Heart Gallery pins

the raw sterling silver castings


mid-production- adding the epoxy resin


the finished product

These are sterling silver and epoxy resin pins I made for the Heart Gallery of NJ. The Heart Gallery is a non-profit organization "dedicated to raising awareness for foster children available for adoption." They just had a photography opening at the Liberty Science Center in NJ consisting of 100 portraits of children waiting to be adopted. As a sister to five adopted siblings, I find this so moving. There are so many kids out there that just want to be loved and to feel secure within a family. Wishing happy homes to all of these amazing kids!

My Etsy shop is now open!

My new website is SO close to being finished! As part of my goals for this year, I've decided to open an Etsy shop (mypreciousstudio.etsy.com) to complement my website. I will be selling jewelry that is finished and ready to ship as well as my one-of-a-kind pieces.
I will, of course, still be taking orders from mypreciousstudio.com and selling at various shops and boutiques.
Haven't heard of Etsy? Based out of Brooklyn, NY, it's a fabulous place for sellers and buyers of handmade goods. Seriously, support handmade! Visit their website and get lost for a very long time...
I'll let you know as soon as my new site is up and running!

Recycled jewelry

Taking the metal from one piece of jewelry to rework (reuse) into a new piece is just one way to recycle metal. This process happens to be near and dear to me. I've used this process to make some truly sentimental pieces. I've used a ring from a deceased mother to make a pendant for the son. I believe that energy from the wearer lingers in the metal and that can make it even more precious. It can also be cathartic to make something new. Take a wedding ring from a divorce and change it into something new and full of life. The image above is a pendant I made from a ring. It was a diamond engagement ring given to her by her grandmother. We used the diamond for a new engagement ring and I made the keepsake heart pendant from the band.
Seriously, I LOVE this stuff.
On the topic of recycled jewelry...yesterday my dear friend Noah came to my studio to work on a piece for his skull a day blog project. I helped turn a 14k yellow and white gold wedding ring into a fabulous skull ring. He even illustrated the process (nerdy goodness!). See it here. We had a great time!
I hope this has given you some ideas for recycling your old jewelry.

Stone of the month: garnet

The official birthstone for January is the beautiful garnet. It's also the talisman for the sign of Aquarius. Garnets come in every color but blue; although red is the most popular. There are numerous shades of red garnets including rhodolite, hessonite and pyrope. Green varieties include tsavorite, uvarovite and demantoid. Spessartite garnets range from yellow and orange to reddish and dark browns.
Garnet's powers include strength, healing and protection. It's the talisman of warriors. When exchanged as gifts, it represents loyalty and affection. It's also believed to help regulate the heart and blood flow and to fight depression.

New year, new outlook

Well, happy new year everyone. I can only speak for myself, but I'm looking forward to what 2008 holds. I have many goals and dreams; new website, new jewelry, newfound energy. I've rediscovered my creative mojo, so to speak. I wish you all peace and hope you follow your passions this year. Cheers!