Thursday, December 29, 2011

Top 5 Jewelry Storage Tips

Pearl Earrings
If you are like me, you have accumulated a lot of jewelry over the years and it is hard to find what you need, assuming you even remember that you have it! I've learned a few things along the way. Here are my top 5 tips for storing your jewelry where you can still find it easily during a hectic morning.


5. Use Secret Compartments
Use a drawer in your bedroom furniture to store your jewelry. Line the drawer with felt first (it doesn’t have to be attached) to protect your treasures. Buy or make dividers for the drawer and voila! You can also use baskets or even silverware trays in the drawer depending on its depth. 


4. Ribbons
Use a piece of mesh ribbon attached to the wall or a piece of furniture to store your earrings, brooches or any other jewelry like that. This keeps the earrings together and all your pieces easy to see when getting ready in the morning! 


3. Pretty As A Picture
Mount a piece of cork board (or pegboard if you want a more industrial look) on the wall near where you get ready. You can hang jewelry from the pins. Use your creativity to decorate the corkboard and buy decorative pushpins to help it fit with your décor.


2. Plastic Saves The Day
To keep your jewelry safe and separate, place individual pieces in sealable plastic bags and store in a box with a lid. I use snack bag size sealable bags and then put all the pieces in a set in the bag together. Store them in photo boxes – economical, sturdy and decorative. Another benefit of this approach is that you can include anti-tarnish strips with your jewelry to help maintain the finish - which is especially important for sterling silver. 


1. Don't Forget The Kiddies
What about storage of your child's jewelry? Usually this is plastic when they are young and there’s lots of it. I got belt hangers for the wall and mounted them at eye level for my kids. They put their necklaces and bracelets in their rooms. It doesn’t get tangled and you can see everything in a glance. You can use this same strategy in your own closet for your collection as well. 


What other great tips do you have for keeping your treasures safe, sound and easily found? 

Monday, December 26, 2011

Featured This Week

Orange has been declared Pantone's color of the year for 2012. This jewelry collection curated by Zoraida features the orange stone, carnelian. My Burnt Orange Bracelet is featured.



Crochetedlittlethings curated a collection of soft pink items. This lovely collection includes my light pink glass pearls



Blueturtlesky curated a beautiful treasury on etsy.com featuring silver gray. My blue gray freshwater pearl necklace was included. 


Philosophiacreations curated a treasury of her favorite finds this week and also featured my blue gray pearl necklace. 


TwoBlinksStudios had a great name for her treasury - Cool as a Cucumber in a Winter Wonderland that also featured my blue gray pearl necklace. Many choices for silver gray items across these 3 treasuries!

Thursday, December 22, 2011

New Again - Part 1


A local friend and customer recently asked if I could take some existing pearl jewelry she had and make it into something new. It was a pretty strand of freshwater pearls but pretty plain, and she wanted to spice it up.


My friend happens to have a cache of her precious grandmother's costume jewelry. It is lovely stuff from long ago, very sentimental but not very fashionable at the moment. We decided to add one of her grandmother's brooches into the new necklace to add some color and interest and to breath new life into those lovely, sentimental pieces.


This New Again series will share some of our progress as we take on this new custom project together.


The next time that you consider a custom order - take a look at jewelry in your box that needs a new life. You'd be surprised at how much creativity it can inspire, and what a fantastic look you can get from it too!

Monday, December 19, 2011

Festive Fun and More!

Honored to be part of a pretty holiday accessories collection curated by MzTracyr that includes my red and black bracelet.



Luvncrafts took some of her precious time to prepare this lovely collection of black and gray that featured my black and gray necklace



Greenmare4 put together a lovely collection of gray items as well in her treasury titled "When Winter Skies turn Stormy" that features my blue gray freshwater pearl necklace


Finally, I curated a treasury recently myself that doesn't feature anything of mine, but instead many lovely red velvet items. Yum!