JoliMarbleSwirls - Modern Jewelry with a Unique Twist

This is Hazel, she's fearless and beautiful. She loves to dig herself little ditches in the ground and take dust baths in them ruffling her feathers and luxuriating in the dirt as little nuggets of soil slip deliciously through her feathers. You'll have to forgive her, but she insisted on using a photo from her younger days!

But that is not the only reason that Hazel is incredible. You see she's a special breed of chicken called Ameraucana and her special newly found talent is laying gorgeous blue-green eggs such as this one - in the back on the left. The other eggs belong to our other lovely chicken, Midnight.

Believe it or not, Hazel's eggs taste even better then they look. If you've ever wondered what a store bought egg looks like inside versus a back yard free range chicken eggs, here you are. The one on the left is store bought, the one on the right is Hazel's. Do you see how much richer in color the yolk of Hazel's egg is?

So to celebrate Hazel's new skill I made this Treasury West in tribute to her. Enjoy!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=80000

Indie Exclusive - Weekend Deals

2009-10-02T00:47:00.000-07:00

I am honored to be featured in this week's Indie Exclusives / Weekend Deals in the Etsy Storque!!! It's not published yet, but it should show up here tomorrow.

For 10/2-10/4 - I will offer 50% OFF on any item that comes back when you search for "BLOOD" in my JoliMarbleSwirls shop.

1. Please put "Indie Exclusives" in notes to seller during checkout.
2. Kindly make your purchase as usual and I will refund the 50% to your PayPal account on Monday, 10/6/09.

Sangria Candy Glass Earrings - Indie Exclusives / WEEKEND DEALS

WEEKEND DEALS - 50% OFF all "HARVEST" Items

2009-09-24T23:49:00.000-07:00

For 9/25-9/27 - I will offer 50% OFF in my JoliMarble Swirls Etsy boutique on any item that comes back when you search for "HARVEST" in my shop (shipping not included).

1. Please put "WEEKEND DEALS" in notes to seller.
2. Kindly make your purchase as usual
& I will refund the 50% to your PayPal account.

Check out my newest Cocktail Ring designs fresh from the studio, some of these beauties have volunteered to participate in the WEEKEND DEALS too!

found in the MARBLES Collection

Midnight Sphere Glass Cocktail Ring

Vodka Tonic - Crystal Ball Glass Cocktail Ring

WEEKEND DEALS - Eternal Candy - in Blood Orange Martini, a Glass and Sterling Pendant

All Grown Up...

2009-09-23T20:37:00.000-07:00

As I am sitting here waiting for another treasury to open up ( I missed one last night by about 1/2 second, so today I'm determined!) I thought I'd tell you about what happened to our baby chicks that I introduced to you in the New Chicks in Town Post. This is an old photo of Eve out in the grass and Snowflake is right in front. My chiropractor put it well, first they are chicks and are really cute and then they turn into these "things" that are really atrocious and then they become chickens. Maybe this is why I didn't take much pictures during their awkward adolescent months :b

They are now a little over 4 months old! I got Snowflake and Eve on Mother's Day, shortly followed by Hazel and Midnight (our Americaunas) two weeks later. Supposedly Hazel and Midnight were already 2 weeks old, but I'm not so sure... we brought them home in a brown paper bag and they did their best to avoid being at the bottom of the pecking order back when Snowflake and Eve were bigger... well that all changed so quickly! You see Snowflake and Eve are White Silkie Bantam chickens. I never knew what "bantam" meant before I had chickens, but it's basically that they are a miniature chicken breed. So Hazel and Midnight, who are regular sized chickens outgrew them pretty darn quickly! But the pecking order had already been established and Eve and Midnight came out on top!!! That's Snowflake in the front and behind her is Eve.

The Americaunas, Hazel and Midnight switched colors on us. Midnight was almost black when we got her and now she's a beautiful silvery gray with coppery overtones. That's her in the front. Hazel was brown and is now a speckled copper black. She's the one in the back. They are supposed to lay blue and greenish eggs and are called the Easter Egg chickens for that reason. I can't wait! They also have funny little beards and sideburns, very Elvis like! They all shed like crazy and we have a ton of pretty feathers flying around the back yard. We can always tell which came from Hazel and Midnight.

We had an unfortunate surprise a few weeks ago, that almost broke my heart. You see, in my city, we're not allowed to have roosters but we took a chance with Eve and Snowflake. Silkies are really hard to sex at birth, so it's a bit of a gamble. Early on we had thought that Snowflake would turn out to be a rooster and never in our wildest dreams did we ever think that sweet, cautious Eve (above) would ever crow. But lo and behold, one fateful morning Eve firmly planted her little fluffy feet in the middle of the chicken run, proudly fluffed up her soft white feathers and crowed!!! And, reminiscent of "Kevin" in "Up," my little boy exclaimed "Eve is a boy!" So Eve has since been renamed "Wally"... but we sometimes we still revert to "Eve". So now we are hoping that the neighbors don't complain... at least till Snowflake starts laying eggs. We're hoping for a little baby chick before we have to give up Wally. I think we might have found him a good home, I was staying up nights worrying about what we will do with him!

We had another adventure the other day that was actually pretty comical now that I think of it, but it did not feel like it at the time. We went to Half Moon Bay to get some straw bale for the chickens, to lay down inside their coop. Let's just say that a straw bale is a lot larger then it looks and really really really messy! I fit that across the layed down front seat of my sedan and had to move the car seat behind the driver's side. Plus, shifting was really interesting, I'm just really glad that I could get it into drive! I'm still picking straw out of my car, even after vacuuming! For a while strangers would come up to me and pick straw out of my hair because the straw had stuck to the inside roof of the car! Here's what my car looked like after my husband so wonderfully tugged and pulled the bail out.

But it was so worth it because we got to put some fresh straw into the chicken coop. That's the inside of the coop, the top comes off and since it's plastic it's very easy to clean, very important feature for me! That's right after I hosed it down and my son helped lay down some straw bedding. Hopefully Snowflake, Hazel and Midnight will grace us with some eggs soon! My husband says that we have to find a rock that looks like an egg to show them where to lay :b

Yay!!! Just got a Treasury West!!! Finally, here it is:

BUY 1 GET 1 FREE - WEEKEND DEALS!!! Eternal Candy and Floating Violets

2009-09-16T21:28:00.001-07:00

For 9/18-9/20 WEEKEND DEALS I will be offering BUY 1 GET 1 FREE in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy boutique.
*second item should be of equal or lesser value*

1. Please purchase the 1st item
2. Use promo code 'WEEKEND DEALS' in the notes to seller
3. Put link or name of the 2nd item in the notes to seller

I also added a few beautiful items to my shop that I'm really proud of. The Eternal Candy in Peach Cider pieces turned out even better then I imagined. But please don't get them together! As my husband put it, too many orbits! Here are the sets are recommend:

SET #1

Eternal Candy - in Peach Cider, a Glass and Sterling Pendant

Peach Cider Candy Glass Earrings

Peach Cider Glass Ring

Set #2

Eternal Candy Earrings - in Peach Cider Glass and Sterling

Peach Cider Candy Glass Pendant

Peach Cider Glass Ring
this ring goes well with both Sets!

I had a guilty pleasure of getting some beautiful kid's marbles a few weeks ago. I hand picked the perfect colors and here's what I did with them, it's the newest edition to the BALL N SWIRL Collection:

BUY 1 GET 1 FREE - Grand Floating Violet Ball and Swirl Earrings (Limited Edition) - WEEKEND DEALS

Doggie Puzzle

2009-09-13T20:13:00.000-07:00

How do you fit 2 dogs in one tub? Check this out!

I was washing Tiger (our dog -the brindle pit you see) and our guest dog, Gouda in our tub. This is how they arranged themselves, Gouda under Tiger. I think they both just tolerate bath time from the looks of it, but they were so filthy from rolling around in the yard with the chickens! Here they are all clean :)

A Great Surprise!

2009-09-12T23:12:00.000-07:00

I just love surprises! So I totally fell for ordering a "Surprise Necklace" from 3DOTS, run by Lucie, a very sweet Canadian seller on Etsy. Her jewelry is so gorgeous, I just couldn't resist. So I ordered and was giddy with anticipation!

It was so much fun to get a the package and find out what I received. This is the necklace that I got and it's incredibly lovely!!! So well crafted and it's very me :)

Because you love squares

I haven't taken it off most of the week and it matches my Petit Vodka Tonic dangles and Glass Ring (both of which I haven't posted yet... been enjoying them all to myself... hee hee) perfectly. I highly recommend this for anyone who likes surprises, you won't be disappointed!

FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING - a Special Harvest for WEEKEND DEALS

2009-09-11T12:46:00.000-07:00

I will be offering FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING for Sep 11 to 13th in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy Shop. Just use promo code 'WEEKEND DEALS' in the notes to seller box. Shipping is already adjusted for you for this weekend!

And check out some new lovely additions to my shop - I love the autumn harvest! The background vegetable are from our little garden!

FREE WORLDWIDE SHIPPING - Mustard Yellow Harvest Glass Ring - WEEKEND DEALS

Fiery Autumn Harvest Blossom Glass Ring

Sweet Pea Harvest Glass Earrings

LABOR DAY SALE

2009-09-05T21:32:00.000-07:00

I'm having a Labor Day Sale! There's an additional 15% OFF the Ball and Swirl Collection in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy shop. This is in addition to my INTRODUCTORY SALE!!! Both sales end on Monday, September 7th when the clock strikes midnight (PST)

SALE - Sapphire Martini Medium Ball and Swirl Earrings

SALE - Tangerine and Swirl Earrings

LABOR DAY SALE - Vodka Tonic Small Ball and Swirl Earrings (15 Percent OFF)

I also snagged another Etsy treasury this today. Please come and check out all these amazing artists in my "A Drop of Blood" Treasury (I love vampires...)

Yummy Candy Collection!

