What I'm LOVING!

      

So it has been another long time since I've blogged but I'm trying to get back on it again. Things have been super busy with work and Christmas looming ever closer, time is tight! I've been working on some Holiday designs that I think will really stand out at those holiday parties. I'll post pictures as soon as I can. I've finished up my holiday shows for the year, and the biggest news is Kirk and I finally got the internet at our new house. 8 months without it! (one reason why posts have been few and far between!)  But I will leave you all with what I have been eating and loving this last week! 

Sweet Bean Buns with soy sauce, Frozen Chocolate Bananas, and Amazing Green Tea ice cream! It's the best.

Don't forget!

The wait is almost over!  Everything is going as planned and I'm looking forward to a very fun Fall Home Show. And just to let you know, the packaging I gathered this year is absolutely adorable! Your friends and family will love opening their gifts this year. Hope to see you all there! It's going to be a very fun relaxing time! 

APPUS DESIGN FALL HOME SHOW

This Sunday Nov. 9th 

11am - 4pm

Pop in for some refreshments, good company, and early Christmas shopping!

EARRING GIVEAWAY!

Just a few more days until the Home show and I'm still making new pieces! The top necklace is a nod to the past with a variation on one of my first designs called the "Mermaid" it was my first piece of jewelry to be sold on Etsy! So I'm recreating it for this years home show. The other necklace is a rope of the most gorgeous Keishi petal pearls all adorned with faceted roundels of iolite finished with solid strands of iolite wrapping around the neck. It is a subtly glamourous piece and I really enjoyed working on it. The last photo is a mass of evergreen freshwater coin pearl studs set with Austrian crystals. 

There are 10 pairs all together and they will be given out FREE to the first 10 people at the Show on Sunday! Hope everyone can make it! The Fall Home Show is always so much fun! 

e-mail me at appusdesign@yahoo.com if you need directions!

Copper Blitz!

 

 

I just finished a whole days work of jewelry using copper, pearls, and Czech glass! It is a very earthy collection and I'm very happy with how everything came together. All of the pieces have a nice weight to them and unlike some of my other collections debuting this season, they are nicely simple. These would be great pieces to wear to work. Above are just a few of the copper workings.  

You can purchase these and other lovely gifts at the APPUS DESIGN FALL HOME SHOW on SUNDAY NOV. 9th from 11am- 4pm! 

Also as a side note, yesterday I put up my first Vinyl wall decal! It was so simple and it really transformed the desolate wall space we had at the bottom of the stairs. So if you too are someone on the fence about decals, this girl says, "Cheap, Fast and Fun!"  

Elegance at last!

 

Home Show Preparations

I've been busy drilling coin pearls in my studio and readying everything for the home show! Things are looking great and I've even  had the time to make a gift set for the lucky winner of this years drawing. I'll have pictures of it coming soon! So if you haven't marked your calendars yet, Sunday November 9th from 11am-4pm  stop  by the open house to purchase early christmas gifts and check some people off your list! Complimentary gift wrap is also included! Hope to see you there!  

Plum Vine Bangle

 Don't have much time today, but I wanted to share this Sweet Plum Vine Bangle I finished this morning! I am so busy these next two days! I hope everyone has a wonderful Wednesday!

Haunting Pendants!

     

Added some new pendants to my jewelry case today, and am finishing the clean up on some of my tea ceremony pendants. When the collection is done it will showcase the many different shapes of tea vessels used during the japanese tea ceremony! Oh I must apologize for my lack of updates to my website! It is on my list of things to do (and has been for a while now...) So for now please be satisfied with my blog for updates until I get around to finishing my site! 

Also  I just had to share some amazing bath and body products by Haunt that I found on Etsy! They are delicious and oh so fall!

    

blood orange cocoa sugar polish!

Honey Lust lip balm!

and Milk and Nectar skin gloss! (I really want this one!)

visit HAUNT  here!

Invitations!

 

Finally finished the Home show invites today! I'm doing something a little more interesting this year, I decided to make 4 different versions of the invitation, to keep keep everyone guessing...or just to be dorky! Either way it was a lot of fun making these ones. If you are not lucky enough to receive one of the originals, don't worry, I will be sending them out via e-mail as well! 

Just e-mail me at    Appusdesign@yahoo.com    if you wish to be added to the list (and receive an invite!) It's going to be a blast this year!

dizzy spells and Dessert

 
 

So yesterday I was soldering some new earrings and pendants, and very soon after I began to feel very dizzy and light headed. I'm not sure what brought it on, I've been using the same ventilation system for a long time now and have never experienced that reaction before. SO for the next few days I am going to stick to cold connections... 

  This morning I decided to take a photo of the prettiest sweet potato I have growing in my kitchen. I didn't know that sweet potatoes grew purple stalks! So interesting.  And while I am on the subject of food, I wanted to share what I am cooking today!

 

After going to the farmers market in Towson, I am going to make leek, onion, and potato soup. We'll see how it turns out, but the picture sure looks delicious! And finally, for any of you who follow my Cake Box line of jewelry, I am working on a lolita collection of delicate cakes and confections to wear! 

