I think I’ve been gone long enough now…..

Yes,  I needed a break from blogging and some time to think.  It’s been long enough now, and I’ll be easing back into it over the summer with bits about new work, a few of my cooking and eating adventures, news about my sadly neglected garden (which, by the way is thriving without me, just not very neat, ha ha), and maybe even some book reviews.  I listen to audio books while I work in the studio, and I definitely want to share some of those!  It’s time to revive the “Sunday Morning Coffee and Etsy” posts, soon, too.  The new circles feature at Etsy has helped me discover tons of great new artists whose work I’ve fallen in love with. 

Anyhow, I’ve been working hard and contemplating where I’m going to go next with Lavender Cottage – definitely time to grow to the next level.  The first step has been moving away from an all made-to-order business and building up an inventory.  Making everything to order meant that there was never any time to work on new ideas, and my shop was starting to get stale, not to mention all of the “uncreated” ideas crowding my brain to get out!    It’s been hard to work fast enough to catch up so I can start working on new inventory, but it’s finally starting to happen.  I actually listed more than one new piece this week!!  Most are everyday pieces made to coordinate with customer favorites.  I’ve wanted to do that for a long time.

Here are some new Pebble Road bangles made from square wire.  (I’ve got more square wire designs up my sleeve, too. ) These are oxidized for a rustic feel, and go beautifully with the Pebble Road Wrapped Oh pendant and Pebble Road stud earrings.

 

There is a new buttercup ring in all sterling silver rather than mixed metals too.  The Summer Meadow ring, along with a cute little pair of earrings that I named Honeydrop are a great little set.  They can both can be set with moonstone to coordinate with the Moonflower cuff, too.

 

I’m working on a new all-silver buttercup pendant which will be set with a citrine to match these.  It, too, can be set with moonstone for coordinating with the Moonflower cuff.

 

 

Another new piece made this week is a pendant that continues to explore the  “torn” metal idea that I’ve always enjoyed working with.  Simply named ‘Torn’, it was made to coordinate with with the Pebble Road Posts and the Silver Pebbles ring.  While I was making this one, I almost set it with a diamond as it looks sensational with a sparkly faceted stone instead of the little silver pebble.  One like that one will go with the Ice Whisper ring – methinks I’ll be making myself one of those quite soon!  And if set with a labradorite, it will go great with the Galadriel’s Song ring. 

I’m also whittling away at my pile of unset stone, my very favorite thing to do.  The latest of these is “Plumflower”, a lovely little sugilite cabochon accented with a tiny bloom and swirl of silver.  Had fun making this.  I’m in a swirly mood these days, and am working on great flashy Sunstone ring embellished with a few swirls for this week.  Just have to get the swirlies soldered on and the stone set and it will be ready. 

Soooo, that’s it for now, but stay tuned, because soon every piece in the shop will have at least one other piece that goes with it.   Just trying to get organized  -  I know, it’s about time, lol!

I’m not making any promises about how often I’ll be blogging, but let’s just say it will be more than once every 7 months!  See you ‘soon’!

Sunday Morning Coffee and Etsy – 10/10/10

Good morning!  Well, I just couldn’t let a date like 10/10/10 go by without a blog post.  Yes, I have been very sporadic this year in my blogging, haven’t I?  Last post was 8/29/10 – I need to do better – I still find lots of gorgeous new things on Etsy, and I feel bad for not sharing them more often.  So, let’s get started on today’s wonderful collection…..

I happened across this shop a while ago, and quickly saved it to my favorites.  The message and the look inspire me – Less and More.  I am on the verge of a gigantic decluttering of my house and studio, and although my style is not modernist, I love the clean simplicity of  these beautiful and very useful pieces.  I can  definitely use a few of these mixed in with my cottage style decor.  Some of these can double as sculpture too.  The chopstick holder is wonderful – much better than hiding them in a drawer.  Makes me want to go out and buy some fancy chopsticks.  Not only that, now I’m craving Chinese food! 