2009-09-04T00:03:00.001-07:00

I'd like to introduce my brand new, fabulously delicious Candy Collection in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy shop. I made the Peach Cider earrings first at the request of a lovely customer and they were so incredibly sweet that they reminded me of candy. This collection is about bringing out the full color potential of my beautiful marble treasures! Also, in this collection, I will only use sterling silver wire, no aluminum.

I've finally become very proficient after a lot of wiggly lines in cutting the perfect groove into flat marbles. This in turn allowed me to wrap a sterling silver wire around the said marbles to form these lovely earrings. I finish them with sterling silver french ear wires as usual. My favorite part is that you can see right through them allowing the beautiful colors to be displayed in their full glory!

The Candy Collection matches really well with the items in the Marbles Collection. I try to make everything in sets so that you can create an ensemble if it suits your fancy.

Just a quick reminder, my INTRODUCTORY SALE will end on September 7th at midnight PST. After that I will reinstate the regular prices for all my items, so don't miss out while everything is $6.95 - for some of these items that's over 63% OFF regular prices!!!

SALE - Peach Cider Candy Glass Earrings

SALE - Sangria Candy Glass Earrings

SALE - Island Coconut Candy Glass Earrings

SALE - Sapphire Martini Candy Glass Earrings
SALE - Golden Pumpkin Glass Earrings (coming soon!)

Gorgeous New Beauties for Autumn Harvest

2009-08-29T13:12:00.001-07:00

I've been very busy coming up with new designs and adding to my color selections. Here are some new beauties just in time for the autumn harvest:

SALE - Blood Orange Martini with a Twist Dangles

SALE - Teal Persuation Glass Ring (Limited Edition) - I will only make 3!!!

SALE - Blood Orange Martini 1 Drop Dangle Glass Earrings

SALE - Vodka Tonic Medium Ball and Swirl Earrings
SALE - Vodka Tonic Small Ball and Swirl Earrings

and last but not least SALE - Golden Pumpkin Glass Ring

Complimentary Colors and Treasuries

2009-08-19T23:47:00.000-07:00

I've been on a posting new designs streak this week and today is another day for a little beauty!

SALE - Sapphire Martini Medium Ball and Swirl Earrings

SALE - Carrot Orange Glass Ring

I also snagged 2 treasuries this morning! It's been forever since I was actually home and on the computer when they were available ;b

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=77374

Love in Summertime

More New Stuff!

2009-08-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

Check out some more beautiful jewelry hot off the presses in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy shop! I'm really proud of how the photos turned out.

SALE - Midori Sour with a Twist Dangles

SALE - Blue Skies Glass Ring

New Designs and Some Updates on Old Favorites

2009-08-17T23:36:00.000-07:00

I'm revamping and adding new designs and colors to all my collections in my JoliMarbleSwirls Etsy shop. Introductory sale is still going on, so don't miss out purchasing any of the lovelies in my shop for just $6.95! Limited time only, so don't miss out!!!

Here are a few newbies that I'm head over heals in love with :

Sangria with a Twist Dangles

These are even more gorgeous in person, I wore them all day today to channel my inner fashionista :b They are impossibly light, though they don't look it because they are made of aluminum that add almost no weight, so the only thing that adds weight is the marbles.

I made a ton of rings this last week and have been trying to slowly post them all up - here are a few:

Slate Grey Glass Ring
It's limited edition - I'll be only making about 3 of these total!

Peach Cider Glass Ring - this one looks absolutely stunning (and very expensive) on your hand!

and last but not least here are the most gorgeous new Peach Cider Ball and Swirl Earrings to perfectly match the Peach Cider Ring:

It's impossible to do them justice in a photo, but I tried my best!

Yummy Tangerine Swirl & Intoxicating Blood Orange Martini

2009-07-26T02:05:00.000-07:00

I really love to have matching sets for my designs, so when a really sweet customer asked for me to create a matching set for the Tangerine Ball and Swirl Earrings I came up with the two designs below. The one with the single ball is already available in my shop and the 3 ball variation will be there very shortly.

SALE - Tangerine Ball and Swirl Pendant

I also played around with the Blood Orange Martini marbles and came up with a few other matching earrings to complete the Blood Orange Martini Pendant. Here they are, they turned out just marvelous!!! The first one with 3 marble Drops is currently available in my JoliMarbleSwirls boutique. I think the second one I made with just one drop compliments the pendant even better. I need to take more photos of and will put it up in the next few days.

SALE - Blood Orange Martini 3 Drop Dangle Glass Earrings

Sweet!!! I got another treasury :)

2009-07-22T23:57:00.000-07:00

With the wonderful help of Craftapolis I just snagged another treasury! Yay! I called this one "Sweet!!!" because that's how I felt when I got it. When I think of sweet, I think of pinks, so I themed it around the sweetest pinks I could find.

I also was able to quickly figure out which treasuries I was featured in by using the Treasure Hunt on Craftopolis and it gave me the wonderful knowledge that my Blood Orange Martini with a Twist Pendant was featured in a beautifully cheerful treasury this morning called "Showing a Lil Newbie Love" by the lovely Etsy seller, MissKnits, that has the cutest little knit and crochet things in her shop!!!

Moonlit Dew - a Treasury

2009-07-22T13:00:00.000-07:00

Here's my brand new treasury - "Moonlit Dew" that I made with the JoliMarbleSwirls shop name, where I am having an incredible introductory sale by tha way!!! It is inspired by my Moonlit Dew earrings from my original shop jolijoli, so I included them along with my favorite Etsy sellers and some beautiful new items I found just searching.

I haven't done an Etsy treasury in a while and I just found a fantastic tool that makes it a lot easier to get one. Check out Craftopolis for some really nifty new Etsy tools. You can quickly see which treasuries you're featured in, see how many people hearted your shop on a particular day, see if you're in the gift guide and more!

Huge Introductory Sale for JoliMarbleSwirls.etsy.com!!!

2009-07-21T14:39:00.000-07:00

I opened up a brand new shop called JoliMarbleSwirls on Etsy which contains my Marbles and MarbleSwirls Collections or basically anything I've ever made that has a glass marble incorporated in the design. I am having a limited time huge introductory sale where everything will be just $6.95!!! That's right, it's a total steal, some of the items are usually priced as high at $19.

So don't miss out and check it out before the sale end!!! And if there is something that used to be in those collection in the jolijoli shop that you do not see, just convo me and I will make it available especially for you. Or, if you also fall in love with something from my original shop I will combine shipping :)

Happy Shopping!!!

S E X Y.... the Treasury

2009-06-13T16:21:00.001-07:00

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=57368

I snagged it very very late in my sleepless night. Hope you like it!

Map The Fallen by Sean Askay

2009-05-26T23:07:00.000-07:00

I am so incredibly proud of my best friend, Sean Askay. This Memorial Day he launched an incredible tribute to the soldiers that died in Iraq and Afghanistan. It’s called “Map the Fallen,” and it “uses Google Earth to honor the more than 5,700 American and Coalition servicemen and women that have lost their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

The map, Sean explains, “will connect you with each of their stories—you can see photos, learn about how they died, visit memorial websites with comments from friends and families, and explore the places they called home and where they died.” It’s beautiful, informative — and heartbreaking. Go check it out, now. (Mac users: Be sure to install the latest version of Google Earth.)

Sean has worked on this project for 4 years, since graduate school and he really did an incredible job. It was featured on CNN last Sunday and has received a huge wave of support and praise. Go Sean!!!

New Chicks in Town

2009-05-09T20:55:00.000-07:00

Today we had a little adventure with my husband and son to Half Moon Bay, we went to pick up our baby chicks!!! The Half Moon Bay Fuel and Feed store gets a ton of baby chicks every Thursday and unfortunately for us the ones that we wanted were gone before Thursday night. But we spotted these two white little cuties and I fell in love at first sight.

They are White Silkie Bantam chicks. When they grow up they will have snow white fluffy plumage that is supposed to feel like silk. The other cool thing is that they have five toes on each foot, while most chickens have only four, plus they will grow up to have fuzzy feet, covered in feathers. Some interesting factoids about them is that their skin, beaks and bones are black. This particular breed is also supposed to be really friendly and calm, which will make them the best pets.

They are the softest, cutest things I've ever seen and we decided to name them Snowflake and Eve. My son got the biggest smile on his face when I suggested "Eve", we were trying to think of something other then snowflakes that's white and he loves the movie Wall-E o much. So it was settled. Snowflake is on the left and Eve is on the right in the front in the photo above. Now we just need to cross our fingers and hope they are both girls, we're not allowed to have roosters (and they were not sexed). So here's hoping that we don't have to take them back!

When we got home we set up their little brooder in our dog's, Tiger's, crate. We had bought a heat lamp and put some food and sugar water in little bowls for them. I made these clay bowls in Seattle back while I was pregnant and I was so excited to finally find a good use for them, they've been sitting on my shelf neglected for 4 years! You can see the chicks in the front right corner trying to sleep here.

Then after we got the chicks all settled in, we made the formal introductions with Tiger. It was interesting to watch, there was a lot of sniffing and trying to get into his crate, but after we made it clear that Eve and Snowflake were not food he just stared at them and was shaking like he was cold. I tried to reassure him that it's ok, but he still does it sometimes, it's the craziest thing! Eve and Snowflake on the other hald lay down in the corner closest to Tiger and passed out, I think they slept most of the afternoon away :b

Now Here's a little video from tonight of Eve and Snowflake finally ready to eat. They hopped right up on their food bowl and were pushing each other around. Eve likes to push and burrow herself underneath Snowflake, you'll see what I mean. I hope you enjoy watching my little cuties. They have made me smile all day long!

PURPLE DREAMS Treasury

2009-05-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

Wow, it looks like my Pink Champagne Earrings got included in another treasury by Ixela! Purple Dreams is so sweet and calming as well as just incredibly beautiful just like Ixela's work.

