ZENABU

January Birthstone

2009-01-14T12:49:00.000+02:00

January Birthstone: Garnet
Birthstone Colour: Deep Red

One glance at the deep red seeds nestled inside of a pomegranate fruit explains why the word "garnet" comes from the Latin word "granatus," meaning "grain" or "seed." This name was given to the garnet because of its close resemblance to the succulent pomegranate seed. But don't bite into a garnet, because at Moh's hardness 6.5 to 7.5, it will definitely damage the teeth!

Delia Thompson

There are many myths and legends surrounding the garnet. One Biblical legend is that Noah hung this gem on the ark to light his way through the dark and stormy nights of God's wrath. A Greek myth linked to the garnet is the story of the young goddess of sunshine, Persephone, who was abducted by Hades, god of the underworld. Hades eventually released Persephone, but not before he offered her some pomegranate seeds, which guaranteed her return to him.

The Pebble Collecti o n

First mined in Sri Lanka over 2,500 years ago, the garnet is also found in Africa, Australia, India, Russia, South America; and in the United States, in Arizona and Idaho. Although most commonly known as a red gemstone, the garnet comes in a variety of other hues, including muted yellows, vibrant oranges, rosy pinks, lime greens, and violets—a virtual bouquet of colors. This diversity is due to unique combinations of elements within each particular gem, such as iron, calcium, and manganese.

Archaeologist findings of primitive style garnet jewelry among the graves of lake dwellers dates the early use of this gemstone to the Bronze age. But not all garnet is of gem quality. It is also a very effective abrasive and is used commercially for grinding and polishing. Garnet coated sandpaper is one such industrial use.

Artisan Look

The garnet continues to be the protective gem of journeyers. A gift of garnet is thought to be symbolic of love and the desire for a loved one's safe travel and speedy homecoming. It is January's birthstone, but far from being only a winter gem, the garnet, with its brilliance and multitude of colors, is truly one for any season.

Kianda

Happy New Year 2009

2009-01-12T13:31:00.007+02:00

Wow, how quickly does time fly by when you are having fun..... I'm glad to be back and I can't wait to start designing my new creations for 2009 but I had such a marvellous, fun and relaxing holiday I'm going to miss this time off.

Our Christmas Tree

Christmas day was such a treat. Seeing Christmas through a childs eyes makes one realise how special and exciting this day really is. We had our big Christmas lunch at our house. It was great having everyone around and Isabella loved seeing everyone.

Christmas Lunch

Our little Isabella was such a ball of fire on the day which made this Christmas so fantastic. I can't get over how quickly she is growing up.

Isabella grinning from ear to ear on her new quadbike

I loved spending so much time with my family and all our friends during the festive season and new year. We normally don't get to see everyone as much as we would like to.

During our break my husband, Christian, Isabella and I went to the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens for a family photo session. Unfortunately Isabella was not herself that day as she was teething but Natasha Whiteley managed to take some beautiful shots. I adore Natasha's work.

We don't have the disc from our photo shoot yet but if you click on the word Piccolo you can see a few pictures. Our family is the last family to be shown in her blog post.

We weren't lucky enough to be able to celebrate New Years Eve as Christian had to work at the hospital but hopefully he will be off this New Years.

So thats my holiday news. I'm going shopping now for new beads, supplies and whatever else I can find. Yippee.

It's HOLIDAY time

2008-12-19T10:24:00.002+02:00

ZENABU wishes all of you a very Merry Christmas for the 25th December and a Happy New Year!

I will be on holiday from today until the 12th January 2009. Thank you to all my buyers for your support during 2008. I hope you all have a wonderful festive season and a safe & prosperous 2009.
I hope you have a wonderful and relaxing time if you yourself are going on holiday.

I am planning on giving ZENABU a fresh new look and feel so what this space.

Bye for now and happy holidays.
Justine
ZENABU

December Birthstone

2008-12-03T11:02:00.005+02:00

As cool and inviting as a blue lake on a blistering summer day, December's birthstone is derived from the Sanskrit word "tapas," meaning fire. This is because Blue Topaz was considered by ancient civilizations to have cooling properties. Not only was it believed to cool boiling water when thrown into the pot, but to calm hot tempers as well! This gemstone was credited with many other healing powers, among them the ability to cure insanity, asthma, weak vision and insomnia. The Blue Topaz was even thought to have magical properties in its ability to make its wearer invisible in a threatening situation.