What I really need, though is one (or many) of the desk organizers.  I especially like the nice-sized Crafting Cindy version.   Both my shipping desk and my jewelry bench would benefit greatly from a few of these.  

I’m considering moving my studio out of the basement and into what is now my packing and shipping room/bird room.  I’d love to be upstairs, and it would be fun to be able to actually have “decor” that inspires me rather than cold cement walls.  I came across this wonderful embroidered lavender pillow in the shop of Polkadots and Blooms.  What a great name for a shop filled with wonderful, and yes, very useful, fabric treasures!  

These handy little cloth storage baskets (small size pictured here – the also come in medium and large) would definitely help out my clutter issues and look great while doing it.  The exterior fabric is mangle cloth, a vintage linen fabric  between 60 and 100 years old.

 

I was also thrilled to find a shop, The Creative Gene,  this morning that sells handmade cotton dishcloths.  My mother started making similar ones for me years ago, and I am totally addicted to them now.  Unfortunately my Mom doesn’t always have time to keep making me more of them.  I fell in love with this lovely stack of 3 discloths aptly named Violet Petals.  My kitchen has a wallpaper border of potted violets, so these are completely perfect!

You’ll find other beautifully made items in this shop such as baby blankets, hats, and this wonderful crocheted storage basket that is a perfect fit for storing your handmade dishcloths!  Now I’m totally inspired to go do the dishes and clean up the kitchen – have a great week everyone! 

Sunday Morning Coffee and Etsy 08/29/10

The weather is beginning to cool ever so slightly, and the anticipation of Fall is definitely in the air for me.  Fall has always been my favorite season.  Even though it’s been longer than I care to admit since my school days, I still get that ‘back to school’ feeling of a fresh start that  brings on  a  surge of creative energy.

So, freshly inspired by the cool breeze and the upcoming season, I actually made something new for the shop this week!  The design idea for this ring, which I have named Ice Whisper,  has been in my head ever since I made my Galadriel’s Dream cuff a couple of years ago.  I’ve always planned to take the concept into a whole series of pieces.  I particularly enjoy forging the organic '”torn” look  -  it gives me a chance to play with my wonderful Fretz hammers.      This ring is definitely my new favorite, and there will be more with colored stones – especially the gorgeous

apricot sapphires that my stone supplier just got in.  This color looks good enough to eat!!  

Speaking of gorgeous stones – I’ve had the Glimmering Gems Etsy shop in my favorites for quite a while, now.  I follow them on Twitter, too, so I always know when they get something new in.  Their shop carries truly inspiring and unusual rocks and gems from the mines of Uruguay and Brazil.   I discovered this breathtaking Amethyst Agate Geode Sphere the last time I was browsing through their shop.  What a  stunning specimen!!  It measures 86mm (about 3 inches in diameter).  I would so love to have this in my collection!  I’ve always been partial to amethyst in any form, and the wheels are turning in my mind on a way to use their beautiful stones in one of my designs.  This gorgeous stalactite slice is on its way to me as we speak.  I’m inspired already, and can’t wait to put hammer to metal for a setting that will hopefully do justice to it!

 

Something else that I always get excited about is Steampunk and Victorian inspired jewelry.  I found the most incredible shop this week  -  Aranwen’s Jewelry, created by Vicky from Athens, Greece.  There are so many beautiful designs in her shop, I didn’t know what to look at first!    I’ve always loved unique watches, though, so her cuff watches are something that I am definitely drooling over.  My favorite is the stunning  Silver Wings design – I’m in love with it!  Might have something to do with the cute little amethyst rhinestones will coordinate nicely with the colors in that yummy stone that is on its way in the mail.

Another cuff watch in her shop that I absolutely love is the beautiful brass Baroque Goddess design.  A more petite design, this one has a lovely romantic feel to it that is hard to resist.   Vicky creates each one of her pieces herself from a unique array of gorgeous components, and her talent for creating unique beauty is apparent in every piece in her shop. 

Well, coffee is done, and I’d better get the day started, so I’ll wish everyone a great week!  Talk to you soon……..