Ara: Episode 3

Episode #3 of Ara is up! Here it is!

Susanna and David

Susanna and David are a wonderful couple that drove from another state to meet with me, so fun! I normally meet up with customers at a local coffee shop - but on the particular day I was meeting with them, it was utterly packed. The Publix was right across the parking lot and had some picnic tables - so we just went there! It was quite humorous and they totally charmed me. (and they took a photo of us with the Publix sign in the background! haha!)


Susanna already had a gorgeous ring - so I was just commissioned for David's. A little different than my usual love rocks style, but really fun to make and loved the end result!
Their amazing photos were taken by Inlux Photo - you should totally check them out if you're needing wedding photos in Ohio!

Wishing them both all the very best and as much happiness as humanly possible :)

Blog-o-sphere Think Tank - #2 - March Edition - best childhood/ younger years memory

This month's topic is

best childhood/ younger years memory

I'm not sure that I have one particular memory, more like a collection of memories I guess. Growing up from ages 3 - 14, I lived in a fabulous house in Alabama - it wasn't so much the house as the property that was really memorable. We shared a large "pond" (I think it was about an acre or so) with our neighbor. Our half included the dam and the runoff - which created a wonderful eco-system for a child to play in. We also had quite a bit woods behind the house and around the pond. My fondest memories are playing outside in a variety of ways. I remember loving climbing trees, particularly the little pines that had small broken branches that served as ladder rungs. Something that as a small child - it seemed like I could climb up so high in the tree. I use to make all kinds of things with twigs and leaves and bark and sweet gum balls. My brothers and I built forts, tried our hand at a catapult or two, made little bark boats with leaf sails.... so many fun creative things. I remember making little fairy "dwellings" - and even in college, recreated a giant village based on my childhood creations for an art project in a sculpture class!

It is curious to wonder if I would love nature so much if I had grown up in a neighborhood filled with concrete....

my memory is something like this irene suchocki photo - minus the bench... we had a wonderful island that had a giant willow on it - and there was so much green...


make sure to check out everyone else's posts for this month's topic - sure to be some fun reads!

Andes Cruz
Kathleen Krucoff
Laura Flavin
Wendy Kelly
Stephanie Nocito Clark
Brad Severtson
Andrea Bell
Natsuko Hanks
Shaun Young
Pal Gooz

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the blog-o-sphere think tank is the creation of andes cruz - it is a fun way to blog together as a group on NON jewelry, metal, or art business related topics. yay for variety!

Rebecca and Scott

Isn't that gorgeous!! Rebecca sent me these photos ages ago and I've had them in my "starred" important email folder for months and finally got them posted! Such a great couple in an amazing setting. And Rebecca was sweet enough to write something for the blog post too! Thank you so much to both of them :)

Scott and I got married on August 8th in Essex, MA. In our regular lives, Scott is a paramedic and I am a teacher. We found Beth by searching for tree rings on Etsy, loved her tree bark rings, but ended up falling in love with her Love Rocks rings and purchasing them in white gold. We love the fact that each ring is unique and created for us. We couldn't be happier with them.

Wishing them both much happiness in their life together.

10 year silver prices...

I started working with silver 10 years ago. At the time I was in school and it seemed expensive in comparison to copper and brass - the really cheap metals.

Looking at the 10 year chart makes me sigh.... wow. I didn't know how fortunate I was. Even 5 years ago it was about the same. now.... I'm kind of speechless.

Ara: Episode 2

Part/Episode/Chapter/Installment... #2 of Ara is up


Here it is! (and in less than a month!)

EtsyMetal Blog Carnival 3.7.11: Private Jewelry Collection

It's time for the EtsyMetal Blog Carnival!

This month's Topic: Private Jewelry Collection

What do you wear?
What is your favorite piece (or pieces) from your private collection?
How many finished pieces do you keep for yourself and why?
What is your favorite piece of jewelry that you didn't make?

Oooh such an interesting topic... In general - I don't actually wear that much jewelry and on a daily basis... none (except for my tiny wedding band)

I used to only ever wear my own jewelry - particularly when I had a job working w/ the public and was starting my business, I always wanted to be able to say "why yes, I did make this"

Then I started collecting work from friends and love being able to say "no, I didn't, but my friend made this and here is there info - isn't it fabulous?"

