Thank you!

Thank you!
Originally uploaded by metaliciousjewelry

Barbara from Capital City Crafts sent me these gorgeous earrings as a 'mommy' present! They have baby handprints and one says "oliver" and the other says "asher" for my boys.

Mary from Little Brown Bird made them by hand.

I'm so lucky to have such wonderful and talented friends!

Happy holidays from my Familicious!

Wishing you all happy holidays and best wishes for a prosperous New Year!

My best work is babylicious

Here he is, my baby Oliver was born on Wednesday, December 9th!

Asher has some questions...

We put up the nativity set today. Asher had some questions:

"How did the holy spirit get Mary pregnant?"

"Why did God have a baby Jesus?"

Looking at the decorative moss all over the manger, "Wow, that's dirty."

"We need more hay."

"Where are the horses?"

"What's myrrh?"

"Where's the gold?"

"Does Frankincense smell bad?"

Looking at one of the 3 kings, "Is his beard trimmed?"

"Where is the holy spirit?"

It's going to be an interesting Christmas.

From the bottom of my metalicious heart.

Today is Thanksgiving in the U.S. I have so much to be thankful for, but this post is not about me. It's about you.

Thank you to everyone who has supported me, my work and my shops this year and always. I am humbled by your generosity, positive encouragement and help to keep me afloat during this difficult year. You all rock. And I am thankful for each and every one of you!

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy holidays to YOU!

Now it's time to say goodbye...

aw, don't worry it's just for a little while. Since the deadline for special orders was Monday, November 9th I will only be shipping in-stock items until November 30th, when I will temporarily close up shop for maternity leave.

You can browse all in-stock items in my Etsy Shop.

T-minus 4 1/2 weeks until baby day!!!

Chocoholism thrives in NYC

My son is a clone of his father, I hear that every day and darn it, it's true.

Well, there's one thing besides allergies that my boy inherited from me: Chocoholism. So we were VERY excited to go to The Chocolate Show a few blocks away. That's him in front of a haunted house made entirely of-- you guessed it--- chocolate.

Although the show was smaller than it has been in past years (this recession is even hitting me in the sweet tooth), there was still enough chocolate sampling to give us both enormous sugar comas. A few of my favorites, always milk chocolate:
2Chicks: try their bark! I loved the blueberries and nuts and... and.. and...
Berkshire Bark: my favorite was their Pretzological bar filled with caramel, pretzels and peanut butter.

And if my husband is reading this, here's our next vacation spot: I want to go here, so does our son.

We can't wait until next year.

Big pimpin'

DSCN0356
Originally uploaded by cccraftstudio

Well, here I am at the Madison Square Park Mark't! The market runs until November 1st and is located at 23rd and 5th Aves. Please come by to visit, you can find out when I'm working here: http://www.shopnycraft.com

There are 6 other fantastic artists sharing the booth with me so there is something for everyone!

And wow, look at my prego belly! eep.

Pressure!!

Lots of excitement here getting ready for our little bundle of metalicious to arrive. I'm in my last trimester so I'm working hard to stock up my best sellers so I can keep them in my shop while I'm on 'maternity leave.'

I also have a 3 week show coming up so I'm making lots of new things for it. SO much to do, and also getting in some time with my 4 1/2 year old who just gets funnier each day.

Oh, and we need to get a bathtub put in (don't ask) and a wardrobe built (for the metalicious headquarters storage unit). *sigh*

eep! So much good stuff happening, just wanted to share!

A simple postcard

The Creative Center had a benefit tonight to raise money to support their cause. They bring the Arts to people living with cancer. In preparation, they asked for 4 x 6 postcards created by artists to be donated to help raise money at the event.

Well, I have a hard time considering myself an artist. I think everyone is an artist, we all express it in different ways. But I wanted to help such a great cause, so I made my very own Metalicious version of a postcard. It's made from a sheet of copper that I hand-tooled.

I hope it helped! Click here to find out more about The Creative Center.

JET sale this weekend only!

