Wishing you all a sweet Christmas!

One, Two, Three Treasuries :)

Chalck It Up to Checkerboards curated by SpareBedroomStudio.




Things for Human Beings (and other nifty living things) curated by FactoryRadio.




honey and lemons curated by rosieok.

Three Etsy Treasuries in a row! What can I say but thank you? A Big Thank You :D

Animal Instincts

You know when you get home at the end of the day and all the muscles in your body are yelling for some serious rest? And then... my Bunny Ring in another Etsy Treasury!
Animal Instincts curated by KbuchananPhotography.
Suddenly, I feel the smooth breeze of nature running through my veins.
Click on the picture and let it flow through yours too :)

A Beautiful Monday :)

Alright! I've just listed my White Bunny Ring and he got straight into this beauty show!
Click on the picture and take a closer look at this Etsy Treasury > Beauty is curated by lemon Shine.
Thank you :D

Into The Wild

My Oh My! Another treasury featuring my Black Kitten Ring!

Animal Whimsy it's the title for this Etsy Treasury East curated by alchemywow.

I'm still not quite sure how these new treasuries work, but I've been featured in two of them. So, I love it already :D

The Bright And Colorful World Of Gems

Yesterday, I spent the whole day learning about gemological materials.

Along the first 7 hours' class of Gemology, Rui Galopim de Carvalho introduced us to the vast universe of minerals, rocks and gemstones.

Among a valuable range of information, we've learned about concerns around evaluating a gemstone and how different shapes and cuts can enhance or destroy its characteristics.

Today, as I was browsing through the links he gave us, I found this interesting test in the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), where you can check your own level of info on gemstones. It's very simple and fun, yet it can really help you to be able to distinguish some important aspects that define the quality of a gemstone and, of course, its price. Give it a try :)

Summer Cravings

One Perfect Summer Day Etsy Treasury curated by natalya1905.

Let's make this a hot day! Click on the picture and take a closer look at my Black Kitten Ring surrounded by this lovely collection. And if you leave a comment in there, temperatures will surely rise :D
Thank you so much Natalya for bringing a Summer scent into my portuguese rainy day!

Over My Dead Body - The Remake

And this is a charcoal drawing, the one I was talking about at the end of my last post.
I guess some of you recognize this girl from the "Girls Are Weird" series.
The original drawings from this series are a size A4 or A5, made with sharped pencils or black ink pens. As I was working on the new series "Girls Are Weird [XL Pendant/XS Portrait]" and had to reduce it to fit the frame, at the same time I had this unbearable urge to enlarge it.
So, this one is around 140cm x 70cm.
I've used charcoal and red soft pastel and I made it for my house, but now I'm willing to remake all of them this big, giving the girls some new dresses from the 2010 collection (if you're getting shot in the head, at least you should be wearing a nice dress, don't you think so?) and giving their little friends some new flashy patterns.
For now, I'm deciding if this one is finished enough to varnish and we'll see.
Oh, by the way, I'm listing the "Girls Are Weird [XL Pendant/XS Portrait]" series on Etsy.
The first one Cut It All Off is already there, hopefully the other ones along the week.
And I'm starting on the previous orders I had while I was away.
Luckily the school work is not killing me by now, so I'll try to keep doing it all again :D
God, I missed the Etsy rush!

Busy Missing You All!

Well, it's been quite a while since I last uptated this blog of mine.

I decided to stay offline for some time (I still have my Etsy shop on "vacation mode", kind of an ironic name for it now) so I could focus on my school work. Although I'm missing all of my online friends and routine, I realize there's not enough time to have it all running, unless I could use a competent clone.

For now, I'll tell you what I'm up to so you know I'm still alive :)

So, in a nut shell, I've moved to a new home and I'm really happy about it. As spring just started, I'm filling my space with flowers and bright colors.
Today I have to finish an assignment for a master class about Metal Archeology lectured by Barbara Armbruster.
Meanwhile we had another master class where Barbara Schmidt gave us such an amount of valuable information about Design Management. It was pretty tiring, last friday and saturday from 10 am till 6 pm, but I enjoyed every minute of it. And, of course, another assignment to do.
And, at the same time, we're making a new piece for the most technical class, Metal Laboratory under the sharp eye of Rui Seixas, and it must reach perfection. And I'm still finishing the last project for the Jewellry Design Laboratory class in Rhinoceros - Scale.
We're also already introduced to the Project class, that will beggin in a couple of months, with José Carlos Marques and Carla Castiajo. This project will be our final statement in the Post Grad, evaluated by a jury.

