New Design

I have finally listed some of my newer creations! The first one is this turquoise necklace. Simple. Modern. Just my style. :)

You can find it here.

Cyber Monday SALE

My entire shop is currently 15% OFF through Monday and for all my special readers and fans I am giving an EXTRA 10% OFF all jewelry! Enter code: MMWBLOG to receive the extra awesome discount!

Enjoy & Shop here.

What are you wearing this Halloween?

If I had the money I would scoop up this ridiculously amazing hand crafted goodness and wear him around my neck every day!

(found on etsy)

Fall is in the air

(fall leaf brooch)

Love Me Knot Sterling Necklace GIVEAWAY!

I am giving away a fabulous Love Me Knot Necklace this week over at HandmadeMN's blog. Be sure to pop over there to enter to win! The contest ends on August 7th!

(a $26 value!!!)

Handmade MN Spring Market

Be sure to check out the show on Saturday if you are in the area. There are going to be some really great artists there! (including me! ha!)

200 sales!

I was approximately 5 days past my goal of selling 200 items in one year... but hey! I will take it! :D

Invaluable Resource

Whether you are new to jewelry making or a well seasoned pro, there is a great interactive resource that I find truly priceless. Not only is the information readily shared between all of these metalsmiths, I have formed great relationships with a lot of them!

You won't believe your ears, but this wonderful resource is a long going thread on the Etsy, Techniques and Materials Fora! The forum moves fast but you can easily jump in with whatever question you have and hopefully get a variety of answers and possibilities. The exploration of techniques and materials never ends! We have even done a charm swap, earring swap, and challenges every few weeks! Inspiration is always flowing with these metalsmiths! I have learned so much from these threads that originally started back in September!

So, go on, what are you waiting for? Pop on by and say hello! And be sure to check out some of these 'key players':

Lapidarious- aka Barney
cgwhitfield- aka CG
Lsueszabo- aka Sue

These guys are top notch- they have or will try anything and report back to the thread with thoughtful and intelligent answers. Really great discussion!

Just do a forum search for "chatty metalsmiths" in the techniques forum on etsy. Each month there is a new thread! April's chat is here!

You will truly love this tight knit community!

Friday Favorites: Sue Szabo

Sue Szabo is an extremely talented metalsmith. Just look at this shoe! Now, this picture is deceiving, because this shoe could sit on your finger tip! Talk about 'Little Details'! And, in case you were wondering, no they aren't cast- all hand fabricated. I am so lucky to have picked up one of these during a metalsmith charm swap! To see more of Sue's work you can check out her website or her etsy shop. She is one TALENTED and ACCOMPLISHED artist!

(ps- I am going to be highlighting random artists on Fridays... so if you have a wonderful shop or are a budding artist feel free to comment with your info or send me an email!)

Etsyversary SALE!

It is has been exactly ONE YEAR since I first uploaded a piece of my jewelry on Etsy, and to celebrate I am having a SALE! Yay! That's right, everything you purchase will be 25% OFF! Be sure to shop soon because this sale won't last too long!

SHOP HERE!

Enjoy!

DIY Jewelry Tags

Make any kind of jewelry tags from postcards! Why use postcards you say? I find that they are on sale a lot on various online printers and I also like to create a specific size so I find it easy to create templates for myself using postcard sizes!

For my jewelry tags and business cards, I wanted to feature images of my work on one side with my information on the other. I created these cards and tags in adobe illustrator using a template I created. After I created my template I placed all the images I needed into the document, sized them, and then arranged them into groups of three (which would all share one tag). Once I was happy with both sides of information I exported the document as a tiff and uploaded to an online printer!
I ordered my 'postcards' from overnight prints while they were having a 50% off sale so I saved quite a bit of money! They are currently running another postcard promotion right now so be sure to check them out! With a little bit of elbow grease I created 500 business cards and 1,000 tags for about $15.00!
When I got them I took them to my gullotine cutter and started cutting the tags out. Although my cutter is a tad off, I managed to be able to trim them down quite nicely!
I first cut them in half for so each tag would have three square images and then I proceeded to trim each row to create a little tag!
Now Whenever I need a jewelry tag or gift tag I just punch a little hold in the end and thread! Not too shabby!

Weekly Inspiration

About two years ago I had the pleasure of meeting and art directing a photoshoot of Lynn Geesaman and her amazing work.

And let me tell you, I have been a HUGE fan ever since. This is one of my favorite photos of hers. Just something amazing about the coloring, texture and abstraction of nature that I love so much!

Inspiration for all kinds of imaginations for sure...

Which Blade To Use?

A lot of people have a hard time with sawing out designs from sheet metal. The first step in getting a good cut and not breaking your blade every few minutes is using the correct blade for the gauge of metal you are using.

Here is a handy dandy chart you can download and print out and put on your bench. While this chart gives you the basics you can vary from the suggested blades. For example I like to create very intricate designs in my work and even though I use 22 gauge most of the time, I like to use a 8/0 blade because of how thin they are. Just make sure you choose a blade fine enough to have at least two teeth (but not more than three) within the thickness of the metal. For more on this subject and how to hold your saw correctly check out this great article on ganoksin


Download a simple b/w version here.

Sketching

As a art major, I have had to take a lot of drawing classes and while I have pretty much abandoned drawing for fun, I do keep a sketchbook with me (actually quite a few scattered around the house!) so I can jot down ideas for my jewelry as they pop into my head. I try to plan out some designs and work on a cohesive collection before I put things into fabrication, but sometimes I just go with the flow of how something is working organically. It makes me wonder what the rest of the metalsmiths and jewelry artists out there do?

Are you a sketcher and planner? Or a fly by the seat of your pants kinda person?

Hello!

My name is Courtney and I am a graphic designer, stationer, and metalsmith! I love to create and work with various mediums- paper, ink, silver, paint, whatever! I hope that through my blog I can explore design, trends, fashion and technique with you all! I have some great plans to show tutorials on different metalsmithing techniques, feature designers, and highlight trends in the fashion industry....

Feel free to email me with suggestions on topics or if you want to be a featured designer or have a great tutorial on any jewelry technique!

(above is a shot of my studio- you are lucky... it almost never looks this organized!)

Thanks for stopping by, I look forward 'seeing' you again and reading your comments and suggestions!