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Ruby Lane's Creative Hands Newsletter For April 2009

In This Issue

• Ruby Lane and Artbeads.com Work Together to Support Artisan Jewelers
  
• SHOP SPOTLIGHT: Carol M. Morimoto
  
• ARTISAN SPOTLIGHT: Andrea Danner-Schultz
  
• WELCOME: Mauri Ann Artisan Jewellery
  
• April Bead and Jewelry Shows
  
• Earth Day, Every Day!
  
• Share Creative Hands With A Friend
  

RUBY LANE AND ARTBEADS.COM WORK TOGETHER TO SUPPORT ARTISAN JEWELERS

The finest handcrafted jewelry often begins with the highest quality components. This quality however generally comes at a higher cost and that can create a real challenge for jewelry designers trying to provide attractively priced jewelry in these tough economic times. To help our artisan jewelers face this challenge, Ruby Lane has teamed up with Artbeads.com which is offering a special discount to Ruby Lane shop owners. When it comes to value, we found Artbeads.com to have some of the best prices around especially when you consider the wholesale volume discounts that benefit larger buyers like our artisan jewelry shop owners. Small buyers will also see extra savings since Artbeads.com ships for free in the U.S. and only charges one dollar for shipping to Canada.

Artbeads.com prides itself on having every bead and jewelry component pass strict quality standards. Artbeads supplies over 20,000 items including beads made from glass, crystal and sterling silver, jewelry components, findings, charms and stringing materials. They are also a leading supplier of Swarovski crystal beads, pendants and components totaling nearly 5,000 items.

We were also impressed with the effort Artbeads.com has made to provide designers with inspiration and education through their Jewelry Making Learning Center. It includes over 500 free design ideas, handy tip jewelry making tutorials, insights on fashion trends and resources like Swarovski's design guides.

If you are a Ruby Lane shop owner, Artbeads.com has a special limited-time offer just for you. As a special introductory offer to the Ruby Lane artisan jewelers, Artbeads.com has agreed to provide an exclusive savings coupon good for an additional 15% discount on every order until Midnight on April 26, 2009. This is the largest coupon savings that Artbeads.com has ever given on their entire line of products. The exclusive Ruby Lane coupon code is: SCF15P-RUBYLANE-0409. To use it, simply place an online order at Artbeads.com and enter the code in the coupon box at checkout.

Ruby Lane will continue to scour the marketplace for cost saving partnerships which are designed to benefit our shop owners. If you're not a Ruby Lane Artisan shop owner, you might consider joining our community!

The Team At Ruby Lane

SHOP SPOTLIGHT: CAROL M. MORIMOTO

I've always had a desire to reach out to people which led me to my career as a social worker. On the same token, I've always had a love for crafts that dates back to when I made my mom a "beaded necklace" constructed out of strips of magazine pages. Each "bead" was painted with clear nail polish so it would last and, like a loving parent, my mom proudly wore it and kept it for years among her fine jewelry. Who would have known that this would be the start of something that would later become a passion of mine.

Throughout the years I dabbled in painting, drawing, and even tried my hand at Fimo. Then, six years ago, I visited our local bead store and fell in love with what I saw. I was amazed with the spectrum of colors and shapes before me and was equally impressed with the natural stones created my mother nature. When I first started out, I would take a tray and pick out sterling silver and glass beads with the occasional semi-precious stone. Each bead was carefully chosen to make sure that they were as close to perfection as possible. At this point, even though my inventory was growing, I can't say that I knew exactly what I was going to do with the beads. I decided to start out by learning how to string beads and once again was faced with so many possibilities! Colors that I would never think of putting together turned out to beautifully complement each other and variations in shapes and sizes led to more interesting pieces of jewelry.

Christmas presents that year consisted of handcrafted jewelry. Every piece was carefully designed to reflect each person's individual style and while I loved what I was giving, I was hoping that the recipients felt the same...and they did. It felt wonderful to create something from the heart and be able to share it with others. Several presents later and upon the encouragement of a friend, I decided to try and sell my pieces.

I thought I would start out slowly by participating in a family fun day in our local community. Fifteen hours and not many sales later, I was headed home tired, but still happy and ready for the next opportunity. With the help of friends, I continue to do craft fairs particularly around the holiday season. I'm grateful to have customers who visit me every year looking for that special gift not only for others but for themselves. I truly enjoy working with people to come up with designs for special occasions such as weddings and for that special outfit. I have even had the privilege to create a one-of-a-kind necklace for someone who was walking the red carpet at an awards event.

I've learned some new techniques from the days of stringing such as wire wrapping and fusing fine silver. On the other hand, some things never change. I maintain a love for the different shapes and beautiful colors of beads although my creations now mostly consist of semi-precious stones rather than glass or beads made from magazine pages. I try to find stones that are unusual, have the brilliance that quality stones possess and, like always, are as close to perfection as possible. And at the end of the day, I am truly blessed to be able to connect with people through my work as a social worker and as a jewelry artisan.