Nicola Y oon Designs

Blue Topaz is the hardest of the silicate minerals. While pure Topaz is colorless, minor changes of elements within the stone result in a variety of other colors, such as blue, pale green, red, yellow and pink.

Sandra Eileen Jewelry

The blue hue is created when Topaz is heated, whether the heat source is natural or engineered by man. The three shades of Blue Topaz are Sky, Swiss and London Blue. The latter is the deepest blue and is often used as a less expensive substitute for Sapphire.

Bijoux Odalisque

Topaz is found primarily in Brazil, Nigeria, Sri Lanka, Mexico, Pakistan, China, and the United States.

A gift of Blue Topaz is symbolic of love and fidelity. Luckily, this cool blue gemstone has no legendary power to put out t

he burning flame of love!

Marlo Noel

Alternate Birthstone

An alternate birthstone for December is the Turquoise. So named because it was initially brought to Europe by way of Turkey, this stone is one of the first gems to be used in jewelry. Turquoise was considered by ancients to be a sacred stone, protective against all manners of evil and ill health. This beautiful gemstone is mined in Iran and the southwestern United States. A gift of Turquoise represents friendship and luck.

fuss Jewelry

November Birthstone

2008-11-01T08:53:00.000+02:00

The traditional November birthstone is Citrine. November's gemstone, Citrine, is as warm as a Van Gogh painting of sunflowers. The name Citrine comes from an old French word, "citrin", meaning lemon. One of the more rare forms of quartz, this gemstone ranges in color from the palest yellow to a dark amber named Madeira because of its resemblance to the red wine.

Saressa

Perhaps because of its scarcity, there is little mention of Citrine used as a gemstone prior to the first century B.C. The Romans were thought to be the first to wear the yellow quartz, crafting it into cabochon, or highly polished but unfaceted cuts of stone set into jewelry. Citrine became more popular during the Romantic Period, when artisans often favored these warm colored gems to enhance gold jewelry. Citrine, like all forms of quartz, was believed to have magical powers and was worn as a talisman against evil thoughts and snake venom. It was also considered to have medicinal properties and was commonly used as a remedy for urinary and kidney ailments.

The Sea Fairies Jewelbox

Sister stone to the purple quartz known as Amethyst, Citrine crystals are found in igneous metamorphic and sedimentary rocks. It is believed that some Citrine may have actually begun as Amethyst, but heat from nearby molten rock changed it to the yellow form of quartz. Citrine is known to change color when subjected to heat and is routinely heated in the jewelry-making process to intensify its color. For this same reason, though, this gemstone should not be left in direct sunlight for a long time because it will permanently alter the color. Most Citrine is mined in Brazil, but other sources of the quartz are Bolivia and Madagascar.

Eidel Jewelry

A gift of Citrine is symbolic for hope and strength. With its sunny brightness, this gemstone is ideal for helping anyone to get through the tough times in life!

Celebrity Jewelry at the Emmy Awards

2008-10-19T10:03:00.001+02:00

According to Carly Wickel from About.com large earrings were the most apparent jewelry trend at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards. Wide and stacked bracelets were on lots of wrists, and necklaces varied quite a bit in length and style.

Jewelry at the 60th Primetime Emmy Awards

Christina Appelg ate

America Ferrera

Heidi Klu m

Jennifer Morrison

Laura Dern

Lisa Edelstein
[All Photos via: about.com]

I adore Jennifer Morrison's snake bracelet, who is your favourite?

October Birthstone

2008-10-16T19:21:00.000+02:00

October's birthstone treats the eye to an explosion of shimmering colors, not unlike those of a magnificent rainbow following a summer rain. The Opal derives its name from the Latin word "opalus," meaning precious jewel. Prized for its unique ability to refract and reflect specific wavelengths of light, the Opal was called "Cupid Paederos" by the Romans, meaning a child beautiful as love. One legendary explanation for this gemstone's origin is that it fell from heaven in a flash of fiery lightning.

