Needle Felting is Fun

"Winged Beauty" at Etsy.

What's this? Two post in two days? Yes, indeed! But I was just so excited about my recent foray to the yarn store, I had to share!

But first a serious note: if you have a hotmail email address and have been waiting for an email from me, I have not able to email hotmail addresses because hotmail is currently blocking my ISP for "reputation problems". That is ... someone else (not myself) on the same server as my company has been a bad spammer. All shipments have gone out, but if you have a hotmail address, you may not have received the shipping confirmation email.

"A Bird's Nest in Your Hair" at Etsy.

Now.... I began dabbling in needle felting a few years ago and although I turned out not to have the talent to make the cute little 3-D little creatures I so desperately wanted to make (I really wanted to make tiny felted bunnies, birds, and bees with a beehive), I did discover that I could turn my felted nests into better even more awesome nests with the application of a little needle felting! Then, one stormy night, working away furiously, I managed to break every single needle felting needle I owned and, since I live in the middle of nowhere, no replacements were to be found. BUT ... I was able to find a yarn store recently that carried the needles!! Yeah!!!

"Beauty of Flight" soon to be at Etsy.

So, nests are back on the menu! You can see them all over at my Etsy shop. And of course, being on my vintage label craze, they all come on a cool reproduction vintage label! :)

Beauty on the Blog Countdown: Day 1 of 3

Hello everyone! Summer is in full swing here with bright blue skies, blooming red roses, and fun family activities. Here's a quick peek at one of the flower brooches I made for end of year teacher gifts. I made another one, a beautiful cream and silver one, but forgot to photograph it in all the chaos - I seem to have a knack for always forgetting to do photos before things walk out the door :)

I love these because each of my kids picked out the colors and materials they thought their teacher would like best and then I worked up a flower design to suit the materials. It was really sweet to hear their style advice when we were at the yarn store :)They also made little handmade cards that the brooches just attached simply to like this:
The message they hand wrote inside the cards said "Thank you for helping me to grow and bloom!". They both had fantastic teachers this year and it was a real pleasure putting these together!!

Spring Arrives in Style

Spring is here! Blue skies, singing birds, blossoms and flowers bursting out everywhere ... it is just beautiful!

Just yesterday, my little 1st grader came in from playing outdoors grinning happily from ear to ear and holding out this bunch of Spring daffodils. "These are for you, Mommy!! Happy Spring!" He was so cute and sweet and it was such a beautiful, thoughtful gesture. We made a big show of putting them in water on the kitchen table. (Yes, I am a Japanese pottery addict). I was, however, a little mortified, because you see... I have never, ever planted daffodils on our property. That means that someone, somewhere in the neighborhood is now missing three daffodils.No illicit flower activities for me, but I have been gathering rushes of pussy willow branches - which I just love to decorate with. A container of dried branches adds instant visual height and a certain sculptural element to any room. If you have cherry trees, a vase of cut flowering cherry branches is a great idea too.
And what a lovely backdrop they make for a glamour shot of one of my Bird's Nest Necklace Deluxe necklaces. These have driven me absolutely batty trying to photograph them, but I finally achieved some decent pictures and they are up on the website. Each one turns out so unique that I decided to list each one separately so you can choose your favorite.
And if you've checked out my etsy site lately, you will see a fresh crop of pink hand crocheted embellished brooches. These are so festive for Spring and look just gorgeous pinned to a shirt, hat, purse or blouse! And each one is one of a kind, so you'll have a true original.

More exciting Jeweled Elegance news: The very sweet and talented Nyx Enchantments is doing a running blog article on etsy sellers and was so kind as to feature me! If you've ever wanted to know more about the inspirations behind Jeweled Elegance, check it out here.

This week is the start of Spring Break for us, so my little guys and I will be busy enjoying the nice weather, going on field trips, working in the garden, and baking yummy goodies. We are not so fortunate as to be able to go on vacation, but we have our copy of The Dangerous Book for Boys on hand (which they adore) and we are going to have some great boy adventures! I hope you all are having a happy Spring!

