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The term “cushion cut” refers to an octagon shaped glass jewel, usually with rounded corners. It’s a classic cut harkening back to the fine Czech glass rhinestones of the 1800s – and probably to beautifully cut gemstones for a long time before that. They are still one of the most popular cuts, and you can see why:  They’re one of the most flattering, versatile styles of stone to wear – whether glass, lucite, or gemstone. You’ll love them! We have been very lucky, here in KC. There’ve been some humongous storms this year – none of which have reached our neighborhood. Well this week we had one finally come through. Just a few days’ worth of interruption to “normal life” (you can define that however you want to, I figure as long as there’s food on the table and running water, everything else is gravy). So anyway – I am playing catchup. Last Thursday (okay, very early Friday, about 2:00 am) we had part of a tree fall on our house.  And it didn’t make a hole in the roof – talk about blessed! As it fell it came through other branches, so it was gentle. Just cumbersome and big and I do have to say, it was much bigger in real life than in the pic here. Well, it seemed like it. We got it removed (a huge front-yard-filling pile of tree trunks, lumber, and branches as they were hauled away) and the only other problem was two days without power, which I’m not fond of. And three days without internet, which ditto. But some people are still without power, 5 days later. And had major roof and/or house damage. We were SO lucky. Counting my blessings! A little something different – jewelry that features your logo. It’s fun, totally customized and personalized, and in my other shop I make these, so I figured I ought to mention it 😉  And hey, this particular example (made a ways back for Act4Murder dinner theater are even black and white – they’d be great with the vintage halter dress I posted about the other day! Back to my regularly scheduled vintage and rhinestone goodies. (The logo earrings are pretty cool, though…) I was going to title this post “Vintage Black and White Summer Dress” and then I thought about it. Yes, this is a great dress for summer. But actually? Add a black jacket or cardigan and you could wear this gorgeous dress year round.  Take a look at the other pics in the listing – you can see the detailing, and it’s pretty cool. It’s probably fairly adjustable, would be forgiving of a little weight gain or loss, and it’s a super flattering line. And come on: sexy halter, shoulders, flirty skirt, and black and white…. this is a foxy dress! I found it at Sammy’s Chifforobe on Etsy, and Sammy, the owner/curator, has got a great eye. She gives you good pics, lots of detail, and the prices? In a word – amazing. Go shopping! You’ll love the store, you’ll find great deals, and to top it all off, Sammy’s using her savvy and sense of style to help pay for grad school. We need more women in grad school, getting educated, getting out in the biz world! This is what we call a “win/win”! You know, there are beautiful jewelry supplies from all over the world. But I have to say, I think our jewelry manufacturers in the eastern USA (Rhode Island and Massachusetts primarily, I believe) really do make the finest brass filigree in the world. Case in point: these beautiful brass filigree butterfly charms. Look at the detail!  They’re delicate (but not flimsy). They’re perfect as slightly asymetric earrings ‘as is’ – and are wonderful with added jewels or pearls. This is what fun, attractive, and affordable jewelry making is all about – easy and pretty! Just a quick note, I wanted to mention what a good idea it is to combine different materials. Okay, I know this is a thing of mine – I love unmatchy bits and pieces. These earrings are just one example:  Yes, I have those glass jewels available in my jewelry supplies shop, Weekendjewelry1 at Etsy. And if you don’t have any pearls, drop me a note, I probably have some. The thing here is, the addition of a simple handwired pearl takes these pretty glass jewel earrings to a whole new level. Delicate, girly, pretty. And a simple DIY. Ask for help if you need it – pretty soon you’ll have it down pat 🙂 Seeing that darling black beaded dress in my recent post made me look at some black and crystal black jewels, too. Any of these, for instance, would complement that dress beautifully:  Any of them would work “as is”. But you could combine them beautifully, too. Add the small crystal rounds to the bottom of those elongated navattes at right. Or add them to the teardrop jewels at left for a little extra pizzazz. You know black and white is always in style. That goes for black and crytal, too 🙂 And here you have a vavoom example of why vintage is so great – take a look at this fabulous dress!  It’s gorgeous, for one thing. It’s got a great flirty style. It would look darling with black stilettos as shown – or the barest black sandals. You could wear it right now for a fancy summer party. You could absolutely wear it for New Year’s Eve. And you are NOT going to see ten of them at the party. You will be Unique – which is (one of the) main things to love about vintage. I found this adorable dress at Shabby Babe Vintage on Etsy, and believe me you are going to want to shop there. Heather, the owner/curator (and model!) has got a great eye for Finds. She tells you the good *and* the bad about her items – and that’s so important when you’re buying something online. She gives GOOD pics – the details you need to know. She loves vintage. You can tell. And if you’re like me, you do too. Go there. You’ll thank me. A customer asked me to show her some of the crystal jewels I currently have available – she was playing with ideas for her wedding jewelry. I sent her several individual links, and showed her this pic too:  We shared a few ideas back and forth until she determined exactly what she wanted – I can’t wait to see her wedding pics! When it comes down to it, that’s what really counts. Pretty bridal and wedding jewels that can be combined into your very own creation – perfect for your special day! We’re talking va-voom here. This royal blue, vintage long dress is great-looking, it’s simple – the kind of “simple” that means well-designed and it’ll look good for 20 years instead of fussy and faddy. It’s classy but not boring. It’s *interesting* – in the good way:  You see what I mean. Those dress is fully lined, so those panels in the skirt are flirty but not too revealing. This is a totally year-round dress, bare in summer, and with a warm coat all winter. It will always look good – will make YOU look good. I found this treasure at DressVintageattitude and the owner/curator (known as Adoration2013, love it!) says this on her About page: “Love shopping vintage dresses and skirts. I feel confident and happy when I rock my vintage dresses. They always satisfy my eagerness for clothes. They are divine!” And that kind of says it all. Oh. Except. One more really important feature: this blue dress, this cobalt royal treasure that will make you look divine, costs $19.50 USD plus shipping. Yes. You read that correctly. And now you’re already gone, because you are shopping at this wonderful boutique. You can thank me later 😉 |
Jewelry and Accessories
Vintage, Recycled, Upcycled!
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