JETSALE : WEEKEND DEALS 25 - 27 September 2009

Snuggle up this weekend with some great offers from the JET team on
Etsy. Whether you're looking for something special for a birthday,
would like to accessorize your outfit for the upcoming Halloween fun,
or are already looking forward to the Christmas season - you'll find
plenty of jewelry and accessories to choose from in the JET team
SALE.

JET team comprises of a large number of artisans who handcraft and
present for sale their own creations directly to you. There are many
styles of jewellery to choose from, and if, on an odd chance, you
don't find exactly what you're looking for, you can always request a
custom item. Supplies, clutches, bags, hair accessories, scarves, pins
and many other items are also included in this promotion.

Shop local with us! Whether you're in US, Canada, UK, Australia, Asia,
Brazil, or Europe - you'll find a shop close to you as our members are
located all over the world!

To take advantage of JET team SALE, visit any of the shops in the list
below & note the Shop Announcement on the home page. Each shop has
it's own special discounts during this weekend, but each request you
either to contact them for a custom/reserved listing mentioning
'WEEKEND DEALS', or, alternatively put 'WEEKEND DEALS' in notes to the
seller at the checkout in order to take advantage of the discounts.

http://3squares.etsy.com
http://abacusbeadcreations.etsy.com
http://adroitjewelers.etsy.com
http://Angeliquescreations.etsy.com
http://artmadebytammy.etsy.com
http://beadifuldesigns.etsy.com
http://brookejewelry.etsy.com
http://capitalcitycrafts.etsy.com
http://cocosgreenhouse.etsy.com
http://combustionglassworks.etsy.com
http://cooljewelrydesign.etsy.com
http://cooljewelryjr.etsy.com
http://crystalimpressions.etsy.com
http://danugs.etsy.com
http://dashery.etsy.com
http://designsbycher.etsy.com
http://divinedesignbyforet.etsy.com
http://emotionaloasis.etsy.com
http://erikaprice.etsy.com
http://foret.etsy.com
http://forettwo.etsy.com
http://grandmamarilyns.etsy.com
http://grandmamarilynstoo.etsy.com
http://intheraw.etsy.com
http://jdsgemsnd.etsy.com
http://jemsbyjbandcompany.etsy.com
http://jewelry24seven.etsy.com
http://justicejewelry.etsy.com
http://littlebrownbird.etsy.com
http://littlebugjewelry.etsy.com
http://lotusstone.etsy.com
http://lucidjewelry.etsy.com
http://malves1009.etsy.com
http://marciejanedesigns.etsy.com
http://metalicious.etsy.com
http://michon.etsy.com
http://nightskyjewelry.etsy.com
http://ovgilliesdesigns.etsy.com
http://satindollco.etsy.com
http://sendinglovegallery.etsy.com
http://stoutdg2.etsy.com
http://sugarpanda.etsy.com
http://thebrasshussy.etsy.com
http://urbanmetal.etsy.com
http://vitrine.etsy.com

Fall 2009 Shows

Here they are! Come and visit me!!


Hoboken Art & Music Festival
Sunday, September 27, 2009
12-6pm
Hoboken, NJ

Madison Square Park Pop-up Market
October 9 - October 31st
11am - 8pm
23rd St & Madison, NY, NY

Chelsea Crafts-- Handmade Fair
October 17th
11am-6pm
320 West 21st Street, NY, NY

Clothes shopping!

Not for me silly. I'm 7 months prego and big as a house! For my 4 1/2 year old son. Whooo hoo!

For those of you who don't know, let me tell you that everything looks good on 4 1/2 year olds. Even feather boas and skinny leg jeans. But I digress...

Buying clothes for boys stinks. They will wear practically anything at this age ("except skirts." mine says, "those are for girls." hmmmm. who is planting these ideas in his little head??). The reason it stinks is because boys clothing stinks.