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=56395

Ixela is an incredible artist from Italy that crochets the most beautiful neck candy I've ever seen. Thanks Alessandra! Here is my absolute favorite item from her shop (I'm saving up!!!):

Fiesta Sangria Treasury

2009-05-05T10:20:00.000-07:00

I had a lovely surprise this morning, I found my Ruby Red Glass Ring in a deliciously refreshing treasury by a wonderful family of vintage artists from Florida 23rdstreetvintage.etsy.com. Thanks Mark, Mary, Mia, Marleigh and Mitchell!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=56521

Lovely Flora Studs

2009-05-04T00:02:00.000-07:00

I got these sweet little flora studs while I was on vacation. They are from a wonderful little shop on Etsy called LisasLovlies and I've been lusting after them for ever and ever! They are everything I was expecting and more and I can't seem to ever want to take them off. Lisa really has beautiful craftsmanship. They were my birthday present for myself and worth every penny.

My New Tumbler!!!!

2009-05-01T00:11:00.000-07:00

I'm so excited, I just ordered a Rotary Tumbler Kit from Rio Grande and it should be here within a week! I love power tools in general, but I've been lusting after this little baby for a really really long time. It's going to make my life so much easier, or at least I hope! Here it is in all it's glory :)

The general purpose of rotary tumblers is for both hardening and polishing metals. I can't wait!

California Dramin' Treasury from our Vacation

2009-04-21T11:07:00.000-07:00

I love sunsets, we saw so many since we drove down to Southern California for a little vacation. We're down here for the week, yay! So I took a little time and made an homage treasury to them. Hope you like it!

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=51361

A Bit of Glamor!

2009-03-08T17:19:00.000-07:00

My two brand new designs are very glamorous and classic. Introducing a jet black shine and silver sparkle dangle earrings:

Moonlit Onyx - a Treat in Sterling Silver and Jet Black Onyx

And last but not least a perfect match for the Black Currant Cha Cha Ring:

Black Currant Waterfall Earrings - a Treat in Hematite and Sterling Silver

My mom fell in love with the Black Currant Cha Cha Ring, and was asking if I had matching earrings for it. So I gave her the set for Valentine's Day. I know I used to have a pair of earrings called Black Currant, but I was not completely happy with how they complimented the ring so I came up with this new design. Pictures cannot do it justice, it is so beautiful in person. Every piece of this earring can move independantly so the overall effect is like a waterfall!

My New Beauties

2009-03-06T21:28:00.001-08:00

I finally got around to posting a few new beauties to my shop. I made these a while back but did not have any time till now to come up with the descriptions and choose the photos.

These were inspired my my dear friend Candy. She has such incredible style, it's elegant and fun at the same time. Big silver silver circles play a huge part in her jewelry. You can find them here in my shop:

Round And Round Earrings - A Treat in Sterling Silver

I also added another Large Triangle Swirl Pendant to the Marble Swirl Collection, one of my very sweet customers from Australia suggested it, so now I will offer it in my shop:

Indigo Blue Wrapped in Silver Swirl Triangle Wire Pendant

I made this necklace a long time, but then I ran out of the thick sterling chain that I used to make it so I stopped offering it. I had a request for it just this week from a lovely customer so I made this new version with a thinner chain. I really love how it turned out!

Persephone's Yellow Garden Necklace - a Treat in Millefiori Glass, Swarovski Crystal and Sterling Silver

The Persephone's Yellow Garden Necklace completes this beautiful set that I offer in my shop:

Persephone's Yellow Garden Earrings - a Treat in Millefiori Glass and Sterling Silver

Persephone's Yellow Garden Cha Cha Ring - a Treat in Millefiori Glass and Sterling Silver

This broke my heart

2009-03-06T00:19:00.000-08:00

I haven't written in a while, but today I stumbled upon something that just broke my heart. It hit a little to close to home because I have a little one close to the same age.

Last week a little 5 year old boy was hit and killed crossing the street on a crosswalk in Berkeley with his classmates. I have tears running down my cheers as I write this because I can't even imagine, I don't want to imagine how his parents are dealing with this. It is way too sad. His name was Zachary Michael Cruz. There is a website http://www.zacharymichaelcruz.com/ if you would like to read more about it, help the family with the funeral expenses or just offer words of sympathy. Zachary's mother is Jodie Cruz, a wonderful member of the Etsy community (petals.etsy.com). There is a movement on Etsy trying to help this family here.

This really makes us realize that every minute spent with our children and the ones we love is such a gift, we never know when they will be taken from us so we should not take a single moment for granted.

Last Day of the Fundraiser & a Day with Jen

2009-02-23T11:07:00.000-08:00

Today is officially the very last day of the fundraiser for Jen in my Etsy shop, but I will leave the Donate button link on my blog for another few weeks for any stragglers.

I am in Southern California right now, so I got to go visit Jen on Friday, which was a real treat. For those of you who are wondering, she's doing OK, and is incredibly thankful of all her friends and all the people that have reached out to help her. She said that whe has really amazing friends. She still has her sense of humor and tries to laugh and joke around about the situation. She said that it's kinda funny that she can now attribute all her clumsiness to MS :b

But the reality limitations of having no medical insurance is really hitting her hard. She is really struggling to get the follow up care that she needs because the choices for health care for the non-insured are incredibly limited and competitive. For those of us who are lucky enough to have insurance, we can go to a variety of doctors on our lists of providers and can even have a choice for the doctor we "like." But Jen is stuck with county hospitals who are the only doctors/hospitals that by law cannot turn you away if you have no insurance, everyone else can... So the appointment wait times for county are long and many times your appointments are mixed up and you get ophthalmologist appointments with the neck clinic or are given a doctor that has no knowledge of MS and no compassion for helping you. Getting private insurance is not an option because with a pre-existing conditions it is just not affordable. So Jen's follow up care is expensive because it needs to be monitored by MRI, but so far it has been a very frustrating challenge for her just to get seen. I am hoping that the extra money we raised on this fundraiser will help with that.

Hopefully, in a few months she will be able to have a job with medical insurance and things will get a little easier. Until then, I will try to see if there are any other options for her. If anyone has any ideas, please let me know.

Train Trip

2009-02-17T18:51:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited because my son and I are going to take the Coast Starlight train down the California coast to Southern California this week! We'll be going to visit my family and friends, including Jen for whom I started this whole fundraiser. So I'll be away from my studio the night of 2/18 till the night of 2/24. I'll ship all orders placed during that time a few days after I return, so don't worry you'll be able to get your last minute fundraiser purchases all the way till 2/23!

We got a private cabin so that Jasper can take his nap and includes all our meals in the dining car. He loves trains, so this should be a real treat! He's been talking about it and asking about it constantly. So we'll see how 9 hours on the train will work for us.

Map of Fundraiser Order and Donation Origins

2009-02-16T17:58:00.001-08:00

Fundraise Update - Donations and Orders from Around the World

2009-02-16T14:34:00.000-08:00

The fundraiser has been an incredible success! I found out from Jen that the hospital significantly lowered her bill, so I believe we have covered her entire bill as well as some follow up care! I have sent off 111 orders totaling in 207 items sold in the last 3 weeks! We have also raised a total a little over $2300 in sheer donations.

Thank you all so much once again!

I am in the process of calculating the totals that the fundraiser brought in for jewelry orders and I thought I'd finish what I started in an earlier post to show where all the orders and donations came from.

ORDER & DONATION ORIGINS

USA
------------
Arizona
Arkansas
California (huge response - there are so many of you!)
Connecticut
Delaware
Florida
Georgia
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Kansas
Kentucky
Massachusetts
Maryland
Montana
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Ohio
Oklahoma
South Carolina
Tennessee
Texas
Virginia
Washington
Wisconsin

Outside US
----------------
Australia
Canada
Germany
Israel
Maldives
Switzerland
United Kingdom

Thank you all for your wonderfully kind contributions to this fundraiser!

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-14T16:11:00.000-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day everyone! I think this is one of my absolute favorite holidays and this is why:

This morning I woke up to a wonderful surprise! My lovely husband sent me on a scavenger hunt throughout our house -with little clues and surprises.

Every clue I found was accompanied by recipes of chocolate goodness, including Chocolate Moose, Chocolate Fudge, Chocolate Lava Muffins, Chocolate Chiffon Cupcakes, Chocolate Truffles, and Flourless Chocolate Cake with Ganache Frosting, yum! After a LOT of running up and down the stairs I discovered this:

This is a 10 lb chunk of incredible dark chocolate!!! The note said that I can choose 2 of the recipes and my wonderful husband will make them for me! One of the incredible things about my husband is that after I met him, I became a total snob to restaurant meals and desserts, just because he could make all of that so much better at home! So I can't wait to collect my Chocolate Truffles and Chocolate Lava Muffins.

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my husband! This would be one of the many reasons why I chose to marry him :)

A little note on my shop, I just added a few more new designs to match some existing pieces in the Marbles Collection. Hope you like them!

Drops of Blue Indigo Pendant - a Glass Treat

Honey Drop Pendant - a Glass Treat

Blue Sugar Glass Pebble Earrings - I totally thought I posted these already and I guess I did not till now!

My New Beauties

2009-02-13T23:36:00.000-08:00

I have decided to restructure my Etsy shop a little bit so I divided up what used to be the Marbles Collection and put all the swirl pieces into a new collection called Marble Swirl Collection. I got a special request from a really wonderful customer to match my Triangle Swirl Pendant, so I am come up with some new pieces that will do just that. Here is one of the first I came up with. I have the earrings in the works too, which I will post really soon!

