Long Time No Lone Star...State!

Excited! We are heading back to the home front for the holidays! The eyes of Texas are upon us!

I will have all of my ready made jewelry there for you last minute shoppers, but custom orders will be on hold until I return on Jan 3rd. I will be able to do minor adjustments, but no much soldering. We have a craaaazy busy schedule to maintain while we see James' family and my family so we will be bouncing between Houston & San Antonio a lot, plus a day trip to Austin.

It will be crazy, but it will be great! I haven't been home since July...minus the Round Top trip to Dallas in September. And James hasn't been home since Christmas last year!!! Amazing! He's so excited to see everyone!

And Schatz will be in tow...

Magdelene Jewels - Mini Monday

Magdalene Jewels is today's Mini Monday featured Etsy Blogger! ((http://www.etsybloggers.blogspot.com/))

Artisan Pam, the person behind "MagdaleneJewels”, flexes her creative nature with embroidering, crocheting, knitting, and quilting. Her jewelry shop: http://www.magdalenejewels.etsy.com/ contains necklaces, bracelets and earrings mainly using Swarovski Crystals in her own creative designs.

Besides selling on Etsy, Pam also does a lot of custom orders and craft shows - and just recently opened up a new shop on Etsy: http://www.magdaleneknits.etsy.com/ which showcases a lot of knitted and crocheted items such as adorable baby booties and sweaters, scarfs, and neck warmers.

Check out her blogs at http://www.magdalenejewelspjk.blogspot.com/ and http://www.magdalenejewelsblogs.blogspot.com/.

Great items Pam!

I smell a SALE!

Many apologies for no new posts lately about my jewelry...since my hubby has come home from Afghanistan it's been a whirl wind of going, doing, Thanksgiving and family! Ack! But I'm back on top of things for now...CHRISTMAS is around the corner! 28 more days!

Don't delay your shopping...especially on custom orders! I will be heading back to Texas come the second week of December so I am limited in my custom time this year. Get your orders in quick!

********************************************************

-HOLIDAY SALE-

15% OFF SELECT B.W.SILVER ITEMS!

http://www.bwsilver.com/

Including...

FREE SHIPPING ON ALL ITEMS OVER $30

&

FREE GIFT WRAPPING ON ALL ITEMS!

********************************************************

Get it while it's hot! I have shipped all my items to Houston for the Exxon Mobil Craft Show to be sold and, as you know, all of my items are one of a kind so get what you can while you can before the show on Dec. 2ND!

My Love

He's coming home finally! After 6 months in Afghanistan, my baby will be in my arms on Wednesday! I couldn't be happier to have him home! Thank you for all that you have done for this great country. You are truly a great American!

I guess I need to start getting the house cleaned and stock up on beer.......!!!!!

Hurry home James!

Lovely At Your Side

Got a convo today from an Etsy seller/lover of handmade goods. She wanted me to know that my Turquoise Bauble Necklace was featured on her website http://lovelyatyourside.com/

Here's the feature: http://www.lovelyatyourside.com/2009/11/lovely-dress-of-day_04.html

Thanks for the heads up!

Horrah!

Successful Sale {Blog Carnival!}

Thanks to Indulgeyourshelf for hosting this weeks Blog Carnival for the Etsy Bloggers Street Team! Q: What was your most successful sales event or product, and why do you think it was?

-------------------------------------------------------------------

I'd have to narrow that question down to two equally challenging, profitable and fun custom pieces. The first would have to be the Cross pendant necklace I custom made for my cousin Chris. He runs a Metalsmithing business in San Antonio, TX and wanted me to make him a custom pendant that matched his company logo. After design collaboration, we ended up with this idea and I hand cut, soldered and forged every detail.

Made form Argentium Sterling silver sheet, pendant measures 2" long on Sterling silver oxidized chain 18"

----------------------

My other successor would have to be the custom arm band I handmade for a customer in Spain. She asked me to make her a large {3" x 8.5"} arm cuff she could wear on her upper arm. She wanted the three rows of studs added for design flair and for it to be adjustable. This cuff was among the largest pieces I have ever had to solder and forge. It was a challenging piece, but I was very happy with the outcome and so was my customer...

Sterling Silver sheet with Sterling studs. One monster of an arm cuff!

I'd definitely say that these two pieces were the most successful due to the time, skill and money put into them. They are the most expensive pieces I have made and the most cherished. I hope the customers who have them know that I worked especially hard to ensure they were just as please with the design and outcome as I was. They helped me build my skills as a craftswoman and I hope for more challenging pieces in the future!

