ponedjeljak, 29. kolovoza 2011.

Mustard Friendly on Monday Moodboard

One of today's trending tags on Etsy is mustard and I'm glad it is because otherwise I would not think about making a treasury with that color. And it turned out to be awesome, I really like it.

My picks for today's Monday Moodboard:


1. krize
2. crafts2love
3. theancientmuse
4. ZsBcreations

Check out the whole treasury:


Other Monday Moodboards can be viewed on Star of the East's blog.

ponedjeljak, 22. kolovoza 2011.

The place I want to be @ Monday Moodboard

It is so hot in Croatia and there are predicting another hothothot week. My daughter is at the seaside and I would like to be there so much... There is a place on the Croatian coast that we always visit on the summer vacation - Duce. It is a place with sandy beaches and we rent an appartment in a house right next to the beach. So that's where I'd like to be now :)


This selection of beautiful arts from Etsy reminds me on Duce :)


1. zuppaartista
2. azulado
3. JKphotography
4. GiftsandStars

Check out other Monday Moodboarts @ Star of the East blog.

utorak, 16. kolovoza 2011.

Peridot - August, Balance, Money...

In their Merchandising Desk for August, Etsy announced that PERIDOT is one of the hot supplies for items listed. Check out the August issue of Merchandising Desk.

Peridot is a birthstone of astrological signs Leo and Virgo. It has a beautiful green color. It's said to bring emotional balance and it's also called the Money Stone. They say you have to keep it in the money box (wallet?) to draw money to you. You also have to add the citrine to help you keep it. I need citrine desperately :)

I currently have two pairs of earrings and a necklace featuring peridot in my shop. One pair of earrings is a typical wire-wrapped pair and the others combine wire-wrapping with some traditional silversmithing skills, using silver sheet.


1. wire-wrapped chandelier earrings
2. necklace
3. earrings using silver sheet

I love peridot!!!

ponedjeljak, 11. srpnja 2011.

Owl Madness Monday Moodboard by doKIDyourself

I have problems with the lack of time! Or is it time management??? Not enough time for crafting, blogging etc.

Recently I opened a new shop to display my love for kids' stuff. Not necessarily stuff to be worn by kids but for everyone who likes fun cute stuff!
Check out my doKIDyourself shop!!!

Is it only me or is there a certain owl madness on Etsy???

I have a love for owls for quite some time now and I love making them - these are mine:

So my doKIDyourself alter ego made a new treasury yesterday and it featured owls made by various artists, using various techniques - Owl treasury.

My Monday Moodboard features four of them:


1. meilingerzita
2. karensagez
3. ShishLOOKdesign
4. CraftUnikat

The other Monday Moodboards can be seen at Star of the East blog.

ponedjeljak, 4. srpnja 2011.

Little Red Riding Hood in a Dark Dark Wood @ Monday Moodboard

Yesterday I made a treasury which really made me smile :) and I love every single item I picked for it!

You can check all the chosen items on Etsy, of course! Look at all these beautiful pieces of art - Little Red Riding Hood in a Dark Dark Wood

Just a preview:


1. matilou
2. LeelaBijou
3. Kteis
4. NatashaMay

Check out other moodboards at Star of the East!

ponedjeljak, 27. lipnja 2011.

Monday Moodboard: Natural Greens

Here's a selection from a treasury of mine that was made last week. I just love these green natural tones!


1. MadeByFire
2. JKphotography
3. steinschmuckdesign
4. artwatercolor

Be sure to check out other moodboards at Star of the East!

ponedjeljak, 20. lipnja 2011.

Cute stuff on Monday Moodboard

So I'm totally into cuteness recently!
I opened a new shop - doKIDyourself and I'm childishly happy about all the cute stuff!

So I chose some other cute items for today's moodboard:


1. meilingerzita
2. BHBKidstyle
3. sabahnur
4. krize

Be sure to check out other moodboards at Star of the East!

ponedjeljak, 13. lipnja 2011.

Purple Monday Moodboard

I love this way of sharing and loving each other's items :)

My choice for today is purple:


1. starflycreations
2. Intres
3. janinebasil
4. Brigite

Other this week's Monday Moodboards can be seen at Star of the east.

nedjelja, 12. lipnja 2011.

Friday is my day

I've been featured on Friday on a great blog - Friday is my day.

