Rally your friends and get out on the town on Thursday, May 9.

From 5-7:30 p.m., 12 retailers in the Knightville district of SoPo (check out the route map below) will be hosting a Spring Ladies Knight.

Businesses will be staying open late so you can stroll around, check out their products and services and maybe find a new favorite.

Some shops will be offering food and drink, and some will be offering discounts, raffles and door prizes.

Check out the Facebook page for the latest info and updates.

Thank Goddess will join me to share information about her spa treatment offerings and sell gift certificates. I have some new work (and my favorite lines too) to show you.

Bring a friend, join us for a glass of wine and shop for yourself and for mom! Hope to see you there!

Participating Businesses include:
The Farm Stand
Tula Studios
Chaya Studio Jewelry/Thank Goddess
SOMA Massage & Wellness
The Lamp Repair Shop/The Polishing Shop
Ocean + D Studio/Shop
Earth Angel Arts Gift Shop
Bear Isle Boards
Maine Bodyworks
Ocean Waves/Hair Matters
Karyn Hood, DC
Oren Gertsen, MD
Foulmouthed Brewing

As we approach spring and summer wedding season, this is the perfect time to start creating engagement rings and wedding bands. I LOVE making rings, especially ones that honor the love shared between two people, and I would be honored to work with you!

Some people have a clear design in mind; others have an idea but don’t know how that translates into a design. Some people have existing jewelry they want to use to make a “new” heirloom.

Whatever the approach, I would be delighted to help. You’ll see below some of my recent designs. I love the way they turned out, and I hope you do too.

This is a 14K white gold engagement ring using a design from my Leaf collection. Instead of a diamond, the client wanted to use a green gemstone to represent the evergreen trees of Maine.

The contrast of the beautiful Maine Tourmaline and the white gold are stunning, don’t you think?

Engagement rings don’t have to fit a “traditional” mold. In fact, many of my clients want their rings to reflect their interests. For example, this custom engagement ring made with platinum and a rose-cut champagne diamond was inspired by my client’s love of jelly fish. It’s subtle but personal. You’ll be happy to know that she said “yes!”

Do you prefer something unique yet simple? The client’s diamond looks beautiful in this platinum Wave Ring setting. It is one of my classic designs and can be crafted in any metal.

Perhaps an ornate ring is your aesthetic? Below are two detailed designs. This ring, made for clients in Alaska, was inspired by the couple’s love of fishing. Hand carved from wax, I made it with platinum, a blue zircon center stone and diamonds for the eyes.

This engagement ring is vintage inspired with a beautiful halo around the center diamond and intricate hand engraving on the band.

Finally, this yellow gold ring with a chocolate diamond, rubies and white diamonds is a fantastic example of how I can use existing jewelry to create a new design. I hand carved the designs from wax and cast them in gold. 100% of the materials were provided by the client.

If an engagement or wedding is on your mind, book an appointment with me before you head to a jewelry store. I can show you more of my designs, and we can talk through your thoughts and ideas. I’ll also explain the process and outline the fees, so you can make an educated decision about the ring of your dreams!

Happy February!  Sending you all love and light, Chaya

Our 6th Annual Holiday Pop-Up Shop and Benefit continues! 

Thanks to everyone who has visited during our first two weeks
and for those we hosted at the artists’ reception. We are enjoying meeting
new friends and spotlighting the fabulous work of more than 30 local artists.

Shopping local, supporting talented artists and helping Camp Sunshine
give special experiences to children facing grave illnesses and their
families…. as a friend of mine is fond of saying this time of year,
“that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.”

Don’t forget, the sale continues through December 24,
so there’s still time to stop and shop for the nice
and the naughty on your list.

BIG NEWS:
We have activated a raffle 
for a $200 gift certificate from Chaya Studio Jewelry, 
and all proceeds will go to Camp Sunshine.
I hope you will all be inspired to participate. Click on the link to buy tickets!
They are $5 each or 5 for $20.

Pop-up Shop Hours
Through Monday, December 24
Wed. – Sun., 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
22 Cottage Rd, South Portland, ME

This marks the sixth year of my holiday benefit and pop-up shop. With the

participation of fellow artists, we create a shopping destination where people can

find fantastic holiday gifts and support local artists.

Most important, we share proceeds from sales with Camp Sunshine, 
a retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

As always, we’ll have a wide range of affordable handcrafted items,
including crafts, jewelry, textiles, art and more. Participating artists

include: MJ Benson, Gryffon Ridge Spice Merchants, Shannon Wong Pottery,

Chart Metalworks and more.

Plus, the annual artist reception and customer party is a special time
to mingle with artists and bid on items in the silent auction for Camp Sunshine.

I hope you will stop by and shop during the month!

Pop-up Shop Hours
Saturday, November 24 – Monday, December 24
Wed. – Sun., 9:30 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Artist Reception and Silent Auction
Friday, November 30, 5 – 9 p.m.
The event will feature complimentary refreshments, silent auction
and artist introductions.

As you know from this blog, many gems come in a variety of colors. For example, garnets come in several shades of red and green and black; topaz can be found in several shades of yellow, pale green, blue, red, pink, and black; rubies can be yellow, orange, green, brown, violet or purple. Peridot is one of the few gemstones that forms only in shades of green.

Not only is it the birthstone for August, Peridot is also the stone that celebrates the 16th year of marriage. And once again, I found some famous peridots:

1. Some historians believe that Cleopatra’s famous emerald collection might actually have been peridot.
2. For centuries, people believed the fabulous 200-ct. gems adorning the shrine of the Three Holy Kings in Germany’s Cologne Cathedral were emeralds. They are, in fact, peridots.

