Monday in Seattle. Picture and Quote for the Week. Cameo Memories

...my grandmother's locket cameo, rediscovered this past weekend...

I have only to take down this or that to flood my soul with memories.

~Dorothie Deluzy

New at Bumbershoot Designs. Crystal, Cameo and Locket Necklaces

Watch for these 3 new designs at Bumbershoot Designs this weekend.  The cameo necklace above is made with a truly stunning vintage West German resin cameo, on a long chain that just slips over your head. Perhaps my new favorite...

This necklace features a vintage emerald Swarovksi crystal rhinestone on delicate gold filled chain, and was a request by a customer.  I've made another to add to Bumbershoot Designs, where you will already find a matching bracelet and earrings.

And finally, this locket necklace features a vintage reproduction perfume locket, heart shaped, in antiqued brass which I have adorned with a vintage Japanese tassel charm that I antiqued and embellished with a tiny Swarovski crystal.  I love how this tassel adds a bit of flirty movement to the locket. This is a long chain too, although lengths can be readily shortened, just ask.

Back to the studio, and wishing you a wonderful weekend!
Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there!

New at Bumbershoot Supplies. Vintage Lockets, Glass Rings and Vintage Cabochons, Oh My!

It has been a long week.  And all day today in Seattle it has been grey and POURING down rain. Non stop.  But the good thing about a rainy day is that it is a great time to pull out the supplies and make something beautiful.  I've been cruising the Vintaj idea gallery and already I can feel the wheels turning.  So let me share a few of the new items at Bumbershoot Supplies this week and then I'll settle down at my work table and see what I come up with.

By the way, the best way to learn about new supplies is to sign up for our newsletter.  And this month, since we are celebrating the launch of our new website, newsletter subscribers are receiving free shipping all month long at the new Bumbershoot Designs and Supplies site - any size of purchase, any location world wide and as many times in April as they want!
No fooling!

We have 3 new vintage lockets at Bumbershoot Supplies this week, here is one of them...

There are also some really beautiful vintage glass cabochons, one of them above...

And some vintage plastic cabochons...

And I was very excited to locate these delicate translucent peridot spring green glass rings. Uncommon, unusual, wouldn't these make interesting earrings? Or frames for mixed media?

Are your wheels turning? There are many more new items at Bumbershoot Supplies and Designs and at Bumbershoot Supplies on Etsy.

Until next time, have a great weekend!

Look What I Found. Wired Flowers from Vintage Japan

Aren't these beautiful?

These are hand wired vintage Japanese flowers, complete with crystal leaf beads.

I just love being in the business of searching out vintage components for Bumbershoot Designs and Supplies. I'm not much of a shopper in general, but oh, the pleasure of discovering yet another vintage treasure, each one so delightful and unique, and never to be made again...it's a fabulous treasure hunt that I get to go on every day. 

These flowers have sat on my work table for several days now, as I enjoy their presence and contemplate what their future looks like.

I recently received some vintage-style scent lockets, designed to look like vintage lockets with pierced fronts, to hold a piece of cotton or cloth daubed with perfume.  Ala Miriam Haskell, perhaps it is possible to wire these flowers onto such a locket.  Looks rather like a winged heart to me. What do you think?



New at Bumbershoot Designs. Sneak Peek at New Vintage Inspired Designs

My muse has been busy the last two weeks, with 32 (yes, I counted) new designs waiting their turn to be listed at Bumbershoot Designs. It has been hard to pull my muse away from the work table, but I was able to convince her to take a few photos on the weekend. If you would like to know more about any of these designs, just let me know and I will prioritize listing the design(s) you are interested in, so you can have more photos and full information.

I've started working in sets, like the costume jewelry designers of decades ago did. So many of the new designs you see here are available as "demi-parures", meaning there are 2 or 3 matching pieces. For example, the earrings shown at the very top and this necklace match, and are a demi-parure.

These earrings feature lovely vintage 1920's Czech nailhead beads with tiny vintage 24K gold charlotte beads and there is a matching necklace on a pretty sparkly antiqued brass chain.

These earrings also have a matching necklace and feature vintage blush pink pearls with really lovely antiqued brass bead caps and a tiny peach moonstone bead, not vintage but genuine :)

This vintage locket is adorned with a 1940's crystal button and black rhinestone of the same era. The chain is also vintage and I have restored and patina'd the chain and locket.

I also made a shorter pair of matching earrings, with just one stone, providing 2 options for this demi-parure.

Another set featuring some lovely coral - peachy vintage Czech beads and lovely Japanese glass pearls. The cabochon is also from 1950's Japan. These move in a charming and eye catching way.

This butterfly necklace also has matching earrings. I'm not sure this one is a completed design. I have some rosaline cabochons enroute that I think I might swap with the rhinestone, but I have to see when they get here. I want this to look light and airy, like butterflies are. This charm is 3 dimensional and I really like that, it adds movement to this simple design.