Lava Jewelry

Ancient monarchs treasured Opals, both for their beauty and for their presumed protective powers. They were set into crowns and worn in necklaces to ward off evil and to protect the eyesight. These gemstones were also ground and ingested for their healing properties and to ward off nightmares.

Moon Bubbles

The Opal dates back to prehistoric times. It is a non-crystallized silica, which is a mineral found near the earth's surface in areas where ancient geothermal hot springs once existed. As the hot springs dried up, layers of the silica, combined with water, were deposited into the cracks and cavities of the bedrock, forming Opal. This gemstone actually contains up to 30% water, so it must be protected from heat or harsh chemicals, both of which will cause drying and may lead to cracking and loss of iridescence. Opal must also be guarded from blows, since it is relatively soft and breaks easily.

Amy R Wyatt

Most of the world's Opal deposits are found in Southern Australia. Other sources of this gemstone are Brazil, Mexico, Czechoslovakia and Nevada. Quality Opal is very expensive, made more so by the caution that must be exercised in cutting, polishing and setting it into jewelry.

Opals were also believed to help woman relax during childbirth. The native American Indians and the Australians Aborigines have used Opal to evoke visions and it is known as the stone of happy dreams and changes. It is thought to disperse infections and alleviate fever, purify the blood and the kidneys, regulate insulin production and improve eyesight.

Artisan Look

A gift of Opal is symbolic of faithfulness and confidence. And the powerful energy radiating from this fiery gemstone will surely illuminate any occasion.

I'm back!

2008-10-14T19:20:00.001+02:00

Well clearly that took much longer than I thought. Because we were having our computer repaired and upgraded we needed to wait for a specific part from the States. It took much longer than we thought to arrive. But our new upgraded SUPER fast computer is finally here.

We are now using Windows Vista which is totally different to Windows XP so it feels like I am starting from scratch. But needless to say it's exciting.

Wow, so much has happened in the 6 weeks I'm not sure where to begin..... feel a little overwhelmed. I will just have to make a start and I hope I don't leave anything out.

It's GOOD to be back.

Out of action

2008-09-10T11:24:00.002+02:00

My computer died. I can't believe it. One minute all was going well and the next minute..... nothing.

The same thing happened to my sister, owner of the label Babazeka, a few months ago so I have been backing up my work on another hard drive. I'm so grateful for that learning experience otherwise I would have lost all my research and work.

My husband has been wonderful and he has ordered our new computer. If all goes well I should have it within the next week or so, but until then there will be no blogging or updating of my shop. How sad!

Deserved break

2008-09-08T19:23:00.001+02:00

My husband surprised me last week Thursday with a 5 day trip to Bakubung Bush Lodge in the Pilanesberg National Park.

Photo via Legacy Hotels

We spent our time there soaking up the sun, viewing game, lounging at the pool and playing games as a family with our precious little daughter, Isabella. She loved seeing all the different types of animals in the Pilanesberg nature reserve.

Photo of an Elephant taken by my husband

It was great being outdoors and just getting away from the buzz of the city.

Photo from Legacy Hotels

Isabella's first word besides the usual "mama" and "dada" is "daawees" , which means doggie. Every animal we saw on our trip was a "daawee". It was too cute!

Last nights creation

2008-09-04T20:50:00.005+02:00

My bridal range needs more variety so I have been working on this lately. I finished off these two pieces last night.

I chose to work with topaz swarovski crystal bicones, champagne pearls and bronze chain. I set a teardrop topaz swarovski crystal by hand into the bronze pendant casing and used this as the focal point.

I decided to go for an understated elegance with these two pieces. The earrings are beautiful drops. I used a topaz swarovski crystal for the stud and then I linked the champagne pearl and topaz swarovski crystal bicone onto this.

This set works beautifully with ivory or champagne bridal attire.

September Birthstone

2008-09-03T14:34:00.000+02:00

Sapphire is the modern September birthstone and the gem designated for the 5th, 23rd and 45th wedding anniversary; a star sapphire is typically given on the 65th wedding anniversary.

