Inspiration: Longer Days, Vibrant Colors, Jewels & Rocks Galore

Isn’t the spring time lovely? Growing up in SoCal, I really didn’t understand the changing of the seasons thing since seventy degrees and sunny about 340 days out of the year usually means that there was never an abrupt change in much of anything around me. That all changed when I moved to New York and had my first real experience with drastic changes in weather, clothes and foliage.

Opulent Gemstones or Rocks in my Head?

Honestly, sometimes when I am working in the jewelry studio I think I am nuts. Why you ask? Well, let's see: is it normal for a person to actual gasp when she sees a piece of pietersite? Does a sane person swoon over kyanite or labradorite? Does a woman with even a modicum of commonsense get giddy over a pile of rocks? To tell the truth...I'm not sure. But I do know this - what other people might see as just rocks, I see as opulent opaque gemstones in so many varieties that no one person has counted or seen them all!

If Peeps are Here...

Can spring be far behind? It's official, Peep season signals the beginning of spring, right? While I am not a fan of the Peep (it has something to do with the marshmallow-like texture), I do get excited when I see them lining grocery store shelves. Why you ask?

Sure Signs of Spring

Would you believe there are blossoms all around here in my little corner of the world? It's as if on cue all flowering cherry trees and forsythia plants decided to step into focus. Pink is such a wonderful color -- so soft, so feminine and just lovely. I love working with pink gemstones, such as rhodonite and rhodocrosite -- so I am so happy when I find big stones to incorporate into my designs.

More from Tanya's Botanical Garden

I have been feeling bad that I didn't give pink dogwood its due. So, here you go; and, yes, that is a beautiful blue sky and puff of white cloud. So nice after the days of rain and wind. It's strange -- while I would not call myself a pink girl -- I sure do wear a lot of it in sweaters and jewelry. Not bubble gum pink but soft baby pink -- inspired by the dogwood and a few gemstones. I love this rhodocrosite and faceted bead bracelet. I had to have one for myself -- you know the one for me, two for you idea?

The rhodies are just starting to bloom here -- while photographing the dogwood today, I turned to walk away and right in front of me was a beautiful deep pink rhodie. Funny, I had been so focused on the dogwood that I didn't notice the rhodie until I was finished with the dogwood. It's interesting that we can totally miss seeing something when we are focused on something else. This red Picasso jasper is really more on the strawberry swirled into vanilla ice cream side -- not so red at all. Here it is mixed with rhodonite, which gets its name from rhododendrons, the flowers. You know me, I like to mix things up, so I've paired it with the unexpected -- gray glass pearls. Pretty, no?

Daffodils -- Can Spring Be Far Behind?

If daffodils are blooming, can spring be far behind? I am so ready for some sunshine and warmer weather -- layering all of these clothes is getting a little tiresome. Funny, I seem to be working on jewelry with brighter gemstones -- yellow jade, golden rutilated quartz, and rhodocrosite. Maybe if I concentrate on the color of yellow long enough, the sun will get the hint and win out over the clouds and the rain.


And, maybe if I concentrate on the beach and all the joy it brings me, I'll be there. Well, a girl can always dream, right?

Strawberries and Cream, Please?

Whenever I see rhodocrosite it just makes me happy. There is something about the peachy-pink color of the stone that gets to me. And, you know me...I am in no way pinky-girly-girl. But I do love this stone. What's even stranger is that I love the gemstones that have some opacity to them -- stones that if you look at closely you can see the more transparent veins running through them; but they are by no means totally clear. You won't find rhodocrosite used much in jewelry -- one because it is hard to find; and two is that, when you do find it, most times it is over-the-top expensive. However, I have seen pieces designed by Jay King (Mine Fines) and Carolyn Pollack (Sincerely Southwest) that incorporated small nuggets and cabs which are beautiful. So when I found these big bold heishe-type stones in Tucson, I went bonkers and bought all they had! Here are the first pieces out of the studio -- they have my definitive look - opaque stones mixed with highly faceted glass beads of varying shapes. There are bracelets too at my Web site so pop on over there and check them out. If you click on the image here you'll get a good close up view of the stones -- sigh.