Mini Monday: Foxy G. Knits

As per the Etsy Bloggers Street team, today's mini Monday is featuring Foxy G. Knits!

http://www.foxygknits.etsy.com/

Foxy G. Knits features hand-knit, one-of-a-kind shawls, wraps and scarves that are versatile and designed for today's woman. Her items encompass comfort and style, made for all occasions! Her technique coordinates and blends various yarn colors and textures within the same garment. Beautiful colors, patterns and fabrics with warm fuzzy appeal as well as a fashionable flair. In addition to designing and knitting all the items that appear in the store, Foxy G. also knits shawls for a local hospice.

Check out her etsy shop! Great Christmas gift ideas!

Craft Fair A'hoy!

This December 2-4th I will be selling my jewelry at the upcoming Exxon Mobil Craft Fair! It's a 3 day fair featuring handmade only goods by all Houston Exxon Mobil Club members, employees, family members or annuitants. The fair will run from 11:00-1:00 each day in the lobby/cafe' area of the Downtown Exxon Mobil Building {800 Bell St. Houston, TX 77002}

I will not be there to tend to the booth (as it will be right after my husband returns from Afghanistan!!) but my jewelry will be sold in conjunction with my mother's handmade jewelry {L.Voss Jewelry} and she will be manning all of the sales for those days. If you are in that area then PLEASE come by! You will like what you see! And you can try it on!

In the mean time...I'm busy with getting new things together for this show, and getting inventory updated....I will be featuring some extra special Holiday pricing too especially for this show. Cash & personal checks are always welcome! {sorry, no credit cards}

All items will be wrapped and ready to give, or to enjoy for yourself! I feature some of L. Voss Jewelry on my etsy website if your interested in checking it out. She has some extraordinary beaded necklaces and pendants. All made with authentic gemstones and Sterling Silver findings.

Look for my sign hanging! And get some great one of a kind Christmas gifts! Who wouldn't like that...?

Hearts On Hands

Lovely lovers, darling dearests and precious people! They all have one thing in common...love! A symbol of love best used, a heart. These custom Sterling Silver pieces were made for past customers, all with the same theme.

Someone wants to show how you are loved with a timeless reminder, what better way to have it custom made!

----------------------------------------------------

First heart design bracelet I ever made. Custom request by a friend who wanted to give his 7 year old daughter a heart bracelet for Valentine's Day...he ordered another one a week later for her little sister:

----------------------------------------------------------

This cuff bracelet was made for a daughter from her loving father for her 28th Birthday:

-----------------------------------------------------------

These pieces were all made for the same person, (given over a few years) and worn as a set from a loving boyfriend to his girlfriend:

----------------------------------------------

These heart related items are available for purchase right now on my website: (All under $65 + FREE shipping!)

Heart of Hearts Necklace

Lovers Heart Charm Necklace

Binding Heart Pendant Necklace

The hearts you wear each day, sends a lover's wish your way - Anonymous

Keep 'em coming

Ooh-rah! Yut! Hoo-ah!

---------------------------------------

Thanks for supporting your service member! I have been making a lot of these custom Sterling Military Service Medallions lately, and I hope to continue to make more! At just $15 a piece, how could you pass up an opportunity to show your love?

Thanks for supporting handmade and our troops. They need every ounce of affirmation to help them succeed...bring 'em on!

Not Shown

------------------

S.R. Moylan, USMC

T.E. Tompkins, USMC

W.R. Baskin, USMC

Z. Zimmerman, USMC

J.A. Wood, USBP

B.B. Baskin, ARMY

Big Cartel

NEW STORE ADDITION!

Today I opened a new shop with bigcartel.com which is similar to etsy but less emphasis on the sellings and promotions of other artists. It's mainly for your personal website selling, like you would put on a business card, not necessarily for sharing and wandering through different handmade sellers web pages.

Although, you can search for other sellers, it's just not as "accessible" as Etsy has it set up. But it's definitely a clean cut website, easy to navigate and post items. Looks great! I'm not sure of the traffic yet so I have a "free" account which only allows me to post 5 items at a time, and one photo, but if things go well, I can always upgrade to the paid one...just trying it out for now.

This website if also for people who have a band, art gallery, studio artists, and of course handmade or vintage items. Got some interesting stuff on there!