Secret Jewellz

Sapphire is a variety of the mineral species corundum. It is a very durable stone. Sapphires are usually blue and range from the prettiest cornflower blue through deep indigo to almost black. The difference is that red corundum specifically makes rubies and all other colours of corundum are called sapphires.

Masters68UK

The blue sapphire was once thought to protect the body from lust and snakes! It is said to help the confused think clearly and help soften thoughts of hate and anger making for a mellower peaceful person.

The name corundum comes from the ancient Sanskrit "kuruvindam", while the name "Sapphire" comes from the Persian word "safir", meaning "beloved of Saturn", (or Greek sapphiros). It is noted in several texts that sapphire was the lapis lazuli of the ancient world, probably because the stones both have the same intense blue coloring.

Zenabu

Sapphire is mined in Australia, Sri Lanka and Thailand. Other producers are Burma, Kampuchea, Kenya and Tanzania. Sapphires are commonly heated to improve their color and reduce cloudiness that is caused by rutile inclusions. The rutile inclusions are responsible for the "star" or "cat's eye" in star sapphires.

Sapphire symbolizes prosperity and sincerity. Sapphire is said to be helpful in bringing joy and peace of mind by making one more receptive to beauty and intuition.

Stella Designs

It really is one of the prettiest gemstones and looks wonderful when the jewellery item is enhanced with diamonds or other deep toned gems like emeralds or rubies.

Designs By Vickie

For all of you celebrating a birthday this month, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Brillante Weblog Award Nominees

2008-09-01T12:34:00.003+02:00

I have come back from an exhausting but successful 5 days of exhibiting at the Sanlam SA Fashion Week to find that my blog has been nominated for the Brillante Weblog Award by Shalana from the Funky Felter.

Shalana shares the following with us in her blog,

Granted, it is not a real deal blog award, but rather a hoax. According to JeweledRabbit's post, you can even find the award listed at the Museum of Hoaxes. Even though nobody is winning a prize with this fake award, I still think it is a fun way to give admiration to a few fellow bloggers who's posts I enjoy reading.

Because I felt the same way, I decided to join in. At the end of my "7 nominees" , you'll find a list of the rules for participating.

I have to admit that it was hard to choose just 7 but here are the blogs that I thought deserved a mention. They are in no particular order:

Little Loveables I love how you feel as if you have been friends with the writer for years
Paper and Stitch Interesting blog. Gorgeous tutorials and DIY projects.
Handmade Showcase Wonderful blog that introduces us to independent artists through giveaways and interviews. Lovely read.
The Funky Felter Wonderful blog filled with tips, personal touches, helpful pointers and you get to know the lady behind the label "I Love Felt".
Handmade Network Excellent blog. Very informative and filled with wonderful Etsy news, stores.
Try Handmade Wonderful blog promoting handmade products. Full of gorgeous finds.
Pink Crab Creations Fun blog. Full of personal tidbits and lovely posts.

For those nominated who want to participate, here are the rules for participating in this game:

1. Add the logo of the "award" to your blog;

2. Add a link to the blog of the person who "awarded" it to you to your blog list;

3. "Nominate" at least seven other blogs;

4. Add links to those blogs on your blog;

5. Leave a message for each of the "nominees" on his or her blog.

I hope that my readers will find my nominations to be interesting and worthy. As for the nominees, I do really enjoy everyone of your blogs for different reasons. Best wishes to all of you and your blogging adventures!

I'm back!

2008-08-31T12:39:00.000+02:00

Firstly, let me begin by saying that I have missed chatting to everyone at Etsy and I have found it hard not being able to have one spare moment to blog, update my shop or just chat in the forums. I'm so happy to be back!

Stand at SA Fashion Week: Photo by Justine of ZENABU

Sanlam SA Fashion Week was exhausting. I did not realise how much work was involved in preparing for the show and then on each day. In my nursing days I could handle being on my feet solidly for 12 hours but I have to admit that I struggled for the exhibition. Perhaps it has something to do with me expecting our second child but I managed and I am proud to say that I was a success.

