It all comes back to water

I'm a true Pisces sign, I love the water, I can be a bit emotional at times and all the other qualities that go with being a water sign.  With that said, throughout the past several years the theme of water and ocean resurface in my collections.  As you may have noticed with the Ondine collection, it's based on a nymph. 

Well, I was going back through old photos of my first collection when I moved into my studio at Art Avenue, this was back in the spring of 2012.  I loved this collection as I used old coral from my trip to Panama and it was a challenge in how to put these pieces together.  Also I'd never used brass, it's a beautiful golden color but no fun to solder!

Aragonite stones with brass and sterling silver, 2012. 

Aragonite, copper and sterling silver. 2012

Black coral electroformed and spray painted, brass. 2012

Black coral, electroformed and spray painted, sterling silver and brass. 2012

Sometimes going through old photos like these get's my creative juices flowing and also reminds me of the variety of pieces I've made.  As much as I love working with the talons, I enjoy breaking away and trying a different approach.  Most of these pieces have sold and aren't listed on my website or on Etsy.

I hope you enjoyed viewing them and as always thank you for reading!
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Valkyrie Collection SS14 coming soon

These past several days have been so busy; I'm prepping final pieces for a photoshoot for the debut of the Valkyrie Collection, May 5th.  The photoshoot is this weekend, so I need to get as many pieces done as possible.  Without having an assistant, you can imagine my stress level, somedays I feel completely overwhelmed and other days I'm so proud of how I do it all! 

There are several pieces of inspiration for this new collection, I wanted it to reflect the overall aesthetic of Eilisain Jewelry, inspiration and mythology, but also one of hope and renewal of the spring and summer months.  I can't say that my recent obsession with History channel tv show Vikings hasn't come in to play, but the final decision for the collections name came from a Goddess card deck that I always go to for wisdom and advice.  The Valkyrie is the Goddess of the afterlife, she guides the dead to the underworld.   Though many would associate death with the end of life, I've felt that is is a new beginning, one that is shrouded in mystery as really we do not know what happens afterwards.  

With this collection I'm also using faceted gemstones, forged sterling silver and gold filled copper.  I wanted a mix of materials that represent this ideal of renewal and growth.  I hope you like this sneak peak of it, I'll keep you posted over the next month, as it will be debuting in Italy for the Origins fair.  

As always, thank you for reading! 

Valkyrie ring, sterling silver and faceted amethyst.  Photo by Lisette Fee, 2014

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Like Candy

I've been going a little crazy with the Vespa rings, I just love them and I love these gorgeous stones and druzies that I purchase from Instant Karma.

I think the amethyst is my favorite, so pretty, my favorite color combination black and purple.  To me their like candy!

Amethyst Vespa ring, $215,

So wonderful, all together.  

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Sneak peak of Poseidon Collection

Winter has certainly provided me with the time to work away in the studio while the cold air swirls outside...or inside, as the heater isn't working in Art Avenue! ha but I'm not complaining, I've got two little heaters in my studio space.

Okay so enough of weather, I'm very excited to provide you with a sneak peak of the Poseidon Collection.  This collection is sea inspired, in a kingly and godlike manner, thus named after the Greek God Poseidon however it is a collection that I made with the intention that it is affordable and wallet friendly.

I started working with brass because it is so rich and golden but not as costly as real gold.  And it works so well with the matte black of the electroformed coral.  And knowing me, I can rarely ever let a piece of jewelry go without adding rough gems to it! Purple and black are one of the best color combinations, in my opinion.

The Poseidon Collection is set to release in about a week, and will be exclusively sold in select locations  (TBD) and through my website. 

Instagram shot of the Poseidon cuff: brass, amethyst, sterling silver & electroformed black coral.

Aquamarine chips, sterling silver and electroformed black coral.

Along with the new collection I'm releasing next weekend, I'll be working on a fancy fashion lookbook and video! Finally, those two projects have been at the top of my list for a long time.  So stay tuned my dear readers and thank you for visiting.


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Gem is truly outrageous!

As you've already known, from reading my blog, I'm a dork, a nerd - especially about gemstones, jewelry, and Jem the 80's cartoon.  Anywho, I just got in a shipment of beautiful amethyst points and some small tourmalines from Points of Light.  Aren't they gorgeous?

The carnelians I got from a local shop for a custom order.  I haven't used carnelians in the crow or talon pieces but I think they'll look beautiful.

oh and psst - don't forget I'm having a special Labor Day/September sale - 12% off ALL my jewelry - ONLY this month.  

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The Crow amethyst pendant

I meant to post this several days ago but never got around to it! With being back in classes and a new work schedule I haven't had as much time to blog.

The crow claw has presented so many ways to incorporate rough stones, and as with the sterling silver crow claw ring, amethyst just looks so beautiful with it.

The Hunted Crow Claw amethyst pendant.

I'm going to have to get more of these beautiful amethyst points.

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Gold plating!

Several weeks ago I broke down and bought gold plating solution.  It's a bit pricey but worth it to plate bronze and brass jewelry.  I don't know why I didn't do it sooner?!?

I don't have a plating machine but my boss at the Jewelry Doctor does and he is so generous to let me use it.  I'm always indebted to him for helping me out with wholesale purchases and using his equipment.   

Plating is really quite easy and fast, if you have the equipment.  What I like about it, for some of my jewelry, is that the plating provides a layer of truer golden finish and IF you wear want to wear my jewelry daily and not get the greenish tint from wearing bronze then this is the way to go. As much as I love bronze, the highly polished finish can get dull.  

It's always exciting to me when I can advance my jewelry and process in new ways.  Thanks for reading!

The 18kt gold plating solution.

Crow Claw amethyst ring.

 

 

 

And gold plated Double Owl Talon earrings...soon to be available in my Etsy Shop.

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My prrrrrecious

Yes I am a nerd like that, I'd refer to this ring as my prrrecious (reference Lord of the Rings).  Purple is my favorite color and I've always loved the amethyst stone.  I want to keep this ring SO bad but I will set it free on my Eilisain Etsy shop. 

Black and purple go so well together and in this ring, it is a match made in heaven.  I bought the small amethyst at Points of Light in Asheville while I was at Penland. I bought quite a few stones there so you can bet on seeing more of them in the future.

A perfect size 6.

The stone sits just right in the claws!

By the way, did you hear the Hobbit got extended to three movies??! I can't wait to see the first one this winter.

Thanks for reading!

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Old world Mexican jewelry

The first full day Laritza Garcia and I had in Mexico we spent most of the day visiting museums, the Franz Mayer museum and the National Art Museum, where we saw the old world jewelry below.

It's quite detailed and beautiful. During my entire trip through Mexico all I could think was - how the artists were able to craft such amazing pieces out of very basic yet multi-use tools whereas nowadays we have tools for very basic things...we are so spoiled!

I apologize I don't have names/dates for the jewelry, there was so much to drink in but I hope you like what you see as much as I did!

Thanks for visiting.





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