As far as favorites.... well, that is difficult. Though I have many fabulous pieces, I tend to go pretty minimal most of the time w/ just a little pair of earrings I made like these:



My absolute favorites of my 'special' earrings are these from Caitlyn and Stacey



I have loads of other pairs of earrings from friends as well, but sooo many I just picked my top 2!

Rings - it was really difficult to pick - so I photographed the ones I pick out most. I don't wear rings other than wedding band on a daily basis - so when I collect rings from friends, I tend to like them to be quite different and possibly... big! All the rings I've made that I wear are pretty small and kind of dainty. They tend to be experiments or sample pieces that when working on a new design - I make it my size - my fingers are so small, it is great for saving money to have a tiny sample ring :) From left to right back row Norsola, Rebekah, Kerin, Janos, Bill, Ashley (and front row) Norsola, Ann, Sophie



And necklaces - I kept two of my own pieces - not intending them to be mine - the one on the far left I made as an idea for a made to order piece and just loved it so much I just kept it and never made another! The second from the left was a piece I made for an EtsyMetal challenge yeeeeears ago - no one ever bought it and after trying to sell it so many times and loving it so much I decided it was a sign that I should keep it. I absolutely love it and was tired of no one else loving it as much as I did.

After those two pieces from left to right Tosca, Victoria, Sarah, and the next two are Ashley's.



I have lots more super special pieces I've collected from friends, but for the time I had today to photograph (and create links for) these were the ones I could share!

Make sure to check out the other participating members this month:

Rebecca Bogan
Nodeform
Inbar Bareket
Twigs and Heather
2Roses
Quercus Silver
Thomasin Durgin
Michele Grady

Denise and Terry

This is something I've been wanting to do for a long time. I love getting photos of my beautiful happy couples. Denise and Terry were so wonderful to work with and really touched my heart and I could just feel the love and joy radiating from them - so I wanted to share some photos they sent me and send a special thank you to them for making my "job" so meaningful!

With the deepest gratitude, wishing you both all the very best.
xoxo
Beth

A New Blog - what ever am I thinking...

Just a little note to say I've started a new blog, writersanvil.blogspot.com - a place my for fictional writings. I'm hoping to post once a month or so, maybe more or less. Right now I'll be continuing a story I started here.... oh, about a year and half ago! As well as a second story I have developing. It is something I've been wanting to do for awhile and I thought started a blog devoted only to writing would help with the motivation, as well as organizing it away from jewelry type stuff.

Please follow along if you're interested.
Thanks thanks!!!

New Texture has a name: Sands of Time

There is a certain level of enjoyment and anxiety about 'naming' a new ring design or texture. Some names were kind of a given, like my tree bark rings - they were "just" rings before they were wedding rings, so I didn't have any particular wedding thought in mind when naming them. Unlike the "Love Rocks" and the "Tooled w/ Love" rings. Then there is "Subtlety" who is in danger of having their name changed. I feel like it fits the rings, but is so irritating to type - and then I had a customer who even commented on it too! It's a mouthful and complicated - the exact opposite of what the rings are. I'm thinking I should just change the name to "Comfy Cozy" but not sure that would be the best either! haha!

For these new rings, an idea popped in to my head pretty quickly as to what the texture reminded me of. Maybe it was the fact the first ones I did were in yellow gold. Combined with a strong hint of ancient Egypt - and lots of sand. At first I was a bit against the idea of sand because it might make some people think the texture is from being sandblasted, which it isn't. But then someone commented that it did remind them of dirt or sand, which confirmed my thought, so I decided it would be fine.

When I was a kid my mom sometimes watched soap operas and I remember one "Days of our Lives" and the slogan was something to the effect of "Like sands through the hour glass, so these are the days of our lives" (in a deep throaty voice while the image of a big hour glass was on screen - think... early 90's soap opera cheese).

And I really liked the sentimentality of giant hourglass and the sand representing a couples life together, the grains being days or special memories shared together over the many years of their lives... thus... the name Sands of Time. Sweet huh? Little bit of ancient Egypt, loads of sand and a soap opera memory from childhood! And I'm totally in love with this texture. I hope loving couples are too - as this texture is SO fun to create!



And I also did a diamond prototype, for either an engagement ring or for a wedding band w/ a diamond (or a ring that someone wants to wear um, for whatever) It is a 4mm band w/ a 2mm diamond - super subtle and almost blends right in w/ the texture. I love it!



oh and did you notice the sandstone as my nature prop? clever huh? :)

The first listing is up and available here.