Spring Rain

One day recently, I came out of work and I could just smell spring in the air.  Of course, then it went away, but I know it won't be long until it warms up and we get that spring rain that makes everything turn green again.  This was the inspiration for my latest Jewelry Creators Unite In Number (JCUIN) collection, entitled "Spring Rain".  What jewelry reminds me of glistening rain drops?  Crystal, of course!  But I added a few other dark, shiny and sparkly things as well.

Cha Cha Ring

Here is a cute little cha-cha ring, by Crystal Bazaar.  The silvery grey pearls are like a grey, rainy day, while the AB bicone crystals are like the sparkles of raindrops.  

Lacy Floral Earrings

This little gem is one of a pair of earrings made by our friend Margaret of Boho Wire Wrapped.  We lost her in January, so there is not much time left to own one of her pieces.

Wild Heart Necklace

When I saw this stunning Swarovksi crystal pendant on a chain I had to include it.  It has all the colors of the rainbow, by Adora by Simona.

Dream Catcher Mobile

These dream catchers are not sparkly, but they certainly do remind me of rain because of the colors and the vertical lines.  They are handmade by Dream Catcher Man.

Black Delica & Swarovski Cuff Bracelet

This cuff bracelet is woven of seed beads and Swarovski crystals by Irish Expressions.  Doesn't it just remind you of glistening rain drops?

Crystal Rain Neckace, choose colors

This Swarovski crystal dangle necklace reminds me of raindrops falling, which is why I named it "Crystal Rain".  You can find it in my studio at Shanghai Tai.

Hope you enjoyed my spring rain choices.  You can find the rest of the collection here.

Going Organic

If you're like me, when you think of organic, the first thing that comes to mind is buying organic foods.  Did you know there are also organic gemstones?  Although they are called "gemstones" they aren't technically gemstones, because they aren't minerals.  Organic gemstones are the result of biological processes.  

Organic gemstones include pearls, amber, coral, jet and ivory.  This month my Jewelry Creators Unite in Numbers (JCUIN) guild collection was GOING ORGANIC, and featured organic gems.  Since there are always more deserving pieces than will fit in the collection, I'm continuing the theme here in my blog.

Amber Disc Earrings by Shadow Dog Design, made of
reconstituted amber.

AMBER is fossilized tree resin.  It's usually a golden dark honey color, but the color does vary from a pale yellow to brown to almost black.  There is even red, green and even blue.  Since resin is originally soft and sticky, it is not unusual to see little insects embedded in it.  They get stuck and become part of the fossil.

"Moody Rings", amber set in sterling silver by Lunar Skies

Translucent amber is more valuable than the opaque variety.  Opaque amber has little bubbles in it and is called "bony amber."  I believe these cute little rings are made of bony amber.  As you can see, their color is a little different than the traditional orange.

"Daybreak" cultured freshwater pearl necklace by Shanghai Tai

PEARLS are produced by living organisms called mollusks (clams and oysters).  When an mollusk encounters an irritant inside it's shell, it coats the irritating object with a shiny nacre that becomes the pearl.

Freshwater pearl white teardrop bracelet
by Diane's Dangles

Mollusks who live in fresh water produce freshwater pearls, while those who live in salt water produce saltwater pearls.  A South Sea pearl is a type of saltwater pearl.  Natural pearls are very rare, as opposed to cultured pearls, which means the mollusk was encouraged by man to make the pearl by introducing the irritant into it's shell.

Wine red coral nugget choker necklace by
Crystal Bazaar (reconstituted coral)

CORAL is actually the bone structure of tiny marine animals called coral polyps.  These little animals are what build the coral reefs.  It comes in many colors and shapes.Since many of the reefs are endangered, you may want to do a little research in to what kind of coral you are buying.

Red coral and pearl necklace by
Pink Sunset Jewelry Designs

If you are concerned about the environment, you may want to read up on which corals are threatened or endangered.  There is plenty of information on the internet, but it will require a little research.

Amber and jet necklace by Epona's Jewels

Carved crystal skull with garnet, amber and jet
by Sage Garden

Vintage carved ivory earrings from my personal collection

JET is a black stone that is actually a form of coal.  As you might remember from your school days, coal is made of plant material that has been put under a lot of pressure.  It is often carved because it is fairly soft.




During the 19th century, jet was very popular.  This was largely because Queen Victoria wore it.  She is particularly remembered wearing jet as  part of her mourning dress after the death of her husband, Prince Albert.