Close up of display: Photo by Justine of ZENABU

Being an exhibitor was a wonderful learning curve for me and I feel that I have grown as a small business owner. I know have a much bettering understanding of my target market, customers, marketing and sales. I also know what to expect at future exhibitions and what I should focus on.

Display at SA Fashion Week: Photo by Justine of ZENABU

Next time I won't go for such a busy background to display my jewellery on, you could hardly see my pieces. I love damask fabric so I decided to upholster a table in this for my stand. My stand turned out beautifully and the fabric drew a crowd but it was not a good choice and my work was lost. I learnt my lesson and next time I will use a plain fabric.

Unfortunately SA Fashion Week was not that well supported, which is sad as there where SO MANY talented young South African designers there, but at least I managed to make a number of wonderful contacts and I made a number of wonderful sales.

Photo by Justine of ZENABU

My jewellery is also going to be featured in a few South African magazines and stores.

Its all very exciting. Watch this space!

A forced break from Blogging

2008-08-24T22:51:00.001+02:00

I thought that I would be able to handle a lot more than I am but I'm not. The Sanlam SA Fashion Week show starts on Wednesday 27th August and to be honest with you, I did not realise how much work was involved. I'm so snowed under at the moment....

All my time is going towards my Summer Jewellery Collection, my display and the show. This means, no blog posts. I was hoping to still find some time here and there but its just not working out.

I will pick up where I left off next week Monday.

Wish me Luck and I can't wait to show you all my beautiful show pictures.

Until we meet again.

Summer Collection

2008-08-23T22:56:00.000+02:00

As you can see I'm going through a bit of a charm bracelet phase at the moment. I decided to use lots of colours and bronze chain for a change.

I'm so happy with how it turned out. It looks gorgeous on and it makes this lovely sound when your arm moves - jingle jangles.

This is just one of my items that will be available at Fashion Week.

Flower Hour

2008-08-22T20:11:00.009+02:00

While paging through the September addition of ELLE Magazine I came across the ELLESTYLE accessory forecast for Spring - Flower Hour.

"This spring has a flora aura second to none - from bold and brazen to delicate and ditzy."

Look at these wonderful items I found for your "Flower Hour" Spring jewellery wardrobe.

Natural at Heart

Black Onyx Bracelet by pebble

Felt Flower Hair Clips - Pretty in Posies

Flower Hair Clip - La Valley Girly

Todays Creation

2008-08-20T21:26:00.003+02:00

I'm into my silver right now and charm bracelets. So I decided to put these two together and I came up with this. I just love my creation.

This item will be available in my Etsy shop soon.

Jewelry Business Success Tips

2008-08-19T18:49:00.000+02:00

Lately I have spent a lot of time researching the latest jewelry and colours trends for the upcoming seasons. I want the jewelry collection that I will be showcasing at SA Fashion Week to look trendy and have the wow factor.

Staying up to date with all the latest Fashion trends can be so exhausting. Celebrities seem to dictate the fashion trends nowadays. If they say something is hot then everyone wants one, if not then its out. This makes staying up to date with the jewelry market extremely hard.

Below I have listed a few tips that we, jewelry business owners, can use to make sure we are selling to the market and that we can use to incorporate hot trends into our own unique designs.

1. When researching the latest jewelry trends be sure to make the designs you see your own, don't copy. Work out how you can add your own style to a particularly trendy piece. Make it work for you and your style. Its so much more rewarding than just copying. Having your own unique niche or designs is ultimately what leads to your success.

Broken Teepee Designs

2. Work on developing your own unique style. If you use vintage beads, how can you make a piece from the past current? If you use polymer clay, what can you do to jazz up your style? If you use semi-precious stones, what colours are hot, and what can you use with the stones to make your pieces trendy? Let your imagination run wild. Think outside the box. Try using different mediums and textures. The key is to focus on the style, colour and piece - the rest will just fall into place. Most of all have FUN.

Zenabu

3. Visit your local library. You will be surprised as to what you can find there. At our library I found copies of all the latest fashion magazines, fashion books and international fashion magazines. You will be amazed at how much you can find and learn from your library plus it costs nothing.

