Missing Trades - Part 1: DMRHas2

Since I missed so many Tuesday Trades posts in the missing month I decided to do a series of the missing trades. Just to clarify, I got what I wanted in the trades and the shops I traded with got what they wanted...the missing part is just that I did not post them yet!

Okay, on to Missing Trades - Part 1

November was a great month for trades! I did sooo many! One of the cool trades, and the first of its kind was with DMRHas2. The reason it is the first of its kind is because I did not trade my jewelry for the items I got from this shop! No, indeed. I traded her some of my supplies that I did not think I would use. It was a great trade all around though.

I got these awesome little guys from her! Aren't they adorable! 

Cutest little owl charms ever! I love them so much...I cannot bear to use them! I could bear to get rid of these though: 

The metal beads is what she wanted. They were huge! Not really my style at all. I mean, what was I ever going to do with those?

Stay tuned, more missing trades to come!

Number twelve: Craft Show Failure

This may not seem like a highlight of the summer, but it really was. Yeah, I was close to tears during the show, but it all turned out good and I learned so much.

I had fun setting up the show. collecting the props and making others, making jewelry all summer (when I wasn't doing homework or working), and I spent the day with my mom since she came with me to the show.  I only had a couple of sales and I barely covered the cost of my booth fee. Pretty sad, that bit.

On the other hand, I got tons of compliments on my jewelry and every loved my displays. I learned that shows are not my favorite thing and they are much harder to sell at than you might think. I have a very deep, new-found respect for people that do shows all the time.

So that is my summer recap. It was great and I am so glad that everything happened the way that it did!  How was your summer? What great things happened in your life?

WirequeenJewelry

Greetings friends! Today I bring you another great shop! WireQueenJewelry! From the mind and powers of Michelle Hawkins comes a whole bunch of lovely wire wrapped jewelry and more!

What inspires you?

“Many of my designs I dreamed before I made them. I've always been accused of having one foot on the earth and the other in the ethereal, something I can't deny. I believe in honoring the gemstones when I use them. I cover as little of the face of the stone as possible. This requires more time and skill on my part. A skill I have developed over the ten years I have created wire art, but your stone is secure in its setting. I try and educate my buyer about the gemstone properties and folklore. “

How did you get started in this work?

“I started importing beads and stringing jewelry. I picked up some wire and fell in love with wire jewelry. All told I have been making jewelry more than 20 years. I have customers from 10 and 15 years back who are still wearing their "pretties" and receiving compliments.”

What makes you stand out from all the other wire wrap jewelry artists out there?

 “You will not see yourself everywhere in my pieces. The only pieces I do a lot of the same are the cowrie shell items which are my signature. The cowrie shell pieces are not even the same each time due to the nature of freehand wire work.”

Don’t you just love this work?! Wire wrapping is amazing. What is your favorite piece from the shop?

http://www.wirequeen.com
http://www.facebook.com/wirequeen

http://www.Twitter.com/wirequeen

http://twitter.com/HawkinsMichelle

http://www.pinterest.com/wirequeen

LoralynDesigns

Customizable industrial jewelry and gifts

How did you chose your shop name?

“Loralyn is a combination of my first and middle names Laura and Lynn. I always loved the two names combined, I just changed the spelling a bit.”

How did you decide to start your business?

“Earlier this year, I was out of work due to a back strain and frankly, I had a lot of time on my hands. I used the time to read, to research, and to reflect. It turned out to be both physically and mentally therapeutic. During this time, Loralyn Designs was born.

My Goal: Design unique jewelry and gifts incorporating metal and color .
The Challenge: How to put my personal mark on items 

I was down at my workbench one day and it hit me; Washers, nuts, stainless steel, oh that makes sense! The next challenge was the color. After a lot of research I discovered a modeling material called friendly plastic. It is easy to use, non-toxic and enabled me make my own colors."

What is your favorite piece from your shop?

“I can't say I have a favorite item, I love them all!”

Can you give us some background on your shop?