I love the black diamond stones, so I made this ring to match the black diamond earrings I already offer at Bumbershoot Designs.

I have been fascinated with the character and individuality of these vintage rhinestones ever since I purchased them to offer at Bumbershoot Supplies. I finally decided I could have a few to work with :) I am working on a bracelet to match these earrings.

Oh Marie, Marie... I offer pearl Marie Antoinette earrings at Bumbershoot Designs, this is a new version featuring the most spectacular 1940's crystal rhinestones you could every hope to see. I'd love to make a necklace to match this, but so far the right fleur de lis has not appeared...

These earrings are all sterling, antiqued and polished by me, and feature extraordinary rose colored crystal drops, 1930's Czech. How blessed am I to be able to work with such beauty!

I have been looking for some time for white mother of pearl to make more white cufflinks since my round vintage mother of pearl cabochons ran out. I am extremely pleased with this new lot of vintage mother of pearl, it is flawless, creamy, smooth, iridescent, and I love the oval shape too.

This locket is a long necklace, 26 inches, and is a tribute to all the birds and especially the swallows I see on my walks around Discovery Park in Seattle. This floral locket is adorned with a blue and white vintage West Geman flower button bead and another of those wonderful vintage Japanese glass pearls.

If you've made it to the end of this long post, thank you for viewing my designs! I hope you have found some ideas or inspiration with them. All of these designs and more will make their way into Bumbershoot Designs over the coming days. If you have any questions or would like more information, please let me know!

Featured Artist. Stephanie Wright of September Mornings on Etsy

Funny thing how I find artists to feature on this blog.  The way I found Stephanie Wright of September Mornings on Etsy was through her shop name, "September Mornings".  She purchased some vintage glass cabochons and vintage beads from Bumbershoot Supplies and that phrase, September Mornings, rolled around in my thoughts for a while. I found it so evocative, calling up that quiet sweetness, the soft promise that is present in early fall mornings... Well, you have to follow your instincts, so I clicked on over to her shop and checked it out. 

I am so glad I did! The way in which Stephanie uses vintage materials in her designs is truly inspiring. 

Her designs use a collaged, layered approach, and each piece is full of tiny vintage treasures, carefully selected and composed.  When I look at Stephanie's designs, I long to touch and handle each piece, to get a close up view of the tiny bits and baubles she has presented in such pleasing and creative arrangements. 

This is jewelry that tells a story, in a quiet sweet way, like September mornings.

Stephanie recently added some new designs using vintage glass pearl twisted leaves from Bumbershoot Supplies. I love how these old glass pearls work in these pieces, they integrate so well with the other vintage components.

If anyone is listening (you know who you are) anything you see in this blog post is now officially added to my Christmas wish list...

I hope you will visit Stephanie at September Mornings. You will certainly be inspired and treated to gorgeous pieces, beautifully photographed. Many of Stephanie's designs are one of a kind, so who knows, you may even find one with a story meant just for you. 



New at Bumbershoot Supplies. Shabby Chic Vintage Metal Tiny Enamel Flowers

Have you seen the new publication, Jewelry Affaire, by Stampington?

On page 116, you will see Sugar Post Earrings by Pastel Petals, featuring enamel flowers just like these, offered in the vintage findings, charms section of Bumbershoot Supplies.

These flowers are really beautiful and versatile.  One swift smack with a hammer on my bench block and they were completely transformed, now two dimensional and ready for a different type of jewelry application and also perfect for paper arts in which a 2 dimensional presentation may be required. 

We also offer flowers with tiny stems, which don't hammer precisely flat, but are wonderful for creating miniature bouquets and unique charms.  See my vintage envelope locket necklace for an example of how you can use these. 

And if you are like me, you may not restrict yourself to 2 dimensions when working in the paper and fibre arts. I love to add unique 3D embellishments to my designs, and dangles on tags or bookmarks, for example, are another use for these lovely petite flowers. And in case you are wondering, the vintage pearl headpins are also available at Bumbershoot Supplies, in the vintage beads section.

I invite you to let me know what you're doing with these lovely flowers, I'd love to see!

New at Bumbershoot Designs. Envelope Locket

New at Bumbershoot Designs this week, this vintage locket, in the shape of an envelope, is ready for a note, a photo, a lock of hair, a few tiny trinkets, whatever  you want to wear close to you.  Everything but the toggle clasp is a vintage component, and it uses some of my favorite flowers and glass pearls.  The tiny little glass pearl in the center of the flower is from the late 1940's - divine.

But one of the things that makes this design really special is the participation of the wearer.  The design becomes elevated by the meaning the person wearing it chooses and the trinkets they place inside. I love designs that truly come alive in this way.

This very limited edition necklace is currently available at Bumbershoot Designs.  If you click on the link and it has sold, just contact me.