As I'm trying to keep my creative soul from going insane, I'm learning a lot.
And for keeping the sun shinning through my veins, I'm starting a big charcoal drawing just for myself. A private selfish project.
You'll see :)

Open Your Eyes

There are no grades of vanity, there are only grades of ability in concealing it. Mark Twain

There is certainly no absolute standard of beauty. That precisely is what makes its pursuit so interesting. John Kenneth Galbraith

This necklace is my third piece for the Jewellery Design Laboratory class.
This project "The subject and the object" intended to explore the link between the jewellery piece and the individual wearing it. They were not supposed to be totally finished by the creator, but to allow an interaction, a post transformation by the user.
My "Open Your Eyes" necklace was created to question where (or even if) we should place the fine line that keeps us from weaken our image with too much adornment, once again in the boundaries of Beauty and Vanity.
A plain clean pendant, a layered complex one, or an open necklace where the damask pattern grows, as you open your eyes to the realm of beauty, until the last and most fragile piece that escapes from the circular frame into a free form.
I have a secret expectation for that last piece to break somewhere along the way. Maybe I made it strong enough and it never will, but you can't know it for sure, can you?
Don't you think that could be the final chapter, that perfect ending?

Warm In The Shadows

...


Recovering from the hard work for the presentation (I got to finish the necklace :D and post about it later when I organize the info about it) and now I'm seriously packing my endless stuff for I'm moving to a new home next week. So, I've been too busy to keep my blog updated.
Still, since last week I was featured in a couple of Etsy Treasuries and a blog.
Desire for Sunlight assembled by the amazing Nauli girls > click on the first picture to go to their facebook fanpage and take a look at their Treasuries.
Gold and Silver by dafnadagan > click on the second picture and you can still see it online, so you can leave a comment if you'd like.
And I was also featured in this brilliant blog The daily sardine > click in the picture bellow to get to my interview!
I'll be back soon with full strenght, but while I'm away, these rays of sunshine are keeping my heart warm :)
Thank you so very much!

Hard Working

The damask pattern I'm piercing in the picture belongs to the "Open Your Eyes" new necklace. I'm already finished with the saw, but there's still a lot to be done.
Today will be a long day. Off to work!

The Storque > Opposites Attract

Ok my friends, I spent the whole afternoon working with the saw and my arms really hurt. I'm trying to finish a new piece that I have to present for my Post Grad this Friday (not sure I can (but must) have it finished on time :p). It's a necklace and I called it "Open Your Eyes". I'll post about it later, after the presentation.

So, as I was mentally rehearsing what to say about it to a bunch of people, I got home to find my Golden Kitten Ring in The Storque! For those of you who don't know it, The Storque is Etsy's Handmade Blog and it's the absolute first time I see one of my pieces featured in it! Thank you Emily!
And, by the way, yesterday I was featured again in Etsy Frontpage!

I'm now fighting a hard battle against time and decided to close my shops for a month or two. But you tell me, how can I?
It's like in that song "this odd diversity of misery and joy" ;)

Some of us are weird girls...

Some of you may be wondering what happened to the Girls Are Weird [XL/XS] series.
They out to be listed on my Etsy shop by now. And they're not.
The owner of this lovely local shop Aparências came my way and asked for some of my pieces. I showed her this small series of mine and just couldn't resist that look in her eyes as she picked up piece by piece. I had to let them go with her. All of them.
Those in Portugal can stop by for a visit, just click on the picture to go to the site.
As for Etsy, I'll make another set of this series later.
Well, you must agree with me. Some things belong where they are most cherished.

By the way, the first Girls Are Weird [XL/XS] "Welcome Back" is already in the hands of the giveaway winner > Miss Tiffy. Take a look at the post in her blog all about it.
Thank you so much for that Miss Tiffy :)

My Bunny Valentine

He was running late.
The kitten and the teddy bear were finished and ready to go for a couple of weeks but I told them - no way! We must wait for My Bunny Valentine.

So, for all the undecided, the procrastinators, the ones who just met the love of their lives, here's the I'm All Ears [Valentine's Special Edition] series > tomorrow on Etsy.
These sterling silver, gold platted, sanded on the surface, secret keeper rings are all ears for you as usual. But this time you can see a bit of the red paper band with your secret message through a pierced heart detail.
For love is too sweet and heady to stay hidden forever.

Dawanda [The Frontpage]

My "Voodoo Him" Brooch is in Dawanda Frontpage!

First things first.
You need to decide who is your aim.
Do you love/hate him? So, let the needles show how you feel.
Wear it with or without the needles to match your disposition.
Click on the picture for more details.

Good Morning

I love the smell of treasuries in the morning :)
good morning by dafnadagan featuring my White Bunny Ring.
Thank you so much!

Brownie blooming

Lunch time and guess what? Another feature in an Etsy Treasury :D
Look at this awesome selection > Brownie blooming by nauli.
Thanks girls, you're the coolest!!