“A little background on myself:
My real passion is using my hands to create and design. I am thankful to have had a mom that encouraged crafting and creativity from an early age. She taught me the beauty of handmade items from sewing to painting and drawing, gift wrapping, jewelry making, and home decorations. At age 8, I was selling my jewelry door to door (OK, I was selling my fashion plate color drawings too). At 13 my mom invited me to join her in selling my 3D plastic canvas Christmas ornaments which did pretty well. I still have a few I put on my tree every year.
I branched out to woodworking and home improvement projects in my 20s. Now in my late 30s, I have discovered a new passion with metal crafts.”

So, my dear readers? What do you think?

Pretty awesome industrial chic jewelry isn’t it?

Don’t you just love it?

Find her on Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter! 

AnchorsAwayJewelry

Amanda Leigh is an awesome girl that was inspired to create jewelry as a way to bland art and style!

With inspiration from alternative fashion, Amanda’s shop has a great selection of pin up, rockabilly, kawaii, and nautical items!

Amanda is a really cool girl and I think you would like to read about her and see her picture on Etsy.

How did you get interested in alternative fashions?

 

"I have always had a strong interest in many alternative styles. I really connect with the attitude and classic beauty of certain styles that are typically portrayed as pin up style. I am most drawn to the nautical style because to me it symbolizes strength and adventure. I chose to draw on this nautical theme with my store name Anchors Away since I always aspire for my jewelry to be adventurous! My favorite fashion trends are patterns, I love all patterns from polka dot, animal print, floral, to argyle!"

Find AnchorsAwayJewelry on Facebook

FushiaGold

Hello everyone! Today I want to share a really neat jewelry shop with you! FushiaGold is fairly young shop based in Sheffield, UK!

Everything is real leather and is all handmade. Freya has been making jewelry for about two years and has loved it all along.

She got some leather scraps to play with and just fell in love with leather working. Just listen to what she says about it!

"It is very soft and light and comes in so many shades and finishes."

“I love metallics and bright colours that really pop. I have had an obsession anything sparkling and gem like my whole life so naturally there is a lot of gold and silver, I just can't resist!”

“My designs are quite modern, with sharp lines and geometric shapes, apart from the butterflies and clouds, I can't really explain those, they just happened by themselves!”

Want to know more about Freya? Like how she got into crafting or how she find inspiration?

“I have always made things,I started with way too many drawings of long haired princesses with no shoulders and bright pink cheeks and wobbly "when I grow up..." writing,to pop up books and an attempt at a comic involving cats which I kept going through various adventures for at least 2 years and which I can barely look at now, to multimedia paintings and photography in 6th form.”

 

“I have always loved bright colour and texture,with simple shapes and defined edges,I love graffiti,bold prints and of course,diamonds,crystals and sparkly things in all forms.”

Get 10% off from now until Christmas with code “tentriangles” at checkout when you order two pieces.

Find Freya and FushiaGold on Facebook and her blog!

AdamRabbit

So, AdamRabbit is awesome! Just take a look at some of these great pieces of artwork!

AdamRabbit is based in Phoenix Arizona and is run by a special education teacher who is working on her master’s degree. She is currently focusing her creativity on clay jewelry.

When I asked her about herself and her shop she told me that she loves “to use natural materials and find ways to make these beautiful.” If you ask me, I think she is doing a fantastic job!

Find her blog at sewso.tumblr.com

Modern Flower Child - Giveaway!

First off...Congrats to Sara for winning the earrings from Myriad Vintage! Secondly, I am pleased to announce a new giveaway from a really cool shop!

Modern Flower Child is a shop that I have been in love with for a couple of years now! And I will show you why! 

And I have a pair of these:

Aren't they just lovely? I get compliments on them every time I wear them. I love the simple beauty of these natural elements of flowers and leaves and sometimes sand. I just love how simple and elegant and down to earth these pieces of art jewelry are! 

Now for the really good news! Modern Flower Child is offering up this amazing pendant as a giveaway for one of you, my lucky, lucky readers! Here are the dimensions: 1 2/8 inch tall (not counting the metal loops) x 5/8 inch wide x 3/8 inch thick. (Chain not included).