plumeria color inspiration....

Picking colors

I was asked to contribute an article to one of Ruby Lane's newsletters. For those of you who do not know what RL is, it's a great site where you can buy high quality antiques, artisan jewelryand fine art. I have a store on "the lane" www.rubylane.com/shops/jaeleven where I sell my jewelry.

So I was thinking about what to write and the theme is focused on stuff like what inspires you, how did you get started, etc. I've read tons of articles/interviews from other jewelry makers and one thing I find interesting is that many of them say they are inspired by nature. Nature? Okay. What, trees, birds, sunsets. autumn? Fair enough, you can look around and be inspired every day by something you see in nature. At the moment, for me, that would mean making something white and icy since it's January in NH. But I find myself endlessly inspired by other designs: interior decor, paintings, other jewelry, fabrics, fashion, flowers, you name it. I love seeing how other people put other colors together. Sometimes if I get stuck on matching a color I absolutely love with another color, I'll hit the internet. One great place to go is http://paletteman.com/ and mess around with the palettes there.

My other favorite is http://www.colorhunter.com/ . This is a really cool site where you can see a color palette created from a picture. You can do a search for keywords of pictures too like "foodporn" or Singapore or beach, sea anenome, and all kinds of weird stuff. Another way to find inspiration here is to toggle the palettes or upload your own photo and create your own palette. Once you get your color inspiration nailed, do a quick mental check of your beads and voila! Get your stuff out and get busy.

Awwwww Yeaaaahhh

It's DONE. A whole new beadboxwebsite, up and running. I am aware that the link to my Ruby Lane shop, Jaeleven Jewels, is not working, so I can only hope interested parties are finding it by cruising this blog and following the link.

A bummer word from Swarovski. My distributor (who is fabulous by the way) said Swarovski is implementing a 2% increase in their product and the Euro/Dollar exchange is now 22.something percent. This means when I spend $100 on product wholesale, I have to tack on an additional $22 for the exchange rate because the dollar is so weak. Well, shelling out for more Swarovski is making ME feel weak, since I have a strong addiction. But somehow, we'll all move on. I will always love their products but will be sourcing other high-quality brands of crystal so my customers can still shine without breaking the bank.

I have to admit, the news did not stop me from buying some limited edition Swarovski starfish in crystal copper....the big ones that come in a factory pack of like a dozen. They don't normally produce the starfish in that color, but what can I say. They're starfish for the love of god. How could I say no?

So that's that. Tomorrow I will find something fascinating to blog about, I'm quite sure. Meanwhile, check the site. -J

New Beads = Bead Love

I have sourced a new wholesale company and got the beads in today I ordered. I can tell you, they were impressive. I love drop shapes, especially top drilled, and got some really cool ones in fabulous colors. Not to mention the prices were fantastic, which trickles down to fantastic prices for my customers. Now what's not to love about that?

Also, I have several customers who are in love with this project they call the "railroad" necklace. It's easy to do and you use a certain kind of yarn and E beads (size 5 or even size 6 seed beads). So in an effort to satisfy them, I just got another shipment of 5's and 6's that I need to package and put out. Check for these on my 'new products' page on my website or in my Etsy store. I will post directions and pics of a finished project on my fabulous blog when I get finished with the one I started.

But for now, I'd better get it together and finish my www.thebeadboxwebsite.com update, or everyone will think I somehow am trapped in Christmas. Which, knowing me, would not be an unreasonable thing to think.
Here's a pic of some new crysocolla, one of my favorite stones: (If I can figure out how to add the freakin picture that is )

check out my etsy store

www.thebeadboxwebsite.etsy.com

here you can buy cool beads, seed beads, pendants, pendant cords, all kinds of good stuff. Prices are reasonable and no junk!!!

check out my RubyLane store, http://www.rubylane.com/shops/jaeleven . It's full of killer jewelry. If you love beads, go to www.thebeadboxwebsite.com. You're sure to find something there!

Here we Go

Since I am such a night owl (which somehow few people seem to understand), and have no one to talk to, I thought it would be smart to have my own blog and write to anyone who cares to read. Not only that, it would serve as yet another way to promote my businesses: The Bead Box, my brick and mortar store and online store where you can buy beads, and my other e-commerce site, Jaeleven Jewels, where you can buy my fantastic jewelry. Although this was pretty quick to set up, I am now starving and must forage for food. Probably something with hot fudge.

I hope to make some new friends and share some interesting stuff on this fabulous blog....so check back often and please write! -Jaeleven