Mahalo (thank you) for reading my story and I hope you'll stop by my Ruby Lane shop, Carol M Morimoto, for a visit.

Distinctive handcrafted beaded jewelry w elegance flair using gemstones, pearls crystals

ARTISAN SPOTLIGHT: ANDREA DANNER-SCHULTZ

My name is Andrea Danner-Schultz and I have been making and creating things ever since I can remember. In fact, some of my earliest and fondest memories involve my first big box of 64 Crayola crayons and playing with homemade play dough. Throughout school I took a variety of art classes and even majored in art education in college. After graduation, I taught art in both the public and private school systems for a few years and then made the decision to stay at home when I had my two boys.

When my youngest child started elementary school a couple years ago I made the decision to go back to my art full-time. I am both a painter and a jewelry designer inspired by the beauty that is found in nature. Most of my work features birds, nests, flowers, and plants.

Every morning, before heading into the studio, I start my day by taking our chocolate lab for a walk in the woods near our home in Richmond, Virginia. We often see hawks, squirrels, chipmunks, song birds, herons, deer, and have even seen snakes, owls, and a fox. Some days I even find "treasures" (fern leaves, acorns, sticks, feathers) in the woods to bring back to use in my jewelry.

I was lucky enough two years ago to begin working with a wonderful product by Mitsubishi known as PMC (precious metal clay). I absolutely fell in love with this amazing material. It is an environmentally friendly product made of silver fragments taken from recycled film and added with a natural binding material which is burned out when fired in the kiln. I use stamps and natural elements (sometimes the leaves and acorns I find in the woods) to make my pieces. After they are fired in the kiln and the binding has burned away, I am left with almost pure silver. (.999 silver, sterling is .925) The pieces are then polished, oxidized, and then polished again. The sky is the limit with this incredible art medium and I am constantly coming up with new ideas and ways to challenge myself as an artist. I believe it is important as an artist to continue to learn and grow by learning from other artists and teachers, books, and from the environment around us.

My work can be found in several local galleries and boutiques, and of course on line here at Ruby Lane. By selling on line, I have been able to sell my designs to customers all over the world. I feel so very luck to be able to do what I love for a living!

Artistic Creations Fine Silver, Porcelain, and Stone Jewelry Inspired by Nature

WELCOME: MAURI ANN ARTISAN JEWELLERY

I was born in Birmingham, United Kingdom. In the north of the city Kingstanding, an area affectionately named `Little Siberia' being on a hill and so exposed it was always bitterly cold and winters would bring inches of snow while the City Centre was dry. I attended St. Georges Church of England Secondary School in Hockley, Birmingham, adjacent to the world renowned Birmingham Jewellery Quarters. I then went on to study Fine Jewellery and Gem Setting as part of an apprenticeship at the Birmingham School of Jewellery and Silversmithing in 'The Jewellery Quarters' were I was awarded basic and advanced City and Guilds Qualifications in Fine Jewellery. I then spent 10 years working for a family manufacturer who supplies diamond rings across the United Kingdom and Ireland.

When my children were young, I took a career break and set up a workshop at home to continue my jewellery work. I was always interested in enamelling and as a gift, my family gave me a place in a local short enamelling course. It was while I attended this course that I discovered dichroic glass. I was captivated by its unique beauty and colour shift. As soon as I was able, I purchased a larger kiln and books to learn about how to fuse this new material. I have been working with glass for over 5 years now and I love to incorporate my metalworking skills into my glass pieces whenever I can. This can prove challenging at times with two children.

My family and I recently moved to the beautiful village of Elphin (Ail Fionn - in Irish) an old cathedral town in Ireland. It is legend that St. Patrick stood on the site of old cathedral (now in ruins) and a stream sprang from a rock. Ail means rock and Fionn is the stream that runs through the town. Elphin also has its own 18th Century restored windmill. It is the best place to live especially for my children. I have never been happier.

My whole life revolves around art and has since I was a young child. I think I could not cope with everyday life if I did not create. It makes me feel whole to make something beautiful that will last, unlike the housework which is either never done or never stays done for long.

I was blessed to have some brilliant art teachers while at school (one was previously a jeweller) and I have had access to so many different media. I have tried pottery, batik, silk painting. Woodwork, along with metalwork, enamel glass fusing, and all the traditional pastel, paints, charcoal etc... Inspiration strikes at any time and often without warning and can come from anywhere. Nature, colour combinations, fashion trends, patterns, literature, and doodles I do without thinking while on the phone, sometimes just playing with the glass until I find a combination I like. I even find inspiration from my dreams, I have some of my best ideas just before I wake up so I keep a sketch book by my bed. I always have a head full of ideas and I have sketchbooks overflowing. Most of what I make has been waiting to be created for a while. I only worry I will not have enough time or money to make everything.