The idea is to pick one Etsy's seller each week and the featured person describes his or her day.



Thank you, Morrgan / Maria and have a happy birthday!!!

ponedjeljak, 6. lipnja 2011.

Monday Moodboard - The Lightness of Being

Yesterday I made a treasury that I like soooooo much.
So I decided to use some of the chosen items and feature them in today's moodboard.
Please check out the other selected items in my treasury - The Lightness of Being.


1. KUKLAstudio
2. andrea0503
3. enchantedpond
4. BuyMyCrap


Check out other Monday Moodboards featured by EuropeanStreetTeam members @ Star of the East!

četvrtak, 19. svibnja 2011.

not so precious :)

After working with precious metals for a while, it is sometimes really liberating to work with less expensive materials. Especially now that the prices of silver have risen to the long forgotten levels...

Anyway, I ordered some bronze wire a while ago and started playing with it. It is a phosphor bronze wire –a cooper and tin alloy.

Just a few impressions for those that think about working with it:
- it’s harder than silver, which sometimes isn’t bad (the wire came in dead soft shape but the dead soft bronze is much less softer than the dead soft silver)
- that also makes it harder for soldering – the pin heads don’t come out as nice as with silver (am I doing something wrong? :D )
- there is an additional problem with soldering: I ordered some bronze solder but it’s not working, not reliable at all - silver solder is working perfectly but there is a problem of color then (it might be used for hidden or oxidized spots)
- when oxidized (with chemical that is intended to use on bronze), the liquid and the item appears like it’s rusty – the upper layer patina comes off easily and looks like black dust, but it looks great after the item is cleaned and polished :)))

So, I started to describe the feeling I get when I play (because I feel as I really can play) with less expensive materials. It’s not so burdening, like I don’t have such a respect for it as I do for silver. I started working with silver several years ago, I’d say around four, and I haven’t been using many non-precious materials since then. I would sometimes take some hobby wire, but those are usually plated, so it’s easily scratched and damaged, whether in the creation process or later. And I don’t like it.

This one is not plated or color coated, it has a nice color, it looks great when oxidized (I am an oxidizing freak) and it’s not so expensive as silver.

So I played with it yesterday and I’m really satisfied with the result. It's kind of chaotic, which is not really typical for my structured self ;)
Yay! Summer on the way :)

četvrtak, 5. svibnja 2011.

How it is sometimes a bad idea to risk with experiments

I'm really prone to experimenting and risk taking in making decisions!
So I was in a very good mood recently to try making a vintage-style key necklace with a Swarovski pendant...
It seemed like a perfect idea to oxidize it at the end to achieve that vintage style that I love so much.

(Btw. al my jewelry pieces are oxidized – I wonder if that’s smart?!)

I even tested the Swarovski after already making the pendant – I immersed another one in the patina liquid to see whether it would react but nothing happened.
Yay, celebration!!!

But then I put the silver wire-wrapped pendant with the Swarovski in the liquid and I was so confident that I let it swim for a little longer.
When I noticed small metal particles floating around, I knew something was wrong :(

And after I took the pendant out of the patina, I could notice the sad change... the crystal lost at least a half of its previous shine...

It looks good to me anyway; it’s just not something I would sell to someone, except someone explicitly asked for it, knowing about this tragic story ;)

So here’s the final picture and I’ll add the original pendant picture as well.

The lesson to be applied (as my favorite band, Pearl Jam would say) – Swarovski and oxidizing chemicals are not what you would call best buddies!!!
Bear that in mind :)


ponedjeljak, 11. travnja 2011.

carried away necklace

I really like structure, I'm just such a type od person.
Sometimes I really struggle to make an assymetrical piece...
You see this piece? It reminds me of this struggle od mine: it is playful but it has a strong structure: the bezel is centered on a piece of a fine silver sheet. Then some beads are added - those are not all the same size, just to avoid being boring :D
Then, to make things more complicated, two long pieces of fine silver wire are wrapped and attached to the sheet... The pendant hangs on a simple leather necklace.
I'm just wondering if that's too much...
Perhaps my jewelry reflects my personality, which would indicate that I'm not a simple person :))))
Your opinions are appreciated ;)
And if you like the necklace, this is the link to the shop: http://www.etsy.com/listing/71478390/carried-away