Easy Felt Ribbon Rose Pin Tutorial

Hi everyone! It's time for my first tutorial! I only had six spots on my camera card, so it's a five step tutorial plus one beauty shot. Here's what your gorgeous felt ribbon rose pin will look like when it's done. Perfect for Spring!:
Step 1: Gather your supplies. A long strip of felt in the color you want your rose, a pin backing, and one or two leaves cut out of green felt. Also, a needle, and thread colored to match the felt.
Step 2: Fold the felt in half lengthwise and starting at one end, stitch a running stitch along the entire bottom edge.

Step 3: Pull the thread tight until the the felt curls into itself and makes a rose.

Step 4: Tack the rose layers together at the back and then, holding the leaves and pin in the exact spot you want them, stitch the leaves and pin to the rose.

Step 5: Finish with a jeweled center stitched or glued to the center. I used a pearl center (my favorite type of center), but try crystals, gemstones, a felt ball or anything else you can think of. And voila! You have a beautiful rose pin!

Easy Felt Ribbon Rose Pin tutorial copyright Jeweled Elegance LLC

If you make one of these, please let me know, I'd love to see yours! Now... I'm off to Michaels to buy more felt. I'm hoping to have 20 of these in different colors finished for the start of Saturday Market, but with the weather so nice now, it's hard to stay inside and work :) I wasn't planning on selling these online, but if anyone wants a few, just let me know!

**Update: I've entered my tutorial in the Easter Parade & Giveaway at Quill Cottage. Go visit and have fun looking through all the beautiful Easter/Spring links!

Have a great week & a Happy Easter!

Who Can Never Remember to Photograph Their Swaps? Me!

What is it about swaps??? I simply cannot remember to photograph them before wrapping everything up. Take this for example, my Secret Santa gift for a fellow creative soul:Sooooo prettily wrapped, ready to go to it's new happy home....but wait! I forgot to take a picture again. Gak! So, several minutes later I'm unwrapping it, taking pictures and then .... you guessed it, breaking out the roll of Christmas wrapping paper and rewrapping everything just as prettily as the first time. Actually, I think the wrapping turned out much better the second time :)

This is what was inside: A little knitted and crocheted purse!With a flower embellishment sporting a vintage button at the center and handstitched leaves.Bamboo handles.
And what else was in her package? A cute little matching brooch! [I also included a book on jewelry making since her profile said she crafted jewelry - but I didn't make that :)] It takes about 8 hours to design and plan each of these one-of-a-kind purses, so I'm *really* hoping she likes this.
After all that work [times 2 since I had to do the wrapping twice!] I thought I'd take a nap in the warm autumn afternoon sun. Oh rats! Looks like I didn't get to that sunbeam fast enough .. somebody is already there :) And looking very comfortable indeed! Looks like she even pawed that blanket into a little bed before snuggling in.
You may have noticed the new banner on my right sidebar. I've always been a great advocate of handcrafted gifts. After all, what has more meaning: A mass produced product, probably made with unsafe Chinese parts, that 10,000 other people have? OR .. something carefully selected and crafted with love, care and diligence that fits the recipient perfectly and shows that you really care? Handcrafted gifts, whether they be yummy baked goodies, a knitted sweater, or even just a beautifully crafted card epitomize the true holiday spirit of giving and sharing more than any obligatory random store purchase ever could. By buying handmade, you are also choosing to support independent artists who work very hard to turn beautiful visions into reality while still earning enough to support their families. So.... I invite you all to take the handmade pledge with me and buy handmade this holiday season!
And finally...thank you everybody so very, VERY, VERY much for all your congratulations on my holiday press! Makes my heart all warm and fuzzy to read the sweet things you say! Truly it does!

New Holiday Jewels

The new holiday jewels are starting to pour into the boutique! Take at look at these mouthwatering treats perfect for holiday gifts, or as a little indulgence for yourself. After all, shopping is hard work :)

Intricate filigree earrings like "Baroque Bordeaux" $39:

Elegant, modern indulgences like this "Abacus Pearl Necklace" $65:

Spirited artisan necklaces like "Secrets of the Moss" $49:

And brand spanking new to our shop,the Flower collection of handcrafted knitted and crocheted accessories. Here are "Wildflowers Flower Pin" $16 and "Buttercup Flower Pin" $16. These are super cute and full of natural charm! And at $16, very affordable. Pick up a few and make several people on your list very happy:



Bejeweled - Jeweled Elegance