My shop URL : http://www.bwsilver.bigcartel.com/

We'll see what happens~

Treasures & Antique-ary

As posted previously, I found some most excellent findings from the Round Top Antique Fair just last week. The deals were plentiful, and the items were awesome! I have a few items not in photos as I couldn't bring all of it back with me on the plane {darn!} but, I have many things to decorate with and start new designs...I smell a project...

Large foreign tokens...I'm thinking a bracelet with these?!

Various Military buttons...I'm considering a charm style bracelet with all of these attached...

Antique German pillow sham hand embroidered: "Homeland Bells Ring Out In The Green Valley"

Porcelain glove mold and Latex glove molds for necklace displays

Also, a WWII locket with an eagle crest and mother of pearl

Barbara found this $10 shelf and I couldn't resist...great for displaying!

Also, a few Plinth blocks I picked up for home decor

Antique Tea Towels, and they happened to have my initials! It was a must have!

My mannequin torso lady, all she needs is a fresh paint job and some necklaces!

The coveted boots I so longed for! After many days of questing!

{Left} 1960's handmade custom boots

{Right} Snakeskin & leather...$20 steal!!

A mesh of beads from a bead dealer - FW Pearl, Pink Coral, Turquoise, Quartz & more...

As you can see...I have a few projects up my sleeve and some neat items to get my house looking Antique-y and rustic. Visit my Dad & Barbara's blog about their findings and Round Top experience at JunkyardRabbits

Round Top, Warrenton...and More-nton

A Texas trip fit for the antiquey-est of antiquers and the crafty-est of crafters! If you've never been to the bi-annual Antique Fair of Fairs...you must go! It's known as "Round Top" after the city it originated in, and has spread across the hill country of central Texas...in the middle of Austin-Dallas-Houston triangle. Vendors and dealers of all ages form all over the country (and globe) bring all their findings, art, junk, antiques, collectibles, and more to the Texas countryside for a 10 day long show of just about anything you can imagine! Literally!

Workin the Warrenton Fields

Creepy dolls heads...seriously you never know what you'll see

Deer Bottle Tree...$85, don't you need one of these?

Enjoying someones attempt to attract people into their booth...too bad we just used them for their "head cut-out" for a photo op!

I went with my Dad and Barbara, and luckily they have a house nearby in New Ulm, TX, so it was only a 20 minute ride to get our daily fix of milling through other people's stuff....and "dead" people's stuff too. We found some great deals, and some not so much...like way overpriced furniture, boots, jars, collectibles...but then there were DEFINITELY deals to be had. We learned who would cut you a deal based on their booth, their looks, and their age...it was kind of tricky, but we managed to get some great prices and met some interesting folks.

Dad's place in New Ulm, TX

Some Random Stuff...

Boot Quest!

We mainly were in Warrenton, TX which is about 3 miles or less form the main Round Top, then hit other small towns too like Marburger, Carmine, Fayetville and La Bahia, TX. Needless to say we shopped ourselves to death, and spent a good chunk of change. I found some pretty cool findings for home decor, beads for jewelry making, and and mannequin torso for jewelry display! Plus, after many days of questing for the perfect boots, I finally found the most excellent pair! Vintage 1960's custom hand made boots! And then later on, found another pair...for a deal I couldn't refuse...$20! It was the steal-deal of the century!...for snakeskin & leather boots!

______________________________

I recommend going to the Spring 2010 show. (it's usually around end of March - early April) For tons of info about the shows, dealers, maps, places to stay, food, and fun, go to http://www.antiqueweekend.com/indexmain.html to get all the deets! Don't miss out! I will definitely be going back again!

**A post of my found items will follow....it gets crowded when I put too many pics on one blog posting!**

Home Page Feature

I've been informed that I am the FEATURED ARTIST on the home page of the House of Gems web site! Click here to view, then click my photo to read about my jewelry...and show some love!

Thanks to all who've posted your encouraging comments...couldn't be where I am today without you! <3

Viva Vintage

{An Etsy Bloggers Group "Mini Monday" shout out to Laurie and her fun and unique Etsy shops!!!}

Indulge Your Shelf & Twice Shy Restored are her cute little shops that feature vintage finds she has restored, revamped and rewound to sell to today's vintage seekers! Quite the variety of cute finds from hand appliqued hankies, lace & buttones, china, antique decor, and vintage-y knick-knacks.

She uses beautiful old table cloths and lace to make cute throw pillows and card tags. Plus there is a variety of vintage findings and supplies for you to make your own restored antique treasures in her Twice Shy Restored shop

Her blog gets you up close with her findings, ideas and projects. She's also won a few awards for her work! Here are a few finds form her Indulge Your Shelf shop on Etsy...

