sometimes life gets too busy...

In this particular case, your inspirations inspire me.

When people choose words to have pressed into metal for all eternity (I couldn’t resist that) they think hard about what’s important to them.  Sometimes, not always, I get to hear the thoughts and stories behind the words/numbers.

Would you like to hear about some of them?

I thought you would…

Tattoo anyone?

Tattoos, or the avoidance of, have inspired a number of rings recently – either to stop a family member from getting one or to replace one planned for themselves.  Why not – rings also express heartfelt thoughts and you don’t have to pay to have them removed.  Ouch!

Personal victories

One customer has a number representing a date chosen for her ring.  It’s the date when she decided that depression will no longer rule her life.
Empowering and a nice reminder – brilliant!

Lost loved ones

Latin for "forever in my heart"

Parents, dear uncles, children and pets are among those remembered either secretly (inside a ring) or with a date or name or message (even in latin) on the outside.

Words can be a comforting way to keep memories close to us.

Battle cries!

Sometimes the best way to overcome is to get a little mad.  There has been more than one vehement battle cry requested – some with some colourful words (which is always interesting).

Self butt kicking
(physically quite tricky)

a call to action

Similar to battle cries but a bit different is the “call to action” word.  Words like write, swim, faith, trust, breathe, focus, play, invest, ask, believe, receive and many others.  While it’s almost completely impossible to kick your OWN butt you can do it with words and many people do – creatively.

Quote genius

I have one customer who is a quote generating genius!  We exchanged a number of emails discussing the dozens of quote ideas she had for her rings.  I may just create a line of rings inspired by her creativity.  (note: she was happy about this idea)

An interesting feature of her quotes is that they are all divided up between the outside and inside of the ring.  One of my favourites is “do or do not / there is no try – yoda”.   The / indicates where the inside outside division is.   I have two sons so Star Wars quotes work for me.

Inside jokes

These are really fun.  Sometimes I get to hear the story behind them, sometimes I don’t.  I often hear how their friend/sister/mother is going to laugh when she sees it.  Sometimes they’re so touched that they cry.  Wow!  That’s what can happen when you make someone feel really special.

Celebrating strengths

One lovely customer choose a word representing a strength of each member of her family.  Each word was stamped onto its own ring and strung on a long oxidized chain.

What a beautiful way to show your family how you cherish them and who they are.

Love

Better when we're together.

I really like these orders.  Not many of my customers are men but sometimes an order comes through for a tender quote or a special word to be given to a girlfriend or fiance (wives must be getting bigger ticket items like flat screen TVs).  Sometimes I get a story with the order, sometimes I don’t.

It’s always a good feeling to be involved in the unfolding of a love story.

Miscellaneous

Inspiration for words seem to come from all over.  Other sources I’ve seen include; dreams, bible quotes, comic book nicknames, favorite sports or hobbies.

Mystery

Sometimes I never find out what the words/numbers represent and that’s okay too.  Some things are too personal to have to explain to a stranger.  I get that.

Thank you!

In all cases I feel privileged to be trusted to make jewelry with the words, thoughts and feelings that mean so much to you.

Thank you!

…and I can’t wait to hear what’s next!

What words inspire you?

PS If you want to see more of the words other people have chosen take a look at the Gallery.

heavy silver bracelet

Silver jewelry prices have jumped – especially heavier silver pieces.

You are probably wondering why.

Most people don’t follow the price of silver so I decided to do a quick post on the subject.

So what IS going on with silver??

One day I went to buy silver for a heavy bracelet order I was filling. Ack! The cost of the silver combined with the labour I was putting in was MORE than I was charging! Anyone in business will tell you that that’s a recipe for, well, going out of business. OF COURSE I hadn’t priced it that way originally. The price of silver had just quickly increased on me!

Naturally I filled the order as promised but then I revisited my pricing. What was going on with silver?! Most of my items are lighter weight and use less silver so the price increases didn’t have a dramatic effect. Buying silver for the heavier bracelets really opened my eyes to the price change.

The price had more than tripled!

Since I began making jewelry (2006) silver has increased in price going from approximately $12US/ounce to $40US/ounce! It has more than tripled!!

Here is a graph of the price change:

history of the price of silver 2000-2011

Note: Silver is priced per troy ounce (a unit of imperial measurement equal to 31.1 g).

What is making the price rise?

