Call to Arms!!

The Greenwala "What's Your Story" contest is still underway and I need your votes! I'm in the running for a chance to with a $500 Amex giftcard - and a featured article about Jaszy's Jewelry on the Greenwala blog! Do you know how many beads that can buy?!

Feel free to vote once everyday until the contest ends 11/30/09.

Thank you!!

Click http://www.greenwala.com/greenwala_contests/all/7-What-s-Your-Story/entries/all/469-Eco-conscious-Jaszy-s-Jewelry

Supported cause is Trees for the Future.

Greenwala is a very cool Green Social Network where you can connect and get involved with other "greenies" and eco-friendly companies.

Subscribe to EcoFashion World for a Chance to Win Jaszy Earrings!!

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I am just so excited that the current Prize for a randomly chosen subscriber is my Jaszy Fair Trade Tagua and Black Onyx Earrings!!

Winner will be chosen September 18, 2009.

Don't miss all the cool eco-fashion news from EcoFashion World and a chance to win Jaszy earrings!!

There went my sanity...

It’s official, my new Jaszy’s Jewelry website has been announced to the world, the press releases have gone out, out went an e-blast announcing a really great sale, and every social networking site I could think of has received notice. So is it any surprise that with all the releases went my sanity and sense of calm?

Surprisingly though, serenity returned to me at a time I least expected it to. I had a profound, and somewhat cerebral moment while chatting with a new friend over dinner. We were discussing our career choices, she is a freelance writer and an amazing playwright, of course what conversation regarding careers would be complete without the topic of stress. I was telling her how frustrated I felt that most people don’t consider just how much work goes into what I do. I started to explain to her that my jewelry is more than pretty little pieces coming together, but it’s also about educating people and about sharing. You see, I feel a need to help people understand that we can be more responsible in our fashion choices. This does not require a complete wardrobe overhaul, but a "green friendly" piece here and there does make a difference.

And sharing...by far I am not the most talented jewelry designer. The web, Etsy and others are jam packed with skilled and talented artists, and like them I tell a story with my jewelry designs. The colors speak to me, the colors dictate how they should come together. I am incapable of sketching before I make a piece; I can barely draw a straight line to say the least. I never really know what the finished piece will look like until it’s complete, it’s a very organic process. Often a silhouette wafts through my mind as the colors of a palette dance in rhythm with its movement. The natural world, be it the bloom of a hibiscus flower or a place I’ve visited like the bluest depths of Trunk Bay in St. Thomas, or the essence of a friend, or a state of being…all these things inspire my designs.

You see, amidst the stress I remembered why I design jewelry, why I often stay up until the very wee hours of the morning dancing in the rhythm of design, it is because I am passionate about the process…research, education, design, inventory, web master or any one of the many hats I wear…I absolutely love making jewelry!

Update: This article was published at More.com, click here to view.

Hitting the proverbial "WALL"!

So perhaps, it could just be, that I'm burning the candle on three sides! Yes, I've been completely distracted by the new website and my other creation, modernhippiemag.com...whew, who knew it would be so much work?! Point being, I haven't created any jewelry in...hold on, memory lapse, can't remember. That's not cool. I don't particularly feel stressed or anything, just a bit off because I'm not creating in my usual medium. The juices are just flowing in a different direction. I don't want to seem ungrateful so I'm just gonna go with the flow and feel good about it. Right?

Not to mention, if you're someone who follows fashion trends as I occasionally do, you'll see that not much changed from the last fall/winter season. I'm thinking I might just, just...break down the "box" and be all unconventional and maybe go with bright colors for winter! Wouldn't that be awesome?! It really comes down to what the little beads tell me to do, honestly they rule my world.

Jaszy ecommerce site!

In addition to working on new fall designs I am diligently working on my new e-commerce site which I hope to launch this month. I was hoping to get some feedback and suggestions on things you'd like to see changed or added from my current site.

A huge question is...How important is it to see jewelry on an actual person? Or are general product pics sufficient?

I really appreciate your thoughts and ideas!!

Spotlight on: Fair Trade Tagua Seeds (Ivory-nut Palm)

Image via Wikipedia

Taguanut, also known as corozo nut, is the seed of the Phytelephas macrocarpa, a low South American palm. They are most abundant in the Amazon Basin of Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru. Ivory-nut palms are dioecious, with the female palms bearing clusters of large, brown fruits, the size of grapefruits or melons. Each fruit is studded with numerous woody, pointed horns and contains four or more large seeds.

The ivory palm endosperm or “tagua” have a similar density and color of elephant ivory, and have often been used as a substitute for making netsuke, scrimshaw and inlay work on furniture and boxes, beads, buttons, figurines, jewelry, and can be dyed. More recently, palm ivory has been used in the production of bagpipes.

Vegetable ivory (tagua) furthers important environmental and socioeconomic goals by stimulating the local economies, provides an alternative to cutting down rainforests for farming, and prevents elephants from being killed for the ivory in their tusks. This is a natural rain forest product that can generate five times the artisan income than banana plantations or cattle ranches. In one year a tagua palm produces the same amount of "ivory" as one female elephant. Tagua nuts are harvested by hand after the ripe fruit has detached without harming the tree.

You can find Fair Trade tagua in many Jaszy’s Jewelry designs accented with gemstones, sterling silver and gold metals.

Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tagua
http://waynesword.palomar.edu/pljan99.htm
http://www.3malliance.org/index.php?id=32

For more in-depth information, see blog post http://milenagalapagos.wordpress.com/2007/11/23/ecuadorian-tagua-nuts/

Update: This article was later published on More.com. Click here to view.

Celebrate Mom!

What better way to celebrate Mom and honor Mother Earth than with a gift of eco-conscious jewelry!!

All jewelry now 40% Off and if that isn't enough to tempt you...for a limited time enjoy a free gift with your purchase!

Necklaces, earrings and bracelets made with Fair Trade Gems, reclaimed Sterling Silver, Fair Trade Tagua and more!

Visit http://www.jaszyjewelry.etsy.com.

For all she does, Mom deserves a special gift...give her one that gives back! A percentage of all sales benefit The Nature Conservatory.