It's almost December??

Unbelievably, it's already the very end of November, and thus my November contest has ended. Congratulations Rebecca, on winning your own customized Anne Boleyn style "W" necklace. Thank you very much to all the other participants, you should have all received an e-mail regarding the contest.


This is the last weekend at my family's summer home until the spring. It's been a chilly, but lovely weekend. I observed an adorable squirrel napping on the deck this morning and saw a beautiful full rainbow this afternoon. I've had plenty of time for pearl knotting, inkle weaving, and even a little baking. Speaking of, I think I hear some lovely green pearls calling my name...

★November Contest- Win a customized Anne Boleyn letter necklace!

Once Halloween passes, what comes next? There's Thanksgiving, and OH YEAH- holiday shopping. I actually enjoy holiday shopping (though not so much the wracking my brain over what to buy people, or the crowded stores.) Take a break during this busy pre-holiday season to get something for you.

Beginning today, contact me with your name, best mode of contact (e-mail address/etsy ID) and the letter you would wish for, and you will be entered to win a customized Anne Boleyn letter necklace of your very own! E-mail me at duchessashop@yahoo.com, or send an Etsy conversation at duchessa.etsy.com, subject "November Contest", please.

Names will be put into a hat, and the winning name will be pulled on Saturday, November 28th.


At the conclusion of the contest, the weekend of November 28th, the winner will be notified and asked for the remainder of the customization information (allow production time after end of contest.) All other participants will be contacted as well- there's something for you as well! Non-winning participants who place an order before the final day of 2009 will receive free shipping and complimentary matching earrings (or other items, if ears are not pierced- let me know.)

Feel free to contact me with any questions. I look forward to hearing from everyone!



Don't forget customized jewelry and knotted pearl necklaces at reasonable prices when doing your shopping!

Quick hello.

I've been a very busy girl. I got a whole bunch done tonight, and am looking forward to 3 more days of work and then a quiet Halloween weekend with my fiance.

I've just listed in my etsy shop 2nd version of my "Anne the Queen" pendant necklace, similar to the first but not identical. The design and colors are a tad different and to be honest, I don't think I could make them identical if I tried. I also listed another portrait necklace, this one a silver and gold frame detailed with a fish scale pattern, containing a small print of "A Mermaid", one of John William Waterhouse's beautiful paintings.

Off to bed now, probably for dreams of knotting pearls (considering how long tonight I spent doing it!)

Soldier's Angels

Not that I have so many readers, but I want to highlight a very worthy cause which is in need of support.

Soldier's Angels is a wonderful nonprofit group which supports members of all branches of the armed forces through a series of projects and events. There are a number of crafting teams where for example, you can donate handmade blankets to veterans recovering in military hospitals, or bake homemade treats as part of the Angel Bakers to send to the troops.

Then there is adoptions. You sign up, and are given the name and address of a deployed soldier. You are asked to write about once a week, and send a care package once a month. You do this for the remainder of the soldier's deployment.

I am on my 4th adoption, with sporadic additional activities with the group and I have to say, its a great feeling to be able to help. Whatever your political stance is, the fact is that our guys and girls are away from home, in harms way, and whatever we can do to assist them is a worthwhile effort. Remember when those "support our troops" ribbon magnets were showing up on every car? I used to laugh because while people were slapping magnets on their cars and feeling like they were doing something so useful, I was actually supporting our troops in my small way.

So if you've got a moment, browse through the website. They're short on angels for adoptions right now, and the other groups can use all the help they can get.

Brushes

First off, I want to make sure to give credit where credit is due. I don't know where or when I will use these, so I'm doing this right now...

If you use Adobe Photoshop, head over to Obsidian Moon and check out their selection of absolutely amazing brushes. I discovered some of them on the computer at work and had to download them at home. I haven't the slightest how a brush is made, but these are just incredible.

The quality of this isn't so hot, but heres a little sample with the pixie brush, foliage brush, and a few other which I forget which sets they came from. Awesome!

I just made up some really cute promo items for my shop, for well, promotional use as well as sending out with orders. They combine pretty scrapbooking paper and one of my favorite things!

Brand new!

Several things fall under my title category of "Brand New!":

-My graphic design job, starting Monday.
-The shipment of supplies I am impatiently awaiting, with cabochons, assorted findings and wonderful colored pearls.
-My website, build with the intent to be an online portfolio of sorts. It is still in progress, but can be found here.
-My new portrait pendant necklaces!

Hand sculpted around the image, gilded and glazed, with a protective coating over the image. Freshwater pearl accents, build onto matching necklaces.

These two are listed in my shop, visit for details!

It's been that long?

Well, look at how I've neglected this. A lot of stuff going on lately. I've been doing some freelance graphic design work- brochures, postcards, fliers, ads...a lot of fun. And of course, beading!


This is one of the lovelies which sold at the festival, but I'm so in love with it I want to make a similar one to keep. Green and gold pearls, mixed with silver beads and tigereye.

Been spending a lot of time with my viking weave stuff. My pointer finger is less than amused (those little cuts hurt!), but I made some really nice chains. Time to order more sterling silver wire...