Ruby Red Wrapped in Silver Swirl Glass Ring

I also added some new Lillies to my Romantic Collection. Presenting Sassy Orange, Sweet Violet, Flirty Yellow and Snow White:

Romancing the Sweet Violet Lilies

Romancing the Yellow Flirt Lily

Romancing the Snow White Lily

Romancing the Sassy Orange Lily

Some New Designs and Shop Replenish

2009-02-09T23:14:00.000-08:00

It's been a while since I blogged because I spent the time working in my studio and filling orders. I am almost all caught up with all the orders that have come from the fundraiser. I worked straight through the weekend and sent out about 25 envelopes today... let's just say I know all the postal workers now! So I have only 2 more orders to fill. Yay! I can safely say that the wait time is down to the normal 2-4 days, but I can rush things out for Valentines' Day if requested.

I've also replenished my little Etsy shop with some of my existing designs as well as some cool new ones. I love color so I have added a few more fun pieces to my Marbles Collection. I have fallen in love with marbles, I have so many more designs floating in my head for them, so there are cool new things to come! Here is a beauty for the hopeless romantics out there like me who like to keep things simple:

Ruby Red Glass Ring

This is a classic, black being one of my favorite colors, I could not resist:

Black Magic Glass Ring
Black Magic Glass Pebble Earrings

I love this color green - it makes me think of Wicked - which I have yet to see! I read the book and it was fabulous, but now that Wicked is in SF, I really gotta go!

Emerald Green Glass Ring

I have also expanded my Elegance Collection with the Sheer Elegance pieces for which the "Be Mine" earrings and pendant were the inspiration. I added some earrings in these lovely stones. I will keep them coming as soon as I finish taking the photos! I have so many more colors!

Sheer Elegance in Sapphire Quartz

Sheer Elegance in Citrine Sunshine

Sheer Elegance in Emerald Quartz

And last, but not least, I added the Simplicity Collection. I wanted a collection that will be just the sterling silver pieces that can be worn for any occasion and will match anything. This piece started it all:

Eternity Pendant - a Treat in Sterling Silver

Here are the Earrings to match - Eternity Earrings - a Treat in Sterling Silver

New Glass Treats

2009-02-01T23:09:00.000-08:00

I spent all weekend in my studio finishing up orders and getting them ready to ship tomorrow. It's really exciting because I made a lot of progress in my orders. So all of you who ordered from me during this fundraiser, should see your orders shipped pretty soon!

I made so many Triangle Swirl pendants today that I might be dreaming about them in my sleep :b I had run out of wire yesterday and went to pick some up today, so it was all about the Triangle Swirl pendants after that!

The other thing that I got around to is posting some new glass treats in my shop. I have a ton of new glass rings and pendants that I added to the Marbles Collection. Here are a few photos of all of them together, but you'll have to visit my shop to see the Snow White ones.

I also gave Jen a list of the peoples names that gave donations today, so you might be hearing from her. Like I said before, I did not include the amounts with the names because every donation is equally kind and generous, no matter the amount. Thanks again.

Special Delivery and Fundraiser Update

2009-01-29T15:41:00.000-08:00

I am trying to get orders out as fast as possible right now, which has been a bit of a challenge because I can only work in my studio in the evening after my husband or mother in law comes home to help out with my son. They have been incredibly supportive in helping me find the time to work. Thanks!

I had 141 items sell since the beginning of the fundraiser! But I am steadily making my way though all of them one at a time. The orders slowed down a bit, so now I have a little bit of time to catch up! I think once I have it under control, I will do another push for the fundraiser to spread the word... I'm thinking in another week or so. I am really excited to say that I got a chance to go pick up more materials yesterday when my mother in law was home during the day, so I will be adding a lot of new items soon and I can re-list some of the things that sold out!

I am all done with the orders from 1/23 and have shipped them and am slowly working through the 24th. If you ordered after that and I had your item made beforehand I have tried to ship it out too. There is only one of me creating all this jewelry, answering emails and packing all your orders, and I do every one of them meticulously. Every order is make and packaged with love. So I really appreciate your patience.

Here is a photo from a few days ago of all the orders going out. At this point I ran out of envelopes and had to run to Staples to stock up! I had a friend of mine order some more so that I don't run out again. You know who you are and don't like your name mentioned, thanks for your help!

I do have a special helper, my son rides his tricycle to the mailbox with me every day to drop off the orders. He likes to carry some of the envelopes in the "trunk" of his tricycle and put them all into the mailbox. I had to take this picture because it was way too cute!

Worldwide Support to Fundraiser

2009-01-26T08:55:00.000-08:00

As I was going trough all my orders, donations and emails, I realized that support for this fundraiser has come from so many unexpected places around the world. (Please see posts below for fundraiser details).

I will not list names, but I am going to write down the states and countries from which all you wonderful people have given donations or placed orders. Thank you all so much! I am almost done thanking each person that gave donations and if you haven't heard from me, you surely will tomorrow.

Here is my list so far from donations given (I'll add all the orders to it as well soon):

USA
------------
Arizona
California (huge response - there are so many of you!)
Illinois
Indiana
Kansas
Massachusets
New Jersey
New York
North Carolina
Texas

Australia
Great Britain
Germany

I think I might do a map for this in the end, when I have a little more time!

I have also been going through the orders one by one and getting as many as I can out! If you are waiting for your order, I want to thank you so much for participating in this fundraiser and for your patience! I do also "moonlight" as a stay at home mom to my wonderful son, Jasper, so I don't think there are enough hours in the day :b I wish there was 30 or 50!!! I've ordered some more materials, so I will replenish my shop and give people as much of a selection as was available in the beginning soon. Right now I have a backlog on order of about 2 weeks, but I am working as fast as possible and I promise you won't be sorry when you finally receive you lovely treats!

Fundraiser Update

2009-01-25T12:28:00.000-08:00

First and foremost, I want to thank everyone who has already participated in the fundraiser to help Jen or has helped in any way. Please see the posts below for more details.

We have had an incredible response, thank you. So far we have raised just under $3,000, not counting the people that are sending in checks by mail. Thank you so much! When I talked to Jen this morning, she said that all of you have shown her more support and love then she ever dreamed off.

I have been going trough all the orders and email to thank each and every one of you. But I have not yet thanked all the wonderful people that gave donations. Please know that I haven't forgotten you, and that your contributions are all incredibly appreciated. I will thank each one of you individually starting tonight. I will not post a breakdown of the donations on my blog just the grand total update, but I will provide Jen with a list of names of the people who participated without specific donation amounts. I believe that every donation given is incredibly generous no matter the amount. But if you would like to be anonymous please let me know.

I'm a little back logged with orders right now and I'm afraid I'm running out of materials. I have had 90 items sell in the last 3 days!!! So I am currently trying to get through the orders as fast as I can and ship them out to all of you. I make every one of my items by hand (except the chains) so because of the slight back log, please allow 5-7 business days before your items are shipped. I really appreciate your patience!

I made a promise to myself to provide the materials, but also to try and not buy anything new this month, just to use all that I already have. But I would really like to continue this wonderful fundraiser so I have decided that beginning now 1/25 (after the 90 original orders) till the end of the fundraiser on 2/23 I will deduct the material cost and listing/sale fees from the items purchased and will donate 100% net profit to Jen. I also made a promise to you, so everything that has already been bought from 2/23 to now, I will pay for all the materials and Etsy fees.

Thank you so much for all your love and support!

Update on Jen and the Fundraiser

2009-01-24T16:19:00.000-08:00

First of all, I just want to say that people are really amazing. There has been such an overwhelming support, kind words and advice pouring in as a response to this fundraiser to help Jen with her medical bills after she got diagnosed with MS. (Please see my previous post for details) I am blown away at how many of you went out of your way to help! The orders have been coming in like crazy and the donations have been incredibly generous. So far we have raised over $1700 in just 2 days!!! I can't wait to see what we can do in a whole month!

I know that this is a very difficult time financially for a lot of people, but so many of you have given anything you could, if not money then help spreading the word about this fundraiser or kind supportive advice. I am working through all the emails, orders and donations to thank each and every one of you for your incredible participation. Please know that it is so deeply appreciated, that it's impossible to express in words.

I talked to Jen this morning and she is incredibly grateful to all of you that have helped and is overwhelmed with the love and support she has received during this challenging time. She said that a lot of times there are so many example that people suck, and it takes a time like this to really remind you that most people are incredible human beings and the contrary occurrences are the exceptions to the rule! You are all doing a wonderful job cheering her up and helping her deal with this difficult turn in her life.

She is out of the hospital now and is waiting to see if she will recover her vision, but at this point, with MS, nobody knows what will happen next. She is talking it one step at a time and just trying to get back to her normal life while trying to stay positive.

She spent the day yesterday working with the hospital staff trying to figure out if she qualifies for any government aid and unfortunately it does not look like she does. For some good news, she might qualify for a program that will help to reduce her hospital bill which would be fantastic! She is waiting to see if she will get approved and she is starting her new job on Monday that she is excited about. Unfortunately it will last for 2 months and doesn't get health insurance. So I'm trying to see if there is a way for her to get insurance another way. If anyone knows anything, please let me know.

Again, thank you so much for all your help! Please keep it coming :) You are all remarkable human beings!

Please read and help!

2009-01-23T12:52:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I found out that my dear friend just got diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis and lost sight of one of her eyes due to this awful disease. She is currently in the hospital where they are trying to save her other eye and prevent her from going completely blind. To make the matters worse, she has no medical coverage and the hospital bills will probably add up to more then she makes in a year!

She doesn't think that she qualifies for any aid from the government, but I am going to research that. If you know of anything, please let me know so that I can pass it on to her.

So while I cannot fight her disease, because it currently has no cure, I've decided to donate 100% of all the profits made from my Etsy shop for the next month (1/23 to 2/23) to help her pay for her medical bills to try and make her life a little easier in this great tragedy. I am donating my time, material costs and all the Etsy fees to this cause. If you would like to donate without purchasing please use the Donation button on the top right hand corner of my blog. Thanks!

So if you make a purchase during this time please know that your money is going to a really good place and that your piece of jewelry helped a person in need.