IVORY traditionally came from elephant tusks.  Elephant ivory is banned in most countries now and difficult to find.  Ivory can also come from the teeth of large mammals such as Hippopotamus.  Common substitutes now come from bone.


I hope you enjoyed this little foray into the world of organic gemstones.  Here are some links to some of my resources if you would like to read more:

http://www.gemselect.com/other-info/organic-gems.php

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amber

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/08/business/global/08iht-rbogcoral.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/pr/species/invertebrates/corals.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jet_(lignite)

Cropping Your Photos to Show Detail

The last couple of weeks I have been very inspired to improve my product photography by reading a lengthy post in the Artfire Forums.  Here is the link to it, but I think you have to be logged in to Artfire to read it:


Photography Q & A


I'll warn you, it's 76 pages long!


Now I am an amateur photographer, and I have even won awards for my photography.  But when I approached taking photographs for my Artfire shop, my approach was to show the piece -- like the Sears catalog maybe?  I showed what the product looked like on a plain background, usually white and sterile.  Anyway, I have come to the conclusion that selling handmade jewelry online requires some props.  Not anything fancy or distracting, but particularly something to add some texture and some depth.  The other thing I have decided is that it's good to zoom right in and get a close up shot.  You don't need to show the entire piece in your first shot.  Get in close and show the detail to catch their eye, and leave them wanting to see the rest of it.  Make sure by the time they looked at the other pictures that they have seen the other parts though!  There's another thread on this subject in the Artfire forums:


Jewelry Photo Props


Now I'm sure some people will probably disagree with me, but that's my opinion and I'm sticking to it!  So I decided to see what I could do with some existing shots by my fellow members of the JCUIN (Jewelry Creators Unite In Numbers) guild.  I hope they don't mind!




Here is "Love Charm Necklace Antique Brass" by Artistic Pendants:

I like this picture because it's not a straight on shot -- it shows some depth.  And it also shows the whole necklace, which is definitely a shot you want to show.  Because it is not square it wouldn't work well as the first shot.  Artfire always shows little square icons.  So I cropped it to make it square and zoom in on some of that detail.  It's a little fuzzier than I would like, but you get the idea:

Here are some Circle and Loop earrings by Caty Ann's Creations:

I like this shot because it looks black & white and creates a mood.   But if I add another cropped shot, you get a much better look at the earrings:

Once again, a little fuzzier than I'd like it to be.

Here's a pet Adoption Awareness Pendant by Mz Tracyr using a rock and maybe some scrapbook paper as props:

In my opinion, the rock and the scrapbook paper are a little distracting.  You want people to notice the pendant, not the rock.  Here it is cropped:

While you can't see the chain, you can always show it in another photo.


Laura of Sil Jewel has listed this Polymer Clay Silver Adjustable Flower Ring.  Here the ring is shown on the ring mandrel.

I would rather show more of the beautiful detail in the ring, and less of the ring mandrel, like this:

Here is a Leather Wrap Bracelet with red howlite by Tammi of Pink Sunset Jewelry Designs:

There's nothing wrong with this picture, but if I was looking at this bracelet what would catch my eye would be the red howlite focal bead.  So I might really look at it like this:

Unique Designs by Tammy made these patriotic Red White and Blue Earrings:

I think the earrings are pretty small in the picture and there's a lot of extra space.  Those thumbnails are pretty small, so I like to make my piece as large as possible.  Here's what it looks like after cropping it:

Not a huge difference, but you get a better look at the earrings.


Zoomgraphik made this Blue Lapis Bracelet with Pewter Beads:

After cropping it to see a little more bracelet and a little less prop, I came up with this one:

I also lightened it up a little bit so we can really get a better look at the beads.




These Silver Heart Charm Earrings with baby pink freshwater pearls are by Crystal Bazaar:

I have this very same purple flower by the way.  You can see it in my Artfire avatar, and right now I'm thinking I need to go crop it some more!  Here's the view after I zoom in on the earrings a little:

Here's the pictures that started it all when I posted in the "jewelry props" thread mentioned previously.  I had some smile copper  metal clay earrings.  Here is the original picture:

I was listing some earrings that are basically the same, but instead of "smile" they say "escape".  Here's my new shot:

After a little advice from Jim Juris (you will find him on the Artfire forums quite frequently), I backed off a little bit to follow his rule of thirds.  You can read all about it on the previously mentioned Jewelry Props thread in the Artfire forums.  Here is the modified picture.

I hope you like the close up looks as much as I do.  I think they look great in collections too.  Well, I'm off to revise some more photos.