Showing posts with label mother of pearl. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mother of pearl. Show all posts

Monday, December 28, 2009

Something old, Something new, Something borrowed... and Something blue!

custom bridal jewelry by laurastaley.etsy.com
This wedding necklace has been my Custom project for December. A custom order won through a bid in Etsy's alchemy section, the task was to recreate the necklace in the low-resolution photo, and turn it into something fabulous for my bride's Vegas-casino/midnight on New Years' Eve wedding. You can view the bid, and the finished photos, here in my shop.

To recreate the necklace, we used oval mother of pearl, glass coin pearl, blue opal, and alexandrite crystal rosebuds with a vitrail finish. The teardrop "leaves" are faceted emerald crystal teardrops. The flower focals were created in polymer clay with swarovski crystal centers by beetreebyme on Etsy. She took our custom requests and turned them into absolutely fabulous focal flowers! What a treat and a pleasure to work with her!
blue opal bridal and bridesmaid jewelry by laurastaley
custom bridal and bridesmaid jewelry by laurastaley.etsy.com
Custom orders are really high on my list of favorite things to do. Of course I LOVE the free-creating process; I think they're both very fulfilling. My pleasure in the custom creation process lies in taking the customer's need and turning it into
something that is much more than they expected. What fun!


Heartfelt congratulations
to Crystal on her upcoming wedding, this New Years' Eve. Blessings and Best wishes for a long and happy lifetime of love and family.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

New listings today! Plus, I love custom work!! See my newest creations!!

Here's another 3-in-1 combo set hot off my beading table. Recently I'm giving more emphasis to everyday pieces that can be worn to the office, the grocery store, and the ballpark. I love love love to create statement pieces, and have a few custom orders for them right now, but creating items with beauty AND utility has been my main emphasis in my shop for a while. In this set, czech glass apples in peachy pink and green are accented by leafy green droplets and spacers, then hand wired together to create a delicate jumble of smooth pendants and eye-pleasing color. Antiqued brass chain doubles the bracelet and adds a rustic, vintage-like flourish that you'll wear over and over again. This set would be perfect for a lady who avoids ostentatious jewelry, but likes a feminine, flirty touch to wear every day. The front section detaches at twin toggle clasps to form a bracelet, and the 15.5" necklace extender can also double as an additional bracelet. The earrings closely match the design of the bracelet, and can also be worn alone. Czech glass apples anchor the earrings, and they're surrounded by droplets of green and crowned with cherry quartz and antiqued brass.

My other new listing is a cute little pair of earrings featuring carved onyx beads, and mother of pearl. These will please just about any girl who likes floral, feminine fashions, and likes a little dangle to swing when she turns her head. I'm that kind of girl, maybe that's why I make earrings like these!

I know I've said before that I love custom work, but did I mention that I LOVE custom work? Maybe I did. I really love doing custom work. I've had a few jobs lately that have been extremely fun, and stretching at the same time. Here are a few...


Here they are, from left to right: The first one is a sea-themed bracelet, with TierraCast charms, from Lytha Studios. They are not only a TierraCast distributor, but also designers of beautiful jewelry. Kits are available on their site, or you can ask people like me to assemble them for you ;) I also did these earrings for the same customer, but the pictures didn't come out very well. The second is a Fine Silver charm in a line I'm working on for my Etsy shop. The top one was oxidized, and the identical bottom charm is a photo taken before oxidation. Stay tuned for more information, coming soon! I'll offer customized bracelets and necklaces based on themes like Mother's Day, New Baby, Wedding, Graduation, Engagement, and other life's milestones. The last photo on the top is a pair of wire-wrapped "statement" earrings. They're as flashy and swinging as a miniskirt at a club in Miami's South Beach. Imagine the attention you'd get wearing those babies! The bottom charms are all Fine Silver charms, and the one on the right, f.r.o.g. stands for "fully rely on God," from a line of missions fund-raiser jewelry I'm working on at the moment.
I've been a busy girl. For a while the discouraging economy really got me down, but I've found that when I am able to create things that people like, I don't have time to worry about anything else.