Show Your Face

Blog Carnival post for my Etsy Bloggers: I love to know the artist behind the work. Show us a picture of yourself and talk about your work, life...whatever. Interview yourself if you like...

________________________________________________

- ALL ABOUT BW:SILVER - (Survey Style)

Name: Brittany Wende

Nicknames?: "Britt", and formerly known as "BZ" by all my friends, but they still call me that...

Business Name: BW:SILVER

Why This name?: It's my initials, plus what I do...silver!

Business Location: Hubert, NC...but I'm a Marine wife to it's a traveling business...

Year Started: 2007

Type of Business: Custom & Handmade Jewelry

Media: Argentium Sterling, Sterling Silver, authentic gemstones, glass beads

Favorite Materials to Use: TURQUOISE STONES!

Products Sold: Chain and beaded necklaces, pendants, rings, earrings, cuffs, bangles, bracelets, etc...

Inspiration: Natural objects, antique jewelry, paintings & colors, fashion magazines, individual ideals, changing seasons, art books

Target Market: Anyone who enjoys handmade jewelry!

Price Point: Moderate to Best --everything is handmade!

Employees: 0

Office/Studio Location: My garage!!

Websites: 4 - ETSY, Artfire, 1000Markets, Blog

Social Networking Sites: Facebook, Myspace, LinkedIn (Be My Friend!!)

------Q & A ------

Where did you learn your craft?

It was my minor in college, I took a metalsmithing class just out of curiosity, I never knew it would turn into more than a hobby. I didn't know if I could get into it at first, but after my first few lessons, I knew I was really going to like it. My great grandfather was an ornamental metalsmith that came over from Germany to the US and started his metalworking business in TX. Since then, my Grandpa and my uncles and cousins has all carried down this business, and now I do the same...just on a smaller scale. I guess it's kind of in my blood?

What makes your designs different than others?

I try to design pieces that are eye catching, unusual, and unique. I feel that jewelry should reflect someones personality. Fun, funky, bold, simplistic, clean...I'm all of those! I have many different styles I like to incorporate into each piece. It's fun to play with different techniques and try new things to see if I can come across a totally original and unique art piece and someone can have & wear. I like that my work is mainly original and one of a kind, it makes each piece that much more valuable to the person. Jewelry should be loved too, not just worn!

What are your future business plans or goals?

I hope to have a wider customer base and maybe even a shop someday I can sell my work and other handmade artists works. I value the efforts of handmade goods and artists with those skills to make someones life a little more vivacious & fun! I would also like to learn more about jewelry making and metalsmithing, an apprenticeship with a silversmith artist or advanced metalsmithing workshops would be great.

I like working with silver just as well, but I think incorporating other metals would be nice too. It will also help to broaden my consumers. No everyone likes the look of silver, and I always like to try new things! Maybe one day I can be like James Avery!

Any current specials, sales, or shows going on soon?

As of now, and always, I have FREE SHIPPING on all items over $30! And that includes Canada & overseas shipping. And in the next few weeks I will be posting a LIQUIDATION SALE of items in my Etsy shop that MUST GO! ((They are cluttering up space for new jewelry pieces to come...))

All of my items are complimentary gift wrapped, boxed and ready to enjoy or give upon receipt. I can also do custom greetings on a gift tag to include on any items purchased. I don't have any shows planned as of now, but I'm looking into a November show in Wilmington, NC. Christmas is coming....

New York, New York!

Had a great time in NYC with Danielle & Claire for Labor Day weekend! Beautiful weather, excellent food and marvelous times! I was hoping for some celebrities but no such luck, I did see tons of models though, that are WAY to thin! Yikes! But it's all in "the Glamour" of the NY lifestyle I suppose. Had plenty of burgers, "dirty dogs", street pretzels and pizza to last me a lifetime, but it was all so good. We even ate at a Texas BBQ place smack in the midst of Manhattan...brisket was de-lish!

I finally got to go to Top Shop which is a London based clothing store similar to H&M, but really edgy London style and amazingly HUGE jewelry, very different, very cool. I loved it! I got an awesome Teal leather satchel purse there (as a b-day gift from James, Thanks! ;-) And I fell in love with it! Danielle got one too in black, so now we are satchel twins! It's all in a days work...Oh, the Fab-u-losity!

Lady Liberty herself, makes me proud to be an American

The gals in Central Park

Smoochin' one on Hugh Jackman!

Beautiful ladies with the beautiful crowns!