Hopefully now that the whole house business is  filed away and settled I will finally get around to setting up the etsy shops I had wanted to start! A lot of good things are happening for Appus Design this season! 

So stay tuned and don't forget to come visit us at the Fall Home Show on Sunday November 9th  from 11am - 4pm! 

New Collection!

  

 

 

Here are just a few of the new things I've been working on! I'm fleshing out a fancy pearl collection using inset crystals and keishi blossom pearls.  I have also been working on a collection of simple japanese designs and lines in brass and silver. Here is the unfinished cherry twig  pendant and earrings.  I've been reading about the Japanese Tea Ceremony which has fueled my imagination for this collection.

 To see the full collection come to the Annual Fall Home Show 2009  on Sunday November 9th!  from 11am - 4pm.

I'm Back!

Ok so I've been so busy organizing and settling into the new house and my new routine that I've not been able to update my blog as much! (at all) So here we go again! So much has happened in the last few months it is impossible to fill in everything!  For now here are photos of the wedding site at Celebrations at the Bay and a photo of our new house... and a photo of a bird feeder that I really want! 

 In terms of jewelry, I have been working steadily in my brand new studio(photos coming) on a new collection for winter which is in no better words, quite girly! It's fun and I will post photos of my latest work tomorrow! Hope you all enjoy and apologies for the lack of updates! But now I am back!

  This is an amazing bird feeder from Evasolo that I covet! they are just aglow with form and functionality !

Harbor East and Tapas!

Took a break from moving and went to Harbor East Fine Arts Festival not as a vendor for once! It was so much fun! I decided that if I had loads of money and I wanted a Condo, I would absolutely live in Harbor East!  We saw a lot of great art and some awesome street drawings. 

 

Later to celebrate Kirk's birthday we went to Pazo and had an awesome time trying tapas and other fine food while sitting atop their amazing mezzanine terrace. If you haven't been to Pazo, I highly recommend it, the atmosphere can't be beat!  Check out their nicely designed website here: www.pazorestaurant.com

Threadless

Just wanted to share this with hilarious T-shirt design from threadless.com.  The design was created by Martiandrivein.

Threadless by the way is an awesome T-shirt empire that gives artists the chance to have their art printed on shirts! You should check it out! www.threadless.com

Photo Session

Haven't had much time to update, but I wanted to post a snippet of the photo shoot for some of my collection. I was very pleased with how things went. Thanks everyone for collaborating on this!  This weekend is also the big move and renovating the new studio space! I'll be sure to take some before and afters when I finally get some time to relax!

The Real Deal

So I was on Etsy Today and I saw a pair of Sterling Silver ruby earrings being sold for 11.99. I was of course shocked at the price but what shocked me more was that the owner of the store claimed to have handcrafted the piece herself. Now as an artist I know that when pricing something one takes into consideration, time, cost of materials, perceived value, and other things along the way. Also as an Artist that works in gemstones I know the going price of fine gemstones, Rubies being one of them and let me tell you that for 38 carat rubies, set in .925 sterling silver, you would not make a profit if you sold them for 11.99.  Now the killer of this whole story is not only was I shocked at the price and claim of "handmade", but what topped the whole deal was the fact that I had seen the EXACT pair of ruby earrings at a wholesale show in VA. 

Now Etsy is supposed to be a marketplace for all things handmade, and that is what makes it wonderful! So when people come in claiming to be selling handcrafted goods that are actually imports and selling them at rock bottom prices, it makes me slightly upset. Not only does it go against the rules, it also brings down other sellers work that actually is handmade. I think most people will agree that it is incredibly hard to compete with commercially made goods. Which is not to say that commercial goods are not a God send in their own Big Box, assembly line sort of way. It's just that handcrafted goods are created by individuals that spend a lot of time and concentration to create beautifully unique and one-of-a-kind pieces that cannot be bought at any old store.  So the fact that people are trying to sell non-handmade goods  basically says,  "Hi I am trampling on and disregarding artists efforts!".  It just makes me a bit upset. Sorry for the rant, thanks for listening!

Contest Jury Photos

Today I began taking photos of my new pieces that will  be submitted for a juried competition coming up at the end of this month! I'm very pleased with the results. I'm submitting my whole collection of new pieces that will be judged for the chance to get into and sell my work at 2 store locations in MD.  Only 15 more photos to go....

Floral Inspirations

My Fiance brought home a stunning bouquet of Flowers for me today and I was so inspired by the colors I went and created some candy coated freshwater pearl jewelry that simply GLOWS! The colors are very vibrant but they are surprisingly wearable!  The full line will be on sale at viva Vienna later this month.

Cake, Tea, and Jewelry!

What a whirlwind this week has been! Towson Fest was a blast! Thanks everyone for coming out to see me it really was a fun local show to do. Cake box was a great hit and I even got some business deals for future ventures! We'll see where this takes me : ) On Mothers day I brought over some wonderful Imperial White Tea blossoms and brewed a beautiful pot of tea! it was delicious. If you haven't tried some I highly recommend it! The buds I got are from Teavanna and they are GREAT! I have a lot of work to do from now till Viva! Vienna! in VA so I'll be busy! Also We are moving very shortly so I will be busy moving my studio into the new house and things might get a little crazy...