Talk About Your Inspiration!

For me, a big part of being an artist (jewelry is art in miniature in my book) is taking in every little detail of life around me. Right now, for me, that means looking at lots of flowers. Since I live fairly close to many wholesale-type nurseries. lucky me, I get to shop there this time of year. While I am not much of a gardener, (well, maybe I'm not a gardener at all) I love to plant a few things in containers on my patio.

The winters are so grim in this part of the country -- it is a breath of fresh air to actually see plants and trees with blooms.

This is just one of the many greenhouses at Fessler's on the outskirts of town -- one of my favorite places to get geraniums. My grandma always had geraniums blooming all over her yard, so it is a delightful reminder of her when I see them on my patio. And, when butterflies light on the flowers -- I know it is grandma coming around to say "hi."

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?

A Sure Sign of Spring

Dogwoods! My all time favorite tree and blossom. To me, nothing says spring like a dogwood in bloom. Growing up in SoCal we didn't have dogwoods -- so I think my love affair with the tree started on one of my first visits to Oregon a thousand years ago. While the blossoms (in both white and pink) are gorgeous, the tree itself has a lacy appearance. I love riding on one of the many country roads here and seeing, nestled right in the midst of a stand of evergreens, a glorious dogwood. Have you noticed that without warning my ramblings have become all about flowers. Where's the jewelry? Well, sometimes you just have to let the mind wander.

Miles of Tulips

My brother, the photog, was in town this weekend, so we had to go to the tulip fields just to see if anything had changed since last week. Honestly, between you and me, I had to go to get another fricadelwurst sandwich; not sure if it was the tulips or the food that made me swoon. As you know, I get swept away by the colors in nature. And, vistas such as this totally inspire me to be a bit bolder with some of the color combinations I use in my jewelry designs. Not sure what flashes of brilliance will hit as a result of these pix; but I wanted to share them with you. It's breathtaking to see acres and acres and acres of tulips in bloom. Needless to say, all that beauty builds a mighty big appetite -- so standing in line for 15 minutes to get a sausage sandwich, was well worth the wait.

Nature-Inspired

This azalea graces the walkway leading to my front porch -- totally beautiful. While orange is not a color I have in my wardrobe; it certainly makes an appearance in my jewelry collection. When it comes to the colors of carnelian, fire agate or hessonite garnet -- I say "let the orange shine through." With orange being such a strong fashion color this year -- a good way to get the look but not feel like your auditioning for the role of the Great Pumpkin might be to pop it with a piece of jewelry like the one I've posted here. Paired with white, khaki, tan, browns and yes, even black, the "creamsicle" feel of the design gives your wardrobe the hint of the orange trend without being fashionista trendy. Gosh, I am so happy that spring is really here. I can't wait to see what blooms tomorrow. Seems that once spring comes to this part of the country there is no slowing it down.

Tulips and Fricadelwurst -- A Mighty Combination

I took a break yesterday and went to the Tulip Festival here in town. Yes, there is such a thing and it is pretty amazing. Acres, and acres and acres of tulips. Beatrix and I went with three friends -- two humans and one canine! We attempted to get some good photos of the dogs and the tulips for a Cairn Terrier calendar that is in the works. Not sure what I got yet -- but this is just a snippet. Of course, there was food involved. I had my first fricadelwurst sandwich (we call it "frickin' chicken") from the Mount Angel Sausage Company. Oh my gosh -- YUM! With sauerkraut and spicy mustard -- double YUM! I was taken back to the dirty water dog vendors in NYC. Sigh -- memories are sweet...and tasty. The weather was beautiful and it was fun to be transported to another place for a bit. I have learned that this is a beautiful part of the country when you know where to look.

The Beauty of Spring

Yes, these are real tulips growing on my friends' property. Like I said there is no better artist than mother nature. Breathtaking. I don't have the nerve to post a piece of jewelry here that is "inspired by" -- it just doesn't seem right.

Rainbow Hickoryite - An Old Friend Revisited

I did my Jay King Mine Finds marathon on HSN over the weekend -- so many pretty things and such fun stories. When he presented his new hickoryite designs, I had to go through my inventory and take a look at the few pieces I have for sale on my site. I fell for this stone when I first saw it in Tucson. I hadn't seen them for a bit and it felt as if I was visiting old friends. I love how the gemstone looks "glitzed" up with the Swarovski crystal and gold-plate chain in the 3-strand design of the bracelet. But, I love the simplicity of the necklace as well. This pix shows it layered with a multi-layered link chain necklace from my own jewelry box. You can wear it alone or layer it. You get to be the stylist. I do think the hickoryite necklace and bracelet play off of each other really well.

If you didn't get to see Mine Finds this time around -- check out the new Lake Victoria Jasper necklace he offered. I honestly think I swooned when I saw it. Luckily, no one was in the room to see that! While I don't have this gemstone yet, believe me as soon as I find a source for it I'll add it to my stash. Stay tuned!