2010 New Year's Resolutions...

I'm still working on my list of New Year's resolutions for 2010!

I have decided on a few though! ;)

1. I want to make this my "Year of Jewelry!" I have set a goal to make 1 piece of jewelry everyday this year...or at least work on something everyday. Yes, things have started out good! :)

2. To dedicate more time to photographing my jewelry and archiving my creations...such as blogging and posting on Etsy! :)

3. To learn more about jewelry design and technique.

4. Not to be such a procrastinator.

5. To continue working towards a healthier life. I lost 42 pounds last year...hope to lose more than that this year. It's a start, right! :)

6. To continue exercising regularly. I started walking on the treadmill last February...I have been walking 5 times a week since then. I feel so much better and plan to continue doing this!

7. Not to be such a hermit! :) LOL Yeah, I've been quite the hermit the past few years. It's kind of funny if you think about it...the stark contrast to my past. When I was younger, I thought the world was ending if I didn't have standing plans for everyday of the week. Now, I enjoy losing myself in creating jewelry, and can't remember the last time I actually had real plans! ;)



I figure this is enough to get me started on a good year!

Wish me luck! ;)

XOXO, Jen

One-year @ the artSHAK!

Today marks one year since Jennifer Gardner Designs first appeared at the artSHAK studio + gallery. Over the past year, around 150 unique pieces of handcrafted jewelry have been displayed for sale at the artSHAK. I am very grateful to the owners, Linda and Thom, for the wonderful opportunity to share my creations!

It has been a great year, and I am looking forward to many more to come!

artSHAK studio + gallery
822 North Howe Street
Southport, NC
(910) 457-1757

My Year of Jewelry...day 2...

A-Tisket, A-Tasket...

Not sure why, but these remind me of this nursery rhyme...with a few adjustments of course! They make me think of a flowers in a basket. So, that's how I'm going to sing it! ;)

A-tisket, a-tasket,
Flowers in a basket...

These earrings are handcrafted out of sterling silver, and feature rhodolite garnet, peridot, freshwater cultured pearls, and vesuvianite.

My Year of Jewelry...day 1...

I named these L'Heure Bleue...

L'Heure Bleue, is a French expression, also know as the "blue hour." It refers to the magical blue light that is cast over everything just before sunrise and just after sunset.

They are handcrafted sterling silver earrings...wire wrapped adorned with genuine sapphire, iolite, and mystic green quartz beads.

Farewell 2009...Hello infinte opportunity in 2010!

It's been a great year, but as the midnight hour approaches my mind has inevitably wandered off in a million directions. It's impossible not to reminisce about everything that has happened in 2009, but mostly I am trying to imagine the possibilities and opportunities that 2010 will bring!

I'm hopeful. I am happy...and I feel blessed.

I believe positive thinking can take you a long way in life, and that it is possible for you to write your own story. Although I admit that I am not without the occasional doubt, for the most part I am an immensely optimistic person.

So, that being said, I'm ready to write my own story for 2010! I won't share all the details yet, but I'll keep you posted on how it plays out! :)

"Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man." - Benjamin Franklin

XOXO, Jen

Sometimes I just can't believe how fast time flies by. I always have good intentions of blogging, but never seem to follow through. I think the biggest problem is that I have no concept of time! I often get tied up in a project and before I know it, hours have passed in what seemed like mere seconds. I'm not sure if that is a good thing or bad thing...but what I can tell you is that I love creating things. I love art...making jewelry...painting...ANYTHING creative.

Anyway, as summer comes to an end and fall begins, I am feeling more inspired than I have in months. I'm not sure why...maybe it's something in the air! :) The past two or three weeks I have been working on quite a few new pieces. I'm learning some new techniques and really enjoying experimenting with metal and soldering. One of the main things on my agenda in the coming days will be to restock my Etsy shop. It's been a little bare for a few months. I've had several people ask what happened to all the jewelry. This is kind of a 2 part answer! LOL ;) First, the jewelry in the shop was sent to artSHAK studio + gallery in Southport, NC. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that I am now selling my jewelry there...anyway, I'm very excited to share that it has been doing really well! Since January, I have been sending a new shipment every 3-4 weeks. I have sent close to 100 pieces since January! Back in April, we spent 5 days at Oak Island, and I stopped by to deliver quite a few pieces. I snapped a couple of shots of the gallery while I was there!

(My mom in the green and Linda, one of the owners.)

