Next up in our "My Jewelry Memories" series is the very talented Kashmira Patel. Be sure to check out her blog at http://sadafulee.blogspot.com/.
PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? KP: I went to a convent school, and the nuns did not allow us to wear any jewelry, except very tiny earrings. Pierced ears is a must in India, and they could not put a ban on that tradition. Nothing else was allowed. So during summer holidays, we would wear jewelry to our hearts' content. The first piece to go on was a pair of anklets with lots of silver bells...on both feet. This even inspired a recent blog hop that I had hosted :) http://sadafulee.blogspot.com/2013/05/anklet-blog-hop-reveal.html PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? KP: There are a couple sets that my husband designed and made for me when I first started dabbling into jewelry making. He wanted me to reproduce them and put them up in my shop, but I am a bit possessive about those designs. They are mine ;-) Another piece of jewelry that is extremely special to me is something that belongs to my mother. Its a very delicate gold arm band (it is worn on the bicep!). It has delicate enamel work with animals and her name on it! It was part of her wedding trousseau. I wore it at my own wedding, and still love it although it doesn't fit me anymore :( PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? KP: I would say my Indian roots and heritage, I have to have color and variety in what I wear. PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? KP: Not any one single memory, but I will always remember how my Dad used to bring back loads of costume jewelry for me and my three sisters on his frequent trips to the USA. He totally spoiled us! PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) KP: Style, and then definitely emotional ties! I have a lot of pieces given to me as gifts or made by friends, and I always feel very special wearing them. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? KP: Not really. I like everything :) I guess what I do not like, is the weird and painful piercings some folks do. That is not pretty :( PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? KP: I have it :) My diamond engagement ring :)
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Today's guest is Sheryl Stephens from Cool Moon Creations. She has some really cool things to share about her jewelry.
PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? SS: I actually didn't really get into jewelry and beading until my mid 20's - after I'd been married a few years. BUT - as a child, there was a sunroom at my grandmothers house where she kept beautiful seashells, stones and other treasures found on beach walks and hikes. I absolutely LOVED playing with those - and organizing them as a child. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? SS: My favorite piece is one of my most recent - a big yellow and magenta bead embroidery flower piece. Mostly because it's big and bold and draws tons of compliments, but I also love it because it was so 'off the top of my head" - it had no plan, but turned out beautiful! (Photo attached!) PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? SS: Most of the seed bead queens - Marcia DeCoster, Sheri Serafini, Laura McCabe, Rachel Nelson Smith. Their techniques have given me wings.... PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? SS: Not a specific one; I just find myself reminiscing often about how I started as a bored housewife - and how far I've come with my technique, my style, my passion - and my success. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) SS: It depends on whether I'm designing for myself - or for what I know will be a piece for sale. I take into consideration whether or not I want it to be a piece that is worthy of appearing in one of the two art galleries where I currently sell my work - or whether it needs to be lower priced for the craft markets, or my Etsy site. Trust me. There is a difference. I also have to take into consideration the AREA and customer base. In my specific area (mid-Michigan) we're still feeling that recession, and people are still belt tightening. I still create my unique, one of a kind bead embroidered cabochon pendants - but now just use a simple chain or ribbon to finish them - which greatly lowers the price that I have to charge, without taking away from the uniqueness of the piece. I have also stopped worrying about whether I'm actually 'getting what I'm worth' from my pieces. I don't give them away - but I LOVE what I do - and want people to be able to afford to love them too. It makes me feel good when my customer walks away with a piece that she has fallen in love with, and could afford to buy. That's the emotional element for me. I do still have the high price art pieces that are priced at $100's of dollars - but I'm finding new ways to design to keep the cost more affordable for many of the art fair pieces. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? SS: VINTAGE. I'm doing fun and successful things with skeleton keys and filigree metals right now. PH: Hate? SS: Steampunk. I just don't get it. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? SS: I pretty much only wear my own creations, so I suppose it would be one that I could create with ALL of the highest quality beads and findings that money could buy - Semi precious gems, Swarovski, sterling, high quality seed beads,etc. - without having to worry about what the cost was to purchase them. Our next guest in the "My Jewelry Memories" series is fellow jewelry designer Robin Reed. I love how passionate she is about her jewelry :)
PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? RR: I was not really attached to jewelry when I was little. it was not until I got to be about 16 that I started looking at jewelry as something special. That was the year I saw this cross that I just loved. I really loved big and chunky stuff so this cross was perfect. It was gold toned and had bright jewel toned crystals in it. It looked like something a queen would wear on her velvet gown holding court. I got the cross for Christmas as a gift and lost it about a week later helping someone out of a snowbank. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? RR: I create jewelry now and every piece is special but I only keep a few pieces. Right now my favorite is a chunky strand of oddly shaped crystals and retro influenced beads that are in the blue shades. PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? RR: People don't influence my jewelry choices as much as texture and what I am wearing like a specific shirt or outfit. Or what someone else is wearing. Like I could design a cool set of jewelry for someone based on who they are and what they are wearing. PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? RR: My favorite memory would be when my then fiancee and I went in and sat down at a local jewelry where I live and found a simple sapphire and diamond yellow gold band. That was my ring!!!!! It was fun and simple and sweet! We have been married more than 28 years and I still have it and it is still My ring!!! I did get it rhodium plated a few months ago but I think I will let it go back when ever it does. I like it better without the rhodium. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) RR: I don't choose jewelry, i make jewelry. If I need something to wear to match an outfit, I make one. I have been known to get up early and make a necklace and bracelet to match a shirt cause I wanted to wear it to work. That being said, I choose my stones and findings with an eye to specific designs, mostly chunky and earth tones. I also look for unusual and eye catching clasps and filler beads. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? RR: My favorite beads to use are jaspers and agates because they hold worlds of design and color in great configurations. i do not care for the sideways cross trend it does not show respect. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? RR: I would change the question to beads instead of jewelry and just say all the jasper and agates and other stones like tiger's eye and that type, that I could possibly get!!! Thanks Robin for sharing with us! If you would like to share your jewelry memories with us, send me an email at [email protected]. Our next guest is one of my good friends Darci. We have been friends for years and have lots of great memories together--including several very fun road trips. She has a great sense of fashion and her answers were really fun to read. PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? DB: I had a reversible cross that belonged to my mom--blue turquoise on one side, red on the other. It was fabulously '70s while not looking dated, plus I thought it was so cool that it was something my mom had worn and loved when she was my age. Sadly, I wore it even though it had a loose clasp, and, ten years later, I still beat myself up about losing it. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? DB: When my husband was in his early teens, he purchased a silver shamrock necklace on a trip with his family. He imagined he would give it to a "special girl" someday. He gave it to me, still gift wrapped, six months after we got married. (He would have given it to me earlier, but he'd misplaced it during moves.) Although I don’t wear it often, I look at it on my jewelry shelf and think about how my husband has been thoughtful for many years. Even when a serious girlfriend or wife was a theoretical concept, he was thinking about how he could show her love. PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? DB: Most days I wear the same very small gold cross necklace and tiny gold earrings (plus my wedding rings), which is similar to my mom's simple style. However, I like to wear a wide variety of things and explore different styles with my accessories. I’ve been influenced by blogs, retailers’ catalogs/store windows/sales associates*, and “street style” aka checking out the accessories of other women on the work elevator. *True story: Seeing a similar necklace on a cashier at Anthropologie convinced me to not-so-subtly beg for this one as a Christmas gift. Thanks, Mom and Dad! PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? DB: When I was young, my grandma would let me go through boxes of costume jewelry she had. Some of it was hers, and some items were from other women in the family. There was a vintage watch—which appears to be decorated with poisonous radium paint—that belonged to my “Auntie Mil.” Even though I was too young to remember her, there was an extra hole punched in the watch to fit around her tiny wrist that fit my equally tiny wrist exactly. I still have that watch, and it still glows. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) DB: I like to buy jewelry that will last and is distinctive, even if it is a little more expensive. Although I keep it simple most days, I also collect and wear items I think are lovely and unique, like a mini art collection. In the last year or so I've picked up a big collar necklace, small jeweled ant earrings, and a bangle with 1960s-style sunbathers on it. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? DB: I love the look of the “arm party” trend, although I feel ridiculous when I try it; my arm parties have only been house parties so far. I don’t know if it’s a “trend” or not, but I really dislike theme jewelry---you know, the stuff that gets advertised as $99 (with a free box of chocolates!) for Valentine’s, Christmas, and Mother’s Day. I think it’s best when you can assign your own meaning to a gift instead of having marketers tell you what a piece of jewelry is supposed to mean. Side note: I groan audibly and leap to hit the mute button every-single-time I have to see that Kay Jewelers commercial where the woman is (apparently) scared of thunder and the husband/boyfriend patronizingly says, “I’m right here.” It’s insufferable. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? DB: Nothing specific comes to mind, but I drool over some of the estate jewelry I see on Etsy and Pinterest. Thank you Darci for sharing your jewelry memories with us. I loved reading through your answers and may be stealing the term "arm party" for future use!! Auntie Mil's Radium Watch Our next guest is the talented Staci Smith of Staci Louise Originals and Artisan Accents. I am LOVING this blog series! Each time I read through someone's answers, I am blown away. There are some really cool stories about their jewelry. Now, if I could just figure out how to see all of this fabulous jewelry for myself!! PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? SS: This one really had me scratching my head. I don't think I had a favorite. I really thought about this, and I did have quite a bit of jewelry growing up (yeah, I got the bug early). I couldn't however, pick a favorite really. I had a pair of moonstone earrings that were silver, with the moonstone set among vines....I did love those...but I was older then. So I thought way back, and what I found was that I did love to root through my Mommom's jewelry- and she had a lot!!!!! I loved trying on her rings, and looking at all her sparkly pins. I just loved her (she's been gone now 8 years). She always wore jewelry. She was home most days, babysitting us, and she would still always have a beautiful necklace one, maybe a bracelet or a new ring. I never really thought about it before, but I wonder if her love of jewelry, and my love of her, and my love of jewelry, are no so coincidental. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? SS: That one is really hard. I think every new piece I make is a favorite, for awhile. I guess I'd have to say it my sea glass charm necklace. Its silver, and it goes with everything, so I find myself wearing it often, and through the years, it has not gone out of rotation. Plus, I can wear it at the beach and all- since it's sterling silver and sea glass. It's more of a practical reason then emotional. PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? SS: Well, I love my jewelry wild and wearable. I'd have to say it was Art. All kinds of it! My mom took me to art and craft shows all the time, and from the time I was young, I loved the art and the ARTISAN JEWLERY!!! So I think that influenced me the most, because I was exposed to jewelry that was different, in a setting with other art, and so, it was art to me from early on, and it was ok that it wasn't your typical gemstones set in gold stuff. PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? SS: I would have to say again, it was those times when my Mommom would let me route through her jewelry and try things on. I think I loved those times more then she knew. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) SS: Composition is important to me. I look for things that are asymmetrical, dramatic, but still have balance. It has to have wow factor and it has to be BIG. It also has to be comfortable, durable and wearable. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? SS: I think trends have an important place in jewelry, just as they do in fashion. Not sure if there are any I particularly hate, but I do love when I see a trend, and then see artists do it, but with their own interpretation of it. When they take what everyone else is doing, and then do it in a way that no one has seen. I think trends can be great challenges to designers, and really help them to grow in new areas. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? SS: Oh man, that's a hard one. I'd like to own a Calder......either that, or something with history- something tribal, that was forged by hand, and worn by many, that represents the people who made it and loved it. Thank you Staci for sharing your memories with us. :) If you are interested in sharing your jewelry memories, send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to share your story as well!
This week's guest is my friend Robin Butwan. We've known each other since high school and it seems like just yesterday we were going with our friend Jelisa to get her ears pierced. I hope you enjoy reading Robin's answers as much as I did. And I hope she'll let me borrow some of her fabulous jewelry (wink!). PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? RB: I don't remember having jewelry growing up. I'm sure I did. But I honestly don't remember. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? RB: Right now I have three favorite pieces. My absolute favorite, the ring I want to be buried in, is the one my husband designed for me for our ten year anniversary. It has a very thin, delicate band with diamonds all around it and a pink sapphire in the middle. I also love a necklace I bought in Wisconsin from an artist in Mexico. It's a bib necklace that looks like strips of leather were twisted into rose buds and they are stacked on each other, except it's made of orange peel not leather. (I'm pretty sure it's a lot more interesting than I just described it.) I love the fact that it's made of orange peel. When someone compliments me on that and I tell them, they inevitably pull out their glasses to inspect it. More than once I've had to take off the necklace so they can smell it. I also have a necklace that I found when Chris and I were in Oahu. It's on a silver chain and there is a silver ring and a wood ring (both about the size of a silver dollar) and they lay on top of each other. I don't know why, but that necklace really spoke to me. I didn't buy it while we were there, I called the store from home and had them ship it to me. It was very expensive for what it is, but like I said, it spoke to me. PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? RB: I don't know that any particular person influences my jewelry tastes. I am all over the map with what I like. Feminine and delicate, loud and obnoxious, whimsical. I judge more on an individual basis. I love jewelry that is interesting and has a story associated with it. Mall jewelry is fine. But unique pieces created by someone are the things that capture my attention. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) RB: When choosing jewelry, I go more on emotional ties and feelings than anything. I want to feel unique and special. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? RB: I honestly have no idea what jewelry trends there are. I never really even thought about jewelry having trend cycles like fashion does. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? RB: If I could have any piece of jewelry in the world, I would have Kate Middleton's blue sapphire ring. But, I don't think she'd be willing to part with it. Thanks Robin! I love hearing that your jewelry has emotional ties for you. That's what I hope for when I make jewelry for people. Robin (R) and Jack Sparrow :)
