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...