First, I should say that, now that I’ve been reading up on the subject, it is way more complex than I can explain here. It’s a combination of limited mining of silver decreasing the supply, a shortage of banking credit available because of the economic downturn and other complex market workings. Another reason for the increase in price is a rise in industrial activity. Increasingly sophisticated electronics use silver to make more reliable components. The manufacture of sophisticated technology is increasing. During the last decade the industrial demand for silver has increased from 35% of the output of silver to 50%. This is putting a strain on the supply and raising prices.

raw silver ore

Okay so what does this mean for the world of jewelry?

Clearly it means that the material cost for silver jewelry has increased dramatically and prices have risen accordingly. For example, a hand forged heavy link chain (like the one pictured at top) has gone from $85 to $115.

What next then?

Designers are adapting to the changes by being incredibly creative with new materials. I have noticed an increase in jewelry made out of fibres; waxed cotton cord, waxed linen, ribbon, leather etc, AND less precious metals – copper, brass, silver filled and gold filled (rather than solid).

What is silver or gold filled? How is it different than silver or gold plated?

A good question. The name is a bit confusing. Silver and gold filled metals are actually filled with a base metal, usually a red brass alloy. However, the coating of precious metal on the base metal is much, much, thicker than the microfilm used in plated metals. There are two standard thicknesses; 1/20 and 1/10 which is a ratio of base metal to precious metal. So 1/10 is 10% precious metal and 1/20 is 20% precious metal. The precious metal is much less likely to wear off with regular use as you might see with plated metals.

What does that mean for Bouton Rouge (let’s bring it home!).

Well, it means that I have, unfortunately, had to increase some prices. It also means that I am making less heavy silver jewelry and that, like other designers, I am experimenting with new materials.

New things are on the horizon! It has been fun exercising my creative muscles.
When there is something new to show you will see it here first! Stand by for photos coming soon!

How do you feel about the new trend? Are you seeing more brass, copper and fibre jewelry when you’re out shopping?

References:
http://www.buyinggoldandsilver.com/language/en-us/prices/silver-price-history.aspx

http://riograndeblog.com/2011/09/what-silver-filled/

http://www.dailymarkets.com/economy/2011/02/22/growing-industrial-demand-buoys-silver-outlook/

All the ways you are wonderful!

How would you feel if you had 23 words describing how wonderful you are from people who care about you?  Hopefully pretty amazing.

That’s what a class in our school thought when they commissioned a necklace for their retiring teacher.

A beautiful idea but how do you get 23 words on ONE necklace?  That is the challenge I was facing.  Exciting and a bit daunting!

The parents involved (there are two or three that represented the group) worked closely with me to figure out the best design.

The first step was to review the designs I have done in the past and try to adapt it to the style of the teacher.  This teacher likes dramatic jewelry and according to one of the parents almost seems to dress around her jewelry.  I like this woman!

So we decided to base the design around these personalized “twigs”.

Shiny Twig Necklace

What next?  We needed something else to make it more dramatic.  How about these kyanite “spears”?  That’s a yes all around.

Kyanite from kyanos meaning deep blue

Now, how about a third element?  Things always look better in threes.  Let’s go for it.  What to add?  Well, what other colours could we pick up in the kyanite?  There’s sort of a coppery colour – let’s try copper!  I have to credit lovely Ashley at Capilano Rock and Gem for the idea – sooo helpful.

What do you think?

The copper tag picks up the copper in the kyanite.

We worked with different chain types as well.  My first thought was a rectangular chain to echo the shape of the tags and stones.  Well, you live and you learn.  Tags pull rectangular links down.  It just doesn’t work so we went with a heavy round link chain.

Now to hammer 23 pieces of silver and copper and stamp out the words.  Here we go…

The letters on these stamps are about 1.5mm high.

Copper, silver, copper, silver...

Phew!  Twenty two down and one to go…”Merci/2011″.

Words of praise captured on metal.

At last, it’s all ready to go!

Deliciously heavy and jingly. Hmm...I want to keep it.

A necklace with this much thoughtfulness built into it needs a special display.  The creative parents behind this project came up with a beautiful solution.  They created some word art using the words that were chosen and placed the print on the inside of a shadow box.  The necklace was pinned up inside of the box behind the print.

Word art!

The other side of the page listed all of the words, the reasons the children chose the words and each child’s name.  I had to try hard not to get teary myself and she wasn’t even my child’s teacher!  Sniff.

Clearly a much loved teacher. I think she likes it!

trib·ute   n.

1. A gift, payment, declaration, or other acknowledgment of gratitude, respect, or admiration

This necklace is now available in my shop.  I have named it the Tribute Necklace.