Spirit of Adventure

I woke up this morning to this dreamy Etsy Treasury > Spirit of Aventure by UniquelyEJewelry featuring my White Bunny Ring side by side with Alice from Wonderland.
Isn't it a perfect match? Thank you!

The Winner Takes It All!

Here's the moment you've been all waiting for!

I know, I know, you can tell, video is not my field of expertise :) anyway, I just had to do it, hehehe.

Congrats to the lucky winner and thank you all so much for being a part of this giveaway contest!

A Peek At Utopia

Manias em cadeia!

Sorry my friends, this one post goes in portuguese (it's not my fault, it was awfully imposed by the rule makers ;)

Ok, este vai em português para desenferrujar a língua e evitar que as camadas subtis de significados subliminares se percam na tradução.
Obrigada Candybabe por me atirares para esta cadeia maníaca!

Mania 1 > tenho a mania que já fui um pastor alemão (o cão, não o profissional estrangeiro) porque preciso de tarefas a cumprir para me sentir feliz, dou comigo constantemente a arranhar atrás das orelhas (principalmente da direita) e tenho o focinho comprido.
Mania 2 > compro sempre meias iguais, todas, sempre. Tenho horror à sensação de andar à procura "da outra meia". Assim, quaisquer duas são o par perfeito.
Mania 3 > já usei o nick Mania quando era viciada em chats. Normalmente só o usava quando estava numa rampage de adrenalina e queria destruir tudo à minha volta.
Ia, obviamente, para salas que não costumava frequentar, por respeito aos amigos habituais e só atropelava estranhos no geral.
Mania 4 > tenho a mania de comprar uma agenda todos os anos (já comprei a de 2010) mas acabo sempre por quase não a usar e acumular as incontáveis tarefas que tenho em incontáveis layers no meu caótico cérebro.
Mania 5 > tenho a mania que tenho sempre razão, mesmo quando o meu raciocínio já passou para um plano totalmente abstrato que não leva a lado nenhum.

REGRAS: "Cada bloguista participante tem de enunciar 5 manias suas, hábitos muito pessoais que os diferenciem do comum dos mortais. E além de dar ao público conhecimento dessas particularidades, tem de escolher 5 outros bloguistas para entrarem, igualmente, no jogo, não se esquecendo de deixar nos respectivos blogues aviso do recrutamento. Cada participante deve reproduzir este regulamento no seu blogue."

Next:
anapina blog
Made By Fiera
Nem Tudo O que Luz É Ouro
Kat Musnter
orangebymaryjohnofkings

The Frontpage [Round Three]

My Golden Teddy Ring made it to Etsy Frontpage today! No wonder it's already sold ;)
I was working offline all day and could not see it there in real time (I never do) but I always check Craft Cult heart-o-matic with a secret hope for a feature... and here it is > TheGoldenPlague for the third time on the frontpage in another Etsy Admin selection.
Now let's get that little golden creature ready to go his own way :)
Thank you!

The Sweetest Friends Are The Real Treasuries

This wonderful collection The Sweetest Thing is the first Etsy treasury made by my dear friend Kathleen aka missusD.
I'm crossing my fingers for it to get to the Frontpage!
You can all help by clicking in the picture and leaving a comment there :)
Thanks Kathleen for including me in your first treasury (of many, I hope)!

The Copy [Final Step]

This is my final object for The Copy Project in the Jewellery Design Laboratory class based on the idea of high heels.
Is it Beauty or Vanity?
A cage or a few inches closer to heaven?
Isn't it freedom when you can choose your own slavery?
And can this be a jewellery piece when you experience it in your body, even if you can not actually wear it?

Giveaway > New Year, New Series

"Welcome back" is the first piece from the Girls Are Weird [XL/XS] series.
In this series, each picture is a print from original drawings of mine, printed in photographic paper and protected with a glass looking resin. The frame is a can bottom hand cut, hand pierced and the silk ribbon around it ends up in a knot holding a twisted sterling silver link. You can wear it around your neck or just hang it on the wall.
A XL pendant or a XS frame, either way, it's your choice :)

And to welcome this new year and new series, I'm giving the first piece to one of you.
Just leave a comment on this post and you are in.
Sunday the 17th January, when I'm exactly 5 months from being an year older, I'll get in touch with the lucky winner.
Meanwhile I'll start listing the rest of the series on my Etsy shop.
Feel very welcome to drop by.

Delightful

The year has just begun and here's the first Etsy Treasury featuring one of my rings in 2010.
It's called delightful by PianoBenchDesigns and includes my Black Cherry Blossom ring.
Isn't it a lovely collection?

Happy New Year!