Unless you are way into sports and enjoy dressing your son like an inner city basketball team player. Your other choices are the uber-snobby-expensive lines of boys clothing that will make my kid look like he belongs to a prep school polo team. *shudder*

So you have your choice between making your kid look like a sports nut or making him look like a WASP.

There is really only one store that is more helpful in dressing your kid like a cool kid without the team logos or 100% cashmere. It's H&M. My metrosexual husband and I agree that most of the time they toe the line between cute (because lets face it 4 year olds are still cute) and cool.

So here are my picks for my nerdy-chic kid...



And if he was a baby rockstar...



Time to get out the door and get shopping!

Fall 2009 Stylewatch... studs

I've been watching this trend grow over the past 2 years. Remember the bedazzler? Well now the faceted 'studded' look is finally hitting the runway.

It's a rocker punk type style from the 80's reinterpreted for the 00's. I scoured to find some of the greatest hits online and am bringing them to you.

P.S. As an 80's baby, this is one of my faves.


Studded Pelmet mini-skirt from TopShop. Super sexy and very wearable. Now where did I put those skinny legs?


This delicious bag is from Marc Jacobs. Uber expensive por moi but there are tons of similar options in all price points. Wear it and get funny looks from your mother-in-law. Oh wait, that's just me.


Now you're talkin' affordable AND adorable. Available at Forever 21 in stores only. When you want to get in touch with your inner punk princess. Or you can make your own using the fabulous bedazzler mentioned above.


Yeah, these are mine. Don't say I told you so... but you can buy them here.

I'm excited.

I realized today that I use way too many exclamation points when corresponding via e-mail with people. One of my lovely customers told me that I crack her up because I'm so energetic. I am? I'm pregnant (read: tired), entertain a 4-year-old all day long and work in between whenever I can. I'm exhausted. But I use a lot of exclamation points!! So it seems like I'm SO EXCITED!! ALL THE TIME!!! YEAH!!!

Right now I'm sitting, slumped, on the couch with my feet up on the coffee table (who really uses a coffee table for coffee anyway?) and the computer in my lap. I'm so excited I can barely keep my eyes open!!! Whoo Hoo!

Hee. hee. hee. That picture above is from 2 years ago and I was playing miniature golf. And I truly was excited.

A few of my favorite things...

I was browsing through my favorites on Etsy today, the talent on that site blows me away. As a Geminii I am entitled to change my favorites at will, but for today at this moment here are some of them...

If I had less boobs and a ballet-dancer's body (mind you I'm 5 months prego), then this is the dress I would wear. Seriously hot stuff from, who else but BlackVintageDress.


And wouldn't this bangle, or better yet a stack of them, look great on my model-dancer-actress-skinny wrist? Yeah, I think so, too. Rock 'em at GurlyGirl's shop.



Hmmm. I'd forgo the skinny bod for a truckful of these! It's like crack-wrapped-in-chocolate. Yummy deliciousness from SugarMohawk.



This is too flippin' cute. It's so cute I want to eat it, but in a good I-don't-have-pica kind of way, you know? You don't know. Look it up. And check out the other adorable sweeties at MoonsCreations.




Over and out.

Summertime finally

After a month and a half of rainy days we finally had some sunshine. I've been keeping busy (but how many block towers/cookies/books/roller coasters can a person build/bake/read/make with her 4 year old).

AND I also mean busy at the bench. I made a new piece that has the same curvy line as my Goddess set, but I set a gorgeous purple amethyst nestled into the curve. The end result is contemporary and sparkly. You can find out more about it in my Etsy shop.

And there's more to come!

Curvalicious

Another new addition to my bubble collection. These Goddess Earrings have been requested by my customers for 2 years and I finally was able to make them. They match my Goddess necklace . Thanks for such a great idea, my customers totally rock!

And they're in stock just in time for my weekend Bubble sale in my Etsy shop. June 26-28th you'll get 10% off any piece in my bubble section .

Fun and a little feisty, just like yours truly.

Hot off the bench!

