Create your masterpiece
Practice they say makes perfect. To really be good at what you do, you must invest time and effort. I can only imagine how many hours the create composers like Mozart and Handel spent perfecting their musical skills. I believe Picasso did not just wake up one day and start painting masterpieces. According to Wikipedia, he started off painting watercolours in school and he took a drawing course before he even started taking commission work.
Pick your favourite musician,actor, actress….{insert any famous person you admire}, put their name in Wikipedia and read about their early career. You’ll find that their achievement is an accumulation of time invested in getting to the top.
I started my training post to become an eye surgeon last week. It is a totally different world from what I’m used to. The first few days was so overwhelming, I felt like I hardly knew anything. The good thing is that i working with an excellent team who are very supportive. Most of my seniors said they felt the same way when they started. I’m sure with time i’ll learn the ropes and i will wonder what all the big fuss was about!
Okay in my last post i mentioned the new logo; here it is:
I’m really pleased with the outcome. The logo team I commissioned to design it were really brilliant and professional. Now that the logo is all sorted, I can start working on the website. Okay I’m not that brilliant when it comes to web designing. But thankfully I have a brilliant sister who is! She designed this website for a client; and she has will be helping me out with my own website.
Have a great week and remember to invest time and effort in all you do this week. If you set your mind to it you can achieve it.Have a great week!
Bouquet of flowers
My mate’s wedding went well!! The weather was lovely, the bride looked stunning and the groom couldn’t stop smiling. The food was great and the guest had fun. All in all it was a brilliant wedding.There is something about getting married that makes a girl look absolutely stunning. I’m yet to see a bride that didn’t look stunning on her big day. My friend looked so beautiful in her gown. I wish I could put up pictures but I haven’t managed to get her permission so I won’t.
Rather than the traditional white or cream shoes, she wore blue shoes!!!! I was so excited when she pulled up her dress to show me. I’ve always said I won’t be wearing white shoes on my big day. I’m gonna wear some bright coloured shoes!
I stumbled on some pictures of beaded bridal bouquet. They looked stunning. Not only could it be used on the wedding day, it would also make a beautiful decoration. I think these bouquets are too lovely to toss though. If i had one of these beauties I don’t think I’d be tossing them to the girls!!! I’d keep them all to myself.
Love the blue and silver combo
These hand-crafted beauties are from BeadFloraJewels etsy store.
French Beaded Pink wedding bouquet and Groom Buttonhole from "SvetS etsy shop""
While on the subject of wedding bouquets, check out these stunners made entirely from paper. I stumbled (literally via stumble upon!) these on the internet…. I love the concept.
Paper Flowers from New, Recycled, Handmade and Vintage Paper; created by Wire&paper (click on the picture to go to their Facebook page)
Paper Flowers from New, Recycled, Handmade and Vintage Paper; created by Wire&paper (click on the picture to go to their Facebook page)
What do you think about these? Is it something you might go for on your big day or would you rather stick to more traditional bouquet?
It’s a brand new month (yay!). Hope this month is a good one for you. You hold the key to your destiny so make things happen this month! Have a brilliant week ahead
Wedding bells are ringing
Summer would just not be complete without a wedding! A very good friend is getting married in a few days and I’m so excited. I love weddings, they are so much fun. I’m really looking forward to this wedding because I’ve known the bride and groom for several years and I will get to see old friends I haven’t seen in several years.
I’ve got a new black and beige dress I bought last month especially for the big day. I was going to wear my pearl set with it but I think I might treat myself and make myself some new jewellery. Its being a while since I made myself something.
I’ve just got myself a custom order for a client! She has asked me to create jewellery sets to give to her co-workers for christmas presents. She is so well organised!! Remind me of a post i read over at Zuri Perle’s blog: “I want it now”. In the past I’ve turned down a few clients because they just could not give me enough time to create their jewellery. If you are thinking of getting custom-made jewellery(which by the way is an excellent idea, be sure to give enough time and plan ahead.
The new logo is finally finished and I’m loving it. Have a look at our twitter page for a sneak peek (and be sure to follow us as well!) Have a great weekend!
Unconventional materials
What do the following pieces have in common?
Did you figure it out?????