Okay, the second reason my Etsy shop is empty, is because I've been a little slack this summer! :) I have felt like a kid on summer vacation! ;) I spent most of the summer reading by the pool! I know, I'm terrible...but I read some great books! Anyway, as summer comes to an end, as will my slacking off...maybe! ;) You know, it was kind of a weird summer for me. I don't really know why...and I can't really explain it...hmmm. It was nice though. A little cooler than most summers here in the south. I went to Myrtle Beach in August. I haven't been there in years. Boy, it was hot the week we were there. It was the first time I had been there since they tore down the Pavilion. It's weird, and a little sad. Man, I could sure go for some ocean time now!!! ;)

I bought a new digital SLR camera a few months ago. It is really amazing...I've been playing around with it. This is the first camera I've ever had that isn't a point and shoot deal! When I purchased the camera, they gave me coupons for free classes. I can't wait to take some of them! I could definitely use the help! I did get a pretty cool shot if the moon a while back...

Speaking of classes...a few months ago I came across another artist's website...her name is Victoria Lansford...and I can not wait to take one of her classes. In the mean time, I'm going to order the DVD's! ;) I have to admit, I have been playing around with the torch and wire, with the russian filigree technique...but then again, I've always have been the type to have at it and ask questions later! ...but I'm still going to order the DVD's! ;) I wish there were some classes offered here, in Charlotte!!! :) Especially the locket class and the repoussé class. Here's a sneak peak of what I've been making...

I haven't decided what I want in the center of the flower yet...and haven't quite decided on the necklace either...heck, by the time I'm finished, it may not even have a pearl on it! I even stamped a "G" on the back of the flower for me! One day maybe I'll invest in a personalized stamp! :)

We need more classes in Charlotte, geared towards jewelry making and metalsmithing! Maybe I just haven't found them??? The truth is, I wish I could go back to school and get a degree in metalwork...I have tons of books, but there is only so much you can pick up through reading.

Anyway, enough rambling for now...

WOW...2009!

WOW, New Year's has come and gone and now it's March. I can not believe how fast time is passing. What can I say....I don't really have an excuse for not writing sooner...I'm just a slacker! I have been off in my own little world of creating and playing around with metal, wire, and beads! :) LOL Sometimes it feels like the days blend together! I feel blessed to be able to spend my time creating something I love! However, I also feel a tinge of guilt for being so selfish with my time and being such a procrastinator when it comes to other things. Anyway!

Have I confessed my distaste for computers and technology lately? No??? Well, I hate computers...this one especially! It is a lemon! I've nothing but problems with it since I bought it. I tell it I'm going to throw it out the front door if it don't play nice, but then it just acts worse! :) LOL

I haven't been using the computer lately...it just results in more frustration than success! :) I guess I really should contact tech support, but the last few times I did that, I knew more about it than they did...which isn't saying much! It's about like the saying..."the blind, leading the blind." :) I guess it's time to do something though! I think I'm going to buy a Mac.

So, I bet you all thought I had dropped off the face of the earth? Now you know why I haven't been online! I am sooo sorry for being out of contact for so long. I just haven't been able to make myself use this computer!

So, last time I posted was October! Wow....a lot has happened since then...

My uncle passed away November 2, 2008. So, the holidays and past few months were a little difficult for my family, especially my aunt and cousins. We have had a lot of deaths in our family over the past few years...I family is getting smaller and smaller. I'm an only child, but my mom has 3 sisters...and I have cousins. We are all really close...I don't know what I would do without them!

We spent New Year's at the beach (Caswell Beach, NC). It was a gorgeous week! It was loud and chaotic...just as it always is! :) I met with Linda at the artSHAK Gallery while I was down there. She loved my jewelry, and asked if I would like to show some of it in the gallery. It's doing great...over half of the pieces I left have sold! I have my second order going to the gallery tomorrow. So, it was a great trip!!!! The artSHAK Gallery is located in Southport, NC, which is...by the way, my favorite place...where I hope to one day live!!! Have I mentioned I love Southport? :) LOL The gallery on Howe Street near Dosher Hospital. I love the gallery!!! So, you can imagine how excited I was for the opportunity!!!

March 1st, it snowed! It was the most snow we have had in years. We have had crazy weather...but I guess that's normal for the Carolinas! So, last Monday, the high was 35 and there was snow on the ground, and this past Monday, it was 83 and sunny. What is it the say about March??? In like a lion, out like a lamb!

Anyway, that's all for now! :) I have been working on a LOT of new pieces...can't wait for you to see them! :)

xoxo - Jen