaf

A DecoEmbossed Vintaj leaf and a metal stamped and dapped round Vintaj charm complete the grouping.

ribbon-ends-vintaj

And here is a view of how Mollie finished the ends - ribbon clamps (simply flatten with pliers -the teeth inside grip the ribbon securely) and a Vintaj clasp.

With jewelry this pretty, who wouldn’t want to wander in the woods? Hope you all have a lovely weekend! ~ Cindy

Vintaj Road Trip Design Challenge!

Wednesday, June 20th, 2012

vintaj rings & things road trip design challengeHi bloglandia! We are really excited to be partnering with Vintaj for their Summer Road Trip design challenge this month. Visit their blog to see the great jewelry their designers created by pairing beads & components from Rings & Things with Vintaj products. The Vintaj blog also has all the details about how to enter the contest! Submissions are due by NOON (CST) Friday, June 29. But wait – don’t go yet!

Over the next couple of weeks we’ll share some of our own Summer Road Trip jewelry pieces, starting with Sondra’s “The Trail Less Traveled” bracelet:

trail-less-traveled-bracelet

This mixed metal bracelet contains all kinds of mementos!

She used so many fun techniques that I’m sure I’ll miss a few, but here are the highlights: 

decoemboss-vintaj

The Vintaj luggage tags were DecoEmbossed with the Sizzix BigKICK. Sondra punched holes to in the tags to link them with textured locking jump rings.

postcard-bracelet

She curved the postcard charm and souvenir penny using bracelet bending pliers.

vintaj-bee-soldered-crystal

The Vintaj bee and several other charms have the tips of rhinestone crystal head pins soldered onto them for extra bling.

vintaj-turtle-charm

The memoir stamp bezel from Vintaj is filled with a scrap of map coated with SuperClear resin.

vintaj-leaf-crystal-clasp

The rest of the sparklies are from our Karma Chameleon Crystal Jam. Check out our Crystal Jam color themed design boards on Pinterest!

Ok. Now you can go get started on your own Summer Road Trip design challenge piece! We can’t wait to see what you create! ~ Cindy

Torch fired enamel jewelry ideas

Wednesday, January 4th, 2012

Torch fired enameled metal is really (really!) quite beautiful! We recently added a selection of artisan copper components from C-Koop Beads. The colors are deep and lustrous due to the layers of glass fused to the surface of the metal, and since they are handmade, each one is slightly different. Here are a few of the mixed-media jewelry pieces our designers have recently created with enameled copper:

enameled-leaves-handpainted-wood

Nory painted wood pendants and beads with a rose motif, and had Tiffany construct his design using silk ribbon and brightly dyed wood beads.  The enameled copper leaves, rings, bead caps and toggle clasp are all by C-Koop.

cindy-morris-gogoshebogo-design

I used copper clay powder to create the bird pendant, which coordinated well with C-Koop enameled pink rings and Swarovski antique pink crystals. I love how you can see bits of copper underneath the enamel.

bottle-cap-necklace-enameled-heart

The elongated heart shape is practically Sondra’s signature, so of course it was the finishing touch on her bottle cap necklace.

enameled-etched-copper-bracelet

Rita etched a copper washer to create the center link on this bracelet, and used a clasp and beads from C-Koop to add more color.

~Cindy

Turn it upside down!

Thursday, December 22nd, 2011

What happens when you take the oh-so-popular Swarovski crystal tree charm pattern and turn it upside down? Beautiful, festive crystal earrings that can be worn year-round!

melissa-earrings

The French clips are another nice touch. Melissa made these classic clear crystal margarita earrings while on vacation with her mom and I snatched them off her ears as soon as I saw them.  I think they look like frosty pine cones or icicles, but in a subtle way. Unlike the “real” crystal trees, they’ll still look appropriate in June. Something to keep in mind if you’re making last-minute gifts! ~ Cindy