The Tide Pool Collection

Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us think things we like to think.
Robert Henri

I love the ocean. Frankly, I can't understand how someone couldn't love it. And as cliché as it sounds, it inspired my newest jewelry collection. I wanted to create waves of shiny metal, in varying sizes and patterns. So I carved out three wavy disc shapes, and the Tide Pool Collection was born.
This collection has really just begun, because there are limitless designs I can create with these little guys.Large Tide Pool Necklace:
Tide Pool Necklace and Earrings:
Large Tide Pool Ring:
Tide Pool Rings in Small, Medium, and Large:
Tide Pool Bracelet:
I will be adding everything shown to the website shortly, as well as countless other Tide Pool designs! In the meantime, I leave you with some beautiful vintage inspired seascapes I found on Etsy:Seascape photos by The Black Spot Books.

Anniversary Dinner

My husband and I celebrated our 2 year anniversary about a month ago, and I've been meaning to post some photos of our delightful dinner ever since! I wanted to surprise him with a nice meal at home complete with a set dinner table (we usually eat on TV trays so this was pretty fancy for us, hehe). I actually pulled out one of our folding tables we use for shows, and set it for a romantic dinner for two!
"Fine dining" placemats from Anthropologie:I love these little animal head shot glasses from Goody Grams:
I made us delicious bourbon tea cocktails, muddled with orange, mint, and honey: And for dinner I made us chicken pot pies and melon mozzarella salad:
To top off the southern feel, I played some old school blues and folk music...it was a perfect Monday night in after all of our weekend celebrating.

Behind the Scenes: Hama Rikyu

As I've mentioned before, many of my pieces are inspired by travel and different cultures. Though a lot of them come from my own travels, a few are taken from my imagination about places I want to go to! Case in point, my newest piece named after the Hama Rikyu gardens in Tokyo. I would just love traveling there someday and sipping tea in one of their breathtaking Japanese gardens. With these images of weeping willow trees and peaceful bridges, I got to sketching.

Hama Rikyu Necklace with White Topaz:
Here is a look at the making of my Hama Rikyu earrings and necklace:

The Final Products:
Both the earrings and necklace with be available in an array of gorgeous natural gemstones. Below is the Hama Rikyu Necklace with Amethyst:
Some beautiful photos of Japanese Gardens, by Raceytay:
Lovely artwork by Katsushika Hokusai, a Japanese artist in the early 1800s:
And last but not least, I would be lying if I said that one of my favorite video games didn't inspire this piece a little bit. It's called Okami, available on PlayStation 2 and Wii. For those of you that don't know me that well, I must admit that I am a bit of a video game nerd. So for all of the other nerds out there, believe me when I say you must give this game a try. The imagery is stunning and the game itself is amazing. I keep telling Kevin when we get our German Shepherd someday I want to name her Okami. He is not convinced. But it would be cool right...right?? ;)

Things I Love

I am loving these glasses by vital. We really, really don't need any more beer glasses, but I think we could use a few more rocks glasses for our bar...
Aren't they fun?

Quote of the Month

It was a high counsel that I once heard given to a young person, "Always do what you are afraid to do."
Ralph Waldo EmersonPrints by tamgutlich.