Now who would you like to pay tribute to?  (You can pay tribute to yourself too.)

***Special note of thanks to the parents that worked with me and trusted me to make this special necklace!***

The words can be inside or outside.

Okay, word association test – keep on swimming.

Every parent will quickly answer DORI!

Dori is the forgetful but permanently optimistic fish in the movie Finding Nemo.  Here are the lines from the movie:

Dory: Hey there, Mr. Grumpy Gills. When life gets you down do you wanna know what you’ve gotta do?
Marlin: No I don’t wanna know.
Dory: [singing] Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming. What do we do? We swim, swim.

When we face difficult times it is sometimes hard to be optimistic like Dori.  Sometimes we need a reminder.

Ashley's Foundation

In 2004 Ashley Brear was facing difficult times as she was being treated for Hodgkins lymphoma.   Despite all that she was going through this incredibly brave young woman created the Keep On Swimming Foundation to help others in their battle with cancer.

To help continue Ashley’s work raising money to help those with cancer I have created the Keep On Swimming ring.  The proceeds of each ring go directly to the foundation.   Each ring is custom made to order.

For all of the details on the ring and how to order click HERE.

Ashley Brear

Many of us face challenges, health or otherwise, and the motto “keep on swimming” is there to remind us to keep strong in the face of the things that life can throw at us.  You can buy this ring to remind yourself to be strong while also giving hope and support to others who are fighting cancer.  Everyone wins!

So, when life gets you down do you wanna know what you’ve gotta do?

________________________________________________________

To find out more about the Keep On Swimming Foundation and their annual fundraiser that is happening July 14th here in Vancouver, B.C. Canada you can visit their website.

Stack 'em and love 'em.

A quick note to show you a new font style.

It is a mix of two of my standard fonts and I really like the look.  (The font sizes are 1.5mm and .9mm.)

The ring you see it on is my square stacking ring but you can request this style for any one of my personalized products that fit the 1.5mm font size.

The soft shape of these square rings makes them more comfortable.

A good choice of font if you’re feeling playful.

I couldn't resist putting my painted rock in the photo.

When I see this font I think of children’s names, nicknames and maybe words that make you feel lighthearted.

What would you write?

Maybe this could work for you too!

Back on that topic of jewelry storage and/or display.  This is a popular topic for someone who, well, has a lot of jewelry.  Maybe that’s you too.

Sometimes visitors come by to see what I have on hand.  This is a wonderful thing but wasn’t happening as smoothly as I’d have liked.  See, I kept all of my jewelry in little boxes so they didn’t tarnish.

"Which box was that in again?"

I started to think, there has to be a better way to do this so after a bit of head scratching I came up with a solution.

Shadow boxes!

Oooo! I want a dozen!

I found these 12×12 inch front opening shadow boxes at Michaels.  I think they sell them all over though.  They’re intended for photos and keepsakes but they are fantastic for storing jewelry!

The insides are a gray fabric layered with padding over a foam core (I’m assuming).

Okay, maybe only four.

The use of pins in the fabric allows me to easily rearrange my collections as pieces are purchased or added.

Some blues...

They are mounted so that they don’t tilt when you open the heavy glass door.

Some rouge...

I’ve even thought about incorporating magazine images or objects to create a mood.

When I’m not meeting with a customer I insert these pieces of scrapbook paper that I chose to match my studio.

Art or jewelry display?

Voila!  Decoration/storage AND display!

You could easily adapt these for your bedroom or walk in closet (I’m jealous).  Add a mirror that echoes the shape of the box and you have storage/display heaven!

How would you use these boxes?

Not as appealing in beige I'd wager.

What’s up with red?

Why does it make such an impact?

I was wondering so I did a little research.

It seems that red can actually make you feel hungry, romantic and raise your heart rate.  Pretty powerful stuff!

You can see why restaurants use it and why we give red flowers and red boxes of chocolates when we’re feeling romantic.

Red makes you more attractive as well.  Men find women in red more attractive and will even spend more on her on a date!  (true – see below for the links to the facts)

Not just women either – women rate men wearing red as more attractive too.  Red is seen as a symbol of power and seems to make men look more kissable.  (You might want to hide your husband/boyfriend’s red sweaters.)

You might be looking to add a bit of this powerful colour to your wardrobe.  Well, it just so happens that there is a lot of red happening here at Bouton Rouge.  I have some new red coral designs that I’m about to put out there.