I've known my friend Jen for 20 years, she was the first person I met when I came to the US from Russia. I got a scholarship from my Temple for a summer camp right when we arrived in California and she was my very first friend that I met there. I could only say "hi" in English, so she sat in the pool with me for half an hour just saying "hi". We ended up going to the same elementary school, where she was my only true friend. She taught me about Madonna, Star Trek, English, boys... I don't think I could have survived without her. She was there for me all through middle school, and high school too. She comforted me when I got my heart broken for the very first time and the times after that.

All through her life that she's suffered one tragedy after another. She lost her mother at an early age and her father has never been there for her. So she has no support from her remaining family, only a network of friends (which I want to show her is very strong!) She's already suffering from diabetes and now with this and compounded with the medical bills is really too much! I went to sleep crying last night and asking God why it is that he feels the need to give her more and praying for her. She's been an inspiration to me, because throughout it all she's stayed positive and brave, she was following a dream career wise. Last night when I talked to her, she said that you can either laugh or cry, and she is choosing to laugh.

My grandmother always said that if you throw something behind you, you will find it in front of you. So throw something good now, buy something from my Etsy store (jolijoli.etsy.com) and it will find you in the future.

Thank you in advance.

Romance in the Air...

2009-01-22T21:40:00.000-08:00

I added a brand new very lovely collection to my little shop on Etsy. I'm calling it the Romantic Collection. Here are the first 2 pieces that describe what this collection will be all about.

Romancing the Red Hot Lily

Romancing the Blush Pink Lily

I tried taking pictures inside my house this time and I'm really happy on how they turned out! Please tell me your thoughts on it. Thanks.

I've also battled and debated in my mind about how to unify my shop because I have so many different types of jewelry in it. I've considered creating another shop for my non sterling jewelry and finding one focus and sticking with it. But in the end, while that might be really cohesive and consistent... both things being what you really want in a shop, but it's just not me. I'm an eclectic individual and I get inspired all the time. So I don't want to be tied down to one type of jewelry, I want to try a lot of different things and learn a ton as I go. I've always been a jack of all trades, so I want to embrace that in my jewelry. It's enough that I've chosen jewelry!!! So to fix the issue I decided that I was going to make my sections into different collections of jewelry, each of which has a cohesive theme and maybe with a variation on the way I take pictures. I'm curious to see if anyone has an opinion on that.

It's been a while...

2009-01-20T13:07:00.000-08:00

Here is my new treasury, I finally got one! It's been a little while, I've been having trouble catching one... but today looks like I got lucky! Here's my newest Milk and Cookies Treasury West. Enjoy!

Run Away Dog - Adventures with Tiger

2009-01-16T19:40:00.000-08:00

Today we had a little adventure with my silly dog, Tiger. He finally figured out how to get out of the backyard and had run away across the street 2 days ago. Well, thinking that he was over it, since he behaved himself yesterday, I let him out unsupervised today. Big mistake! Huge, huge mistake! He got out and I didn't notice it for a whole 5 minutes!

So being still in our jammies, my 3 year old, Jasper and I went chasing Tiger down the street. I was so flabbergasted that I even went out in my slippers and didn't realize it until Jasper pointed it out! Tiger was nowhere to be seen and I had to walk up and down the street screaming "Tiger" for 20 minutes. It's a little tricky asking people about him, because he's either all or part pit bull and people freak out a little about that... So finally the guy at the corner store pointed us in the right direction and we tracked him down around the block. He came right to me when he saw me, looking all sheepish, like he knew he was in big trouble! But I was so glad to see that he was alright that I just hugged him.

I had forgotten his leash in all the commotion so he was walked back home by Jasper, who was the only one that could reach his collar without chocking him in the process or killing his back!
Here is a picture of Tiger back from Seattle.

He's been my dog for 7 years now. I got him when he was only 6 months old from a guy in New Jersey that found him in the local park tied to a bench and starved to the bones. Some people are just awful, but I won't get into that. I said hello to him and he gave me a kiss that melted my heart... it was love at first sight. The guy couldn't keep him and none of the shelters would accept a pit, so I took him in. He smelled so awful that it took 3 baths to wash the stench out!

I tried to give him food, but he couldn't keep it down even though he would eat everything in sight. I remeber one instance when he emptied his breakfast into a new pair of sneakers! For a while I would get stopped on the street by angry people that asked me why I wasn't feeding my dog!

Finally about a month later, when I was taking him for a walk at night, he started pooping out what looked like a worm and I freaked out. I didn't know what to do so I called the veterinary emergency room. They said that I shouldn't touch it and should rush him over right away. Here's where it got tricky, living in New Jersey, I didn't have a car and the emergency room was in Manhattan! I was basically freaking out in the middle of the street, when a really nice guy I didn't know offered to help. So he carted me and Tiger (with a poopy string or work of some sort coming out of his butt) to the Manhatan emergency room in his very nice truck! What a nice guy!

It turned out that it was a 6ft leash stuck in his stomach that he pooped out completely in the middle of the vet emergency room waiting area when I was paying his bill.... but not before giving me the scare of my life and the prospect of having a $3000 emergency surgery to get it out!

So Tiger and I have been together since then, he was a Manhattan dog of the concrete jungle for a while and then learned about grass while living with us in a tiny appartment in Seattle. Finally he got his very own back yard here in sunny California. I drillen into concrete to build him a fence here, my brain was vibrating for a day after that! But I left a little section of the yard open with sharp thorned heap of branches blocking the way... so I guess he finally figured out a way around them I guess. Looks like I got some more work cut out for me!

The New Moonlit Dew Series of Earring Treats

2009-01-16T13:37:00.000-08:00

I just came up with this beautiful new design a few days ago to go in the Moonlit Dew series and was so excited to see how well it turned out. I was not completely satisfied with some of my simpler earring designs that I made to match the super fun cha cha rings, but this design are so much more elegant and dazzling! Please come and take a peek in my jolijoli boutique on Etsy.

Persephone's Yellow Garden Earrings - a Treat in Millefiori Glass and Sterling Silver

For the Love of Jasper Dangly Earrings - a Treat in Sterling Silver and Pine Green Jasper

Moonlit Indigo - a Treat in Sterling Silver and Czech Glass

My Valentine's Treats

2009-01-15T23:58:00.000-08:00

Here are some brand new aphrodisiac treats from my jolijoli shop on Etsy.

A Heart of Jasper - A Treat in Jasper and Sterling Silver

Be Mine - Ruby Red Drops - a Treat in Crystal and Sterling Silver

Be Mine - Ruby Red Necklace - a Treat in Crystal and Sterling Silver

First Boutique-wide Sale

2009-01-13T14:32:00.000-08:00

I'm running my very first sale on everything in my shop!

BUY ONE GET ONE 1/2 OFF!!!

Please come and visit my jolijoli shop to see all the gorgeous items you can get this fabulous deal on!
Here is my new addition to the Moonlit Dew Series - the Moonlit Dew in Sterling. This one is completely in sterling silver! I love these earrings because they are so versatile. You can wear them with virtually anything! And of course they are part of the sale.

Happy Shopping!

Top 5 Etsy Tools

2009-01-11T22:39:00.000-08:00

Selling on Etsy has been a huge learning curve for me, but through browsing the forums and connecting with other Etsy sellers, I have found a bunch of really useful tools that I'd like to share with you. I personally use each and every one of these tools every day.

1. Lets Ets (Google Base) - http://letsets.com
-Gets your items into Google search pages, very easy to set up through your Google account (for Google Base), just get an xml file every night from LetsEts and upload it to Google Base.

2. Etsy Hacks - http://www.etsyhacks.com/
- An awesome tool that adds extra links to your Etsy pages allowing you to do a ton more stuff with a lot fewer clicks.

3. Google Analytics (brand new) - http://www.google.com/analytics/
- You can set this up straight through your Etsy account and your Google account and will allow you to see where your traffic is coming from, going to, etc.

4. Heartomatic - http://www.craftcult.com
- Gives a really clear visualization of your page views and hearts for your Etsy pages.

5. SocialMarker - http://www.socialmarker.com
- A great tool for social bookmarking your blog, etsy products/sections/shop, flicker, etc. It put you on the map with search engines and gives you a ton of traffic from outside of Etsy. It's basically an all in one social bookmarking tool, for Stumble, Digg, and all the other major social bookmarking sites.

On another note, I finally created this beautiful design Daisies with Pearls that has been floating in my head for the last few weeks, not allowing me to sleep! I'll post it in my shop tomorrow. It's such a lovely treat in sterling silver and freshwater pearls.

New Yummy Treats in Red Currant

2009-01-09T11:36:00.000-08:00

I just posted a few new designs in my store and wanted to share them with you.

I finally completed the Red Currant set, it now includes the delicious Red Currant Cha Cha ring, the Red Currant pendant and 2 different sets of earring, the Red Currant Dangles and Red Currant Studs. The scarlet red glass is so perfectly like the red currant, it's almost translucent in some places... so joyful and yummy.

This is my favorite set to date, because as a kid I absolutely adored red currant. I'd sneak into my grand aunt's garden at her summer home near Moscow and pick them while nobody was watching. I'd always get a tongue lashing for it... but it was it was so worth it! This set brings back so many fond memories, we'd all make red currant jam for the winter, so that we kids would get some vitamins when it was freezing outside... so delicious!

A Russian New Year

2009-01-08T14:49:00.000-08:00

A while back I promised to explain the Russian New Year, so since I finally got the pictures off my camera I'd like to do it today.

The Russian New Year is a little like the American Christmas, without any religious aspects attached. There a Santa Claus, or Grandpa Frost as we call him in Russian and an equivalent of a Christmas tree, without Christmas attached - we have a special word for it too. And of course he brings lots and lots of presents! It's a huge family holiday for Russians and we all get together and eat and eat and then eat some more! Throughout the meal there is lots and lots of toasting and everyone picks their drink of choice to toast with... but nobody really gets drunk... that's always been a mystery to me with all the hard liquor that's consumed! A picture is worth a thousand words so here is the dining table at my aunt's before we sat down.

