Spice Market

Already the end of October... The kids are decorating the house for Halloween tomorrow and I am preparing for Portobello West Market that will also be tomorrow... Yes, it sucks, I'll have to pack up and rush back home at the end of the day to be there for "trick or treat"... Can't miss that!

Here's a little sneak peek at what I'll be having on my table at the Market : some new "One thousand and One Nights" necklaces and earrings in spicy colors : paprika, saffron, cinnamon, curry and thyme...


"Mille et une nuits" necklaces and earrings - Swarovski crystal baroque pendants, Moroccan silk beads in paprika, saffron, cinnamon, curry and thyme

Bientôt l'été!

I almost fell off my chair this morning when I saw the date on my computer : June 1st... June 1st?... It means that the Spring Fab Fair is at the end of this week, summer is just to follow (we NEED sunshine here... badly!) and school is going to be finished soon... so the kids are going to be on holidays... so it's going to be chaos here every day...

After a few minutes of total panic and a cup of strong tea, I decided that everything was fine and I "regrouped " (as hockey players say on TV... yes, I am becoming more and more Canadian!) while taking a few pictures of my newest creations, some long and funky necklaces called "Guirlandes estivales" (summer garlands).



I must say that I am really excited to present these necklaces at the Fair this weekend because I think that they absolutely ROCK! I love the cheerfulness of the bright jade flowers, the warmth of the wood beads, the elegance of the Swarovski crystals, the softness of the silk string around the neck and the whimsicality of the little charms : )



And if I don't sell them this weekend, it's ok, I'll wear them all at the same time this summer and I'll look super cool : )

Birdies

It's pretty chilly outside but it's officially springtime and little birdies are tweeting and flying around everywhere...


Little birdies are also back into my Etsy shop in lots of colors (light yellow, teal blue, sweet lavender, warm red...) with one of my favorite designs : my "Dans les bois" necklaces, featuring adorable handmade polymer clay birds and beautiful wood beads (dark tiger ebony or warm honey-colored bayong).

Swarovski crystals give a sparkly touch to the composition.

A cute little canary...

The Spring version of "Le jardin du peintre" featuring Czech glass flowers and a silver sparrow framed in a tiger ebony rectangle and hanging from a black leather cord and a very pastoral brown leaf ribbon...

Tweet, tweet...

Cherry Blossoms

There is nothing like a tree full of cherry blossoms to celebrate the arrival of Spring! Doesn't the world look more beautiful under a cherry tree in bloom? Suddenly, the sky becomes pink and life seems as light and sweet as cotton candy... well, at least, for a moment...

"Fleurs d'agate", a necklace with cream and beige felt flowers, peach freshwater pearls and orange bamboo leaf agate...


Some new "Frou-frou de fleurs" earrings with springy colors : )

Celebration!

"Special", sculpture by ArtMind.

Time flies, my friends... I realized the other day that I opened my little Etsy shop TWO years ago and I can say, without exaggeration, that it has changed my life!

First, because discovering Etsy was such an exhilarating experience : I remember like yesterday the pleasure of being able to see, admire and buy the work of so many crafters, artisans and artists from all around the world, and being inspired to express my own creativity. And second, of course, because having my own little corner on the Internet and putting my creations for sale gave me a new focus, a new artistic medium and also, a new identity...

Looking back at my very first listings, I thought that showing some of my first necklaces would be a nice way to celebrate this anniversary : )




"Chic coquelicot" necklace, purple felt poppy with a beaded centre, and light blue freshwater pearls.
"Bouquet de violettes" necklace, a bouquet of purple and red felt flowers, with freshwater pearls and frosted Czech glass.
"Bouquet d'amour", a Mini Olala necklace with pink and red flowers, bright lampwork glass beads and sparkly Czech glass.

And during the whole month of March, I am offering FREE SHIPPING worlwide in my shop.
Enjoy : )

More love...

I told you last weekend that it was my older son's birthday (the party went smoothly, the boys really had a blast at laser tag!) but this weekend, my husband and I are celebrating our 11th wedding anniversary.... Incroyable!!! Eleven years!?!? It seems long and short at the same time : long because it's crazy to think that 11 years went by without us noticing, and short because it feels like we've been together forever...

Anyway, as promised last week, here are a few of my newer, sexier and REDer creations to celebrate life and love :

A new version of my "Première" necklace from the Fall, now with a bright red carved cinnabar butterfly, white rabbit jade, onyx and Japanese tensha beads. I kept the original "opera" length - 26.5 inches.


Obviously, this bracelet is NOT red but I find it very sexy : it's called "Mélodie nocturne" and is composed of black onyx, crystal, Murano style lampwork glass and silver rosebuds...


One of my very first designs is back in the shop : "Carmen", my flamenco-inspired lariat necklace, is now featuring a red felt poppy with a French metal button, red glass beads, black and sparkly Czech glass seed beads and two lovely silver tassels.


And last but not least, here's "Carnaval rouge", a bracelet with red, purple and orange Italian resin beads and one copper-coated resin bead mounted on an elastic and finished with a trio of ribbons... This one is guaranteed to make you smile all day long : )

Have a lovely weekend!

Fun Fab Fair : )

Last weekend, it was the Winter Fab Fair... and it was fun! Lots of people came on Saturday, a bit less on Sunday but there were lots of fairs and cultural events happening in Vancouver that weekend.

I thought I would share with you a few pictures of my display and jewelry, for which I received lots of compliments : )


My bird cage with my "Dans les bois" necklaces and earrings are always a big hit!


This "Feuillage d'or" necklace was bought by a lovely daddy for his daughter : )


My collection of "Goutte d'automne" necklaces featuring Brazilian agates attracted lots of compliments...


People always love touching and trying these ebony wood bracelets on! They are sooooo smooth...


And here's myself and my dear friend Andrea who always comes to help me when I have a craft fair : )

Of course, I met some super nice vendors and I could not resist buying a few pieces from them... I am especially fond of my new ring by Spark design but I'll write a special post about it soon...

(Thank you Elvira for these nice pictures of my display : )

It's blue!

The new Winter Fab Fair poster is out and it is blue!... It is very nice and quite frankly, I think it goes very well with some of the latest items I have listed in my shop :

"Fleur de coton" necklace - white carved cinnabar flower, blue sponge coral, bronzite, cloisonne beads and brass

This necklace is also part of my "Opera collection" as it is 26.5 inches long and it is versatile : it can be worn with a sweater and a pair of jeans or an elegant dress : )

Another version of my "Frou-frou de fleurs" earrings but this time, in green, blue, grey and cream with gunmetal chains....

Ok, now look at the dates : November 21st and 22nd.... in 4 weeks.... Gosh, I've got some work to do! See ya!

Mini Olala is going solo!

A couple of weeks ago, I decided that I should open another shop on Etsy to separate my Mini Olala jewelry for little girls from my "grown-up" jewelry.

The thought behind this decision was that it might be a little confusing for the viewers and customers of Olala design to find some items for children listed in the same shop. Creating a shop only dedicated to children would also give me the opportunity to list more items like hair clips and small brooches for instance...

So, you are invited to visit my new shop : www.MiniOlala.etsy.com

This mini butterfly bracelet was the 1st sale of my new shop this week : )

Mini Olala's pink and sparkly packaging - of course!