Here's the first item I've been working fast and furious on to add to my bubbles collection. Every gal needs hoops, why not have some with that extra somethin-somethin? They'll be on sale this weekend, June 26-28th but get 'em before they're sold out!

You can find these cuties in my Etsy shop .

Happy shopping!

It's coming...

My super-duper Bubbles sale! Coming this weekend only, June 26-28th and the first time my bubbles are on sale. 10% off if you use the code "bubblicious" in the notes to seller. I will refund you via paypal when you buy in my Etsy shop .

And keep an eye out for some brand spanking new bubble styles!

Sneaky Peak!

Oooh, lots of new things are brewing here in my Metalicious brain. I am feeling really inspired lately and have been lucky enough to have had some time at my bench.

Uninterrupted time is pretty much non-existent when you have a 4-year-old at home. There are roller coasters to build, dirt and rocks to collect and science projects to create. But I've carved out some time and put the pedal to the metal.

Here's a sneak peak at what's coming up for the summer at Metalicious. Just in time for my SUMMER BUBBLES SALE which will happen June 26-28th in my Etsy shop .

Upcoming Milestone

I'm quickly coming up on 200 sales in my Etsy shop, woo hooooo!! I am so excited!

As a great, big thank you I am giving away a free necklace to the person who is my 200th customer! You can see all my handmade jewelry available here in my Etsy shop .

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who helped me reach this milestone (yeah, I mean you!). You rock!

Cosmos Cuff

This great, big cuff is an Italian antique. I love the shape and softness to it. What a statement piece!

Welcome!

To all 2 of you reading my blog!

Thank you for your support.

Upcoming Milestone

I'm quickly coming up on 200 sales in my Etsy shop, woo hooooo!! I am so excited!

As a great, big thank you I am giving away a free necklace to the person who is my 200th customer! You can see all my handmade jewelry available here in my Etsy shop .

Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone who helped me reach this milestone (yeah, I mean you!). You rock!

Spring Fever

I'm totally a victim of Spring fever. I've been in the cabin for too long and I'm about ready to burst. I do have some new things brewing so once the sun comes out, so will the new stuff. Here's a sneak peek.

With a lot more to come! Stay tuned.

Zen and the art of surfing

I went to Hawaii last week. It was raining the first two days but I've come to accept rain on vacations as part of my family curse. So what did I do? I surfed. For the first time ever. And I stood up. Every. Time.

I can't take all the credit though, I had a fantastic teacher who also happens to sell on Etsy. Click here to see he and Kristin's amazing work. Seababe offers jewelry that is chic and cool with an edge. It's all handmade by them in Hawaii. They are also super smart and sweet to work with. I love their work, please check out their shop!

Wax carving

It's something I never thought I could do, carving. I was never any good at working with clay or even carving Ivory soap bars on camping trips in Girl Scouts. Even now I still surprise myself when I finish a wax carving, that it turned out looking like what I intended it to.

Here's a brand new piece that I carved last weekend. It took me about 3 1/2 hours to carve it, but I had to take little breaks in between. Usually when I start swearing I know it's time to walk away from my bench.

Step one, start with a block of wax:

Step two, saw off a slab and trace pattern onto the block:


Step three, saw out a rough shape:


Step four, shape with files, fingernail, rough cloth, whatever ya got:


Step five, using burrs carve out the back of the piece and create a bail:


Last step, smooth it out until it's perfect and ready for casting:


Stay tuned for the final piece...

Studio Sale time!

Going on right now, get 20% off the entire Modern Rock Collection in my Metalicious Etsy Shop.

Inspiration comes when you least expect it

This morning while running errands I saw this quote in a subway tunnel: "Dripping water hollows out stone, not through force but through persistence."

It reminded me that even in very small ways, the things I am doing to build my business will eventually help me succeed and reach my goal. As a (very) small business owner, sometimes the challenges seem insurmountable. I have to remember to be the dripping water and not the stone.

My sincerest thanks to everyone who helped me take Metalicious from an idea to a work-in-progress. I am grateful from the bottom of my metalsmithing heart. Happy 2009.