Etsy Front Page

4/29
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

I was on the front page of etsy late last night. What a beautiful treasury with one of my favorite color combinations.
Thanks to Emily of TreAnelli for letting me know!

Mother's Day Sale

In honor of Mother's Day and to help reach my goal of 200 sales I am having a sale in my etsy shop.
Free Shipping on All orders and 10% off orders of $50 or more.

Carlyn Gallerie

My work is now available for sale at Carlyn Gallerie in Dallas. If you are in the area please go by and check it out. Here are a few of the pieces that they are carrying.

Ta Da...

Fiber Saucer Cuff
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

I've finally finished two of my three fiber pieces. There is a ring as well that is almost finished. I am really excited about them. Here is the cuff with three saw pierced silver domes. The domes are connected to copper discs by tiny nuts and bolts. The fiber part was made by my mom, Connie Akers. She made it on a felting machine with all sorts of fibers. I need to come up with names for these pieces. That is always hard for me.

And the brooch/pendant.

Thanks Abigail!

I was reading the super talented Abigail Percy's blog the other day. Check it out and see her fabulous floral inspired jewelry. I followed a link that she put up to a video on Youtube of Adele singing 'Make you feel my love'. I had never heard of Adele, but was taken with her voice immediately. It was so nice to discover new music and I needed to hear more. I stumbled upon KCRW's Morning Becomes Eclectic and found so much good music, including Adele. The show features musicians live in the studio with songs and interviews. You can watch video or listen. The video wasn't working on my computer so I've been listening to numerous shows today. That works better for me anyways as I can listen while I work on jewelry.

Here are some of the interviews I have been listening to and really loved.
Thao, Adele, Iron and Wine, and Band of Horses.

So thanks Abigail for introducing me to new music and inspiring me to seek out more!

Double Flower Pendant by Beth Cyr

Beth Cyr
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

I came back from camping to a package awaiting me. It was this lovely pendant by the equally lovely Beth Cyr. Beth made this pendant by request based on a similar ring in her shop. I love the texture and the patina. Beth calls these Double Amazing Flowers. They remind me of dogwood blossoms. She hand carves and forms the flowers out of wax and casts them in silver herself.
Thanks Beth!

I'm Back!

I just got home from a long weekend camping trip at McKinney Falls in Austin.



It was a nice break, but I have a lot to catch up on. Spring time in Texas is gorgeous, especially in the hill country and Austin is always inspirational. Every time I am there I wonder why we don't live there. There is so much support for the arts and always something to do. Too bad I can't snap my fingers and have my awesome little house transported to Austin.




Check out this cute airstream/Cupcake vendor on South Congress.



I did get to go down to San Antonio on Sunday with my mom. It was really cool to see my jewelry on display at the Southwest School for Art and Craft gift shop.

The Fiesta Arts Fair was going on. I wanted to check it out because I had heard great things about it. It is definitely a fair that I aspire to be accepted to. There was some wonderful work on display. Here are a few of my favorites.

Eric Silva with his wonderful, sculptural and inventive jewelry.

Fat Cat Jewelry Studio Clever jewelry made from vintage tin cans. I loved the range of colors in these pieces.

Interesting purses by Pistol Stitched with vintage fabric and buttons, and handmade handles.

Lovely organic jewelry in silver and gold by Patricia Guerrero of San Antonio.

365 Days of Me!

I've taken on a self portrait project. Experimetal has started a flickr group called Etsy Metal 365. The object is to take a self portrait everyday for 365 days. Why would I do this? Well, honestly I always liked taking pictures of myself. I also thought it would be fun to see how I change over the course of a year.



You can see my progress here. I'm not as strict or amitous as this guy, check it out.

Here is a very interesting time lapse of self portraits by Jonathan Keller.

Moira K Lime

3/365
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

So, I'm jumping for joy here. I just received earrings from the amazingly talented Moira K Lime. They are from her Barnacle collection and have red and pink coral as well as pearl beads. I have admired Moira's work since I discovered her on Etsy. I have to say it is even better in person. These earrings are made of little cups of sterling silver, oxidized on the inside with a bright shiny edge for contrast. They are simply gorgeous and I just feel like the luckiest girl in the world right now. I will treasure these earrings forever.
Moira is also a member of Etsy Metal. She does some amazing work with silk fibers. Here are some examples.

Inspiration and Relaxation

Window Still Life
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

Last week I had a difficult and frustrating day in the studio. Nothing was going my way and I just needed a break. Wendy of AlphabettiSpaghetti suggested that I go on a camera safari. I did just that, shooting pictures of my plants and anything that interested me. It really did help me to relax and refresh myself. Thanks for the tip Wendy!

Here are a few pics form my garden. It is gorgeous here, my favorite time of year in Texas.

New Gallery Work

So I just got accepted to the Gallery at the Southwest School for Art and Craft in San Antonio. I spent the last two weeks getting some work ready for them and got it in the mail yesterday. It should be on display within the next couple of weeks. Next weekend is their Fiesta Art Fair. It is supposed to be a great fair. I will be camping in Austin next weekend, so I'm hoping to go down and check it out.

Here is some of the work that I sent to them.

I got a treasury!

treasury
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

So yesterday while I was supposed to be working I stumbled upon a treasury opening up. That never happens, it usually requires lots of counting and waiting. Since I wasn't prepared my title didn't end up working. I called it Metal and More, but it ended up all metal. I just couldn't help myself.

I was inspired by blues and oranges and I really love the way it turned out. There are lots of Etsy Metal folks in there.

Tweet Tweet

My trade with Rachael Sudlow
Originally uploaded by ashleyjewelry

I received my eagerly anticipated Perch pendant from the fabulous Rachael Sudlow yesterday. It is so sweet and reminds me of my Granny who loved cardinals. When I was putting it on yesterday a cardinal flew out of the bushes by my windows, no kidding! I love my little birdie necklace and now whenever I wear it I'll have a sweet reminder of my grandmother. Thanks Rachael!

Rachael also makes Perch earrings and rings and you can chose which type of bird you want. Check them out here.

Texture Pendants

I'm really excited about these new pendants.


They started out as samples for my Textured Saucer Rings and I just had to use them somehow. They are made by pushing polymer clay through holes that have been drilled or saw pierced into a sterling silver disc. I took the saucers and tube riveted them to another disc. The pendants are available for sale in my Etsy shop. I'm looking forward to making more of these in different textures and colors.

Textured Saucer Rings

Maggie J's Jewelry

My wonderful earrings from Maggie J's Jewelry are blogged here.

Here is a sneak peek.