Adventures in Handmade Jewelry

Since I'm going to be gone during the last part of April, I'm running a Mother's Day Sale now! While supplies last, I'm giving away free jewelry items from my secret stash. Things I've had for a while that I liked and didn't put up for sale, but hadn't worn either. It's the way of it with making jewelry. And now you benefit! Head over to www.thewiresmith.etsy.com before your favorites slip away. Oh and take a look at my latest shipment! Starting on the left, the straight up and down bracelet is made of some gorgeous barrel boro beads, handmade by an artist in Texas. The design is one I'm tinkering with and it's just done in craft wire to test how wearable it is. Not especially so I'll be remaking it in a different way. Still with those double hinge links though, just not as many of them. Moving on and taking it from the top I got - faceted peridot (5 mm) faceted iolite (5 mm) star cut agate (6 mm) tumbled aqu...

Partly a sneak-peek at what will be in the shop, partly a wrap-up of what's already there, I'm pleased to bring you a little Spring Collection showcase! Click the picture for a larger view It's a little hard to do with an Etsy shop, so I set up this curated selection to show how beautifully coordinated these pieces are. Plus I had a lot of fun setting things up in my travel jewelry case. Don't you just want to take them all home??!! Very hard for me not to just keep everything. That's totally my fault though. I don't make jewelry I wouldn't wear myself, or, for that matter, wear with my "good jewelry". Handmade doesn't have to be cheap or tacky and we all know that when we see it. My work is different if I do say so myself. Yes, as the name states, I use wire, but I work hard to produce high quality pieces with designs that stand out and wear well. I'm too darn picky to do it any other way. Lots of pearls up there, and kyanite, am...