I purely started selling my work to be able to buy the supplies I needed to make more, like a self sustaining hobby. Glass and metalwork are expensive crafts, with expensive tools equipment and supplies. I also wanted to share my gift with the world. Now circumstances have changed and I am partly reliant on the income from my craft to keep my family, so now it's more serious, it's a business and I need to turn a profit if I can.

My workshop is a large galvanized shed in the back yard. I like it that way because it's separate from the house and safer for the children that way. I have a jewellers set up with the traditional bench, jewellers peg and skin (to catch the silver and gold dust), an array of hand tools, a micro flame for soldering, a pendant (flexi shaft) drill, a pickle pot, a polishing lathe and Elma ultrasonic cleaner. Then there is the glass working set up, enamelling and fusing kilns, grinder, lampworking set up, and lots of glass. I am just about to start to learn to lamp work. I have wanted to for ages but I have to save hard for any equipment I buy. I love the texture of hot glass. It feels like warm toffee when you drag it across the surface metal while enameling. I can't wait to get started and show everyone the finished results.

Mauri Ann Artisan Jewellery Goldsmith, Enameller, and Fused Glass Artist SRA K-78

APRIL BEAD AND JEWELRY SHOWS

• Apr 4-5: Pittsburg, PA - Intergalactic Bead & Jewelry Show, Iceoplex at Southpointe
  
  
• Apr 10-12: San Mateo, CA - International Gem & Jewelry Show, San Mateo County Expo Center
  
  
• April 10-12: Austin, TX - International Gem & Jewelry Show, Palmer Events Center
  
  
• Apr 17-19: Sarasota, FL - Frank Cox Productions Gem, Jewelry and Bead Shows, Municipal Auditorium
  
  
• April 18-19: Lexington, KY - Gem Expo: Jewelry & Bead Show, Lexinton Convention Center
  
  
• Apr 25-26: Charlotte, NC - Intergalactic Bead & Jewelry Show, Metrolina Expo Trade Center
  
  
• Apr 24-26: Santa Rosa, CA - Gem Faire, Sonoma County Fairgrounds, Grace Pavilion
  
  

EARTH DAY, EVERY DAY!

Marta Weaver Jewelry

Robin's Journey, Necklace

Robin's Journey is a original Marta Weaver creation, intricately handcrafted and lavishly adorned using the highest quality components. This nature ...

Jewelry Fanatic

Earth Goddess Bracelet - Turquoise, Amber, Amethyst

FABULOUS Bangle bracelet... Heidi Kummli style... turquoise, amber, amethyst on ultrasuede! Bracelet can be gently molded to fit around any size of ...

Lone Rock Creations

Chainmaille Necklace ~ European Weave w Rare Larimar Pendant

Normally this type of sheet weave lies flat (see the bracelet on this site) and if you try to wear it as a necklace it just bunches up in strange ...

Jazzy

Go-Go Green Girl: I'd Like to Thank the Academy : Necklace: Recycled Plastic: Telephone Wire: Suede: Starbucks: Stop Global Warming

I'd Like to Thank the Academy Necklace This whimsical Necklace is part of our GO-GO Green Girls collection. This necklace is sure to become a ...

WittchDoc Creations

Carnelian lilies, Emerald, Moss Agate and Gold Vermeil Earrings

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Baubalicious

Blue Planet Unique Lampwork Glass and Swarovski Crystal Cluster Earrings

Blue Planet Handcrafted earrings featuring lampwork lentil beads by a very talented uk artist. I have named these earrings Blue Planet because it is...

LaLore's Custom Jewelry Designs

Red Coral Sterling Silver Lariat

Faceted Red Coral rondelles and red oval wood beads adorn this lovely sterling silver chain. This necklace measures approximately 32 inches in ...

Chameleon Jewelry by Arlene Summers

Cosmic Adventure Pendant Necklace ~ Lampwork: Designer Collection: Handcrafted

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Jonara Blu ~ Maui

Tiger Ebony Tear Drop and Freshwater Pearls on Knotted Silk Cord

Peacock brown dyed freshwater nugget pearls, tiny brown dyed semi round freshwater pearls and a smooth tear drop pendant of tiger ebony wood hand ...

Merkaba Jewelry Design

SEA PETAL Bronzite, Copper, Recycled Glass Necklace

Wow, I love this necklace. It is so big and chunky and organic. Definitely a striking piece of jewelry. I designed this necklace with large Bronzite ...

SHARE CREATIVE HANDS WITH A FRIEND

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