My aunt outdoes herself every year and this year a lot of other members of my family contributed too. The food is to die for, I dream about it all year long in anticipation! Here is my contribution, honeydew melon and prosciutto hoers d'ouvres:

Here is one of my favorite dishes - red fish row on white buttered bread, yum yum!

Then, when we're completely stuffed, we have dessert and tea (coffee for some, but tea is king in a Russian house). After all that it's usually time to toast to say goodbye to the old year and open up champagne to welcome the new year once the clock strikes 12. Traditionally only then we're allowed to open the presents. But with a lot of little ones arriving every year, the present time has gotten earlier and earlier... much to the dismay of my father!

The last couple of years there were so many gifts that 1/4 of my aunt's living room was filled half way to the ceiling. It was so crazy! So this year we decided to do gifts just for the last generation of kids and do a white elephant exchange for the adults. I think I have a video of my cousin telling us the rules somewhere, but afterward and during I was completely confused. You see, my family is way too smart and competitive for simple rules, so there was 3 and 4 way deals, exchanges and alliances that I completely lost track of! I just know that the bottle of Vox, Grey Goose and Hennesey made their way around the room many many times as well as the funny framed picture of my cousin being kissed by a gorilla with the 50 bucks in cash in the frame!

The dramatic highlight of the gift exchange was my 3 year old son. It was about 1am in the morning and he was still awake, just barely. I had pulled a nice down pillow from the white elephant exchange. Of course I did not want to admit that it was nice in case someone wanted to steal it. So I said it was a crappy pillow, that nobody would want it.

Jasper wondered in and lay down on the pillow just as his uncle asked to see the said "crappy" pillow. So to be funny, I mockingly asked him if he would really take a pillow from a child. It was said in jest, but Jasper took it completely seriously and there was never such a display of crying and alligator tears dabbled with cries of "Uncle John wants to take my pillow away!" Uncle John quickly retreated and we all couldn't stop laughing for the longest time, just enough for my aunt to quickly assure him that she would beat anyone that would try to take the pillow away. To make the story short, nobody touched Jasper's pillow for the rest of the game - so he went home with his hard earned prize, on which he is currently taking his nap!

What is Etsy

2009-01-08T00:49:00.000-08:00

I just found this video on YouTube and thought it was a really cute explanation of what is Etsy - for any of you that are not familiar with this wonderful site for buying and selling handcrafted creations.

Sweet Surrender for a New Year!

2009-01-05T14:53:00.001-08:00

I've been making treasuries on Etsy and did not even realize that I had not explained what they are in my blog! So here goes, a Treasury is a place to on Etsy to feature a collection of products that inspire you based on some sort of theme. It's a cool place for people to go window shopping and to get inspired themselves. It gives you a chance to express yourself and to feature beautiful works of art. Sometimes, if you're lucky, a treasury ends up on the front page of Etsy... which is like getting a grand prize for the treasury curator. If you miss a front page feature of your item in a treasury you were in, you can always go to this Flickr site and search with your shop name to get a screen shot:

http://www.flickr.com/groups/etsyfrontpagers/

You can check if you are featured in a Treasury or Treasury West by going here:

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_west.php
http://www.etsy.com/treasury.php

and looking for a yellow star next to the name of the treasury, it's actually between the treasury title and the name of the curator. If you see a gray star, it means you are one of the alternates in a treasury. The alternates sometimes show up on the front page is an item that makes the front page gets sold.

My themes for treasuries are usually based on song titles. My first treasuries were completely based on songs and I would search Etsy to find items that fit the mood of the songs. I still do that sometimes, but now I like to do a search from all the wonderful artists that I follow and that I befriended first for inspiration and build on that. I look at a treasury like I would a paining, and try to find balance and beauty by combining different colors and a very diverse selection on gorgeous items.

Here is my latest "Sweet Surrender..." treasury inspired by my favorite artists on Etsy!

I actually really love this song... it came to me at the last moment, when the Treasury West list hit 221! Enjoy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ldELCS6p1w (sorry it wouldn't let me embed it!)

Imagine... A New Treasury and a Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T20:16:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas everyone!

Imagine there's no Heaven
It's easy if you try
No hell below us
Above us only sky
Imagine all the people
Living for today

Imagine there's no countries
It isn't hard to do
Nothing to kill or die for
And no religion too
Imagine all the people
Living life in peace

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will be as one

Imagine no possessions
I wonder if you can
No need for greed or hunger
A brotherhood of man
Imagine all the people
Sharing all the world

You may say that I'm a dreamer
But I'm not the only one
I hope someday you'll join us
And the world will live as one
~ John Lennon

http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=37319

Black Currant on the Front Page of Etsy

2008-12-23T21:08:00.000-08:00

I got a great holiday gift today from Alison of alisonkelleydesigns. My Black Currant Cha Cha Ring made it to the front page of Etsy in her gorgeous Modern Elegance Treasury West at about 5AM PST this morning!

This is the first time that I know of that any of my designs have made it to the front page! I did a little dance when I saw Alison's convo alerting me this morning! Alison graciously sent me this screen shot of it to enjoy:

Alison is an incredibly gifted jewelry artist here in the Bay Area. Her designs are so beautifully elegant and sweet. I personally love her super adorable acorn earrings:

Check them out in her shop at http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18880679.

She also included my Indigo Triangle Swirl Pendant in her A Little Rainbow For The New Year Treasury! Thanks Alison!!! You're the best.

And in another bout of great luck I ended up in 2 other Treasuries. One gorgeous green Treasury, Verde!! by mujoyas from Buenos Aires, who make really cool jewelry that you can find in her etsy shop at mujoyas.etsy.com. That's my Emerald Green Triangle Swirl Pendant!

Plus my Pink Lace Necklace made it into the Pretty In Pink Treasury by Liron from Israel, who designs and makes a whole wardrobe of clothes I'd like to own! Check out her beautiful creations in her Etsy shop, Lirola.etsy.com.

I am so honored to have been icluded in all these gorgeous Treasuries! Thank you all soooooo much!

Happy Hanukkah!!!

2008-12-21T16:05:00.000-08:00

Today is the first night of the Jewish Holiday, Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights! Since my family is from all over the world, we celebrate almost all the winter holidays which makes it even more fun for your son. We get to celebrate Hanukkah, Christmas and the New Year (Russian style... I'll cover that in another post!) and the Chinese New Year. So our son gets to see that we can all live together happily and peacefully even when we come from all different backgrounds!

So to all of you who celebrate Hanukkah, Happy Hanukkah!

Here's a my listing in a lovely shade of Blue in honor of this joyous holiday:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18871568

For the eight nights of Hanukkah, you will get a free upgrade on that pendant from a leather cord to a 16" sterling silver snake chain found here:
http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18934652
Just add it to your order put HANNUKAH08 in the message to seller and wait for a revised invoice before paying.

My Treasury made the Front Page of Etsy!!!

2008-12-20T10:27:00.000-08:00

When I got up this morning, I had an early holiday gift, my "Baby It's Cold Outside..." Treasury made the Front Page of Etsy!!! I was so incredibly excited I called everyone in the house to come down and take a look and then I convo'd all the sellers of the beautiful items that I featured to let them know. I'm still all jazzed up!

I promised to include my screenshot and here it is. Enjoy and Happy Holidays to All!

And now for a little fun. The song that inspired it all (with Will Ferrell and Zooey Deschanel):

A New Day - 2 New Treasuries!

2008-12-18T09:26:00.000-08:00

I got up early this morning in anticipation of snatching a treasury spot. Here is is:
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=27818 (till Sunday 5:21am) I tried to pick from all my favorite sellers :)
Then I decided to add to the treasury madness and got myself a Treasury West one too! This one goes out to all you lovers of the Wizard of Oz. I couldn't resist! Enjoy!
http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list_west.php?room_id=36552

Treasury Features of My Santa's Helper Ring and Swirl Triangle Pendant

2008-12-18T01:53:00.000-08:00

I'm overjoyed to be featured in a gorgeous Treasury West!

You can find it here till Friday.

That's my Santa's Helper Cha Cha Ring on the left bottom row. Thank you so much Alison of alisonkelleydesigns!!!

I also just figured out that my Swirl Triangle Pendant was featured in another spectacular Treasury West !!! It's the second row on the left! Wow, 2 in one day - one red and one green, just in time for Christmas!
Thanks pippilangstrumpf!

I am so impressed at how beautiful these two treasuries are and am so honored to have been included!

$1000 give-a-way, including $20 to Jolijoli!!!

2008-12-17T12:53:00.000-08:00

I'm participation in the What's In The Box Giveaway along with 50 other great Etsy shops! Please visit the WhatsInTheBox.etsy.com for details on how to sign up. I think they are picking the winner very soon!!!

All you have to do is go to this thread:
http://www.etsy.com/forums_thread.php?thread_id=5936605

Each reply will be counted as an entry in the drawing!
Good Luck!

Yummy Soaps from Flameworks

2008-12-16T23:00:00.000-08:00

I recently got a vegan soap sampler and mini deodorant from Flameworks on Etsy and let me tell you, I was completely blown away. I was a little hesitant about ordering soap online because you can't smell it... so I ordered the smallest sizes, just to try, but Flameworks has since quieted those fears!

They smell so delicious! I couldn't stop smelling them when I got them and now I run to wash my hands every chance I get just to take that wonderful scent with me!

I ordered the following soaps:

1. Falling Head-Over-Heels In Love
2. Blue Sugar
3. Winter Candy Apple
4. Pomegranate Passion
5. L'Occitane Lavender & Amber

I absolutely love the Pomegranate Passion, it's sweet but not overpowering. My husband, who's very picky chose that one too as his favorite. The L'Occitane Lavender & Amber took me back to France... it's calming and wonderful. I'm currenly on the Falling Head-Over-Heels In Love and it's exactly that, can't describe it any other way. I wasn't sure about it at first, was it just love at first sight... it's a gorgeous soap, but once we got to know each other, I knew it was a keeper.
I also received a free sample of the Pumpkin Spice in my package that was really sweet. Thanks Michelle!