Frost Collections

4. Magazines open a door into the world of fashion. They show us what the stars are wearing, what the expected trends are for the upcoming seasons, what jewelry pieces are in, what trends have been revived, whats hot and not, upcoming colours palettes and more. I love the fact that you can refer back to these whenever you are in need of some inspiration.

Zenabu

5. I have left the most important point for last. Shopping and Social Network sites are a great research tool for finding out what consumers are buying. On these sites you can read customer reviews on items, and read what trends are popular to them right now. Social shopping websites can provide powerful research and word-of-mouth-marketing opportunities for small business owners like us. These sites can be a great opportunity to study the jewelry market, because they give you a valuable peek inside the psyche of jewelry customers. Spend time browsing around social jewelry shopping sites, seeing which products people recommend and why, and what they say about them. These sites are a treasure trove of free information on what online jewelry shoppers want right now, which price points they find acceptable, how they search for various jewelry items, and why and how they recommend specific jewelry items to their friends.

Here are a few social commerce websites of interest to jewelry artists:

Paying attention to what social jewelry shoppers say, what they value, what catches their attention, and how they search and communicate can give you an enormous advantage in serving your own jewelry market niche, both online and offline.

Listing your own jewelry items on social shopping sites can introduce new customers to your work as well as provide more incoming links to your own website's pages and products.

Most of these sites offer you the ability to "express your style on your blog, web site or MySpace page" by displaying your pick list RSS feed from their site on your own site or on other social networking sites.

So by creating a pick list of some of your own products, and then posting your list's RSS feed on your own blog, website, Squidoo lens, FaceBook or MySpace page, you can really help get your jewelry - and your site links - in front of a wide and diverse Internet audience, quite easily.

Catherinette Rings

I hope this post helps you work towards achieving a successful jewelry business.

6 Tips for your Jewelry Wardrobe

2008-08-17T13:05:00.001+02:00

Jazz up your accessory wardrobe with all the latest jewelry trends for 2008. Here is a list of what you will need to have a HOT jewelry wardrobe.

1. Gold tones
Jewelry pieces in gold or yellow tones are in high fashion. Your jewelry wardrobe will be incomplete without a couple of gold or yellow toned items. Look out for pieces in citrine, golden absidian and with yellow sapphires.Gold plated pieces look fabulous and cost less.

Sunyata

Zenabu

2. Black
Black never dates and is always fashionable. Accessorise your jewelry wardrobe with black crystals, smokey quarts and grey items.

Raraavis Jewelry

Zenabu

3. Rainbow colours
Bright colours are making a come back. Stock up on hot pink, pumpkin, red, purple and yellow accessories, especially Yellow as this is the hottest colour this season. Think YELLOW.

Sparkle Couture
Kelbelle Designs

4. Dazzling Earrings
Go long, go chandelier, go large hoop, go ethnic motif. There are no hard and fast rules for your earring wardrobe. Step out the box and buy earrings that will make you Dazzle.

The Seafairies' Jewelbox

Laurrose

5. Emphasize Wrists
Bracelets and cuffs are HOT jewelry wardrobe items. Bracelets in wire mesh and chain, bracelet stacks and cuffs are ALL must haves wrist accessories. Stock up on these items and emphasize those wrists.

Idyll Hands
Unearthed

6. Necklaces and Pendants
A huge variety of necklaces cold be potential buys for your jewelry wardrobe. They can be extremely long or extremely short, it doesn't matter. Choose what ever your heart desires. This season it is all about pendants and I promise you will see them everywhere - big and very bold, with crystals and or stones, hanging from simple leather cords or necklaces. Look out for hearts and stars as these are HOT jewelry wardrobe items.

Frost Collection

Zenabu

Featured Etsy Jewelry Seller

2008-08-16T21:01:00.006+02:00

Marie and Kas from Frost collections make elegant and timeless pieces of Jewelry. Their creations are infused with as many elements as possible from their surroundings. Marie and Kas pour their heart and soul into each and every piece.