Yes, these jewellery are all made of paper!!! If you look hard enough you’ll see it! Who would have thought paper would look so good. I love it when artist use unconventional material to create wearable jewellery. Again these designers have “pushed the boat further” and created wonderful wearable pieces. Here’s more information about these pieces and the fabulous designers behind them.
Picture 1: The website is not written in english so I haven’t got a description to go with this piece. But I’m sure you’ll agree this is a fabulous piece of wearable art. Check out the designers website for more fabulous creations:http://www.luisacosta.nl/index.html
Picture 2: PINK CURVA by Frucci Design-paper jewelry by francesca Vitali. The pendant was created from “Recycled magazine pages,sterling silver, steel cable coated with nylon and magnet.” I really love this necklace. Firstly its a lovely shade of purple and the geometric effect makes it look very edgy.
Picture 3: This piece is created by a designer who uses various media including paper to create her fabulous jewellery. I stumbled across her Facebook page and I was amazed. I’ve seen jewellery made of paper before but her work is one of the best I’ve come across so far. Check out her page for more!
So remember to keep pushing the boat and strive to be different! Have a great week
Disclaimer: I’ve linked the pictures to the creators pages and I take absolutely no credit for them; all the hard work is down to the designers. I share them so you all can enjoy them!
Pushing the boat
I recently went to Canada to visit a friend of mine. I had such great fun. I was only there for 10 days but we managed to visit thee cities(Montreal,Ottawa and Toronto). In Toronto we went to the Bata Shoe museum;it contained a wide array of shoes from all over the ages. There shoes in the front window that caught my eye. I’m not sure if these shoes can actually be worn but what I liked was the concept behind the design. The artists set out to create something avant grande and different and they have achieved their goal
They decided not to go with the status quo, but they have pushed the concept of what a shoe is to a different level.
My watch word for the 2nd half of 2011 is “Push the boat a bit further”. Rather than settle for the ordinary, I will look for ways to go that extra mile, aim a little higher, do a bit more…. what ever it takes to make me better in what Ido.
Here’s to a wonderful second half of 2011! Make the most of it friends, time sure does fly before you know it we’ll all be saying Merry Christmas!
Crystal distractions.
July has always been a month of transition for the last 8 or so year. When i was at University, it signalled the end of the academic year and the start of the Holiday. Even know in my professional life, July also signals the end of the “medical” year. Come August,doctors all over the U.K change jobs and move one step further in their training.
This July I’ve been working on new ideas and innovation for The Colour Couture brand. I’ve started working on my Spring/Summer 2012 collection. Yes you read right; the spring/summer 2012 collection! I initially started working on the Autumn/Winter collection but i kept getting distracted by pack of multi-coloured Swarovski crystals sitting on my workshop desk. They were just so sparkly and gorgeous i had to tip them out of the bag into my beading board.I was inspired by the book I’m studying. It’s all about use of colour in jewellery design. I think what I’ve learnt so far really helped in arranging the colour sequence.
Using a bead board makes things so much easier. I pick the coloured crystals from the central hole with my tweezers and arrange them on the bead board with in the order i want.
After stringing the crystals on a piece of beading thread, i attached the two stands to a silver ring. I finish the necklace with black satin ribbon. If you look at the bead boar you'll se I've already started on the second piece!
Sneak preview of the finished necklace.
I’m quite pleased with the results. I hope I get more flashed of inspiration when I’m designing the winter collections. Enjoy the rest of your week, see you soon x
Looking to the future
One of the many reasons I love going on holiday is that it gives me a chance to recharge my batteries. The last month has been very stressful for me with so much going on in both my personal and emotional life. Its been ages since I created a new piece of jewellery, when I get stressed, my creativity goes out the window. Even though I’d booked it more than six months ago, my recent holiday couldn’t have come at a better time.
I’ve come back home feeling very refreshed with lots of new ideas to take Colour Couture to the next level. Some of the new plans are already in the pipe works.
New Logo: After months of back and forth with my logo designers, The new Colour Couture logo is almost ready, it just needs a few tweeks here and there.
New website: At the start of the year I started designing a new website. It looked nice but i was still not happy with it. Though I’ve spent several months working on it, I’ve gone back to the drawing board. One of my mottos comes to mind “whatever is worth doing is worth doing well”
New direction: So far my jewellery creations has contained various designs and style. After doing market research and listening to my customers, I’m working on streamlining my designs and developing a unique style and brand for the Colour Couture.