Here is a sneak preview just for you.  If you want to snatch the original up send me a message soon.

Rouge Circle necklace

You can find out more about the Rouge Circle necklace here.

Rouge Pebble earrings

Take a peek at the pebbles.

Rouge Echo necklace

Want to see more photos of the Rouge Echo?

Boho Rouge earrings

More details available here.

To find out more about research on the colour red take a look at these links:

http://www.colorschemer.com/blog/2007/07/17/why-food-companies-use-red-colors/

http://www.livescience.com/5136-red-women-drives-men-wild.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/08/100802101821.htm

How do you feel about the colour red?

Being a jewelry-phile has only one downside – where do you keep it all?

-          Where do you put necklaces so that the chains don’t get tangled?

-          Where do you store earrings so that you don’t lose one (from each pair)?

-          More importantly how do organize so you don’t wear the same five items all the time?

Here are some fantastic jewelry storage solutions I’ve found in my search…

Dishes

These lovely dishes come in other colours too!

I have a bit of a weakness for little dishes. This one happens to be functional as well as beautiful.  You’ll find it at Red Hot Pottery.

Frames

This example from Geaugaroots is beautiful!  The fabric in the background is fresh and whimsical and the silver metal screen holds magnets as well so you can add photographs.

I would do a set of three or four together.

Hooks

There are many different ways to set up this kind of system to match your decor.  I really like this set of vintage knobs from A Chic Shop.

Perfect next to a mirror in your bedroom.

Ice Cube Trays

Inexpensive, stackable, versatile and reusable – what more could you ask for?  This idea is from Real Simple.

Stack these in your nightstand drawers!

Teacups

Little dishes AND teacups!  A beautiful way to enjoy your collection of teacups and keep your necklaces and earrings visible.  Thank you  Martha Stewart.

You could even organize by colour!

Other Unique Ideas

If you can find an antique printer drawer you can make one of these beauties…or you can just buy one already made from Blue Bird Heaven.

Organized and easy to see.

Upcycled pallets are the main ingredient in this unique jewelry organizer from the Blender Gallery.

His and hers headboards?

Great for those with more rustic decor – it even has a built in light!

Now it’s your turn.  Do you have a unique way of storing your jewelry that you’d like to share?

More room!

The need to create hit me like a ton of bricks.

What didn’t happen so quickly was having the space and tools to do what I wanted to do.

I got really comfortable with the word “patience” and the words “delayed gratification”.  Remember the buzz about EQ – Emotional Quotient as opposed to IQ – Intelligence Quotient?  Well, I wasn’t really sure how I would score on an EQ scale, honestly, but if it was based on patience my score would be through the roof!

Don’t get me wrong.  Everyone in my family, especially my husband, was very accommodating.  We just worked with the space that was available at the time.   First I had a box of materials that I kept in a corner of the living room.  Then I moved to the kitchen table when I finally purchased my own torch – wheeee!  After that I crammed my tools onto our basement workbench that, at the time, was wedged next to a mountain of “stuff” (boxes, kid stuff, things that should have been thrown away and an army of icky spiders).

My wonderful husband tackled that nasty room to make it what it is today but while that was happening I moved to the garage for awhile (brrr…and so lonely!) and when that got too cold to an upstairs bedroom.  It’s strange to work with metal in a room with a bed and a carpet.  It just feels wrong.

Finally, as of last spring, I had a dedicated space to create!  I feel incredibly lucky and I’ve made peace with the spiders.

Sunlight and a place to hammer.

Spring green is an inspiring colour.

It’s evolving.

Where do you create?

First attempt at a prong setting.

Well, I’ve been itching to set stones for some time now.  In the search for a distinctive, earthy way to do it I’ve started to work with prong settings.  Not your delicate “let’s go for tea” type prong setting but a more robust statement type setting.

So how is it progressing you ask?  Above is a photo of my first effort.  It is a quartz drusy ring set in sterling silver (oxidized/blackened).

I learned quite a bit from making the ring so let’s see if I can apply it to the next item.  It also starts with a ring…

Same idea, different shape.

Here are the first few prongs.  So far so good…

We can all use more balance in our lives.

Next, a word.  I’m all about the words lately.

All evenly spaced...

The last few prongs!  I can let out a breath – phew.

Just a few steps left.

Here we are with the stone just waiting to be embraced.  Will the prongs actually work?  Is this destined for a finger or a chain?  Will it be oxidized a dramatic black or shined up and striking?  TBD

What do you think?  Massive ring or pendant?