Rococo in Yellow- Rubber band necklace!

Love love love this necklace

Check it out everyone!
Rococo in Yellow by Margaritamileva

This beautiful piece is currently featured in the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art Gift Shop!
Check this out also for an awesome article on the necklaces!

have a great day all!

Something a little different

Since I know I have a decent amount of artists following this blog, I'd love to reach out to all of you with a few questions.
I really hope some of you take the time to answer!

1. What is your chosen medium and what originally drew you to it?
2. When did you first decide that art was a necessary part of your life?
3. Has anyone inspired you in a drastic way? On the other side of this, has anyone tried to dissuade you from pursuing your work, how has that affected you?
and lastly
4. Are you currently in the process of trying to/ do you currently make a living off of your work?

If you wish post a link to your favorite piece =)
I will answer these for myself in an upcoming entry and I will repost some of my favorite responses with links to your sites.

Thanks everyone!

Suggestions!

once again I am opening up the suggestion box! Please let me know if you have any thoughts on what types of work, or artists you might like to see here!

Thanks all!

Laser Cutting

So, any of you who are familiar with my work [visible to your right in my etsy.mini] know that I am a huge fan of laser cutting and working in acrylic.
I have chosen today to share with you the beautiful work of Isette, a fellow artist who has made use of this new technology to create wonderful pieces.
Isette states:

"I am inspired by the world around me. And I am fortunate that the world around me includes a 100+ year old museum collection that I'm given free reign over and a typography obsessed graphic designer husband. Design and Victoriana meet here, with a splash of whimsy."

Her inspirations definitely show in her beautiful work!
Now to share a few of my favorite pieces from her shop:
First I adore this elegant Mane Necklace
Beautiful curves and flowing lines, definitely some of my favorite things! I love the movement of this piece and the black is a perfect compliment to the feel of the design.
Next up is this quirky, imaginative Spectacles Ring.
The nerd in me is giddy just looking at this ring! Simple yet different, once again possessing a wonderful quality of line movement.
Last but definitely not least these Eclipse Earrings that show off some wonderful engraving which definitely pops against the black background! These would be a wonderful compliment to any elegant outfit.

Lots more great work available at her store, so be sure to check it out!

Statement Pieces and More Beautiful Non-Traditional Jewelry

So I am very excited about doing this feature tonight! [here's to getting home from work two hours early and actually having some time to write on a weeknight!]
So for tonight I have hand selected three wonderfully talented artists to share with everyone!

As always artist's are shown in no particular order.

I will begin with Hannah Rosner who "recieved her BA at Swarthmore College and her MFA at Ohio State University, where she researched political theatre design in Eastern Europe. With over fifteen years teaching experience combined with twenty years as a working artist, she still looks forward to teaching both fine arts and craftmanship skills every day. She has taught college level multimedia and design at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and the Illinois Institute of Art. She has taught beadwork and fine arts at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts, Caravan Beads Chicago, and TLD Design Center & Gallery in the Chicago Suburbs. She was the lead lampwork instructor at Glass Axis in Columbus and taught at 1 Stop Bead Shop until she moved to New Mexico in early June."

Hannah can be found on etsy under the name HannahRachel and has a great assortment of beautiful objects in her shop. The first thing I noticed when I "entered" her shop, amidst an array of beautifully made lampworked flowers was this absolutely stunning neck piece.
Ammonite Swirl Seed Bead Woven Pendant Fossil Semiprecious Glass
The details in this piece are incredible and I love the curved shapes that allow one's eye to move smoothly through the piece taking in every ounce of workmanship.
Definitely a statement piece I would love to wear.

In addition she also has this large, wonderful Queen of Sheba Necklace which incorporates some great stones in addition to lampworked pieces.
This piece must have taken more hours than I can imagine and has so many intricate aspects I am truly sorry I cannot take all of it in in person. Her sense for neutral colors is very attractive and the pearls in this piece definitely pop against their backdrop. Overall a wonderfully eclectic work.
Hannah's work, in addition to her etsy shop, can also be found here on her personal website.

Up next I have the work of Mainichi who does many wonderful pieces using fibers and other recycled materials. Another great example of up-cycling!
According to Mainichi :
"My name is Dearne and I would describe myself as a "creative soul". After an inspiring holiday to Japan in late 2004, where I picked up some fabulous raw materials to work with, I came back to Australia with seeds planted, ready to create some interesting pieces of jewellery.

So after making a few prototypes and getting a great response from friends and relatives, I established “Mainichi” and began to put into practice my passion for fine arts, crafts, textile arts and materials.
Mainichi pieces have been wholly designed and created by ME. I make for pure enjoyment, and am not dictated by fashion or current trends. The materials used often inform the design and also reflect the philosophy behind the name (Mainichi translates from Japanese as “everyday”).
Many of the materials are recycled, found or vintage, which means that each piece is truly a unique object.
Mainichi design inverts the concept of precious jewellery. There are no precious metals or jewels in these pieces, instead, unexpected, ordinary and everyday materials become pieces of wearable art."

That closing paragraph is another reason I love this artist, we share a similar philosophy which I think is a wonderful thing!

So now to share a few favorites of mine from her shop starting with this lovely Shinzo Felt and Leather Necklace
This is a great fun, funky, innovative piece that uses felt in a great way! I love the balance of the big and little circles and spheres and the quilting style stitching on the blue circles is a really great accent!

Next she also has an assortment of colors and patterns of this wonderful Kawa Recycled Leather and Bead Necklace
I've never seen anything like this before and it seems like it would be a definite conversation starter sure to bring some excitement to anything you pair it with!

The fringe and mix of hard and soft media in this piece is also really nicely combined.

Last but definitely not least I have the incredible work of ElinThomas to share with you all.
Elin loves

" to make stylish and unique pieces of jewellery. My approach to jewellery is to innovate in the field, ensuring my pieces are both eye-catching and a talking point for the wearer. I specialise in extremely neat, small crochet using #20 threads and 1.00 hook. So my crochet stitches are half the size of most work out there. "

Now I've been crocheting for years, but have never created anything as detailed or intriguing as the work I am about to share with you.
Firstly this Crochet Bracelet is so brilliantly colorful and eyecatching.

I love the mix of black and white and the combination of polymer clay with delicate crochet, the colors are vibrant and exciting and the pattern is mesmerizing.
Up next is this equally stunning Coral Reef Inspired Necklace. Anyone who has read my other blog knows that I take a lot of inspiration from patterns in nature in my own work so this is definitely something I really appreciate in other's work as well!
So much detail! And all done with such a tiny hook making it even more impressive!
More of her lovely work can be found on her flickr account.

I hope you have all enjoyed this nights features.