The mini deodorant I got in Apricot Freesia is absolutely fantastic! I hate to admit this... but being of Russian genes really makes a deodorant (and I thought antiperspirant) a must for me. When I was swing dancing a lot, I must have bought every deodorant/antiperspirant out there and almost all went in the trash after the first night dancing (an embarrassment!) I finally settled on Secret Platinum because nothing else worked. I know it's better to just use deodorant only but I had truly given up. So the vegan deodorant was a shot in the dark for me. Imagine my surprise when it really worked! I even took a chance and wore it to my husband's Christmas party, where there was lots of dancing, and it worked like magic!

But not only does it work, but it smells yummy. My husband even asked me if I was wearing a nice perfume! Thank you Flameworks for giving me hope again, I'll be sure to order another as soon as this one runs out :)

New Treats - Turquoise Goddess Stackable Ring Trio / Black Currant Cha Cha Ring

2008-12-15T23:07:00.000-08:00

I think I've become an insomniac! I can't fall asleep at night because I'm thinking of new designs in my head. Last night was no different, I finally nodded off at around 3:30am!

I dream of someday owning soldering equipment, but until then I have to be really creative with wire wrapping. I read that Veronica Moore, an amazing jewelry artist, said that because she does not solder any of her jewelry it's a much more meditative process (I seem to recall the word "frustrating" in there somewhere too). For me it takes a lot of thought and figuring out how everything will work. I imagine it step by step in my head and it haunts me until I get my hands on the wire, thus not letting me sleep at night.

So the crowning glory of all that thinking is the Turquoise Goddess Stackable Ring Trio - a Treat in Sterling Silver. It made me fall in love with turquoise and is my favorite ring so far, I haven't taken it off my finger since it was completed! I'll make it to order when someone buys it. It's so incredibly simple and elegant, it blows my mind. I'll post it tomorrow along with the cutest little post earrings that match it perfectly.

Here it is on my hand. I'm so embarrassed at how dry my hands are. It was raining most of the day today and I forgot to put on lotion before ducking outside to take pictures, the five minutes that it stopped raining. The picture above was taken on the 1 sq foot of my deck that was not completely soaked!
I'd also like to mention another new design, this is the Black Currant Cha Cha Ring - A Treat in Onyx and Sterling Silver that I posted today.

I made it a while back, but did not have the time to write a description for it till today. It reminds me of the delicious black currant berries that I used to eat in my childhood in Russia. I love making cha cha rings, they are really fun to design and wear. My signature, wire wrapped cha cha ring base was also the result of a few sleepless nights! I made a matching set of earrings too (http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=18750688).

I couldn't resist, so I made the Red Currant Cha Cha ring and little matching post earrings too. No pictures yet since it was dark by the time it was done. It's A bit different from the Black Currant, but just as delicious!

My First Treasury! Jazz it up!!!

2008-12-14T18:57:00.001-08:00

I stayed up last night till 11:08pm in anxious anticipation because I had accidentally stumbled upon the treasury on Etsy and it said that there was only 365 lists! I'd never seen the number fall so low, that meant that in 33 lists I could actually make a treasury myself. I counted back from the first expiration date and found the time I would need to stand ready to grab my first treasury.

For my theme, I did the first one that came to mind, my first love - Lindy and Jazz! It's named "It Don't Mean a Thing, if it..." for the song by Duke Ellington. Here's my inspiration:

And now drumroll!!! My very first treasury that can be found at http://www.etsy.com/treasury_list.php?room_id=27000 (It'll expire on Tuesday 12/16/08 at 3:46pm)

I've been swing dancing for a very long time now. I love the Lindy Hop community and have met a lot of incredible people through it from all over. It's a really interesting group of people, from all walks of life that gets together for the love of Jazz and Swing Dancing. People travel all over the states and the world for Lindy Exchanges and Swing Camps and special events and the world becomes a much smaller place! This summer I got to swing dance in Barcelona, that was such a treat.

I've also had the incredible honor to dance where Frankie Manning and his friends hang out in New York (Swing 46 and Lici's in Harlem) and take a class with him. Frankie Manning helped define Lindy Hop when it all started back in Harlem! Here's a clip of Frankie's group performing:

Whitey's Lindy Hoppers excerpt from "Hellzapoppin" (1941) featuring Frankie Manning (in the Mechanic's Dungarees).

I'm so happy to be able to incorporate this into my Treasury and share this on Etsy. I hope you enjoyed it.

I also wanted to share the first treasury I was ever in, back in September. Tracee Murphy made and absolutely gorgeous treasury that included my Sunny Yellow in Emerald Green Swirl Triangle Wire Pendant with Leather Cord (currently on sale!). It was called Ray...A drop of golden sun... Check it out in her flicker account: http://www.flickr.com/photos/traceemurphy/2866017193/in/set-72157607368316821/

Check out her stunning watercolors in her Etsy shop traceemurphy.etsy.com.

A Taste of Russia - My Favorite Sourcream Blintzes Recipe

2008-12-13T11:16:00.000-08:00

When I came to the US from Russia, every time I bit into a pancake I was secretly hoping to taste my favorite sour cream blintzes instead. So I'd like to share with you the secret to making these amazing little treats. The best part is that it's so incredibly easy!!!

This portion is about enough to feed a family of 3.

Sour Cream Blintzes Recipe
2 eggs
1/3 cups of sugar
1 cup of sour cream
3/4 cups all purpose flour (can substitute with whole wheat - that's what's in my photos)
butter

1. Mix eggs and sugar
2. Add sour cream and mix
3. Add flour and mix, so there is no clumps left (this makes up the batter)
4. Put some butter in a non stick pan and melt
5. Use a tablespoon to make each blintz
6. Flip when turns golden (they should look about the way they do on the picture below when you flip them)

Enjoy!

Meeting Santa for the First Time!!!

2008-12-12T18:23:00.001-08:00

My son was a little terrified of Santa the first time he met him. It took a little coaxing to get him close enough for a picture.

He climbed up there all by himself! This is the back, where you can drive without a driver's license!

The second time getting to know Santa was a little better. Still there was no way he was going to sit on Santa's lap!!!

First Video Blog - Hello World :)

2008-12-11T11:21:00.000-08:00

This is me, Marina, and my son, Jasper... one of my muses for jolijoli. He sees the world a little differently then me, and it's always such a joy to see with his eyes. It's so much more beautiful! I wanted to make a little blog to introduce us to you... since the web is sometimes so impersonal. The background noise is Jasper's toy ambulance :)

JOLIJOLI First Annual Holiday SALE ( + Special Coupon Code)

2008-12-10T10:26:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays! 'Tis the time for my first annual Holiday Sale! I'm so excited. I've slashed prices on so many beautiful items to clear out inventory for my winter/spring line! Check out the featured favorites on amazing deals in my shop.

Direct link to the jolijoli SALE section.

And for my blog readers, here is a special coupon code - just mention "BLOG1210" in the notes to seller during checkout and get an extra 15% OFF (valid till 12/31/08)!!! Please wait for revised invoice before paying. Happy shopping!!!

A Remake in Sterling Silver

2008-12-07T22:58:00.000-08:00

Before For the Love of Jasper Cocktail Ring - in copperAfter - For the Love of Jasper Cocktail Ring - in Sterling Silver

I said goodbye to copper and hello lovely sterling silver in a few of my signatures rings and earring sets. I love the way the new ring feels and looks, I think the sterling gives it an extra elegance and adds a shine to the gorgeous color of the stone instead of competing with it. I'd love to hear what you think.

Before - Heavenly Sweet Bluebell Cha Cha Ring - in copper

After - Heavenly Sweet Bluebell Cha Cha Ring - in Sterling Silver

This is another remake of my absolute favorite cocktail ring. To tell you the truth, I was a little sad to give up the copper on this one because it complemented the baby blue so well, but I think that the silver adds a lot of elegance and grace to the delicate flowers that the copper did not do as well. I decided to shape the loops on this one to give it a more finished look and put it on a classic silver band like I did for the Jasper as well. Both have lovely matching earrings that I remade in sterling silver as well.

I love having matching sets of jewelry. I always get myself into a pickle by buying a gorgeous ring alone and then searching high and low for the matching earring of pendant/necklace because there was none available! So I decided that in my jewelry lines I'll make complimenting pieces so that nobody else will have that problem.

Pay Pal Drama - How to Change Your Business Name, the easy way

2008-11-26T21:53:00.000-08:00

Today I learned a PayPal loophole which I'd like to share. I learned it by accident which caused me a lot of frustration, but now I know and can share it with you. I had a old business name associated with my business PayPal account and wanted to change it. I recently figured out that I can have multiple emails associated with the same account and so I wanted to also update my business name so it would show up correctly on my invoices.

