ParksAndOlive Gets OutAndAbout!

Hi folks, this holiday season get up close and personal with ParksAndOlive jewelry!! In Portland, check it out at the awesome VintageVintage PDX! And starting Nov 17th, see my work at Handcrafted for the Holidays @Studios on the Park in Paso Robles, CA. Enjoy!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Hi everyone. I'm channeling Martha Stewart today, photographing the new Medium Button Ring (81.00) with Martha's favorite peonies. Heck, they're my favorite too.

This month, I'm creating a line of Button Rings for a little shop in downtown Portland. So excited to see how they all turn out!!

But in the meantime, I want to wish all the moms out there a VERY HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!! Have a great one : )

Water Cast Bubble Ring

How do I love thee, bubble ring? Let me count the ways.

I love how the water cast "bubbles" are completely random and organic.

I love that the 18k gold is recycled from old gold chains.

I love that the forget-me-not flowers are blooming in my garden.

I love creating beautiful objects that are completely unique.

Happy spring, people!!!

One is Silver and the Other's Gold

A couple of good updates. The last week or so I've been diving in and finishing up some lingering pieces before starting on some new work. Actually treating Parks & Olive as the side business it is turning into!

Finished the 18k gold band and I'm SO happy with it. Ended up adding a soft texture to the metal. It was just what the piece needed.

Unabashedly swiped the idea of styling a jewelry piece on a flower stem from my dear, artistic daughter. She had recently designed a similar shoot for The Dreslyn.

Been really pushing to get my photography better for the pieces. I had heard from several folks that natural light was the way to go for jewelry. But man, oh man, my lighting was all over the place!!! I was getting almost frustrated, then, as a last resort I dragged out my lights. My smallest little lightbox lights worked perfectly and really did the trick.

At last, I've got silver looking like silver, and gold looking like gold. Oh happy day!!

My First...

So, so happy to make my first little sale last week!! I love this necklace. I carved a curvy, sloping egg out of the hard blue wax, then had it cast in silver by my great casting guy in Arroyo Grande. I used three different drills to set the garnet, then burnished the hell out of it to move the silver over and lock the stone in place. Really pleased with how this turned out.

Lots more pieces being photographed this week! They should post shortly (next week) to my little Etsy site - https://www.etsy.com/shop/ParksAndOlive : )

Babysteps

I've realized I need a jewelry blog in addition to my other bloggy endeavors. I need a place to share my exciting new pieces in progress, my work process, my finished bits and beyond... so here we go!!!