I have no doubt its going to be a lot of work, but when I look at the future it is very bright and full of Colour!
Small things count
“Success is doing ordinary things extraordinarily well- Jim Rohn”
I made my first piece of jewellery about 6 years ago. I remember it quite clearly. I was a necklace made of red coral coloured seed beads. It was a two strand necklace strung on ordinary sewing thread. I didn’t know where to get a clasp for so i used the clasp of an old broken necklace. I was so proud of my necklace when I finished it. I wore it to university the very next day. Unfortunately my necklace lasted only two days. I was in the bus and I I remember trying to take off scarf i had round my neck. All of a sudden there was a shower of beads all over the floor of the bus. Thank fully I was getting off at the last stop so i was saved from the embarrassing stares of my fellow passengers!
I’ve come a long way from my early beginnings but the lesson i learnt is one of the fundamental principles of The Colour Couture: Quality. Everytime I’ve tried to cut corners, its had come back to bite me in the behind. When applying finishing touches to my creations, i always check to ensure things are finished properly: knots secured, wire end tucked in so it doesn’t snag on clothing, loops closed well e.t.c. What ever it worth doing is worth doing well!!
I unearthed some pictures of a collection i created in the early days of The Colour Couture. It’s given me great ideas for my autumn collection. Enjoy and Have a great weekend.
The Colour Couture Venice Collection, Spring/Summer 2008
Jewellery Care tips
| Last week, i shared some tips on how to keep your jewellery tidy. I thought we’d talk a bit more about jewellery care. Here are more tips on how to preserve the life of your jewellery so you can keep wearing them for year to come.(Extract from thecolour couture.com) |
| Even diamonds if not looked after properly will not last forever. Our jewellery is made from high quality materials and good care is essential to maintain them in good state. Here are some tips on how to maintain the beauty of your colour couture jewellery. |
| General CareApply make-up and spray perfume before putting your jewellery on. This minimises the exposure to these chemical which overtime can cause damage.
Remove your jewellery when doing strenuous or high-impact activites. Take your jewellery off before swimming. Immersing some gemstones in water can cause permanent damage and chlorine wrecks havoc on jewellery. |
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Sterling Silver Storing silver in the open air and humidity for extended period of time can cause it to tarnish quickly. This is caused by oxidation and warm moisture in air. It is important to regularly clean your silver items to minimise tarnishing and retain the silver shine. We would recommend a silver cleaning cloth. If using cleaning solution ensure it is intended for use on sterling silver. Don’t leave your jewellery exposed to the air when not in use; store them in jewellery boxes or pouches. |
| GemstonesClean your semi-precious gemstones using a moist soft cloth. Avoid using chemical cleaning fluids and ultrasonic cleaners.
Have you got any top tips on how to care for your jewellery? Do share with my readers! Have a great week ahead! I hope the weather stay lovely. Heres to a sun filled week
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Keep it in “tip-top” Shape!
When ever a client buys jewellery from The Colour Couture, I often give them tips on how to store their jewellery. It’s no good spending money on your jewellery only to leave them all tangled up on the dressing table. Hard gemstones and metals can easily scratch on softer stones such as pearls. Not only is it very frustrating trying to untangle piles of jewellery, you also run the risk of breaking and damaging them.Dust and moisture will damage many semi-precious and precious gemstones. Also, sterling silver will tarnish if left exposed to the air.
If your jewellery box looks like this……..
….then here are a few suggestions on how to store your jewellery and keep them in tip top shape.
Hand Painted Earrings Holder On a Stand - Its All In The Frame ( from tammnoony's etsy store)
Build your jewellery box using Stackers jewellery trays
Stackers jewellery box
- Earring jewellery box. You could keep studs earrings as well as chandelier type earrings
Cleverest Jewellery Box: Quite an interesting concept: You buy the jewellery box with comes with different types of inserts that fit into the box.
You pick the inserts you want, and they fit nicely in the box
Printers Drawer Jewelry Display: I love the elegance of this storage system. Shame it wound fit in my tiny bedroom (from bluebirdheaven's etsy shop)
There are many other ways to keep your jewellery tidy. How do you keep your tidy? Are your more of a jewellery box person? Have you found a unique way of storing your jewellery? Do share with us we’d love to know. Here’s to a tidy dressing table and goodbye to tangled jewellery!
Colour Couture 