So to change the business name, you can follow the PayPal procedures and fax/email them all of your paperwork showing that you changed your business name OR you can call them at 1-888-221-1161 and ask to downgrade from Business to Premier as stated on:

https://www.paypal.com/helpcenter/main.jsp;jsessionid=JvsPyLlgn2NYKbK3v12fk05dt5Yz2r4LnvvVLnHZzQY9cgGbTGQJ!-1187505376?locale=en_US&_dyncharset=UTF-8&countrycode=US&cmd=_help&serverInstance=9004&t=solutionTab&ft=searchTab&ps=solutionPanels&solutionId=12760&isSrch=Yes

You will not loose your account data/transaction history, but your old Business Name will be obliterated. Now, to get a new business name just upgrade back to a Business Account by following these steps:

Log in to your PayPal account.
Click the My Account tab.
Click Profile at the top of the page.
Click Personal/Business Information in the Account Information column.
Click Upgrade button.
Enter your business information and click Submit.

as stated on this PayPal page:

https://www.paypal.com/helpcenter/main.jsp;jsessionid=JvtQJLpf23hhFppYslyymGG3XDpGZR0S5k17JpHLWbhHLxLT0D77!1056242533?locale=en_US&_dyncharset=UTF-8&countrycode=US&cmd=_help&serverInstance=9003&t=solutionTab&ft=searchTab&ps=solutionPanels&solutionId=11116&isSrch=Yes

Hope that helps :)

A Mix Tape for You

2008-11-24T20:49:00.001-08:00

Blogging and New Revelations

2008-11-24T18:37:00.000-08:00

I just checked my blog and saw all the new comments - I just figured out how to look at the comments :b That made me sooooo happy! I love hearing what people think and all the positive feedback was really welcome :) I'm new to blogging and so everything seems like a new discovery here. I now have a real appreciation for people who keep this up all the time, it's hard and takes a lot of dedication! Kudos to all you who do, you are my heroes.

On another note, I did a lot of research and talked to some people about copper and I have decided that as much as I love the color, I'm going to remake all my designs in sterling silver. I thought I could get away with copper earwires, but they irritated my ears and my rings as lovely as they are left some green stuff on my fingers! I'm uber sensitive, and I try every design I make personally, so if it doesn't feel right to me I'm going to take it out of the running. So I'm going to revamp my shop a little in the next few days to reflect the changes.

I've started remaking all of my stuff, but it's taking a little while... the real trouble is that I get distracted and want to work on new designs that I discover while doing it!!! So I've gotten a little side tracked :b Does that happen to anyone else?

I've also started working on a holiday collection - lots of gorgeous reds, snow whites, greens and blues. My hands are having a hard time keeping up with my brain. I can't sleep at night thinking about it! So I started a design journal so I can write everything down. I had a really cool idea a while back having to do with a Taiwanese newspaper for my son and now when people hunted some down for me, I can't remember what the idea was!!! Hence the journal, that and it theory it should help me sleep at night, right? I heard that somewhere, hope it helps. I have a terrible insomnia right now, especially if I work on jewelry before going to bed.

Here's a picture of me with my son, Jasper (now you might understand my fascination with the stone), we just discovered how to use the PhotoBooth and the webcam on my mac :)

Marketing for my Etsy Shop

2008-11-15T18:36:00.000-08:00

I currently making a list of all the different places to market my Etsy shop. I'm going to see if it helps :b If you have any suggestions please let me know, I'd love to get more ideas on this.

1. This Blog

2. MySpace: myspace.com/jolijolidesigns - with a feature app for my shop :)

3. Flicker: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jolijoli/
I found a bunch of groups that feature Etsy sellers - here are the ones that I just joined (I'm slowly trying to figure out how they all work - I just got that you need to upload your photos to the team, they don't automatically show up when you put them into your photostream):

Etsy.com Love: http://www.flickr.com/groups/etsy_love/
Artisan Jewelry on Etsy: http://www.flickr.com/groups/artisanjewelryonetsy/

4. Facebook - I added the "My Etsy" application to feature my shop and put my shop in the "As Seen On" application and website inside my profile.

5. Etsy Street Teams, I'm currently trying to figure out the ones I want to join here is a link to all of them:

http://team.etsy.com/teams.html
http://team.etsy.com/ (a little more about this)

6. I'm also going to try and participate in the Etsy forums... and see if I can make a treasury (I hvan't quite figured out when you can actually add one - it seems like they are always totally full!)

7. I'm going to design and print out some business cards, so I can hand them out if anyone asks about my jewelry (I always try to wear it out). I've had a few instances that I was writing my wesite on scratch paper and I feel that's probably not as professional as I want to look!

If you have any more tips of marketing, I'd love to hear them :)

Etsy Inspirations and New Designs

2008-11-14T22:05:00.000-08:00

A few days ago I found a really special shop on Etsy that really blew my mind. Check it out, it's really fabulous:
http://LisasLovlies.etsy.com

It's the kind of Etsy shop that I want to aspire to. The jewelry is so incredibly gorgeous and simple at the same time! Lisa's perfected the "Less is More" concept in her designs and I really love her honesty and candidness of her blog, not to mention the gorgeous photos. I learned so much by watching her videos.

Being a newbie on Etsy and in the jewelry making business is tough. I'm self taught like Lisa and I scour the Internet and Etsy for ideas on how to make my store, photos and designs better. When I was young, I never bough any "How To" books for jewelry making. I would go in a store with items that I like and stand there for a long time trying to figure out how to make them. I know some of you might say that copying is wrong, but that is how I learned to create jewelry. I would copy and copy, until I got the technique down and then take all I learned and create something new. I learned this technique from the art world... all the great masters would copy when they were starting out and learning! So I don't sell the stuff I copy, I just use it as a jumping off point and put my own twist on it.

An example of this is my

Sweet Bluebell Cha Cha Ring

I actually bought a really cool cha cha ring in Vienna this summer and I loved the flirty nature of it and how it was so dynamic. So when I got back I went looking for the ring base so that I can make my own version. I found it in our local bead store as an adjustible base with head pins included. I tried making it with some similar beads and it really perfected my loops technique! I found some videos on YouTube that really helped, thank God for the internet - I love how there are so many free tutorials these days!

But in the end I wasn't happy with a copy and I hated the flat head pins because they were uncomfortable when worn. Plus I really wanted to make the cha cha base myself instead of buying a base metal version. So I stayed up most of one night figuring out in my head how to do it in 20 gauge copper wire, because that's all I had and another night making the base over and over until I was happy with it and knew exactly how much wire I needed! I modified the flat head pins with my little loops and made my own combination of beads. I meant to use copper wire as a practice material, but through working with it I fell in love with the color! I looks so beautiful with blues and greens and wooden beads. So that is how my own version of the cha cha ring was born.

Since then I've made a lot of different styles and dabbled in using sterling silver although for that I chose to use a solid half round silver band and wrap a cha cha base on top of that instead of the 3 wire band that I do with the copper wire. I'm also using mainly freshwater pearls on the silver ball top head pins. I've discovered that the thinner wire on the head pins needs to be more securely attached through trial and error - I always wear my own designs and revise based on what I discover! So I wrap the pearls differently now :b

Check out my dazzling Candy Apple Green and Vanilla Pearl Ring for my finalized design in sterling silver. These are some of my favorite colors. I usually have to have something in my home painted in this green because it make me so happy. So why not have that happiness on a finger all the time?! I hope some of you feel the same way :) I'd love to hear your comments.

Long Time no See - Scary Etsy Descriptions

2008-11-13T16:24:00.000-08:00

It's been so long since my last post. Writing is like pulling teeth for me... I'm so incredibly critical and self conscious of everything I write! So the etsy descriptions have been long in coming.... so much slower then my actual new designs!!!

I have come up with a new formula for my descriptions and put it all into a Google Excel doc, to make it a little easier and not so daunting! Here it is with the example of my Simply in Season Green and Purple Autumn Grapes - Pearl Cocktail Ring:

Imagery/Inspiration: Such succulent and rich color was made for the Gods! This ring is the luxurious detail that will elevate that cocktail dress to the divine standing.

How it's made: Layers of royal purple freshwater pearls move freely and mix with luscious green freshwater pearls for extra heavenly flavor on a half round sterling silver band.

Materials:
royal purple freshwater pearls forest green freshwater pearls sterling silver

Size/Length:
Size 7 (Other sizes available upon request - please put a message in notes to seller on checkout)

Matching Pieces:
Looks amazing with the matching earrings and pendent: ***here I put the links to the product listings

Packaging:
The ring will arrive in a sweet little decorated tin jewelry box ready for gifting.

Special Info:
A percentage of your purchase will be donated to the Seattle Children's Hospital - it's a gift that keeps on giving.

***Thank you for shopping JoliJoli***

I hope that's helpful to any of you who were having as hard time as me on this :)

First Sale on Etsy - PayPal Drama

2008-09-11T11:43:00.000-07:00

Hello all, I am a newbie to Etsy (jolijoli.etsy.com) and am stumbling along in setting up shop and all the inner workings of figuring out how it all works. I hope my experiences are helpful to you :)

On my very first sale I already had some drama. On Etsy I used and old PayPal account on which I had set up shipping a long time ago. So when the first order went through, my Etsy receipt said one thing for shipping and my PayPal receipt something completely different! Imagine my horror, when I realized that I overcharged my customer!

So I emailed Etsy and posted on the Bug Forum to which a very friendly Etsy admin (stellaloella) gave a really helpful reply. Here it is:

Why is the shipping wrong on the PayPal invoice?

When the shipping charge on your PayPal invoice is incorrect, you'll need to adjust your PayPal account settings. If you need to revise the invoice for the customer, go to your PayPal account and click on "request money" to send a corrected invoice.

To check your PayPal settings:

1. Log into PayPal at www.paypal.com
2. Go to My Account > Profile > Shipping calculations (in the Selling Preferences column)
3. Select the Shipping Method and click Edit
4. Select Yes for "Override shipping methods per transaction" and press Save Changes.

Please note that if you have not set up any Shipping Calculations in PayPal, the default is to override shipping methods per transaction (you should not need to change anything). Also note that the above instructions are for www.paypal.com; other country-specific versions of PayPal may differ slightly.

(Source: http://www.etsy.com/faq_selling.php#paypal_shipping_wrong )

So I went in to my PayPal account and sure enough, I did have shipping set up! I got rid of all my shipping options to make it default. One problem solved, now what do I do about refunding the customer...

After a little more research here is anyone else who encounters this issue or wants to do a partial refund in PayPal:

In PayPal
1. Click the My Account tab.
2. Click the History subtab.
3. Find the payment you would like to refund.
4. Click the Details link.
5. Click the Issue Refund link.
6. Enter the refund amount and click Continue.
7. Click Issue Refund.

I hope that you found this info helpful :)