According to lore, peridots create abundance in all aspects of life: wealth, health, happiness and joy and has been prized since the earliest civilizations for its protective powers. Set in gold and worn around the neck or bound to the left arm, it was used as a charm against sorcery and magic, evil spirits, night terrors and madness. It also helps the wearer overcome fear, depression and other psychological disturbances.

Happy August!

I love the way the peridots and amethysts work so well together in this mother’s ring that I designed for a client. And as you can see, I think peridots look perfectly lovely with my Lotus collection.

July’s birthstone is the ruby. I love the deep red richness of the stones, but often, for a bit less money, that beautiful red can also be found in tourmaline, red spinel and garnets.

As you know, I work only with previously mined stones, but you might be interested to know that historically rubies have been mined all over the world: Thailand, Cambodia, Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Colombia, India, Namibia, Japan and Scotland; as well as Madagascar, Nepal, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, and Vietnam and Sri Lanka. A few rubies have also been found in Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Wyoming.

The finest ruby is described as being a vivid medium-dark toned red. Less precious secondary colors include pink, orange and purple.

And who knew that there are famous rubies (thank you Wikipedia)?:

1. In December 2011 Elizabeth Taylor’s complete jewelry collection was auctioned by Christie’s. Several ruby-set pieces were included in the sale, notably a ring set with an 8.24 ct gem that broke the ‘price-per-carat’ record for rubies ($512,925 per carat, so more than $4.2 million in total), and a necklace that sold for over $3.7 million. WOW!
2. The Liberty Bell ruby is the largest mined ruby in the world. It was stolen in a heist in 2011.
3. In 2007, London jeweler Garrard & Co featured on their website a heart-shaped 40.63-carat ruby.
4. The Sunrise Ruby is the world’s most expensive ruby, most expensive colored gemstone, and most expensive gemstone other than a diamond. In May 2015, it sold at auction in Switzerland to an anonymous buyer for $30 million.

Rubies have always been held in high esteem in Asian countries. They were used to adorn armor, scabbards, and harnesses of noblemen in India and China. Rubies were laid beneath the foundation of buildings to secure good fortune to the structure.

This custom-made cross features a princess cut ruby, and the small ruby in this necklace from my Julie’s Garden collection really works well with the sea glass.

Whether your birthday is in July or not, you might want to consider a ruby or other deep red stone for your next piece of jewelry. I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Pearls are the traditional birthstone for June. As you probably know, they are formed inside the tissue of a living mollusk (either an oyster or a mussel), so they are considered gems but not stones. White and cream are most common, but black and gray pearls are increasingly common.

What you may not know is that there are many ancient myths associated with pearls. According to Chinese legends, pearls fell from the sky when dragons fought, and ancient folklore refers to pearls as the tears of the gods.

Pearls are said to bring the power of love, money, protection and luck and promote charity, integrity, truth, and loyalty in its bearer.

Pearls come in and out of fashion, so if you have some you’d like to repurpose, give me a shout, and we can get started on a custom piece.

The official birthstone for April is the diamond. It also marks the 60th anniversary of marriage. As a matter of fact, it’s also my birthstone, so I can’t help but be a little partial! I love the look of colored stones, but I also appreciate the simple beauty of a diamond, and for some pieces of jewelry, it is the perfect addition. I read recently that in the first century AD, the Roman naturalist Pliny stated: “Diamond is the most valuable, not only of precious stones, but of all things in this world.” I’m not sure I agree with that, but I know that use of diamonds in jewelry has a long, and sometimes not so positive, history.

The world’s love of diamonds started in India, where diamonds were gathered from rivers and streams as far back as the fourth century BC. The popularity of diamonds waxed and waned throughout history, but in more recent history, brutal civil conflicts have been fueled by diamonds—either to control diamond-rich territory or to fund conflicts through the sale of diamonds. The tragic result is bloodshed, loss of life, and human rights abuses.

This is just another reason that I choose to work solely with suppliers of previously mined diamonds and other gemstones that are cut and polished from existing “rough” stones or those that were previously set in jewelry then removed and re-introduced into the supply chain for resale. That’s important to me and I hope it is important to you, too.

On a lighter note, every civilization’s lore seems to share one thread- that diamonds symbolize great strength and exceptional power. Diamonds have also been believed to improve one’s energy, environment, growth process, prosperity, love life, faith and endurance. The stone is said to attract courage, fortitude, creativity, imagination, purity, harmony, faithfulness and innocence.

This month, whether you have a diamond or not, I wish you strength, courage and faith…just a few of the things our world needs right now.

In my most recent newsletter, I shared the story of a custom hairpiece I created for a client. When the project was complete, I realized the individual components were strong enough to stand on their own, and so they have evolved into a new collection I call Julie’s Garden.

The new line honors a friend of mine who recently lost her battle with cancer. She loved flowers and nature, and I think it is fitting that she be remembered in this way.

This week, I want to share some of the new pieces with you. I hope you like them as much as I do!

This is a start-to-finish collage of Fragrant Spring, necklaces inspired by the hairpiece. They are made from sterling silver, beach pebbles and beads.

This collage is of Pebble Landscape, another necklace in the collection. It is made with sterling silver, 14K yellow gold and sapphires.

This is one of my favorites from the collection; it is made from sterling silver, sea glass, beach pebble and garnet. I created it for a close friend who was also close to Julie. The sea glass comes from Maine, and garnet was her birthstone.