Blush

For this feature I asked Marie and Kas to tell me a little more about themselves, their work and their goals:

How did Frost Collections come about, and what was your goal?
Frost Collections was born in the spring of 2007 as a partnership between me, Marie, and my best friend Kas. We had two main goals in mind when we started this business. One was to create high quality jewelry that reflected our own personal style. The second goal was to find a way where we could spend more time together doing something fun and creative. So far, we've had a lot of success with both!

Garden Path Bracelet

Tell me a little more about yourselves,
Kas and I work full-time outside of what we do for Frost. Kas owns an interior design company. I am a professional animator and artist who works for a local video game developer.

We live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. Okay, so we may be a tad biased, but the natural beauty of Vancouver truly is a great muse for our designs.

and your work?
We take our inspiration from the different places we've visited around the world. Our creations are infused with as many elements of our surroundings as possible so when browsing our work you may find pieces like the "Lost Lagoon" bracelet and the "Rainforest" earrings.

Our jewelry collection continues to evolve since the beginning when it was just little old me sitting in my living room, beading away. We've refined our techniques and use high quality materials which include semi-precious stones and metals like sterling silver and 14k gold fill. We also love working with Precious Metal Clay as it allows us to create handcrafted fine silver pieces that are beautiful and unique.

Spring Melt 6

Our mixed media paintings, which use a blend of original photography and encaustic techniques, have also been quite popular with our customers.

West End Crow

Where can one find your products?
Currently we sell on several online venues, the most successful being Etsy and DaWanda. We are also in the process of creating a line to sell exclusively in a local brick and mortar boutique. We participate yearly in many Vancouver craft shows and love having the chance to meet our customers face to face.

Four Little Crows All In A Row

Marie and Kas are very excited about what the future holds for Frost Collections and they can't wait to see their new ideas come to fruition!

tanyBUG

2008-08-15T22:18:00.001+02:00

A few months back, in my "new mom with too much to remember" state, I left my WHOLE camera bag behind on the plane under my seat. By the time I realised it was not with me and had run back to the plane, it had vanished into thin air. The worst part - I lost all my holiday pics and my favourite camera strap :(

At the moment I am saving up for my new camera and I hope to have a replacement in the next couple of months. One thing I know I can't replace is my beloved camera strap.......

Well, that was what I thought, until I found the most amazing camera strap shop on Etsy. Its called tanyBUG. The camera straps in this shop are fun, funky and so colourful.

It's so difficult to choose just one because they are ALL so unique and gorgeous in their own right. What a lucky find!

tany BUG

Currently, all the camera straps are neck straps for DSLR/SLR cameras. Not only are these camera straps fun and funky, but they are strong and durable too! All of the camera straps are made with a heavy duty nylon webbing core and they have been handmade in her smoke-free studio.

Some more good news is that tanyBUG is having a giveaway on her blog. So be sure to enter before the 23rd August. The winner gets to choose their favourite strap from her shop. So hurry on over!

My Treasury

2008-08-14T21:19:00.005+02:00

While hunting around on Etsy to find pictures for my treasury I came across this gorgeous red polka dot mini clock so I decided to do a RED treasury. Here are a few items from it:

Kokokaren

The Canvas House

Shauneil

My treasury expires on Saturday the 16th, so be sure to take a look before then!

Writers Block

2008-08-13T09:16:00.004+02:00

I was recently sent this fabulous link, 40+ Topics for Bloggers, so I thought I would share it with you. Its for the times when you just don't know what to write or discuss on your blog.

Bright Idea Mini Notepad - Keepitinyourpants

This link may spark a little bit of inspiration. Hope it helps!

ZENABU

January Birthstone

Happy New Year 2009

It's HOLIDAY time

December Birthstone

November Birthstone

Celebrity Jewelry at the Emmy Awards

October Birthstone

I'm back!

Out of action

Deserved break

Last nights creation

September Birthstone

Brillante Weblog Award Nominees

I'm back!

A forced break from Blogging

Summer Collection

Flower Hour

Todays Creation

Jewelry Business Success Tips

6 Tips for your Jewelry Wardrobe

Featured Etsy Jewelry Seller

tanyBUG

My Treasury

Tag Cloud / Label Cloud

Writers Block