If you are interested in sharing your jewelry memories, send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to share your story as well! One of the cool things about this series is the opportunity to hear from a wide variety of people, including jewelry designers. Today, we are talking with Catherine Shattuck of Victorian Rose Boutique about her jewelry memories. PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? CS: When I was a teen, I remember going to a bead store and picking out beads to make some hippie jewelry with. So I strung a couple of necklaces with those first beads. Haha! I would say that's when my interest in beading began even though I didn't bead continuously at the time. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? CS: My fave piece of jewelry now is my wedding ring set because my husband, the love of my life, gave it to me. PH: Who has influenced your jewelry tastes? CS: Currently my taste in jewelry has gravitated towards Victorian/vintage inspired pieces. I was already leaning in that direction but a friend and jewelry designer, Brenda Sue Lansdowne, who's very knowledgeable about vintage pieces, has given impetus to my choice. Hi Brenda! LOL!! PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? CS: One of my favorite memories regarding jewelry was when my best friend and I went to a local jewelry store and I was able to pick out my first gold and sapphire ring. It was a reward to myself for a reason I choose not to disclose. But that was about 25 yrs. ago and I still have that ring and wear it all the time. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) CS: I rarely buy jewelry anymore because if I need something, I just make my own. The only recent pieces I picked up was a lovely necklace with a pendant watch on it that a fellow jewelry artist and friend made. And the same with a bracelet I purchased; another artist made that as well. Otherwise, I make my own. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? CS: I like the Gatsby trend and I dislike the geometric stuff. Sorry to all you geometric fans out there. LOL!! PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? CS: Christy Friesen's polymer clay GORGEOUS Peacock Necklace! Thanks Catherine! I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about your jewelry. :) If you are interested in sharing your jewelry memories, send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to share your story as well!
I have been thinking a lot lately about how personal jewelry is. The best jewelry (in my opinion) is the jewelry that has an emotional connection to it. For me it is the necklace my grandma gave me; the earrings my dad brought back for me from his business trip; the bracelet my mom got me when I graduated from high school; the ring my husband bought me for my birthday because he remembered I liked it. Now I'm curious to find out what other people think about their jewelry. So I decided to ask friends, family and colleagues to share what they feel/remember about their favorite jewelry. If you are interested in sharing your jewelry memories, send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to share your story as well! My first guest is the lovely Joy Mettee. We lived right down the street from each other and spent a lot of time together when we growing up. As cousins, we share a lot of common memories, but I was very curious to find out what she had to say about her jewelry memories. PH: What was your favorite piece of jewelry when you were growing up? Why? JM: I had a Snoopy necklace that was colorful so I wore it with everything. I also had Winnie the Pooh watch I bought with my own money so it was important to me. PH: What is your favorite piece of jewelry now? Why? JM: I have a simple necklace with my initial J on it. I love it because my mom got it for me and my 2 best friends matching ones. PH: Who would you say has influenced your jewelry tastes? JM: Probably mom & grandma because they let me play with their jewelry all the time. PH: Do you have a favorite memory involving jewelry? JM: When we cousins all got our ears pierced together. And a charm grandma kept in the window she said was Uncle Danny (our uncle who passed away) when it made a rainbow on the carpet. PH: When you choose jewelry, what factors do you consider? (price, fashion, emotional ties, etc?) JM: Price and what I'd wear it with, like the specific top or outfit. PH: What jewelry trends do you like? Hate? JM: At first I didn't like the crosses on their side, but now I'm used to it. I've never really like charm bracelets either. I find rings inconvenient for me. I got into owls for a little bit. I really like long necklaces & I'm getting into the chunkier ones. PH: If you could have any piece of jewelry in the world, what would it be? JM: An engagement ring from a single godly man :) Or a tiara from some European Crown Jewels. Thanks Joy! I enjoyed hearing what you had to say about your jewelry. :) If you are interested in sharing your jewelry memories, send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to share your story as well!
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