« August 2006 | Main | October 2006 »
Jessica from Funky Finds has just informed me that Sharma Designs has been featured on Funky Finds today. Read the Post Here
Jessica has a lot of good finds on her blog. I love the stocking stuffer post and the Prickly Pear Purse.
Sharma Designs got a little shout out at Indie Obsession yesterday! They featured our 24kt Dipped Evergreen Filigree Handmade Necklace. Head on over there and read the post and you might just find a little discount.
" Studio Friday, for me, is a network of Artist from all over the world. It's a fabulous way to communicate with and learn from artists of all backgrounds. With this being said, I would love to see a showcase of what YOUR art is. Are you a scrapbooker? A clay artist? Are you a collage artist or a photographer? Do you paint or work in the fibre arts of Knitting, sewing or enbroidery? Are you a gardener a botanist or an eclectic artist of many trades? I'd love to see a piece that you have created that you are most proud of. SHOW off your STUFF!!"
Well as you might have guessed I make jewelry. All of my jewelry is one of a kind. I don't like to see the same necklace I am wearing on someone else. So I figure my customers might like something special too. It makes wholesaling a little difficult but I want to hang on to the one of a kind as long as I possibly can.
My jewelry is earthy, funky, and sometimes a little bold. Oh and assymetrical! I love assymetrical! If you look at the left nav bar you'll see the many categories my jewelry falls into.
Making jewelry has become a huge part of me. If I have to go a few days without designing any new pieces I feel unsettled and anxious. I'm sure ladies understand the itch to design.
See more Studio Friday entries here.
I can't wait to see what all you talented ladies create!
I am so excited about my new leaf pendants. They are made from real leaves. What could be more appropriate for a one of a kind jewelry website right? Every leaf is unique!
Each pendant is a handpicked leaf. The leaves are first painted with a copper based paint. Then 24kt gold or silver is electoformed onto the leaves.
With the filigree pendants (the lacy look), everything but the veins are removed with acid and then the leaves are coated. The result is a delicate work of art.
I even bought a few of these to make necklaces for myself...which I rarely do (who has the time?)
This leaf has a beautiful coppery coat. Perfect for fall!
When will you see these beauties made into necklaces? Well there are a few in the Golden Goddess category and the rest should be up shortly. They will most likely be in the Simply Stated category. Until then, enjoy the pictures!
It's finally up! The Golden Goddess line is here and I have to say I am very proud of my little collection. I wanted to make gold jewelry that was simple but a little funky and I think I did just that!
All of the necklaces in the Golden Goddess (thanks for all your votes! Golden Goddess was the favorite!) Collection are made with 14kt Gold Filled components. I honestly started making the jewelry not being a huge fan of gold but I have fallen in love with it. I love the way it looks with wood and the brown shell. And purple? Fabulous!
I hope you enjoy the collection. I would love to hear any feedback you have!
I am so thrilled with our review at See Pretty Things. Editor Kimmie Smith puts her heart and soul into her reviews and it shows! She loved my Pink Sunstone Necklace. I have to agree with her. It is a gorgeous necklace!
Read the article about Sharma Designs - The Sun Never Sets on Beauty.
This Week's Topic: " I'm curious to see what is just outside everyone's studio. I face a wall so I don't have a view but I have the desert to inspire me if I need it."
My studio is on the second floor and pretty much all I see when I look out the window is our huge fruitless mulberry tree. My husband wants to chop the branches back but I love it. It gives us lots of shade in the summer and keeps my studio cool for most of the morning.
It also reminds me of being a little girl. We had a huge tree just like this in our front yard. Being the tomboy that I was I use to spend a great part of the day in the tree. I was brokenhearted when we moved and had to leave it behind!
Besides, the only thing I would see if the tree wasn't there is the street behind our house and that's not very interesting at all! Not to mention the fact that people could see right into my window if it was gone and that's not good!
Happy Studio Friday!
I love owning my own jewelry business. Every day I anticipate what the night will bring as I lock myself in my bead room and begin to play with my beads. Or I happily type away on my computer as I watch the season's new tv shows. I work really hard and I don't have a lot of free time but I love it. It's challenging and I love a good challenge.
That's not to say that there aren't hard days. This week was one of them. Everyone is sick and it just keeps hanging on. I feel zapped of all creativity. I feel the enormous pressure of my to do list weighing down on me when all I want to do is rest.
I even found myself fantasizing about having a "normal" life where I just watched tv at night with my husband and didn't have to worry about what was on the agenda for tonight. That's when I realized I must not be feeling good because I know that I love what I do. I would be bored without the challenges and the mental release that creating jewelry allows me.
I did decide that I should probably take it easier this week though. I did all the things that I absolutely had to get done and put the rest off. Then, for inspiration I went in search of some crafty blogs. When I am not feeling creative I like to read about women who are. I found An Irish Craftworkers Good Life to be very inspiring. I can definitely relate to her ironing post! Ha ha
I used to try every new craft that sounded intriguing to me but gave it all up when I found jewelry making. Otherwise, I would definitely be all over dry felting She makes the prettiest dry felted little birdies!
I am feeling a little better and my Thai Silver is calling to me. My hopes are to create some new things tonight while watching all the new shows (I am very excited about that). I have a few custom pieces in the works as well but I didn't want to attempt them while feeling uncreative. Hopefully the worst has passed!
I have realized that the bead and stone lingo that I understand and use on a daily basis may not be common knowledge to my friends and customers. With that in mind, I have added a new category called "Learning the Lingo". Once a week I will define a stone, a type of bead, a cut of a gem or some other jewelry term that may not be common knowledge.
Jasper is an opaque, impure variety of quartz that is usually red, yellow or brown in color. This mineral breaks with a smooth surface, and is often used for ornamentation or as a gemstone.
There are many varieties of jasper as you can see above. It seems that so many "new" jaspers have popped up in the last few years that I never know if I am being told the correct name of the jasper. For example, Paintbrush jasper is also called Artistic Jasper or Coffee Bean Jasper. I tend to just call them all plain old Jasper in my descriptions.
I love the variety of Jasper. My favorite jasper is probably Ocean Jasper. You can buy a strand of ocean japer and each bead will be so completely different! The colors will vary from pinks to greens to browns. The red, cream and grey diamond shaped pendant above is ocean jasper.
Here are a few necklaces I have made with Jasper Pendants:
Let me give you some words of wisdom. I speak from experience here. If your husband and daughter are sick with a nasty cold do not under any circumstances brag to your husband that you must have a better immune system because you have no signs of a cold. It will definitely backfire on you.
As I mentioned before the weekend I began to lose my voice at my show. Friday and Saturday I had no voice and now I have a little bit of a voice and a horrible cough. Grrr. I hate being sick. It slows me down!
I did manage to make a pair of earrings and a necklace for my sister and a friend that were attending their 10 year reunion. You have to look fabulous and put together for your ten year. That's a given.
I also uploaded a few new goodies to the site. I'm trying to get a nice full stock before the Christmas shopping season truly begins. I got a fresh batch of thai silver to play with too.
If you want to be in the know about Sharma events, new jewelry, and coupon codes then please go sign up for our newsletter. I just sent one out today that included a 15% off coupon. It also announced that I have just made a bunch of new markdowns! If you would like the 15% off coupon code just drop me a line or leave me a comment. I'll make sure you get it.
Enjoy the new jewelry!
